9/15/01
In a message dated 9/15/01 6:53:10 AM, tots@quickweb.com.ph writes:
<< I too am a subscriber to many list almost all of them music lists, but i
must say( please I am not pointing finger at anyone, just an observation)
before comments on the crisis were made this list was so so quiet and all of
a sudden boom. And I have not seen the same kind of posts on my other lists.
This may have turned off listers. May i suggest holding off any comments on
the crisis till later or not at all, this is a list about shakuhachi after
all. I subscribed to hear about shakuhachi and I think we owe it to everyone
to stick to topic. There are other forums for this . If I offended anyone, i
am sorry , times are difficult, lets not make it harder for everyone. >>
Tots,
Thanks for your comment. As one of those who has reflected about Tuesday's
tragedy on these pages I just want to say that I don't take offense at your
comment. And you're so right--there are many other forums for sharing and
discussing our responses. I would just add that for many of us the
shakuhachi showed up in our lives not as a musical instrument but as a
spiritual one. As you know, the shakuhachi was, at one time almost
exclusively devoted to the goals of Rinzai Zen, to realize one's Buddha
nature. For the tradition of Sui-Zen, Blowing Zen, the shakuhachi can't be
separated from this deeper, spiritual purpose. Of course, there is much
diversity of understanding about how important this spiritual dimension is.
And even among those of us who agree that the Buddhist dimension is critical,
there is much disagreement about how wide the net of spiritual interest
should go. Some of us believe that political, economic and ordinary social
events are irrelevant to spiritual practice. And some of us believe that
every dimension of life on the planet has some relevance to Blowing Zen.
Some of us think that all emotional responses are a sign of spiritual
immaturity, while others believe that all passions must be included, worked
through and transcended as we blow down the bamboo. Some of us believe that
the shakuhachi player should stick to the prescribed, ancient repertoire or a
particular teacher's style. Others believe that anything goes. And then, of
course, there are many shakuhachi players, especially lately, who discover
the shakuhachi as a musical instrument only. All this diversity is
wonderful. But still, your question about the newslist is important.
Perhaps there should be a dozen shakuhachi newslists, each one inviting a
particular dimension of shakuhachi experience. A democratic flowering of
shakuhachi voices.
Blessings,
Robert Jonas
Boston
RbtJonas@aol.com
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