惠澂 came today, to give me five 紅豆杉fir saplings. He has dozens. I planted some last year, gave some to friends, and wanted more, so today he brought me five more. I planted three as soon as he left. At least it was only drizzling by then.
The other two firs I am holding for Qalux, who wants to plant them by his new house, but as he has not even begun construction, I decided to put them in larger pots for the time being. To top off the pots, I went to the irrigation ditch to dredge up some sludge. In the ditch I found a nice large turtle. Its shell is somewhat larger than a sheet of A4 paper. I was holding it and admiring its healthy, shiny shell, bright eyes, and red neck markings, when Yumin pranced over to see what I was up to. I held the turtle to him so he could have a look, too. He was puzzled. Then the turtle, from inside its shell, opened its mouth. You could practically hear Yumin exclaim "Gadzooks! It lives and breathes!" He was astonished, and went into his unknown-prey mode, which attracted Tlahuy. I soothed the turtle and lightly placed it back in the water. Tlahuy and Yumin watched in puzzlement. Yumin seemed to be telling Tlahuy, "No, it's not a rock, it opened its mouth, really!"
Tuesday, February 22, 2005
Monday, February 21, 2005
Sunday, February 20, 2005
beagle days
Intuition develops. Without knowing why, I suddenly walked over to the back door and looked out onto the back porch. Yumin was very quietly pulling the hose out of the bucket I keep full of water for them to drink. “YUMIN!” I shouted. He flinched so heartily that his ears flew up. Without looking back at me, he dropped the hose and very softly, very deliberately walked about two meters away from the bucket, where he sat down primly, still not looking at me. He sat for a moment, and then spotted an imaginary intruder. He leapt to his feet, and barking and howling, charged off into the bamboo.
Intuition develops. Without knowing why, I suddenly walked over to the back door and looked out onto the back porch. Yumin was very quietly pulling the hose out of the bucket I keep full of water for them to drink. “YUMIN!” I shouted. He flinched so heartily that his ears flew up. Without looking back at me, he dropped the hose and very softly, very deliberately walked about two meters away from the bucket, where he sat down primly, still not looking at me. He sat for a moment, and then spotted an imaginary intruder. He leapt to his feet, and barking and howling, charged off into the bamboo.
Saturday, February 19, 2005
This is a true story. I have not invented a word of this.
In the early 80s, two wives in a small village in Hualien, on the eastern coast of Taiwan, were pregnant at the same time. The couples were such good friends that, following an ancient Chinese tradition, the parents 指腹為婚 agreed that if they had one boy and one girl, they would marry each other. Sure enough, in 1982 a boy, Chan, and a girl, Wenhui were born, and raised with the expectations that one day they would get married.
In 1986, when the children were about 4, an earthquake of such power struck Hualien that the village was buried. Chan threw himself on top of Wenhui to protect her, but rescuers dug out both unconscious and severely wounded, but still alive. Chan was sent down the coast to a hospital in Taitung; Wenhui's injuries were more serious, so she was sent to Taipei.
When Chan regained consciousness, the nurse told him that the entire village had been destroyed, including his parents: he was the only survivor. He was adopted by new parents, given a new name, and began life again. He didn't believe he was the only survivor. He felt, deep in his bones, that Wenhui was still alive. He had no way to find her. When he entered high school, he searched the lists of new high school students in Hualien, but did not see Wenhui's name.
When Wenhui regained consciousness, the nurse told her that the entire village had been destroyed: she was the only survivor, but fortunately her parents had been away, on the other side of Taiwan. The lucky family was reunited. They began life again, but stayed in Taipei, where Wenhui went to high school.
During the eleventh grade, both Chan and Wenhui chose to attend the same summer camp, because of its theme of herbal medicine. Eight hundred high school students were in the camp, so they were divided into groups of eight. Chan and Wenhui were in the same group. They hit it off immediately, even before they knew each other's names. Wenhui is a pretty common name, so Chan wasn't sure if it was his Wenhui. With his new name, Wenhui did not recognize Chan.
A skit was planned, in which Chan and Wenhui were chosen to perform as boyfriend and girlfriend. During the rehearsal, the girlfriend was supposed to tie an apron on her boyfriend, so Wenhui tied Chan's apron on, with the exact some movement and tie she had used when they had gone to kindergarten together. Chan knew immediately that, beyond a doubt, this was his Wenhui, so he said, "Wenhui, don't you recognize me?" Violins and roses, and they have been together ever since, through college and beyond.
For Valentine's Day, Chan gave Wenhui a yellow rock. When they were three, Wenhui had plucked it from the stream and given it to Chan. He has treasured it ever since.
In the early 80s, two wives in a small village in Hualien, on the eastern coast of Taiwan, were pregnant at the same time. The couples were such good friends that, following an ancient Chinese tradition, the parents 指腹為婚 agreed that if they had one boy and one girl, they would marry each other. Sure enough, in 1982 a boy, Chan, and a girl, Wenhui were born, and raised with the expectations that one day they would get married.
In 1986, when the children were about 4, an earthquake of such power struck Hualien that the village was buried. Chan threw himself on top of Wenhui to protect her, but rescuers dug out both unconscious and severely wounded, but still alive. Chan was sent down the coast to a hospital in Taitung; Wenhui's injuries were more serious, so she was sent to Taipei.
When Chan regained consciousness, the nurse told him that the entire village had been destroyed, including his parents: he was the only survivor. He was adopted by new parents, given a new name, and began life again. He didn't believe he was the only survivor. He felt, deep in his bones, that Wenhui was still alive. He had no way to find her. When he entered high school, he searched the lists of new high school students in Hualien, but did not see Wenhui's name.
When Wenhui regained consciousness, the nurse told her that the entire village had been destroyed: she was the only survivor, but fortunately her parents had been away, on the other side of Taiwan. The lucky family was reunited. They began life again, but stayed in Taipei, where Wenhui went to high school.
During the eleventh grade, both Chan and Wenhui chose to attend the same summer camp, because of its theme of herbal medicine. Eight hundred high school students were in the camp, so they were divided into groups of eight. Chan and Wenhui were in the same group. They hit it off immediately, even before they knew each other's names. Wenhui is a pretty common name, so Chan wasn't sure if it was his Wenhui. With his new name, Wenhui did not recognize Chan.
A skit was planned, in which Chan and Wenhui were chosen to perform as boyfriend and girlfriend. During the rehearsal, the girlfriend was supposed to tie an apron on her boyfriend, so Wenhui tied Chan's apron on, with the exact some movement and tie she had used when they had gone to kindergarten together. Chan knew immediately that, beyond a doubt, this was his Wenhui, so he said, "Wenhui, don't you recognize me?" Violins and roses, and they have been together ever since, through college and beyond.
For Valentine's Day, Chan gave Wenhui a yellow rock. When they were three, Wenhui had plucked it from the stream and given it to Chan. He has treasured it ever since.
Friday, February 18, 2005
Tuesday, February 15, 2005
學佛的美國人不多，所以時常有人鼓勵我開『佛學英語』課。對這種建議，一直存疑。
何謂佛學英語?中翻英，最令譯者死不暝目，莫過於佛書。東西觀念差異之大，是一個問題。佛法基于「緣起性空」；其中只有「起」字勉強可以翻譯成英文。加上佛法眾多名相是梵音，從「南無」到「阿耨多羅三藐三菩提」，如何翻成「英文」？
講這些的前提是，上佛學英文的學子，英文已經流俐，說聽寫讀能力已到美國大學程度。既然如此，還是很吃力。若要加強語文能力，學外文不如把中文學的透徹一點（透徹、徹悟，不是「水清」的澈）。佛經的中文很深，夠你去研究。不要說研究，字音正確就很好了。我們最常念的彌陀經，從頭到尾念對的佛子並不多。
問題很多。有人受內地口音影響，把般若的若念ㄖㄟˇ，因為來台法師，有的不會念ㄖㄜˇ（車、蛇念ㄔㄟ、ㄕㄟˊ）。
很多佛弟子該破音時不破，不必變音時很刻意變。解字，廣韻蟹韻，胡買切、曉也；同韻又佳買切、講也說也脫也散也（又出卦韻古隘切除也、同韻胡懈切曲解）。依此，解脫的解念ㄐ一ㄝˇ才對，但很多佛弟子很用心念錯，讀ㄒ一ㄝˋ。何必？
（案：字書韻書不詳處，可訪民語。各方言將了解的解讀g見母，無hㄒ例）
該區別就不區別。供養的養讀三聲、四聲，差很多。論語為政:子游問孝，子曰，今之孝者是謂能養(一ㄤˋ)，至於犬馬，皆能有養(一ㄤˇ)，不敬，何以別乎? 廣韻養韻(上聲)，餘兩切，育也樂也飾也。又漾韻(去聲)，餘亮切，供養。晚輩奉養長輩的養應讀四聲，養畜生的養才讀三聲。很多人偏念ㄒ一ㄝˋ脫、供一ㄤˇ。
土，他魯切，ㄊㄨˇ，夠簡單吧，但也有人硬念ㄉㄨˇ。也許是依據土的另一音；廣韻姥韻、徒古切、土田地主也、本音吐。(此反切幾不見經傳)。第一，徒古切音ㄉㄨˋ，不是ㄉㄨˇ(徒，定扭，全濁)。第二，很明顯本音ㄊㄨˇ，不須牽強讀癖音。第三，把『地主』音用於淨土、佛土，十分不妥。
為甚麼那麼用心念錯呢?可能是未了標誌內行、與眾不同、得到他人不及的祕傳。可能吧。用心念錯不如用心修行。
這是華語問題，至於英語呢，如果一般英語還不熟，何必強求『佛學英語』?
佛重心法。拈花微笑時，釋迦說哪一種語言?在美國弘法多年的宣化上人，英文不大會，洋弟子一群一群來。不是為了他的語文能力，而是因為他有修行。眾人自然服膺威德。
但由此可看出台灣佛教界的一個問題:一頭熱。很多佛子太熱心，有甚麼就抓甚麼，不深思熟慮。你會開車好發個心幫師父開車，你會煮飯好發個心幫師父煮飯，你會雕刻好發個心我們開個佛像雕刻班，你會做麵包好發個心我們開個佛教麵包班。
熱心、發心固然好，但重點還是那個『心』字。一切起心動念觀察的清清楚楚才要緊。太投入外在活動往往是逃避內在乾坤。加上，佛法畢竟不是我執重的宗教，我們不強迫世人接受我們的教義，我們不必向全世界的人佈道說，只有我們對，其他人都錯。佛度有緣人。
更何況，你學英語渡誰？你以為西洋人有那麼好渡嗎?宣化上人的經驗談是:
＂登天難 也不難
教公雞生蛋 也不難
教美國人學佛法 真是難！＂
憑你幾句英文，一點修行，就能弘法？連釋迦在這裡傳此難信之法，是為甚難！不如實實在在地修行，一旦有成就，弟子自己上門，不勞你學英文，也不勞我開班。
何謂佛學英語?中翻英，最令譯者死不暝目，莫過於佛書。東西觀念差異之大，是一個問題。佛法基于「緣起性空」；其中只有「起」字勉強可以翻譯成英文。加上佛法眾多名相是梵音，從「南無」到「阿耨多羅三藐三菩提」，如何翻成「英文」？
講這些的前提是，上佛學英文的學子，英文已經流俐，說聽寫讀能力已到美國大學程度。既然如此，還是很吃力。若要加強語文能力，學外文不如把中文學的透徹一點（透徹、徹悟，不是「水清」的澈）。佛經的中文很深，夠你去研究。不要說研究，字音正確就很好了。我們最常念的彌陀經，從頭到尾念對的佛子並不多。
問題很多。有人受內地口音影響，把般若的若念ㄖㄟˇ，因為來台法師，有的不會念ㄖㄜˇ（車、蛇念ㄔㄟ、ㄕㄟˊ）。
很多佛弟子該破音時不破，不必變音時很刻意變。解字，廣韻蟹韻，胡買切、曉也；同韻又佳買切、講也說也脫也散也（又出卦韻古隘切除也、同韻胡懈切曲解）。依此，解脫的解念ㄐ一ㄝˇ才對，但很多佛弟子很用心念錯，讀ㄒ一ㄝˋ。何必？
（案：字書韻書不詳處，可訪民語。各方言將了解的解讀g見母，無hㄒ例）
該區別就不區別。供養的養讀三聲、四聲，差很多。論語為政:子游問孝，子曰，今之孝者是謂能養(一ㄤˋ)，至於犬馬，皆能有養(一ㄤˇ)，不敬，何以別乎? 廣韻養韻(上聲)，餘兩切，育也樂也飾也。又漾韻(去聲)，餘亮切，供養。晚輩奉養長輩的養應讀四聲，養畜生的養才讀三聲。很多人偏念ㄒ一ㄝˋ脫、供一ㄤˇ。
土，他魯切，ㄊㄨˇ，夠簡單吧，但也有人硬念ㄉㄨˇ。也許是依據土的另一音；廣韻姥韻、徒古切、土田地主也、本音吐。(此反切幾不見經傳)。第一，徒古切音ㄉㄨˋ，不是ㄉㄨˇ(徒，定扭，全濁)。第二，很明顯本音ㄊㄨˇ，不須牽強讀癖音。第三，把『地主』音用於淨土、佛土，十分不妥。
為甚麼那麼用心念錯呢?可能是未了標誌內行、與眾不同、得到他人不及的祕傳。可能吧。用心念錯不如用心修行。
這是華語問題，至於英語呢，如果一般英語還不熟，何必強求『佛學英語』?
佛重心法。拈花微笑時，釋迦說哪一種語言?在美國弘法多年的宣化上人，英文不大會，洋弟子一群一群來。不是為了他的語文能力，而是因為他有修行。眾人自然服膺威德。
但由此可看出台灣佛教界的一個問題:一頭熱。很多佛子太熱心，有甚麼就抓甚麼，不深思熟慮。你會開車好發個心幫師父開車，你會煮飯好發個心幫師父煮飯，你會雕刻好發個心我們開個佛像雕刻班，你會做麵包好發個心我們開個佛教麵包班。
熱心、發心固然好，但重點還是那個『心』字。一切起心動念觀察的清清楚楚才要緊。太投入外在活動往往是逃避內在乾坤。加上，佛法畢竟不是我執重的宗教，我們不強迫世人接受我們的教義，我們不必向全世界的人佈道說，只有我們對，其他人都錯。佛度有緣人。
更何況，你學英語渡誰？你以為西洋人有那麼好渡嗎?宣化上人的經驗談是:
＂登天難 也不難
教公雞生蛋 也不難
教美國人學佛法 真是難！＂
憑你幾句英文，一點修行，就能弘法？連釋迦在這裡傳此難信之法，是為甚難！不如實實在在地修行，一旦有成就，弟子自己上門，不勞你學英文，也不勞我開班。
Friday, February 11, 2005
You learn something every day.
I have a friend named Tohuy. I had thought that was a variation of thuy, fat, but it turns out that the Tayal name Tohuy comes from the Chinese 土匪 tufei, bandit.
Well, if you don't want to name your son Bandit, you could always name him after my neighbor Putaq. Putaq means vomit, barf.
No, I don't know why his parents named him that, but it's a pretty common name.
I have a friend named Tohuy. I had thought that was a variation of thuy, fat, but it turns out that the Tayal name Tohuy comes from the Chinese 土匪 tufei, bandit.
Well, if you don't want to name your son Bandit, you could always name him after my neighbor Putaq. Putaq means vomit, barf.
No, I don't know why his parents named him that, but it's a pretty common name.
Wednesday, February 09, 2005
Tuesday, February 08, 2005
Thank heavens, the Monkey year is just about over.
I decided to spice lunch with the seeds of a flower that has bloomed, a fifteen minute walk through the jungle. I stuffed a plastic bag in my pocket, strapped on my laraw (番刀, headhunting knife), and headed out. Tlahuy rushed over as soon as I opened the door, but Yumin was making mischief in parts unknown. Shortly before we reached the flowers, Tlahuy suddenly tensed. His hackles rose and he growled at a thicket. I didn't see anything, but walked by very gingerly. I gathered my seeds and started home. We passed that thicket without incident, but twenty paces on, he suddenly started staring intently uphill. Now, there had been a dog or something, Tlahuy would have been on him immediately, but Tlahuy just stared uphill, his whole body tense. I noticed that the shrubbery had been pressed down by something large and heavy. As I stood there looking, something large and heavy moved in the bushes above us. I didn't see it clearly, but it was a boar, about the size of a golden retriever, which means it would weigh at least as much as me. It moved and sank deeper into the bushes, avoiding confrontation. What amuses me about the incident is how my laraw leapt into my hand the moment it moved. The scabbard is tight, to keep the knife from falling out in our rough terrain, but that laraw was ready in a nanosecond. I looked at my laraw with a puzzled smile ~ how did this get here?~, apologized to the boar, and turned homeward.
I decided to spice lunch with the seeds of a flower that has bloomed, a fifteen minute walk through the jungle. I stuffed a plastic bag in my pocket, strapped on my laraw (番刀, headhunting knife), and headed out. Tlahuy rushed over as soon as I opened the door, but Yumin was making mischief in parts unknown. Shortly before we reached the flowers, Tlahuy suddenly tensed. His hackles rose and he growled at a thicket. I didn't see anything, but walked by very gingerly. I gathered my seeds and started home. We passed that thicket without incident, but twenty paces on, he suddenly started staring intently uphill. Now, there had been a dog or something, Tlahuy would have been on him immediately, but Tlahuy just stared uphill, his whole body tense. I noticed that the shrubbery had been pressed down by something large and heavy. As I stood there looking, something large and heavy moved in the bushes above us. I didn't see it clearly, but it was a boar, about the size of a golden retriever, which means it would weigh at least as much as me. It moved and sank deeper into the bushes, avoiding confrontation. What amuses me about the incident is how my laraw leapt into my hand the moment it moved. The scabbard is tight, to keep the knife from falling out in our rough terrain, but that laraw was ready in a nanosecond. I looked at my laraw with a puzzled smile ~ how did this get here?~, apologized to the boar, and turned homeward.
Wednesday, February 02, 2005
At breakfast, a woman asked her husband, “I suppose you know what day it is?” Her husband cringed internally, but told his wife, “Of course I know what day it is," thinking, omidog, I forgot our anniversary again! On his lunch break, he ordered flowers, chocolate, and a beautiful blouse to be sent to home immediately.
When he got home, his wife said, "Oh my, thank you for the gifts! Those make this the most memorable Groundhog's Day ever!”
And a happy one to you, too.
When he got home, his wife said, "Oh my, thank you for the gifts! Those make this the most memorable Groundhog's Day ever!”
And a happy one to you, too.
Tuesday, February 01, 2005
Sunday, January 30, 2005
I endeavor fruitlessly to make sense of an article from the January 26, 2005 Orange County (CA) Register: "Police Officers dress up as a hippie and a hare to bring crosswalk safety to motorists' attention in Laguna Beach." The photo shows a car encroaching upon a crosswalk, across which are strolling jauntily, on the left, a person dressed in a black cowboy hat with a zebra band, a purple coat with a lime shirt peeking out beneath, tight black toreador pants, and expensive running shoes, and accompanied on the right by a tall, erect, bipedal white rabbit wearing a red ribbon around its neck, and expensive running shoes (bipedal, so only the pair). I bet Alcoholics Anonymous membership went way up when that pair hit the street.
Since when did Salvador Dali become Laguna Beach Police advisor? How are the hippie and the hare supposed to make motorists aware of crosswalk safety? Is that a hippie? I never saw a hippie dressed like that. I thought hippies wore bellbottoms, not tight pants that reached halfway down the calf.
How can motorists tell that is supposed to be a hippie? If they cannot tell, will their attention be drawn to crosswalk safety?
Some of those fundamentalists in Orange County would probably step on the gas if they knew that was a hippie.
If I saw a six foot tall rabbit walking erect across a crosswalk, wearing track shoes and a red ribbon around its neck, I wouldn't become aware of crosswalk safety, I'd run over it (maybe back over it a couple times to make sure I had done a good job) and rush straight to my doctor to have my medication changed. And I don't even take any medication!
Maybe it would be better to rush to the police station and change the chief's medication.
But the question which is keeping me awake at nights is, What do they signify? Why a rabbit and a hippie? How does that combination connote crosswalk safety? Why not a hippie and a pooh-bear? A hippie and a giant walking popsicle? Look at Scout: being dressed as a ham didn't make her any safer at all, not a bit! Do you think drivers could be made aware of crosswalk safety by police officers dressed as, say, a cowboy in paisley chaps walking with a slightly cooked turnip? Or have the authorities, in their infinite wisdom, discerned that crosswalk safety can be inculcated most effectively by a misdressed hippie and a monstrous rabbit?
This is the kind of perspicacity that makes us all confident that we will win the war on terrorism! All we have to do is dress our warfighters as perhaps a hedgehog and a tailor and parade them in front of the bad guys, whereupon they will see the error of their ways and embrace democracy, motherhood, and apple pies.
Since when did Salvador Dali become Laguna Beach Police advisor? How are the hippie and the hare supposed to make motorists aware of crosswalk safety? Is that a hippie? I never saw a hippie dressed like that. I thought hippies wore bellbottoms, not tight pants that reached halfway down the calf.
How can motorists tell that is supposed to be a hippie? If they cannot tell, will their attention be drawn to crosswalk safety?
Some of those fundamentalists in Orange County would probably step on the gas if they knew that was a hippie.
If I saw a six foot tall rabbit walking erect across a crosswalk, wearing track shoes and a red ribbon around its neck, I wouldn't become aware of crosswalk safety, I'd run over it (maybe back over it a couple times to make sure I had done a good job) and rush straight to my doctor to have my medication changed. And I don't even take any medication!
Maybe it would be better to rush to the police station and change the chief's medication.
But the question which is keeping me awake at nights is, What do they signify? Why a rabbit and a hippie? How does that combination connote crosswalk safety? Why not a hippie and a pooh-bear? A hippie and a giant walking popsicle? Look at Scout: being dressed as a ham didn't make her any safer at all, not a bit! Do you think drivers could be made aware of crosswalk safety by police officers dressed as, say, a cowboy in paisley chaps walking with a slightly cooked turnip? Or have the authorities, in their infinite wisdom, discerned that crosswalk safety can be inculcated most effectively by a misdressed hippie and a monstrous rabbit?
This is the kind of perspicacity that makes us all confident that we will win the war on terrorism! All we have to do is dress our warfighters as perhaps a hedgehog and a tailor and parade them in front of the bad guys, whereupon they will see the error of their ways and embrace democracy, motherhood, and apple pies.
Saturday, January 29, 2005
Questions for an atheist
1. Do you accept that there are other forms of life besides human beings? For example, dogs, mosquitoes, deer, leeches, turtles, dolphins.
If your answer is yes, please proceed to Question 2.
If your answer is no, please proceed no further. Get your head out of the sand.
2. Do you accept that a leech or a mosquito, for example, would find it very difficult to understand human beings?
Explanation: I suppose that to a mosquito, a human being would live for an incomprehensibly long time; a mosquito would have no understanding of what I am doing here tapping out words on a computer, or how the computer operates. By the same token, we may not understand much about mosquitoes’ lives.
If your answer is yes, please proceed to Question 3.
If your answer is no, please proceed no further.
3. Do you accept that an earthworm living inside a flowerpot by your front door may be totally unaware of the existence of humanity?
Digression: I suppose that earthworm does not know much about the politics, wars, or empires we find so compelling. Suppose an earthworm were killed by a bomb during an air raid; what comprehension would it have about the cause of its death?
If your answer is yes, please proceed to Question 4.
If your answer is no, please proceed no further.
4. Do you believe that you are aware of all of the life forms in the entire universe?
If your answer is yes, please proceed no further.
If your answer is no, please proceed to Question 5.
5. Please tell me what a god is.
Do you agree with this supposition?
Supposition: what we call a god is a being with an incomprehensibly long life time, who understands things we cannot comprehend, and may be capable of feats beyond our understanding.
Consider: I touch a switch on the wall and light appears overhead; I pick up a wireless phone and talk with someone across the ocean; I wrap a sandwich in a transparent plastic bag and put it in the refrigerator. To a human being living in London three hundred years ago, such feats would have been incomprehensible.
If you agree with this supposition, with or without reservations, please go on to question 6.
If you do not agree with this supposition, please tell me what a god is.
6. Is it possible that somewhere in the universe, there are beings which live incomprehensibly longer than we do, and are capable of feats beyond our understanding?
Consider: Our sun, an average sized star, is a million times larger than our earth. There are a trillion stars in our galaxy, and there are billions of galaxies in the universe. What are the chances that only this minuscule speck we call earth harbors life?
Consider: Is it possible that such beings could exist near us, but in such a different mode of existence that we are no more capable of understanding them than an earthworm in a flowerpot of understanding computer software?
Digression: When I take my dogs for a walk, our experiences are totally different. We see, hear, smell, and feel different things. I may see a red car go by and note that Qoyaw is heading downtown with Mkuang; my dogs will not. They will note scents, sounds, electromagnetic fields, and who knows what else, that are imperceptible and incomprehensible to me. We walk together in different worlds.
If your answer is yes, qualified or unqualified, please go to question 7.
If your answer is no, please proceed no further.
7. For lack of understanding, could those beings be called gods?
If you still cannot accept the existence of gods, why not?
What I don't understand are the people who make a point of proclaiming their atheism. They are no different from people who make a big fuss that their god is the only god and demand we worship it.
Why do some atheists make such an issue about it? Are you the type to go to kindergartens to preach that Santa Claus does not exist? If it makes them happy, good enough. If Jesus or Allah or Vishnu or Spiderman make someone happy at their level, good enough for the time being. Better than people who insist that others accept atheism. If atheism defines your life, you are still placing gods at the center of your life. The existence or nonexistence of gods is central to you.
The lady protests too much, methinks.
I am not promoting the existence of any particular god. I simply suggest that there exist beings who, for lack of understanding, we call gods. I do not worship an Olympic gold medalist, even though I have never won a gold medal; I do not worship someone with a higher academic degree than me; I do not worship gods, but I do not deny their existence. They're there. Live with it. No big deal, one way or the other.
1. Do you accept that there are other forms of life besides human beings? For example, dogs, mosquitoes, deer, leeches, turtles, dolphins.
If your answer is yes, please proceed to Question 2.
If your answer is no, please proceed no further. Get your head out of the sand.
2. Do you accept that a leech or a mosquito, for example, would find it very difficult to understand human beings?
Explanation: I suppose that to a mosquito, a human being would live for an incomprehensibly long time; a mosquito would have no understanding of what I am doing here tapping out words on a computer, or how the computer operates. By the same token, we may not understand much about mosquitoes’ lives.
If your answer is yes, please proceed to Question 3.
If your answer is no, please proceed no further.
3. Do you accept that an earthworm living inside a flowerpot by your front door may be totally unaware of the existence of humanity?
Digression: I suppose that earthworm does not know much about the politics, wars, or empires we find so compelling. Suppose an earthworm were killed by a bomb during an air raid; what comprehension would it have about the cause of its death?
If your answer is yes, please proceed to Question 4.
If your answer is no, please proceed no further.
4. Do you believe that you are aware of all of the life forms in the entire universe?
If your answer is yes, please proceed no further.
If your answer is no, please proceed to Question 5.
5. Please tell me what a god is.
Do you agree with this supposition?
Supposition: what we call a god is a being with an incomprehensibly long life time, who understands things we cannot comprehend, and may be capable of feats beyond our understanding.
Consider: I touch a switch on the wall and light appears overhead; I pick up a wireless phone and talk with someone across the ocean; I wrap a sandwich in a transparent plastic bag and put it in the refrigerator. To a human being living in London three hundred years ago, such feats would have been incomprehensible.
If you agree with this supposition, with or without reservations, please go on to question 6.
If you do not agree with this supposition, please tell me what a god is.
6. Is it possible that somewhere in the universe, there are beings which live incomprehensibly longer than we do, and are capable of feats beyond our understanding?
Consider: Our sun, an average sized star, is a million times larger than our earth. There are a trillion stars in our galaxy, and there are billions of galaxies in the universe. What are the chances that only this minuscule speck we call earth harbors life?
Consider: Is it possible that such beings could exist near us, but in such a different mode of existence that we are no more capable of understanding them than an earthworm in a flowerpot of understanding computer software?
Digression: When I take my dogs for a walk, our experiences are totally different. We see, hear, smell, and feel different things. I may see a red car go by and note that Qoyaw is heading downtown with Mkuang; my dogs will not. They will note scents, sounds, electromagnetic fields, and who knows what else, that are imperceptible and incomprehensible to me. We walk together in different worlds.
If your answer is yes, qualified or unqualified, please go to question 7.
If your answer is no, please proceed no further.
7. For lack of understanding, could those beings be called gods?
If you still cannot accept the existence of gods, why not?
What I don't understand are the people who make a point of proclaiming their atheism. They are no different from people who make a big fuss that their god is the only god and demand we worship it.
Why do some atheists make such an issue about it? Are you the type to go to kindergartens to preach that Santa Claus does not exist? If it makes them happy, good enough. If Jesus or Allah or Vishnu or Spiderman make someone happy at their level, good enough for the time being. Better than people who insist that others accept atheism. If atheism defines your life, you are still placing gods at the center of your life. The existence or nonexistence of gods is central to you.
The lady protests too much, methinks.
I am not promoting the existence of any particular god. I simply suggest that there exist beings who, for lack of understanding, we call gods. I do not worship an Olympic gold medalist, even though I have never won a gold medal; I do not worship someone with a higher academic degree than me; I do not worship gods, but I do not deny their existence. They're there. Live with it. No big deal, one way or the other.
Friday, January 28, 2005
Pesky little Yumin usually runs wild. The day I buried Bengax, he spent practically the whole afternoon sitting by her grave, watching over it. Since then, he has spent a lot of time sitting there by her.
Tlahuy and Bengax were born in the same litter, and have been together ever since, so he is having some trouble adjusting, but he is better now. Some squirrels have helped him take his mind off things.
From time to time during the last couple months, I had noticed that Bengax was gazing at me with a very strange look in her eyes, not at all like a dog's eyes. I wondered what she was thinking. Maybe about mortality?
She may have known that she would not be with us long. She always craved attention, and could never get enough affection. Fortunately, even before Ping gave Tlahuy and Bengax to me when they were two months old, I was keenly aware that people live longer than dogs, so this day would come sooner or later. With that in mind, every day I try to make sure my dogs know I love them, and I want them to be happy (this could have something to do with why they are so spoiled). At least I can look at my five years with Bengax with no regrets, knowing that she was a happy dog.
In her short, furry life, Bengax made a lot of friends. A number of people have phoned to blubber, which is as nice a tribute as you could ask.
Amitabha.
Tlahuy and Bengax were born in the same litter, and have been together ever since, so he is having some trouble adjusting, but he is better now. Some squirrels have helped him take his mind off things.
From time to time during the last couple months, I had noticed that Bengax was gazing at me with a very strange look in her eyes, not at all like a dog's eyes. I wondered what she was thinking. Maybe about mortality?
She may have known that she would not be with us long. She always craved attention, and could never get enough affection. Fortunately, even before Ping gave Tlahuy and Bengax to me when they were two months old, I was keenly aware that people live longer than dogs, so this day would come sooner or later. With that in mind, every day I try to make sure my dogs know I love them, and I want them to be happy (this could have something to do with why they are so spoiled). At least I can look at my five years with Bengax with no regrets, knowing that she was a happy dog.
In her short, furry life, Bengax made a lot of friends. A number of people have phoned to blubber, which is as nice a tribute as you could ask.
Amitabha.
Tuesday, January 18, 2005
Bengax, good girl
Early this morning, Bengax snuck into a neighbor's vegetable patch. On her way out, her collar snagged, she panicked, and strangled herself.
By the time the neighbors found her and called me, she was already cold and stiff.
I buried her out back, by the doghouse.
She came on January 30, 1999, when she was about two months old.
Amitabha. Good girl.
Early this morning, Bengax snuck into a neighbor's vegetable patch. On her way out, her collar snagged, she panicked, and strangled herself.
By the time the neighbors found her and called me, she was already cold and stiff.
I buried her out back, by the doghouse.
She came on January 30, 1999, when she was about two months old.
Amitabha. Good girl.
a true story
爸爸常帶小平遊山玩水。生性聰穎好奇的小平每次問爸爸，"這是甚麼樹?那是甚麼花?”爸爸就照實說，"不知道。”對小平而言，爸爸的話，信如聖旨，只是在她幼小心靈中，總覺得很神奇，有那麼多種長的不太像的樹，一樣都叫做"不知道。"
小平漸漸大了，唸小學了，交了很多新朋友。有一日與同學在戶外，同學指一棵樹說，"那棵樹很漂亮，是甚麼樹?”
小平很興奮，因為她問過爸爸，就說，"我知道!”
“那麼是甚麼樹?”
“'不知道。'” 小平得意地回答。
“不知道?”
“對!”
“可是妳剛說你知道。”
"對呀，我當然知道，我問過我爸爸!”
"好，那你說這是甚麼樹?”
“'不知道。'”
"小平討厭，妳告訴我嘛!”
“我告訴你，就是“'不知道!'”
“為甚麼?”
“爸爸說的!”
“妳爸爸說甚麼?”
“'不知道。'”
同學快瘋了，罵小平是大笨蛋，就跑走了。小平被罵，哭涕涕地回家，沒想到回家述苦，爸媽沒有安慰，反而捧腹大笑。…..
爸爸常帶小平遊山玩水。生性聰穎好奇的小平每次問爸爸，"這是甚麼樹?那是甚麼花?”爸爸就照實說，"不知道。”對小平而言，爸爸的話，信如聖旨，只是在她幼小心靈中，總覺得很神奇，有那麼多種長的不太像的樹，一樣都叫做"不知道。"
小平漸漸大了，唸小學了，交了很多新朋友。有一日與同學在戶外，同學指一棵樹說，"那棵樹很漂亮，是甚麼樹?”
小平很興奮，因為她問過爸爸，就說，"我知道!”
“那麼是甚麼樹?”
“'不知道。'” 小平得意地回答。
“不知道?”
“對!”
“可是妳剛說你知道。”
"對呀，我當然知道，我問過我爸爸!”
"好，那你說這是甚麼樹?”
“'不知道。'”
"小平討厭，妳告訴我嘛!”
“我告訴你，就是“'不知道!'”
“為甚麼?”
“爸爸說的!”
“妳爸爸說甚麼?”
“'不知道。'”
同學快瘋了，罵小平是大笨蛋，就跑走了。小平被罵，哭涕涕地回家，沒想到回家述苦，爸媽沒有安慰，反而捧腹大笑。…..
Monday, January 17, 2005
Last night it was cold, 4C in Wulai. I extolled the virtues of a blanket warmer (烘被機)in an e-letter to my sister, saying that the blanket warmer is probably the greatest invention ever to come from Japan. You get this box about the size of a printer. You attach the hose to this big bag which you cover with blankets, and the box blows hot air into the bag, thereby drying and warming the blankets. It is perfect for a cold night; you can dive into a warm nest of blankets without having to shiver until you heat them up.
Her reply: “In fact, now that you mention it, the big bag of hot air that warms the blankets, I think I was married to one of them..."
Her reply: “In fact, now that you mention it, the big bag of hot air that warms the blankets, I think I was married to one of them..."
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