Concepts-A-Go-Go

Yet again I stumbled today & it was a trip.  I went to this page & it'd been a blast if I still got lit.  Then it sort of spun my my mind into thinking about Ikebana, the Japanese art of flower arranging.  I'm normally not all that into floral arrangements, but the Ikebana pieces are true art, in practice & meaning.  In this art every aspect is deliberate, intentional & important.   In fact, what isn't there is as important, if not more so, than what is.  They deal with negative space.  Maybe that's what dark matter really is, just negative space.

From light particles to flowers & dark matter I jumped into the conceptuality of my own thoughts in relation to these subjects & came back to a four points I occasionally return to;  Mono No Aware, Mottainai, Wabi-Sabi & Momento Mori.  

Mono No Aware is the understanding, acceptance & actual embracing of the idea that all things are passing & in that passing, the transience, they are beautiful.  It is now Spring & the warm winds of Summer are already blowing to chase Spring on its way, so the next season can begin.  Summer will be ushered out by autumn & then again the cycle will continue with Winter.  All are beautiful, all are temporary.  Fresh strawberries, summer wine, the scent of jasmine in the night air, those are all things to be relished, because soon they will be gone.

Mottainai regards a sense of concern over wasting things.  It is for some a sense of frugality with all things.  Waste not, want not... What a waste.  Reduce, Recycle, Reuse...   Are all ways of looking at this concept.  They are quite literal in some sense.  I also see it in reference to art, especially Ikebana, to use only what is needed to make the piece.  There is the fashion philosophy or getting full attired & then examining the outcome & deciding to remove one things to make the outfit stronger.  Less is more.

Wabi Sabi is the understanding & acceptance that things are imperfect, incomplete & temporary.  Like human beauty.  No one is ever prefect, if they were, someone would probably kill them for being so in the first place.  Our looks are never what we want them to be & they will fade over time.  Some of are fortunate enough to actually look better as they age, others had all the glory of youth.  Belle-Laide, is a French term for the beautiful ugly, sometimes it is said as une jolie-laide.  Noting someone's beauty is unusual.  There are many people who when talking, acting or performing are gorgeous, but when they are still or in a picture are not beautiful at all. 

Momento Mori is understanding your own mortality & that of all those around you.   There are entire genres of work in many art forms that focus on this concept.  To me, it is very much a live for the moment, for you will die idea.  We need to appreciate what is here now & remember that it's time & ours is short.  

So what do the lights, flowers & concepts have to do with me?  I am +, therefore everything.  The lights & all these things are fleeting as is our time on this world.  I can accept the negative in my live, by seeing that it accents the positive.  I can try not to waste the gift of time & resources that I have been given.  I can let myself allow others to be imperfect, flawed or even ugly & realize it doesn't diminish their worth or need for compassion.  That one can be the most difficult for a Virgo.  Finally, I have a daily reminder of my mortality, my meds & the knowledge that they aren't a cure, but only a treatment.

What are your fav concepts?  If you don't know, go wiki-ing & find out.  May your paradigms be sound, but never so rigid as to break in the face of change.

Stumbled Upon...

I was Stumbling today & came across this photo.

It's a simple enough statement, but the impact is awe inspiring.  The humble realization that things can just be & not have to be something the giver demands acknowledgment or restitution for, is almost unknown of these days.  The idea of doing something for nothing is almost unamerican.  We are the ultimate capitalists after all.  Sure, some people out there doing volunteer work, but they've probably got an agenda, right?  They want to be seen doing good works or they're doing it to feel better about themselves, or even more common they're being forced by their parents, their schools or the courts.  Don't even get me started on those alleged do-gooders that go out & push their religious malarkey on others, like missionaries & street walking, door banging witnesses for whatever religion is doing a numbers drive this week.

But back to the pic.  There is this radical gift of light being given & no response or payment is even expected.  I realize that the Sun is a star & therefore allegedly without feeling or thought.  However, for many cultures the Sun was a deity & often held in the highest regard.  It might be nice if we could be like the Sun & let a little of the light in ours lives shine on others without expectation, judgement or intent.

Imagine if you could a world where people were humane just because & no other reason was needed.

I know the poet was Muslim, but that isn't what this is about.  This post is about the amazing impact of one small statement.  To do a bit of paraphrasing,  "The greatest form of anarchy is a random act of kindness."  I think Hafiz tuned in to this idea & wanted us all to to see it.  At least, that's how I choose to interpret this writing on the wall.  I hope someone does something kind for you today.