Shinto Assignment: Sunshine Through the Rain

For the Shinto blog assignment, I chose the video “Sunshine Through the Rain.” The video starts with a young boy standing outside in the sunshine and the rain. His mother comes outside and tells him that he should stay home, because the Foxes often like to have their wedding ceremonies during weather like that, and that they do not like it when people witness these ceremonies. Nevertheless, the boy goes out into the woods, and happens upon one of these ceremonies. When he returns home, his mother tells him that one of the Foxes came by the house, and is angry with him for seeing the ceremony. She tells him that the Fox left a dagger for him to kill himself with, and that she cannot let him back into the house until he has been granted forgiveness by the Foxes. She warns him, however, that the Foxes rarely forgive, and that he should be prepared to die. The child wanders off in search of the Foxes to ask their forgiveness.
At first I was a little confused, and unsure of how this related back to Shinto (especially since I missed the lecture on Shinto), but I’m going to do my best here. Shinto ethics are very important and are taken very seriously. Those who do not follow this strict set of ethics are often punished very severely. Shinto myths are used to instill these ethics and to reinforce them. The story of the little boy is one that reinforces the ethics of obedience and respect. These are things that seem to be held in very high regard in this culture, as shown by the fact that the mother won’t let her own son back into the house until he receives forgiveness, and that she accepts the fact that he may have to die. His crimes of disobeying his mother’s orders, and disrespecting and angering the Foxes is punished harshly, with the worst punishment (in our eyes) of all – death. However, in Shinto, death is not the worst punishment; dishonor is far worse. Suicide is very common in occasions of dishonor, as shown by the expectation that the boy will kill himself because of what he has done.

Taoism Assignment: The Tao of Pooh

Even before I started reading this book, I was intrigued by it. I figured that any book titled “The Tao of Pooh” had to be something that I would enjoy reading. I began reading without really knowing what it was about at all, and before we had begun to cover Taoism in class, so at first, it threw me off a little. But that brings me to my point about what I liked so much about the book. It takes these complex concepts and philosophies that are generally difficult for Westerners to wrap their minds around, and applies them to something just about everybody can relate to – Pooh. For example, the concept of the P’u, which, as a function of the nature of it, is difficult to explain in words, and for some might be tough to grasp, is summed up in a simple phrase: “Pooh can’t describe the Uncarved Block to us in words; he just is it. That’s the nature of the Uncarved Block.” (p. 19). I also enjoyed the humor found throughout the book in various critiques, particularly regarding the “Bisy Backsons”.

I definitely agree with this critique. Though it’s sad to say, it is a problem that is becoming more and more predominant in our world today, where everyone needs to cram more and more work into their day, and any free time is a waste of time. The reality of the situation though, is that working too hard and too much is a bigger waste of time, as can be illustrated by the rotation of the crops (p. 100-1). Personally, I connected this with the concept of the Great Nothing, and people’s fear of Emptiness because of its perceived equation to Loneliness. “Everything has to be filled in, it seems – appointment books, hillsides, vacant lots – but when all the spaces are filled, the Loneliness really begins.” (p. 147)

This is something that I have been able to see in my own life. My boyfriend left for a 15-week boot camp on January 3. My plan of action was to make myself so busy that the time would go by faster, and therefore I would not even have time to be sad (essentially trying to be a “Bisy Backson” you could say). If I wasn’t studying, going to class, or going to work, it was a waste of time. While this kind of thing does make the time go by faster, it doesn’t make you not sad, it just makes you forget about being sad, or being happy, or being anything for that matter. And then that’s just the problem (as the book points out) when we try to work so hard to get so much done, the time flies by, and we have none left at all.

Personally, I feel as though the Taoist solutions to the problem of our culture definitely have some weight to them. The only problem is, I can’t see Americans ever fully adopting them in such a way that they would be beneficial. Taoism advocates taking the most direct and simple path to reach a goal, and if we all conducted ourselves in this way, we would be freed of the stress that seems to plague our society. But, many people will never believe that working less will give you more. As professor Rasnic pointed out in class, to most, if you practiced the concept of Wu Wei, you would just appear simple-minded and crazy. People will never stop wanting to change themselves to be something they are not designed to be, in pursuit of that unattainable great reward; because in our culture, the grass is always greener on the other side.

Extra Credit Assignment: Zen Meditation

My friend and me outside of the Ekoji Buddhist Sangha

For the extra credit assignment I attended a Zen Meditation session at the Ekoji Buddhist Sangha in Richmond. Normally this consists of 30 minutes of zazen meditation, 10 minutes of walking meditation, and 30 more minutes of zazen meditation, followed by a 10 minute service. However, my friends (that I dragged along with me) and I got lucky and went on a night that the group had a guest teacher - Josho Pat Phelan Sensei, Abbess of the Chapel Hill Zen Center. This turned out to be a really great thing, because not only did we get to hear a lecture from Josho Sensei, but it was done in place of the second zazen meditation, so it made it easier on us (since we had never done any meditation practices before).

I was actually surprised at how comfortable the sitting position for the zazen meditation was, which was contrary to what I had heard before. I have had some experience through colorguard and winterguard with that sort of posture and alignment, so for me it felt very comfortable and natural. I could, at moments when I found the right posture, feel the circulation and energy in my body. What was also very interesting was that, in moments when I lost concentration or my mind began to wander, I felt my posture shifting, and I seemed to lose that balance and relaxedness in my body, and would have to adjust to find it again.

I was also caught quite off guard with how difficult it was to achieve the right mindset for the meditation. In the brief instruction session, we were told to simply watch our thoughts, and to try to bring ourselves back to the present moment when we felt ourselves getting lost on a random train of thought. But at the same time, the practice is not a complete emptying of one's mind. So, I was a little confused as to the goal of the meditation while I was doing it, especially during the walking meditation. It took me a few minutes to get accustomed to the walking meditation; at first it seemed to be far more distracting than the sitting. About halfway through I found myself asking, "What is the goal?" and I realized that there is no goal, that I am doing just to be doing. And this idea was further clarified during Josho Sensei's lecture.

Josho Sensei's lecture was based around the concept of mindfulness (which again, I was really lucky to get to hear, because in retrospect, it is very applicable). Her main point was that Zen meditation, and other practices, such as bows and chants, are all ways in which we can train ourselves to do things with 100% mindfulness. When we sit, we sit; when we walk, we walk; when we think, we think; when we plan, we plan. We should do things one at a time, that way we are not splitting our mind among a number of different things, and therefore giving only part of our attention to everything. Josho Sensei pointed out that one of the best ways to practice this in everyday life is to try to pick up and hold things with two hands, instead of one, and to see how or if that changes your perspective on things. That way, when we pick something up, we are giving it our full attention. This is a very applicable concept in today's world where multi-tasking is a priceless skill, and in my own personal life - the life of a full-time student, part-time chef, part-time orientation leader. It was interesting to me, because even as I was sitting doing my meditation, or walking, or listening, I was thinking about what I was going to write in my reflection. And that's just the point. When I sit, I should just sit. When I write my reflection, I should write my reflection. I should not write my reflection while I am sitting.

Overall, it was a great experience. When studying these concepts in class, I had been able to relate to them somewhat, but had not fully understood the depth of what this type of practice was all about. This experience really brought those things to life, and put things into a new perspective for me. I would definitely do this practice again - hopefully sometime in the very near future.