First Sun-Rise over quake-stricken Miyagi, Japan

————————————————————- (Photo from Mainich News Paper )

This is a photograph, I found less than an hour ago, which has been taken only few hours ago in Japan.

The first Sun-rise seen from the hill-top (Hiyori-yama) in Natori City, Miyagi Prf’ which

is over looking a mountain of rubble, left by the earthquake and the tsunami.

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To see the First Sun-rise of  New Year is the tradition in Japan.

First day of January, many part of Japan has been covered with snow though, lots of people

goes out cold, some are even climb the high mountain only to see this Sun-rise. (I did it before too).

Of cause, to reach high advantage point before Sun-rise needs to start the journey in the

middle of the night, the temperature could be well bellow Zero.

—– Don’t ask  “what for”,  because the answer is just  ” To see the first Sun-rise”  (初日の出)

 If you see it yourself, you can’t stop to feel owe. —- Why ?   This is what Spirituality mean.

Western people asked ” Why Japanese brought a cash found in the mud to the Police” (and 90% of the

money — £23M all together — has been returned to the rightful owner by the Police) or  ” Why Japanese

didn’t loot” —– the answer is all same.  Such kind of morality is in their fundamental ethos = Spirituality.

(It is nothing strange, when people talk or behave according to what they have read in a book or Bible, as

it was simply in their memory.    But when people behave without such knowledge, against their instincts

such as greed or selfish gain,  and even without the other’s watchful eyes = This is the Spirituality.)

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People saw the Sun-rise there, might have played (don’t ask “to whom ?”.  Spirituality doesn’t

need a figure or name of the God )  for the Soul of who lost the life in  Tsunami or

wished the well recovery of the surviver.

To share the same play, I put this photo here.

Peace to the people who has been suffering.

___/\___

—

WRONG ? — or Just don’t LIKE it ?

While fallen leaves are disappearing from the street and the trees are getting naked,

I encountered the Cherry blossoms in a small green space.

Since this unusually warm autumn, many reports saying the flowers are opening

as they mistook it as this is already a spring.

In a normal condition, when the flowers open, many honey bee etc. are there

to pollinate the flowers, hence the fruits and the seeds would be developed.

But this is a dark, cold November. Even a single creeping insect is not in sight.

It’s mean all the energy and the effort to produce the flowers would be wasted.

—– presuming, the flowers are there only for the reproduction of the species.

Is it true ?  In fact, many garden variety of the Cherry tree having their flower in the winter time.

In Japan, they are called  Kan-zakura (Winter cherry) and quite few famous tourist spot to see the blossoms

even in February.  As they don’t have cherry fruits, they are propagated by grafting.  It’s mean, they

couldn’t exist without having human intervention = not natural =  is it wrong ? —– I’m not sure.

[]

Value system is a human invention.  To appreciate cherry blossom in the winter is one view and judging

it unnatural is the another. —— Once we go into this area, it would open a can of worm = as we human created

so many [not necessary natural practice] —— such as sexuality, even a religious practice etc.

( Just think about the stance of the Afghan Tariban and the women’s right there)

Then give a thought or two —— [Normal] or not, is a matter of statistic = though, larger number doesn’t

mean they are right.  [Right] or wrong —– WHO said so and in WHAT context.  [Rational] or not, still having

uncertainty = even the science doesn’t know whole truth yet.

—– so, we settle most primitive and cheapest mean [Like or Not] = emotion and instinct based judgement.

This judgement is the most reliable judgement to the person though, in the same time it is

notoriously easily biased, and often confused with wishful thinking.

That is why, the Buddhists are saying [see it without the Self] = [eyes of Mushin] = absolutely

detached objective view though, if only you can do this.

(Trouble is HOW do others know and convinced,  that the person did it in Mushin )

If you are a Buddhist, try this and think ” Was it any different from Just Like it ? ” )

I myself is doing this, because it is easiest and quickest.  (I’m lazy to think too much,

hence giving no second thought though, others often complain   😀  )

___/\___

—

Desire and GREED

There is a funny paradox in one’s greed.

The more the one chase its desire, more likely end up in misery, in stead to have a satisfaction.

It is said, there are only two motivations which drives the man’s life. One is the sex and the other is greed.

— it might be true as the fundamental instincts for survival are the own survival and the survival of the species.

For own survival, the one has to eat. To eat enough and well, it needs to find the source and the mean to get it

= virtually all the human culture is for this system, directory or indirectly.

And the cynics even said, to eat and live is for a purpose of to perform sex. (How exciting. —– but if it was the

case, surviving without performing a sexual act, is it a waste of the life ? —– somebody made a joke,

it’s a small change after spending spree 😀 )

[]

Eat just enough is classified as bare essential —– but more than that is called as [Greed] 😀

Eat more than necessary would end up with obesity but I may not be a good adviser for this topics since

I couldn’t understand why it happens, since I’m not an addict to any food and having the same body weight

(60kg) since I was 16 years old.

Yet, strangely I can eat an enormous amount in one go —– once, when I went to the Saudi Arabia, Jeddha to set up

an audio-visual multi-screen display for a Motor Show, as well as photographing all those process, I needed to

work pretty hard —– and seeing me eating two portions of meal, a man from advertising agency from Japan said

“Now I understand where your energy and the power came from”

“Of cause, you can’t fight with empty stomach” 😀

But, when the body needs very little, such as a time just dealing with electronic circuit, sitting all day = I even

forgot to eat. —– (Still, drink 1.5~2 litters / 3~4 pints of tea in a day = it is a must for my body)

So that, I have no idea how and why some people can keep eating while getting fat without feeling nausea.

—– couldn’t they feel what the body is telling and see the situation in the mirror ?

( uncontrollable addiction is different from a simple desire or greed, still as I wrote in the earliest post,

eating disorder such as anorexia is a wrong program in the subconsciousness = it’s a matter of the person’s

mind-set of which the Zen is specialized to deal with )

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Life is a total system. Hence, it’s called Life Style.

But this style is not like a fashion, it can not be simply changed day by day or each occasion.

And as it is the total system, it is hard to tinker the corner, as the system operates in relation to every

elements / subsystem. —– Mind set is synchronizing with this system.

Simple example is the shopping.   The food you buy is what you eat. = you may say “Of cause”

—– really ?  Just think, how much food you have been throwing away from the fridge or didn’t finish to eat.

[]

If you think to slim-down to simple life, you have to start to change from the shopping habit.

Buy only the food for bare essential, and make a pattern what to buy in where.  If you are likely to

eat little of that cooking, make it only small portion for just enough amount and finish all of them.

—– once the pattern is established, gradually remove a kind of food which is not essential or

self-indulgent kind, namely sweets, crisps and chocolate, even ice cream 🙂

Having the food on front and curve the desire is a fruitless attempt.

Better start with not to buy, not to have it.

So, set the mind [I can’t spend the money for this kind. I’m a poor person] —– (I don’t think if

anybody think, to buy chocolate is a sign of rich person though. 😀 )

[]

At Morison I buy Danish bread, Carrot, Onion, Sprouts, Leaf Tea and Honey. = Because I can choose exact size

of vegetable (because I eat all of them in one meal) and their Danish bread found to be the best so far.

At Lidl I buy Chicken, Apples, Tinned Fish  (my cloths, shoes and junk goods and tools = cheap :-D)

And Iceland, I buy only their Eggs and Single Cream (for Tea and for creamy soup).

At street market, I buy Green Pepper, strange fruits, and exotic vegetables. —– as this shopping habit is

fixed, I only goes to particular corner and I buy nothing else  ( to do Japanese cooking

I go up to the China Town to buy Tofu, Sea weed etc.)

Since, my mind got only those essentials, others such as sweets are just a passing land-scape.

[]

Here that paradox is = set the mind as poor person and abandon greed can bring the more

well-shaped rich life. = (Best of all, I don’t get ill. 🙂 )

———-

PS :  Some of you might be wondering, what I’m cooking out of such limited ingredients. —– I used to

think, I’m a good cook and when I ate something “Oh, I know how it was cooked and I can do too” though,

I gave up to think like this, as I became aware how it is the specialized and delicate area of the skill.

I left gourmet food to the specialized restaurant.  I know it’s there, but may not on my life.  That’s it.

To accept the limit is a part of the contemplation, and this is the departure away from the greed.

—

Cognition – Expectation – Speculation

When I wrote my thesis for the Sociology degree (gosh, 40 years ago), my theme was

“Lion was made with the seven deer he ate” = Our lives were based on the intake of not only the food

but also depend on the intake of the information. This pattern is common from the simplest mono-cell

organism to highly evolved animal like us and even a huge social organization or corporate.

What makes the difference of their degree of evolution is, how far the objective / projection is,

in the time perspective = instant reaction to many years long-term development project.

[]

Until a mono-cell organism actually bumped a food or danger, they couldn’t react.

But the elephants may go to a water-hole they had seen 40 years ago when they got severe drought.

They expect to find it even beyond the weeks of walk.

And we (well, some of us) are experimenting about how Neutrino behave, for any possible

application of its use or knowledges for an unknown future. —– all depend on how much we

have the data to make a judgment and a decision-making.

For my thesis, I made a frame-work to analyze the decision-making of the people, analyze the

[Information sphere] of the people (in its group or social cluster) by their use of the words in comparison to

the use of the same words in the media —– such as the words “social class” were more often used by the people

who is reading the left-wing media = hence they are most likely to respond according to what media was suggesting.

(And this is what Google is doing now by picking the key-word in our Email !)

[]

Zen is suggesting to eliminate the useless thinking when we react or for decision-making. —– though, even when

our hand picks up a tea-cup, the position of the cup has been coordinated in the 3D sphere, hence our hand, each

bones and muscles are able to move correct direction and proper distance.

Our brain is projecting, if the hand moves in such way and so much, it would reaches to the cup, with an

assumption of the visual information from the eyes is correct.

Simply they has been done without we are noticing that we are processing the data.

—– So, the matter is how much is too much.   (Too much thinking read you to nowhere, yet if

literally no thinking at all,  our hand may not able to pick a teacup).

In comparison to the expectation and speculation, cognition is mostly passive, but expectation

is inflated with a wishful thinking or even a delusion.  This is where its trouble starts.

[]

Our human lives are based on the projected expectation.   Even when we were the hunter-gatherer, to go to

the beach was to pick the sea food. = they knew it’s there from the experiences or other’s direction.

So as the economic activities and its decision-makings are.  In here, the greed inflated wishful thinking comes in.

Spanish has expected, the English holiday maker and the retired rich would buy their holiday villa. = Hence they

invested so much money to build the holiday villa,  hotels etc. —– though, after Lehman shock,  all those

speculation busted. = trouble was, the money they invested was not their own money but the money

borrowed from the bank.   Not only the people working in the building industry and their supply chain but

whole economy collapsed, end up with 20% unemployment.

When the developer decided to build, it was the firm anticipation to expect pretty reasonable return of which

the bankers had the same anticipation, hence they rent the money.

Though, it was regarded to be a careless speculation, mistake they made. = therefore inevitable

consequence they are suffering now.

[]

So, a funny question is, what makes the difference between anticipation / expectation and the

speculation ? —– if it was right in the hind-sight, it was the expectation, and if it was wrong,

was it the speculation ? ———- the trouble is, a famous speculator who made huge, huge money with

his speculation,  like George Soros,  his speculation was proved to be right, hence he made money.

—– was his speculation,  made by days of thinking / analysis,  or unknown kind of sheer hunch ?

So far I haven’t heard a story of Zen meditation made any money-making good speculation 😀

And even though, my mother was so accurate to see the future,  still all the prediction about herself was not

correct (she expected her life may end 50 something though,  she lived much longer in her 80s)

What she taught me was, even the Chinese I-chin, it wouldn’t work when the matter is related to the

own ego or greed. = Spiritualism and money-making can not go together.

[]

In the cyber space, the information sphere is almost completely open.

We are no longer limited to a single view of the TYPE of media = theoretically, we can seek any information,

and to have free thinking and own judgment —– really ?

Yet, the last barrier seems to be, our own EGO and the GREED.   Ego and the greed makes the

one’s view to very narrow scope, limiting it just to a money game, dropping all the view for the

social implication.   Open mind is not only for new idea, but to see the world in every aspects.

( If there was not such blind greed in the bankers or speculators, the economical mayhem which the world is

now facing, wouldn’t be there in the first place)

—

Search Term

Like real life, there always is something unexpected, or couldn’t anticipate.

This Yoshizen’s blog was started just as a coincidence, hence no clear structure or design exist.

And it has been went on and on, resulted utterly assorted 260 posts now, and having total hit of 57,000 (!).

(I have no idea how many people — if 10 persons read 10 posts each, it would be counted as 100 hits)

In fact, it’s gave me a puzzle “How come” ? And I’m still puzzling, such as an occasion soon after it was posted,

suddenly it gone to popular arena and receiving amazing responses, —– How it happened  ?

There seems something strange communication exist among the readers of which I’m not fully understood.

How the readers able to know something interesting in here, before hand ?

Is it all because of the Google’s search engine ?  Or a kind of network of the readers, Emailing

the link each other, saying have look this one ?

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And pretty interesting to me is, I can see the search term which people used —– and end-up here 🙂

—– I don’t know whether a person expected to come here or somewhere else.

Some search terms such as [Make rice cake in 15 minutes], [Da vinch penis drawing] are most likely from

the memory of my old post, and wanted to find the same, probably to show others as a talking piece.

But some of them are utterly incomprehensible —– How it came to here ? Some are a term to look for a

porno site = when I tested the same, such as [female nude 3D] [japanese wife nude] it went into a sea

(million items) of Google lists.   So the question is,  how the person could manage to reach here without

leaving a Google foot-print ? Is there special access code to write Search Term into my Stats’ ?

—– What ever, it must be a great effort to achieve it.

[]

The terms which people has used, such as [Bodhitree in Japanese], [story+of+bodhidarma]

[Walking and not thinking the leg movement] — may originated from this blog though, the

person didn’t remember the name of the site = name is not the matter but the contents.

A flower rising from the water may teach a person what is the Dharma,  but the matter is

the way of its existence,  not the name = Lotus.

This blog might have inspired the readers and some may find the right direction of

their Pathway. = is what all about the role of this blog.   And the very reason to be here.

___/\___

—

Quantitative Easing

When I was doing a voluntary work in a mountain shelter where we’ve been taking care of

up to 100 guests.   Still, 3 times every year we have to accommodate 300 guests for two ~

three nights at the so-called golden week on May and September, and the New Year holiday.

To feed 300 guests was nothing but a war. We keepers were in a constant battle of

cooking, serving, and washing. (In the same time, some senior keeper had to go out

to search missing person and some had to treat the injured person and so on)

In the kitchen front, we had only 70 or so dinner plates, and in such situation, serving a

meal of fixed menu, Cary Rice (because it can be served on one plate and a spoon = easiest

to serve and wash. ( No complaint. —– It’s a 2300m high mountain called Yatsugatake in

Nagano pref’ where snow fall could be up to 2m deep, winter temperature could be

dropped to -20 degree C. —– mind you, we keepers weren’t paid. We even had to pay a transport

to get there from our pocket.   If you don’t like don’t come,  was the base of rules.

Once in February, I learned how to live alone, without making even a single word,

as the owner has gone to the town and didn’t come back one month, just listening a

roar of snow storm and boiling noise of water on a stove was the life.

How nice to be in the remote mountain. 😀 )

non

When I was washing the dish to cater 300 guests, I noticed that the same plate is coming

back every 10 minutes —– I know it because the plate got minute spot on its edge.

While serving the guests, 70 plates rotating ( go-out with Cary Rice on it, and coming

back as an emptied plate ) = 4~5 times rotation would serve 300 people in 1 to 2 hours !

300 guest were served and they are satisfied (on the face. 😀 ) by the rotation of  70 plates.

non

It was an ingenious and intriguing imagination (joke), when I saw the economical situation, I found

the funny analogy between so-called Credit Crunch and the rotating plates. — as long as the plates

rotates 5 times in an hour or so, everybody will be fed before they feel hungry, or 300 guest were fed

and all of their stomachs were filled,  despite of only having 70 plates, 300 portion of the

requirement was fulfilled = 4.3 times more wealth has been created.

But if the speed slow down, someone end of the queue would be starved.   To alleviate the situation,

hand out a plate to each with a promise of that the food would be served soon = it’s called credit.

—– though, fundamental problem was, there are only 70 plates.

To calm the frustration of the guest, hand out 230 more paper dish to cover all 300 =

this is so-called Quantitative Easing. 😀

non

Everybody is expecting to get a meal while holding a paper dish in their hand.

We mankind has created funny system of economy and the false environment. — what’s this ? ? ?

—– I rather like to have, not a falsely inflated economy and uncertain promise, but to bring

fresh food material and cook by myself and eat = down to the earth humble life.

( Of cause, I know the politician and the bankers would say “ Don’t be limited by 70 plates,

create more wealth and spend it” —– ? ? ? Really ? —– [aren’t they stashing the wealth

created there, into their own pocket ? ]

It doesn’t need to see 70 plates. Everybody can see something utterly wrong

in the socioeconomic system today.  Raise your voice.  Make politician,

bankers to take notice.  So, go to the street,  join the protesters.

non

Conflicted view to Steve Jobs

Some people pointed out that my view toward Steve Jobs in two previous posts are conflicting.

Appreciate him in respect of his Zen influenced attitude but in the same time showing an

almost a hatred toward him. —– this is true in certain extent.

There is a very clear reason. From the beginning I didn’t like Apple at all as I’ve described before.

Then, I learned a life history of him and his background —– born as a child of Syrian father

and an American mother, but as their marriage was not accepted by their parents, Steve was grown up

in the adopted family, Jobs. —– those conflict embedded in his psyche lead him to seek the Zen

which gave him an ultimate confidence to be HIM and the mental strength.

non

People having a stereotype towards the Buddhism that it is a teaching of peace and harmony.

Though, as I wrote long ago in a Post [ Third aspect in Zen ] there is yet another aspect =

Zen as a technique of Mind Engineering.   How to reprogram one’s mind and give a confidence.

The most famous Sword Master Musashi Miyamoto who wrote [ Book of the Five Rings ] was an accomplished

Zen Master too. —– Still, he was a killer of 30 odd people — (said to be, as I wasn’t there 🙂 ).

And lots of opponents who fought with him were also Zenist.    Being a Zen Buddhist doesn’t mean they

avoid the fight and settle peaceful draw.   One has to die.    The matter in there was only how to kill

in the most efficient way.  Live as a Samurai, death is a part of their Karma and the contemplation.

This is nothing but the Zen Buddhism.

non

Zen can give completely open eyes of Mushin,  hence the reaction or decision-making is

the reflection of the Dharma, thus the result would be the most appropriate and the best.

In this aspect, Steve Jobs has accomplished the task what he needed to Do.  Which

he conceived the idea with his open-minded way ( having no dithering to the conventional

thinking or hesitation to others ).

I appreciate this, in relation to the Zen. —– though, I hate the way how Apple exploited the others.

Dharma did give him the best idea of the product design, though I quite doubt of the

well thought-out (second thought driven by the greed) business model to enslave the

consumer = too much tactical thinking and the greed subjecting others was excessive. 

Zen will make a person to perfects the task,  but to harm others

would lead to the repercussion of the Karma to him.

I give certain appreciation to the products, though I wouldn’t make myself to become

a slave or their colony.

My freedom is more precious than few hundreds pound gadget   😀

non

I hate Apple.

Since I’ve put quotations from Steve Jobs on my previous post, some of the people got a

misconception of that I am a fan of Apple products.  Far from it, I am a proud Apple hater.

Never attracted to buy any of their product, therefore I don’t have any, except some discarded junk for spare-

parts. ( A power adapter with broken connector for Mac’ laptop, I bought for £1 from an Odds and Ends box

of a shop, wasn’t too bad for a  24 V power supply to use with stepping motor, as it is smaller

and having a built-in  fold-away main plug  )

The reason why I hated them since very beginning was, I hate their sales tactics.

Only designed and schemed for the way of money sucking system, was utterly repulsive to me.

non

Storing digitized music signal in a solid-state memory was a natural evolution, as I was seeing the last moment

struggle of Sony trying to cling the market by their Mini-disc, I really pitied them with a question Why ?

Though, I didn’t buy Apple’s iPod, as I saw their greed to monopolize the Music distribution system by their

monopolized  iTunes.  ( Before, I’ve been annoyed by their Mac’ design. Everything is incompatible with PC.

All the connectors are exclusive, not only the style of it, but the signal protocol, format etc, hence it needs to

have all sorts of converter. — On top of this, they are much more expensive, selling to the snobs who want to

show off. —– I despise those kind of snob most. ( Just watching heavily compressed signal of downloaded

porno, what  is the point to have so-called “ good in graphics Apple Mac “ —– don’t make me laugh.)

( Me to use bloody expensive full-frame Canon was not for fancy pretence, simply because no other camera

allow me free to use another manufacturer’s lens, even hand-made lens, while keeping auto-exposure function.

You can’t do this with any another camera —– I had no choice. )

non

The reason why I did put a post quoting Steve Jobs’ word ;

>>> you are not going to usea piece of plywood on the back,  even though it faces the wall and

nobody will ever see it. You will know it’s there,  so you are going to

use a beautiful piece of wood on the back.

—– is to say, in real life, he didn’t cut even a single piece of wood to make his product.  He was

not a programmer nor electronic engineer. — He only know the design spec’ which can sell.

He just pressurized others to make it —– in notorious draconian way.

Apple didn’t make any of their products, from single component (nearly 80% came from Japan )

to final assembly (in China).

But got most of the profit for themselves thanks to their inflated price.

non

I can imagine the pressure who supplied the component, had to face —– such as to make it 1mm even thinner

out of already minuscule 3mm high, and even with reduced price.

Everybody had to work for Apple while dripping their blood and under a fear of instant dismissal.

He was a man lived in grudge and the revenge against the people who has kicked him out of Apple before.

No wonder such obsessed hi-tensioned psyche shortened his life. I don’t think he had a happy life, neither he

gave any happiness to other people —– he only sold an empty vanity, a Myth to the mass.

When Steve Jobs realized,  that their brain couldn’t keep hold the Myth for ever, they opened the design of

APP to the outside designer ( in fact it was an ingenious solution ! ) and started to sell the APPs designed by

somebody else.  Yet another exploitation of others while running their money-making  machine for them.

And this must be the reason, why his Hero was real Ninja —– who got a deadly efficiency, able to carry out

a duty [to kill] in a most ruthless dirty manner —– contrast to useless fantasy in Superman or Spider-man.

non

Seeing his death, and seeing the wane of Apple, flood-gate was opened for the people to speak out.

So, I’m very curious to hear, how Steve Jobs could able to force his concept in their product design system.

( Steve Jobs invented nothing. He just used the existing technology and the components only in smaller, pretty

package = putting a lot more together, in order to give an illusion to the users that they can do a lot more.

—– To do this, the supplier of the component, such as camera, touch-pad etc had to work bloody hard to

make it even smaller with higher spec’ to fill the requirement of the Apple)

non

And interesting to see, how such as the Korean industry who got used to just copy, is going to do their future

business without having a sample to copy 😀

(—– It’s mean, the inspiration of Steve Jobs was at least unique to him and impossible to copy.

—– in this aspect, he WAS a unique man —– all the technology in the iPhone has been known

to the electronic industry though,  nobody else,  other than Steve Jobs

actually made it to iPhone )

It’s a funny paradox here. — (It’s easy to do, still nobody else but him did do.  He Just Did It.

It was a good sample, how to keep an Open-Mind.  And if it needs to be done, Do it.  😀 )

]]] non

ZAFU — What ?

Some time ago I encountered a Zenist blog complaining that somebody stole

his Zafu (Small cushion), because of this, he couldn’t sit and meditate.

He said ” It was a jealous conspiracy, obstructing  me to get enlightenment ”

—– Whoa ! ! !    😀

I

I think after I’ve read this, I wrote a post saying “ Don’t bother Zafu,

you can sit anywhere and practice Zen in any manner”   😀

And after I wrote previous post [Water bowl Zen] I got an image of

Buddha walking with his disciples —– m m m ?

Without any reason,  suddenly I imagined that if they are all carrying

their own Zafu. —– Ha ha ha 😀

—

So that the photo right is [ Shariputra who got his Zafu under his arm, asking a question

to Buddha]. —– of cause, I’m kidding. —– you know how funny it is.  Of cause there wasn’t a Zafu on the

time of  Buddha,  as no body needed it,  since they don’t sit in a style of Lotus posture.

Can you imagine a group of bhikku, posses nothing,  yet carrying a Zafu for comfortable sitting ? 

—

I wrote somewhere “So-called image of Buddha meditating” was a mis-representation of

Buddha just having a break and taking  rest.  Like all the Indian, Asian people, when they sit and

having a rest,  they just sit (so-called half Lotus),  not twisting the legs.

The iconic Lotus posture was a later invention which even needs a Zafu to keep body balance, which mean

it is not a natural way to sit. —– Buddhism had gone too much posturing.

It is not a way to follow the Dharma,  or  the Nature.

—

So,  Shariputra carrying a Zafu was a sheer joke.  😀

In fact the wire figure was originally made as a Royal Guard of the Emperor’s Palace.  🙂

It’s good to have a joke some time  😀      ( Zen Buddhism is not for having  grumpy life )

___/\___

—

Bowl of Water Zen

When I was talking about Zen practice with others, someone mentioned a BBC news which

showed a group of Chinese Zen monks are walking while carrying a bowl of water

as their Zen practice. —– “ Oh, what a good idea. It’s a good practice to learn Zen Mind “

—

( It’s easy to try this.  Fill the water to the top of bowl about 8″  big and holding it to your chest high and walk.

By doing this,  you can observe your state of the mind,  how steady and calm your mind is.

Strangely you may find,  the more you concentrate and gaze the water the more it shakes  😀

—– when your mind is almost detouched from the water or whole action,  then the water become still and

make no drip while you are walking —- then you can fill even more water reaching to the edge.  It’s a fun !)

non

In this blog, I’ve been talking that any action could be a Zen practice, hence in one post I talked about

[Lemon Zen] and the other post, [Walking Zen] in fact I also mentioned about the effects of even riding

a bicycle or typing —– any repeating action could have the same effect to reach

a state of the Mind of No-Mind or Mushin.

non

In fact everybody is doing the action of walking in Mushin = nobody is thinking when and how to move

the right leg after left leg has moved. —– It’s all done unconsciously.

So that, the practice of Mushin ( and the Mindfulness of cause — if a part of the brain is not fully engaged

for the walking, we can not automatically adjust the leg movement following the slight change of a condition

of the road surface) is not necessary an exotic funny action.

non

Then inevitable question arose —– if the walking is the practice of Mushin which everybody is doing,

why not everybody is an accomplished  Zen Master.

Here is a funny but fundamental paradox of the Zen Buddhism.   When the Mushin in walking is the

Zen, it is the Zen. —– but otherwise it is just an unconscious action of walking.

non

Buddha didn’t perform any fancy or peculiar action. It was just a simple ordinary daily life, yet

as it was repeated every day, each action was almost identical every time.

This simplified and fixed way of each practice is the requisite condition of [the Life in Mushin].

Buddha’s life style was the text-book and the disciples were learned and copied those action, and in the process,

disciples learned the Mushin ( or the state of the No-Mind  was developed  in them).

non

Because of the state of the mind can not be learned by the word, but only by the practice ( like any

emotion,  unless a person has experienced it,  the description of feeling couldn’t make any sense )

and this is the reason why non of the ancient scripture was actually talking about No-Mind, but only No-Self.

( No-Self = No-Mind —– still able to live as a person is because there is the enough program in our

Subconsciousness which is invisible —– like what I am talking here, is a new interpretation after Freud invented

a notion of  Subconscious = which was not exists in the ancient time )

non

And there is yet another paradox in the Buddhism.

To live the Life in Mushin is what all about the Buddhism though, no-mind, no thinking, BUT unless it

was  understood as the Buddhism,  it wouldn’t become the Buddhism.

Anybody can carry a full of water in a bowl, and time to time the one may need to do it.   Just carry a cup of tea

happen to be full to the edge, from kitchen to a table —– some may succeed it while making no single drip, yet

some may make a mess.  What makes a difference ?

Calm mind, hence a steady hand is the crucial point here = a kind of thought “ Oh, I’ve put

too much. I’m silly. I would spill a mess on the floor. etc. “ would make a hand even more

wobbly and the tea would drip here and there   😀

non

A person can practice this and acquire better coordination on the hand, so that it will be programmed into

the motor legion of the brain and may become a routine movement.   But, that all.

BUT, if a person practised this, under a file name of the Zen Buddhism, the file become

accessible in any moment when it need to have a calm mind in your life.

Carrying a full of water as Zen, it become the Zen with its effects.

Once a person acquired this file with the attachment of the notion of Zen and its spiritual implication,

the file would be applied to any action and any situation in the Life, hence, walking is the Zen, cutting a lemon

is the Zen, and even facing Tsunami Wave could be handled in a calm mind and able to act in the best way

or see the fate with calm clear eyes.   (Sorry to the victims of Tsunami)

With this Paradox ( has to live without thoughts, preconception etc, still needs to organize its notion of

Mushin as the practice of Zen Buddhism) Buddha has asserted “ There is the way, which is to be

pursued as the way of Buddhism “ since in his earliest teachings as one of the Four Noble Truth.

non

This notion makes the difference between Mushin to just to be an ignorant thoughtless.

Though, the notion itself is nothing complicated = just to be aware [to carry a bowl of water is for Zen]

—– with this awareness, just Do It and keep doing it —– then suddenly you will find that you can do it without

spilling a single drip of water, and realized while doing it you didn’t need to think anything = Just Did It !

———-

Then observe yourself, while doing even other things, are you just doing it as well, without having any

useless thought ? (You may achieve this in few weeks or may be taking few years. Just carry on. —– then you

might be noticed, you have been having no upheaval in your life and strangely, quite unexpected

or too good to be true kind of coincidences has been happening, yet no one can tell why

—– Just carry on with your LIFE without questioning. ) —–This is a Zen Buddhist’s LIFE.

___/\___

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