Monthly Archives: July 2010

The Trouble with Superstition

Today, I wanted to share yet another good passage I found from the 13th century Japanese text, the Essays in Idleness by Kenkō. This deals with the notion of superstition, using the example of the Six Days, but this could … Continue reading

Posted in Buddhism, Japan, Literature, Taoism | 1 Comment

Raising bilingual children, one year later

This post comes at request for a reader who, like me, is raising a child who’s both Japanese and Western. About a year ago, I wrote a post on the subject of raising bilingual children, and recently I was looking … Continue reading

Posted in Family, Japanese, Language | 15 Comments

Passed the RHCE, onto the JLPT!

I am happy to report that I managed to pass the RHCE exam for RHEL5 Linux this past Friday, after taking the test for a second time. Coworkers thought I was mad to take the test again just one month … Continue reading

Posted in Japanese, JLPT, Linux, Technology | 11 Comments

Buddhism: Form matters, or does it?

This is another quotation from the 13th-century Japanese text, Essays in Idleness, which I’ve quoted quite a bit in recent months during “Idleness Week“, but I felt this was a very worthwhile one to share: [157] If we pick up … Continue reading

Posted in Buddhism, Japan, Jodo Shu, Literature, Zen | 3 Comments

Who’s who in Buddhism, part 6: the Sutra Audience

Reading Buddhist sutras can be a difficult exercise for those not familiar with the style. Nearly all sutras begin with the famous phrase “This is what I heard” or “Thus have I heard” implying the oral tradition from the earliest … Continue reading

Posted in Buddhism, Religion | 1 Comment

The Akō Incident: a look at Heian Japan politics

I’ve been continuing my read of Prof. Robert Borgen’s excellent biography on the life and times of Sugawara Michizane, the famous poet and Confucian official who later became deified in Shinto as Tenjin after a wrongful exile. One incident covered … Continue reading

Posted in Japan, Shinto | 2 Comments

Michizane Poem from the Hyakunin Isshu

This is a small, off-schedule post today. As I continue my read of the Hyakunin Isshu poem anthology famous in Japan, I wanted to share one poem by the famous scholar Sugawara no Michizane, who is the subject of a … Continue reading

Posted in Japan, Poetry, Shinto | Leave a comment

Japanese Pizza: Okonomiyaki

This is an old post I wanted to do for a few months, but finally found the time. I consider myself lucky to have married a nice lady who cooks good Japanese home-cooking (among other things), and one thing she … Continue reading

Posted in Cooking, Japan, Korea | 7 Comments

As Appropriate: Buddhist Advice from Myoe

Lately, I have been enjoying a book on the Mantra of Light, and of a famous Japanese monk named Myōe (明恵, 1173 – 1232), called Shingon Refractions by Professor Mark Unno. Myoe was ordained in both the Kegon and Shingon … Continue reading

Posted in Buddhism, Shingon, Zen | 4 Comments

Weird Buddhist Dream V

I tend to have a weird religious dream about once a year or so, especially after some troubled sleep. The last is mentioned here and another here, and an even older one here. Older ones did not survive the previous … Continue reading

Posted in Buddhism | 1 Comment