#bad faith interpretations have no room in this household

[catofoldstones]

Saying that Sansa’s rest of the plot is in the Vale is like saying Arya’s rest of of the plot is in Braavos. Hope that helps.

[dunmeshistash]

Hey im @holmsister tumblr is tumbling as usual.

About the Maizuru complaint and bad faith interpretation: I feel the same way about POC in this fandom. I didn't really engage in fandoms that have many canon POC because most of my reading in the last years has been historical and classical European lit and nonfiction so like. The racism is baked into the source so to speak. AND im super white so im not going to try and speak out of turn. But moving into a fandom for a recent work of art in which there are important characters of colour has been... enlightening (derogatory). Also not naming names, but the way white characters are extended grace for things the POC are criticised extensively is... enlightening (derogatory). Maizuru, being at the intersection of being a woman and POC, is obviously going to get the brunt of it. Especially because yeah, she's not exactly a pleasant character - yeah, the way she treats the other retainers is not nice. But she is basically a sex slave. Like we can mince our words as much as we like, add in everything about how she is clearly being well-treated and not resentful, etc etc, but she's there to entertain Nakamoto and she can't say no if he comes to her room. All of her privileges are dependent on her pleasing him. That doesn't mean that she can't be abusive in her own right - but like. How old was she when she was taken in by Nakamoto? She's been around since Toshiro was little, remember? Hell, her obsession with being a good retainer with Toshiro might be a way to safely "escape" Nakamoto - after all, if she's following Toshiro around, she's not in her parlour waiting for his father's next visit, and if Toshiro, who has no interest in her, became the next head of the household, she would be allowed to live out her last years in peace. Like this is speculation of course, but it's based on what we know of the character in much the same way any other speculation is - I'm choosing to give her the benefit of the doubt the same way I do for example Laios choosing to join the army.

Sorry for the vent, it's just. The complexity of the characters is a good thing! Stop trying to find a bad guy, you're missing the point! (And showing your ass in the process). everyone has complex motivations!

Truly, people hate nuance and it seems like internalized misogyny and racism amplifies that.

I feel like at least for the racism one there's more awareness and people speak more about it? But I usually see misogyny arguments being dismissed a lot more so I got specially angy at it.

I guess I wanted to find a reason outside misogyny to justify how people treated these character's cause I've seen lots of people being mad about that before about other characters and even thinking myself "It's surely not that bad/widespread, this character is the one that sucks" but when you have a more general view of reactions it becomes painfully obvious.

Thankfully I didn't see the racism against Toshiro (maybe cause I barely post about him) but I can only imagine.

[youremyheaven]

Heloo admin ji! You fav desi anon this side (lol)

I can't believe I keep crying about how not more is talked about Anuradha and then boom! I saw your post and now I wanna cry 🤣🤣

One thing that I want to say to everyone reading this is just that everyone has a different interpretation of the same thing. I'm not taking sides but what I want to highlight is I might pick on different themes and someone else on different themes while analysing the same nakshtra Or anything in general. There's no harm in listening to the other person. Especially if you're self assured about who you are.

Disclaimer: Some of this may trigger y'all although I like to put it in the least offensive way possible

Now coming to the post- where shall I start, Saturn is seen as traditional and stoic. As a Saturn woman I tried very hard to be able to fit in with the ongoing trends that talked about challenging societal beliefs about traditional gender norms. But I authentically always saw myself as more of a traditional woman. Which is something I felt ashamed of. If that makes sense? And honestly Tate's content triggered me a lot (not that I was a subscriber but ofc he's in everyone's feed at this pt. lol) not only because I felt most of it was BS but also because at times I felt like hey I actually want a traditional household but not the picture that he was painting. I just want a normal guy who'll be stable, loyal and caring and ofc I never expect things that I'm not willing to give so it goes both ways. Having said that Saturnians may not be everyone's cup of tea coz we need to be sure about what we're getting into all the time. There's no room for uncertainty imo. Which can go both ways. Similarly being traditional can go towards the extreme. Something that I feel you covered in the post.

End note- We all have a good and bad side. The whole point is some people with some placements end up being on the other spectrum at times or like totally in the way they choose to live while some of us consciously realise where we can change. So my love to you all (non Saturnians included 😂❤)

P.S.- Sorry for the biggest rant of the century.

One of my old failed talking stages was an Anuradha Moon man and he had a very strict gym + diet routine + he was studying for his CA and was super disciplined and strict with himself in general. He got shit done and he was super thorough. He always made fun of podcast bros like Andrew Tate. He was a very staunch atheist and was one of those annoying people who thought anybody who had an ounce of faith was an illogical unscientific cretin and he was super aggressive with his beliefs? He made fun of me for praying 😭 It was so crazy to me how he thought Andrew was an asshole but he turned around and imposed his worldview on others without second thought. He also criticised feminism for making girls think they have to do everything men do to "be equal" and he was also super into traditional gender roles. He spoke about how women these days don't "behave like women" 🤮🤢🤮🤢etc

He also spoke about how important marriage was to him and he'd "joke" about how he'd keep me in place 🫠 after marriage? He was obsessed with being rich and would brag about his sneaker collection and if I ever complained about anything, he'd say that "people like me have real problems, you're just spoilt" 😤 I just think the nature of Saturn is that whatever they believe in, they take it to extremes. If they're religious, they'll be extremely religious but like this guy who wasn't, he was an extreme atheist. Saturn energy can make someone restricted to their worldview.

Being traditional can be a wonderful thing and I consider myself pretty traditional as well (too traditional for some crowds but too "modern" for other crowds) and many women I admire are also traditional (I'll explore more in part 2 ) but finding a traditional man who is more normal?? (Lol) is a struggle 🥲bc a lot of men just think being an alpha asshole = being traditional. The spirituality of Saturn is very inspiring as well and evolved Saturnians are so 🫶✨

[quran2002]

Thoughts post Chapter 1 and 2 of Quran

As a Christian I can be biased, but nothing so far goes against my belief of Islam being a twisted version of Christianity created by a conqueror in the form of a clearly false prophet.

There are teachings that are generally in line with Christianity and/or Judaism. There is an acknowledgment of the Christ, although also a denial of Him being the Son of God. But this is all within the tactical play of adapting the religion that has been successful at the time. Making yourself Christianity's second brotherly religion like Judaism, so Christians wouldn't be in conflict with you while you are conquering other religions on the south from them.

I don't deny that Muhammad was an intelligent man. He was successful at leading his conquests. He knew how to gather people around him and to point them in his desired direction.

But there are things you will find nowhere in the New Testament, things that are outright against it, things that serve the intention of creating a nation of foot-soldiers for your further conquest.

There is clearly stated hostility towards non believers. While it doesn't call for wiping them out and calls against being the aggressor, Quran calls to fight them as long you fear that they can tempt you. This leaves a lot of room to find as justified an actual violent aggression against non-believers, beyond them being the ones to commit any violence in the first place. You can easily interpret those passages as a call for subjugation of other faiths.

It doesn't matter what you have to say about the history of Christianity, there is nothing you can say against it that you cannot say against Islam as well. But you will not find anything like it in the New Testament. It's even hard to do so in the Old.

It is also stating that believing slaves are better than the non-believing free people and that you shouldn't marry non-believers. In Christianity, you not only save yourself by believing in Christ, but also your entire household. You, as a holy person, do make your non-believing spouse, including your children with them, holy as well. In Islam, non-believers are stated as a danger that can drag you to Hell, they are stated to want to do this.

The treatment of women also points towards this being a religion that is meant to create an army. Men are stated to be the first class citizens to women being second class. Women would be more against their children being sent towards senseless wars. There are virgins in Muslim Heaven, perfect to motivate your army of horny barbarians, but nothing catering to women in such a way.

As for men, they are allowed to have many wives. This all favors rich men (who are supposed to fund the faith) and strong men (who are supposed to fight for it), securing their lineages, preventing rich families to run out of heirs, letting strong men give birth to more strong men. At the cost of making the populace regress genetically - guess Allah didn't bother to warn about the downsides of polygamy. He doesn't bother much with easily preventable issues, in general.

The core claim of Quran, that it is the godsend true holy book, while all the others got corrupted. Why, 600 years after the Christ, was it needed? Why had not the almighty powers of Allah been used to prevent all the corruption, all the mess about the true faith, to not let it exist at all in the first place? Because, Allah simply didn't bother with doing what he could easily do. This is what is written here.

Apparently, Allah also didn't bother to secure Muhammad's succession line and prevent Muslims from succumbing into ages of infighting. I guess I'll stick with the God who has become a human to give His life for me. Such faith is more comforting to me, lets me believe that somebody out there actually gives a damn.

Like, holy shit. It's bad. It's so bad that it went bad faster than I thought it could go bad. Those are the starting chapters, dedicated to the basics of the faith and its way of life.

So far, ignorance or malice is required to defend this.

[hcark]

(Karen fukuhara, she/her, dreamshade) To SONIA HINODE, the whole world looks like an open page. With a leap of faith, their ability of CURSED SPEECH grows a little stronger. They are a TANUKI shade aligned to NO ONE. For EIGHTY-THREE years, they have survived a world of magic with both their RESILIENCE and SPITEFULNESS. They work as a DENNYS EMPLOYEE / SONGWRITER / BARD SIDE QUEST HELPER, but if they could change their fate, they’d want to PRODUCE AT LEAST TWO BESTSELLERS. @cagliostrointros​​

DOSSIER .

The love offered by both parents may have not been intended as conditional, but it certainly was interpreted as such. Unlike her abjured sister, the scorned star of their family, Sonia never felt truly immersed at home. Always a few steps back, always on the cusp of her sister’s fury, she still tried to meet each day with her best foot forward. Even if each toe was routinely stepped on time and time again. And while the beginnings of her rebellion wasn’t exactly welcomed, she made sure to wield the simmering ferocity with a tight grip – be it at home, school, or otherwise. Something that gleaned a droplet of pride from both dearest mother and father ( despite their original abhorrence when the eldest showed such stubbornness ). 

But even she had a limit with how much could be endured. Only a handful of years subsequent to an accident that majorly sealed her speech, Sonia stepped away. 

Away from both her parents. 

Away from her older sister. 

Away from the entire household until she was so far removed in both name and environment. Everything up until then had been so painful, so taxing, Sonia was simply unable to cope any longer. So she vanished, gone at the age of sixteen.

Where her path twisted was left to the whims of rash choices and quick cash. Not once did she stop in a city for more than a few months. There was already a comfort in discomfort, of a fast lifestyle, of living on the outskirts of what the city life illuminated to the unassuming eye. Years passed and she was hardly a stranger to busted knuckles and torn vocals. Combat had been such an addictive vice to cope and stay alive, but again — it’s a lifestyle even she grew out of. The layered strain eventually took it’s toll. The calloused joints ached in bad weather. Her voice turned permanently hoarse no matter how healed the cords may be.

Now, as she nears a century in life, there begins a transition. One that focuses less on the tang of copper in the mouth and on the hands, and more on being the bystander — to an extent. Certain outlets are still taken to minimize destruction and stay sharp, of course. But growing passions are given the room to flourish.

MISC INFO .

Fluent in ASL & JSL.

Frequently wears a choker which has an enchanted gem that can speak her thoughts aloud. She typically signs along as well.

Exceptional at close combat but prefers the use of any mid-range weapon.

Often has cough syrup and lozenges on her person. She might not speak often anymore, but the occasional use of cursed speech can really shred her throat.

Favorite drink tends to be anything hot with lemon and honey.

CONNECTIONS .

tba

[robininthelabyrinth]

Initiative pt 2 - ao3 or tumblr pt 1

It was just typical of his brother, Nie Huaisang thought. He finally, finally, finally found a girl that might suit him, agreed to marry her, and then he spent all his time worrying about…saber.

Typical.

Nie Huaisang volunteered himself to act as the family representative in negotiations with the Jiang sect, seeing as his brother would undoubtedly get them fleeced if he were trying to do it himself – “Try not to be too mercenary, Huaisang. We are the ones in the stronger position, through no fault of theirs.” –  and with one thing or another he arrived at the Lotus Pier less than a week after Jiang Yanli did.

Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian seemed rather surprised to see him.

“I haven’t had a moment to tell them,” Jiang Yanli said, pressing her head to her forehead and looking a little tired. “They’d just completed the memorial hall, when I arrived.”

“And it’s been nothing but keeping them from fighting ever since?” Nie Huaisang said, not without some sympathy.

Only some, though. If Jiang Yanli couldn’t handle Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian, even the grieved and tragic versions of them, what was she going to do the first time his brother went into a rage?

Maybe he was being too cold-blooded. After all, they’d been her parents, too.

“Your arrival is a good thing,” she said, narrowing her eyes a little in satisfaction. “Now they have no excuse to run away from me.”

Nie Huaisang couldn’t help but smile a little at that.

She summoned a few sect disciples, divided them neatly into two groups – one larger than the other – and instructed them to go bring her two recalcitrant brothers to the main hall. “You may use force,” she informed the larger group. “I would advise you that A-Xian is especially weak to tickling around his ribs, and don’t let him scare you off with that Yiling Patriarch stuff. And as for the group going to get A-Cheng – may I suggest looking especially pathetic when you convey the message that his sister, who he left alone for almost the entire war, would really like to see him if he has a moment to spare for her?”

Nie Huaisang’s smile broadened. “Tears,” he added solemnly. “Tears are very good. He hates tears.”

“Just so. Thank you all.”

“My brother is already planning out your saber,” he told her once the disciples had left, and she brightened visibly. “If there’s anything you want to contribute in terms of design, now’s the time – I brought mine in case you want to have a look later on.”

Aituan was in his luggage. Somewhere. His brother had refused to let him leave the Unclean Realm before he’d produced proof of saber, and he hadn’t unpacked since then, so surely it was somewhere.

“I’m sure whatever your brother comes up with will be fine,” she said. “I don’t know anything about weapons.”

A brief hesitation.

“Although, perhaps not – so large…?”

Nie Huaisang decided to be daring. He opened his fan in front of his face and looked at her over it, allowing his eyes to curve up in a smile. “Don’t worry about that – though if all goes well, you’re going to have to accustom yourself to dealing with a large saber at some point in the process.”

She burst out laughing, which was good.

“Nie Huaisang!” Oh, look, Jiang Cheng was here. “What are you saying to my sister? You’d better not be harassing her!”

“What would you do if I was?” Nie Huaisang wondered. “I mean, I’m not, I don’t think, but –”

“Just don’t.”

“A-Cheng,” Jiang Yanli said. “Be polite. Where’s A-Xian? I have something to tell you both.”

Wei Wuxian came in a few moments later, grumbling and rubbing his ribs but brightening when he saw them all gathered up there, and he slid into place by Jiang Cheng’s side easy as anything even if they did sort of stare awkwardly with quasi-glares, quasi-grimaces at each other first.

And then Jiang Yanli told them why Nie Huaisang was there, and all awkwardness fell away at once so that they could unite in glaring at Nie Huaisang.

“Why are you looking at me for?” he asked. “I’m not the one marrying her, that’s my brother.”

“If you had anything to do with this –” Wei Wuxian started, doing his whole looming-with-the-subtonal-wailing-of-dark-forces Yiling Patriarch thing, but ticklish around the ribs and a summer of nonsense didn’t really do much to encourage fear in Nie Huaisang, who’d never had as much common sense as a regular person ought.

“Oh, no, I objected to it,” Nie Huaisang said breezily. “Your sister doesn’t deserve my brother.”

And that, of course, got them both up in arms even more.

“What’s that supposed to mean? What’s wrong with my sister?” Jiang Cheng shouted, and Wei Wuxian’s aura-of-darkness got even more out of hand as he crossed his arms and glared death. “She’d be a great bride for anyone! Give me one reason –”

“I’m glad to have your support, didi,” Jiang Yanli said, calmly ladling out the soup she’d promised Nie Huaisang as if they were sitting in the midst of a nice breeze instead of a hurricane, and okay, fine, maybe his brother had a point about the importance of things like backbone and patience. “Don’t worry so much. If Nie-er-gongzi is here as his brother’s representative, that must mean he’s accepted the match.”

Or that he was here to sabotage it, but he appreciated her good faith interpretation.

“Please, just Huaisang is fine,” he said, smiling at her. “You’ll be my sister-in-law soon enough, won’t you?”

“We haven’t agreed yet!” Wei Wuxian exclaimed.

“Oh, like your opinion matters,” Nie Huaisang said, rolling his eyes. “You know how many people have put good money down on you leaving the Jiang sect in the next three-to-six months?”

That got all of them looking like they’d just been unexpectedly stabbed in the chest, Jiang Yanli included.

“What?” he asked, batting his eyelashes innocently at them. “Did I say something wrong? Everyone knows you aren’t doing anything for the Jiang sect anymore, Wei-xiong. All the rumors says so, and the only reason for that is if you were planning on ditching now that you don’t need them anymore.”

“That’s enough,” Jiang Yanli said, and there was a bit of steel in her voice. “A-Xian isn’t leaving, and even if he was, his opinion on my marriage would still matter to me.”

“That’s one of the reasons I objected,” Nie Huaisang said to her, deciding that she was clearly the only one mature enough to have this extremely necessary discussion with. “Meaning no offense, but in every possible respect, you’re a bad match. If you marry my brother, will you be expecting him to run around defending everything the Yiling Patriarch does whenever he’s in the mood to thumb his nose at the cultivation world? Or paying for the Lotus Pier’s reconstruction costs, even though Jiang-xiong hasn’t made a single overture to our Nie sect in terms of reestablishing trade routes or even just swapping craftsmen for mutual benefit?”

Both Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian were positively black in the face.

“Of course, even if you weren’t going to anchor him down with even more political obligations, there’s your personal value,” Nie Huaisang continued, tapping his finger against his cheek. “Word has it that you’re weak and sickly. Who’s to say that you won’t die along with the first child you bear –”

“How dare you talk about my shijie like that!” Wei Wuxian shouted, slamming his hand down on the table, while Jiang Cheng’s Zidian crackled lightning like an overactive firework. “How dare you –”

“And do you still support the marriage, even with all of these disadvantages?” Jiang Yanli asked, holding up her hands to hold her brothers back. Her eyes were a bit wet, but she was otherwise unperturbed, at least on the surface.

“I do, actually,” Nie Huaisang said, pleased. Even if she went to go cry later, which he didn’t think she would, she’d done well enough to pass his personal test of what constituted backbone. “My brother doesn’t care about politics, we have plenty of money, and there’s doctors for the rest of it. If you’re really willing to put in the effort, I’d be happy to call you my sister-in-law.”

Jiang Cheng was hissing like a pot of water on the boil. Wei Wuxian was grinding his teeth.

“I appreciate that,” Jiang Yanli said, disregarding them entirely. “I can promise you that I’ll do my best.”

“Good, good,” Nie Huaisang said, and grinned at her. “There’s only enough room for one useless flower vase in the Nie household, and the position is taken. By me, if that’s not clear. I brought my brother’s eight characters – do you have yours at hand? We can calculate the auspicious date immediately.”

“I still haven’t agreed!” Jiang Cheng exclaimed, and Jiang Yanli reached out to touch his arm lightly. “I haven’t! Jiejie, you don’t have to marry anyone you don’t want to, no matter what good things you think it’d bring to the sect, okay? You should marry for love!”

“Jiang Cheng’s right, shijie,” Wei Wuxian said at once. “You should get anyone you like. Even if you still want that stupid Jin sect peacock, we’d find a way to get him for you.”

Nie Huaisang looked at Jiang Yanli carefully at that one. It was even odds if his brother minded her having some vestigial affections, especially in the beginning, but he himself wouldn’t be having any of that – least of all with a Jin, no matter how much better Jin Zixuan seemed to be than his father.

His brother deserved someone who would put him first, this time.

“No, thank you,” she said without the slightest hesitation, and Nie Huaisang nodded in approval. “Young Master Jin has made his opinion about me clear enough, and not just once. I’m not going to run after him like I think that’s all I’m good for. And anyway, Chifeng-zun is a good man, who you both greatly admire – why can’t I marry him?”

“You can marry anyone you want,” Jiang Cheng said at once.

“And I want to marry him,” she said, and smiled. “At first, yes, it was primarily because he seemed to offer the most advantages for our sect, but…I don’t know. He’s very nice.”

Nie Huaisang mouthed the word ‘nice’ to himself, rolling it around in his mouth like a fine wine. It might be the first time anyone had ever described his brother that way.

“I think I would be happy being married to him,” she concluded. “Even very happy. Will you approve?”

They folded like a stack of cards.

“Oh, I like you,” Nie Huaisang told her, finally but now wholly delighted. “It’ll be good for my brother.”

And it’ll be interesting to see how the Jin sect takes it, he thought with a smirk half-hidden behind his fan. Since you bring the power and influence of whole Jiang sect with you, and the Yiling Patriarch too.

He wouldn’t mention that, of course.

Only an idiot would negotiate against themselves.

[ywhiterain]

reading Destiel meta on my breaks

Reading about how Dean/Cas is totally canon/going to be canon has been a hobby of mine for years. Not so much because I want it (I don’t, #teamsassy) or to laugh at it (well sometimes, when I stumble on the wildest shippy theories, but no ship is immune to that). But more so to take a peak at this wildly different show these people are watching.

This isn’t shade. Cas->Dean has always been there on some level. Cas even ended up taking up the spot planned for Anna, who was a Dean love interest, lol. Castiel’s character was created for Dean’s plot/arc and that makes it really easy to create a shippy dynamic.

I’m not buying that it’s been a well crafted love story since season four. No. It’s more like an accident. And that’s fine. Organic and unplanned storytelling gave us the objectively best canon het in the world, Bulma/Vegeta from Dragonball.

But here’s the thing. Dean/Cas, as portrayed in fanon, is like, opposite planet. Dean/Cas as an epic love story spanning fifteen/eleven years is incredibly silly. Well, for mutual Dean/Cas. From Cas’ side, my reaction to his confession was ‘yes, seems legit.’ Once, I was planning an epic spn fic and I’d had Cas -> Dean as, like, there in it. Despite not really caring/liking their relationship much because um. It’s there. The only thing the confession did for me was make it even more undeniable imo. 

The story that so much of fandom wants isn’t happening. Because the beating heart of this show is Sam and Dean. I don’t say this as a shipper, I’ve been off that train for awhile. My ideal ending is Sam walking away from Dean and getting a dog and never talking to him again.

But that’s not the story being told. In season five, we were told Sam and Dean’s bloodline has been curated for centuries so that they’d be born as brothers who could carry archangels to kill each other during the apocalypse and. Yeah. That sounds right. Not so much that I think it’s something the writers were planning from day one but like. The theme. The idea. That Sam and Dean have a relationship that’s epic, world destroy, and world saving. Yeah. That’s what this story has been about from day one. Go ahead and make it literal.

The ending note for Dean’s character isn’t going to be him embracing Cas and finding an identity outside of being a hunter who hates himself or whatever. No, his ending is going to be tied to Sam.

This isn’t to say that it’s impossible for canon mutual Destiel. I find it plausible that Cas will return in the series finale. Hell, maybe they’ll have an ambiguous ending so that shippers can write their Dean/Cas fic until the end of time, as God herself intended.

But the last real emotional beat is going to be between Sam and Dean.

Think back to the end of season five. Chuck as proxy for the writers trying to poop out an ending with them having no plausible clue they’d still have a decade of storytelling left to go. Here was the plot to save the day: Sam lets Lucifer in and jumps into hell to save the world.

Here’s what it was about: Dean putting aside the core aspect of his identity in order let Sam sacrifice himself. It was Dean, in spite of all the bad blood between him and Sam, putting his faith in Sam. Sam makes the plan and Dean backs it. Against the odds, against everything Dean wants, against history and destiny and everything in between, Dean gives up his little brother for the greater good. He gives up his brother to let Sam find redemption on his own terms.

For the actual finale, they could take a step forward. Instead of losing Sam so completely, Dean like... let someone else into his heart and creates a healthy life and future with Cas or whatever. The problem with that is that the last shot of season five wasn’t Sam’s sacrifice, it was Sam coming back from hell outside Dean/Lisa/Ben household.

And I’ll bet you anything the series is going to end on a note similar to this. They’re going to share a heaven and be together forever. And I say this as someone who Does Not Want That.

Interpreting a text (or in this case a tv show) allows for a lot of different analysis. You might reasonably disagree with me on what the season five finale meant. But the facts of the matter, Sam sacrificed himself with Dean’s okay and somehow ending up out of hell. That’s not in dispute. That’s what happened.

And I can almost guarantee that the series finale will be the same. It’ll be about Sam and Dean. That’s the text. Where the wiggle room will come from is interpreting what that last plot point means for Sam and Dean, their relationship, and the narrative as a whole. 

I am not saying this from a position of, like, high knowledge. It’s just basic understanding of the text in the most fundamental of ways. It’s about Sam and Dean, it’ll always be about Sam and Dean. Everything else is second fiddle to their love story.

Dean/Cas, on the off chance it’s undeniable canon. Even if Dean’s reaction to Cas coming back to life is to stick his tongue down Cas’ mouth or putting a ring on it... the final beats of the story are going to be about Sam and Dean. Any interpretation that ignores the very basic building block of this story (the relationship between Sam and Dean) is just gonna miss the mark.

And I just am ?????? 

There’s a good chance the last final beat of the show for Cas is his confession. Two episodes before the finale. Because he’s a secondary character and his story can easily wrap up before getting to the true ending of Sam and Dean: literal soul mates. 

[dailyaudiobible]

01/19/2021 DAB Transcript

Genesis 39:1-41:16, Matthew 12:46-13:23, Psalms 17:1-15, Proverbs 3:33-35

Today is the 19th day of January welcome to the Daily Audio Bible I am Brian it is a joy as it is every day to be here with you as we come in out of whatever's going on and come around the warmth of the Global Campfire as a community to take the next step forward. We’re reading from the New International Version this week. And just as a reminder we’ve been working through Abraham, right, Isaac, and then Jacob. And then Jacobs children because those are the children of Israel. And now we are focused and on one of those children, the story of Joseph who has been sold into slavery by his own brothers and he's making his way to Egypt. That's where we left him and we’ll pick up with that story. Genesis chapter 39 verse 1 through 41 verse 16 today.

Commentary:

Okay. A couple of things for us to look at. First in the book of Genesis, we are working our way into and through the story of Joseph, like I’ve said we’ve zoomed in on this one son of Israel, this one child of Israel, Joseph. So, let’s just look at the turns the story has taken at this point. Joseph is 17 years old. He is the favorite child of his father. He has these dreams that one day his family, especially his brothers will bow down before him. His older brothers hate him, and they eventually decide to kill him but instead they traffic him. They sell him to some Ishmaelites who take him to Egypt and sell him. I mean we could just stop there and go, “that is a sudden dramatic turn for the worse in your life if you are like still high school age and your family traffics you and you are taken to another country.” Yeah, that's bad news. We hear of those kinds of stories in the world today. So, we have some context for what Joseph is going through. Can you imagine the fear, the uncertainty, the loneliness for your father for your family, but then the knowledge that you had been betrayed by your brothers, your family, and that's what landed you in Egypt up for sale? So, then Joseph is fortunately bought, if you want to call it fortunate, by Potiphar, the captain of the guard for the king of Egypt. So, that’s a high ranking official. And Joseph proves that he is resourceful, that he is able to manage things. And the Bible tells us that he's well-built and good-looking. So, maybe Joseph is in pretty decent position if he has to have been sold into slavery because eventually, he is in charge of the household. But we know how the story goes. Potter's wife sees all of the attributes of Joseph and wants those attributes to accompany her into the bedroom. And he will not do it. And he will not do it until the point…like she's pressing in on him like on…on a regular basis until he finally has to flee, leaving his cloak, leaving evidence. She lies about him. This is guy, a 17, 18-year-old guy that is good-looking and has all of the hormones of an 18-year-old guy and he does the right thing. And, in exchange for his loyalty and fealty to his master he ends up in a dungeon. He’s eventually in charge of the dungeon. Eventually there are other officials in the dungeon, and he interprets dreams. The dreams come true and Joseph is forgotten for another two years. The thing that's going on here that we should pay attention to is that Joseph has been trying to do everything right and only bad things are happening. He’s doing the right thing and only worse is happening. So, we could commiserate with Joseph on some level in…in at least affirming that he has a right to feel bitter. Like, he has a right to feel like he's been betrayed and that he's not loved or cared for and that even God is not looking down upon him favorably in any sort of way because every time he tries to be honorable something worse happens. So, you would almost believe the Joseph has a right to sit in that dungeon rotting away in bitterness and depression and loneliness. He could shake his fists up at the sky and say, “this is not fair.” That's probably how we would behave. It’s…it would be understandable. It's just not in the story. That's just not how Joseph conducted himself. Somehow despite it all, and he's been betrayed on so many levels, despite it all he doesn't think this is God's fault. He thinks God is his only hope. And we should remember that. We should remember that today and every day and we should remember that as we press forward tomorrow into the continuation of the story.

And then we get into the book of Matthew and Jesus is teaching in parables. And parables are like illustrations stories, stories that are told that have a deeper meaning. And if you can understand the parallel or the metaphors being used then you can unlock the deeper meaning and have greater understanding. And this is one of the reasons that Jesus was known as a wisdom teacher because parables are a staple of…of wisdom teaching. So, the parable that we read that Jesus taught today in the book of Matthew is a famous one. And, so, it’s likely that we've heard this story before about the seed being thrown on different kinds of ground and what happens to that seed. And then Jesus unpacking that the seed is the word of God that goes out and people hear it and then the ground is the metaphor for the people that receive that seed or that word and how it works out in their lives. And that's clear enough that we could go back and examine our own lives to find out what kind of soil is in our heart. Like, we may need to get some rocky stuff out of our lives so that we can become fully good soil. And that's the point of this teaching. But let's look behind this because understanding this is a distinctive of Jesus style of communicating is important. He's using these parables for a reason. When we watch Jesus walk into a room we don't see him just adapt and kind of fade in and fit in. We see Jesus walk into a room and call out what is really happening there, the story behind the story. Like, what's in any room…like if we go to a party…what's in any room? All kinds of people who are catching up on all kinds of things who are mostly probably friends in some way. But we walk into these things with sort of a mask on. We’re bringing in what we believe to be the best presentation of our personality and the best curated stories of how our life is going. And behind all of that is the truth about everything. Everybody in this room that we’re talking about, everybody at this gathering or party that we’re talking about has a story behind the story. And the story behind the story is the true story, not the presented curated story. So. when we watch Jesus operate in the world, He only addresses the story behind the story. He is only calling out the truth of the matter, whether that be to the religious Pharisees or whether that be to the villagers. He is calling out the truth. But people don't know how to see that way. We like our measure of darkness where we can hide plenty of stuff. And then when the light comes and shines into the darkness what's in the dark starts squirming. What Jesus is offering, although it's provocative and causes all kinds of problems, what Jesus is doing here and what we hear him say all the time is, “do you have eyes to see and ears to hear.” And what he’s saying is, “the kingdom of heaven is at hand. It is here now. Can you not perceive it? Can't you see it? Can't you hear it?” And then He models how we would begin to see it. Because isn't this our prayer? Don't we pray this, “God, let me see Your kingdom. Let me participate, let me see where you're going, let me see what you're doing so that I can fall in alignment.” Do we not pray these prayers? Jesus is showing us through His ministry how it's done eyes to see, ears to hear. The story behind the story is the truth and if you can see the truth and if you can live true then you can see the kingdom and the kingdom comes crashing in and it is utter freedom because there is no reason to be false. There is no identity in curating our lives, our identity comes from our Father, we are children of the most-high God. There’s nothing to hide no matter what anybody might say. And yet we live hiding right? Back to Genesis 3 naked and ashamed and hiding all of our lives, when Jesus is simply saying, “that's not how humanity was designed, that this wasn't the way for you. You had and have perfect permission to be true. You can be true.” Which doesn't mean you just run around telling everybody the truth, the hard truth, the truth in love and you just add everybody. It's you inside yourself. You don't have to be false. You can be true. And when you begin to see that inside yourself you are cultivating eyes to see and ears to hear all around you. The kingdom of heaven is at hand all around us. We will find it in the story behind the story, the true one. And let's watch that. Like, let's take it on board we need it. This needs to sink in. This is how to live. But watch how many times Jesus talks about eyes to see and ears to hear as we continue through the Gospels. Watch how much of a theme this is. Watch how He's trying to open the eyes of humanity to show them there is a better way. You can lay down the darkness and walk away from what's false and just be, be who you are. You don't have to measure up. The culture is creating all of the demands on you but in the end, they don't mean anything. We are already children of the most-high God. There’s nothing else to achieve here other than to live true and show others that there is freedom in the light when we walk away from what is false and dark.

Prayer:

Jesus this is so fundamental to…to Your teachings and to this faith and yet it is so seldom brought forward. And yet this changes everything, a new way to see, a new way to hear that will lead us into truth, into all truth. And, so, what else can we ask for but eyes to see and ears to hear? And, so, we’re asking. Help us to begin to see what's going on behind what's presented. Help us to look for the truth and may begin in our own hearts because it's so easy to look into somebody else's life and make assumptions about what's going on in their world when that is like trying to get the speck out of our brother's eye while we have a log in our own. Help us to begin to see the story behind the story inside of ourselves. Help us to live true from within we pray. In the name of Jesus, we ask. Amen.

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And that's it for today. I’m Brian I love you and I'll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer and Praise:

Hey everyone it’s Margo from Australia soon to be leaving to go back to Liberia. And this parts the hard part. It’s very hard whenever I have to leave Australia. So, I’m asking for prayer for this transition. We’ve been in Australia for an extended period this time because of Covid and it’s also gonna be quite complicated to get back to Liberia the way things are. We have to get a negative Covid test here then we have to stop over in London and get another negative Covid test. Then we go to Uganda and we’ve got to have a couple weeks there for some more training for my husband. And then we have to have another negative test, Covid test to go to Liberia. And like everyone I really wish the world wasn’t a like this. But at the moment we are leaving on Saturday and it’s such a wrenching every time I have to go. Once I get there, I know I’ll settle in and I’ll…I’ll get back into the swing of things, but the leaving is so hard. I don’t want to leave my three sons, my mom, my sisters, all the comforts of Australia go back to a culture that I don’t understand yet. And a lot of the time I can’t understand the people. And I know it’s my calling and I love what I do. I love it I truly do but sometimes I’m just very aware of how hard it can be, and I would love your prayers. I just want to be able to really feel the presence of Jesus with me as we set off again and I want to be constantly reminded of why am doing this and the fact that it is an honor to suffer for Jesus in any way. Okay guys. Love you all heeps. Thanks for praying.

Good morning this is little Carol 1960 calling from Lancaster County Pennsylvania and I just want to say this place is my oxygen. I just can’t even express…I cannot even express how this has been a blanket and also solid ground for me through very difficult times. And those of you who call in my heart both goes out to you and I have compassion and empathy for you. I pray for you. You also are such an encouragement to me. And I just want to share a little bit. My life has been like a novel. I won’t go into it now. I will perhaps later. But been…going…went…lived through some almost death experiences -violent home, runaway etc. And the Lord carried me through. He…He knew me before I was even born. And I just see signs of that all through my life but there’s something that happened recently that just knocked my feet out from under me and it was due to my own sin and my own choice. And now I am alone, my church has asked me to leave. I had an affair with someone within the church. I was in a lonely, lonely marriage for so long and I fell. My children have left me. I only have this one person in my life who loves me. And I just want to say shame is very real and conviction is very real and pain is very real, but I hope that this really helps us to __ ...

Hello this is Wonderfully Made in Albuquerque. I have a prayer request. But before I share the prayer request, I need to share something about myself. I haven’t explained why I’ve called myself Wonderfully Made. So, I’m going to. So, I have a distinct mark on my face, and it’s been there since I was about a month old because of a…a tumor that was removed from my face. It was a malignant tumor and the doctors had to remove it or else I would’ve died. So, it’s been there ever since and I’ve learned at a very very young age that…well…God looks at the inward appearance, at the heart, man looks at the outward appearance. And also, one of my life versus is from Psalm 139, I praise you. Your works are wonderful I know that full well. I praise you for I’m fearfully and wonderfully made. And I probably got that mixed up but it’s from Psalm 139. So, I thought when I started calling into DAB that that would be the name I’d give myself. And, so, that’s what I am wonderfully made. But there are times when I don’t feel wonderfully made and today is of those and I’m running out of time to go deeper into it. So, I’ll just ask for prayers that I will look to the Lord and trust that what He has made is wonderful. So, thank you. Goodbye.

Hello DAB family this is Sunset Cindy on January 15th and I just listened to Jeremy Neff from Southern Oregon and I was deeply moved that he’s invited us all into his journey. He’s talking about hospice is coming up for him and he can see the end of his timeline. He can see that his journey might be ending unless the Lord intervenes with a miracle which I pray for. And also, I pray for strength for him and his family. There is such a deep compassion I can hear in his voice for the word of the Lord and how deeply grateful he is that he got to read through the Bible. I too read through the Bible for the first time with you all last year and I'm deeply grateful. His love for the word and his love for the Lord are sustaining him and I want to tell him I'll be lifting him up in prayer as well. Whenever he comes to mind, I pray the Lord brings him to mind when he's needing some encouragement, I'll be offering that up to the Lord for him. Thank you, Jeremy for including us in your journey and Lord bless you and keep you and Lord bless and keep your family safe. Amen. God bless you all. I love you.

Hi this is Radiant Rachel I'd like to lift up Jeremy Neff and his family to you Lord today. I'm just praying that you will comfort them and that you will walk with them through…through the year and I pray healing over Jeremy. I pray that he does not have chemo or radiation backlash and I pray that his body begins to heal. And Lord I just pray that your will will be done and that you will bring healing and restoration to the family and…and peace and joy in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Hello Daily Audio Bible this is Janelle living in China. I hope it's OK that I’m calling again in the same month. I am currently on December 19th. So, I'm a little less than a month behind at this point. Hoping to catch up soon. Still haven't been completely as consistently listening everyday as I would like but I had heard a prayer that I think played on December 16th or 17th. The caller was Quiet Confidence. And quiet confidence you were talking about how you wanted to go home. And, oh sister I can relate to that. About three years ago I was in a severely depressed state and I was never suicidal, but I had that same phrase running through my mind. And I know that my situation and your situation are not the same, but I've been through something similar and I've come through the other side and I hope that by this point on January 19th you are doing much better and if you're not I hope you can hang in there and that you can pray this prayer that I found helped me and I hope will help you as well. Holy Spirit give me peace. It's a prayer that I found actually eases tension in my muscles. Even if it's just for 30 seconds it's enough to get through that 30 seconds. And sometimes that's all you need. Just keep praying that. Thank you. Bye.

[mrlnsfrt]

Plot Twists and Surprise Endings

The story so far.

Joseph’s brothers had returned to their father, Jacob, bringing grain and bad news. Simeon had stayed as a prisoner in Egypt, and when they went back to buy more grain they would need to bring their youngest brother, Benjamin. Jacob told his sons that they had bereaved him. Genesis 42:36

The Famine Was Severe

As much as Jacob wanted to keep Benjamin from going to Egypt he did not have any option in the matter. Jacob could either let Benjamin go or starve along with his household. This was not only about him but about his sons and grandchildren, and servants, and animals who were all under his care. At this points the need to survive superseded Jacob’s preferences and his fears. Though in his heart wanted Benjamin to stay, in his mind he understood he must let Benjamin go down to Egypt.

Judah spoke up and offered himself as surety for his brother Benjamin. Genesis 43:9

Place yourself in Jacob’s shoes for a moment. His whole life he loved one woman, Rachel. He was tricked by his uncle and married Leah. But Jacob never loved Leah, though Leah gave him one daughter and six sons. Jacob loved Rachel, who was barren for many years. Finally, Rachel gives birth to a son, Joseph, who Jacob now believes to have been killed. Rachel also gave birth to another boy, Benjamin, and sadly she died (Genesis 35:16-20). How would you have felt if the love of your life had died, and then you lost your favorite son, her firstborn? Now all you have from her, her only living son, must leave for a dangerous trip to a foreign country with a ruler who seems to not like your family. If I was Jacob I would be having a very difficult time. I would be wondering where God was. It was God who called Jacob to return to the land of Canaan. Genesis 31:13 more details on my blog post “Mighty to Save”. Why would God allow all this to happen? Where was God? What about all of God’s promises to protect, provide and be with him? Was this not the land that God was giving him and to his descendants (Genesis 35:9-12)?

Do you ever find yourself facing severe famine and feeling like you are slowly losing all that you love and hold dear? Does your faith hold strong when you feel cursed and abandoned by God?

Facing Your Past

Broken relationships have a way of coming back to hurt you repeatedly. Joseph and his brothers were experiencing this. They suffered while apart and now continued to cause one another to suffer. The Bible tells us that Joseph’s heart yearned for his brother Benjamin (Genesis 43:30) yet he is not ready to allow himself to love and embrace. Joseph longs for reconciliation but he is not ready for it, not yet, he had been through too much. How should he deal with his brothers? I imagine Joseph had given this much thought. It is unclear how much time had elapsed since his brothers had last seen him. We don’t know how long Simeon had been in an Egyptian prison. The brothers meet again. Joseph has the power to punish, torture, enslave, imprison, or even kill his brothers for what they did to him. But would that undo the past? Is that what God was calling him to do? Was that God’s will for his life? What about God’s plans for the lives of his brothers?

Joseph had been extremely mistreated and abused in his lifetime. It would be understandable for him to be bitter, angry, to want revenge, for him to be scarred and have trust issues. But God had been with him. He was alive, he was successful, he had been blessed after all. Would Joseph use his blessings to bless those around him or would he hoard the blessings and use them to make himself more powerful?

With your permission, I would like to imagine a scenario and I invite you to join me in this exercise of our imagination. Imagine Joseph uses his current power and influence to destroy all who had hurt him. He could enslave his brothers. Joseph could throw Potiphar in prison, and have Potiphar’s wife executed. Joseph could send Pharaoh’s cupbearer to prison for a couple of years since he forgot about Joseph in prison for two years (Genesis 40:23-41:1,9-13). Since Joseph had interpreted the dreams and married the daughter of a priest, I imagine it would not have taken much for him to convince the people that God was on his side and that he should be Pharaoh. Joseph could have made a power play and even taken advantage of his food storage to wage economic warfare and essentially dominate the portion of the ancient world that was being affected by the famine.

I know we just imagined this scenario, but I believe this to have been a possible outcome, perhaps even a temptation for Joseph. When you have power and wealth, you can afford to be your true self. You don’t have to be nice, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. When you have all the power and wealth, you only have to forgive and be kind if you want to. At least temporarily speaking (disregarding eternal consequences). Do we continue to behave like Christians when we have the power to be selfish and get away with it? Do we forgive and seek to make peace with those who have wronged us when we could punish those who have hurt us?

Joseph longed for a mended, loving relationship with his brothers, at least with Benjamin for sure. But earlier in his life, his brothers had made that all but impossible. Now, would he give them a second chance?

Had Joseph’s brothers changed? Were they still selfish and jealous? The way Joseph treats them in Genesis 43-44 seems to indicate that he was testing them. Perhaps Joseph was still trying to decide what he would do to them, whether or not he would forgive them.

As the story unfolds we learn that Joseph’s brothers have changed, they honestly want to protect and care for Benjamin. In Genesis 44:16 Judah even confesses that God had found out their iniquity, which is odd since they had not stolen Joseph’s cup unless Judah is talking about their iniquity regarding something else, perhaps regarding the well-being of their missing brother.

Judah’s Speech

Judah then delivers a speech, but not just any speech.

This speech has appropriately been called one of the masterpieces of Hebrew literary composition, one of the finest specimens of natural eloquence in the world. - The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Volume 1

—the speech of Judah in behalf of his young brother Benjamin has been fittingly characterised as “one of the masterpieces of Hebrew composition” (Kalisch), “one of the grandest and fairest to be found in the Old Testament” (Lange), “a more moving oration than ever orator pronounced” (Lawson), “one of the finest specimens of natural eloquence in the world” (Inglis). Without being distinguished by either brilliant imagination or highly poetic diction, “its inimitable charm and excellence consist in the power of psychological truth, easy simplicity, and affecting pathos” (Kalisch)— - The Pulpit Commentary: Genesis

​

The encounter between Joseph and his brothers has now reached its climactic moment. A personal appeal to the great man is Judah’s last desperate resort. He pours out his heart in what is the longest speech in the Book of Genesis, although it could not have lasted more than five minutes. - The JPS Torah Commentary: Genesis

Judah’s speech moves Joseph so deeply that Joseph could no longer hold back his emotions. Sending everyone else out of the room and reveals himself to his brothers. Joseph wept so loud the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard it (Genesis 45:2).

The Final Outcome

Ultimately Joseph chooses to forgive his brothers and to mend their broken relationship. He chooses the path of reconciliation. He realizes his brothers had also been suffering, and he decides to put an end to that cycle. Joseph interprets all these events as being used by God in order to ultimately bring about the salvation of many. However, this does not mean that what his brothers did was acceptable in any way. I believe that God could have brought about the same outcome without the lies and betrayal. But God was able to use even the sinful actions of Joseph’s brothers to bring about salvation because Joseph was willing to remain faithful to God and to continue to trust Him even when suffering incredible abuse and unfairness.

There is so much in these last few chapters of Genesis that we could explore, but the year is coming to a close and we have been studying the Book of Genesis for almost 3 years so I will leave a deeper study of these passages for another time. I feel like we must stop and I would like to conclude with the words spoken by Joseph recorded in Genesis 50:20.

But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. - The New King James Version

Takeaway

Joseph recognized that his own brothers wished to do him harm. You must also likewise recognize that people may wish to do you harm. They may persecute and abuse you. But God can take you and still use you to bless others. No one can keep you from being used by God except you. When you choose God, even your worst moments can become a source of strength and blessing for someone else. Your scars and your pain may be what God uses to touch a life that no one else could reach.

Reading Genesis we have learned that God loves plot twists and surprising endings. As I mentioned earlier, it is December, a time when we talk about the birth of Jesus. The earthly life and ministry of Jesus is the clearest and most extreme example of how all the wickedness of this planet and even supernatural beings are unable to thwart God’s plans. As the Apostle Paul put it in 1 Corinthians 1:27

But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; The New King James Version

When you feel weak, when you feel beat down, when you feel betrayed, and alone, and abandoned, just remember that God can take you, if you are willing, and use you to save many people alive. People may mean evil against you, but God can turn it around and use it for good.

[howwelldoyouknowyourmoon]

Young Oon Kim hinted that Moon was not the messiah, but only in the line of the messiah.

▲ Allen Tate Wood with Miss Young Oon Kim in about 1971.

Moonstruck: A memoir of my life in a cult

by Allen Tate Wood (published in 1979)

extracts from pages 82-84 and pages 134-138

National headquarters was at 1611 Upshur Street, N.W., a big, funny old house with a double-pointed roof in a nice upper-middle-class black neighborhood with lots of big, shady maple trees. The building had once been the Libyan embassy. I was shown to a small room among the many on the second floor. There I would sleep on the blue close-cropped rug, because everyone in the Unified Family slept on the floor except Miss Kim, who did not either because she was a saint or because she was older or because she was rather frail.

▲ 1611 Upshur St NW, Washington, DC.

I had arrived during the dinner hour, and after I had brought my stuff to the room I joined the group of twenty-five or thirty seated at the two long cafeteria-style tables down in the linoleum-floored basement. Miss Kim sat at the end of one table and I was seated next to her. I was somewhat awed by Miss Kim. I knew her from the photograph that appeared on the back of the early editions of the Divine Principle, which she had translated. That picture showed a Korean maiden of about thirty-two in Oriental dress. She had an oval face, even features, lovely dark eyes and a mouth full and yet disciplined.

Now I saw her some eighteen years later and she was still pretty. Her hair was still long and jet black and she wore it pinned up. What her movements and posture now showed especially, and what the portrait had not been able to convey entirely, was how feminine and graceful she was.

I don’t remember what I ate that first meal, but I do remember Miss Kim’s quiet, gentle exploration of my personality. She asked me many questions about myself, but never in a rude stand-and-deliver manner that I might have expected from someone who so obviously held the respect of everyone in the room. She asked about the trip and observed that I must be exhausted, wanted to know about my education, my religious background, my hopes for the future, about my family and where I was from.

“Princeton,” I answered.

“I thought that was a university.” Her English was precise, pronounced delicately.

“It is. It is also a nice town. Many people are confused by that.”

“It is not so far from here?”

“No, not at all.”

“Will you visit your parents?”

“Yes, of course. We are a close family. I have not seen them for four months.”

“You have not seen them since you joined us?”

“No.”

“Have you written them?”

“Yes.”

“What do they say?”

“They don’t really seem to understand. But this has been a rather confusing time for us. They will.”

“They may not. I would not be surprised, Allen, if they never do. Most of us here are not old like me, but young. Many times families are the enemies of religious experience. Jesus said: ‘For I am come to set man at variance against his father. A man’s foes shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me.’ Be prepared for the worst. Your family will oppose you in this. They will try to take you from us.”

This was not the first time nor the last time I would hear such sentiments. I had heard them many times already at Berkeley. We had been a young group, nearly all in our way dropouts, some of us deeply hurt, even maimed by the conflict with our society, and tales of ferocious fights with parents were commonplace.

________________________________________

pages 134-138

… I was demoted even further. I would not be a lecturer in Level III. I was going back to being a student. I was aghast. I had been expecting to be reinstated, like Frank and Neil Salonen, but here I was getting pushed even further down.

I went to Miss Kim. She was the power behind the power. She was everyone’s confidante; she knew all that was going on behind the scenes. And she had always liked me, favored me.

I remember talking to her as the late afternoon light faded in the kitchen. She sat with her elbows on the plastic tablecloth. Behind her on the shelves our motley, tacky collection of dishes was stacked. In the background the refrigerator hummed.

I told her the whole story in a great state of agitation. As I spoke she pulled the pins from her hair, which I had never seen down. Her beautiful blue-black hair cascaded about her shoulders. It was thick and long. It reached down to the middle of her back. There was greater meaning in the gesture, I thought. I felt I was seeing the unveiling of a celestial being. What she said did not disappoint me.

Miss Kim had always been a critical follower of the Reverend Moon. Once she had told me that she believed he had some years ago lost his ability to read minds and travel in the astral world. That was why he had to employ the three mediums now. Once she had hinted that Moon was not the messiah, but only in the line of the messiah. He was an Abraham figure, and his son or his grandson would be the true messiah. This was utter heresy, of course, and this was in the back of my mind as Miss Kim spoke.

“Do not worry, young Allen. Frank has many problems and you must bear with him. All this will smooth out later. Meanwhile, I have powers myself. I will look after you. You are under my protection.”

I left the interview completely satisfied. I felt that I had the blessing of a real-life good witch of the East. I did not know exactly what she meant, but I had faith in her. I recalled what had happened the last time I had come to her discouraged. I did become a student in Level III, and I bore with it the best I could. I was a good follower, and by November came the news that made me determined to remain one. The Reverend Moon was coming here!

In December 1971, about a week before Christmas, Moon was present for our Level III graduation, which was held at a church we rented across the street. We had been renting its basement for our Sunday services for a long time. I got a small printed certificate saying that I had graduated from Level III. Presumably I was rehabilitated.

Moon stayed in the Upshur Street house, in the “parents’ room,” which was a room we kept in every center, specially furnished and waiting, should the day come for the visit of Our Leader. He lay low for about a week. He watched a lot and he conferred privately with many people. I was not one of them; I was no longer in the inner circle. Then, on the day before Christmas, he came out of his room and began to speak. And he kept on preaching all through Christmas and on to the beginning of the new year, for the greater part of seven consecutive days.

Moon talked for many hours each day, until people began to fall asleep, and he would awaken them with a shout or a shake or even a slap across the face.

He told us many things. He told us that the messiah was now in the new Rome, that as of now he had made far more progress than Jesus ever had, though he was also far short of completing his mission. But from now on, his mission was here. Moon would not perform miracles, by the way, because miracles were merely crowd pleasers, nothing serious. Jesus’ miracles were a sign of failure, Moon said.

Moon retold the parables of the Bible, adding his own interpretations. Mrs. Won-bok Choi, the medium, translated for him, as she continued to do when he was in the United States and speaking more or less privately, to his own followers. When he spoke publicly, as he was preparing to do, for his mission was taking outward shape, Colonel Pak was the translator.

Moon told us about the nature of sin. The main duality in God’s creation was between good and evil. To do evil was to sin, but since everyone thought of themselves as good, how did we know when we were sinning? The answer was that when we were working for ourselves, we were sinning. When we were working for others, we could be sure that we were doing good. Even if we did things that seemed good to others, if we did these things out of our own vanity and egoism, then we were doing evil. Motive counted very heavily in Moon’s system. Just as we could lie for good motives, and thus be doing God’s work, we could tell the truth for bad motives and be doing Satan’s will.

Such a psychology kept us at constant war with ourselves, and if it succeeded in its aims, our energy would be constantly projected outward. Moon’s was not a religion of introspection, of mysticism, of finding a oneness with God or Nature, nor even a religion of peace or beauty. It was rather a path of action. He would tell us what to think, and our duty was to obey him. His was the perfect religion for those who wished to escape from themselves.

In those seven days Moon mapped out a plan of action and told it to us. He would begin a One World Crusade and he would speak for three days in each of seven cities. A number of us would be formed into mobile bus teams, whose job would be to go into each city as an advance guard. These people would rent the hall for him to speak, sell tickets, do publicity, preach in the streets and then, when at last the Master arrived, move on to the next city on the list and do the same thing. About all this there was an atmosphere of breathless urgency. This was not something that was to happen in the far future or even the near future, but right now. It was to begin even before the month of January was out.

But that was only part of the beginning of his mission, merely the bringing of the word. After having gotten our followers, we wanted to hold them. For that we needed more centers, at least one in every state, including Hawaii and Alaska. Despite our best efforts so far, we had centers in only eight states. We would immediately send out missionaries to all the other states.

In those seven days Moon also prayed many times, and each prayer ended with him in tears. He pulled out his big white handkerchief, snapped it open with a flourish, wiped his eyes and blew his nose. He even sang to us at times; his voice was not pretty, but it was powerful. He sounded like a wounded water buffalo. Moon’s voice had great range, and sometimes, in contrast to the low ranges of his singing, it rose in passion to a mere mouse’s squeak. All in all he was a gigantic, an enveloping personality.

One of the sad things that happened for those of us who knew and loved Miss Kim—and particularly for me, since I was under her protection—was that Moon deposed her, abruptly, impatiently, bitterly, though privately. He was angry; he told her she had failed. We heard that he told her she must assume in regard to him the role of a child. She must learn everything all over again.

______________________________________________

Young-oon Kim – it all ended in flames and tears for the professor

Newsweek on the many Korean messiahs of the 1970s

Park Tae-seon – another Korean Pikareum Messiah

Kim Baek-moon talked about “sexual union with God”

[a-very-fond-farewell]

Bagginshield North & South au 1/4

Ok folks, I thought about how to make a North & South au (based on the BBC miniseries, not the actual book) without looking at any fic on the matter, because I didn’t want to be influenced by their (certainly brilliant) adaptations. So bear with me for the time being.

This is just a list of things that I would like to see in a N&S!au fic... but I have no energy to write that myself.

ATTN!1: I have changed many things, and it came out pretty angsty, with lots of pining and secrets that must be kept at all costs. 

ATTN!2: I would have loved to explore the trans!Bilbo trope (either transwoman!Bilbo or transman!Bilbo), but I feel like I’m not the right person to give this idea the justice it deserves. I’m sure someone else could feel empowered in exploring that particular trope on their own, so it would be better for me not to rob them of such an opportunity.

ATTN!3: I’m just a nonbinary bean with terrible grammar and a knack for angst, also English is not my first language. I WILL ADD TO THIS.

Enjoy!

First Part:

In the mining town of Erebor, up north where the weather is crisp and the fog is as blinding as ever, the main source of income comes from the mithril veins hidden deep into the Lonely Mountain. Still fairly unknown to the masses as a viable alternative to steel for industrial products, mithril is considered to be nothing but a lower metal of very little use a part from being modeled as framing works for jewelry coming from the west.

Bilbo Baggins has followed his parents in this particular corner of the world after certain indiscretions had spread in the southern town of Bag End. At his cousin Prim’s wedding in London the previous summer, in fact, Bilbo had found himself rejecting the unwanted advances of a certain gentleman right before being discovered by his mother as the two men were parting ways from a very heated discussion in a secluded room.

In order to not let others know about such circumstances, Belladonna had shared her intention with her sister Mirabella to uproot in the north, at least until the rumors had dissipated. Bungo, as loving and trusting as ever, had simply accepted her decision and disposed for them all to move to Erebor. In doing so, he had consequently left his position as a parish in Bag End, not wavering in his faith, but merely willing to give his family what they needed to be happy.

Bilbo himself is no longer a lad: close to reach his thirties, many have speculated around the truth about his sudden return to his father’s home leaving his studies at Oxford out of the blue. Up until now, Bungo had protected his son by simply stating to the citizens of Bag End how needed Bilbo was, and Belladonna had made sure no mouths could run and shame her son in the meantime. But those days are over now, and their new town might not be as easily outsmarted this time around.

Heavy with sorrow for making his family move, Bilbo has resigned to keeping his life on check from now on, willing to sacrifice his happiness in order to keep his parents safe and healthy. Not being able to walk without a cane after his last days at Oxford, Bilbo finds himself constantly torn between revealing what had happened there and run away from all those eyes watching his every move. Luckily, in Erebor no one expects much of him, and any possible question regarding his lack of employment while he could no more benefit from being the only son of a parish is met with a simple gesture towards his bad leg. People seem complacent enough to overlook his poor excuse of a lie as long as they can speculate over his father’s decision to move up north.

Filled with guilt at the inability to defend his father against the rumors, Bilbo is reassured over and over again by his mother that they had made the right decision. The price for her understanding, however, seems to be an even greater burden for Bilbo: never speak of his true nature ever again, not even to his parents. Not even to himself.

Gandalf Gray, an old friend of Bungo’s, close enough to the family to understand the implications of their sudden uprooting, has decided to take Bilbo under his wing and show him around while his father has a chance to meet the pupils Mr. Gray has gathered for him to talk to. Having traveled all other the world, Mr. Gray is not new to the hardships Bilbo has encountered and his honesty and desire to help comforts Bilbo while he navigates the wastelands of melancholy that moving so far away has ensued.

While visiting one of the many mines belonging to the Durinson household, Bilbo finds himself shocked at the sight of its master beating one of his miners out of the mountain in a fit of rage. Little does he know what perils hide into the tunnels eroding the Lonely Mountain one inch at a time, or what are the dangers that fire and gas can bring to those working in the dark, with only the aid of candles and caged birds to save them from death.

Still, Bilbo tries to reason with said master, not knowing Thorin to be their landlord and one of his father’s pupils on top of that. Only thanks to Mr. Gray Bilbo is spared from Thorin’s anger by introducing him as a dear friend of his, but this doesn’t protect Bilbo from receiving yet another shock as the man simply turns and strides away after the worker he had just beaten up.

Meeting the man in his own home later that very same week, Bilbo is confronted with the absolute necessity from his part to embody a perfect son and the perfect guest, no matter how much he despises sharing a room with their landlord. But given the circumstances, he tries not to think about him too much while Bungo teaches Thorin all about philosophy and literature: he listens to their lessons half expecting to be invited to share his thoughts on his father’s many interpretations of the ancient sources... but eventually feeling much more at ease staying quiet by his armchair while the other two talk.

Judging from Thorin’s curiosity and will to learn, Bilbo convinces himself to have misjudged the man based on what he had seen at the mines, and later on investigates the matter further with his father and with Mr. Gray over a cup of tea. Apparently, after the sudden death of both of his parents when he was just a child, Thorin, his brother Frerin and their older sister Dis had been entrusted to the care of their grandfather, Thror: a man driven mad by his lust for gold to the point he had closed the mines twenty years before just to barricade himself inside the mountain in search of a vein of gold that never existed. Thorin’s little brother Frerin, small enough to wiggle his way in between the wooden bars Thror had used to close the openings, had looked for his grandfather anywhere before the main tunnel had collapsed on both of them one cold night of December.

Horrified by such a discovery, Bilbo has already spent many a day trying to find the courage to apologize to Thorin by the time he meets Bain, Sigrid and Tilda. The boy and his younger sister approaches him one day at the park, reminiscing of the way he had confronted Thorin at the entrance of the mine, where Bain works as well, while their older sister seems a little wary of Bilbo and apologizes to him for disturbing him so suddenly. On the other hand, Bilbo is overjoyed to have been met with such enthusiasm after weeks of isolation from actual social interaction and offers the siblings to walk them home... just as their father Bard comes into the picture, assuring Bilbo his services are not needed.

Intrigued by that little family, Bilbo tries to know more about them by lurking around the wooden houses destined to the miners skirting the suburban area at the bottom of the mountain, determined to pay them a visit with a basket of food to thank the kids for their kindness to him. Here, Bilbo gets to know the families of many of the miners, all relatively close to each other be it for family ties or friendship alone, that -surprisingly enough- seem more than happy to teach him a thing or two on how to survive the likes of Erebor and its masters.

From them comes the realization of how exactly Thror had compromised the economy of the city when he had closed the mines twenty years before. Many of the workers had found themselves jobless that year and, after the main tunnel had been deemed too dangerous to cross, new masters had come to the city and made their way with new holes into the mountain with no regards for safety.  So many holes, indeed, that some workers avoided entering the Lonely Mountain for fear it could fall onto itself at any moment. 

In all this, Thorin had been only sixteen and had to provide for his family now that his only guardian had perished in the depths of the main tunnel along with his little brother. Dis had been twenty then, and married a man coming from one of the richest families in town, who had provided for her and for their two sons up until his death, fifteen years before. Thorin, who had been fired to leave his studies in order to gain back his family’s honor by working for other masters, at twenty-one had made enough of a name for himself to be able to care for his older sister and nephews once more, as the customs required.

Dis, on the other hand, after losing her parents, grandfather, brother and husband, had accepted to go back home to her younger brother feeling like a caged animal, but not ungrateful enough to disregard the importance of the mines that brought them stability and wealth. Thorin, on the other hand, getting sterner by the year and low in spirits because of his newfound role as the head of their household, had become extremely protective of his family... just as much as Dis herself, the both of them manifesting some of the traits their own grandfather had shown by the time his obsession had piqued. 

Even Bard and his kids had been willing to share some information with him by the time Bilbo discovers exactly how far the Durinson’s had prevented the growth of the town by limiting the number of caves under their watch. Bard himself seems set on hating the siblings for life, convinced the mountain could offer work to everybody without restrictions if only the Durinson’s were to let more people inside. He insists that gold lies under that mountain and that not even the Durinson’s should claim that vein for themselves while other masters have promised a job for everyone in town were the Durinson household to perish.

Struck by all those new revelations, one day Bilbo finds himself too overwhelmed to properly welcome Dis Durinson and her sons inside their home while his mother gets dressed upstairs. The woman strikes an imposing figure, just like her brother, dressed in all black with sober, yet quite beautiful blue earrings bringing out the coldness of her light-blue eyes. The oldest of her sons, affectionately called Kili by her, is roughly eighteen or nineteen years old and seems agreeable enough, asking Bilbo what wonders he has seen in London and what the south has to offer: curiosity getting the best of him contrary to his mother’s best judgment. Fili, instead, looks more lost than anything, not young enough to depend on his mother approval, but still not quite old enough to rebel against her composure and regal attitude. 

Then, just as his mother welcomes them in her house, Bilbo notices how Belladonna has lost weight and how skirmish she looks. Being so distracted himself by his quest for knowledge in regards of Erebor and its history, Bilbo has completely overlooked him mother’s conditions and guilt overcomes him once more. Knowing that people were still talking about them because of the insinuations about his father’s decision to leave the Church, Bilbo is faced with shame and anxiety just by thinking how hard it must be for his parents to endure all of that pressure from the telltale coming from the upper society in town.

As he looks at Thorin’s sister and her impenetrable mask, he wonders how she must have felt when she had been married off to a rich man in order to save the family from disgrace. Because that is what the Baggins’ and the Durinson’s have been foreclosed to address, even if I’m different ways: disgrace. Profound and nasty disgrace. 

Bilbo finds himself jealous of their luck in regaining control over their fate by hard work alone, but doesn’t voice his feelings as the woman and her sons leave. Nor does he want to speak of the matter with Thorin... until he does, while listening to his and Bungo’s usual lesson one day: feeling left out of the conversation, fed up with the way his family walks on eggshells around him, and impossibly frustrated with himself for not being able to seize Thorin’s character in his head, Bilbo accuses the man of being too full of himself to even care about the struggling miners, ready to strike in order to be allowed to look for gold in the mountain.

Immediately regretting what he has just said, already missing the opportunity to listen to Thorin’s deep voice asking intelligent questions, knowing how the man has been desperate to educate himself now that he had the opportunity to do so...Bilbo can only watch as Thorin greets him coldly and leave their house. Possibly to never return.

[chanoyu-to-wa]

Nampō Roku, Book 2 (48):  (1587) Eighth Month, Twenty-fifth Day, Midday.

48) Eighth Month, Twenty-fifth Day; Midday¹.

    It had been promised that [Imai] Sōkyu --

          ﹆ [would] bring the tea².

◦ 4.5-mat [room]³.

◦ [Guests:]  Sōkyū [宗久]⁴, Yakushi-in [藥師院]⁵, Fujishige [藤重]⁶, Rōju [良壽]⁷, Sōmoto [宗本]⁸.

Sho [初]⁹.

﹆ Engo [圓悟]¹⁰:  in accordance with [the guests’] request to bring [this kakemono] out [for their appreciation]¹¹.

     The gedai [外題] was displayed in the toko¹².

◦ On a ko-ita [小板], the furo ・ unryū-gama [風爐 ・ 雲龍釜]¹³.

▵ Shiru saku-saku [汁 サク〰]¹⁴.

▵ Roast shigi [鴫] ・ kamaboko [カマホコ]¹⁵.

▵ Asa-zuke [アサツケ]¹⁶.

▵ Senbei ・ yaki-guri [センヘイ ・ ヤキクリ]¹⁷.

Go [後]¹⁸.

◦ The toko remained as it was¹⁹.

◦ Mizusashi Shigaraki [水指 シカラキ], on top of which was placed the hishaku [ヒシヤク]²⁰.

﹆ Sa-tsū-bako [茶通箱]²¹.

    However, inside [the sa-tsū-bako] were the Shiri-bukura [尻フクラ] ・ ko-natsume [小ナツメ]²².

◦ Habōki [羽帚]²³.

Su [ス]²⁴.

◦ Chawan kuro [茶碗 黒], ori-tame [折撓]²⁵.

_________________________

¹Hachi-gatsu nijū-go-nichi, hiru [八月廿五日、晝].

    The Gregorian date was September 27, 1587, since the Eighth Month of Tenshō 15 had only 29 days.

    This seems to have been another chakai given for influential machi-shū tea practitioners, probably intended to promote interest in Hideyoshi’s upcoming Kitano ō-cha-no-e [北野大茶の會].  It appears that the guests asked to inspect the Engo bokuseki -- perhaps as a sort of compensation for their taking part in the gathering.

    There are several issues with the Enkaku-ji version of this entry that are contradicted by (all of) the other manuscripts (including Jitsuzan’s original copy, which was made with the Shū-un-an document in front of him), suggesting that Jitsuzan either mistook his earlier notes, or deliberately decided to change things for reasons of his own; and (in contradiction to Rikyū’s own writings on the subject) the premise on which the use of the sa-tsū-bako is based clearly derives from machi-shū practices that became mainstream, as a result of Sōtan’s influence*, during the Edo period -- rather than the way that Rikyū appears to have handled this kind of temae.  These problems might be considered so significant that it is possible to doubt whether this was an actual chakai hosted by Rikyū -- or whether the entry is completely (or at least partially) spurious. ___________ *Ultimately, these were machi-shū practices that appear to trace their origins back to Jōō’s middle period (when the form of the cha-kai [茶會] was being codified -- based on, though increasingly distinct from, the Shino family’s kō-kai [香會]).  Though later superceded by subsequent developments -- which were largely associated with Rikyū (and his influence on Jōō during the last year of the latter’s life) and his circle.  A movement to return to the earlier forms appeared shortly after Rikyū’s seppuku, as part of a semi-official effort to repudiate Rikyū’s influence on chanoyu -- championed (with encouragement from at least some of the important daimyō surrounding Hideyoshi such as Date Masamune) by the group of machi-shū practitioners associated with Imai Sōkyū:  It was under the influence of this group that Sōtan trained (he was some 14 years of age when Rikyū died); and it was their teachings that he disseminated when he ultimately rose to his position of influence on account of his fictive relationship to Rikyū -- a relationship that was especially important to the Tokugawa bakufu (since it furthered their efforts to turn Hideyoshi’s collection of famous tea utensils into cash).

²Yaku-soku ni te Sōkyū [h]e ﹆cha jisan [約束ニて宗久ヘ ﹆茶持參].

    This words cha jisan [茶持參] are marked with a red spot in the Enkaku-ji manuscript, indicating the importance of Sōkyū’s agreeing to provide the tea.  However, none of the other versions of this kaiki* are formatted in this way (suggesting that the emphasis -- provided by the red spot -- was added by Jitsuzan, rather than Rikyū).

    In all of the other versions of this kaiki, this line reads yakusoku ni te Sōkyū cha jisan [約束ニて宗久茶持參] -- without the particle [h]e [ヘ]†, or the emphasis on the words cha jisan [茶持參]. __________ *Including Jitsuzan's original copy, which he made with the Shū-un-an documents in front of him.

†The particle [h]e [へ] confuses the sense of the statement -- making possible the interpretation that Rikyū was taking the gift tea to Sōkyū.

³Yojō-han [四疊半].

    The 4.5-mat room in Rikyū's residence.

⁴Sōkyū [宗久].

    This was Imai Sōkyū [今井宗久; 1520 ~ 1593], who was said to be “the other one” of Jōō’s two greatest disciples*.

    Sōkyū was married to Jōō’s daughter, and assumed the guardianship of Jōō’s son Sōga [宗瓦; 1550-1614] (who was just six years of age at the time of his father’s death).

    At the time of this chakai, the relations between Sōkyū and Rikyū were still more or less cordial, with their main source of contention restricted to their rivalry for Hideyoshi's favor†. ___________ *The other was, or course, Rikyū.

†The primary cause of the bad blood between Rikyū and Sōkyū seems to have arisen because Rikyū disagreed with Sōkyū over how he was managing Sōga’s (Jōō’s son) affairs.

    Sōkyū seems to have taken charge of Jōō’s extensive collection of meibutsu utensils shortly after Jōō’s death, which he said was intended both to safeguard them (as Sōga’s inheritance), as well as (in certain cases) reimburse himself for the added expenses placed on his household by the boy’s upbringing.  Rikyū, meanwhile, believed (and made it publicly known) that, in his opinion, Sōkyū was simply enriching himself -- both monetarily and with respect to his reputation as a tea master -- at the boy’s expense.  (It must be remembered, with respect to meibutsu utensils, that ownership implied that the owner also had been initiated into the secrets of their use -- and, indeed, it was just this fact on which not only Jōō’s own reputation, but eventually that of Sōkyū as well, had been based.)

    Rikyū’s own densho addressed to Sōga, meanwhile, suggests that, in his opinion at least, Sōkyū was not doing a very good job at educating the young man in the details of chanoyu that had been finalized by Jōō at the end of his life:  rather, it seems that he was schooling him in Sōkyū’s own version of these teachings (which seems to have remained faithful to the style of chanoyu popularized by Jōō during his middle period -- before Rikyū returned from his sojourn in Korea) .  Sōkyū’s way of practicing chanoyu (as the leader of the machi-shū faction that was increasingly opposed to Rikyū’s simplifications) can be identified with what is now called the machi-shū style of tea -- which passed into the modern world through Sōtan and his descendants.  The difference between Sōkyū’s “machi-shū style” and Rikyū’s chanoyu can be seen clearly by comparing Rikyū’s densho with the practices advocated by the modern Senke schools.

    After Rikyū’s death, Sōkyū was one of the leaders of the group that sought to eradicate all traces of Rikyū’s teachings from the practice of chanoyu -- and, given the subsequent and lingering animosity between the Sen families and Rikyū’s own writings, it might be said that Sōkyū was more successful in leaving his imprint on chanoyu than Rikyū, or than he (Sōkyū) could ever have dreamed possible.

⁵Yakushi-in [藥師院].

    This was Rikyū's nickname for the man more usually known as Yakuin Zen-sō [施藥院全宗; 1525 ~ 1599]*.   Formerly a monk from Ei-san [叡山]†, he was also a respected medical doctor of the period, and a close personal attendant of Hideyoshi's‡. __________ *He was also a chajin and had been a disciple of Jōō.

†This mountain is now usually called Hiei-san [比叡山].  It is one of the peaks in the mountain range between Kyōto and Ōtsu (to the east).

‡Perhaps occupying a position similar to a personal physician.

   Hideyoshi was suffering from tertiary syphilis (which evolved into neurosyphilis in the second half of the 1580s) during the last years of his life (which accounts for his increasingly erratic behavior during this final decade), and so the near-constant attendance of a physician (who could at least offer a degree of palliative care) would have been important to him and those around him.

  It is inferred that his increasing susceptibility to his delusions of grandeur – specifically that he could succeed in conquering China and having himself installed as Emperor (as suggested by the Korean expatriates in Hakata – whose actual goal seems to have been causing political instability on the Korean peninsula, thus potentially could have allowed for a restoration of the Han [韓] republic that was overthrown by the Ming military incursions aimed at reinstating the feudal system on the Korean peninsula, under the Lee family (as a Chinese puppet-regime), in the middle of the previous century) – increased in step with his developing neurosyphilis.

⁶Fujishige [藤重].

    This was Fujishige Tōgen [藤重藤元; his dates of birth and death are not known], a famous lacquer artist from Nara.  He was considered the greatest master of that period, and his list of patrons is said to have included both Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu.

⁷Rōju [良壽].

   This seems to refer to the machi-shū of Sakai known as Akane-ya Rōju [茜屋良壽; his dates are unknown].  His name is also given as Akane-ya Dōju [茜屋道壽] (which would make him a fellow disciple of Araki Dōchin, together with the young Rikyū; perhaps these two were of a similar age).

    His name appears as a guest several times in Rikyū's kaiki, but the details of his practice are not known.

⁸Sōmoto [宗本]⁸.

    This was the man known as Noto-ya Sōmoto [能登屋宗本; his dates are not known], another machi-shū of Sakai, and apparently a chajin as well.

    No further details have been discovered relating to his life and career.

⁹Sho [初].

    The shoza.

    With respect to the kane-wari:

- the tokonoma contained the kakemono, displayed rolled up on the floor of the toko, so that the guests could inspect the gedai [外題]*, and so was han [半]†;

- the room, meanwhile, contained the ko-ita furo, and so was han [半] as well;

- there was no tana.

    Han + han is chō, which is proper for the shoza of a gathering held during the daytime. __________ *The gedai [外題] is a sort of title (actually, it generally contains the name of the artist responsible for the composition that is featured on the scroll), written on a small piece of paper that is glued to the back of the scroll near the upper roller.  Thus, it was originally intended to allow someone to know what the scroll contained without going to the trouble of opening it up.  Some of the earliest gedai were written by several of the great Higashiyama dōbō [東山同朋]; and, since they are verified by the writer’s seal, the gedai became an object of appreciation in its own right (this was especially important when many of the old paintings, which were often fragments of larger works salvaged from deteriorating specimens, lack their artist’s signature -- hence the gedai alone provides the viewer with the ascription, which was based on the dōbō’s expertise).

†Tanaka Senshō, unfortunately, confuses things by suggesting that perhaps the toko was empty when the guests entered the room, with Rikyū only bringing the scroll out from the katte after the guests had entered (they would therefore have had to all move to the tokonoma to view the gedai once the scroll was placed there).  This, however, would confound the kane-wari -- as well as contradict Rikyū's own words (gedai wo kazaru [外題ヲカサル] -- that “the gedai was displayed [in the toko]”).

¹⁰Engo [圓悟].

    This is the bokuseki now usually known as the Nagare Engo [流れ圜悟], formerly owned by Shukō (this, it is said, is the scroll that tradition holds was given to him by Ikkyū Sōjun, and before which he was encouraged to perform chanoyu), which he hung in his room when serving tea.  Furthermore, this is said to have been the first bokuseki ever used for chanoyu*.

    The scroll was written by the Chinese Chán monk Yuán-wù Kèqín [圜悟克勤; 1063 ~ 1135], the editor of the Bìyán Lù [碧 巖 錄] (Heki-gan Roku; the Blue-cliff Records).

     This document was not intended (by Yuán-wù Kèqín) to be used as something like a scroll.  It is actually a fragmentary part of Yuán-wù’s notes from one of his lectures (he traveled around China presenting lectures on the cases in the Bìyán Lù at various temples, and this is a fragment of the text of one of these lectures -- probably preserved originally by one of the auditors, as a sort of souvenir of the experience).

    Precisely how this document made its way to Japan is unclear, though it seems most likely that Ikkyū Sōjun brought it with him when he immigrated from Korea at the beginning of the persecution of Buddhism (as both a monk, and the posthumous son of the last king of Koryeo, Ikkyū had double reason to fear for his life during this time of great trouble for the faith) on the Korean peninsula. ___________ *Before this, only paintings (almost always imported from the continent) were displayed in the tokonoma.  The original intention was to recreate a scene of Amida’s Western Paradise.

¹¹Shomō-yue jisan [所望故持參].

     This means that the reason (yue [故]) the scroll was brought out (jisan [持參]) on this occasion was because of a request (shomō [所望]) made by the guests.  The request likely was tendered before, or at, the time when the guests accepted the invitation.

¹²Gedai wo kazaru [外題ヲカサル].

    The gedai [外題], which is usually translated to mean “title,” refers to something written on the back side of the scroll, near the upper roller, that identifies the scroll’s contents.  While the gedai is sometimes written directly on the mounting itself (as in the example shown below), since the Higashiyama period it has also been the custom to write this information on a small slip of paper*, which is then glued onto the back of the scroll.

     Now, while there were various accepted times at which the gedai might be displayed†, on this occasion it seems that Rikyū displayed the rolled-up scroll on the floor of the tokonoma (oriented so that the gedai would be easy to read)‡; and after their silence indicated that the guests were finished, he entered and proceeded to hang the kakemono in the toko, so that the guests could then inspect Yuán-wù’s writing. ___________ *Writing the gedai on a separate piece of paper (that was then glued to the back of the scroll) allowed the ascription to be lodged without physically damaging or altering the scroll itself (the glue, which was made from sticky-rice, was water soluble, and could be removed without difficulty).  This was the dōbō‘s intention (since the gedai itself was originally considered to be a sort of inventory or cataloging aid).

    According to the commentary on the Chanoyu San-byakka Jō [茶湯三百箇條] (this work is usually ascribed to Jōō, though Jōō himself held that the core entries were set down by Shukō:  the earliest surviving manuscript was created by Jōō’s disciple Uesugi Kenshin about ten years after Jōō’s death; and includes not only Kenshin’s extrapolations, but also additional interlineal material added by Sen no Dōan and Dōan’s disciple Kuwayama Sōzen -- the different layers of commentary are not separated, or even separable, from each other), the proportions of the slip of paper on which the gedai is written should be calculated in the following way:  “if the [honshi [本紙] -- the paper on which the scroll was written -- of the] bokuseki is 1-shaku 1-sun from top to bottom or less, this length should be divided into thirds, and the length of the gedai should be equal to one of the thirds.  The width of the gedai should be equal to a sixth-part of its length.  This is a secret matter.

    “If the scroll is long and wide, or if it is extremely narrow for its length, in general the proportions of the gedai are determined in the same way as above; however, the details are secret:   “1) When [the honshi] exceeds 1-shaku 1-sun when measured top-to-bottom, that length is divided by four, and one of the fourths is discarded; then the remaining three are divided as above to give the length and width of the gedai. “2) In the case of extremely long and narrow scrolls, the rule is that the length of the honshi was divided into four parts, and one of these quarters is discarded.  The remainder was divided into quarters again, and a further fourth was deleted.  From the length of the remaining three, the above rules were followed to determine the length and width of the gedai.”

    The above secret material was based on Nōami’s [能阿弥] and Sōami’s [相阿弥] gedai.  Since, as mentioned above, these were often pasted onto the backs of scrolls which lacked any sort of artist’s signature at all (either works that were in a poor state of preservation, or panels of a long horizontal scroll that had been cut into individual pieces based on content), it became essential to be able to verify that the gedai actually belonged to the scroll to which it was attached (forgeries of paintings were not uncommon; and one of the easiest ways to pass off a fake was by attaching an authentic gedai -- removed from some other scroll -- to it).  Thus, these details provided the assessor with a very good way of determining whether the gedai actually belonged to the scroll to which it was attached, or not.  Further details can be found in the post entitled The Three Hundred Lines of Chanoyu (Lines 261 - 270: Part 1, Lines 261 - 265).  The quote comes from footnote 5 under line 263 (“The way to inspect a bokuseki’s gedai”).

    The URL for that post is:

chanoyu-to-wa.tumblr.com/post/62296322423/the-three-hundred-lines-of-chanoyu-lines-261

†Sometimes the gedai was displayed first, and after inspecting it, the scroll was hung up so that the guests could view that as well; and sometimes the scroll was already hanging in the toko when he guests entered the tearoom, and the inspection of the gedai took place later in the za (such as immediately before they left the room for the naka-dachi).  The latter form was mostly used when the guests subsequently asked to inspect the gedai, while the former was used when the request was tendered before the host began his preparations (as was the case on this occasion).

‡It is not clear who the gedai on this scroll was written by -- though Ikkyū Sōjun or Shukō would seem to be likely candidates.  This scroll was never a part of the Higashiyama collection, hence none of the dōbō would have been involved.  The hyōgu [表具] (mounting) seems to have been designed by Shukō.

¹³Ko-ita ni furo ・ unryū-gama [小板ニ風爐 ・ 雲龍釜].

    For this special occasion, it seems that Rikyū borrowed the old Temmyō kimen-buro that had belonged to Yoshimasa (and, later, Nobunaga).

     The kama would have been the first small unryū-gama, which Rikyū designed to be used with this furo.

    I assumed (when creating my sketch showing the general arrangement of the room under footnote 3) that Rikyū placed the ko-ita furo on the right side of the utensil mat, since this was the orthodox way of doing things in a room that had a dōko.  Nevertheless, in light of the shōkyaku’s relationship to Jōō, and in deference to his feelings*, it is possible that Rikyū decided to place it on the left, in the manner used by Jōō during the middle period of his career†. ___________ *Sōkyū was Jōō’s brother-in-law, and a known champion of the teachings emanating from Jōō’s middle period (meaning the period prior to Rikyū’s return from the continent -- after which Jōō incorporated numerous changes in light of the new material that Rikyū brought back with him from Korea).

†Locating the ko-ita furo on the left (as shown above) was also the arrangement preferred by Hideyoshi (perhaps under the influence of Sōkyū:  this manner of arrangement also makes it easier for the guests to see everything the host is doing, whereas placing the furo on the right tends to hide many of the host’s actions behind its bulk -- Hideyoshi was perennially fearful of being poisoned, a method of assassination said at that time to be preferred by the followers of the Ikkō-shu [一向宗], the Amidist sect of Buddhism with which most of the Sakai machi-shū-chajin were at least nominally affiliated), hence it might have felt “less controversial” to employ this version of the arrangement on the present occasion (not only out of respect for Sōkyū’s sense of propriety, but because several of the other guests were also employed as Hideyoshi’s tea masters).

    That said, it could have been precisely for this reason that Rikyū may have decided to locate the furo on the right -- in order to illustrate to the assembly the theoretically appropriate way of doing things (less the habit of doing things in the way preferred by Hideyoshi induce a state of forgetfulness).

¹⁴Shiru saku-saku [汁 サク〰].

    This was miso-shiru containing coarsely chopped greens from the kitchen garden.  The chopped greens were added just before the soup was served, so they would still be crisp when eaten (this is what the onomatopoeaic saku-saku means).

¹⁵Shigi yakite ・ kamaboko [鴫 ヤキテ ・ カマホコ].

    Shigi [鴫] means snipe* -- a shore-bird; a type of sandpiper.  While Rikyū does not go into the details of its “roasting,” cooking the birds in the senba-iri [船場煎り] style† seems likely.

    Kamaboko [蒲鉾] is boiled or steamed fish-paste.  in Rikyū’s day the kamaboko was probably formed into cylinders (possibly hollow tubes, which insured faster cooking times), or flattened into patties, and then deep-fried in oil (by the shop that produced it) -- it could be offered to the guests as it was received from the shop (warm to cold), or be reheated before being served.

    These dishes would have been accompanied by the service of several rounds of sake. ___________ *Shibayama Fugen’s manuscript, however, has kamo [鴨], meaning the wild duck.  The kanji are similar; and perhaps shigi seemed a bit too “exotic” for the late Edo-period palate of the gentleman responsible for producing his copy of the Nampō Roku.  (We must remember that making copies -- or even writing down notes -- while in the Enkaku-ji, was strictly forbidden.  Thus the material could be committed to paper only after the person -- I do not believe the name of the person who made the original copy is actually known -- took his leave.)

    That said, shigi was also served at a gathering mentioned in the Rikyū Hyakkai Ki [利休百會記] -- albeit in that case, it was mashed and formed into dango [團子], and served in a clear broth.

†Senba-iri [船場煎り] refers to a style of cooking employed in the food stalls located along the wharves at Sakai.  It was used primarily for preparing small birds (and, incidentally, prawns as well).  In this case, the entire bird (plucked, and with the head, feet, and innards removed) was threaded or tied onto a spit and roasted over a small wood or charcoal fire in a brazier, while basting them with a mixture of sesame oil, soy-sauce (or iri-zake [煎り酒]), sake, mirin, and crushed garlic.  (The wood fire added an interesting dimension to the food’s flavor -- since in Rikyū’s day most home cooking was done over charcoal.)

¹⁶Asa-zuke [アサツケ].

    Asa-zuke [淺漬け] are a simple kind of home-made tsuke-mono (the type is often referred to as o-shinkō [お新香] today).  Naturally crisp vegetables -- such as immature cucumbers, daikon, hakusai, Japanese eggplant, and the like -- are either dusted lightly with salt (usually small slivers of dried kombu [昆布] -- kelp -- are added during this step as well), kneaded with the fingers (to distribute the salt evenly), and then left to stand under a light weight (which helps to press out the water).

    Alternately, the vegetables and kombu can be placed in a brine solution to pickle.

    In either case, they are left to stand anywhere between several hours and overnight.  The process removes the extra water, increasing the natural crispness of the vegetables.

¹⁷Senbei ・ yaki-guri [センヘイ ・ ヤキクリ].

    These were the kashi: 

- senbei [煎餅], rice crackers, which were usually obtained from a professional confectioner (and often, in the case of Rikyū’s chakai at least, received as a gift from one of the guests* -- rather than being procured for this purpose by Rikyū himself); and.

- yaki-guri [焼き栗], chestnuts roasted over a charcoal fire. ___________ *Unlike in the present, money was not considered an appropriate thank-gift for the guests to give to the host.  Elegant senbei, or other things of that sort, were preferred.  Since the guests were all chajin, they would likely have bought such a gift as a group, after consulting with each other.

¹⁸Go [後].

    The goza.

    As for the kane-wari:

- the scroll remained hanging in the tokonoma, and so it remained han [半];

- in addition to the ko-ita furo, the room contained the mizusashi (with the sa-tsū-bako arranged in front of it, and the hishaku resting on top -- all of which counted as a single unit), and so was chō [調].

    Han + chō is han, which is appropriate for a gathering held during the daytime.

¹⁹Toko sono-mama [床其儘].

    The kakemono remained hanging in the toko, as it had been since the guests finished inspecting its gedai during the shoza.

²⁰Mizusashi Shigaraki, ue ni hishaku [水指 シカラキ、上ニヒシヤク].

    This was Rikyū's Shigaraki mizusashi.

    The hishaku was placed on top, with the butt end of the handle touching the second kane, as explained in the post entitled Nampō Roku, Book 2 (46):  (1587) Eighth Month, Second Day, Morning*, under footnotes 14 and 16. ___________ *The URL for that post is:

http://chanoyu-to-wa.tumblr.com/post/184163345058/namp%C5%8D-roku-book-2-46-1587-eighth-month

²¹Sa-tsū-bako [棚ニ茶通箱].

    This entry is marked with a red dot, indicating its importance.  This would have been a futatsu-iri sa-tsū-bako [二つ入り茶通箱], a sa-tsū-bako made to hold two containers of tea (this is the kind usually seen today* -- though what kind of lid the box may have had cannot be verified:  the box shown below has what is known as a yarō-buta [藥籠蓋]).

    The sa-tsū-bako was probably placed in front of the mizusashi†. __________ *Based, apparently, on the precedent of this chakai -- though this chakai is, in fact, not representative of the way that Rikyū usually handled the sa-tsū-bako (when he was sending a gift of tea to someone else).  Rather, it shows the way that Jōō may have been doing things during his middle period (this is where the machi-shū tea of Sōtan, on which modern day chanoyu is based, originated).

    This anomaly has fueled certain suspicions that this chakai is at least in part spurious -- and was possibly modified or inserted into the kaiki to provide a Rikyū-based precedent for the way that the Sen family was handling the sa-tsū-bako and its (by that time, “secret”) temae.

†Shibayama Fugen, however, notes that if the chaire contained in the sa-tsū-bako (he seems to have believed it to have been Rikyū’s Shiri-bukura chaire [尻膨茶入]) was a meibutsu, then the sa-tsū-bako should be placed on the central kane.

    In this case, rather than an ordinary ko-ita, which measures 9-sun 5-bu square (shown on the left in the following sketch),  a specially made smaller one (measuring 8-sun square -- the arrangement of which is shown on the right) could be used.  This  smaller version of the shiki-ita was arranged according to the usual rules:  5-sun from the far end of the mat, and 9-me from the heri.  The effect, then, was to move the furo diagonally away from the central kane, making it possible to place the chaire -- or, in this case, the sa-tsū-bako -- on the central kane (without any danger that the heat from the furo would be close enough to damage the tea).

    As with the ko-ita, this smaller shiki-ita (which was Rikyū’s creation) could only be used with a large furo (meaning a furo measuring between 1-shaku 1-sun and 1-shaku 2-sun in diameter -- whether made of iron, or of lacquered clay).

    Nevertheless, Fugen admits that, in this particular case, he is unsure where the box would have been displayed (and seems inclined, on second thought, to imagine that it was more likwly placed in front of the mizusashi).

    Tanaka Senshō, meanwhile, suggests that the sa-tsū-bako might have been displayed in the toko (along with the scroll, which still remained hanging as it had been during the shoza) -- though doing so would have made the apparent kane-wari unworkable (and so Rikyū probably did not do this).  Nevertheless, in such a case the host (immediately after bringing the chawan into the room -- which he temporarily placed on the left side of the mat) would go to the toko and retrieve the sa-tsū-bako (for this reason, the box would have been displayed on the side of the toko closer to the toko-bashira, so that the host would not disturb the shōkyaku when he went to pick up the sa-tsū-bako).   After bringing the box back to the utensil mat, the host would cut the box open with a knife, as explained under the next footnote.

²²Tadashi, uchi ni Shiri-bukura ・ ko-natsume [但、内ニ 尻フクラ ・ 小ナツメ].

    The chaire is generally assumed to be Rikyū's meibutsu Shiri-bukura chaire [尻膨茶入] (shown below).  But if that was the case, the source of the tea it contained (whether matcha ground that morning by Rikyū, or the gift-tea that was received from Sōkyū -- over which Rikyū seems to have made quite a fuss) becomes a matter for confusion*.

    According to both Shibayam Fugen and Tanaka Senshō, the Shiri-bukura chaire contained tea that would be served as koicha, while the ko-natsume contained tea intended for use as usucha -- and this is represented, by both of them, as being the traditional assessment of the contents of the sa-tsū-bako that was held by all of the scholars (since the time of Tachibana Jitsuzan himself, and so from the beginning of the study of this document) associated with the Enkaku-ji and the Nampō Roku scholarship.

    This latter assertion, too, is problematic as well, since (at least in the time of Jōō and Rikyū) the ō-natsume [大棗] was generally used for usucha, while the ko-natsume (according to Jōō -- who created both of these kinds of chaki†) was supposed to be used for koicha.  If, as some suggest, the tea in the Shiri-bukura was Rikyū’s own tea, then the tea in the ko-natsume being intended for usucha is equally odd -- since the tea used for usucha was either left-over koicha‡, or ground from the inferior-quality tea leaves that had been used as packing material in the cha-tsubo.  In either case, for Imai Sōkyū to promise to send a container of matcha, and then send over such poor quality tea, would be almost insulting -- and, again, does not conform with what we know of Sōkyū’s character (since he was, if anything, inclined to be self-promoting, and very concerned about “face”:  if anything, Sōkyū would have sent the highest-quality tea he had, and made quite sure that Rikyū respected it properly by preparing it as koicha -- especially if this were the only tea from Sōkyū that would be served during the chakai).  Furthermore, if the matcha received from Sokyu had really been such poor tea, Rikyū would have hardly made such a fuss over it

    Gift tea was (originally -- and this custom was still current in the time of Jōō and Rikyū) packed into the sa-tsū-bako by the person giving the tea, and that person then sealed the box by pasting a paper tape around the place where the lid joined the sides, and applied his name-seal to the place where the two ends of the tape met (which was considered the side of the box that would face toward the guests -- meaning that the container or containers of matcha were always oriented accordingly).  The host opened this tape with a small knife, using three cuts:  first he cut from just beyond the name-seal away from himself (and so around the box to the side opposite the name-seal); then from just beyond the seal and toward himself (the two cuts, then, meeting on the far side of the box from that were the seal had been impressed).  Then the sa-tsū-bako was passed around for haiken (with the name-seal still remaining uncut -- to verify to the guests that the contents of the box were as packed by the giver), while the host dusted the utensil mat with the habōki.  Then, after the box was returned, the host took the knife and cut through the name-seal, thus freeing the lid, and so allowing him to open the box and remove the container or containers of matcha.  This process is clearly described in the Nampō Roku.

    It is unlikely, then, that the sa-tsū-bako contained one kind of tea prepared by Rikyū (in his Shiri-bukura chaire) and another tea (in the natsume) prepared by Sōkyū.  If any of the tea was from Sōkyū, then all of the tea in the sa-tsū-bako would have been from him (and the box sealed with his name-seal); and if Rikyū still intended to use his own tea (ground that dawn and put into his own chaire, the Shiri-bukura), then the gift tea in its sa-tsū-bako would have had to be placed elsewhere until the service of tea from the Shiri-bukura was finished (since the host’s tea always took precedence in such cases).  Putting the tea containers together in the same box was simply not done during Rikyū’s period -- since this would have involved cutting off the donor’s seal beforehand, making the entire process of cutting off the tape nonsensical (Rikyū’s introductory remark that the tea had come from Sōkyū certainly implies that all of the tea that was served was from him -- that the sa-tsū-bako was from Sōkyū, and so would have been sealed with his name-seal).

    As an separate comment added here, Shibayama Fugen adds that, if the chaire was a karamono piece (as was Rikyū’s Shiri-bukura chaire), then, after opening the box (and seeing what it contained), the host would quietly go out to the katte and bring in a chaire-bon, and so serve the first tea using the bon-date temae**. __________ *The idea was always to prevent the tea from coming into contact with the air.  Thus, the containers of matcha were always tied into shifuku (or, for gift tea sent to someone in newly-made natsume, purple, fukusa-shaped furoshiki) and loaded into the box, which was then sealed with a paper tape.  The seal was not broken until the box was opened, before the eyes of the guests (according to the Nampō Roku), during the koicha-temae.

    Therefore, Rikyū could hardly have received two containers of gift tea from Sōkyū, and then transferred one of them into his own chaire (since that would expose that tea -- which would have been the better of the two -- to the air, potentially ruining it, and causing grave insult to Sōkyū).  Neither could he have included his own chaire of tea in the box with the gift tea (in a ko-natsume), since the box would have been packed and sealed by Sōkyū (in his own home, immediately after grinding the tea).  It may have been possible that Sōkyū borrowed Rikyū's chaire; but it seems that people of that period did not usually do such things -- since there would have been nothing to prevent the borrower from showing the chaire secretly to his friends (though, given Sōkyū's status -- and his personal commitment to maintaining his reputation -- it is unlikely that he would have breached Rikyū's trust in this way).  Therefore, the most likely possibilities -- assuming that this kaiki is authentic (something which these particular details tend to make less likely) -- are either that Sōkyū used his own shiri-bukura chaire (which has not been identified) -- if, indeed, a shiri-bukura chaire even originally figured into this -- or that he borrowed Rikyū's chaire for this purpose.

    However, all of that aside, if things were done “correctly,” the sa-tsū-bako would have contained two natsume (perhaps a ko-natsume of koicha and an ō-natsume of tea intended for usucha -- though it is also possible that it contained two ko-natsume, both holding koicha-quality tea), and that the words “Shiri-bukura chaire” were added by someone who wanted to make this sa-tsū-bako temae appear identical to what the Sen family was teaching.

    Imai Sōkyū, it must be remembered, was married to Jōō's sister (I have said this before; but this point is extremely important if one wishes to understand Sōkyū and his motivations); and his practices tended to mirror Jōō's own usages from his middle period (during which time Jōō preferred using one variety of matcha for koicha, and a different, slightly lower-quality tea for usucha); he also had an extensive collection of high-quality tea utensils (a number of which had come from Jōō’s collection -- taken by Sōkyū to reimburse himself for the expenses of raising Jōō’s son Sōga).  But I have never seen it alleged (in contemporary documents) that Jōō placed a chaire and a natsume together in the sa-tsū-bako; nor that Jōō taught that the sa-tsū-bako should be opened by the host (before the chakai began) and then repacked so that it would contain his own chaire along with the gift tea (whether the chaire also contained gift tea, or tea ground for the occasion by the host).

    All of the documented instances of the use of a sa-tsū-bako from Jōō’s and Rikyū’s period clearly imply that:

- the sa-tsū-bako contained only the gift tea (never tea prepared by the host);

- that the gift tea was to be placed in newly made natsume (or other new lacquerware tea containers) of an appropriate size (this was done precisely so that it would be the tea that was important to the guests, not the container in which it had been sent);

- and, that the sa-tsū-bako was packed by the donor, and sealed with his name seal, and that the sa-tsū-bako was not to be tampered with until the box was cut open in front of the eyes of the guests, who would then be served the tea it contained (this because it was the reputation of the donor that was at stake, rather than that of the host:  tampering with the box could make the donor loose face, if the tea proved to be bad).

    Tachibana Jitsuzan, Shibayama Fugen,Tanaka Senshō, and the group of scholars affiliated with the Enkaku-ji, however, were all products of their age.  Since they only knew the sa-tsū-bako temae taught by the Sen family (which holds that the sa-tsū-bako was prepared by the host, to contain a chaire of his own tea, plus a natsume or other container of gift tea), it seems that none of them were able to imagine anything different -- even though the differences are actually described elsewhere in the Nampō Roku itself.  This kind of inflexible attitude remains the bane of Nampō Roku scholarship, even to this day.

†Since Imai Sōkyū was not only married to Jōō’s sister, but also the de facto guardian of Jōō’s son (and heir), he appears to have been a stickler for adhering to Jōō’s teachings and practices, at least in so far as he was aware of them.  (Sōkyū, together with many of the machi-shū, had a sort of falling out with Jōō during the last year of his life -- after Jōō began to modify many of his teachings in light of the new information that Rikyū had brought back with him from the continent.  This last one-year period is what saw the incredibly rapid evolution of the small room, along with the advancement of extremely wabi practices -- in contradistinction to what Jōō had championed for most of his professional life.)  Thus, it is highly unlikely that Sōkyū would have so wantonly rejected one of Jōō’s basic teachings by using the ko-natsume for a purpose for which it had not been intended.

‡In other words, koicha-quality matcha left over from tea that had already been placed in a chaire and used to serve tea at an earlier gathering (it was considered rude for all of the tea in the chaire to be used, in case the guests wanted to drink more:  thus, the host always selected a chaire that was larger than necessary, and the tea container was always filled fully, with the intention being that a certain amount should always remain in the container at the end of the temae, as a sign of the host’s courtesy and concern for his guests):  such tea could only be used later for usucha, because it had already been exposed to the air too much -- meaning that the volatile constituents (which contribute heavily to both the aroma and taste of the tea) would have been lost, for the most part.

**Or, more specifically, a meibutsu karamono chaire (that had been paired with a tray).  In Jōō’s and Rikyū’s period, only karamono chaire that had been paired with a tray were used for bon-date (by Rikyū’s day, ko-Seto chaire were also acceptably used in this way -- assuming that they had been paired with a tray) -- and, since the tray had to agree with the proportions of the chaire exactly (according to both Jōō and Rikyū), it would have been impossible for the host to simply bring out any “random” tray, historically speaking, at this point in time (the idea of using “any small tray” began with Sōtan and his followers, as a result of ignorance of Rikyū’s teachings -- or perhaps as a deliberate rejection of the way that Rikyū had done things), on the spur of the moment, after finding such a chaire in the sa-tsū-bako . This highlights (albeit inadvertently, so far as Shibayama Fugen’s comment is concerned) the difference between practices in Rikyū’s day and his own (which, as is also true of modern-day chanoyu , followed directly from Sōtan’s machi-shū style of chanoyu).

    “For the record,” Jōō's chaire-bon was supposed to be (exactly) 3-sun 5-bu larger on all four sides than the chaire that would be used on it; Rikyū’s chaire-bon (which was notably smaller than Jōō’s tray), was 2-sun larger on all four sides.  These measurements were supposed to be exact (the tolerence is less than 1-bu in the case of all of the old chaire and their trays that have survived), and even modest deviations were generally rejected.  If one had a tray that conformed with the chaire, and that chaire was deemed worthy of being used on a tray, then one did bon-date.  If either of these conditions were not true, then the chaire was supposed to be used without a tray.

²³Habōki [羽帚].

    The habōki (which was a larger one, made from feathers that were between 9-sun and 1-shaku long -- the kind that is usually seen today) was placed on the left side of the mat, next to the heri.

    According to Shibayama Fugen, it was used to dust the utensil mat just before the sa-tsū-bako was (finally) cut open and the first container of tea taken out.

²⁴Su [ス].

    The utensils that follow this notation (the chawan; and, though not specifically mentioned in the kaiki, the koboshi and futaoki) were brought out from the katte at the beginning of the koicha-temae, rather than being displayed in the room when the guests entered the room for the goza.

    Su [ス] is an odd modification of the kanji mata [又], used consistently in this book by Tachibana Jitsuzan.  It is intended to mean “also,” “and again.”

²⁵Chawan kuro, ori-tame [茶碗 黒、 折撓].

    Though usually assumed to be one of Chōjirō’s early black bowls, it seems more likely to have been the hiki-dashi-kuro chawan that Furuta Sōshitsu made for Rikyū the year before -- the chawan that is shown below (which bears Rikyū's kaō, as a mark of his ownership, on the bottom) -- since Rikyū would have been extremely sensitive to avoid any charges of self-promotion leveled after the fact by this group of guests.

    Consequently, it does not seem that Rikyū would have used one of Chōjirō's bowls (since those bowls were known to have been produced under Rikyū’s watchful gaze -- and those not approved by him were destroyed), since a certain reticence would have seemed to be called for during this chakai.  His own creativity would have been sufficiently demonstrated by the use of one of his own chashaku -- made to accompany the main tea container, Rikyū's meibutsu Shiri-bukura chaire [尻膨茶入] -- and the use of a take-wa [竹輪] as the futaoki (below) -- and the other unimportant (though necessary) utensils.

    While nothing is said, it seems most likely that Rikyū would have used a take-wa [竹輪] as his futaoki, and a mentsū [面桶] as the koboshi.

[icharchivist]

Ok so i will need to leave my nostalgia aside and try to watch Tangled (the movie) in English one day bc i was watching some extracts on youtube and y e the French version took some liberties with some scenes and I need to compare for sure.

I’m listening more closely to the English songs too as well and-

okay disclamer: the work of translation is a hard work, especially in those medium where not only you must translate the tone, the theme, the meaning, but also watch out for the lip movements and the flow of the sentence. Even if I can have some cringe here and there I respect this work a damn lot, and it’s only when I feel a translation really missed the point (like the translation of the Treasure Planet Song) that i get annoyed.

Tangled has a great translation and a good dub work, and with this approach i am not trying to bring that work down, as i think it did a good job. I just need to check some things.

(one of the scenes that is ticking me of changes slightly the characterization of Eugene in that scene imo so i need to check it in context to see how much it feels as such).

However, there’s something i love with Translation is when some things can be... even more spot on than it needed to be.

And i’ll put it under cut rn bc i have a little translation geeking out to do about the song When Will My Life Begin?

Most of the chore and activities Rapunzel does that day are translated about word for word (since after all we see those activities on screen). Some of the little details that changed are say, the “Sew a dress!” translated by “And Pascal brings me awe” which still fits what’s on screen.

The major difference between the two songs is that “When will my life begin?” is translated depending on which chorus “I wonder where is the Real Life” and “I wonder where the Real Life is Hidden”. Imo this may be one of the choices i’m a bit unsure about since it loses the aspect of how much she wants her own life to start and not just a hidden world, but it does show her longing for escape and fits the global theme.

But while also digging i realized some of my favorite lines in the French version aren’t in the English version and i just want to congratulate the French version.

I’ll do a quick translation with English on the left and French (in English) on the Right to point them out 

Start on the chores and sweep 'till the floor's all clean / Fast, I take the broom, the house needs to be shiny

> A minor one but an interesting one nevertheless: an idea of urgency, of /needing/ to do the chores.

I'll add a few new paintings to my gallery / I add some colors that only pleases me

(...)

I'll paint the walls some more, I'm sure there's room somewhere /I add more color, there’s [colors] missing, i’m sure of it

> This is such a particular choice of adaptation that instead of going for “the painting in the Gallery” and the physical room of the paint, it goes instead with the emotional aspect of what it’s trying to remplace: a life on its own. And don’t get me wrong the idea is there in English, but the idea is more that: those walls are covered because she’s been here for too long, she doesn’t feel like there’s room for her anymore in that place. The French though goes with an idea of whatever she has isn’t enough and that she feels this lack inside her but she doesn’t know what it is exactly.

>I especially love the “colors that only pleases me” part that kinda echos why i translated that idea of urgency on that other line: it directly seems to allude to Gothel. At this point of the story we don’t know how abusive and controling she can be, but i love the little touch in French to say that while Gothel endures Rapunzel’s passion, she doesn’t like it and had made sure to make Rapunzel knows that she doesn’t like it. Which is in character and adds to the abuse present in their relationship. (which personally adds a level of relatable to that line sadly) The “Fast” line then seems even more that she “needs” to do the chores for another person.

Which also brings me to this:

Stuck in the same place I've always been / In this prison where I grew up

> On one hand i wonder if the Translators hadn’t been too bold to really enphasis how much Rapunzel feels out of place there, but i take it- it’s thematically relevent to her struggle in the movie (and honestly considering others Disney’s translation trackrecord, i’m impressed). 

And I'll reread the books If I have time to spare / And I re-read my books, I dream of adventures

>Again instead of just talking about sparing time, it’s about escaping.

I love the English version and it’s great: i feel like it’s more a showcase of her daily life and how boring it is that it repeats itself. Another nuance too is before the question of the song, in english it goes “Basically just wonder when will my life begin” but the french is “Sometimes i wonder where is the real life” - And it brings me to my overinterpretation but it feels like the English version is constantly longing for her life to start, while the French version feels something is lacking and that sometimes it hits her more than others.

Some more details that are not relevent to my points but in the end is slightly different as it goes:

What is it like out there where they glow? / What does this summer night look like? Now that I'm older, Mother might just let me go/ I am older, I must be able to go there

> First, I really, really need to know if it’s confirmed anywhere else than the movie happens in summer because it seems to be French only. It’s a neat idea though considering she’s litteraly a ray of sunshine ahah, but still i need to know.

>I don’t know how i feel about not mentioning “Mother” there (but at the same time “Mother Knows Best” is translated “Listen Only To Me” so not emphasing on this point can come from here) but also there it’s.. a little tricky to translate because in French we don’t have as strong comparaison for Might/May/Will/Must in this sort of context and it can truly depends, and here it may as well be might than must - but i love the focus on her, saying she should be able to go, trying to take her own life in her hands rather than just listen to her mother.

So look - i’ve been overanalysing texts all my life (Litterature/Cinema/Art/Translation student baby) so I’m obviously overreading it and it’s not important. 

And I’ll never say the French version is an “improvement”, i’m pointing out some adaptation chocies that had been taken for the flow of the song at first.

But I’m really baffled by how all those choices that are much more different from the english conterpart put a lot of emphasis on the Emotional lack she has and hints at the Abusive Household a little more clearly. Whenever it’s too much or not is up to anyone’s interpretation, but personally i know the French songs makes my heart cluntches a bit.

As I was mentioning i ticked because my fav lines weren’t there in English and said line are the ones about the paintings- because I think i personally feel even more for a Lack I can’t Identify than feeling just Locked up.  But now that I say it that way, the English does focus more on the factual thing that she is locked up and that it is what restrains her from being able to express her creativity, more than just that lack. (then the “prison” line does also emphasis on this, so it’s up to anyone’s interpretation)

Anyway point is the Translation of this movie isn’t half as bad as some others movies (Frozen’s translation had me grumble multiple times for lack of understanding of themes, so i’m a bit surprised this song at least hammers down much more the themes than the meaning). 

I also now will have to check myself with the English version but in French Eugene does call Gothel “an abusive mother” right away when Rapunzel is crying, and I admit i don’t even know anymore if i can trust the translation until i see the movie myself, but i find it nice and bold to point it out strongly like that.

If other translations jump out to me i’ll probably post about it even if I’m the only one to care about it ahah, but i love themes and i love when adaptation works find a way to work through it even when they can be 100% faithful to it. 

Cheers!

[seekfirstme]

The following reflection is courtesy of Don Schwager © 2020. Don's website is located at Dailyscripture.net

Meditation: What can a story of a dragnet and a great catch of fish tell us about God's kingdom? The two most common ways of fishing in Jesus' time was with a casting-net (or hand-net) which was thrown from the shore and the drag-net or trawl which was let down or cast into the waters from a boat. As the boat moved through the waters the dragnet was drawn into the shape of a great cone which indiscriminately took in all kinds of fish and flotsam and jetsam swept in its path. It usually took several men to haul such a net to shore.

Reward and judgment at the end of the age

What is Jesus' point here? Just as a drag-net catches every kind of fish in the sea, so the church acts as God's instrument for gathering in all who will come. Just as the drag-net does not or cannot discriminate, so the church does not discriminate between the good and the bad, the useless and the useful. God's kingdom is open to all who will accept and believe. But there will come a time of separation, at the close of the age when the Lord Jesus returns again and sends out his angels who will separate the good and the bad and then send them to their respective destinations. Our duty in this present age is to gather in all who want to become citizens of God's kingdom here on earth as well as in heaven above.

The Lord Jesus, when he comes again at the end of this age, will give to those who believed in him and his way of truth and righteousness a glorified resurrected body and a home in his everlasting kingdom. But for those who refused to follow the Lord Jesus and his merciful word of truth and righteousness, their destiny will be total separation and loss of joy and happiness with God and his community of redeemed men and women. The Lord Jesus freely offers the treasure of abundant life and everlasting joy to all who believe in him and accept him as their Lord and Savior. Do you yearn for total peace, joy, and union with God in his everlasting kingdom?

Trained for the kingdom of heaven

What is the point of Jesus' parable about a "scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 13:52)? Jewish scribes were specially devoted to the study and practice of the Word of God entrusted to Moses (the first five books of the Bible) and in instructing others in how to live according to God's commandments and way of holiness. In the Old Testament Ezra was called "the ready scribe of the law of the God of heaven" (Book of Ezra 7:6,21). He received this title because he "had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments" (Ezra 7:10). Ezra's heart was set on the kingdom of heaven because he revered God's word and he taught others through example and instruction to love and obey God's word.

The old and new treasure of God's word

Why does Jesus compare a "trained scribe" with a "householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old" (Matthew 13:52)? Some people love to store up old prized possessions along with their newly acquired prizes. Others are eager to get rid of the old to make room for the new. So why does Jesus seem to emphasize keeping the old along with the new? Why not replace the old, especially if the new seems to be better or more useful? Wouldn't a person want to throw away an old pair of shoes and replace them with a new pair - especially if the old pair became well-worn or torn beyond repair? But, who in his right mind would throw away an old precious jewel or some old gold coins simply because they were ancient and maybe tarnished a bit? Precious gems and gold do not lose their value with age! Like choice vintage wine they increase in value.

Jesus' parable of the "old" and the "new" certainly points to the "older covenants" which God made with his covenanted people of the Old Testament, beginning with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and with Moses on Mount Sinai, and with King David - the precursor of the Messiah (Psalm 89:3 and Psalm 110:1). Jesus' parable also points to the "new covenant" which he came to establish through the shedding of his blood on the cross and the anointing of his Holy Spirit who seals the new covenant on the day of Pentecost. Jesus did not come to abolish the Old Covenant but to fulfill it. The Lord calls us to treasure all of his word - all of his commandments, promises, precepts, and teaching (Psalm 119:14,72,127,162). Do you promise to keep all of God's commands? The Lord gives strength, blessing, and joy to those who treasure all of his word.

We would be impoverished today if we only possessed the treasures of the word of God in the "Old Testament" Scriptures or if we only knew the treasures of the "New Testament" Scriptures. Both the Old and New Testament Scriptures are given by the same eternal Father, inspired by the same eternal Holy Spirit, and fulfilled by the same eternal Word, the Lord Jesus Christ, who was with the Father from the beginning and who was sent from heaven to take on human flesh for our salvation (John 1:1-3,14).

Unity of the Old and New Testaments

There is a profound unity between the Old and New Testaments. Both are divinely inspired by one and the same Spirit (2 Timothy 3:16). The Old Testament prepares for the New and the New Testament fulfills the Old - the two shed light on each other. The Old Testament prepared the way for the coming of Jesus Christ as the redeemer of all who would be saved through his sacrifice on the cross. The New Testament lies hidden in the Old and the Old Testament is unveiled in the New. That is why Jesus interpreted the Old Testament Scriptures for his disciples and explained how he came to fulfill what was promised and foreshadowed in the Old (Luke 24:27). That is why we read the Old Testament in the light of Christ's saving death and resurrection. Do you revere the word of God in the Scriptures - both old and new - and see their fulfillment in the Lord Jesus Christ?

"Lord Jesus, may your word take deep root in my heart and transform my way of thinking, discerning, and acting. May your Spirit open my ears to hear and understand the word of God in the Scriptures that I may revere and treasure both the Old and the New Testaments which God has prepared for all who desire to enter his kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy. Help me to be a diligent student and faithful disciple of your word."

The following reflection is from One Bread, One Body courtesy of Presentation Ministries © 2020.

ROUNDABOUT

God “tried again.” —Jeremiah 18:4

In business, a common saying is: “Why is there never time to do the job right the first time, but always time to do it over again?” Have you ever worked hard at a project, only to have a co-worker spoil the end result through carelessness or sabotage? Now you must “try again” through no fault of your own.

Can you remember a situation of which you could say: “I thought I had toiled in vain, and for nothing, uselessly, spent my strength”? (Is 49:4)  Hold that situation in memory. Now picture the Lord at the potter’s wheel (Jer 18:3ff), trying over and over again to mold you into His disciple. Whenever you rebel, He patiently picks out your hardened parts, discards what is useless in your life (Mt 13:48), and gently tries again. With infinite patience and skillful care, He continues to work at forming you according to His pleasure (Jer 18:4).

God the Potter won’t stop working on you. He doesn’t get frustrated; rather, He’ll keep trying again and again. “It is hard for you to” fight against Him (see Acts 26:14). Repent! Stop going around in circles with the Lord. Surrender every part of your life to God. Let Him lovingly caress you with His gentle hands and make a masterpiece of your life.

Prayer:  Father Potter, by my negligence and rebellion, I’ve wasted enough of Your time and mine (1 Pt 4:3). Mold me as You wish.

Promise:  “Every scribe who is learned in the reign of God is like the head of a household who can bring from his storeroom both the new and the old.” —Mt 13:52

Praise:  St. Peter was called “golden word” (Chrysologus). About 180 of his writings have been preserved—a great blessing to the Church. He famously said, “He who amuses himself with Satan cannot rejoice with Christ!”

Reference:  (This teaching was submitted by a member of our editorial team.)

Rescript:  "In accord with the Code of Canon Law, I hereby grant the Nihil Obstat for One Bread, One Body covering the period from June 1, 2020 through July 31, 2020. Most Reverend Joseph R. Binzer, Auxiliary Bishop, Vicar General, Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio September 18, 2019"

The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements

[fevie168]

Thursday (August 3): Trained for the kingdom of heaven

Scripture: Matthew 13:47-53

47 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net which was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind; 48 when it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into vessels but threw away the bad. 49 So it will be at the close of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous, 50 and throw them into the furnace of fire; there men will weep and gnash their teeth. 51 "Have you understood all this?" They said to him, "Yes." 52 And he said to them, "Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old." 53 And when Jesus had finished these parables, he went away from there.

Meditation: What can a story of a dragnet and a great catch of fish tell us about God's kingdom? The two most common ways of fishing in Jesus' time was with a casting-net (or hand-net) which was thrown from the shore and the drag-net or trawl which was let down or cast into the waters from a boat. As the boat moved through the waters the dragnet was drawn into the shape of a great cone which indiscriminately took in all kinds of fish and flotsam and jetsam swept in its path. It usually took several men to haul such a net to shore.

Reward and judgment at the end of the age What is Jesus' point here? Just as a drag-net catches every kind of fish in the sea, so the church acts as God's instrument for gathering in all who will come. Just as the drag-net does not or cannot discriminate, so the church does not discriminate between the good and the bad, the useless and the useful. God's kingdom is open to all who will accept and believe. But there will come a time of separation, at the close of the age when the Lord Jesus returns again and sends out his angels who will separate the good and the bad and then send them to their respective destinations. Our duty in this present age is to gather in all who want to become citizens of God kingdom here on earth as well as in heaven above.

The Lord Jesus, when he comes again at the end of this age, will give to those who chose to follow his way of truth and righteousness, and to those who rejected him and his merciful word of truth and goodness, the reward and destiny they chose to pursue in this present life. God freely offers the treasure of his kingdom to all who will believe in him and follow his only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, as their Lord and Savior. Do you hunger for God and for his everlasting kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy?

Trained for the kingdom of heaven What is the point of Jesus' parable about a "scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 13:52)? Jewish scribes were specially devoted to the study and practice of the Word of God entrusted to Moses (the first five books of the Bible) and in instructing others in how to live according to God's commandments and way of holiness. In the Old Testament Ezra was called "the ready scribe of the law of the God of heaven" (Book of Ezra 7:6,21). He received this title because he "had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments" (Ezra 7:10). Ezra's heart was set on the kingdom of heaven because he revered God's word and he taught others through example and instruction to love and obey God's word.

The old and new treasure of God's word Why does Jesus compare a "trained scribe" with a "householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old" (Matthew 13:52)? Some people love to store up old prized possessions along with their newly acquired prizes. Others are eager to get rid of the old to make room for the new. So why does Jesus seem to emphasize keeping the old along with the new? Why not replace the old, especially if the new seems to be better or more useful? Wouldn't a person want to throw away an old pair of shoes and replace them with a new pair - especially if the old pair became well-worn or torn beyond repair? But, who in his right mind would throw away an old precious jewel or some old gold coins simply because they were ancient and maybe tarnished a bit? Precious gems and gold do not lose their value with age! Like choice vintage wine they increase in value.

Jesus' parable of the "old" and the "new" certainly points to the "older covenants" which God made with his covenanted people of the Old Testament, beginning with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and with Moses on Mount Sinai, and with King David - the precursor of the Messiah (Psalm 89:3 and Psalm 110:1). Jesus' parable also points to the "new covenant" which he came to establish through the shedding of his blood on the cross and the anointing of his Holy Spirit who seals the new covenant on the day of Pentecost. Jesus did not come to abolish the Old Covenant but to fulfill it. The Lord calls us to treasure all of his word - all of his commandments, promises, precepts, and teaching (Psalm 119:14,72,127,162). Do you promise to keep all of God's commands? The Lord gives strength, blessing, and joy to those who treasure all of his word.

We would be impoverished today if we only possessed the treasures of the word of God in the "Old Testament" Scriptures or if we only knew the treasures of the "New Testament" Scriptures. Both the Old and New Testament Scriptures are given by the same eternal Father, inspired by the same eternal Holy Spirit, and fulfilled by the same eternal Word, the Lord Jesus Christ, who was with the Father from the beginning and who was sent from heaven to take on human flesh for our salvation (John 1:1-3,14).

Unity of the Old and New Testaments There is a profound unity between the Old and New Testaments. Both are divinely inspired by one and the same Spirit (2 Timothy 3:16). The Old Testament prepares for the New and the New Testament fulfills the Old - the two shed light on each other. The Old Testament prepared the way for the coming of Jesus Christ as the redeemer of all who would be saved through his sacrifice on the cross. The New Testament lies hidden in the Old and the Old Testament is unveiled in the New. That is why Jesus interpreted the Old Testament Scriptures for his disciples and explained how he came to fulfill what was promised and foreshadowed in the Old (Luke 24:27). That is why we read the Old Testament in the light of Christ’s saving death and resurrection. Do you revere the word of God in the Scriptures - both old and new - and see their fulfillment in the Lord Jesus Christ?

"Lord Jesus, may your word take deep root in my heart and transform my way of thinking, discerning, and acting. May your Spirit open my ears to hear and understand the word of God in the Scriptures that I may revere and treasure both the Old and the New Testaments which God has prepared for all who desire to enter his kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy. Help me to be a diligent student and faithful disciple of your word."

Psalm 84:1-5,10

1 How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts! 2 My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the LORD;  my heart and flesh sing for joy  to the living God. 3 Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God. 4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise! [Selah] 5 Blessed are the men whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion. 10 For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.  I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.

Daily Quote from the early church fathers: A scribe who is trained for the kingdom of heaven, by Cyril of Alexandria (375-444 AD)

"A scribe is one who, through continual reading of the Old and New Testaments, has laid up for himself a storehouse of knowledge. Thus Christ blesses those who have gathered in themselves the education both of the law and of the gospel, so as to 'bring forth from their treasure things both new and old.' And Christ compares such people with a scribe, just as in another place he says, 'I will send you wise men and scribes' (Matthew 23:34) (excerpt from Fragment 172)

[thedarkcloakedlioness-blog]

The Lakshmanrekha

*Religion often subtly changes our worldviews about gender relations. Read how Dadi’s bed time story widens the horizon for little Anu.**

///WARNING: Heavy Sarcasm, might be offensive if you're too touchy about religion.This piece contains heavy references to Hindu mythology. If you're a Hindu, I did not mean to be blasphemous to offend you. So no death threats please, chill. it is an objective take on the gender discourse prevalent in stories of religion, from a sociological viewpoint.///

Why does Mama insist on brushing teeth every night? Mia said that she doesn’t have to do so.

Little Anu found this mundane task terribly annoying. Especially when she couldn’t wait to go to bed today, as her Dadi ( Grandma) had come from the village to stay with them. Dadi usually stayed in Anu’s room whenever she came to visit and she knew a lot of stories which Mama didn’t. Anu believed that maybe Mama’s class teacher had not told her good stories like Dadi’s had. Anu quickly brushed her teeth and rushed back into the room to find Dadi changing the sheets.

‘ Anu, Did you brush your teeth’?, Mama was at the door.

‘Yes Ma’, Anu replied in a resigned voice.

‘ Good girl. Don’t trouble Dadi too much and go to sleep fast, okay?', Mama said, as she closed the door softly.

Anu climbed into the bed and watched as Dadi swallowed a bunch of multi coloured pills in all sizes and shapes. She decided that when she would be old, she would eat only green pills which was her favourite colour.

‘ Dadi, Dadi, tell me a story’ , Anu chirped excitedly.

‘ Haan, haan*, my dear. Shall I tell you the story of the ever kind Lord Sriram’? (* Hindi word for Yes, showing agreement.)

‘But I wanted to hear stories of animals’, Anu could not help but pout.

‘ Haan dear, this one has plenty of animals in it too’ Dadi reassured her.

‘ Okay then, Dadi’ Anu hoped this story was as good as the story her teacher had taught in class today. It was about a fighting priness called Jhansi Rani whom Anu had grown to admire very much.

‘Ah, so where was I the last time? ‘ Dadi ‘s brows wrinkled, matching her face as she tried to remember.

‘ Lord Sriram, Sita and his brother Laksham were living in the forest now!’ Anu remembered exactly where Dadi had stopped the last time, when she had come to stay with them for Diwali holidays.

‘Lakshmana dear, not Laksham. ‘ Dadi smiled kindly. Anu could never imagine her sweet Dadi ever being angry as her Mama would sometimes.

‘ One day, Sitadevi saw a beautiful deer as she was sitting outside their hut in the forest. It had the most innocent eyes and the grace of an apasaras as it pranced about.'

‘ What's an apsaras, Dadi?’

‘Apsaras are beautiful women who dance and sing in heaven. They are well known for their beauty which has been said to have tempted even the most strong willed men.'

‘ Tempt men?’ Anu was confused as she looked at Dad’s troubled face. What she would be tempted by was when Mama brought a family pack of icecream and not let her have it whenever she wanted. How can women tempt anyone like icecreams? They were not something to eat.

‘How can beautiful women tempt anyone, Dadi?’ Anu was determined to know. Dadi looked a little troubled and unhappy with all the interruptions Anu made.

‘Anu, dont interrupt me like that child! Your cousin, Tina does not do that when I tell her stories. So where was I?’ Dadi’s tone was a little harsher than Anu was used to. Could Dadi get angry if she asked many questions. She could not imagine how someone sweet like her Dadi could get angry and yell at her.

‘But when Sitadevi got too close to the gentle creature, the deer pranced away into the thick forest. So Sitadevi asked her husband Lord Sriram to catch that deer for her.’

‘ But Dadi, why couldn't she go and catch the deer herself?’, Anu piped up.

‘ Because it was a large and thick forest with roaring lions, tigers, jackals, elephants and slithering snakes. It was very dangerous for her to go alone.’

‘ But why was she afraid, Dadi? You said she was the avatar of Goddess Lakshmi. And God made all plants, animals and us. Dadi, you said that Sitadevi was a brave, smart and beautiful princess.’, Anu said as her little brow clouded in her confusion.

‘ Haan dear. But at present, she was human.’ , Dadi continued. 'So she asked Lord Sriram to get her the deer.’

‘ But Lord Sriram was also human. Why wasn’t he afraid?’ Anu asked.

‘ Because he was the avatar of Lord Vishnu, dear. He was the brave prince of Ayodhya. Hai ram*, Hai ram’, Dadi chanted, as she closed her eyes in devotion, touching her prayer beads.( *Hai ram – Hey Lord Ram).

'But Dadi', Anu protested, 'You said before that Sitadevi was a brave lady as well.'

Dadi sighed, closing her eyes. ‘ Listen dear, Men are brave and courageous. They go out into the world and get things done. The duty of an ideal woman is to be faithful to her husband and help him discharge all his worldly duties, as she is dependent on him. Women cannot go out like men do. Its too dangerous. ‘ Dadi tried to impart some wisdom to her grandchild that she had inherited from her own Dadi.

‘ But Dadi, My Mama gets everything done here. She buys all household stuff, water all the plants, takes care of me and our cat,Loopi. She goes to the clinic like Papa goes to the office. She can also drive like Papa.’ Anu did not understand what Dadi was talking about.

‘ Haan, haan dear. Now the times have changed. Women who are brave enough can do some things that men do too. But don't forget that our religion and scriptures put the duties of women as what I have told you- To her husband. All these things women do now are fine, but not as important as being an ideal woman and wife like Sitadevi.'

Anu looked unconvinced. ‘ You will understand when you grow up, my dear.’ Dadi resorted to her ultimate weapon to avoid anymore questions.

‘ So Lord Sriram decided to go and catch that deer. She left Sitadevi in his younger brother Lakshman's protection. But hours passed by and there was no sign of Lord Sriram or the deer. Sitadevi got worried. She asked Lakshmana to go look for her Lord. But Lakshmana did not wanted to leave her alone in the jungle. What if somebody came while he was away and kidnapped Sitadevi.'

‘ They could go together Dadi. Why should she be left alone at their home. Like my Mama takes me with her to clinic if our Auntie doesnt come for work one day.’ , Little Anu was sure that Lakshmana would have done exactly what her Mama did.

‘ No dear. I told you it was a dangerous forest. So Lakshmana, drew a circle around Sitadevi and asked her to stay inside that circle. It was called the Lakshmanrekha. As long as Sitadevi stayed inside the circle, she would be protected from any kidnappers.’ Dadi explained.

‘But what if Sitadevi wanted to go to the bathroom?’, Anu was troubled with this arrangement. Even her strict class teacher who let them go to the bathroom whenever they wanted seemed kinder than Lakshmana.

‘Anu! Don’t ask silly questions my child. ‘ Dadi said sharply.

'So anyway, as Sitadevi sat alone inside the circle, an old man came begging for some food. Now Sitadevi, the most ideal woman could not help but feel compassion to the poor man. But if she had to go in to get the food, she would have to breach the Lakshmanrekha. But she was too kind to let the man starve. So as she stepped out of the circle, there was a loud cackle of laughter.', Dadi paused dramatically.

'Who was it? Who was it?', Anu could not contain her excitement.

'The old man transformed into the hideous Demon King Ravana who captured her and flew away in his flying chariot.', Dadi said.

‘Why didn't Sitadevi fight Raavan like Jhansi Rani fought the men who came to take her kingdom? She was also a princess.'

Anu was outraged, as she sprang up from the bed.

'Sitadevi was not strong enough to fight a hideous and powerful demon like Ravana. She was just a woman. What could she do all alone, with no one to protect her?’ , Dadi asked.

‘ But Jhansi rani fought men alone and..'

Anu! What did I tell you about interrupting me often. ‘, Dadi’s brow clouded in anger. So even Dadi can get angry, Anu thought silently.

‘Where was I? Ah, yes. So you see, all the terrible things that would later happen in the story was because Sitadevi did not heed Lakshmana’s warning and stayed within the Lakshmanrekha.’ Dadi spoke softly, as she turned to face Anu’s troubled expression.

‘ So now do you understand my child, why women should always obey men. You don’t want to be in trouble like Sitadevi did, do you?'

Anu frantically shook her head. Kidnappers were frightening, but demon king kidnappers were much worse.

‘So what did we learn today, then?’ Anu did not want the story to end there. She was not sleepy as yet and was a little worried that demon kings might come to kidnap her while she was asleep.

‘That men know better and women should be like Sitadevi, the ideal woman except when she disobeyed. If women disobey, bad things could happen to them’ , Anu replied in a soft voice as she laid back down.

'Goodnight my child', Dadi turned off the bedside light. Little Anu tried to sleep, a little bit shaken but intrigued by the new knowledge she had acquired. She asked Dadi if she could ever be as good as Sitadevi.

‘Yes, my dear. You would grow up to be a beautiful and well behaved woman like her’, Dadi reassured her.

Little Anu went to sleep a little wiser than she was before.

Author Notes: The piece was a satirical take on sexist ideologies fed to us when we are children in the form of stories. It tries to explore the messed up world from the innocent view of a child. No blasphemy intended. Primarily written as a subtle and satirical feminist discourse. How victims of sexism creates more victims. Also, don't question the logic of the mythological story. It's not my creation and yes, people make all those interpretations that Dadi did.