Bamboo Groves Abound

In the bamboo groves there is a unique quality of light, and a different sound to the wind. A stand of bamboo that has been growing for a long time is a special place to be. It grows densely, tall and straight. The density belies a spacious and open quality to the grove that is quite welcoming; there is room for the breeze to blow through yet there is still shade to cool the air.

For centuries in Japan artisans and crafts people have used this resource to its fullest potential. It is elegantly used in traditional architecture, though now it is used more in a decorative design fashion. Traditional musical instruments like the Shakuhachi, tea ceremony regalia, baskets, fencing were made from bamboo, and it is frequently used as a barrier in landscape design and gardening. It is the crucial component of Kendo swords, and is a frequent motif in traditional Japanese brush painting.

In Japanese martial culture the bamboo is a potent metaphor for the human spirit. It embodies, and possesses the characteristics, of a certain type of strength of character. When the Taifun comes, the great winds, houses are destroyed, trees are uprooted, but the bamboo only bends and does not break. It can appear delicate, but in its flexibility lies its strength and ability to endure and persist. A strong man is the same way. Through tough times and through hardship a man may have to adapt and flex, but he must never break, and always remain rooted in his essence and sense of self.

Walk this path in the Okayama mountains if you want a sublime journey.

It is advisable in your meditation practice to create an environment that is favorable to mindfulness. In the Japanese martial arts your kamae are some of the first and most basic things you learn. At first they are physical positions, but as you familiarize yourself with the kamae and their uses the concept comes to include your mental posture, your spirit, and attitude. Being mindful of these aspects integrating with the physicality of the kamae is the difference between standing in kamae and being in kamae. I find the bamboo groves conducive to mindfulness. You should practice when you feel inspired, and in a place that feels uplifting and sacred. Use the qualities of the space to demonstrate the qualities of character you are cultivating. Be spacious and open, be cool in the shade, and let your thoughts pass through you like the breeze through the grove. Feeling these qualities is the difference between sitting in the bamboo grove, and being amongst the bamboo.

If you find the right piece of bamboo, you have the world's greatest walking stick. The dragonflies will congregate to congratulate you on your luck.

What does it take to become a Renaissance Man these days?

This is a question I wind up asking myself quite frequently. Its clearly a process, and one with no end in sight. It shuns specialization for diversity of knowledge. The broader your knowledge base becomes, the more multifarious and divergent your future paths of inquiry can be. Specializing means your growth and knowledge are continuing down a certain route, to a fixed point. A mental model for this could be a pyramid, the more it grows, the more finite the space it occupies. For a Renaissance Man knowledge grows, terracing up and out, shooting new roots down and repeating the process until your capacity takes a form resembling the Banyan Tree.

The Bohdi Tree, under which Buddha is said to have achieved enlightenment, was a Banyan tree.

As it grows more space in enveloped in its shade, its relationships with its surroundings become more multitudinous, and the sundry possibilities are many. Generalizing in terms of mental models of personal growth only has value in the context of a discussion, and everyone is going to do what they think is best at any given moment. It is, however, worth thinking about. Robert Heinlein, a science fiction writer and commentator on social themes, put it better than I ever could.

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently and die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."
-Robert A. Heinlein


Theres truth in those words, if ever I heard it it uttered. We should all follow the advice of Wu-tang Financial, and diversify our bonds! Keep some projects and curiosities cooking on the back burner while you concentrate on what is right in front of you. Develop yourself physically, socially, artistically, spiritually. Decide for yourself what knowledge is most important, and most worthwhile, and pursue it. Follow the tangents, enjoy your hobbies, and consult the expertise of those that have gone before you. Satisfy your curiosities.


Thats what I've been trying so far. We'll see how it all shapes up. What do you all think? What does it take to become a Renaissance Man these days?

Climbing Hard in Okayama - Yosedake, Kawakami-cho

For those of you who didn't know, I like climbing. There is nothing better for pure enjoyment and challenge, and its very worthwhile way to spend a beautiful late summer afternoon. It appears to be a global truism that the folks you meet climbing are some of the most interesting, capable, good-hearted people you will meet anywhere. They tend to have a healthy amount of guts, an appreciation of nature, and a sense of adventure. Thusly did I meet a couple badass guys who love to climb, Tetsuya-san and Shuji-san, who are both familiar with the lay of the land. They helped me to realize that my neck of the woods here in Takahashi is primetime for quality crag.

So we tore up some routes with the simple names like Overhang Easement, Easy Face, and the Dongo. These pictures are from the 5.10 Easy Face, which we dubbed the Ironic Face because we found it to have a good bit of challenge. I intend to take the liberty of giving these routes English names, because in America the route names tend to be a bit more creative. The Kawakami-cho area of Takahashi, and this is practically my backyard,  is replete with some of the best single pitch climbing I've encountered and according to this website and map there is plenty more all over the place. As you can see I have quite a bit of exploration to do. Allow me to explain why climbing is so much fun.

For one thing, its risky. Anytime you go out to the crag you are potentially risking your health, even your life. Safety is paramount when you climb and you take the precautions you can. Even so, gear can break, belay accidents can occur, climbers fall, wind or lightning can come from no where, and the rock itself can break and sabotage your climb. If you pay attention and take the necessary precautions you are generally alright, but a certain risk in inherent. Nothing ventured, nothing gained as they say. Since you decide to venture, you stand to gain.

You use your hands, your feet, your wits, and your willpower to vertically navigate some of nature's most beautiful handiwork. It takes equal measures of technical skill, nerve, and guts. You invariably face the natural human fears of falling, or heights, and overcome them. You defy gravity, and affirm your physical and mental health. There is always more, and you can always push yourself further, and climb something harder. Your only limits are those you place on yourself.

Climbing has innate value in and of itself as a recreational, enjoyable activity. Additionally, it has value as a life metaphor and can teach you more broadly applicable lessons as well. You know your goal. When you scope a route you know where you want to go, but its not clear exactly how you get there. You formulate a basic plan from the ground, deciding how to ascend, what might be a good area to take a short rest and a chalk up, and how to navigate your way up the rock face. As you get closer to your goal there are nuances of the the vertical landscape that make themselves apparent. Things you could not possibly notice until you were right on top of them. Plans change when you get better information. Things you counted on, literally, turn to dust in the palm of your hand. You continue your flow, adapt, keep moving forward, and always have to do what seems best at the time. There is a time for patience, and a time for decisive, explosive action. You need to be able to do both, and have the sensitivity to know when the time is right for either.

I like metaphors just as much as I like climbing

Before long you get where your going. You look back, and see that you have come a long way, and you are able to view things from a new, elevated perspective. If you ever decide to take that route again you have valuable foreknowledge. You can advise others on what they might encounter at certain points in their ascent. You've developed by going through with the process.

All the philosophical metaphors be damned, climbing is just plain fun.