Day: May 9, 2011

Caveat: 부처님 오신 날

Banalities & Journaling / Buddhism & Zen / Life in Korea

[bucheonim osin nal]:  literally, "the Day the Buddha came." 

So.  Happy Buddha's Birthday, everyone!  Or…  "Vesak," as it's called in South Asia.  Kind of a Buddhist Christmas, conceptually, but celebrated in a more low-key day. 

[broken link! FIXME] Images It's my second holiday in less than a week (after Children's Day, last Thursday), but not terribly easy to exploit, given that I had to work on the interleavened days. 

I felt useful at my new job for maybe the first time, last night – and it wasn't even for my teaching, which is still reliant on the old schedule and therefore random substitutions.  I was helping with a spreadsheet.   Shades of my last career. 

It's pouring rain and feeling summery, here.  There are pigeons battling in the puddles on the ledge outside my window – I'm not sure if it's a territorial battle or something related to pigeonish procreation.  Or maybe both.

Caveat: …and no matter what, don’t think about elephants

Buddhism & Zen / Found Online / Life is a Dream / Philosophy & Cultural Criticism

Another excellent comic from "pictures for sad children."

Speed

Now, take the concept above, please, and invert it.  Sorta.  Make it something wonderful, something positive, that you're not supposed allow to change your behavior.  It's not a bomb – it's the potential loss of nirvana.

I have a weird theory that this is how englightenment works.  Or salvation.  Or grace.  It's something that changes everything, but you're not really supposed to change what you do – because it's what you've been doing, that brought it on. 

… and no matter what, don't think about elephants, either.

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