Dreams Crazier then Mine, But yet just as Awesome as Mine.

In watching actually all the films, mainly because I couldn’t understand what the hell was going on. Especially also because it looked like the guy who uploaded it was using either an old beta max or vhs VCR to upload it to the internet.

But in watching the movies and reading up on what all Shintoism is about the different values, ideas, and beliefs they have are very present throughout. I believe actually the two movies the depicted the beliefs were that of the “Weeping Demon” and the “Tunnel”.

The tunnel started off or felt like the same dream I’ve had were you’re running somewhere.  But the commander that was walking towards first gets pushed by a dog carrying ammo barking demonically pushed him into the tunnel.  Then the end turned around and heard the footsteps of one of his men. This shows the belief in the Human Spirit remains forever.  Then after his entire platoon comes out of the tunnel, he pleads with them to go home and rest in Peace. Shortly after this the dog that was carrying ammo comes back after him and pushes him back towards the tunnel. So I believe it shows that he’s still attached to his unit and vice versa where there dead but they still live on in his memories and vice versa.

Then the “Weeping Demon”, this one is clearly showing how pissed off and hateful the Japanese still are of the dropping of the Atom bomb. The demon talks about the big dandelions’ that’s have been growing because of the nuclear radiation. This shows the myth of purity and pollution. Also I believe it has a tie in with the

“To be helpful to others and in the world at large through deeds of service without thought of rewards, and to seek the advancement of the world as one whose life mediates the will of Kami”

I use this to show that towards the end of the “weeping demon” that the demon is helping this man find his way, but at the end changes and tries to turn the man into a demon. 

So it has different themes from Shinto throughout the movie. Watching it just made me think this is a dream and even I can’t understand my dreams, but hell he could and even turned it into a movie. Wish I could do that. haha

The Tao of Pooh

For this blog assignment we had to read “The Tao of Pooh” of course you all know this.  But in reading this I’ve found out that it’s a good book. It explains the Tao a little easier than anyone or anything else explaining it. It shows and gives at least in my opinion simpler form of understanding it. I liked the book in a positive way that all I could hear while reading it was Pooh’s voice from the cartoon’s in him trying to understand or help you to understand the Tao. But  at the same time like during class Prof Raznic saying about how the Taoist sages would act more stupid than usual when people where asking they should lead one’s life, just to get out in a way of paying the bill. 

Then the culture of the “Busy Backsons” I can understand where there coming from in talking about American Culture. We as a culture are always on the move. More so then anyone else in the world, it’s been ingrained in our heads to get this done then move onto the next. The old adage “time is money” is always in everyone’s mind. But yet no-one’s ever been able to slow down and just sit and listen.  No-one can’t or most people can’t sit and listen, have to get things done ricky tick. With this it burns us out and burns us out fast, also now dealing and moving faster with technology we’re so plugged in that most of us can’t unplug. 

The use of Taoism for American culture to fix it, would be a good idea in some aspects. But the big problem with that is that everyone in America would have to accept this or learn to implement in everyday things. Most would expect this to happen overnight, few realize that this happened over the course of about 2,000 years.  Even then it’s not very accepted way of life. Not many Americans would really accept the idea of being loveys dovey and accepting defeat. So many would reject it, Also we as Americans love being individuals. No way around that, we want to be ourselves show it off and proudly. So the solutions wouldn’t be widely accepted. 

So in the end though it was a good book where It did help me understand the Tao a bit more. But I couldn’t help thinking of Pooh Bear speaking in the background haha.

Simpsons and Buddhism

Sadly it's in Spanish, I think, Couldn't find one with subtitles. But the dialogue helps some.

For this project I picked the Simpsons, more specifically the episode in season thirteen where Lisa converts to Buddhism “She of Little Faith”. The reason she does this is because Homer and Bart’s experiment into rocketry sent the rocket into church destroying it. After that Burns show’s up and is willing to help the church rebuild. Seeing the gluttony, the use of the church being turned into basically a big billboard sign, with this it sends Lisa off. She’s tired of the fact her church is selling their soul for a cause.

Lisa: I'm leaving this church forever!
Marge: Oh no!
Homer: I don't know how to feel!
Marge: You should be very upset!
Homer: Got it! :cries loudly: how was that?
Marge: A little much!
Homer: :sobs gently:

 Later on after Lisa looking at a few different religions, she settles on Buddhism.  Now after Lisa chooses Buddhism she meets Richard Gere.  After this interaction Gere and Lenny get into it over Buddhism mainly because Lenny isn’t the brightest on the show.

“Lenny: Who's Buddha?
Richard Gere: It's a good thing Buddhism teaches freedom from desire because I've got the desire to kick your ass!”

“Lisa: My family tried to trick me into celebrating Christmas!
Richard Gere: Y'know, we are meditating.
Lisa: Oh, sorry.
Richard Gere: No that's alright. I was only about to achieve enlightenment. But who'd want that?”

With Gere saying this, it shows that not all Buddhist are hippie peace loving beatniks that everyone thinks they are. Now later on in the episode Marge, Lisa’s mom tries to bribe here into going back for the winning team and start being a Christian again. Marge bribes her with a pony something that Lisa has always wanted.

Just like in Brad Warner’s book “Zen Wrapped in Karma dipped in Chocolate” on chapter four “Money Changes everything” where he explains the money his grandfather had saved up changed the plan forever. Mainly for the reason his father wanted to use the money to help his mother, also to ease her pain. His grandmother wanted to leave the money while his father was fighting tooth and nail over it.  With this it created problems and the fact that Lisa was being bribed into coming back to Christianity even though she just started out. Bribing someone just creates problems, just as well as the thought of someone having money in a bank just sitting there like in the case of Brad’s grandmother. Brad says to his father a old Buddhist saying “If someone wants to take something from you, you should give it to them. “Dealing with the money, that is his grandmother wants the money that bad then let her keep it.

                I found that the stereotypes that most people have are always wrong, even with Buddhists. Warner is the type of person have thought all of what he is saying through and tell you his thoughts on what he read or has been taught. Be it either him calling something bullshit like in the case of someone teaching “Tantric Zen” in his description that’s like “saying you teach Jewish Catholicism.”   So he is the type of person to respect Buddhism and defy basically from what I see him say is all the idiots that think being a Buddhist is someone who  is a “ therapist or a yoga instructor” which he shortly after says this is bullshit. So in the end though we as American’s  just sort skim the top of something and if it sounds good we run with it. 

Quotes http://www.lardlad.com/assets/quotes/season13/DABF02.shtml

Warner, Brad "Zen Wrapped in Karma, Dipped in Chocolate" Ch3 pg.10-13 Ch4 pg. 21-23

Image http://images.elephantjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/picture-530.png
Image

Liberation Of Worldy Success

Worldly Success

Tom Petty "It's Good to be King" Rock

Jim Croce "Workin' at the Car-wash Blues"  Rock 1973

Frank Sinatra "The Good Life" Jazz 1950's

Hank Williams ,Jr "Family Tradition" Country 1978

Queen “Under Pressure”  Pop/Rock 1981


Liberation

Tom Petty “Free Falling” Rock 1989

Old Crow Medicine Show “Take’em Away” Folk 2001

Shine Down “Diamond Eyes (Boom-lay Boom-lay)” Rock/ Post-Grunge 2010

Billy Joel “River of Dreams”  Rock 1993

Dierks Bentley “Free and Easy” Country 2003

In doing this aim set of liberation and worldly success with the songs I’ve found and looked into that the one more prevalent is that of Liberation. Now not saying worldly success didn’t have any that I saw, they had plenty but not enough to match.  But, Liberation itself is something that anyone can think of, something to believe in. Liberation is giving up and freeing the inner self for the world to see. In doing that you’ve become happy with yourself, specifically in the Indian sense. Having said that there are others cultures where liberation is wonderful thing. One culture or ethnic background such as mine from being Polish is that when a person dies that in itself is a form of liberation. We have the sad part of grieving, missing the departed, but shortly after that we party are asses off get drunker than any Irish person you’ve seen and are happy for the person to be free of this world also that they don’t have to deal with the day to day bullshit of life. 

I digress, but I see that Liberation is more prevalent because there are times where you just want to say screw it and throw away the shackles of life. The observations just like in the last one is about the same one Aim beats the other not so much in a fight but just how people can deal with it. People can be like electricity they try to follow the path of least resistant, But in music I think that, Liberation is easy to speak about, but doing it is the hard part. Worldly success on the other hand can be hard as liberation but the path is a little bit easier defined.

The Hindu understanding is and always will be a time tested tradition. This in itself gives it merit, the understanding though gives it that strength. But in American culture especially pop culture we as Americans have no idea about it. We might stumble upon something and it sound good and run with it, BUT someone wrote it about over 2000 years ago, who’s going to win that battle….haha. So that’s what I think where the understanding differs. But hey that’s me, I’m only Polish here.

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Pleasur N' the Community

The Pleasure Side

Old Crow Medicine Show "Wagon Wheel"  Bluegrass 2004

Motley Crue "Doctor Feel Good" Rock N' Roll 1989

Guns N's Roses "Mr Brownstone" Rock N' Roll 1987

Ricky Nelson  "Garden Party"  Rock 1972

Bill Withers  "Use Me"  R&B/Soul 1972




The Community Service Slice of Paradise

Jefferson Airplane "Volunteers" Rock N Roll 1969

Marvin Gaye R&B Soul 1972 "What's Goin' on/ What's Happening Brother"

Neil Diamond Folk/Rock 1975 "Brothers Love Traveling Salvation Show"

Poison "Something To believe In" Rock N Roll 1989

Queen "One Vision" Rock N' Roll 1985

In doing this project the aim that which is more prevalent was that of the pleasure side of life. Pleasure is and always will be the spice of life. Most people no matter where ever they are always get in trouble in doing too much and usually going overboard. Especially that of both Motley Crue and Guns N’ Roses, these guys took sex, drugs and rock n’ roll to the extreme and even beyond. Pleasure is the easiest of the aims to attain.  All that have made it big always are trying to get rid of demons they have or release demons they knew they never had. Also the fact that they are treated like that of Royalty, anything goes and anything can happen.

Pleasure is easily attainable be it through sex, drugs and rock and or roll. But the community service part was something that of hard to obtain. Most people would rather make themselves happy rather than others and most do not start off thinking they need to serve others. Only after a while of pleasure, a path of desire (being the best at what he/she does) and worldly success do people begin to think about service. Now yes some people do feel the desire of giving themselves. But in many people’s life the use of pleasure there whole life they find that receiving is better than giving. The act of giving to ones community brings great joy in life. So this is why the Hindu’s believe and follow it as one of the four aims.

The Hindu understanding of the four aims has been something they themselves believe in. The use of these four aims gives them a path to follow be it however many paths there are they all lead to one ending. This gives many a goal to set out on in life. After understanding the different Aims it shows how people can believe in something, while keeping it true and dear to their heart. The American pop music, I don’t believe really follows the aims of Hinduism, just following what always works heartache pain and anguish. That’s just a part of American life in some lives without diving into Hinduism.