Religion of the blooming plum and sharp sword warriors (part of 1)
A branch of a plum in hand -
Happy New Year I go to congratulate
Old acquaintances ...
(Sika)
Happy New Year I go to congratulate
Old acquaintances ...
(Sika)
Neighbor need to know. This rule allows you to make life easier for yourself ... and for your neighbor, well, but in the end ... “just live well!” And it seems to be easy. Go to visit him, take a closer look, be observant and tolerant, that is, remember the parable about the straw and the log and, most importantly, act against your neighbor as you would like others to do in your attitude. Trite, is not it? But quite difficult, if you think about it. And it also says: “Those who live in a glass house should not throw stones at others' houses!” And this was also very correctly noted.
Japanese warrior monk - Suha. In principle, the same samurai, only in a specific shoe and a headdress ... Well, also nagitata ... At the samurai it was weapon women.
So Japan is our neighbor, but ... what do we know about this country? That is, we know a lot. More than, say, most average Japanese people know about us. But ... knowing more, we have more chances to understand them, and to understand ... it means a lot.
Famous in Japan, the series “One Hundred Views of the Moon” was created by the artist Yoshitoshi Tsukioka in the traditional Japanese woodcut technique. She is considered the main work of this master, and her popularity in Japan is extremely high. "One hundred species of the moon" was published the last seven years of his life, in the period from 1885 to 1892 year. It includes exactly one hundred sheets with a variety of subjects, which are united by only one detail - the moon, which, one way or another, is visible on each engraving. Here, for example, woodcut "District Gon." What is shown here? And the scene is clear and familiar to every Japanese scene from the play of the Kabuki Theater "Chusingura." Young Osi Rikiya sends a letter with 47 Ronin's news to Ichiriki's tea house in Kyoto, in which Osi Yuranosuke's father discusses how to avenge the death of his mother.
For example, we argue a lot about the distinctive culture of the Japanese, but where did it go from - this is their original culture and how did it originate? What was their religion, and what role did it play in shaping the Japanese nation? Well - the questions of religion are always interesting, and the religion of a warrior nation is especially interesting, and therefore, in the light of the current foreign policy events between our countries, we will just tell readers about this in depth.
Moon patrol Sato Tasimitsu on reconnaissance at the Kamo River near Kyoto, before the attack on Honnoji Temple in 1582. Tashimitsu and his father, Sato Karanosuke, served Aketi Mitsuide (1526-1582), who attacked his overlord Oda Nobunaga and killed him.
Archeological data unequivocally indicate that the most ancient Japanese belief was what they themselves call Shinto, and we are Shintoism. That is, it is ... animism, totemism and magic, fused into one whole, and speaking briefly - believing in the spirits living in this world around us. These perfumes - kami, have different powers and a lot of them. There are kami lakes and creek, waterfall and stone, wood and forest. That is why it is wrong to translate the word kamikaze, as it translates from us - “the wind of the gods” or “the divine wind.” This is the "wind of spirits." And the gods in Shinto also exist, just like dragons and all sorts of mystical entities, just kami are present everywhere and the gods have to deal with them just as well. In general, it was a typical pagan pantheon with a developed cult of nature. Something similar took place among the Babylonians, who, besides the main gods, saturated the world around them with a multitude of demons, something similar happened to the northern peoples, it was just that the ancient Japanese had a lot of kami and had to be constantly remembered.
However, when feudalism began to flourish in Japan, Shinto’s uncertainty began to slow down in some way. The warriors were separated into a separate estate, and they needed a more “comfortable” religion for them than for commoners. It seems that such religion was Buddhism brought from China, but ... again, it suited more for the peasants than for the warriors. Nature, including spiritual, does not tolerate emptiness. Therefore, it is not surprising that within the framework of the same Buddhism in Japan, the teachings of his Zen sect, or Zenxu, began to spread. From Japanese "Zen" can be translated as "immersion in silent contemplation" with the aim of mastering external and internal spiritual forces in order to achieve "enlightenment." The founder of the Zen sect (Chinese. - "Chan", Skt. - "Dhyana") consider the Buddhist priest Bodhidharma (Jap. Bodai Daruma), who began to preach his teachings originally in India, and then moved to China. And now two Buddhist monks brought Ezai (1141 - 1215) and Dogen (1200 - 1253) from Zen Buddhism to China to Japan, who began to preach it.
But it gained popularity among the warriors. Why? The fact is that the spread of Zen Buddhism coincided with the establishment of the shogunate system in the country, when the warriors worshiped "the sacred land" (jodo) - an analogue of the Buddhist paradise - or Buddha Amida. The teaching of the Buddhist sect “jodo” was extremely simple, which was very popular with the soldiers of that time. It was founded by a Buddhist monk Honen-syonin in the XII century. and it became attractive, above all, among the popular working masses, who very much wanted to believe in their own rebirth in paradise after death. Jodo supplanted most other Buddhist sects in Japan, so its followers owned up to 30% of all temples, priests and monks in Japan, and its very essence was extremely simple. Like any religion, its purpose was to "salvation." Here are just ways to salvation were different. So, a supporter of "Jodo", in order to "escape", it was necessary to pronounce the name of the Buddha Amida ("Nam Amida Butsu!" - "I bow to the Buddha Amida!"). The monks of “jodo” explained - it does not matter who you are: a bad or good person, in order to “be saved” (that is, “to be born again in the future, but more worthily”), you only need to repeat and repeat this prayer. As everyone understands this, it was a religion, very convenient for slaves and masters. She did not change anything in their relationship, but allowed the slave to sublimate on the idea of salvation and ... endure her slavery and beyond! Yes, for peasants and other commoners such a religion was good. But not for warriors!
They understood that a simple appeal to the Buddha Amida in this life does not give them anything, but develops apathy and apathy in people, but what kind of a warrior is he if he does not have a strong will? A samurai first of all had to instill his will in the most persistent way, to develop self-control and composure necessary for any professional warrior in the first place, be it a campaign against the Ainu, fighting the old aristocracy from Kyoto or suppressing the peasant uprisings.
So Zen preachers appeared on historical the arena in Japan is very on time. They argued that only continuous work on oneself, the goal of which is to educate in oneself the ability to highlight the essence of the problem, then the ability to concentrate on solving it in order to go to the intended goal, is very important. And not only in monastic life, but also in worldly life. It was then that Zen Buddhism became the spiritual foundation of the samurai caste; and the number of his followers began to grow steadily. In historical terms, the relationship between Zen Buddhists and the samurai estate began to be established under the regents of Hojo in Kamakura. Eisai, just the very first Zen Buddhist preacher, could not have expected success in Kyoto, since there were strong sects such as Teidai and Singon. In addition, they enjoyed the patronage of the imperial house and the highest aristocracy. But in Kamakura, such difficulties simply did not exist, since the influence of these sects did not spread there at all, which is why Zen Buddhism spread completely freely among the samurai of the house of Taira and the house of Minamoto.
Moon over mountain Inaba. In this scene from the Chronicles of Taiko, Konosita Tokiti (1536-1598), the former son of a peasant, who later became known as Toyotomi Hideyoshi, climbs a rock at the impregnable castle of the Saito clan on Inaba Mountain. With this feat and began a brilliant career Hideyoshi, who took the name of Taiko (Drum).
An important reason that prompted the samurai to do exactly the teachings of Zen, was ... its exceptional simplicity. The fact is that according to his doctrine, the “truth of the Buddha” cannot be conveyed either in writing or orally. Accordingly, all didactic aids or instructions cannot reveal the truth, and therefore are false, and all comments are flawed. Zen is above all types of verbal form of expression. Moreover, expressed in words, it loses the properties of Zen. Hence the main thesis of all theorists of Zen Buddhism that it cannot be called a teaching, since the logical knowledge of the world is absolutely impossible. One can achieve the desired only through intuition, which, by contemplation alone, can lead a person to comprehend the "true heart of the Buddha."
Very comfortable religion, isn't it? No need to waste time reading religious books. Although books and Buddhist texts were used by Zen Buddhists, but only as a means of propaganda. Moreover, the man himself could not independently understand Zen and needed a mentor. However, most of all, Zen fell in love with the samurai because he developed composure, will, and composure, that is, everything that was needed for a professional soldier. For a samurai, it was considered very important not to flinch (both externally and internally) in front of an unexpected danger, to maintain under all circumstances clarity of mind and the ability to be aware of your actions. In practice, the samurai should have iron willpower, rush fearlessly at the enemy, without paying attention to anything, for the main goal of the warrior is his destruction. Zen also taught that a person should be cool and very restrained, no matter what happens. Anyone who professed Zen Buddhism should not have paid attention, even to insults, that for the warriors of the “noble” class it was, of course, not easy at all, but it helped to develop self-control and will.
Another quality that Zen instilled in the soldiers was unquestioning obedience to its master and, of course, to his military leader. There are many stories from the time of feudal Japan, which tell about this feature of the then Japanese knights. For example, in the story about one daimyo it is said that he, along with the remnants of his defeated squad, was on the edge of a high cliff, and from all sides surrounded by enemies. The daimyo did not want to surrender and gave the command “Follow me!”, After which he threw himself on a horse into the abyss. And all of his samurai immediately followed him, not for a second thinking about the meaning of the order of the commander. And after all, all this is a consequence of education in the Zen system - having received the order of the elder, act without hesitation!
The human being in the world in Zen was considered only an appearance: “Shiki-Soku-Dze-ku” - “Everything in this world is illusory” - said Zen Buddhists. The world is illusory and ephemeral, it is only a manifestation of the universal “nothing” from which everything was born, so everything goes there, or rather, it is born and leaves continuously. That is why Zen Buddhism taught man not to cling to life, and, of course, that is why not to be afraid of death. But it was precisely contempt for death in Zen that attracted samurai to him.
The concept of the ephemeral nature of being and the illusory nature of the world around us (mujo), however, connected everything that was short-term and rapid with such a concept as beauty. Everything short-lived, flowing, or very short in time (for example, plum blossoms in the snow, dew drops under the sun, etc.) was defined as a visible manifestation of this “moment between past and future”. That is, it was argued that it is precisely brevity that is beauty! In accordance with this statement, a person's life was also considered more beautiful than it was shorter, especially if the life he lived was bright and memorable. Hence the contempt of the samurai for death and the development of "art" to die beautifully.
Another element of the theory of "easy death" was caused by the influence of Chinese Confucianism. A man should have moral purity, a sense of duty, a spirit of self-sacrifice. That's when he became a “worthy husband.” Therefore, the Japanese were taught from childhood to die for the emperor, their master, explained the morality of the principle of sacrificing for them all. That is the question “Would you be able to lie with a grenade under a tank?” For a Japanese child never stood. He could not, and was simply obliged to do this, that's all. After all, death for the sake of fulfilling one’s duty was regarded as “real death.
Mountain moon after the rain. Soga no Goro Tokimune (XII century) together with the elder brother Dzuro killed the murderer of their father, Kudo Suketsune. Since it happened in a shogun's camp on the slopes of Mount Fuji, the law was broken. Dzuro died in a fight, and Goro was captured and taken to the shogun, who immediately ordered him to be beheaded. The artist specially depicted a cuckoo flying in front of the moon, because it was one of the symbols of the transience of all things.
Hence, by the way, the plots of most Japanese fairy tales for children. For example, such a “fairy tale” - the stepmother wished in the winter fresh fish and sent her stepson to get it. And it is clear that she is “bad” and did it out of malice. The child from the tales of the Brothers Grimm, of course, would have found a way to deceive her, and there “on the shovel and in the oven!” But the Japanese boy went to the river, saw the fish frozen into the water, undressed, melted the ice with the warmth of his body (!) And brought the fish stepmother! Another time, the boy saw that his parents were disturbed in a dream by mosquitoes. He undressed and lay down next to them flew on him. After all, his father should go serve the lord tomorrow morning!
The samurai, who used the dogmas of Buddhism and Confucianism, naturally adapted them to their professional needs. The cult of death for the sake of glory, the spirit of self-sacrifice for the service of the master — were surrounded by an aura of glory. And it is from here that the harakiri custom arose. This was due to the fact that the professional warrior all the time was balancing on the edge between life and death. Therefore, the samurai cultivated in themselves a disregard for earthly existence.
Moon clean snow on the river Asano. A chicaco girl rushes into the waters of the Asano River in the hope that her death will convince government officials to release her father. But her death did not make any impression on the authorities, and as a result her father died in prison. But how beautiful she died!
There are many rebirths, Buddhism taught. And if so, then the death of an individual, according to Buddhists, does not mean a final end, and he will be reborn in future lives. Therefore, a person should obediently submit to the “great law of retribution,” that is, karma (go), or fate, which determines only the degree of his sinfulness in the past life, and in no case complain about life now. Everything is determined, everything is weighed, payment is coming for everything!
This explains the death of so many Japanese soldiers in battles with a smile on their face and the words of Buddhist prayer on their lips. A man - and all samurai knew it from childhood - had to die completely calmly, as if falling asleep, having pious thoughts and, of course, with a smile on his face, so as not to bring unpleasant moments to those around him. Groans, unwillingness to die and part with loved ones and their lives were considered as unworthy behavior and violation of the "etiquette of death". That is, Zen-Buddhism brought up such an attitude to questions of life and death, when the concept of self was simply absent, as well as the fear of death and thoughts about its benefits and adversities.
Of course, the feudal lords who were served by the samurai benefited from this attitude to life. A person who is not afraid of death is boundlessly devoted to his overlord, embraced by the idea of constant spiritual feat — an ideal soldier. That is why similar qualities were cultivated not only in Japan, but also by all totalitarian regimes. “Death for the Fuhrer,” “death for Stalin,” death for the emperor ”are all convenient forms of manipulating people. Such people are easy to manage in battle, they do not surrender, well, the honor of a samurai and moral imperative will not allow him to retreat and flee from the battlefield, the order of a commander for him is a law that must be fulfilled, not reasoning, and at any cost to disgrace and dishonor neither your name nor your race.
It was the basics of Zen teaching that formed the basis of the code - bushido. War for the sake of the interests of the suzerain respected "the transformation of the highest ideal in the case." Bushido, as was said in the Hagakure, was recognized by the Japanese knighthood as a doctrine of a direct and fearless desire to return to eternity.
It is clear that, as in any religion, there were contradictions in Zen. So, Buddhism forbids any killing. In Buddhism, it is included in the five "great" sins, which also includes theft, adultery, lies and drunkenness. But since life, on the contrary, constantly demanded the opposite, a form of "redemption" was invented - generous donations to temples, monastic vows after a certain time devoted to ... murders.
To be continued ...
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