Posts

Homage to Sei Shonagon

Image
When reading Sei Shonagon's lists, one gets a sense of the truly restrictive society that she lived in. And yet, the women could on one hand be moved by such beauty and also be deeply petty. How much of the pettiness was due to the societal restrictions imposed and the very little power one did have, was to be fiercely guarded? This was not in the readings of the list, but from the actual pillow book and someone sneezed during her conversation with the Empress, and that was taken by the Empress as a sign that Sei Shonagon had lied (p. 190). Such a small thing, that could give such an impression. I think sometimes we perhaps do not notice the little things in life that can also cause such damage. Sei Shonagon was new to court and did not know how to reply to the Empress. I also think there are times that a little thing actually becomes so much larger in our own lives because we do not know how to deal with the situation. Honest, clear, and concise communication is becoming a ver...
Post a Comment
Read more

Practice Radical Acceptance

Image
We in the West, love control and are very individualistic. We thrive on it and feel exhilarated in the stress and bustle that comes with it, the hurry up and wait sequence to everything we do. When I looked up Tao images, this one struck me.  The balance to it invites one to think of how truly out of balance our lives are. Perhaps it is better to sit and see and follow a path that might accomplish so much more. How many times have we not stopped to just listen? It has become a lost art, the number one thing that employers are looking for, those elusive soft skills. Really listening to understand. How many times have you done a project and completed it (or more hopefully, only half finished it) and found out you did not meet the objective of the project? It has happened to me a couple of times. But this isn't just about a project. How many times have we not been happy when we went somewhere because we had these expectations? Instead of just enjoying the place, we are disc...
8 comments
Read more

Duty, Destiny, is there a difference?

Image
This week we are to reflect on what are your duties, and just how do you know that they are your duties? Do you have a list of chores that need done? Were you told you have to do them or if you don't do them there are dire consequences for dereliction of duty? Perhaps there is no clean underwear, as the laundry fairy that you thought existed has declined to come to your dwelling any longer. Talk about pissing off fate! All joking aside, we all have tasks we must perform. Are they a duty and to whom do you owe that duty to? We had a benchmark due this week, did you study? Why or why not? Isn't it our duty to perform the best we can on such things? I believe that in the end it comes down to personal responsibility. Someone you know may be paying for your college, or you are working your way through it with no help; either way it is for you to take the task in hand and study. Not for anyone else, but for yourself. You are the one who will ultimately profit from your task. Even i...
2 comments
Read more

Philosophy isn't about choosing a winner...

If one takes just one philosopher and subscribes to just that train of thought, we miss the whole point of Eudemonia. Happiness, well being, human flourishing can be found in a combination of Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Nietzsche (not my personal favorite), and Kant's teachings. Isn't that the definition of human flourishing? To build upon ideas and be better than we were before those ideas were introduced? We get some great gems from Socrates, and the one that stands out to me is, " An unexamined life is not worth living ". His words have us looking to who and what we are.  Plato says, " Wise men speak because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something ". Do we really know what we are talking about? Have we looked at the issue from another's perspective? Aristotle reminds us, " We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit" .  It reminds me often to practice what I want to be. If I do no...
Post a Comment
Read more

Achillies heel, what is ours?

Image
Achillies is an interesting character, we would say that he doesn't fit the 21st century ideal of heroism. I read another article by Sam Jordison in his article "Achilles is Brutal, Vain, Pitiless-and a True Hero" in which he draws some interesting parallels to modern day "heroes". Not the firefighter, policeman, or man who saves a child from drowning type of hero. As much as we may deny it, we look up to others in the media spotlight. It may be a sports figure, music icon, or someone reality type star like the Kardashian drama queens (no I am not a fan). In his article he points out how we all tend to put these very human figures on a pedestal and then tear them down when they are, well human.  We become surprised when these modern day heroes are caught cheating, doing drugs, spouse abuse, murder, etc. Yet they are just people, with our modern day issues and magnified with constant attention. In the Illiad, we have a demigod who is everything th...
Post a Comment
Read more

Reflections on Job

I chose Job for my reflections. He is the example put forth in everyday suffering and when we ask why does evil exist? There were so many points that pertain to our own trials and sufferings. It has always been a book that horrifies, perplexes, and fascinates me. There are more questions than answers in the book. Yet, God is all powerful as in his words to Job and his friends, "Where were you when....?" We all have friends like Job's who ask what we have done to deserve whatever ill has befallen us. Yet we also question, if God is good, then why do children suffer at the hands of monsters? Why is there large scale genocide?  There are those who will say that without the bad, we cannot appreciate the good. That rings false. Perhaps it is that we are also asking God the wrong questions, just like Job. I have found comfort from Job in that he was blameless, and still things happen. I do not know the purpose of why these things happen or how they will be used for good. ...
2 comments
Read more

Gilgamesh, He's complicated and oh so human!

Image
Gilgamesh was the first hero epic ever written. He was a tyrant, he was a rapist, he was brash and people hated him so much that they prayed to the God's for deliverance. Sounds like an anti-hero, by today's standards, right? Especially when one considers that the king was the one they looked to for how one was to act. He was everything wrong with what a king was supposed to be. Modern day hero's are firefighters, champions of the people, standing up for what is right and facing danger and possibly death. What the Gods send to Gilgamesh, is Enkidu. A beast man, who stands up to Gilgamesh in trying to stop his misdeeds. Enkidu has a lot of the traits that we consider heroic today. Enkidu has Gilgamesh's strength, compassion, and a sense of what is right. The duality of the story is that the beast man helps to tame Gilgamesh, while Enkidu becomes less beastly. The Epic of Gilgamesh has everything. Adventure, love and friendship, tragedy, the elixir for eternal life, i...
2 comments
Read more