My student Joe recently loaned me A.C. Graham's translation of the Liehtzu, a Taoist work I had not previously read. Much of it has to do either with emptiness or, interestingly enough, with the interplay between something Graham translates as "endeavor" (I wish I had the Chinese original) and "destiny" (which I assume is ming).
When speaking of emptiness, he reminds me of a discussion I had last semester with a student about when Buddhism came to China; Scott (a Buddhist) suggested that Buddhism must have arrived before Taoist thought arose, influencing it heavily. At the time, I pooh-poohed his suggestion. After reading the Liehtzu, I am not so sure. The passages concerning emptiness read like something out of a Zen classic (if such could be said to exist). Here's my favorite one - sorry it's so long, but it's really good:
There was a man of Ch'i county who was so worried that heaven and earth might fall down, and his body would have nowhere to lodge, that he forgot to eat and sleep. There was another man who was worried that he should be so worried about it, and therefore went to enlighten him.
'Heaven is nothing but the accumulated air; there is no place where there is not air. You walk and stand all day inside heaven, stretching and bending, breathing in and breathing out; why should you worry about falling down?'
'If heaven really is accumulated air, shouldn't the sun and moon and stars fall down?'
'The sun and moon and stars are air which shines inside the accumulated air. Even if they did fall down, they couldn't hit or harm anyone.'
'What about the earth giving way?'
'The earth is nothing but accumulated soil, filling the void in all four directions; there is no place where there is not soil. You walk and stand all day on the earth, stamping about with abrupt spurts and halts; whyshould you worry about it giving way?'
The man was satisfied and greatly cheered; and so was the man who enlightened him.
As I said, Chicken Little . . . .
Here is one of the many things the Liehtzu has to say about Destiny:
. . . The wisdom of sages cannot defy this,
Demons and goblins cannot cheat this.
Being of themselves as they are
Silently brings them about,
Gives them serenity, gives them peace,
Escorts them as they go and welcomes them as they come.
Finally, a story that made me smile, and that reminds me of the joke about the old Jewish man who prays every day to win the lottery:
There was a man of Sung who was strolling in the street and picked up a half tally someone had lost. He took it home and stored it away, and secretly counted the indentations of the broken edge. He told a neighbor, 'I shall be rich any day now.'
Good read, Joe. Thanks!
~Cheers
2/8/08
Pogo and Plastic Bags
I was listening to "Here & Now" on WHYY the other day and heard an interview with Bob Lilienfeld on the issue of "paper vs. plastic." It's one of those issues that makes my head hurt because of the complexity.
First we welcomed plastic bags because we could stop using paper bags and "save the trees." Now plastic has taken over the landfills, bags are hanging shredded from trees along the highways, and they're spilling from our closets as we collect them to take to the grocery to recycle them - assuming our stores actually do recycle them, and not just pitch them (as some do).
Did you know, for example, that 50% of all the plastic bags collected for recycling by grocery stores such as ours (Giant) are not made into more grocery bags, but instead into faux wood decking? Which is good, in that they don't wind up caught in trees along the highways or in landfills, but bad in that eventually they do end up in landfills when the decks are no longer wanted, and then they will take even longer to break down. It also means that more plastic bags are manufactured from scratch to take the place of the ones that are made into faux wood decking instead of into recycled plastic bags.
Is the faux wood decking worse than using real wood? Hm, says Lilienfeld, maybe not, because we have to factor in the chemicals used to pressure treat real wood if it's going to be made into decks (so that it won't rot - i.e. biodegrade), and if you paint it, those chemicals as well. What goes into making the paint & the chemicals? And of course, how long does it take the paint & chemicals to break down (and what do they do to the environment when they enter the soil)? Not so easy to determine which is greener.
Say, how about those new biodegradable plastic bags? They sound better than they are, according to Lilienfeld. The problem is that the one grocery stores are beginning to use cannot biodegrade in ordinary landfills, but must be buried in special landfills, meaning that municipalities must set up their own plants that can process polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) (yes, I had to look that word up - my memory for chemical compounds isn't that good!). Here's the only article I could find on it quickly.
What about everything we've heard about those great "compostable" plastic bags? Well, I haven't spoken with anyone who has used them, so I don't know. This site and this one both promise "no actual polyethylene," but why add the word "actual"? Do they contain "virtual" polyethylene? I just wonder about that wording. Lilienfeld warns that these so-called "biodegradable plastic bags" are NOT compostable and should NOT be put in compost that is used on vegetables.
A caller to the show pointed out that another problem with using cornhusks, the most common ingredient in these alternative plastic bags, is that it means fewer cornhusks are plowed under. The benefit of plowing cornhusks into the soil is that they prevent soil erosion. Make enough of these cornhusks into plastic bags, and more erosion results. Sheesh, I would never have thought of that, but it makes sense!
As Pogo said, "it's all connected."
So what's the solution? Reusable bags, for one. We have a bunch of cloth bags, and we have a few that fold up pretty small to be stuffed in pockets, and we can carry them around just in case. If stores stopped giving away bags, people would start carrying their own (after they spent a mighty long time bitching about poor service).
Ah, it doesn't really solve the problem, does it?
~Psi
First we welcomed plastic bags because we could stop using paper bags and "save the trees." Now plastic has taken over the landfills, bags are hanging shredded from trees along the highways, and they're spilling from our closets as we collect them to take to the grocery to recycle them - assuming our stores actually do recycle them, and not just pitch them (as some do).
Did you know, for example, that 50% of all the plastic bags collected for recycling by grocery stores such as ours (Giant) are not made into more grocery bags, but instead into faux wood decking? Which is good, in that they don't wind up caught in trees along the highways or in landfills, but bad in that eventually they do end up in landfills when the decks are no longer wanted, and then they will take even longer to break down. It also means that more plastic bags are manufactured from scratch to take the place of the ones that are made into faux wood decking instead of into recycled plastic bags.
Is the faux wood decking worse than using real wood? Hm, says Lilienfeld, maybe not, because we have to factor in the chemicals used to pressure treat real wood if it's going to be made into decks (so that it won't rot - i.e. biodegrade), and if you paint it, those chemicals as well. What goes into making the paint & the chemicals? And of course, how long does it take the paint & chemicals to break down (and what do they do to the environment when they enter the soil)? Not so easy to determine which is greener.
Say, how about those new biodegradable plastic bags? They sound better than they are, according to Lilienfeld. The problem is that the one grocery stores are beginning to use cannot biodegrade in ordinary landfills, but must be buried in special landfills, meaning that municipalities must set up their own plants that can process polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) (yes, I had to look that word up - my memory for chemical compounds isn't that good!). Here's the only article I could find on it quickly.
What about everything we've heard about those great "compostable" plastic bags? Well, I haven't spoken with anyone who has used them, so I don't know. This site and this one both promise "no actual polyethylene," but why add the word "actual"? Do they contain "virtual" polyethylene? I just wonder about that wording. Lilienfeld warns that these so-called "biodegradable plastic bags" are NOT compostable and should NOT be put in compost that is used on vegetables.
A caller to the show pointed out that another problem with using cornhusks, the most common ingredient in these alternative plastic bags, is that it means fewer cornhusks are plowed under. The benefit of plowing cornhusks into the soil is that they prevent soil erosion. Make enough of these cornhusks into plastic bags, and more erosion results. Sheesh, I would never have thought of that, but it makes sense!
As Pogo said, "it's all connected."
So what's the solution? Reusable bags, for one. We have a bunch of cloth bags, and we have a few that fold up pretty small to be stuffed in pockets, and we can carry them around just in case. If stores stopped giving away bags, people would start carrying their own (after they spent a mighty long time bitching about poor service).
Ah, it doesn't really solve the problem, does it?
~Psi
2/3/08
It's Still Me!
So, N wanted her own blog. I decided to let her do it, since she wants to do all the writing herself, and it's good typing practice (does anyone call it typing any more, or is it all keyboarding?) as well as spelling, though I'm helping her with both at her request. Feel free to leave her comments. For all I know, her first post will be her last.
In order to give her a photo of her own, and her own name, I had to take mine off. I also took my account off the books, so to speak, so no one can find it in searches, since I've no idea what she'll want to post in the way of family photos or photos of herself. I guess this is the elementary school version of MySpace.
Cheers
In order to give her a photo of her own, and her own name, I had to take mine off. I also took my account off the books, so to speak, so no one can find it in searches, since I've no idea what she'll want to post in the way of family photos or photos of herself. I guess this is the elementary school version of MySpace.
Cheers
1/25/08
Finally, Some Art
Not mine, so is that cheating? If lately you think I've become more acerbic, maybe it's because Z & I have been watching lots of episodes of "House." We just finished Season Two and started Season Three. Which is appropriate to the above drawing, as it is C's rendition of my late father-in-law, who was a physician (neurologist) and, during the later stages of his battle with cancer, walked with a cane. Other than that, he had nothing in common with Gregory House, as Doug was quite a pleasant person. Lovely drawing, and I should have had it up here long ago.
The angels are by Z, one of the projects for last semester's 2-Dimensional Design class. Very nice, but it drove her nuts to do it. I find that the sky makes the most sense to me when I distance myself from it; up close it's a bit confusing to me. I love the colors.
And from the lowest-altitude parishioner, a wet-felted earthsnake, which took a long time to make (according to low-altitude parishioner time-frame, anyway) and is quite charming.From me? Nada. Neither the time nor the psychic energy to do art. I have, however, made significant progress on my dream of holding an all-day religion workshop on campus, and even have a date: April 11. Next up: ascertaining whether or not the speakers who signed on can actually make it that day, and finding speakers for the still-open slots. The devil is in the details which, for a religion workshop, is a non-trivial consideration.
~Cheers
1/24/08
Ways of Looking at Religions
There are a number of ways in which to classify religions, if you like doing such things - which I do, being as how that's my "thing." One way is into "faith-based" and "action-based" - that is, defining one's "-ism" by what one believes, or by what one practices.
I'll give you an example. All it takes to become a Muslim is to recite the Shahadah ("Allah is One and Muhammad is His Prophet"), with utter belief and certainty, before a particular number of witnesses. Then POOF! you're a Muslim.
Islam is a faith-based religion.
To become a Jew, on the other hand, is somewhat more complicated. Either you have to be born to a Jewish woman, in which case you're always Jewish (see my earlier post, with the caveat that some denominations may quibble about Good Jews and Bad Jews), or you have to go through quite a rigorous process that involves doing things. And it doesn't so much matter what you believe - it's how you live your life that counts.
Judaism is an action-based religion.
So today one of my students (an atheist) commented that Cargo Cults are not religions because they aren't "faith based." I pointed out that a) they ARE faith-based and b) some religions (like Judaism) ARE NOT faith-based. He said yes, Judaism IS faith-based. I said no, it's not, it's action-based, and anyway - what about atheistic Jews? He said they're not Jews. I said gee, they'd be awfully surprised to hear that, since they consider themselves to be so. Because I haven't yet gone over the difference between faith-based and action-based, he didn't get it - the only concession he was willing to make was between "faith-based" and "blind-faith based." ooookay, he doesn't have a very large ax to grind!
There are plenty of other ways of classifying religions (or anything else, for that matter - I am a relativist about almost everything, which can drive my family nuts). I learned a completely new way today, though. After class, another student came up to me and said he pretty much knows the material already, but he's taking the class for an unusual reason. Organized religion, he said, really makes him angry. One of his parents is Jewish and the other is Catholic, and he went to Catholic school, which he told me was a traumatic experience (I know there are some of you out there who will identify with this!). So after he graduated, he went to his Jewish roots, but that just made him mad, too. He made the rounds of various religions, but they all made him mad. (Bear in mind that he seems like a very nice, mild-mannered fellow, but I know that's what was said about Dahmer, too.)
So I suggested that he go to the Blue Mountain Zendo, because hey, who ever heard of getting mad at a Buddhist? He said oh, what a good idea, and anyway, Buddhism's not a religion, and he's only mad at religions.
So - new way to classify religions: those that piss me off, and those that don't. It actually works incredibly well for me, as there really are some that get my knickers in a twist the minute I think of them (it's so hard to teach them that I always look for guest lecturers!), while there are others that I find quite calming.
I like to think that I learn something from my students every day.
Oh, and I already have pegged the student who will do every single assignment the wrong way. He's already done the first one wrong, and that one was just to send me an email from his college email address.
~Namaste
I'll give you an example. All it takes to become a Muslim is to recite the Shahadah ("Allah is One and Muhammad is His Prophet"), with utter belief and certainty, before a particular number of witnesses. Then POOF! you're a Muslim.
Islam is a faith-based religion.
To become a Jew, on the other hand, is somewhat more complicated. Either you have to be born to a Jewish woman, in which case you're always Jewish (see my earlier post, with the caveat that some denominations may quibble about Good Jews and Bad Jews), or you have to go through quite a rigorous process that involves doing things. And it doesn't so much matter what you believe - it's how you live your life that counts.
Judaism is an action-based religion.
So today one of my students (an atheist) commented that Cargo Cults are not religions because they aren't "faith based." I pointed out that a) they ARE faith-based and b) some religions (like Judaism) ARE NOT faith-based. He said yes, Judaism IS faith-based. I said no, it's not, it's action-based, and anyway - what about atheistic Jews? He said they're not Jews. I said gee, they'd be awfully surprised to hear that, since they consider themselves to be so. Because I haven't yet gone over the difference between faith-based and action-based, he didn't get it - the only concession he was willing to make was between "faith-based" and "blind-faith based." ooookay, he doesn't have a very large ax to grind!
There are plenty of other ways of classifying religions (or anything else, for that matter - I am a relativist about almost everything, which can drive my family nuts). I learned a completely new way today, though. After class, another student came up to me and said he pretty much knows the material already, but he's taking the class for an unusual reason. Organized religion, he said, really makes him angry. One of his parents is Jewish and the other is Catholic, and he went to Catholic school, which he told me was a traumatic experience (I know there are some of you out there who will identify with this!). So after he graduated, he went to his Jewish roots, but that just made him mad, too. He made the rounds of various religions, but they all made him mad. (Bear in mind that he seems like a very nice, mild-mannered fellow, but I know that's what was said about Dahmer, too.)
So I suggested that he go to the Blue Mountain Zendo, because hey, who ever heard of getting mad at a Buddhist? He said oh, what a good idea, and anyway, Buddhism's not a religion, and he's only mad at religions.
So - new way to classify religions: those that piss me off, and those that don't. It actually works incredibly well for me, as there really are some that get my knickers in a twist the minute I think of them (it's so hard to teach them that I always look for guest lecturers!), while there are others that I find quite calming.
I like to think that I learn something from my students every day.
Oh, and I already have pegged the student who will do every single assignment the wrong way. He's already done the first one wrong, and that one was just to send me an email from his college email address.
~Namaste
1/21/08
Bear Hats
Oh if I were a bear (and a big bear, too),
I wouldn't much care if it froze or snew . . .
But it IS freezing, though it's not snewing (yet), and our furnace is NOT happy, and that makes me rather wish I were a bear.
Just got copied on an email for Z from the head of the Black Rose Tellers, that tomorrow they are to bring their "bear hats" so they can practice for the Teddy Bear Party they're holding for the smalls next month at the library. "Bear Hats???" I emailed back. "Of course, hats worn by bears!" was the reply, followed by "no no no, hats with bear ears, what did you think? Apparently, there's been a typical lack of communication twixt teens & parents."
If I'm expected to make a bear hat by tomorrow night's meeting, I will be feeling even more bearish. I doubt my sewing machine will work at these sub-zero temps - I know my fingers can bear(heh)ly type.
Click on the title to see what came up when I googled "bear hats" & hit "I'm feeling lucky." I esp. like the one with the hole for the pony tail.
~N-n-n-n-am-m-mast-t-t-te (brrrr)
I wouldn't much care if it froze or snew . . .
But it IS freezing, though it's not snewing (yet), and our furnace is NOT happy, and that makes me rather wish I were a bear.
Just got copied on an email for Z from the head of the Black Rose Tellers, that tomorrow they are to bring their "bear hats" so they can practice for the Teddy Bear Party they're holding for the smalls next month at the library. "Bear Hats???" I emailed back. "Of course, hats worn by bears!" was the reply, followed by "no no no, hats with bear ears, what did you think? Apparently, there's been a typical lack of communication twixt teens & parents."
If I'm expected to make a bear hat by tomorrow night's meeting, I will be feeling even more bearish. I doubt my sewing machine will work at these sub-zero temps - I know my fingers can bear(heh)ly type.
Click on the title to see what came up when I googled "bear hats" & hit "I'm feeling lucky." I esp. like the one with the hole for the pony tail.
~N-n-n-n-am-m-mast-t-t-te (brrrr)
1/19/08
Monsters in the House
"DAD! Quick, come up, there's a huge centipede!"
Wrong thing to say. You can call on R in almost any emergency, but he does NOT do centipedes.
Both girls were upstairs, having taken a shower, and were in a panic, towels wrapped around themselves, screaming their heads off. R's response?
"Uh, he's gone out for a walk, sorry."
I went upstairs, shoe in hand, and encountered something like this:
Okay, so it was only about 2" long & didn't have the head of a dragon, but you get the idea. I don't particularly care for the things, but they don't bother me nearly as much as they bother the rest of the crew. I smashed it & it actually sprayed everywhere, which was pretty spectacular.
Once he realized that all the ruckus was over, R came up to "save the day." And was appalled by the mess.
Did anyone call me "hero" or fawn over me? No. I'm just the mom, so I guess this kind of thing is my job. And now N is using this as her latest excuse not to go to bed because she's afraid of another centipede "attack."
Psi. I suppose, as a good Buddhist, I should have scooped the poor thing up & set it down outside. This is one of the advantages of being a mutant instead of a purebred. I can rationalize my way out of certain rules.
~Namaste
Wrong thing to say. You can call on R in almost any emergency, but he does NOT do centipedes.
Both girls were upstairs, having taken a shower, and were in a panic, towels wrapped around themselves, screaming their heads off. R's response?
"Uh, he's gone out for a walk, sorry."
I went upstairs, shoe in hand, and encountered something like this:
Okay, so it was only about 2" long & didn't have the head of a dragon, but you get the idea. I don't particularly care for the things, but they don't bother me nearly as much as they bother the rest of the crew. I smashed it & it actually sprayed everywhere, which was pretty spectacular.Once he realized that all the ruckus was over, R came up to "save the day." And was appalled by the mess.
Did anyone call me "hero" or fawn over me? No. I'm just the mom, so I guess this kind of thing is my job. And now N is using this as her latest excuse not to go to bed because she's afraid of another centipede "attack."
Psi. I suppose, as a good Buddhist, I should have scooped the poor thing up & set it down outside. This is one of the advantages of being a mutant instead of a purebred. I can rationalize my way out of certain rules.
~Namaste
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