No, not that moment of zen. This one is closer to the real meaning inherent in that phrase, which has to do with the notion that wisdom (along with compassion) is expressed in the everyday through yourself, people, and nature, if you can reach a certain state of perception. I’m not a practioner let alone an expert, but zen can lead to “holistic perspective in cognition” that allows the person practicing zen to recognize and celebrate “with a stillness of mind, a life of tending toward the concrete thing-events of everyday life and nature.” That’s getting a little over my head, but more can be read here if you’re interested.
Anyway, last week we had snow in Tokyo. The next morning, as I was walking to the train station, the sun had just risen and its rays were warm enough to start melting the light dusting that had fallen on the treetops. Throw in a little wind and the result was a flurry of light snow falling all around the woods while the sun shone in a blue sky on a crisp day. The video below doesn’t do full justice, but does pick up a bit of the atmosphere. Crows can be heard in the background and the whole scene was one of serene calm amid the sprawling suburbs of Tokyo. This is why I walk through the park everyday on my way to work.
While we may have insulated ourselves somewhat from the chaotic and harsh whims of nature and the elements, we have become almost too far removed from it at times. For all it’s destructive and awesome force, the natural world is gorgeous, whether it be at the tiny scale of a lady bug on a leaf or at the hard-to-take-in vast scale of the Grand Canyon. If we are to truly become sustainable, we cannot forgot our dependence on and inseparability from nature. In the precious 3 minutes of calm and quiet I walk everyday through a small park in the largest metropolitan area on earth, that fact perhaps hits home more than ever.
[Image and video from author]
