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 )

___/\___

—-

ABOUT this BLOG

The inherent shortcoming of this blog site is, as it having reverse order, the earliest, hence most

crucial posts are situated in the bottom.

Who is the author, what is his stance, what is the point unique to this BLOG are all buried  long long

scrolled down bottom.  Even worse, now the posts became too many —— and some are not necessary

very relevant to the point. ( I’m well aware.  Yet, they are fun to read jokes. 🙂  )

Originally this site should have had ” ABOUT ” though, may be with my mis-click, it has disappeared.

Hence, often I got the same question, and needed to explain  What is my point again and again.

So, this is the summary of the POINT of this BLOG. (Yet it became rather long —— so, to a busy

person, just hop bold paragraphs to grasp summary of summary)

—

I’m not talking DOGMA. I only talk the observed FACTS of which the Buddha’s teachings

based on it.  As Buddha ordered ” Don’t believe. Think yourself ” Buddhism is not about what

you believe but the fact you found and came to your own conclusion.

If there wasn’t the fact,  Buddha wouldn’t have taught.  That’s why he kept silence where he

couldn’t find the facts. —— So, I follow him in the same way.

—–

ZEN Buddhism is a peculiar teaching, probably the most strange teaching in the human history.

It doesn’t teach Dogma or knowledges but only vague direction and resulting outcome would be.

At least, the outcome is impressive and they are not a tricked belief, just the factual results.

It is the teachings to make a person actually able to do.—— Yet still, no explanation of how, why.

A person has to try and do it again and again. —— (The secret is hidden in this process itself)

This BLOG is the attempt to find out its HOW and WHY by the own experiment, and its findings.

Hence, this BLOG can be cited as a DIY ZEN BLOG.

—–

In my view, the Buddhism especially the Zen teachings are the way to re-program the human

subconsciousness. The all the creatures live and behave according to their behavioral pattern or

tendency which were programmed in their brain.

Though, in the case of human, we have the consciousness and self-awareness which over-ride

the basic subconscious such as so-called instincts.

Subconscious is not just the genetically inherited instincts, far from it, most of them are the

burnt into pattern which we learned and accumulated from the early experiences.

The basis of those experiences may not from the experience which we experienced or observed

consciously. ——- burst amount of our experiences and the knowledges were imprinted even

without our conscious. Yet still, the experience is one’s hard evidence / and reliable knowledge base.

So that, to live and behave according to those knowledge base,  would be the safest choice.

As it was actually happened on front of him, and repeated again, it could happen yet again.

Therefore, it would be the Truth or most likely and pragmatically most viable answer.

( So, our brain burn this Data into a permanent memory and create a link to react automatically)

We are thinking, deciding and acting unconsciously —– conscious verification follows afterward.

As the one’s knowledge-base is the reflection of one’s grown-up and its environment, hence it is

unique to the person and form the so-called one’s second-nature —– and this second-nature

is the core of the deep hidden SELF.

The self what the one is imagining is not  this SELF but the self what the one wished to have, since

the one’s second nature (and of cause the First Nature too  🙂  ) is in one’s subconsciousness and

in the unconsciousness —— they are invisible or unnoticeable —– therefore hard to configure,

then, the conveniently made up self is filling the gap for one’s own explanation or for a pretext.

—–

Buddhism is not necessary attempting to define this SELF but to define at least the imagined

self is the false imagination / delusion, hence it is the subject to remove from one’s mind, saying

” No such things (self) is there “. —– yet to advising the one to become aware that

the SELF which is a part of the Dharma, is there since when the one was born. Therefore,

all about the Buddhism is to remove this self and attain the MUSHIN (the Mind of No-Mind /

No-self ) and  become aware of the SELF / a part of the Dharma, by the repeating practice.

( Since, to burn the Knowledge / Pattern / Data Memory  into one’s subconsciousness, needs to

have either almost traumatic experience or repeating the same experience or the thought ( Teaching ),

then it become a long-term memory and a part of one’s subconsciousness ).

Once the one’s subconscious was reprogrammed / reconditioned, and the biasing wishful thinking,

egoistic desire which has been nested in the so-called self  were removed, ( ideally ) there wouldn’t be

any delusion or egoistic view, hence acquiring clear eyes and able to see the prevailing Dharma

which is inherently having harmony with all the existences.

( Since, the existences itself is the Dharma ).

—–

Living with or accordance with the Dharma, one’s life become harmonized with all the existences

and its flow of the occurrences (which is constantly changing, reflecting the dynamics of the Karma),

one’s life wouldn’t go against or aggravating the Karma, —– as the result, one’s life become smooth

and peaceful.  And it would lead to the peaceful Nirvana.

—–

Though, as it would be easily observed by anybody’s eyes, The Dharma is not operating  for

the convenience of the human alone. — It is the rules of the Universe.

Often, the convenience of somebody is the inconvenience to other’s.  Tiger need to kill a deer to feed her cab.

Her success is a misfortune of the deer.  It would be no use to have sentimental emotion.  If it comes, it comes.

Same apply to our human life, to have silly desire is our nature, which was designed by the Dharma too.

Therefore the occurrence of silly Karma is also the nature of the Dharma. —— on the surface,

it may seems silly or unjust, though as the one was placed here to fill the role, by the Dharma,

in long-term, its appearance of the Dharma is the sign of one’s direction.

Therefore, to fight against the Dharma is the silliest things as we can’t see the full extent of

the implication of the Dharma, but better follow the direction and to fill the role what the one

was assigned to do.  Therefore, What left in our hand is, to do the task as best as we can. ——

Hence, on the end, as the result, we live of the life to its optimum and  its maximum potential.

( Does anybody want more ?  Or want to complain ——- saying too much ?   Oh, get lost  😀 )

( By the way, this “maximum potential” doesn’t include money, fame or power.  If anyone seek it, you

came to wrong place.  You got to go to Mammon, not Buddha.   😀  )

—–

So, the above is my explanation of How the teachings of the Buddhism works.

And,  the Posts in this BLOG are my each experiences and findings, How Zen works and in deed

worked, and the resulting effects, what is the out come / how I am living.

—— I’ve made a link of  this Post connecting to a Category,  001-ABOUT the BLOG.

So that if anybody need to come back here or directing others, just click a category  please  🙂

___/\___

—-

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  😀

___/\___

—–

Lost and Found

In many occasions,  we suddenly realized,  Wait a moment where that Thing has gone ?

In my life style, it wouldn’t happen if it is for the daily use.  The item, the thing goes back to exactly

the same position whether it may not necessary be the most ideal place.

Away from the ordinary tool box, strangely a glue-gun and a hair dryer is hanging next to the kitchen

utensils under my kitchen shelf. ——- When I moved in this unfurnished flat, it was before I moved my

possessions from a warehouse storage, I needed to fix something.  So, I brought some tools from the

tool box in the storage.  Unlike hammer or pliers those glue-gun and hair dryer (by the way, this one is not

for my hair but to heat-up or drying the material, and those ladles are to bend the aluminium with its carve

—– they are the  tools for me  🙂 )  having an electric cable,  hence it is easy to hang —– so, they found

a place to hang, and it became their permanent place.

Since, same hardware / tools or materials are in the same

place, the way to do the things, is more or less identical

—— hence it became a routine. —– Its mean I don’t

need to think about each action and only need to

pay attention to a part which is new or different.

You may see on the photo, the cable of the glue-gun or

hair dryer is twisted round its own body —— and the

way to twist round the cable was though out for its

best way round ( —- in fully minded manner  🙂 ),

therefore it is always the same and the plug will come to the most secure exact position.

This practice, place the item always exactly the same position said to be started in the Zen temple

and kept as a Samurai tradition.    Hence a  Samurai was able to respond to a sudden attack, able to

grubb his sward instantly in the total darkness.—— So, it was the iron rules in my family as well.

I was allowed to use my father’s tool, provided me to put it back exactly  the same place, same condition,

and it trained me to memorize where the original position and the conditions were, down to

the minute detail. ( —– Otherwise the teaching would come with a fist  😀  )

——– My photographic memory might have originated from here.

——————–

You may realized now, what I’m talking about is.  This is the Zen.  And the Buddhism. —– in real life.

Zen is not only for a fancy movement of the sword master or incomprehensible  Mondo —– but

in every minute details of the daily life —– to maximize the efficiency and ease of the life.

Then, — Zen ? —– the trouble is not the item in the same place.

Quite often, I buy something strange or fancy, —– might be useful-one-day kind of, such as cheap

Chinese things, toy etc.  As it is not very important and not necessary having  well-defined place ( that is

why it is strange ) I just stashed away somewhere. —— then year later, something bright idea came up,

” Aha, I got That Chinese Toy —– I can use that part of mechanism for this idea ” —— but, where is it ?

Since it didn’t belong to the defined category, it is not in the likely place of its function —– but it might

be placed in the similarity of the shape —– ? ? ?

When we try to think / seek the answer or to find a strange toy (in this case) —– our mind are caught up

to “Likely” direction,  where so-called logical ( but own logic ) thinking is leading.

But in real life, not everything follow the logic.    And not necessary having in the same guise which

I remembered or so-I believed.

The toy might have just dropped behind the box, from where I left it.

Or it may be in a bag, half disassembled.

When we look for something, our eyes (or mind ) is chasing the pattern as our cognitive function works.

The harder we try, we are even deeper caught up with same pattern. —— this is the moment we need

to have open mind.—– NOT concentrate, stop gazing at but take aback, and just to be passive.

Here the paradox again.  The more you looking into, you can not see —– because what you are

looking is what you want to see / your imagined pattern. —– (But how do you know You know it.)

——- Then what I found was, on the corner of my desk, something poking out of a milk-cartoon  was

that Chinese toy upside-down.  Only I didn’t know,  what it looks like the bottom of it upside-down  😀

We need to open our eyes with open mind.  Detached mind can see the world better.   😀

___/\___

—

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).

————————

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 )

___/\___

—-

Girlie Pictures

One of my bad habit is to make a collection —– in fact, too many kind of objects, from the stones

I picked up on the top of mountain to ordinary post stamp, small sticker on the fruits, one day it-might-be-

useful kind of all sorts of motor etc.  And I stick those stickers on my PC, Cameras etc etc.  Sigh !   😀

So that, when I made pilgrimage of the Pipe Organ while traveling all over the Europe ——

On top of the necessary tourist information and the town map, I’ve collected the information about

the history of the church and their pipe organ —— all together more than 30 Kg.  😀

—————-

This habit started with a collection of the insects and the plants specimen. ( If you do a lots, naturally

the skill to handle it become sophisticated. —— I received prize, many of it )

When I was a photographer, I had somewhat 50 SLR, not necessary I bought, many of them were given

by the manufacturers, as I was doing camera critics as well. —— And I have about 50 antique cameras.

(To repair those cameras and make them work —— I’ve learned the skill and the knowledges inside of it)

—–

So, when I got inter net connection and discovered Net photo-site,  I realized it is a good collection of faces

——- literally millions of it.  I found a face somewhat resembles a friend in my school time —– saved it,

then another one, and so on.

Then I started to accumulate the faces which give me a tick, somewhat pretty but not necessary beautiful

—— and started to think why ?

Looks very similar but why this one give this impression but why this one doesn’t ?

And end up, now having 30,000 photos.  ( As a by-product, they are good references of body shape for

making sculpture.  Though, when I made Buddha Figure there was no such reference photos, hence

his lung cage has wrong bone structure —– never mind it is not an anatomical model.  🙂  )

—–

Some of those female models showing identical faces in any photos, even keeping exactly the same angle.

And some others are showing very vivid different expressions in each photos.

We know,  we can guess the character of the person from the face —— and even from the photos.

We only have to be careful not to speak out those observation and judgement because of the so-called PC.

Yet our preference and the attitude toward the individual is judged by the person’s face and facial

expressions / mannerism / subtle difference in the body languages, since we know it in our subconscious.

And some of the people even shows so-called aura. (No explanation.—– I only know it exist as I had seen it )

—— Whether it is politically correct or not,  I can judge ” I like this photo, and save it.  Oh, no I don’t want ”

I have no obligation to spare my  PC’s  memory for unwanted photo. —— There can not be a Buddhist’s

generosity here. Ha ha ha  😀      ( Yet I have an album of skinny bodies collection, even though I hate skinny

body but only for a purpose to see the bone structure in live posture, not by the generosity.   🙂  )

——-

Anyhow I just gave a thought on the assumption of, the expression on the photos reflect the

daily behaviour of the person —— as those models may one day marry to somebody and live together,

then  how it would be the relation and the life there ? ? ?

Of cause,  even the person who showed identical faces in all the photos  has another face hidden behind.

Though, it is about her attitude —— to show only the face she believes her best and able to keep it,

this determination and the stiff will. —— How do you think if this is your wife ?    As she might be a person

of principle, and able to stick to what she want, hence predictable and may be reliable, but is she stable ?

Old wisdom / Common sense says, hard stick breaks.  (When its happens, spectacularly )

In comparison, the person showing wide varieties of expressions —— obviously this person has very

live perception and quick response.  Surely,  she is a kind of person we call  Lively Character.

So, naturally we guess, even in the married life, it would be lively and joyful,—— but can she reliable ?

She may not necessary very thoughtful and may not be very intelligent, so, it needs to be the husband’s task

to pay attention.  Still happy fun-full life may compensate occasional mishap or even a havoc.  😀

—— When I was asked, I’ve been giving the same advise to young man, how to look for the best woman,

” Good lively smile is good, but more importantly, look at the face when a woman expressed her disgust

—— if that face is still acceptable, go for it. Since, in the life, not every day is the happy day, time to

time ugly situation would occur,  and in such critical situation, the ugliness of the face,  which you have

to face, of which  woman can not control,  would make it even worse,  so its better avoid” 

(We can make up smily face but can not control the expression of  disgust )

In any case, go for a type “Girls next door” would be the safe bet.

Better nothing extreme, include the tattoo.  Ha ha ha.  😀

Strangely,  what type of woman you chose is genetically programmed in our subconscious.

And often it is similar to your Father’s taste.  Since, its gene is on the Y-chromosome which

is identical to your Father, as Y-chromosome only comes from the Father.

——————–

You may remember your first love in your school time, suddenly you started to like somebody who all

your friends said  ” Why such funny girl ” —— she was the type you were programmed to choose.

As human being was originally programmed to get marry 15 years old ( This is why in all the culture,

boy’s initiation is about 15 ) the girl you loved on that time was in fact, you were supposed to get marry.

Because it was genetically programmed choice, that love was almost chemical, nobody else understood

why this girl —– still, it was to say Dharma’s choice.   So, the boy couldn’t see her objectively.

It was the unconditional true love (in Buddhist’s term, this is the Fully Minded Love and in Mushin —–

Mind of No Mind = without Thinking process ) hence regardless whether she was a funny girl, it was the

true love. —– to see a girl in objective eyes and consider the other’s eyes or to compare to Pop Idles etc

comes much later —– as the boy learns how to override the subconscious judgement / Dharma’s choice.

Unfortunately we human being had to adapt and bend this natural choice for a sake of artificially

created social system. —– And we grown up were heavily influenced by the false environment of

mass-media and so-called Thinking / social consideration etc etc.

We lost the eyes to see the truth, and lost the ear to listen the voice of the Dharma in our subconscious.

So that, to rediscover where your original taste / choice was, can be the first step to

see who your true self are. ——- (Provided you don’t waste too much time watching boobs  😀  )

So, it was interesting to see from those thousands of faces, after half century,

my own taste haven’t changed a bit.

___/\___

—