Samurai William

Anyone who has even a passing interest in Japan is familiar with the book Shogun but James Clavell, a historical fiction novel. But probably far fewer know of Samurai William, a non-fiction account, by Giles Milton.

The central character in both books is the same: William Adams, an English navigator who, in 1600, became the first Englishman to set foot on the shores of Japan. Milton's account is well-researched, and he spends time establishing the context and history of trade with Japan by the Portuguese and Spanish prior to Adams' arrival aboard a Dutch merchant ship.

The book picks up pace after Adams' arrival, when he meets with Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate who is widely credited with bringing unity to Japan. (You can read all about Tokugawa Ieyasu here at Encyclopedia Britannica.)

Samurai William is an easy, fast-paced read (though non-fiction, it's not at all dry), and for those who have spent a fair amount of time living in Japan, it is interesting to see how many things have stayed the same: cleanliness, love of baths, appreciation of the brevity of life.

Free Subscription to Encyclopedia Britannica

As most of you know by now, in addition to all the other things I like to do, I love to net surf. I spend hours sifting through tons of information, most of it meaningless and serving only to further shorten my attention span.

However, luckily not lost in the dross, was this Techcrunch article, through which I found out about free access for "web publishers" to Encyclopedia Britannica online.

Web publishers is fairly loosely defined, but bloggers definitely count. So, I cruised over to http://britannicanet.com/ where I registered the Japanrider blog. Of course, I had to wait for someone to approve the registration - and they did!

If you have a blog, I really think you should apply for access too!

I'm delighted to say that I now have a one-year free subscription to Encyclopedia Britannica online. I can link to articles, and this will give anyone who visits the article complete access to that article (but not to the rest of the site). I can also, apparently, embed cool widgets into my posts, but that I will have to try later.
For now, here is a "test" article on Zen

Mono no aware 物のあわれ

Another weekend has gone by - disappeared in a cloud of hiking, biking, and shopping. Now that it's over, and tomorrow is Monday, I realize too late that I didn't fully appreciate it. I lacked （もののあわれ） mono-no-aware.

Mono-no-aware can be translated as a "sensitivity to things", to appreciate every thing in its present moment, feeling the pathos of the brevity of existence. The term was applied to an artistic movement during the Tokugawa shogunate (the Edo period), but captures the essence of the Japanese outlook or culture. To appreciate what is, while it is; to savour the last vestiges of beauty in the autumn flower, the last living moment of life.

Again, mono-no-aware is very much a concept that, even before the term was coined (supposedly by Motoori Norinaga), was part of the way of the Buddha, and especially in Zen Buddhism. Appreciate the people and the time that is now, and understand that it will be gone.

We all too often live in the future, weighed down by our pasts. Where, then, is our present?

Zazen and Purple Chains

The title of this post makes one wonder - what can possibly connect zazen meditation and a purple chain? Allow me to ramble and perhaps the connection will become clear.

On Saturday, me and a few friends and colleagues ventured to my nihongo sensei's home, near Daiba station in Mishima. She lives on the grounds of Denshuji, a zen temple, which is overseen by the monk Kiku-san.

On Saturday, Kiku-san conducted a small zazen-kai (sitting meditation) for we visitors to his temple. As we assumed our seats on the zabuton (floor cushions), Kiku-san told a story (which I translate from the Japanese); the story went like this:

Long ago, in ancient Rome, there was a beautiful woman. A young man was in love with her, and proposed over and over, but she always rejected his proposals. Finally, one day as they were watching the lions in the lions' den at the Colosseum, he proposed yet again, and this time, the woman tossed her handkerchief into the ring and said, "if you bring that back to me, I'll marry you." The young man bravely leapt into the ring and returned with lady's handkerchief. Impressed with the young man's courage, the woman said she would marry him, that she was his. But the young man replied, "I'm sorry. But I can't marry you. I've found something that is more important to me now." Sitting quietly in the temple, about to begin our meditation, that was our task - to search, inside ourselves, for that which was more important than anything else.

Kiku-san and we meditators. Interesting to note: the monk must always be to the furthest left.




After the session, Kiku-san, who hails from Kyoto and has been the Denshuji monk for 20 years, admitted that he still hasn't found that "most important" thing yet. And so, the search for enlightenment continues.



After meditating, we (without the monk) proceeded to have a few glasses of wine and a fine lunch at my teacher's house before heading home - none the more enlightened.

So why, then, the reference to purple chains? That is a reference to my Rig and single-speeding.

Single-speeding is the embodiment of simplicity in mountain biking. The sheer absence of clutter, the clean design, make the single-speed ride the ride of Zen. At least, that's my take on it. And, while I was away trying to find the greater meaning of life, Brian generously put my new purple chain on my purple Rig!





All in all, it made for a great weekend!

Catching up, technology and other musings

Nothing much new these days. Brian and I have been working a bit more than we're accustomed to these days - hence, lack of posts. I know, I know - it's no excuse! Anyway - Brian's away on business, I'm basking in solitude, incense is burning, and blogging seemed, somehow, right.

As I blog, I am watching Monk on my second monitor. It's an awesome show, though I'm only in Season 4, and am streaming it via www.sidereel.com. I really don't see why Sharona (a.k.a.Bitty Schram) had to leave the show. I'm am really not accustomed to the new assistant.

On my second monitor, I can't really get Monk in full-screen. This is because I'm on Ubuntu, a linux OS which, until the recent release of Flash Player 9, was incapable of full-screen flash. However, I still seem to be incapable. I'm using Firefox 2 as well as Epiphany...if anyone knows how I can watch vids full screen, I'd be forever indebted...

Speaking of Ubuntu, the Ubuntu 8.04, titled Hardy Heron, is scheduled for April 24th. I wait with baited breath. Perhaps Hardy will take care of my full-screen problem...

Until next time...

Shakuhachi Band

Work has been (and promises to continue) keeping us busy, and today, though Sunday, also involved a work-related event. Lucky for us, though, that part of the event included a private performance by John Kaizan Neptune and his band, Takedake. Pronounced "ta-kay da-kay", the kanji means "Bamboo bamboo", but the words can also mean bamboo only (different kanji, though). This is a totally appropriate name since this band plays all-bamboo instruments, key among them being the shakuhachi, which can most easily be described as a bamboo flute. Kaizan makes his own shakuhachi, and the drummer for the band makes all his drums himself from the bamboo that proliferates in the mountains where he lives. You'd be really amazed at what these skilled musicians can do with their bamboo instruments.

Using our little, aging Lumix LZ2 I got a couple of short video clips. I pieced them together and you can see a sampling of what the Takedake band can do:



You can view John Kaizan Neptune's website here at http://www.pacificsites.com/~jneptune/

Clockwork Bikes – First Contact

Several years ago, Brian and, then, I fell in love with single speeding. The simplicity of the bike - both aesthetically and in practicality - more than compensated for not having gears. I first converted my black Cannondale to a single-speed, and several months of riding proved that I liked it. Brian bought a Gary Fisher Rig in February, 2005 and I bought mine only six months later. The Rig is a 29er single-speed, so it fits into a double niche. Brian upgraded to a custom frame in early 2007, and now I've had my Gary Fisher Rig for two and a half years, and since the purchase I have sold all my other bicycles and have been solely riding the Single-Speed 29er. I like the big wheels and I have not missed having gears at all. But while I love the Rig, even the small frame is just a little too big for me and, I figured, now is the time to further follow in Brian's footsteps and get myself a custom frame.

Brian hired Joel Greenblatt at Clockwork Bikes to do his custom single-speed 29er. Joel did a great job designing the frame, and kept in contact with Brian throughout the design process, and Brian's been loving the bike ever since. So, when I finally decided that I, too, wanted custom, I didn't consider anyone other than Clockwork Bikes. I made first contact with Joel on the weekend, and we are getting ready to design a frame just for me. I should be riding the Susono trails by August!

Brian riding his custom Clockwork bike: