Recent remarks on the relation between spiritual attainment and technical=
skill
in shakuhachi performance and the subsequent string on enlightenment are =
just
the sort of thing I enjoy on this list. To my mind, the most interesting
questions raised in the exchanges are the ones for which there is no defi=
nitive
answer. That=92s probably why these questions keep recurring, not only i=
n the
list, but in the context of Buddhism and performing arts as well. The ma=
ny
contributions I found this morning when I got into my email have finally
provoked me to add my two-cents worth. Apologies to those who are tired =
of
this line of discussion.
The first thing that caught my eye was Tim=92s relation of enlightenment =
to a
quotation from John. I=92m wondering what the Gk. words are in the text =
there,
and what Hebrew words in the other examples Tim referred to, because in n=
ormal
use in the West, "enlightenment" means something explicitly opposed to
traditional religion. The 18th century thinkers who brought about =93the
Enlightenment=94 in Western thought believed that by relying on reason an=
d
science they could escape the religious superstition and divisiveness whi=
ch had
eviscerated Europe in the previous centuries. Their =93Enlightenment=94 t=
hen, was a
very different thing from the messianism of 1 John 5:20
Now I suppose it all depends on whether you are at heart a =93lumper=94 o=
r a
=93splitter,=94 but by professional training and personal inclination, I =
guess I
fall in the latter category, and that being the case, it seems to me that=
what
people are talking about in Zen, using the word =93enlightenment,=94 is
emphatically not the arrival of a messiah. Perhaps you could make the ca=
se
that Pure Land Buddhism has something analogous to a messiah and, even, t=
o God,
but Zen is based not on the grace and forgiveness of a superior being, bu=
t
rather on a rigorous examination and thoroughgoing excavation of the shak=
y
foundations of our prejudices. It is called a religion of =93self-power=94=
and is
explicitly distinguished from other strains of Buddhism in which the powe=
r of
another (Buddha, bodhisattva, ascetic or whatever) lends you a hand towar=
d
spiritual progress.
That=92s not to say that there aren=92t claims of special authority in Ze=
n, or
particular methods of practice which are recommended by a long tradition.=
All
the same, those claims and methods are relentlessly questioned in Zen pra=
ctice
and even Buddha -- who is emphatically not a god or God -- is subjected t=
o
doubt and, arguably, ridicule: there=92s an old saying to the effect that=
if you
meet the Buddha in your practice (and he becomes an obstacle) you should =
kill
him.
What might this have to do with shakuhachi playing? Many people would an=
swer
=93nothing.=94 (And that would probably be a perfectly appropriate =93Ze=
n=94 response
to the question.) For others, though, the rigorous confrontation of
preconceptions about who we are and what we are capable of with the
difficulties of shakuhachi performance might serve as a religious practic=
e.
Clearly there are many performers today, both inside and outside Japan, w=
ho
take this view. It is, moreover, the basis of the claims made by Komuso =
monks
in their religious use of the instrument (cf. Watazumi and the modern
=93spiritualist=94 masters we occasionally talk about on this list.)
What the spiritual status of shakuhachi performance might have been earli=
er in
Japan raises fascinating questions; the answers are far from clear. Ikk=
yu,
the legendary Zen iconoclast, was known to play the instrument, but did h=
e play
it for spiritual advancement or, rather, for a break from his spiritual
practice and the administrative burdens he assumed late in life? I=92d l=
ike to
know more about this, and perhaps there=92s someone on the list who can, =
as it
were, enlighten me.
Yours,
Tom Hare
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