Phenomenology Kitten—Zen Sen(ses)

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On this day in Round and Square History 
6 October 2012—Kanji Steps to Mastery: Introduction (a)
6 October 2011—Spring and Autumn Roles: Rolling Rhythms

[a] Appearing to consciousness RF

Our attaintment of enlightenment is something like the reflection of the

moon in water. The moon does not get wet, nor is the water cleft apart...

The whole moon and the whole sky find room enough in a single dewdrop...

                             —Dōgen, Conversations

Just a day or two before we circle back to Husserl.

Before we do so, though, let's think a little bit about Zen (禅). This distinctly East Asian tradition took shape in China (as Chan), was brilliantly reconfigured in Korea (as Son), and took on new power in Japan (as Zen).

One of the most fascinating approaches to thinking about the "mind," "body," and "phenomena" (all debated issues...all of the time) can be found in the Conversations of Dōgen (1200-1253). For the Western kitten, just tiptoeing into Japanese thought, the "phenomenological" themes begin slowly, like a little paw-dip into the water. 

And like water (and East Asian images of it), the surging power of that water is relentless. Never forget, though, that understanding the world for Dōgen and other Zen thinkers, was always tied to the goal of achieving the great transfer of consciousness known as nirvana, not apprehending the larger world in a Kantian universe. 

[c] Perception RF

Consider just one quotation from among a hundred that I, Phenomenology Kitten, could have chosen. I picked this one because I suspect that the translator, seeing Kantian themes, "teased" them even further into the translation.

     When you go out on a boat and look
     around, you feel as if the shore were
     moving. But if you fix your eyes on the 
     rim of the boat, you become aware
     that the boat is moving. It is exactly the 
     same when you try to know the 
     objective world while still in a state of confusion in regard to your own body
     and mind...Only when you sit straight and look into yourself does it become 
     clear that [you yourself are changing and] the objective world has a reality
     apart from you.[1]
         
Tomorrow we'll take a little break for a startling, sensory look at the news, and then get on with our Husserlian objectives, er, subjectives.

[1] Ryusaku Tsunoda et al, Sources of Japanese Tradition I (New York: Columbia University Press, 1964), 246.

[d] Rippled sensation RF

[Originally posted on September 6, 2014]