Mike,
I mean no metaphors here, but a lot of what is visible to the eye, say, about
the dark skies of the Outback, can be criticized more deeply by the
instrumental techniques we rely on in Astronomy. This is why most investment
in Astronomical hardware is going elsewhere besides to Australia, now, and has
been going especially to Chile and Hawai'i for the past 50 years. Tens of
Billions of dollars worth, Mike.
So, my work will not bring me there. But I'll be happy as a tourist.
Thanks!, for the "image" of the red soil and sand making sound during the heat
of the day. And for tying this in with the sound of the digeridoo.
Mike, do you know about "Eclipse Erosion"? It occurs on the earth's moon.
When the earth's shadow falls onto the surface of the moon, the heated lunar
rock and soil -- with no atmosphere about to buffer the effect -- drops quickly
from 250 deg F to far below zero F, in a matter of minutes. First, you have
searing full sun, which has been falling on an area for many days without
let-up, then, in a matter of minutes, the earth blocks out the sun, and the
lunar rocks and soil chill to the cold of space, which you know has a
temperature of about 3 degrees Kelvin, or 3 deg C above Absolute zero. All
this sudden chilling down from a heated state leads to micro-cracking, and
hence to erosion, over eons of such eclipses. Hence, to some extent due to
lunar eclipses, the contours of the moon's surface and mountains are rounded,
softened, and not sharp and jagged as artists depicted them before spacecraft
began exploring the moon up-close, and before our landings.
A Kalpa is the length of time it takes for the breeze and abrasion from an
angel's wings, flying once every hundred years, to wear down mighty Mount
Sumeru. But the mere shadow of the earth wears down the moon's topography
faster than that, I think.
--Joe
> "mike" wrote:
>
> Joe,
>
> I hope you'll come to Western Australia one day. I know it won't disappoint.
> You could well be correct about finding similar, or better countries to
> observe the sky, but in all my travels I've never seen anything quite like
> sky when you're out deep bush. And that's not all. Aboriginal culture has
> existed for 40,000 years. When you're out bush you can almost hear the
> didgeridoo. As you know, the red of the Australian landscape is due to the
> iron ore that is so abundant here. Imagine the heat of the noon-day sun
> heating up the sand and the vibration that causes. Even the visible landscape
> vibrates. It's no coincidence the sound of the didgeridoo mimics this.
> Sensory overload! The continent is also so ancient that you can 'see' time
> (think the Dreamtime). Fascinating and spiritual place unfortunately lost on
> most Aussies.
>
> Thank you for your forthrightness on Vipassana. I agree with you - i don't
> believe these practioners were Awakened, but were still using the technique
> of noting to gain an insight into the 3 Characteristics of impermanence,
> non-self and dukha. We shouldn't be too harsh on them tho (apart from the
> fact that we can't truly know a path from the observation of just 2 of its
> practitioners) because to the observer a person committed to noting would
> appear to be slow and methodical. It is only a technique towards Liberation,
> after all (the raft) and not the other shore (which in Zen terms is the same
> place, of course). ; )
>
> Not sure I can agree about Vipassana's Metta practice and what you said about
> Zen's Compassion on Awakening tho (this is the area where I think they could
> come together instead of being passing ships in the night). Metta practice
> can be so intense that as an object of meditation it can take you into the
> first jhana. I know from personal experience that my Heart Chakra was blown
> wide open because of it. I think it'd be highly unlikely that a teacher of
> Vipassana would ever sanction war and violence the way the Zen hierarchy did
> in Japan during the Second World War. I truly believe the groundwork of Metta
> practice opens the heart more deeply than, say, the satori of a koan
> breakthrough. Yes, we can appreciate we all share the same Buddha Nature as a
> result (so what harms you harms me), but this can fade in time into more of
> an intellectual understanding. I just don't think it compares to a practice
> that consciously makes you gradually work up to loving a person you might
> strongly dislike.
>
> Thanks joe, I'm enjoying this thread!
>
> Mike
>
> PS You should have a chat with Subhana. I'm sure she'd do a better job of
> explaining all this than me!
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