Not a Zen Moment
I am writing part of this entry while riding the train home. In my lap is the book "Ryoju - The Hunting Gun" by Yasushi Inoue. I am unable to zone in and concentrate on my reading. There are too many distractions which are disturbing my peace. Clearly I am unable to meditate and ignore the happenings around me. I have work to do with my self.
There are many times in my daily life that I think back to my trip to Japan in the autumn of 2008. This is one of them. Specifically I am remembering how lovely it was to ride the train in Tokyo. I was struck by the silence.
Standing on the platform looking in at the car one could have imagined that it would be a painful ride. People were packed into a sardine can only able to stay standing during the ebb and flow of the ride due to the fact that they were supported by their fellow commuter standing centimetres away. One might also imagine that so many people would create a cacophony of various noises in addition to a stinky, maybe damp, smell of human masses.
Rather, it was silent. People whispered to each other when engaged in conversation. Phones were on silent mode as instructed by the regulations of train riding in Japan. There were no earbuds leaking out myriad, tinny, sounds of music. Absent were the loud and abnoxious mobile phone conversations.
On the train I am riding now the contrast could not be more stark. First of all the train is nearly empty. It could easily be half the length. The emptiness however does not bring with it silence. Instead I get to hear the loud conversation of some punk with his girl on the other end of the phone connection - what to eat and how to make rice. Next to me a woman is listening to music on an iPod - it is so loud that I get to listen to it as well. At the very front of the car a seven year-old is playing a video game and Mario-style background music is permeating the car.
Yes, for the most part, the commuters are sitting silently - thank goodness! Large masses don't create noise. Individuals do. Individuals who lack respect. And that, in a nutshell, is one of the items I most admired during the autumn of 2008.
I will need to find a way to filter out this noise. There are two ways I can think of. Find a way to filter out the noise mentally - meditation, intense concentration on my reading - or by adding my own noise to the mix.
Let me know what you think about what you have just read. Please and thanks!
There are many times in my daily life that I think back to my trip to Japan in the autumn of 2008. This is one of them. Specifically I am remembering how lovely it was to ride the train in Tokyo. I was struck by the silence.
Standing on the platform looking in at the car one could have imagined that it would be a painful ride. People were packed into a sardine can only able to stay standing during the ebb and flow of the ride due to the fact that they were supported by their fellow commuter standing centimetres away. One might also imagine that so many people would create a cacophony of various noises in addition to a stinky, maybe damp, smell of human masses.
Rather, it was silent. People whispered to each other when engaged in conversation. Phones were on silent mode as instructed by the regulations of train riding in Japan. There were no earbuds leaking out myriad, tinny, sounds of music. Absent were the loud and abnoxious mobile phone conversations.
On the train I am riding now the contrast could not be more stark. First of all the train is nearly empty. It could easily be half the length. The emptiness however does not bring with it silence. Instead I get to hear the loud conversation of some punk with his girl on the other end of the phone connection - what to eat and how to make rice. Next to me a woman is listening to music on an iPod - it is so loud that I get to listen to it as well. At the very front of the car a seven year-old is playing a video game and Mario-style background music is permeating the car.
Yes, for the most part, the commuters are sitting silently - thank goodness! Large masses don't create noise. Individuals do. Individuals who lack respect. And that, in a nutshell, is one of the items I most admired during the autumn of 2008.
I will need to find a way to filter out this noise. There are two ways I can think of. Find a way to filter out the noise mentally - meditation, intense concentration on my reading - or by adding my own noise to the mix.
Let me know what you think about what you have just read. Please and thanks!
Comments