Mystical mysticism

Let’s see it differently.

bumkipaik — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 21:39:02 +0000

Studying mysticism in this class was such bliss for the fact that I am now more open to various theories about religion and mystical experience.

I tend to find some evidence that instantly convince me by somehow stimulating my curiosity when it comes to mysticism.

From the previous post, I have said that I believe in money. And for the same reason, I believe in science.

Although I am aware that there are countless phenomena that cannot be explained by any form of science, it is still the base of most of the other phenomena.

Possession is probably one of the trickiest subject for scientists (psychologists, neuro-scientist and more) to deal with.

We tend to judge others by their behavior. And we often use the word ‘crazy’ to describe a person who acts oddly.

Referring a crazy person might not be so offensive for the ones who are socially acknowledged insane.

My question here is who decides one is crazy or possessed? What is the measurement?

Shaman in the new world

bumkipaik — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 07:42:54 +0000

I believe in power of money. Because it’s role in modernized society is dominant.

As I was reading “Spirit Possession Revisited” by Janice Boddy, the most convincing theory was this.

Healing ritual brings money to women so that they are highly motivated.

Even though the example was from Brazil and distant in timely manner, Economical benefit still is big part of motivation.

Boddy states that the reason why a household wife can perform a important role in the society is because people consider healing ritual as extended household work.(Boddy, pg.416)

Woman having a proper occupation in Korea was considered ‘wrong’ in traditional Korean society. Not that it is ‘wrong wrong’, it is because of Confucianism in Korea.

Having an occupation as a woman were, in traditional Korean standard, abandoning household work.

But the case of Shaman is different. Just like Brazil in Boddy’s article, it is considered proper and mere ‘extension of domestic service performed outside of house.

I attached this video to show how shamans in Korea do their job in accociation with new technology.

That Shaman is utilizing YouTube for advertizing herself.

If she was born in the past when she did not have to advertise herself, her life as a shaman would have been much less competitive.

(She would have been automatically recognized by people in her village)

The world is changing in a very competitive way.

It’s a sad fact to face that even a shaman who traditionally did not have to advertise herself worldwide (you know YouTube) now has no other choice in order to attract as many people as other shamans.

But what did really enabled and encouraged might not be just money. It could be positively change in perception of women.

Nowadays in Korea, unlike the past, no one can actually blame professional career women for having an occupation.

Wow, the world IS changing.

I actually did(tried) it.

bumkipaik — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 04:59:34 +0000

I never expected anything so literate and evident instructions to practice zazen. This thought turned out to be a very stupid one. It’s, in my opinion, same as singing. There are so many ways to practice singing. Let’s just assume there is an ultimate way to be a “great singer”. Even though the concept of being a “great singer” is vague, the way to practice singing does not have to be ambiguous.

I found this (very easily) video clip on YouTube. It tells you what and how to practice.

Me and my friend , Seo, watched the clip and tried it.

The Full lotus posture was too extreme for me so I did the least painful and most comforting position.

After 20 minutes or so of meditating (Too short? So what, According to Dogen, just for what I did, I am already a Buddha!!!!And I am not (I guess I am) a gradualist. If there is such thing as enlightenment, I believe in sudden and unexpected one ) me and my friend talked about how it felt.

I started breath as comfortably as I could. Then Though about “empty mind”. I was thinking maybe if I try really hard (although Dogen said not to) not to think of anything except my determination of clearing my mind. I believed it would eventually clear my mind and leave nothing but my determination. Not so surprisingly, I got intercepted once by sound of Seo’s breathing in the middle of meditation. We talked for about 20 seconds and tried to focus one more time. It went through well. I do not know if it went through well but I’m sure of the fact that I put all of my concentration on something that is introvert.

Although I attempt was no to think of anything, I thought of number of thoughts. And the thoughts connected automatically. This was definitely not under my control. Or free will or whatever.

“Oh, it’s not easy just to sit. Wait a minitue. It actually hurts a little. Oh it’s actually my back where it hurts. Lower back. Yes. That’s right. It’s where I got hurt when I was 2^nd grade of middle school. It’s not my unevenly formed butt, is it? It probably is. I’ve seen it on Discovery Channel……….Oh shoot. I shouldn’t think of anything…………………Man, it’s pretty chilly in here……Oh shoot! Focus ”

That’s pretty much I thought of.

As I have said, I think I am a gradualist. I do not think this well get me anywhere close to be enlightened. From this aspect, I like how Dogen talked about resisting the temptation of enlightenment, you can become a Buddha. I think Dogen made his teaching somewhat rhetorical method in order to be mysterious. Maybe or maybe not. After all, it’s my idea.

bumkipaik — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 04:55:59 +0000

This is the main source for my(and for my friend) practice.

Let’s do this!!!

bumkipaik — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 04:25:02 +0000

How to practice zazen.
hm…interesting how clear and easy to TRY but never able to know what it is like when mind becomes empty.

There is always a name for every single posture or position. (also examples of good and bad)

Is it even the right way to do this?? Who knows what?

After all, it is all myterious.

PS. When he said “Zen is gymnastics without motion”, it striked me. And he added “It is all about action”.

How interesting aspect is this? Since he said that in order to study Buddhism, one should study zazen first, I am going to try meditating in Dogens way.

What is it?

bumkipaik — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 07:28:17 +0000

What is Mysticism?

by Carl McColman on October 11, 2007

I’ve been a student of mysticism ever since first reading Evelyn Underhill’s Mysticism: The Nature and Development of Spiritual Consciousness back in 1979, right after I graduated from high school. Nearly three decades have gone by and I’m no closer than ever to being able to define mysticism.

Sure, I know all the basic definitions: it is the experience of union with God. It’s a form of spirituality grounded in ecstatic and altered states of consciousness. It’s the interior, personal, and even esoteric dimension of religion. It’s a dangerous tendency to adulterate Christianity with alien philosophical or religious ideas, like Neoplatonism or Vedanta. It’s a way of seeing, in which the presence of God is discerned in the Bible or in the sacramental life of the church. It’s another name for deification. And on and on it goes.

I guess it goes without saying that I reject the critical and negative ways of understanding mysticism. I don’t see it as a narcissistic or antinomian spirituality which undermines religious authority (although I believe authentic mysticism naturally challenges inauthentic religion); nor do I see it as an anti-intellectual or regressively pre-rational flight from reason and responsibility. And I certainly eschew the “adulteration” critique: mysticism is deeply comfortable with interreligious and interfaith forms of spirituality, but the tradition generally is clear about the need to be grounded in one’s own faith before seeking to interact constructively with others. To the extent that the mystical openness to interreligious dialogue and even practice can be contrasted with the barriers between religions that are erected by fundamentalism: well, count me among the mystics.

Once we are comfortable answering mysticism’s critics and using their questions and concerns to help identify some boundaries between what mysticism is and isn’t (it is a project for experiencing the presence of God, but it isn’t a threat to normal religious identity), then I think what remains is the need to find a way of understanding mysticism that is truly inclusive: inclusive of pure mystical experience, of the written and artistic efforts to interpret such experience, of the traditional ways of understanding mysticism particularly as found in Greek philosophy and the Christian faith, and of the exciting new ways of understanding mysticism and contemplation that are emerging in the postmodern world and that allow us to see the history of mysticism with new eyes.

Whew!

Okay, now, as a writer who wants to share mysticism with as many people as possible, how do I express all of the above in a way that won’t put most people to sleep?

Zazen from wikipedia

bumkipaik — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 07:18:24 +0000

Zazen (坐禅; Chinese; zuò chán pinyin or tso-chan Wade-Giles) is at the heart of Zen Buddhist practice. The aim of zazen is just sitting, “opening the hand of thought”.^[1]^{[clarification needed]} This is done either through koans, Rinzai‘s primary method, or whole-hearted sitting (shikantaza), the Soto sect’s method. (Rinzai and Soto are the main extant Zen schools in Japan; they both originated in China as the Linji and Caodong schools, respectively.) Once the mind is able to be unhindered by its many layers, one will then be able to realize one’s true Buddha nature^{[citation needed]}. In Zen Buddhism, zazen (literally “seated meditation“) is a meditative discipline practitioners perform to calm the body and the mind and experience insight into the nature of existence and thereby gain enlightenment (satori).

The posture of zazen is seated, with folded legs and hands, and an erect but settled spine. The legs are folded in one of the standard sitting styles (see below). The hands are folded together into a simple mudra over the belly. In many practices, one breathes from the hara (the center of gravity in the belly) and the eyelids are half-lowered, the eyes being neither fully open nor shut so that the practitioner is not distracted by outside objects but at the same time is kept awake.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zazen

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Koreans say “You study with your hips, not with your brain”

Regardless my religion, (in fact I do not consider Buddhism as a religion)
I want to try this to clear my mind and just to learn to be seated(for a long time).

Wish me luck

Bourguignon

Hello world!

bumkipaik — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 01:16:16 +0000

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