02009-01-07 | Buddhism, Quotes, World
to be able to see the mountain
开门见山
To be able to see the mountain as soon as the door is opened;
To come straight to the point
開 open
門 gate
見 see
山 mountain
Y. thinks it could mean: You can see something, if you open the door. Keep the door closed and see nothing.
I agree. And aren’t these four words the essence of living (and zen)? Open the gate and you will see that it’s all right there in front of you, in fact it’s been there all along!
PS:
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02009-01-06 | Quotes
If there is light in the soul
There will be beauty in the person.
If there is beauty in the person
There will be harmony in the house.
If there is harmony in the house
There will be order in the nation.
If there is order in the nation
There will be peace in the world.
– Chinese Proverb
Have been trying to come with a better first line, but have failed so far. Every line feels like a logical progression, except for the first one, which is rather nebulous. Like a tower build on a soft foundation. Light? in Soul? Could be the translation from Chinese to English that’s at fault.
Hm, let’s try starting with:
If there’s a smile on your face…
It’s interesting that we know what is meant by If there is light in the soul… – it’s probably the reason that there is a smile on your face… but just try to explain to a kid or an ET what that light in the soul is – and why you haven’t switched it ON.
02008-12-30 | Buddhism, Quotes
The more you sense the rareness and value of your own life, the more you realize that how you use it, how you manifest it, is all your responsibility. We face such a big task, so naturally we sit down for a while.
– Kobun Chino Otogawa Roshi (1938-2002)
from the Upaya newsletter
02008-12-23 | Music, Quotes
It is so characteristic, that just when the mechanics of reproduction are so vastly improved, there are fewer and fewer people who know how the music should be played.
-Ludwig Wittgenstein
And since he died in 1951, he wasn’t even talking about the quantum leap in reproduction of the last decade.
02008-11-12 | Quotes
Contrary to the way that the bodhisattva path is often understood, Buddhist social engagement is not about deferring our own happness to help others who are less fortunate because they happen to be suffering. That just reinforces a self-defeating (and self-exahusting) dualism between us and them. Rather, we join together to improve the situation for all of us. As a Native American put it: “if you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is tied up with mine, then let us work together.”
– David Loy
From the Upaya newsletter.
02008-10-29 | Music, Quotes
The whole problem can be stated quite simply by asking, ‘Is there a meaning to music?’ My answer to that would be, ‘Yes’. And ‘Can you state in so many words what the meaning is?’ My answer to that would be, ‘No’.
– Aaron Copland
