Desire and GREED

There is a funny paradox in one’s greed.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

it’s a small change after spending spree 😀 )

[]

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

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

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

(60kg) since I was 16 years old.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

[]

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

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

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

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

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

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

[]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

[]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

[]

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

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

———-

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

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

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

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

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

—

Cognition – Expectation – Speculation

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

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

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

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

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

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

[]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

[]

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

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

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

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

assumption of the visual information from the eyes is correct.

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

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

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

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

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

[]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

whole economy collapsed, end up with 20% unemployment.

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

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

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

consequence they are suffering now.

[]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

[]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

—

Dead Leaves ?

By seeing this, what you perceive about it ?

Is this a representation of the Fall and the indication of the end of era or even a shadow of death ?

Or you think, this is their loudest final fanfare, show-off the completion of their duty = their

most glorious moment,  hence it got brighter golden color ?

If you are a type of the person to feel the former, you may need to chin-up —– or are you indulging a

self-consoling emotional memories or rather sentimental [soul-searching] !

If you are the type to see it like the later, you are a person most likely to reach to the Nirvana.

[]

In the medieval time, Japanese are pretty sombre Buddhists.

Like the plague ravaged European medieval time, japan was in the constant battle between warlords.

People thought this is the end of the world, hence Pureland Buddhism with their longing to reborn in

the Heaven became very popular.

As peaceful life was out of question, people’s mind was focused to how to die.

So that they appreciated even a cherry blossom in its moment of the end of flower, when their

flower petals are fallen like a snow is the best.   (It got a dedicated word Hana-fubuki / 花吹雪)

(Hence, cherry blossoms are connoted as the symbol of the Samurai and the Kamikaze fighters, because of

their beauty in its moment of the death — I mean their mind, not a bloody scene.   😀 )

—– since then, in Japan, Buddhism was assigned to deal with the death. —– With this misconception,

Buddhism became a formality to take care of the funeral, and not a guiding light to live positive life.

Yet still at least, it made them the most docile, decent people in the world.   😀

(But, with their suppressed psych, some time it erupt to utterly crazy creation of Manga or Cos-play kind

of culture — and it became another tradition called Kabuki / 傾き then 歌舞伎)

[]

In reality, the tree has no such mind = when the sun light dropped below the productive level and the air

temperature become too low, the green color = Chlorophyle became redundant = then another chemical such

as Carotene which happen to have red or orange color which has been masked by the green color become

visible = hence the leaf looks changed its color, and then they fall.

It is nothing to do with the life or death to them as they got the buds of yet another leaves

prepared for the next spring = it is just their cycle of the life.

[]

—– still, we give plenty thought when we see the  Autumn leaves in its red color.

Lots of thoughts, memories, regrets etc etc —– all just in the mind.

To the clear eyes, they are just the Fallen Leaves.   (Zen often spoil the fun.   Sorry guys.   :-D)

___/\___

 —

ZEN in Car Accident

A person who read previous post made me a question, saying

“How detached, emotionless mind can be compassionate in the same time ?”

“As I said, you can not understand it because you are thinking while you are sitting”

[]

—– away from the situation, not on the MOMENT, and thinking = brain is in the pure

thinking mode = all the data and the notion is just borrowed data from the memory bank.

Therefore, everything is individual abstract data = having no reality or its real connection =

in other words, they don’t have its entirety.   This is the limit of its ability of the THINKING.

[]

We human invented the tool, language for the convenience of the expression, communication

and for thinking process.    And each word is the representation of each categorized notion.

A word RED represents million of reddish color hue in one notion.

To explain Orange (color), we may say “It’s the color between Red and Yellow” eventhough, there are

million of different Orange.   (Still pretty simple and convenient isn’t it  🙂  )

But when it is more complicated and vague notions such as Detachment  or  Compassion, they are just

conveniently made-up notions and the words.   What is Detached, how far is Detached —– ? ? ?

Actually they are not more than a kind of metaphor to describe a kind of state of the mind.

That’s why, it is impossible to describe precisely a state of the mind in words.

[]

A man who had run into  34 cars pile-up on the M5 accident, described the situation

“When I saw the situation, it was an autopilot. I jumped out to help the other people.

A woman in a crushed car asked “My baby, my baby, take my baby”  I took the baby out”

In the pile-up, other cars, petrol tanker are on fire,  he himself could be in danger too .

Even another car may further crushed into his car —– yet,

regardless of such consideration (consideration itself may not there in that moment) he just

acted what he needed to do. —– (did he needed ? —– didn’t he needed just run away for safety ?)

How he knew what to do ? —– Was he a fire brigade and familiar with car accident ? —– I don’t think so.

[]

Suddenly involved in a car pile-up, fire, explosion, still not overwhelmed by its horror and fear

of own life, able to grasp the situation is nothing but the [Selfless], [Detached Eyes and the Mind].

And this very detached eyes saw the urgent needs of the other people, hence, he acted “autopilot”.

This was certainly the manifestation of the [Mushin].

And as he is a human, he instinctively knew what he got to do, and he did it in his best

in fully minded concentration = [Mindfulness].

This is what Buddhist call manifestation of the [Dharma and its wisdom].

In fact, there was only one mind. = All those selflessness, detached mind, mushin, mindfulness are only the

different aspects of the same mind = actually there was No-Mind = only the Dharma was.

Compassion was not from his emotion, but the Dharma’s expression.   Dharma autopilot him.

[]

I don’t think this man was a Buddhist. —– But this is the real virtue and its universality of the Dharma.

Everybody (Buddhist or not) is a part of the Dharma, everybody is having the nature like him.

Buddha saw this fact, and found the way and the practice to develop this nature to apply all

aspects of the life.  (not only in a situation like an accident or disaster —– still, it works best in such

moment, that’s why Zen asks the mind-set to face the situation,  “as if it is the moment of life or death” )

[]

( In reality,  we are sensing far more information on the spot,  far more than any AI program able to anticipate,

without having any signal compression or abstract categorization = RAW data from all the sensors in the body.

With those moment to moment, up to date information,  we are assessing,  judging what to do —– but all

done in the subconscious level = which we call the spontaneous response.

Because of this process is invisible,  and the RAW data containes even genetically inherited ancient information,

Buddha attributed this supreme process to also invisible Dharma. )

[]

—– So, this post clarified how detachment and compassion are in the same mind in the same time.

And it must be clear, it couldn’t be understood while you are sitting.    (When you are sitting, you can deal

with the matter of sitting —– this is what [Live in the Moment] mean.)

( Convinced ? 🙂 )

___/\___

—

Can Monk get MUSHIN ?

Can Monks get Mushin, let alone Ichijo and Jizai ? —– I don’t think so. Or it may takes 50 years.

Even worse is, so-called Buddhism Academics.

How many Japanese Zen Monks can speak English, and how many of them wrote Zen book in English ?

—– This is the situation, what western people reading the Zen. = No wonder it is hard to understand

let alone able to learn Mushin,  not mention ever get Enlightenment.

What monks learning is, their trade = the business how to run their Temple.

[]

Most of Japanese monks become monk, just happen to born as a son of priest = had to take over

temple business.    Naturally some of them might be good in English though, it is not necessary useful skill

in running the temple as virtually all of their customers are the Japanese, and most of the case they are

the old people.  So, what the trade skill to run temple ?

It is, to carry out the ceremonies which required immaculate posture, performing, chanting some mantras,

above all friendly but solemn facial expressions !

( No customer ever ask about the meaning of what they are doing   😀 )

[]

To be qualified as a monk, —– as a formality, they have to learn Buddhism theory and its history in their

sect’s university.   Though it is in most of the case, yet another boring study.

And yet another formality, spend few months in their main temple as a novice —– except exceptionally few

exception, most of them are then ordained as an “enlightened monk”.

So, where they can learn Mushin ? (few months in the temple, cleaning the floor ? —– joking)

[]

Buddhism Scalars are likely came from Philosophy back ground or Religious History. Naturally, they are

good in logics and semantics and may able to read ancient Pali, Tibetan and Sanskrit etc,

and must have read millions of the words.   On top of this, may have met many priest, monks while visiting

or even staying the temples —– though,

has they got time to lean what the Mushin is,  let alone to master it ?

Now, the medical science can observe the activities of the Schizophrenia’s brain by PET scan and able to

analyze what chemical effecting it and so on. Yet still, non of them able to know what is going on in the mind

of a Schizophrenia.  To treat it, doctor doesn’t need to learn to be a Schizophrenia.

But to talk about Mushin,  it is necessary to get Mushin  by him/herself first.

Able to read the ancient description about the Mushin and able to compare this script and others, doesn’t

mean they know what the Mushin is, therefore,  they are not necessary able to know what would it be if looked

by the eyes of Mushin. —– They know the words but not the meaning and its effect of changed perception.

[]

So, this is the situation what has been written about the Zen Buddhism.

Even worse, the Buddhism is having too many conflicting notions in the same instance,

such as how detouched emotionless eyes can be compassionate eyes in the same time.

—– it is hard to complehend on the words or in thinking,  but only able to experience it

in Mushin in the situation.

To experience mean, you got actualy do it,  not by trying to understand it while sitting in a cauch.

Utterly contrary to the popular belief, Buddhism is not a religion of understanding / Meditation

but the practice of the practice. —– It wouldn’t take you to the heaven (as no such things exists)

but help you to live everyday’s life,  as you have to practically do the

endless continuous practice as your life.

( After all, life is not what you think, but what you do.   🙂 )

___/\___

—

Search Term

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

the link each other, saying have look this one ?

[]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

[]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

___/\___

—

Mermaid in the Flood

A photo I found in the internet —– Mermaid in the flooded city !   (Photo KEITH  K  NRT Thailand)

Forget the useless talking, whether it is appropriates or politically correct while millions of the lives were

devastated and hundreds of the people lost their lives etc —–.

Blame the government ?  Curse the heaven ?  Complain the misfortune ? —– regardless, the water is rising.

Instead of becoming desperate, be glad it was not a killer Tsunami —– at least the sky is blue.

Thanks goodness,  at least  still alive and kicking !

Open the eyes, see the bright side because anyhow dark spot may be everywhere.

[]

So, think how to deal with the situation.   Normal business was completely out of question.

Yet still,  what people can do in their best here in the water ?

This might be the occasion only once in the life !

—– Ah,  to take this opportunity,  why not reborn to be a Mermaid.

This is the contemplation at work. —– With a touch of fun and ingenuity.  😀

This is the life of good Buddhist ( particularly fun-loving variety ) in their best resilience.

(—– But, I don’t know.   She could be good Christian. —– Is it a matter ?  😀 )

Life is to live.   Not for wasted to be in grumpy.

Anyhow, even a flood was brought by the Dharma.

If you can’t beat, join it.   Being with it,  is the better choice.   And live in its Moment.

(in this instance forget the talking of man-made climate change kind, blah, blah)

___/\___

Change PATHWAY ???

I’ve received rather heavy question as a comment on [Tiny Comment] post,

which said;

>>> I’m now at a crossroads in my working life. I work with disabled people (for some reason

I seem to work with blind and visually impaired) showing them ICT skills to communicate

with computers across the internet. As you know I also am an artist. Neither is making me a

living, but I find I cannot go back to cleaning toilets and doing basic manual work. Can I be

mindful and find my path again? Something (I do not know what, maybe slight sadness) tells

me I may need to change path completely…

[]

As a matter of fact I know this man many years as I’ve seen him everywhere, Art events, Computer events and

he is a friend of lots of my friends as well, yet ever knowing his full name or profession.

Hence, I gave him a nick name [Paul the Ubiquitous] in my diary 😀

In my notorious one glance, he was seen as a man of very wide faculty and extrovert, going round a lots

—– adrenaline driven very active person —– in other words, knowing a lots, but because the information

he has to deal with in his brain is so much, not necessary had a time to know a direction or who he is, yet

without knowing direction still able to proceed like a bulldozer, it often go against the other’s grain.

Life wouldn’t be smooth and sweet.

(The line between confidence and arrogance, active and pushy are very thin, but fundamental trouble is that

the [man of confidence] couldn’t guess the mind of the [man of no-confidence], such as even a use of technical

term or talking speed, often it is hard to follow the speed of brain of the [man of confidence] :-D)

[]

In the quote above, he said [change the path] —– I hope he is not mixing it up with

the so-called [Pathway] in the Buddhism.

In fact, it is not him, generally most of the people who was interested in the Buddhism having

a misunderstanding that the [Pathway] is the special process in the Buddhism study. —– Far

from it, it is the LIFE itself.    There is no double life or short cut  even in a Buddhist’s life.

Life is total and only one to a person, and it is the very  Pathway.  ( What makes the dairy life

into so-called Pathway is, how the person could find the core reality out of the mundane occurrences =

some may grasp the truth of whole life in one fallen leaf = it’s called direct transmission in Buddhism)

[]

While having a ruthless life to chase own greed, there is no redemption by the 10 minutes meditation in the

evening or some donation to the temple.  His life itself is not compatible with the Buddhism = the person is

taking a pathway of the greed = Karma follows accordingly.

( though, in Zen, as it follows Mahayana tradition, there is slightly different understanding that a part of the life,

such as [ruthless activity] can still have highest efficiency in Zen —– yet, overall repercussion of the Karma

comes from its totality of the life.  I don’t think the Supreme Sword Master Musashi got any regret when he died.

But I don’t think he needed to have, let alone wished to have Nirvana = He lived and died as a

man of the Sword = It was the Zen contemplation)

[]

So, the question is, whether [Paul the Ubiquitous] need to change his path (direction) —– ?

My view is, as he is living in the environment to deal with ICT, and blind people many years already, he must

have all the expertise, knows resources, possibilities, limitations, it is already his part of the life.

What he needs more is to open the eyes to see what he can do to those blind people —– find a new approach,

better technology to solve the problem.  Somebody in unique environment or position is, often because of

he was needed to be there —– could be a Karma.

Though, to fill the duty in the Karma, it needs to work hard = mindfulness mean the objective is only one,

don’t expect anything else, such as good business or fame.   ( let alone nice woman 😀 )

Being also as an artist mean, he must have an idea of unconventional approach = idea of pretty new device.

He could be an inventor as well.  Provided, he must know, he is an able person = He need to hear and

feel what blind and impaired people is feeling = the mind to hear and to know the other’s mind.

Buddhist’s listening ears and the compassion, above all clear open mind would be essential.

When the idea developed concrete, apply a grant etc to develop further. As the demography is changing,

this field having a priority in the society.    Believe your task and the duty in full.

Good luck.

___/\___

—

Tiny Comment — How Master Kogetsu got angry

If this is the first time for you to stumble this blog, you might be puzzled

as this blog is the most not Zen like place.

In here, there is no pretentious word game or glorious myth were told.   Especially,

if you have a romanticized idea of Zen as something intellectually hi-class culture,

you will be disappointed.  Zen is not an exclusive special culture nor peculiar practice.

Even so-called Enlightenment, Nirvana is NOT the hard to come-by

awkward commodity.  It is right there sitting next to you.

You just not see it because you believe, it must be the other side of the river, long way

beyond the Pathway, hence looking somewhere wrong place.

Far from it, it is nothing afar.   In this blog, I’m showing how Zen and Enlightenment is

ubiquitous and in fact, right inside of you.

It was not my opinion but simply this is what

Lord Buddha told, therefore what the Zen is.

Zen can be walking, can be cutting a lemon. In deed,

being yourself is the Zen and Enlightenment.

I show it to your eyes,  what I’m doing here.

non

When I faced Master Kogetsu in the Eiheiji Temple and told him that I was a

photographer, what he uttered was “What a hell, why a photographer kind of person

wondering the Zen Temple.  This is exactly the indication of that you couldn’t settle

and be diligent in your own life” “As you are a photographer, do the best photography

and become the best photographer. It is where your life is”. — In return I replied to

him “Wait a moment, why photographer can’t search the truth.   Have look, even

Lord Buddha himself did forsake the life of Royal prince and became a seeker.  Why not me ?”

“What? —– What a preposterous word you got, comparing yourself to

Lord Buddha is unforgivable”  (though, he didn’t hit me with a stick which was in his side.  :-))

non

Master Kogetsu was one of the highest Soto Zen priest ( wearing brown ), who was the

head of the Suzuka-dera Temple and visiting, serving fellow of the Eiheiji Temple.

(In fact, leaving the dairy chore to deal with dead man for the hand of young monks and

have a break, come to chat together with another priests in the Eiheiji Temple  🙂 )

Naturally he knew the Zen Buddhism back to back.   Hence, what he meant was, as he said,

the Enlightenment to a photographer is to live totally as a photographer.

There is no fancy myth or abstract enigma there.

As the Life itself is total already, 

Zen wouldn’t make it any more complicated,  simply Life is the Life.

To see as it is and to live as it is,  Just Do It which is due, is the Enlightenment.

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Just like a lotus flower, being as the flower is the Dharma,

a photographer being as the photographer is the Dharma.

Being with Dharma mean, when the time comes it is the Nirvana.

(Photographer being as a photographer needs no pretence or thinking =

being in Mushin = his camera, his technique, his eyes and the subject,

all become one = Ichijo —– what the one needs more.

(in this instance, forget pretty model—– What model ?    😀 )

This was the way, how Sword Master perfected his skill, how Sword Smith

created his unbreakable sword —– even a Tea Master perfected his tea making.  

It was the Zen.  

Zen is not in the sitting posture, but in the every day’s life,  moment to moment.

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When the historical Great Zen Masters got their Enlightenment all of them uttered

“It’s a Dog shit”

Yes, it is as ubiquitous as a dog shit, as the Master has been with himself all through his life.

No fancy or enigmatic mumbo-jumbo has been discovered.  The life as it is —– It is there.

(In other words, to invent or cling any fancy story is nothing short of a delusion).

My blog here is talking about this [Zen in action] —– action in everyday life.

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How KARMA Works

When Buddha explained the mechanism of the Dharma which is the system of the existences

and the relations between each existence and the rational of the occurrences, each action and

the consequence which shows the rules.

The rule and the reason why a wood burns = wood was made of a compound of the matters.

The matters such as C, H, O,N, Mg, Ca, K, S, P, Fe —–. And each matter such as H, Hydrogen was made of

subatomic particle, Proton, Neutron, Electron —–.

The number of Electrons define which matters are tend to combine, such as  H, C  with  O,  in order to

gain the more stable / balanced / harmonized state to a molecular like  H2O or CO2.

With the existence of those matters preconditions an occurrence of Fire, which occurs when

somebody or something put a fire = by a match or lightning etc —–.

All those observations are the basis of his understanding of the Karma, cause and the result.

Existence of  Hydrogen, Carbon, Oxygen etc are the cause, somebody light it up is the cause too.

The fire is the result.  Still, there is far more ramification such as the produced CO2 —– with huge scale

burning of the jungle, contributes even the change of climate and on the end, small island may disappear

with rising sea level, causing the misery to the people living there, and so on.   All those links are the Karma.

This is, in fact, the approach with the science ( whatever it was  primitive on the time ).

To see the Karma need to have the detached clear eyes, open mind, and the deep insight.

The reason why Buddha approached in this way was, nothing other than to eliminate the

uncertainty caused by the idea of the Atman which said to carry effects of  former life.

To deny the imaginary existence of the perpetual soul, so-called Atman was the starting

point of his philosophy to elucidate the truth of the Dharma.

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In today’s approach in science, the attitude is the same.

To eliminate uncertainty, make the variables to the clearly defined minimum.

Such as in the clinical medical science,  make the condition the same as much as possible.

And to eliminate the bias caused by the most unreliable factor of human eyes and the mind,

use the double-blind test and so on.   The so-called Clinical Detachment = Selfless eyes is the must.

The Buddha’s approach with [Selflessness] was not a coincidence.   It was the must to deal

with the Truth,  not only for the sake of promoting the idea to deny Atman.

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Even in a today’s clinical trials, such as try to establish the effect of a medicine, use double-blind test involving

as many as possible number of guinea-pig in two groups, one for a counter test with placebo —– still, there

could be a funny coincidence.

Looks almost the same and complying the same condition in the pre-examination, yet still one of the group

may consist the people who got certain tendency.  Hence, there could be a certain bias toward the result.

Nobody could predict such coincidence. —– Still, it could happen.

This is still the Karma. —– invisible part of it.

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Somewhat invisible hand acted to cause this bias, as the part of the Dharma is invisible.

Sometimes it acts toward the better direction but sometimes not. Yet strangely, to

somebody toward one direction and to others opposite direction.

To pay attention to this fact and contemplates the existences of this invisible hand is the

spiritualism.

This spiritualism was called as the Panya Paramita in the Buddhism which was not clearly

explained even by Buddha himself. —– In fact he said to have kept silence.

As Buddha kept silence,  this is the part of the Dharma,  human-being shouldn’t

touch = leave as unknowable.  ( Still, strangely it is noticeable to somebody)

An attempt to decipher this unknown was the Tantrism.  Though, as it is unknowable,  it wouldn’t work.

Otherwise thousands of Tantra Superman could have been ruling the world —– but didn’t happened.

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What I’ve observed so far is,  it seems as long as we live in mushin away from greed and ego,

the Karma is kind to us.   This is the reason why the millionaire become philanthropist in their later life.

(at least avoid to have a premature miserable death) —– Late is still better than nothing.

They buy a time.    Good on them. 😀

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