Maha Kashyapa

Among the Lord Buddha’s disciples, Maha Kashypa was reputed to be the foremost prominent thus influential one, though, I have a strong suspicion that the stories of such prominence might be created and put by himself.  The reason why influential was not necessary he was respected but just bossy pussy attitude (even worse he was very assertive with a kind of logical argument and good at that = hence others might have just gave up and let him chose = therefore the result looked like “He was dominant”)  And being as an ascetic himself, he laid down a lords of rules to the Sangha (follower’s co-living community). (He was the one against the woman to join the Sangha.)

To check the spelling of Maha Kashyapa, I googled its name and realized that in Hindu, Maha Kashyapa was also named as one of their prominent sage. —– In fact, in Vedic history, Maha Kashyapa was quite a familiar name appeared in many times from ancient Rigveda, Upanishad time = in other words, it’s indicate that many different Maha Kashyapa may have been existed.  Yet still, what was known to be “Maha Kashyapa who was a disciple of Lord Buddha”, an ascetics, a son of Brahman, good in a theoretical argument.    Then, organised the first council gathering to sort out what to keep the teachings in the oral tradition.  —– If the person, Maha Kashyapa in Buddhism and in Hindu was the same person, many questions of mixed-up of Hindu into Buddhism could be answered.  

If MK in the Buddhism history was in deed the same person who was regarded as Hindu sage, it is easy to see why such strong influences came into the Buddhism tradition especially in the Theravada sect.  If he lead the council and filtered out what to keep and what to reject among the memories of the Lord Buddha’s teachings, it was easy to understand that MK’s opinion and strong arguments must be heavily biased the final outcome.  And that might be also the reason, why he was depicted to the side of Lord Buddha (alongside of Ananda) despite he was in fact a Hindu = he must be manoeuvred into the position.  (Others just didn’t want to argue with him.  As he was an awkward noisy claimant kind of the person. )

The author of the scripture in the later date had no way to know those facts and the false stories were just stayed on.  (Such as “Pick a flower and smiled Sutra” of which Maha Kashyapa became the person to receive the “Direct transmission of teachings from Lord Buddha” might be an utter fabrications. — any how this scripture was written in China 600 years later = No Pari or Sanskrit original was ever existed.) 

= So, in those stories in the scriptures, there could be lords of fancy tales.   😀  

When I read through Agama, only those two episode caught my eyes =  My intuition told me Yes this is it.   They gave me the key to decipher what the teachings of Lord Buddha was.  (Crucial key was that, even Ananda was not told the intention of the teachings = Avoid the lexical understanding = The mentality to just follow and DO was the matter. — That was What Void, and the Middle way mean )  It’s mean, a kind of approach, arguing, logically perswading, convincing = Maha Kashyapa type is the out of sort.  —– So, why he was chosen to play a role in the Flower Sermon story was absolutely puzzling !   (It’s mean the author who couldn’t read the mind making up the story ! )

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Yellow robe

While browsing the net, I found a very interesting suggestion which was saying that the reason why Buddhist monk wear the yellow robe.  It was that the early sangha of the Buddhists were literally the Bhikku (= beggar) who forsaken all the possessions, family, relations, everything and live on the generosity given by the people.  So, to stay in absolutely humble and show having no desire or Ego was their must.  

But, whether the person was really living in a mind of void is difficult to know.  And, it is difficult to see other’s state of the mind let alone to know the spiritual level of the person.   Of course, no one can tell that “I am in such advanced level” because it IS nothing but to expose how arrogant and silly the person is. 

Instead, the bhikku emulate each other while wearing the cloth picked up from a rubbish dump.   Those cloths were heavily soiled and even after washed and washed they were dirty yellowish brown (there wasn’t a vio washing powder then.   😀 ) — so, the bhikku were competing with others, by showing off “I’m more humble than you as I’m wearing more soiled cloth and this is the proof of my mind is completely free from any self-conscious Ego”—– ( It seemed this tradition was started by an ascetic Maha Kashyapa = thence he was always depicted wearing dark brown. — While  Lord Buddha himself, and Ananda etc were wearing white = donated new cloth)  —– So, to wear a dirty colored cloth became a symbol of the monk’s humbleness, selflessness and became the symbol to be a Buddhist — later on, when the monk became fulltime staff of the rich temple and even the cloth became a richly died with expensive turmeric, the yellow robe was kept as a tradition. (But further down east, like in China and in Japan, the lowest monk wear black which was a discarded ordinary cloth dipped into black ink (in its original form), not expensive turmeric yellow.   😀    Now, just buy a black Kimono would be cheaper than the cost of an ink for calligraphy.  =  The question IS who and why anybody want to pretend to be a monk ?     😀   —– If anybody want to follow the Buddhism, just DO it.  = It IS nothing to do with a posture or fashion. )

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Once before, I attended a Tibetan Buddhist’s gathering.  In a part of ritual, their followers altogether performed a complicated twist of finger sign, some could do very smooth, others couldn’t.  The one who could do better, demonstrated to others while explaining its move.   It was the moment of show-off = the moment the person feel that I’m better than others.  (To get its skill right, the person must spend quite a time practicing though, it might be only a chance he could get a respect in his whole life.  What’s wrong ? )   Even though its arrogant mind was completely opposite of the Buddhist’s teachings, still “Why not” it could be his start. 

A well-known Buddhists sect, ranking the followers according to how many the person managed to recruit new members, and going up in their hierarchy.  It is a very well designed Ponzi scheme to make money.  (Remember their huge headquarter !)   For some sect, Buddhism is just a pretext to recruit the members and suck up the money.  Exactly the same to the Nintendo selling Mario = Mario is a mean to sell.  Matter is the money which Mario would bring back.

The urge to emulate others may be as hard to eliminate like an instinct to live.  To successfully emulate others will trigger the reword system in the brain by secluding dopamine etc. = this is the design how we can live happily.  Yet still, Hinayana try to suppress such pleasure while imposing hundred of Not.   That’s why history moved to Mahayana.   (Mahayana accept the nature = original design = of human being. — In other words, there may not be such a thing like a joke “Higher Spiritual Level”   😀 )

I used to know two guys wearing orangey yellow cloths.  The one was a guy used be Maharish camp in India and the other was said to be a Tibetan Buddhist.  Though, I never seen or noticed that they got any higher consciousness to live or spoke — still, it was, at least, very distinctive among the cloud.   But, I wasn’t convinced that it lead them to anywhere closer to higher awareness at all !  (only a thing sure was, all of us was thinking that they were silly = It’s mean, nobody respect you because you are wearing Yellow — world would see you only in your deed , not by the color.)    😀

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Baby baby

Yesterday I went to see my friends and their three months old babies.  Those babies are the cousins each other and born only a day apart.  (This photo = Pinhole)

When I saw them, I noticed that one of them had very hard birth from the shape of his head.   Dady explained me, it was a 40 hours battle.

The baby having the face amazingly resembles to his parent = that’s because of their Gene, yet still the babies having big head despite the mother’s passage he had to came through hadn’t been evolved accordingly, was because the our (or ancestor’s) choice. = We human changed from herbivore to omnivore started to scavenge animal carcass, borne marrow etc. resulting our brain grow bigger. (omnivore needs to process much  more information too = needs more brain power.  —– And to compensate a such painful trouble of giving a birth, a pleasure the woman can get from the sex is far more = otherwise the woman would say “Oh no, never again” and the human race had been extinct long ago. )  

Funny tendency of our attitude is, that we accept the physical appearance of the baby such as the face, and do know that the lines on the palm is fixed on the birth, still wouldn’t accept that the basic character (such as expressed on the line on the palm, the tendency in the emotion, a type of the brain, or Ego etc) =  accordingly a kind of the life that the person will have, IS also fixed.  (People doesn’t like to be fixed or been told by the others, and hope to have a hope = expect good luck, and the effort would change the fate = be optimistic.)  It’s not a matter of Gene, but the Karma which was specifically given to the person.   Otherwise why the person was made to be exist as this person.  = It IS the same person since he was born.

(Those photos were by modified Olympus Pen-F 38mm F1.8 on Sony A7R)

( by PEN-F 38mm lens)

(by the Fun camera lens on A7R)

(Fun camera lens again)

So, they were the camera and the lenses I used here = Olympus Pen-F 38mm on Sony A7R, Fun camera lens, Pinhole (equivalent of 21mm lens view and about F125) and the lens from a Toy camera.  ( The point is, I could carry all of them in my pocket.  Why do I need to go back to a heavy DSLR. )

This Pinhole photo showing about 90 degree view and heavy vignettes (corner fall off) — ISO was 25600.    Think, if this photo was ordinary sharp image, would it be useful for you ? — I don’t think so, since we are not seeing the world in its detail, anyway.

Yet another baby photo by a Pinhole (ISO 25600) on a DLR train — the girl wanted to touch the camera. 

You see, a Pinhole was usable even for general snap shot.   😀   (Of course, such as the ISO 25600 — in full color ! — was never possible without having a processing power of the digital technology. —– So, I’m not insisting the pure analog in its own sake.  I just want to have the image I want, not the image what the manufacturer recommends. = What they recommend was the style of the mass market of which they make and sell in millions. )

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Japanese Pickles 漬物

Again here, there is a fundamental difference of the idea between east and west.  Western people think the pickles is in the vinegar though Japanese think pickles is the name only for western food pickled in the vinegar.  Because Japanese makes the vegetable preserve in totally different way and the taste completely different.  Japanese calls them Tsukemono /漬物  (Funny thing is there are certain food pickled in the vinegar exists in Japan though they were called Suzuke / 醋漬, not in the western name pickles.   😀 )  As in the winter, we can see the vegetable called “Hakusai”/ 白菜(Chinese calls Bak-choi / 白菜) Chinese Cabbage.  And it is the time for me to make a Hakusai-zuke (pickled (?) Chinese Cabbage) —– This must be the second simplest cooking after a grilled fish. (simply give a bite to a fruits may not be a cooking = just a way to eat.  = it is not in a count.   🙂 )  So, how to make Hakusai-zuke ? 

(Put the leaves into a bucket in layers and cover them with a suitable size of a dish.)

(And put a soup bawl kind to have a space = because the leaves will sink under the pressure, while the water is coming out and rise.  I cover whole bucket with a plastic bag and put a heavy weight from outside.  I used an electric transformer as a weight.)

Put it in a bucket with the sprinkle of salt and keep it under a pressure of a heavy weight 5~7 days.  (With a pressure, the air was pushed out, so the anaerobic fermentation takes place.)   That’s all. 

With the vegetable’s own enzyme and the common bacteria, it would be naturally fermented and change the taste.  How much the amount of salt is not very critical.  In Japan the salt content of the vegetable Tsuke-mono said to be dropped from 15% to less than 5% in the past 50 years or so = So, it can be one shake of salt for every few layers of leaves. (If you want a stronger taste, you can put a drop or two soy-source or chili kind when you eat.) And how heavy the weight should be = somewhat 2~3 Kg = fill the water to an empty milk bottle or a kind and use it. (I’ve been using an electric transformer.  🙂  ) 

(I’ve put the pickling bucket into the other room where no central heating and leave the bucket for 5~6 days.)  (Photo left) — It seems, the Tsukemono made in the Winter is the best.  (Low temperature might keep the bad bacteria out.)  When I was a keeper of a mountain shelter, we made 5 binful Blacken  (Warabi) Tsukemono in the early summer and the same amount of local vegetable (Nozawa-na / 野沢菜) in November to accompany the meal for the guests.  It was a mountain of tsukemono !

Of course, there could be many variation which you can have a fun such as to put a hot chili sauce or the other vegetables etc.  Chinese people makes it with a lots of salt and they can be kept many years as really a preserved vegetable, called Tou-chai / 冬菜 and it must be the origin which came to Japan with Zen Buddhist.  (Yet, on the historical record,  Japanese has been making pickled vegetables 1000 years ago and there are hundreds of different style of Tskemono there.  Still, the basic idea is the same = use the effect of the natural bacteria’s fermentation to create distinctive flavor to the vegetable. (Though, may not necessary to make a good preserve because, it got only few days for the best eat and after it, it became to “Over pickled” taste became too sour, the color too brownish etc. — Yet, my guess is, when people found that the old natural fermentation become sour = why not use the vinegar from the beginning for the sake of consistency and the longer shelf life of the product. — this might be the start of the Pickles in vineger. )

(After 5~7 days, when the Hakusai-zuke was ready to eat, I shredded it and put into a jar while mixing with additional Chinese hot chilli sauce.  Since the pickled Hakusai is conveniently in a jar, it is easy to serve onto the rice.)  M m m,  Yummy !

For Japanese, the Tsuke-mono is a way of cooking —– to make it for long preserve, there are many different way such as pickled in a salty miso or use Sake etc.  The amazing difference in the western pickles is, that their taste was designed = what type of vinegar, what is the additional ingredient such as Junipers, dill seeds etc. and it almost symbolizes the fundamental difference between Judea Christianity and the Buddhism.  The one try to make the taste by their own idea, and the other see what the nature can make and follows it.  (It must be a very interesting point there, why the west didn’t start anaerobic fermentation of the vegetable, while having such as the wine making alongside.)    I haven’t tasted it though, there said to be the Zen Tsuke-mono made in the temple which is in the original Chinese style (much salty) — but to make it more acceptable mild taste, a Zen master, Takuan / 沢庵　said to have invented the use of rice bran with salt = it became the “Takuan Zuke” = which made his name as big as Ikkyu / 一休　on the history !  Since then, in most of the case, the tsukemono mean pickled in the salty rice bran — but it is so awkward to keep and smelly = it is the house wives’ nightmare.

(Yet the matter of fermentation is a combination of the bacteria = So, with a help of modern chemistry, the convenient short-cut was invented !

—–> Now people can make Tsuke-mono conveniently in a glass jar.  —  magic bullet was given to me from the friends though I haven’t tested it yet = if you like to try, it called “Nuka-yorokobi” from a Japanese food shop.)   Good luck and enjoy a taste.   😀

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Wabi – Sabi

Time to time, you might have heard the Japanese words, Wabi and Sabi, especially in relation to the Haiku Poet Basho or about Tea making and its pottery work. (such as tea bowl)  The word Sabi is related to Sabi-shii or Sabi-reta etc all of those meaning may be clearer in the visual metaphor than a lexical explanation (since those notions has to be grasped by the naked perception not by the thinking brain = hence direct transmission) — imagine you came across the place looks like abandoned or inhabited houses. = you may use a word ghost town.  No single soul on the street neither any sign of daily activity. Though, it is the very matter I’ve talked about in the previous post = if you were a westerner, your psych imagine a ghost town in a western film which is a dry, dusty, sun stricken street of wooden hoses — but here, in Japanese case, it has to be darker, under the shade of the tree, and rather wet, moss-covered half rotten houses. = you may feel even spooky.  This is rather exaggerated case of Sabi-shii scene.  And if you were here alone, you must feel quite Sabi-shii / lonely or desolated.  Then stretch your imagination further to the inside or the back of the house, what sort of the things you may find — wooden utensil ?  or a kind of bowl for eating, drinking ?  — a kind of the people used to live here, might be a poor farmer or casual worker helping those farmers = anyway, having had hand to mouth kind of the life = everything was a bare minimum.  So, if the bowl was not wooden but a pottery, how it looks like.  A bowl made to exchange for few vegetables or a caught bird, the pottery wouldn’t have a nice glaze or any decoration = just enough function for daily use. 

In the case of pottery, those images are the completely opposite of the Wabi, Sabi. Or I should say the typical decoration in the western standard, which the people think “gorgeous”. (but may be rather poor taste though) 

And in comparison, this is a Japanese dish in its decorative formal style. (This is Nabeshima. — If this one had no clack, it could fetch £10,000 even though this one was made by a trainee (= the lines were rather messy), hence second grade) —– Still, you may noticed that the stark contrast in the visual design = The western approach try to fill all the space with decorative images but Japanese leave the blank space.  Why ? It’s because of the Zen philosophy.   Western philosophy says, Nature avoid the vacuum but Zen is the matter to live with the Void.   So, to the westerner, gorgeous mean filled with nice decoration but Zen sees the peace in the blanc space.  If the nature was not in the free space, it is not natural but a fraud.  And Zen reject any intentional act as an unnatural fraud.  Especially in terms of Tea making, it got to be absolutely humble and everything has to be a bare minimum. —– This principle was in strict force, almost to an austere level.  So, when this principle was applied, a tea bowl has to be as a bare minimum = away from any intentional, artificial decoration or even an attempt to make it looks good.  In this philosophy, Tea-master Rikyu found the cheapest and the most humble pottery made for and used by the poorest people was the most suited for Tea making, which showed the Wabi and Sabi.    (Photo above right)   And this is the typical sample of the Wabi.  (In fact, this was the back or bottom of the dish the photo before.) = There was no intention to make it looks any better — it was naturally shaped and finished.  Its unassuming naturalness was not created by any intention but rather say, it just happened because it did nothing particularly. This absence of human intention = nothing is the core of Wabi. = poor humbleness, be natural in its material is the matter.  —– So, to a potter, this is the most difficult paradox in the pottery and the ZEN. = Tea bowl have to be made but made without having any intention to make it.   The answer is,  Make it with the mind of NO-Mind = Mushin in Zen. 

(In practice, just to be a potter, not a business man but just potting and let the pot to have its own fate = a pot made out of soil should have the face of soil and show the face burnt by the fire.)  (Photo above are the most tipical Wabi bowls, left was made by Koetsu)

(To an untrained eyes, “rustic” or lack of skill may looked like or confused with Wabi, though, the important point is, Wabi’s roughness or unevenness  was created by the unexpected accident, such as a fallen ash or unevenness of the fire not by the hand.)  = Think, Karma created Wabi not the hand let alone the brain deliberately thinking.  And the participant for tea ceremony has to appreciate such imperfect feature as an encounter on the moment.  (Which called Keshiki.) — The photo above, the vase showed a kind of Wabi on its glaze though, its pretty shape was too commercial.  Yet still, the right one seemed to have certain character to join Wabi = it’s a poor mans non-assuming daily mug, rather cheap product still it IS nothing else of Just a mag ! — but the photo left is a typical sample of a sham pretense.  On the surface of the mass-produced cup, a fake pattern of the dripped glaze was painted.

—– Now you might start to understand why Japanese garden or even an arranged flowers never had pattern or even a symmetry.

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Lost in Translation

There are quite few Japanese words notoriously difficult to translate into western language. 

Such as  Itadaki-masu (いただきます), Okage-sama (おかげさま), Mottai-nai(もったいない)、and abave all  Wabi, Sabi. (わび) (さび)

Why those words were difficult to translate, was because of that the one’s fundamental conscious to exists were completely different in the west.   Some said that because of the difference between the Christianity and the Buddhism.  But, to my eyes, the cause was much deeper = because of the fundamental difference, the westerner invented God, but the people in the east IS living under the Heaven since the beginning of the time. (so that, even Buddhism adapted the Dharma / Rule of the Universe)  And in the Shinto, (of which Japanese unconsciously follows) naturally follow the Rule of Nature which is almost the same to Dharma though sublimated much deeper down to the almost chemical level.  (That’s why Japanese doesn’t touch other’s possession and wash or clean the hand almost obsessively = so that, they were reluctant to shake hand, let alone kissing others, because they were prohibited to touch filth by the Shinto. —– hence, wearing surgical mask to avoid to breath other’s germ. = some of them even don’t eat a rice ball made by others hand.) 

In the same time, since the Japanese has the deep awareness that they “were Made to exists” by the Heaven, Rules, Dharma what so ever called, when they start to eat, they have to say Itadaki-masu = I gratefully receive this given food and thanks to the food (material itself) who gave their lives to me as well = Japanese are well aware that they are killing the Potato, Beans etc boiled alive.  Likewise, the word Okage-sama meant the thanks not only to the person who gave a kindness to him but also grateful to the Heaven who arrange the meeting. = This is the word to express absolute humbleness. = conscious toward the “Given Life” and thanks to its fate.  And the word Mottai-nai meant “Feel shame to waste the precious resources which has been given to us“.

=== It’s easy to see the point, that the fate of the rice glowing society was governed by the sun and rain = nature, not by a strong hunting, fighting individual. (The western God was conceived as an ancient Hero ascended to the heaven (A legend became myth, then to a religion) = therefore speak same language, and negotiable with a bribe = how humanistic !    😀 )

In contrast to the east, the western’s Ego justify his existence “As a rightful owner of my life”  and have a right to kill and eat, because they were made to be eaten. = thus feel no sorry to a butchered chicken.  Such fundamental difference between arrogant Ego and passive Humbleness couldn’t have the same kind of sentiment, the psych which is the base of each word. = therefore no compatible word could exist.   No wonder a trouble in translation.

I’ll explain the words Wabi and Sabi on the next post with sample photos. 

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Very Funny !

Very very funny indeed.  I’m living in England long enough to know the English expressions, the meaning and its hidden venom. (learned with a pain and a disgust)  And I actuary told or faced with this words  “Very funny” = in fact, when people said this, the real meaning was “What a hell of this = I wish, I spit you if I could”   (When the man in charge with the matter faced to a strong inquiry or complaint, in order to sway the trouble, he use this word. = didn’t respond straight therefore the trouble was not exists still at least responded therefore in its appearance, didn’t ignore the matter — still no answer or admission was given. = World is still peaceful as before (to him or his company) !

   Though, in this case, the situation was much funnier than any cynical meanings.   Please refer to the original story. = when I try to contact a Tripod manufacturer Manfrotto, about their crumbling disintegrating aluminium parts,  I needed to fill their complaint form with my full personal data.  And to the space, I put the photos which showed cracked, crumbling aluminium die-cast. —– It seemed the photos were just gone before I pressed a button to transmit the complaint text.   And today I received a thanks from Google Map for me to up-load the photo(S). = How funny ! ? ? ?

—– the photo was intended to prove what was the real situation to the man in Manfrotto who gave me a rather empty response which indicates that they haven’t seen the photo hence doesn’t aware how it was serious.  = So, instead, I put the photos of crumbling die-cast into my blog post (otherwise there was no way else to show the photo to them)  —– The funniest part of this story was, that why a part of the Manfrotto complaint form was addressed to the Google Map.   And one of the most inteligent organization, who got the most sophisticated image recognition program yet able to distinguish the block of aluminium to town-scape / landscape even to a block of building.  

So, the Google Map IS proudly showing the aluminium die-cast with Manfrotto address to the  world.  Very very funny. = (to Mr Google and Mt Manfrotto)

—– I wonder, on their Map, what is this photo going to do ?     Ha ha ha  😀

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Snowscape in Japan

I found those screen-shot image among the news (Jiji-news) from Japan.   They are having very heavy snow these days.    Japan has the highest snow fall (in the urban area, more in the mountain) record in the world, somewhat over 11 m (nearly 40 feet) high — I’m not joking = you can check it in the Guinness Book.   When it’s very heavy, the visibility could be less than 1 m = hard to see the ski trail of a man in front. (I have actuary ski down in such condition once. = in fact, we had a run for the life.)   So, the view of the (not too heavy) snow scene could be like this.  The landscape over a snow curtain.  And I like this impressionist like image !   Shame I was not in there.   😀

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Kill the SELF

If any Buddhism sect or their instructor told about “Self denial” or “Kill the Self” kind, they are a sham.  It was not what Lord Buddha taught 2500 years ago. 

(Lord Buddha taught “Selfless” through the practice though, as he didn’t explain the meaning or its intension, it was not necessarily understood by the followers. — Because of the SELF and its notion was not exists, it was not possible to explain. = Can you explain “Self is not exist” without using the word “Self” ?    😀 )  

In this situation, could anybody describe what about or significance of the teachings, or the meaning of practice which taught Selfless. = Hence, no description even in Agama. Because the matter was not to understand what the meaning of the word “Selfless” but become able to do the practice without thinking without emotion. ( = completely detouched, which mean without EGO ! )

There are many stories of Buddha’s silence or No-answer.   All those questions which was ignored were about the imaginary things, such as infinity, eternal, after a death, perpetual soul kind.   Because all those are the imaginary things = deluded by the “Self” which is not even exists.   Why bother answer it.   In fact, Lord Buddha’s silence = stop talking meant to be a message as strong as to kill the person.

Have you heard a very lucrative investment scheme of the Poca-pinta (10 poca-pinta is about $1) in the Pintaland, where you can buy 1 Kg of Gold for 1,000 Poca-pinta.  But to make a deal, you have to send $1000 into a Net Account first. = I don’t think you ever did because no Pintaland exists nor Poca-pinta. Naturally nobody uttered even a word Pintaland = because even the word “Pintaland” is not exists. —– Same as this, When the subject is not exists, no Lord Buddha ever talked about, let alone gave any answer related to it. 

By the way, were you aware to be the person who read this stories of Poca-pinta here. Was that YOU ?  And did you know the reading was done by your eyes.   In FACT, everything has been carried-out without you noticing it = “without noticing” ?   So, WHO read those ? —– Since when you were small, you’ve read the texts millions of times and now you can do it with no intentional intent.  You can capture a flashing message without reading it but just from its overall pattern.  Since, you DO it automatic, without conscious.   When you became Self-conscious, because of your EGO, “Me me me” you try to assert YOU and it IS only the situation you try to be Yourself.= Otherwise, in a normal condition, YOU/SELF is not exists.   And to read this, you don’t need to have your SELF.  Likewise, you can live your life without SELF.  It’s mean without having the ugly conflict of the EGO against EGO.

In the first place, Self wasn’t there unless you intentionally made-up.  Since, Dharma itself has no Self.

“The person” fist created “SELF” then clung to it =  because of own EGO, Me me me, — and made the life awkward.   Then try to kill it because it IS too awkward to live with.  (How silly.)

Aren’t  you doing the same ?  (You don’t need to pay an effort to kill the SELF, simply just live in a natural flow, there isn’t any SELF there as Dharma hasn’t one. —– It’s mean, You don’t need to struggle even with this blog = just read like as a casual gossip, though 100 times = if there is any truth, your intuitive wisdom will find it out.  If not just forget.)  😀

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PS : One point shouldn’t be forgotten,— to give up a drink, woman etc and become a follower of the Dharma. — You may see it is a sacrifice and the denial of the happiness and pleasure of the SELF / Me.  Or, to get the excitement of a sports and a health, spend the time and money for the training — wasn’t that a price to pay, or a sacrifice, denial to the Self ? .  The matter IS which you value positive ? 

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Ball and Socket

— (from top-left down = Bilora, Unknown German, Bilora copy.  Second top = Velbon, Velbon. Third = Slick. Fourth = Manfrotto with fixed quick camera  mount, Cheap Manfrotto. Big white Bilora. Gitzo and the second largest ball size in the world then = Cullmann (Germany) with Manfrotto quick camera mount )

While looking for something, I noticed one of the box is very heavy.  And it turned out to be full of Ball-and-Socket Tripod-heads packed in.  For general use, I’m using two Gitzo tripod, one with a Ball-and-Socket head and the other with ordinary 3 axis adjustable head.  On top of those, I’ve been using small tripods, ball-socket to many improvised use in the dairy life.

When we connect something, bar, arm, even camera or light to the base or tripod kind, a Ball and Socket is the most useful (if not the best) system.  They can be easily adjusted of position, angle and able to fix it with a turn of one lever.  Very good for a busy photographer though, such advantage is exactly the big disadvantage in the same time. = painstakingly found, adjusted position could suddenly collapse with one miss move of the fixing lever.  And when it collapses, it dramatically collapses all XYZ direction.  Try to counter this trouble, Cullmann Ball-Socket Head using very heavy grease to prevent the sudden move of the ball though, as the ball was somewhat stuck to the socket, it is very heavy to move.  (And even worse, this heavy grease preventing the solid clamp of the ball, even when the fixing lever was tightened, ball would move slowly by its own = and after a while, the position = lens direction would have been changed by the gravity ! — with such trouble, soon it disappeared from the market, so, my one is a historical collection.   😀 ) 

And in the box, there are quite a few “Ball-Socket” kind of items.  Left is a Level Adjuster from Manfrotto  #138. 

Probably the most incredible and disturbing item in my all collection is this Manfrotto #138 = level adjusting head.   As you can see on the photos, its ball is cracked and started disintegrating.   Non of the other head etc showing the same deterioration, it must be unique to this item = the material must be hopelessly inferior or mixed with wrong additives.   To my complaint, Manfrotto said that they got the confidence in the quality of their products, and didn’t even interested in to see the photos let alone item itself = indicating it may not be new to them = don’t need even inspect, let alone investigate.  (As you can see the deterioration occurred only the ball side nothing on the socket = indicates it was not caused by the external factor such as the way how it was used or kept (heat, humidity kind) but solely in the quarity of the ball itself. = material or manufacturing process was responsible.)   Still they says that anyway its out of warranty and the product #158 has been discontinued. = No hope ! — So, this is who Manfrotto is = we may need to prepare that their product could suddenly clack and breakdown, while crushing the expensive camera on it.  Oh dear.

And the second = Action Head from the Slick — with a grip of the lever the ball will be released to move — though, it was a torture to the hand ! (This one was designed more than 45 years ago.) The third must be a kit tripod for a small camera though, I haven’t found the camera fit to this.  And the right one was in fact a base of an old wooden tripod = level adjusting base — 100 years old ? — I thought it would be useful in somewhere, one day.  😀

When I need to shoot on table top with flash light etc, I’m using a Support stand which can hold the subject, accessory etc or a light reflector etc.   Those system is having many different kind of grip, clamp, holder etc and having many articulated flexible joint to adjust the position.

For such purpose, the Ball-Socket is what we need.  But there is not such small Ball-Socket in the market.   If not there, why not make one myself.  It is only a matter of cramping a ball.  And such material could be found everywhere. (From a fixture of a furniture to a broken top of a Hasselbrad Focusing Lever. (Photo middle)   Or make a cramp using a large screw nat. (Photo right)

If we look around, the useful material we can improvise, is everywhere.   A small display base could be a small camera base. (Photo left)   And you might recognize this = looks familiar wasn’t it ? (Photo middle and right) = it was a flexible base of a radio antena. = now converted to hold something on front of a lens  on close-up shot or hold a light reflector on a side of the lens.    (Once before, I did hung a flower dipped with honey to attract the flying bee come to the front of the lens. = it’s worked !   😀 )

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