An entertaining hermaneutical exercise

I was thinking about the different ways in which people interpret, cherry-pick, contradict, and ultimately blaspheme against their own religious texts or belief systems simply to justify a certain point of view. And as I was thinking, I remembered a passage I read in The End of Faith a while back. In this passage, Sam Harris wonderfully illustrates the futility of defining any One True religion based on a text, correct in all of it's "teachings".

Derek I know you never finished this book, so here's an excerpt from the notes. And to others, I think this is an interesting and entertaining point. From Sam Harris' The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason :

"... One can interpret every text in such a way as to yield almost any mystical or occult instruction.

A case in point: I have selected another book at random, this time, from the cookbook isle of a bookstore. The book is A Taste of Hawaii: New Cooking from the Crossroads of the Pacific. Therein I have discovered an as yet uncelebrated mystical treatise. While it appears to be a recipe for wok-seared fish and shrimp cakes with ogo-tomato relish, we need only study its list of ingredients to know that we are in the presence of an unrivaled spiritual intelligence:

snapper filet, cubed

3 teaspoons chopped scallions

salt and freshly ground pepper

a dash of cayenne pepper

2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger

1 teaspoon minced garlic

8 shrimp, peeled, deveined, and cubed

1/2 cup heavy cream; 2 eggs, lightly beaten

3 teaspoons rice wine; 2 cups bread crumbs

3 tablespoons vegetable oil; 2 1/2 cups ogo tomato relish

The snapper filet, of course, is the individual himself—you and I—awash in the sea of existence. But here we find it cubed, which is to say that our situation must be remedied in all three dimensions of the body, mind, and spirit.

Three teaspoons chopped scallions further partakes of the cubic symmetry, suggesting that that which we need add to each level of our being by way of antidote comes likewise in equal proportions. The import of the passage is clear: the body, mind, and spirit need to be tended to with the same care.

Salt and freshly ground black pepper: here we have the perennial invocation of opposites—the white and the black aspects of our nature. Both good and evil must be understood if we would fulfill the recipe for spiritual life. Nothing, after all, can be excluded from the human experience (this seems to be a Tantric text). What is more, salt and pepper, come to us in the form of grains, which is to say that our good and bad qualities are born of the tiniest actions. Thus, we are not good or evil in general, but only by virtue of innumerable moments, which color the stream of our being by force of repetition.

A dash of cayenne pepper: clearly, being of such robust color and flavor, this signifies the spiritual influence of an enlightened adept. What shall we make of the ambiguity of its measurement? How large is a dash? Here we must rely upon the wisdom of the universe at large. The teacher himself will know precisely what we need by way of instruction. And it is at just this point in the text that the ingredients that bespeak the heat of spiritual endeavor are added to the list—for after a dash of cayenne pepper, we find two teaspoons of chopped fresh ginger and one teaspoon of minced garlic. These form an isosceles trinity of sorts, signifying the two sides of our spiritual nature (male and female) united with the object meditation.

Next comes eight shrimp—peeled, deveined, and cubed. The eight shrimp, of course, represent the eight worldly concerns that every spiritual aspirant must decry: fame and shame, loss and gain, pleasure and pain, praise and blame. Each needs to be deveined, peeled, and cubed—that is, purged of its power to entrance us and incorporated on the path of practice.

That such metaphorical acrobatics can be performed on almost any text—and that they are therefore meaningless—should be obvious. Here we have scripture as Rorschach blot: wherein the occultist can find his magical principles perfectly reflected; the conventional mystic can find his recipe for transcendence; and the totalitarian dogmatist can hear God telling him to suppress the intelligence and creativity of others. This is not to say that no author has ever couched spiritual or mystical information in allegory or ever produced a text that requires a strenuous hermeneutical effort to be made sense of. If you pick up a copy of Finnegans Wake, for instance, and imagine that you have found therein allusions to various cosmogonic myths and alchemical schemes, chances are that you have, because Joyce put them there. But to dredge scripture in this manner and discover the occasional pearl is little more than a literary game."

Just some food for thought. I actually found it rather hilarious the first time I read it.

-z

Pilates

Ok, so I'm going to do a post on Pilates. Hear me out.

I know the stereotypical Pilates student, I see them all the time. I lived above a store (lululemon) that sells clothing to these people. But Pilates is about so much more than them. I know I am being a bit of a snob, making a statement like that. But honestly, Pilates is one of the best physical (and mental) exercise disciplines I have ever learned about or participated in.

In May 2009 my girlfriend Ashley began training to become a Pilates instructor, so most of my knowledge on this subject is passed on from her. Before this my only knowledge of Pilates was that it was something similar to Yoga, and pretty lame. I was oh so very wrong. Right from the beginning, at its basics, Pilates is about learning your body. Yes it is about strengthening your core to support the rest of your body. Yes it can help you loose weight. Yes it is about strengthening and lengthening your muscles. Yes it is about becoming more flexible and more physically healthy. But it is also an amazing technique in becoming more aware of your body. There are so many visualizations that the instructors use to help you imagine what your body is doing. When you sit up from lying down, you curl up, deliberately lifting each vertebra from the mat after the preceding one. When you place your arms above your head to begin one of several stretches, you align your shoulder blades with each other and your ribcage. You learn how your body is supposed to work. In Pilates you align and correct your body, reverting and fixing bad posture and physical habits. It has been said that if you meet someone that you have not seen for some time after doing Pilates for while, they will have a hard time recognizing you as the same person. While I am unsure of how true this really is, I can completely understand the concept. Imagine your friend has terrible posture and walks incorrectly. Now imagine seeing them for the first time after a year of Pilates in which they have learned to stand upright and take long strides because of the realignment their body has gone through. I could imagine that being a rather remarkable sight.

I've participated in a few different sports and exercise/workout techniques throughout my life, and Pilates is one of the few pure and positive ones. I received my Black Belt in Korean-style American Karate, and that is the only one that comes close to the dedication and positive focus of Pilates. I have seen so many articles and news stories on athletes who need surgery or physical therapy for one reason or another. There are an incredible amount of MLB pitchers who receive surgery on their elbows and shoulders for constantly throwing a ball (however fast, curved, or game-winning) incorrectly compared to how their body works. I cycle a lot, and it can be bad for your knees, neck, and back (if you are doing it incorrectly). Sure, athletes at pro levels are very fit (most of the time) and can have great looking bodies. But as for longevity of the body, these activities just don't hold a candle to the type of positive reinforcement that Pilates can provide.

Everyone remembers the Star Wars Kid. He grabbed a video camera and a pole, and started flailing about in his room. My friend Greg and I had a discussion about him once, concerning bodily awareness. It's easy to make fun of that kid. He looks silly. But he was learning how to wield a weapon. He was learning how his body functions. Who knows, maybe in the years since then, sans video tapes, he has mastered a style of martial arts. I have seen many people so completely disconnected from the physicality of their presence in the world it's laughable and saddening. They could take a hint from the Star Wars Kid.

I think Pilates is an incredibly important tool in awareness, and I have had conversations with Ashley about this very idea. This sort of attention paid to one's own body can easily translate to many other parts of life. The more aware you are of the systems in your own body, the easier it is to become more aware of the systems surrounding you.

Until another time,

Thank you.

-z

p.s. This blog post is now the #1 Google hit for "star wars kid pilates" (without quotes). How am I the first person to make that argument? /sarcasm

Thinking

So much of being aware is simply thinking. Just think. Notice something, a situation, a new fact, a thought process, and think about it. Mull it over, wonder why it is the way it is, try to understand it.

This seems to be a major key in practicing awareness. And something many people seem not to grasp very well. It is not enough to be aware that you stepped on your friend's foot while you were walking behind him. You should then consider why you did it. Is it because he walks slower than you? Because you didn't see his foot? Because you took a longer-than-normal-step to avoid a giant pile of dog shit? Or simply because you are a dickhead (read: good friend).

Understanding why you have done such a thing can teach you about your friend, your environment, and yourself.

One of my brothers (well actually all three of us) loves steak. Red meat is fantastic. But one of us swears he will never stop eating it. He wants to eat it as often as possible. Now I am no vegetarian, but I can see the positives to not eating red meat so often, if at all. Whether it be price, social/political/ecological beliefs, taste, health concerns, etc. there are plenty of reasons not to eat red meat every day. If my brother were to apply awareness and thought to his love of red meat, I posit that he might eventually change his mind. To understand that the only reason to eat red meat as often as possible is personal desire (at least for him) is important. Combine that realization with knowledge of the processes that are involved in bringing that meat to a table (and the above mentioned reasons) and it should be easier to understand why eating red meat so often isn't such a great idea.

But all of this, of course, requires a person to be a bit more humble and selfless than they might otherwise be. And that is a whole new topic of awareness.

Awareness

For my Graphic Design Senior Project, basically a thesis project but for design students, at Stout I did a conceptual graphic design piece on awareness. Aptly named Aware. I wanted to do something that might continue to be of use to at least some people after the gallery show was over. For years at Stout I witnessed students pouring their hearts and souls into projects that ceased to exist in any sort of constructive manner after that one glorious night.

So I tried something different.

Now, months later, I still contemplate awareness and notice interesting things every day. I plan to start posting observations and realizations here.

Finally, the project, and this blog get their due use.

Hopefully.

-Z

New posting starts tomorrow.

Cold + Stupid

So Ashley and I decided to go for a short bike ride this evening. Sounded like a fantastic idea to get my blood flowin and my muscles movin. And it was great, for 10 minutes.

Ashley has a pair of nice Pearl Izumi insulated pants for winter riding, and a pair of sweet deerskin mittens, so she wore those. I, on the other hand, had a pair of jeans and some gloves that are just about worthless (the only reason I still have them is because I can't afford a pair of these).

The plan was to ride down 26th from blaisdell (where we currently reside) to Lake of the Isles, around it, and ride back somehow, either via Lake Street or 28th. Here's a handy Google map. That, however, is not the way it played out. By the time we had ridden to the lake my thighs and fingers were numb and there was a sharp pain in my frozen thumbs. I made the decision then that there was absolutely no way I was going to make it around the lake and back without causing considerable harm to at least my fingers. So we headed back home.

The whole ride only took about 30 minutes, but I'd say it was a smart call to head back when we did. I was far past uncomfortable by the time we arrived at home. What really bothered me about it was the fact that I forced us to cut our ride short. I'm used to riding through pain, and pushing myself physically when need be. If it was just pain I could have done the whole trip. What stopped me from doing so was the cause of the pain -- COLD. I was afraid of frost bite. That had never really bothered me before. I've dealt with cold all my life living in the midwest, and this was the first time I took it more-than-seriously. Interesting learning experience.

At least I got out and did some riding for half an hour... right?

That's all for now.

zee

Update

Still being a bum.

Been struggling to motivate myself. It's quite easy to laze about and complete only the immediately necessary tasks. I've taken my sweet time in finishing my resumé, the plan was to have it finished by friday and start sending it out this coming week. That didn't happen. Though now that I've gotten paid a bit and have another paycheck coming my way, I think it is going to be easier to get some other things done (ie resumé), at least that's what I've been telling myself.

I've spent some time over the past week getting back into the groove of things - checking design blogs, viewing collections, reading up on things, and generally poking my head into things I'd either forgotten about or hadn't know about. It's been at least a little motivating.

Short update. That's all for now. I plan to start writing here again too, huzzah.

byes