Wao ! — Jaw Dropping ?
When we encounter something utterly new or strange, there are two distinctive reaction.
Wao, and Jaw Dropping.—- You may think they are the same. No they are not.
Wao is a part of the thinking process, intellectual activity. When it was somewhat new but still within
the anticipation, such as a technological advancement, we express Wao ! with some admiration.
In contrast, when we encounter utterly unexpected and beyond the comprehension —– since, we
can’t find any related notion or idea, we lose a word.
So, only a reaction was to drop the jaw. —– ! ? ? ? —– as the jaw dropped, only a sound
came out of the mouth is, — Haaaaa. 🙂
This is the moment our mind / thinking become completely blanc.
—-
Why I started to talk about this is, I met a person stubbornly
refuse to accept the mental state of Mushin ever existed.
His stance was, as we have a self-conscious and the awareness of our state, which is independent
to our thinking therefore it is persistently there, so that it exists even a moment when the one is
in the mental state of so-called Mushin.
So, I asked him, when he was damn struck, completely taken aback in a Jaw dropping situation, how long
it took him to came back his own sense ? And at the very moment he was Dropping the Jaw, had he got
awareness ” I’m dropping my jaw ” ? —– m m m —– —– after long silence, he seemed to have
convinced that ” the complete blanc moment of self-conscious is exists “.—- You see ? The Mushin is
not a fancy invention of the Zen Buddhists, it is the one of a definite state of the human mind.
And it is inherently exists in the mind or brain function. As the higher brain function is a later addition
in the evolution process, there is a state without self-conscious —– it is the default state of the mind.
Most important key is even one’s MIND is in its blank state, all the physiological body function,
and the activities which is under the control of subconscious are fully functioning ——– in
other words, anything sublimated into the subconsciousness can act in its maximum potential
since it having no interference of the thoughts / hindrance. ——- This is the ZEN.
—-
Buddhism is a teaching which utilizing this state of the mind, and the practice to gain the
control of the mind to get this mental state by will.
( Without waiting a Jaw Dropping moment to come 🙂 )
—-
Walking ZEN
Under financial strain and adding to it, the heavy freezing weather —— it could be the shortage, price up
—– so, I found some items in the shop are already sold out —– etc. And only few days left to the Xmas,
the mind of the people walking on the street are a bit tense. —– isn’t this a symptom in your mind too ?
Are you bumping to others or nearly so while walking on the busy street ?
Then think and reflect a bit —– ? ? ?
I know, you have or feel some pressure in your mind or in your subconsciousness, —– a tension
of ” Have to do, and I’m in hurry ” list of tasks to your job or to your family, kids etc.
Though, when you have a task in your hand, but for walking, do you think, to have such tension,
would it help you to walk any quicker ? —— I don’t think so.
Far from it, as your mind is stack and lost the flow, flow of mind, flow of smooth movement, you tend
to bump or come too close to other people, while feeling “Who the devil,can’t you see the others”.
———- The remedies is in your mind.
Just rise your eyes and see 5m away. —–See all the people walking toward you just as
the moving objects, not take notice of each individual.
In this view, you can see the direction where moving objects flow, which one is coming
toward you and which one is swaying ——- then you can see where the gap would be.
So, you can freely sway and able to navigate and able to walk much quicker.
( Though, if you are believing, it is the other’s fault not to open the way for you —–> forget this blog
and buy Body-armour 😉 )
——
Our Peripheral Vision can sense the object’s movement very well. And when one’s vision was spread
wide, having no center weighted attention, it can see the flow of movement all over the visual field.
This diffused vision without having any concentrated mind / attention is nothing but the
Eyes of Mushin / Mind of No-Mind in the Zen Buddhism.
Without any projected attention / absolute passiveness / open-minded, we can see which person is
going to right or left, hence we can see where the gap of flow would be, and the best direction to walk,
ahead of moment = able to fore-see = predict what would be, so that we can minimise the trouble and
maximise the smoothness and the speed of walking.
———- I know, most of you know this already. Yet still in a daily life we are entwined with silly mind
and eyes would be caught by big boobs etc, and too many congested thoughts obstructing and blinding
our eyes or making us short-eye-sighted —— then bump to others.
That’s why, ” Get rid of the thoughts and open your eyes wide ” —–
You see, this is the Zen teachings and it is just there on the street. Zen is, in fact easy and simple practice.
The matter is only you, just open your eyes.
—– So, I hope you able to walk smooth and able to do all the shopping quick in optimum efficiency
for the coming festive season. 🙂 ( Though, I’m already a bit tired for too many parties —– parties for
a person who doesn’t drink is not very much a fun, unless the music is German-Base or Jungle 😀 )
___/\___
—–
Unconscious ~ Subconscious ?
“There must be an unlimited possibility beyond the boundary of human consciousness”.
But there is a strange myth ” We human is only using 20% (?) of our brain, hence to develop its hidden
potential is limitless, blah blah ” —— according to the Guru. —- What a beautiful dream.
( With the observation by the PET Scanner, no such hidden or inactive region of brain exists)
Since it is a myth, nobody know who said it or where its original research has come from.
And such myth has been used by ignorant youth to justify the experiment to the drugs and even many
grown ups is using it as an excuse to smoke cannabis, saying ” This is to touch my Spirituality ”
I know a lots of 19 century poets, novelists and artists were the addict of opium when it was not a banned
substance and quite a lot of their works were said to be contributed by its influence etc etc. — THOUGH,
—– Really ? The question is even though their poems, stories were written when they were under
the influence of the drugs, their works and the imaginations couldn’t be existed without it ?
And the drugs DID OPEN any unknown horizon ?
Did, LSD actually created anything new, unknown to human culture, other than colorful
so-called psychedelic paintings or rather dull monotonous, endless music ?
——
The surrealism poet / artists, Andre Burton, Poul Eluard tried the mescaline, alkaloid from cactus
to have a hallucinated state of the mind and produced poetries or so-called Automatism scripts.
I spent quite a money to buy this expensive book and looked their creation or the description of
unknown ! (?) when I was a poor student of the Uni’. Though, there was nothing in it.
Just the meaningless, endless continuation of the words and words —– yet more words.
( Still, it was better than Dadaism poetry ( Ha ha ha 😀 ) as they are at least the words ).
—-
We, some times, speak or utter a word without conscious.
Fortunately or unfortunately, the word came out of the mouth disappear at once.
What ? What did you say ? —– What ? Did I say anything ? I don’t know, I don’t remember.
( It could have been a Truth ! )
Though, it is almost impossible to write unconsciously. Yet, in the written words, our subconscious
may show up without our intention, so the skillful writer could write hidden meaning using utterly different
description —– lots of poetry, especially Symbolism Poetry is using this technique. ( Since, it is stronger )
Our vague inspiration would take a form of concept and then converted into the word or words, using
the notion or meaning of the word to carry and to express what was the original feelings or inspiration.
Therefore, it is often the process of the compromise. Just borrow the meaning of the word which is likely
fit to the original inspiration, but not necessary exact. (—– Some time, a rigid meaning of the particular
word itself may give the inspiration as a trigger )
Unlike the spoken words, the writing leaves visible evidence, which can be objectively read
again and again. As the written letters has to be visually read and its pattern has to be configured
as the word, then converted to the notion or meaning, it is impossible to avoid the thinking process.
So, no unconscious writing could exist, hence Automatism couldn’t produce anything significant to
the human creativity at all. —– ( finger itself may move unconsciously though, it would be hard to create
legible letter without having visual feedback of the graphic positioning ).
_____
So, there is a funny misconception, lots of people thinking as if there is a secret garden in our brain where
the treasure was hidden. And suddenly its door would be opened by the drug or meditation, and make
us a genius or superman. 😀 —– Though as I wrote in many of my early posts, there is no such magic, but
we are living with unconscious / subconsciousness as a part of our life in every moment.
We are thinking unconsciously, —— and when we converted its result to visible or noticeable form as in
the last process in the brain, we start to feel ” Thinking “.
Our eyes are seeing the scenery mostly without noticing anything —– until something trigger the attention.
Then, conscious process of WATCHING starts. Still, during this unconscious seeing, some of the images go
to unconscious memory and its data process is taking place. ( Some of them may come back in a dream )
So, all about the matters of unconscious / subconsciousness are how to deal with those invisible animals. 😀
How to know or see its tendency, and to know how to control them.
—— and this is what all about the Buddhism.
—–
When I was in my junior school, we were taught to keep the school tidy and clean.
So too, pick up the trash on the floor. Teachers told us ” Picking it up, while you are thinking ” This is a trash,
I have to pick up” is not good enough yet. Pick it up without thinking is what you have to do “.
In fact, effectively we were taught Zen practice in the junior school. ( Whether a teacher was
aware, this is the Zen Practice or not —– such Ethos has been so deeply embedded in the Japanese culture,
people are no longer bother to distinguish its origin )
Picking up a trash without thinking ( ie; in Mushin )and put it into a bin, how many second does it need ?
And living in a clean environment all day without bothered by dirt ( ie; in Peace of Mind ). Who needs more ?
So, we were taught and learned the way to live in the clean environment.
And this Ethos and the Practice has been embedded into our deep subconsciousness as a habit.
—— therefore one’s room would be clean, not mention his (her) own life. ( Well, ideally 😀 )
You may say ” What ? Is this All about the Buddhism ?”—–Yes it is. It’s a Dog shit isn’t it. 😀
Yet this Dog Shit would clean up your life and give you a Peace of Mind and the Nirvana. That’s
why ” Every body was born with Dharma and anybody can get Nirvana “
( Of cause, Buddhism and the Zen practice will not end with picking up a trash.
It is a start and it is a metaphor 😀 )
And how to utilize those mechanism of subconsciousness to more proactive situations, such as
in the creative front is what I wrote before —– ( Please refer to Category / Art )
___/\___
—-
Obsession – Mindfulness – Middle way
Anybody who try to learn / practice Buddhism by oneself, to find the measure of Middle way
while committing so-called Mindfulness, but not in obsessive extreme, is not easy.
To biggin with Mindfulness, to learn what is the Mindfulness is hard enough, —— in fact, to understand
what is Mindfulness —— is already somewhere middle of the way reaching to the Enlightenment !
Most obvious and common mistake to learn Mindfulness is, to mix-up it with the concentration.
Concentration with passion and enthusiasm.( in another word, with Emotion )
Far from it, it is the result / even a by-product of the Mushin ——Once the Mind has gone, so nothing to
think about though, something left in the hand or very front of you—— so, just do it.
Mindfulness is not the concentration of the mind, but simply nothing else is there.
It may look utterly strange though, to learn Mindfulness, first, start to do a boring useless
practice, repeat and repeat again until your mind become insensitive and able to do it without
thinking —–> and able to see the task with completely emptied brain / Blank Space ——-
The task may seem something foreign or looks even first time to see ( by the newly acquired
Open–eyes / Dispassionate eyes ) —–> as nothing else is in your mind,so
just deal with ” this, only the Task.”
Hence, nothing else there, the eyes, attention everything goes into it, down to the minute details.
( Eyes sees what you want to see, but Dispassionate eyes sees everything on front, as it is )
To somebody-else’s eyes, it may seem too much. To clean the kitchen down to a minute water-mark
may seem to be a Compulsive cleanness Obsession / Mental Disorder though, never mind, as long
as it wouldn’t take more than 10 minutes after a cooking or eating, it is just a normal practice.
If it goes hours everyday —— m m m ?
What is extreme, where is the Middle way is just an arbitrary view. Often, the cleanness obsession
of Japanese frighten the westerners, (you may not know, they carry a wet tissue with disinfectant to clean
their hand after shake hand with unknown person. They are only the people using disposal toilet seat cover)
but it is normal, among the Japanese. This is the reason why they are even reluctant to shake hand, or
share the bottle and drink direct from it (touch somebody-else’s saliva ) let alone kissing to other person !
( It is originated from deep sublimated Japanese Shinto ” Avoid the foreign dirt and keep you clean “)
—–
Where to draw the line and stay in Middle way, is not rigidly fixed. Since, the fundamentals of the Buddhism
is not torment you with complicated rules, but to liberate your mind. Try extreme will definitely taxing your
body and mind, but obviously dirty kitchen would cause your ill-health. So, here is clear Middle ground.
Do what you think appropriate. Observe who you are, and if it is acceptable for you, do your best.
( So, to a Japanese, Clean it when it was soiled may be a Middle way, and to a Hippie guy clean the
kitchen once in a week may be his Middle way —- though it’s a huge leap to clean it first time ever. 🙂 )
—-
While observing your own tasks, re-arrange the order, or a way to sort the memos, even the position
to stick those memo, or the way to respond the Emails etc, and making it easier and smoother to
deal, —— if the situation is getting better, its mean your Mindful approach is working.
And when you established a system to deal with those tasks, and able to sort them quite business-like,
almost automatic way, in fact you are processing it, in the Mushin manner. —Why not it is efficient.
Difference of the Mushin to machine is, as the eyes is completely open, it is possible to spot
anything peculiar or the point to pay attention. This is what makes the human different from a machine.
—– So, keep you busy. 🙂
___/\___
—–
Observation of FACT
( In the context following previous Post / Hygiene of MIND )
Over the years, some questions I was asked about the cleanness are :
One occasion a woman asked me ” Do you wash the outside of cooking pan in the same time or occasionally
polishing it ? ” ( Despite I have mountain of junk, my kitchen is spakling clean. Work-top is as clean as
edible standard —— a food dropped on there should be still safe to eat 🙂 )
My answer was ” Of cause, when I wash, I also wash its out side every time “.
In another occasion, ” How many times you rinse the cups and dishes ? ” —— ” How many times ? —– It is
not the matter of number, but until it become perfectly clean ” ( Unlike western people,
We Japanese don’t put the cups into bowl / sink of water to rinse but rinse them under running water,
because stagnant water accumulate dart. It may takes a minute longer for washing-up though what this
one minute mean for you ? ).
From those words, you may feel strange though, I don’t use so much washing-up liquid. Since I moved
to this flat 9 years ago, I consumed 3 (yes three) bottles of washing liquid. I’m sure as I’ve used the emptied
bottles to another purpose and still have them. —— How is it possible ?
First, I dilute the liquid twice and put it into another ( for hair conditioner ? ) bottle
which spit only one small drop in one push. And I only use it if the dish or pan is oily.
Second, I don’t waste even a single grain of rice and eat all the food I’ve cooked, literally completely.
Hence it isn’t much to wash. 🙂
Third, I don’t buy cooking oil, hence my cooking leaves little oil residue —– oil comes from the ingredients
such as chicken. Though, I buy batter to make toast and prefer cream to put into a tea. (not just lemon 🙂 )
—–
——- Some people may feel ” Isn’t this paranoia ? ” or ” Why fuss about so much ? ”
I’m not fussing about at all. They are just a life style and accustomed and refined practice,
over the years. Buddhism is not pretentious abstract brah-brah talking.
It is literally the practice.—– Do the practice / life in general, in Mushin —— hence achieving
maximum efficiency and having smooth life, is what all about the Buddhism.
Abstract talking may make one feel somewhat noble and satisfy snobbery though it is exactly
the arrogance and the ignorance what Buddha despised.
Observe cups and dishes and if not perfect, feed–back and refine the practice —– is what Mindfullness
mean. And able to do it without thinking almost like a machine —— is what Mushin mean.
And apply this principle to all aspects of the life.
Only the Fact and the end–result count. This is the Buddhism.
If not Happy still —– it is not Buddhism yet 😀
Do you know, the Enlightenment is in a nice cup of tea which is perfectly clean —– Ha ha ha 😀
___/\___
—
Hygiene of MIND
It seems the explanation of the Self : True Self in the previous post was not enough or messy.
So, I need to clear the mess in the better metaphor. 🙂
Looking through the Buddha’s teachings, long since I’ve been thinking the Psychological profile
of Buddha and realized, to think Buddha as a Guru of religion will miss the point.
If we think his mind-set like a scientist or physician, it would be
far easier to understand what he taught.
And it would explain more, why the Buddhism having such character, not like a religion nor philosophy.
Just see the very blunt words of his Four noble truths ” Life is suffering —-” are not a kind of words from
would be a savior trying to be very popular, but more like a doctor diagnosed a cancer, telling the truth.
Why ? —– Because in his Enlightenment, Buddha saw the Dharma is the rational mechanism,
like the Science, not a mythical mambo-jumbo. —
And he was able to see even the invisible. (Say, Micro Karma inside of our subconscious and unconscious
physiological dynamics reacting to the given environment / stimruos, moment by moment. So that, his
teachings of the Noble Eight fold Path are to curb the possible cause and environment in the first place ).
This was the reason Why Buddha ordered his disciples to see the things include the Self and
think by themselves, not blindly follow what others say (its mean even the word of Buddha,
teacher, scripts). Buddha’s contemplation to settle middle way, away from the extreme, such as
extreme austerity was simply based on his experience. It wouldn’t give any Enlightenment but
the illusion, bore out of tortured body and the mind ( he didn’t take those illusion as a super
natural vision like his teacher ——- he was a cool headed man = like a scientist or surgeon).
(Though, the disciples and later followers who couldn’t understand the invisible, just named it as the
” Pannya Paramita” / Supreme Wisdom, and put it in the shelf without touching since, and created
numerous fancy mumbo-jumbo story which took the idea of Hindu myth into the Buddhism. ) 🙂
—–
Think, Buddha was talking about the hygiene of the MIND.
Talking about the cause of illness, and the germs, how to keep cleanness to avoid the infection.
His eyes are very analytical, and thinking based on the observed facts, in very rational way.
(This was the reason, why I even felt it was the psycho–engineering.)
We ordinary folks can’t see and couldn’t guess what lies behind and causing the pain from illness.
The medical scientist knows which germs infects where and how, but not us.
Buddha saw the cause of our sufferings are lay in the infection of our Mind / the infected Self.
Since we couldn’t see the germ, it is very difficult to see how this Self was infected.
Buddha explained the cause of disorder of our Mind, like a system how the lung exchange the oxygen
and the carbon-dioxide, which we only know the superficial phenomena / breeding.
So, he explained the mechanism of Karma —– cause and the effect, which is constantly taking place
and never stop, affecting our Mind too. Hence he saw, attempt to imagine it as the static entity is wrong.
—–
Without knowing it was the science, and without knowing the existence of germ which
we can’t see, the past monks tried to explain what the meaning of Buddha’s teachings are.
And messed up.
The Mind looks the same but it was infected, hence the patient is suffering without knowing the cause.
So, Buddha explained the cause and taught how to cure the infection and regain the clean and
sound Mind which we were born with it on the beginning.
—-
Mind is the center topics in our life and the Buddhism, hence, it is having so many implications.
In relation to the Karma “static Mind couldn’t exist” and in relation to the repeating practice ( practice
is the vessel to sublimate the teachings into subconsciousness) but subconsciousness is invisible,
“hence hard to know its existence”, and in the Epistemology and the Ontology front, what is really
existing —– is it only in our Mind / or Mind itself is reliable —— is a perpetual question.
Above all, as Buddha established his view against the Vedic idea of Atman, which says
that the soul exists and remained after death, he took the firm stance, the Atman / Mind is not exists.
In deed, the idea and effect of Mushin / No-mind and its power is the center of the Buddhism.
And the Self which was imagined by such Mind couldn’t be there neither.
What really exists is the pure Mind which is in fact the Dharma, and the true Self which is
in fact a part of the Dharma too ——— they are no longer called Mind nor Self, that all.
Yet in the same time it is undeniable, whether it was deluded / infected or not, without having
the Self and the Mind’s existence, the Self and the Mind couldn’t be enlightened. ——- so,
with pragmatic reason, they are just called Mind and the Self, for convenience. 😀
——– We have to see, the Mind and the Self —— which looks the same though, what the Buddhists
talking about has the invisible difference, either it was germ infected one, or the clean one. 😀
( Trouble is, we can not see the Clean one —— because it is not existing / in theory. Ha ha ha 😀 )
———-
It is the same Mind, same Self though, its change the state, just like riding a bicycle, the person
suddenly become able to ride and gain the freedom. No one can explain why but it just happen.
In the same manner, suddenly the eyes open, and the conscious of Mind and the Self disappear,
or its become irrelevant —– effectively clear the infection 🙂
The task is in your hand, clean your Mind, and your Self germ free. (or Hinayana approach
would say, don’t bother the germ or Mind / Self all together, just get on your life ! )
This is the very path way of the Buddhism.
___/\___
PS: This wouldn’t devalue the Buddha at all ( — may demystify him a bit though ).
——I only add a line, Buddha had the eyes and the Mind of the Scientist.
——Look, all through the human history, who else could see and explain the human life
——like Buddha. He is the only Buddha. Greatest teacher to the human being in the history.
—-
Flow
An ologist described the 20 century is the first time ever the Buddhism was discovered as its entirety.
In certain extent I can see the point and agree with this.
All the ancient mantras were written as ” Buddha said “ —— and each sect read the certain selection of
mantras as their holy books without questioning or knowing what is the origin or relation to others.
But now, the scholars and researchers who are studying Buddhism, can see all the Buddhism scriptures
in Pali, Tibetan, Sanskrit, Chinese and modern English, German etc while reading them
in comparison or chronological order.
I’ve read may be only fraction of total volume still, when I read another translation, I realized the more
likely meaning or understanding —— and I went back to the original idea —— if it is common
to all the sect’s, it must be closer to the original teachings, and if it was far-fetched idea it couldn’t be
the Buddha’s own teachings since Buddha didn’t teach educated people but to the ordinary folks on the
street or in the field, it should be based on the common sense.
—— Buddha wanted to save the suffering people not the well off educated.
Regardless whether rich or poor, still human mind and its mechanism is common to everybody and that is
where Buddha started, and gave the deepest insight.
And those insight is what we can re–discover today as Buddha taught ” Observe it by yourself “.
And it made us even amateurs able to study by ourself in our own way, based on our own life.
( ” Follow the facts you experienced, not the scriptures ” is also Buddha’s teaching, since
everybody got their own Karma which is unique to the person, hence one’s Nirvana too )
Hence the explosion of the Buddhism / Zen blogging. And the creation of Zen blog sphere.
——-
——— I found in the Blog sphere, somebody try to explain the mind in creative front, using the word Flow.
When our mind freely flow without stuck to an idea or things we can be most creative.
Thanks to comprehensive coverage of the observation of human mind and the phenomena, by Buddhists
it is not difficult to relate this to the Flow of mind and the changing phenomena / nothing stays the same ——
hence a mind, stuck to a moment couldn’t see the truth, it needs the mind of Mushin / No-mind / Anatman.
——— And in the other spot, somebody explaining the understanding or true meaning of this No-mind.
As I wrote somewhere in the earliest post, the Buddhism is a way of the Psycho–engineering.
Not just a belief system or religion who is saying ” it might come as the God is there, if you believe” or
a Philosophy which saying ” look in this way —– so,you might able to see it in this way”
BUT ” As you can actually change your perception / mind to see this, then you will see this”
Buddhism can change you / your life, since it will change your perception / eyes and the mind.
( This is the reason why the same technique has been used for a brain wash ——- but it wouldn’t be too bad
to wash your brain clean and see the world afresh 😀 ——- it looks nicer and more peaceful. 😀
Brain wash implant yet another crocked idea though, Buddhism leave the cleaned brain to the person
enabling the person to see the world and himself by his clear eyes and make him to decide the way of life)
No-mind / Mushin is the core of the Buddhism teachings, hence it is the hardest part to understand
——– when you understand its meaning in real life, your perception has already changed.
( Your brain has washed ! ! ! )
It may sound strange though, this is the magic of the Buddha’s teaching.
And you may feel even more strange is, it is not to put or learn anything new or fancy idea
but just remove the occupying idea or view from your mind / brain ( hence no–mind or default
state of mind) and create a free blank space which enable you to see or perceive your own idea,
creation,way of life, what-so-ever in natural FLOW.
So that, strangely, it is the most easiest things to do —– as a small child is doing. 🙂
Try it your self —– safe to try it in your home 😀
___/\___
—–
What is the POINT ?
Somebody who read Spiritual Sound gave me a question saying
that I’m desecrating the holy spirituality.
On the surface, it may look true. But it is the main purpose of this DIY Zen Blogging.
I’m not Desecrating Buddhism or any holy belief.
To decipher the mechanism of our mind and invisible psyche in relation to the Zen is
the task what I’m doing and all about this Yoshizen Blog. —— May be I am demystifying the religion.
( I don’t need to indulge Mythical Dream, as I’ve been surrounded by too many spooky phenomena. 😀
My task is not pretend to be a kind of medium but to find out the mechanism how it is operating. )
As I wrote in the earliest posts, the repeating Buddhist’s practice is, in fact, ware-out the mind
and make the practice routine hence make the person able to do it without thinking / in Mushin.
Mushin is a state of mind, and it is nothing to do with any mythical, glorious religious belief.
To open the mind and the perception completely away from any thought, we are able to see
and able to know the truth as it is —— is what all about the teaching of Buddha.
To complete his teachings, Buddha ordered to his disciples Not idolize him or worship himself ——its
mean, to follow the Buddhist’s teachings, even a notion of Buddha / Buddhism have to be removed.
Because, Buddha knew it is the pitfall of the teachings —— even a conscious of I’m a Buddhist or notion
of Buddha would utterly negate the effects of Mushin.
Remove the conscious to be a Buddhist or the name of the Buddha, is not desecration of the Buddhism.
Since it is the very core of the Buddha’s teachings.
Simply, this is how our mind works. And this is what the Buddha’s teachings.
——
Buddha taught to remove the own thinkings to attain Mushin, in his explanation, since the basis of
own thoughts = the self is not existing.
To fully understand what Buddha meant took 500 years. Hinayana Buddhists took this to negate
the self, especially filthy part of it, smelly guts or uncontrollable genitals shouldn’t be there.
Then Mahayana Buddhists realized, if they shouldn’t be there, why the Dharma gave us in the first place.
(Not to be obsessed with it / Middle way , is a commonsense)
The function and its mechanism of our mind / psyche (dynamics of our subconscious) was designed
or given by the Dharma, and it has been refined and refined (evolved) in past billions of years.
Exactly in the same context to see the effects of the repeating practice, I described the effects of
the incomprehensible hi-pitched tone —— it makes our mind puzzle and open the mind.
I didn’t ask anybody to listen Hi-pitched tone or Mozart Miserere. I’ve just shown what is the effect of
us to open the mind and the perception. —– then you might able to touch spiritual world.
Whether this spiritual world is sacred or holy mythical world, is in your belief / Mind —– but
as the paradox of Buddhism is here, as long as you cling its idea, you can not see it.
___/\___
—
Spiritual Sounds
While ago I talked about the sounds which gave us a spiritual feeling.
In there, I wrote ” Something slowly moving continuous rather hi-pitch tone make us feel spiritual.”
And long time ago, when I talked about J.S.Bach and Baroque music —– not melodic but continuously
changing polyphonic sound makes our brain to stop thinking / abandon the thinking process =
attempt to figure out what this sounds mean ——- is good for the Zenist to empty the mind. 😀
——–
Unlike a visual signal, sound signal is a basic stimulus, goes directly into the subconscious.
If you encountered a scene in a huge Buddhist Temple, hundreds of monks chanting a Mantra in unison,
( I’ve listened it at Eihei-ji and Daitoku-ji. You may find a recordings of Tendai-shormyo of Enryaku-ji )
you might have felt its low voice is more of a demonic and gave awesome impact to your perception.
The Gregorian Chant in a monastery gives similar feelings but the sound is less demonic.
Then somebody suggested, how about the Gospel Song ? ——- Those musics are surely Religious but
not necessary sound spiritual as its use of normal voices range and the meanings of words’ limit the mind
to be open. One of rare exception might be the back-ground hi-pitch humming of a Gospel group Take6.
(In purely sound term, not the connotation of the songs).
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When we hear roar or beating drone like low sound, it resemble the sound of earth before an eruption
of volcano or a big predator / lion, tiger etc, we feel a fear ( instinctively ). ( Huge fearsome body
never chirp, as the resonance of big body cavity is pretty low / earth’s magma chamber is huge 😀 )
So that the lower sound is the sign of larger and more powerful body, hence used to appeal to the female
who is seeking stronger gene —— from flog to golilla. (and some human as well 😀 )
Since the lower roaring sound gives the feeling of awe and hi-pitch slow-moving tone gives
spiritual feeling, the religious organ music utilising those effect very effectively in its three-part
polyphonic composition.
So, why hi-pitch tone (when its sound slowly moves but not too melodic way) gave us spiritual feelings ?
Try this by yourself now. —– Make high-tone on your mouth, pieeeee —– then, booooo —– you must be
noticed, high-tone resonate in your head / nose cavity, but low sound resonate in your lung cavity.
Lower base sound shake your body, but hi-tone hit your head / brain though, if the sound is not
comprehensible —– not a whistle of train or alarm sound, nor soprano song —— something unknown
but as it keep hitting the brain, we just open the perception and we were nailed down just to listen.
As we couldn’t figure it out, our confidence in our ego melt away, and the mind evaporate into air.
With completely open mind and the naked perception, we started to feel, something is there.
You are standing on the edge of spiritual world.
—
Just open the perception / mind, and become totally passive without attempting to give
any own thought / thinking, is nothing but the state of Mushin in the Buddhism.
Of cause, Hi-pitched tone itself has no spirituality, it was just happened to be a typical sample
to make us feel the uncertainty which forced to open our mind / key to see the function of our mind.
And this key is showing us, No-thinking/No-mind/Mushin is the pathway toward the spirituality.
Buddha, in his ultimate wisdom, decipher this phenomenon and gave the explanation.
What beyond there is, the Dharma. —— As everybody can be hit by this spiritual sound,
its indicates the fact, everybody has its perception, and the Dharma is not beyond the sky, but
in front of us. In fact we ourself is a part of it, that’s why everybody got this perception.
Unlike the Gregorian Chant of Gospel Song which needs to know beforehand and learn what it is,
the perception toward the spirituality is inherent to all the human, Buddhism is teaching how to open
the perception/mind, and see the Dharma through its practice. ( without listening a hi-pitch tone 😀 )
—— still, one of the Zen sect Fuke-shu use the sound of Shakuhach / Bamboo pipe to reach Mushin.
—— ( though, to master this instrument is as hard as to get enlightenment ). ( Still, sound is good 😀 )
In fact, to some people, it is not necessary a hi-pitch tone, but it can be a sound of the running water,
wave sound of the sea, wind through the tree though, those sound sources are surrounded by too many
visual signals too. We may not able to just listen the sound of wave —— mind might be destructed
by a passing nice Bikini Bottom. ( Ha ha ha 😀 —– In fact, Bottom is a part of the Dharma, so, nothing
wrong with it though, if the mind was stuck with it, it break off the Mushin and stray away.
You can deal with it in Mushin, but on a bed, not on the beach. Ha ha ha 😀 )
—— Still, once got know how, it can be done in any way.
Just open the mind and perceive the Dharma. ( People describes this as Meditation )
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