Dec 24, 2008
Sunday morning (This is from Dec 14)
Henro Pilgrimage
Continuous change is the only constant in this world. Nothing remains the same for very long. Everything is process, not objects. These represent one of the basic ideas of Buddhism, and it is very appropriate in relation to our Henro pilgrimage.
A week ago, Ian and I had a long talk and for various reasons changed our plans. Instead of the do-it-all-at-once version of the Henro, we have decided to do it in two legs - half in 2009 and the other half in 2010. Traditionally the only requirement is to visit all 88 temples and to complete the recitation of the Heart Sutra at each. Such things as the order you visit them, the mode of transportation, the total time required, and so forth are irrelevant. The only thing is to get to all of them.
Ian was having trouble arranging to be away from his university for the seven weeks that would be required for the continuous trip. Also we would have to hurry, even I could not be away much longer than that. And we both have only limited funds available for the trip.
On our revised trip we will cover the first half in about 25 days, being away for about a month. This means that we will have shorter walks each day and will be able to spend more time at the temples and to stop at interesting places along the way. With the budget reduced in proportion to the length, it will also mean that we will be able to stop overnight at temples and pilgrims' inns (ryokan) every night rather than sleeping out most nights. Both Ian and I were a bit concerned about sleeping out in the dead of winter. We both thought that we might wake up one morning frozen to death.
Financially, the total cost of the trip will be more but the amount for this year will be about 2/3 of what we had expected, even sleeping indoors every night. The second half of the trip in 2010 will cost about the same, so even sleeping indoors every night, our budgeted funds will be enough for this year and half of next years trip.
One additional advantage that us old guys especially appreciate is that our packs can be closer to four kilograms, rather than the six or seven that we had expected.
Once we started thinking about a two leg trip, all we could find were benefits and no negatives. Once Christmas and New Years are over, we will get into serious detailed planning and I will keep you informed all the way.
A week ago, Ian and I had a long talk and for various reasons changed our plans. Instead of the do-it-all-at-once version of the Henro, we have decided to do it in two legs - half in 2009 and the other half in 2010. Traditionally the only requirement is to visit all 88 temples and to complete the recitation of the Heart Sutra at each. Such things as the order you visit them, the mode of transportation, the total time required, and so forth are irrelevant. The only thing is to get to all of them.
Ian was having trouble arranging to be away from his university for the seven weeks that would be required for the continuous trip. Also we would have to hurry, even I could not be away much longer than that. And we both have only limited funds available for the trip.
On our revised trip we will cover the first half in about 25 days, being away for about a month. This means that we will have shorter walks each day and will be able to spend more time at the temples and to stop at interesting places along the way. With the budget reduced in proportion to the length, it will also mean that we will be able to stop overnight at temples and pilgrims' inns (ryokan) every night rather than sleeping out most nights. Both Ian and I were a bit concerned about sleeping out in the dead of winter. We both thought that we might wake up one morning frozen to death.
Financially, the total cost of the trip will be more but the amount for this year will be about 2/3 of what we had expected, even sleeping indoors every night. The second half of the trip in 2010 will cost about the same, so even sleeping indoors every night, our budgeted funds will be enough for this year and half of next years trip.
One additional advantage that us old guys especially appreciate is that our packs can be closer to four kilograms, rather than the six or seven that we had expected.
Once we started thinking about a two leg trip, all we could find were benefits and no negatives. Once Christmas and New Years are over, we will get into serious detailed planning and I will keep you informed all the way.
Dec 22, 2008
Been sick
Sorry for the lack of entries - I have been sick. I hope that I can post something interesting tomorrow.
Dec 17, 2008
More Fibbing
In a Japanese classroom the clock is always on the wall behind the teacher. I have asked many people about this but have not yet been able to determine why, other than that it has always been done that way. The clock position does not help the teacher time the class and its activities - the only valid use of time in the classroom - but it does allow the students to watch the clock as it slows to a crawl. I wrote the following fib about this.
clock
on
front wall
hands moving
over the teacher's head
time slows for those who can see it
clock
on
front wall
hands moving
over the teacher's head
time slows for those who can see it
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