image from flickr.com/photos
It will be 春分 (“chun fen”) this Friday Mar 20, after which there will be light rain around 清明 (“Qing Ming”), April 4, the day to remember our ancestors. ( “清明時節雨紛紛，路上行人欲斷魂 …”, see posting 春分 (chun fen) : beginning of 2nd Major Qi Period).
Sakura will blossom in Tokio between 春分 and 清明. The impact of Qing Ming rain on sakura creates an aesthetic beauty of “sabi”, a Japanese concept of beauty, of simplicity, of impermanence, of incompleteness or of imperfection.
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On 春分 (“chun fen”), 12 hours of Day is followed by 12 hours of Night in Northern Hemisphere.
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The beginning of Day is the beginning of its end to welcome the following Night. And the beginning of the Night likewise is the beginning of its end to give birth to the following Day.
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Beyond Day and Night, there is no time like we understand it.
To our differential mind, there is Day because there is Night. Just like we “like this”, because implicitly, we “dislike” that”. It is everywhere. We become hostage to our views and/or our senses.
The 7 blindmen, each touching a part of an elephant, each proclaiming he/she understands “The Elephant”. All the parts are part of the elephant, but they are not the elephant itself. The elephant is the totality of all the parts plus its behaviour, its smell, its emotions, its sound etc. The real elephant is non-descript.
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Words are, therefore, often not helpful, in fact they may become barriers to our true understanding of The Elephant.
When we are really “in touch” with the essence of Day (without being drawn into calling/thinking it as Day), we are “in touch” with Night at the same time.
Day or Night, Head or Tail, they are one.
Have fun seeing your “elephant”.
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words, in general, are used for communications. To communicate effectively, firstly we need mutual agreements on the definitions of the words involved. Some science fictions talk about how aliens were able to communicate to human involved without any physical communications, by just influence to the minds or by looking in the eyes.
Definition of words are difficult especially with adjectives, for it being relative. In fact, words could well be just a burden. One day, when we can communicate without words, it will be a real breakthrough in efficiency of communications. Why am I writing this? Because I have to handle lots of technical communications daily and I am burden with words, lots of words just to describe something kinda easy if one understands it.
The weather has been warm the last 2 days, and it is predicted to be warm throughout the week, so we might just see some sakuras/cherry blossoms this coming weekend, which is a bit too early for Tokyo. By the way, 春分 is March 20th.
As an interesting addition to ct’s comments on the use of words but a digression from the main topic here, I can tell you the average Japanese middle-aged married couple has perfected the art of communication without words. It is said that a husband’s only words after coming home from a long day’s work is, “meishi, furo and neru” meaning literally, “food, bath and sleep” and he need only mumble these two-syllable words as and when he needs them and that is enough for his wife to get things going. The average Japanese wife is not called by name. If she is lucky maybe “mama” or “kasan” (meaning mother, after the children), but a husband may sometimes refer to her as “oi” meaning, “hey, you there!” and she responds to that. In even worse scenarios, he need only gesture!
The younger couples are said to communicate more these days with words, but the divorce rates in Japan have also gone up!
Silence kills!
As passion dies down…words get fewer…
But women triumph on words- communication! I don’t mean those nagging harsh or commanding words but loving & friendly ones! If we don’t get it at home, we will get it elsewhere….hence divorce rates going up everywhere!
Men….don’t you ever get the message???
Have fun and welcome to discuss words or communication, though that’s not the gist of the posting.
enjoy.
About Spring, about words, the poem【春曉】(“chun xiao”) by Tang Dynasty poet 孟浩然 (“Meng Hao Ran”) neatly conveys the essence, beyond the words.
“春眠不覺曉，處處聞啼鳥。 夜來風雨聲，花落知多少”
chun mian bu jue xiao ,
chu chu wen ti niao ,
ye lai feng yu sheng ,
hua luo zhi duo shao .
Words disappear after a few recitals.
Then come the warmth, the sound, … etc to your senses.
That’s non-descript, i.e. take down the 20 words and go beyond for a complete Spring experience.
Words are tool to “get there”. Once “there”, discard the tool, otherwise it’s a burden at best and a barrier to true experience at worst.
So, CH’s Japanese husband and wife either have got really nothing to say to each other, or they are one in mind, that’s not outsiders can decipher.
Sorry I have used too many words.
xy2,
You are right, the Japanese couple was supposed to have understood each other so much (one in mind) that they do not need words to communicate how they feel or what they need. Hmmm, I never could figure that one out.
For me, if you are hungry, you had better tell, else you get no meal! Maybe I have not reached that part about “one in mind” yet……
But words can be wonderful. I always like poems written by poets who can allow the reader to actually picture the real scene or a good book which allows the reader to be right in the scene and actually feel what the characters are doing or feeling. I always believe that a good book is much better than a good movie. There are certain things you get to feel and hear from a book that you cannot from a movie/video.
Eeee……what kind of avatars are these?? Are we invaded by aliens?
XY2, what did you do, to convert us into these strange looking creatures!
Oh, that was a surprise!
YL, you look like one of those characters on Simpsons!
ct looks like a wise old guy.
Me, I look like one of those brainless punks who only spend time in the sun chasiing after bikini girls!
Only xiaoyao2 is full of gold bars! Hey, gold is going up, so is he trying to hint something to us???
Anyway, change is good!
It is a bright and sunny day here in Tokyo. Like xy2 said, the weather has been changing from cold to warm and rainy to shine, and yesterday was extremely windy! (Remember, yesterday was March 20th, spring equinox) The sakuras are about to bloom; in some spots, I noticed the buds have just about opened, so if the weather keeps warm like this, it will be full bloom in Tokyo/Kanto reagion next weekend.
Sakura or cherry blossom viewing is BIG business in Japan. If the sakuras do not choose to bloom during the right weekend (usually 1st week of April, to coincide with new fiscal year/new school year) then there is a problem. Millions in yen are lost!! A whole business revolves around cherry blossom viewing, including parties, food (obento) boxes for picnics, sake sales etc.
Sakura viewing is significant here not only because it heralds the spring, but because it is also a period of celebration (graduation, new employment, new school etc). Also, for all its beauty and glory, the cherry blossom is only beautiful for one week and then it is gone for the year! That, to the Japanese, somehow represents life for us humans as well. A few glorious years, and then we are old and forgotten!
just selected a different avatar system for a change. It automatically assigns an avatar sign to each participant.
when sakura blossoms, it is Day, otherwise it is Night.
and Day will come again after Night. and Night after Day.
so cherish Day as much as it is Night, “it” is the same.
then you will see sakura at Night.
also note related discussion in posting :
1. “Concept of Phase 象”,
2. “Walking with Empress Cixi (象)”
Have a great weekend.
Oh dear, oh dear, we are now all aliens!
Still the gold bar man is around!
Oh, the aliens left town this morning? I sort of liked the funky characters and was getting used to them……
ch,
ok, will put these aliens back.
avatar mozaic (identicon), the Simpsons faces (Wavatar), the monster aliens (MonsterID) are just a very tiny and changing part of the “elephant”, never the elephant itself.
so don’t get attached/excited to anyone of them too much lest we thought they are ourselves, the elephants.
OK, we are evolving everyday…..got it.
Will have fun along the way.
Xiaoyao2, looks like you having much fun with the avaters! Have I missed 1 change of avaters already?
Eeee…., I’m the only one with big fat red pincers! Looks like I’m a ‘go- getter’- grapping everything!
Did you guys switch off during Earth Hour ? Malaysia’s Earth Hour was from 8:30 – 9:30pm on 28 Mar. We switched off completely to show support to the cause and having ice cream, playing card games by candle light.
Yes MF, my family off the house lights but leave the TV & fence lights on. Was urged to do it by my youngest daughter because the school has been reminding them to do it. Hope it does help to make people aware that our Earth needs us to care for it, otherwise, it will deteriorate faster than us!
The movie ” The Day the Earth Stood Still” precisely leaves that message … that there would come a day that the alien has to come to our planet to save it, from whom ? From the very mankind that’s destroying it, so that earth can rebuild itself without the human species. All the other species like fishes, animals were “rescued” as they were sucked into rotating spheres all over earth (think like Noah’s Ark). Leaving only the humans to be wiped out by outer space forces. Plain storyline, but compelling message.
The Moon was a very peaceful place.
Then came Apollo, then “Luna”, then “SMART, then “Chang-er”, then “Kaguya”, then “Chandrayaan”, then sure more to come. It has never been busier.
The Moon is never peaceful anymore.
Or to be exact, human beings are never peaceful anymore, as far as the Moon is concerned.
Further out into distant galaxy. It is still peaceful. Because human has no “worries” as yet over there.
So it all comes from humans’ desire. And only humans can help itself get out of the mess. Or it doesn’t.
If the back of the hand is “plus” and the palm “minus”, then “plus” or “minus” is just a flip away. Flip head we get plus, flip tail we get minus.
Same for all other things. It is all in our mind, just like flipping the hand.
The Earth Hour? That is nice. A good reminder. They should implement that here too. Maybe once every week!!
I heard that there is a lot of junk and garbage on moon and outer space now, due to human beings leaving all their unwanted stuff behind.
Did you know that there is a garbage cleaning team for Mt. Everest? I was sort of amused when I first heard of it. Thought it was not possible for Mt. Everest to have lots of junk/garbage, until I listened to an interview with the leader of the team. Every climber goes up there with oxygen tanks and what nots and leave them behind after use. Seems like there are thousands of climbers every year. Of course not everyone makes it to the headlines, only one or two, and we assume only these famous people ever climb the Everest, when in fact there are thousands of Sir Edmund Hillary wannabes.
In posting “It’s the food(energy), stupid !” : Averting a monstrous silent “Earthquake”, we discussed energy as the basic requirement for live activities.
It is not just about light, that’s only a fraction of waste. (though I am annoyed that the light pollution at night has destroyed the starry night we used to enjoy in the village.).
So :
1. try choosing local seasonal fruits/vegetables over imported stuff (it costs a lot of energy to transport),
2. eat food at lower end of food chain. When you eat beef for example, the cow has consummed a lot of energy + releasing CO2 as well. (not that I am advocating vegetarian way of life),
3. fly less, especailly for business, if video conference call will be just as good,
4. use energy saving bulbs, freezer etc
5. follow Chinese Medicine’s advice on health, i.e. follow the sun, awake at day time and sleep at night. Sounds obvious, how many people do it now, most do not go to bed before midnight, me included.
*note : they shouldn’t all those shiny and high-rise buildings with big glass windows. It takes a lot to cool down in summer and a lot to warm up in winter.
It wasn’t that exciting today, and not so much of a regular Monday. It was awhile back since I wrote about situations around here, so let’s summarise:
1) a suicide, causing 6 dead in a family including 3 kids, and one seriously injured.
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_12029867?source=most_viewed
It’s around a nice neighbourhood nearby. xy2 should know.
2) a 4.3 degree earthquake only 3.9miles underneath nearby this morning; we felt and need to ran out of building, but it was just a short one (few seconds)
3) unemployment rate at silicon valley is now 10%. (last month I mentioned 7.8%)
4) realestate investment seems picking up, as now I heard circle of friends buying bank-owned or forclosures as rental. Also, private companies are inviting people to pool moneys giving 10% dividends to collectively buy forclosed homes. Last weekend, it seems house hunters are active again, as homes around good school district seems to attract crowded people at least to visit the open house.
5) the general feeling in hallway talks seem like worst was behind up to last Friday. May be mood has changed negative again today.
It saddens us to see family tragedy, especially if this is one way or the other related to current financial crisis.
A verse from the Sixth Master :
” … 善知识，凡夫即佛。烦恼即菩提。前念迷即凡夫；后念悟即佛。前念著境，即烦恼；后念离境，即菩提 … “
Yes, ct, read the news. So sad.
BTW, all ye IT experts out there. I got a problem. Could not open Mozilla Firefox without it crashing on me a few times. Been happening for the last few days. Tried to delete some old downloads and all but no help. Any tips, anyone?
ch,
try google chrome, just down load it from google.
Hi CH, how is your Mozilla Firefox? You got it fixed yet? I’m no IT expert. Have never heard of this type of software. What is it for? Antivirus software?
CT, you are more IT, then us. Any suggestion?
Wow….today STI hit 1,800! But F&N didn’t even hit the price I sold off last week. Also UOB, hasn’t reached the price that I can sell, even though I bought it while STI was about 1,700. Bank stocks difficult to recover…. Anyway, there is 1 mth to go, before I get the dividend, so shouldn’t sell yet.
This mth April, we are expecting to get more m/c orders. Already started to build new m/cs again, just when production tapers off this month. Thank God for His favour!
Had contact with the patent holder of a new technology to discuss business proposition. Please check this out & let me know your opinion. Sounds so good, that I thought it was an April Fool joke.
http://www.rawenergylimited.com
YL, ha ha , now I know I am one step ahead of you!
My kids keep calling me a computer dinosaur.
Nope, my Firefox keeps crashing still. I use Mozilla Firefox to explore the internet, some people use Goggle Chrome (maybe xy2) and some use Internet Explorer.
Frankly I am OK with either one, but my kids swear by Mozilla Firefox, so I am stuck with it. They set the computer, I just use it. When it crashes, I just blame one of them! Actually only one is sharing the computer with me. The others had enough of me and so they got their own computers!
xy2, I tried Google Chrome, still no help. Reinstalled the Firefox, but no good either. Now thinking of reinstalling
Microsoft all over. Arghhhhh! Any good tips, PLEASE!??
Ya, CH…I only knew Internet Explorer & as the name implies that, it’s about exploring the internet. Before you told me about your Mozzie & Chrome, I really didn’t know that, there is another way to enter the internet world. Thanks CH!
Will ask my IT staff, why he fail to educate me in this! Hehehe….I even thought without this Internet Explorer, we can’t surf the Net! Hiyoh….what a dinosaur!
Thought today, can cash out my UOB shares….but today is a sea of red. Looks like, I’m forced to collect my dividend bonus.
I do not have any suggestion about browser. Funny as it seems, we spent a lot of time using computers as our development tool, but we hardly explore new software. For me it’s just a different tool, and whatever is readily available on my machines, I just use it. Most of the time, it is Internet explorer and likely a slightly older version. They are all software and the newer tools usually have more issues. Think of mechanics who pick up any screw drivers or spanners nearby and just use it
A million thanks to all!
Now I know I am not so dinosaur as my kids say I am.
yes, ct, you are right, the newer the tool, the more problems. One of my boys think it was the latest firefox update that caused the problem.
If I find out or manage to fix things, will let you all know 9in case the same happens to you!)
Have checked with my IT Specialist & glad that he knows all these web browsers. Shows that he is knowledgeable.
Today, we got big orders for 11 big m/cs from a company in Thailand, which belongs to Japan. Close to a million SGD! There seems to be more orders in the talk. Hmmm…..looks like they are doing quite well even though Japan is down.
YL, I think imports into Japan is still so so OK, export for Japan is down as US and Europe not buying. So if the company is making to send to Japan, may be still OK. The consumption power in Japan is still high compared with the many parts of Asia.