A couple of days ago I mentioned something about a cat shown in a painting of the Buddha’s Parinirvana. Thankfully I have a monastic colleague who is well read and sent references.

This is probably not a cat. It was found in the corner of a painting sent along with the information below and thought it worth an airing anyway.

Rev. Mugo,
Here are a couple of references to the cat in the depictions of the Buddha’s Parinirvana. See the book “Zen & Japanese Culture” by D.T. Suzuki for a story about a monk called Cho Densu (1352-1431) who was commissioned to paint the Buddha’s PariNirvana for the Tofukuji Zen monastery at Kyoto (39 by 26 feet). The story goes that a cat would watch him paint the picture. Any way the artist wanted ultramarine in mineral form to paint with. The cat disappeared then returned to show him where he could get it from, so the cat was included in the picture!

I think traditionally only the animals of the Chinese zodiac, rat, ox, dog, monkey…. etc. were included because it was thought that they came to pay their last respects to the dying Buddha, but the cat being proud and self-satisfied didn’t come (see the book “The Cat Who Went to Heaven” by Elizabeth Coatsworth)!

In Gassho,

I know this will not change lives however if you want to read alternate reasons why the cat is not one of the zodiac animals go here and scroll down to ‘Origin Stories’.

Hell will no doubt rain down upon me for mentioning that cats might possibly exhibit pride etc. Sometimes we get so close to our animal friends we believe they are us; that’s human. One summer, when a novice, I took care of a dog; I held her tight through thunder storms, shampooed and cream rinsed her, combed her pantaloons to perfection, cooked special food for her and her cat companion. Then one day she bent her beautiful head and gulped down some poop! We were, at once, ‘one’ and very very different.

Pushka and Max, my late shadows and dear friends.

*Stonehenge, yesterday.

The Last Invocation

AT the last, tenderly,
From the walls of the powerful, fortress’d house,
From the clasp of the knitted locks from the keep of the well-closed doors,
Let me be wafted.

Let me glide noiselessly forth;
With the key of softness unlock the locks–with a whisper,
Set ope the doors, O Soul!

Tenderly–be not impatient!
(Strong is your hold, O mortal flesh!
Strong is your hold, O love.)

Walt Whitman (1819-1892)

A young Buddhist of my acquaintance in Montana sang The Last Invocation at a small family memorial for her grandmother. It was breath taking to hear her sing and I can still hear it in my minds ear.

Stonehenge has the best of grandmothers in its presence in the folds of Wiltshire, England. Always there to call upon, never dies, comforting in its enduring. If you pass by this ancient site do pause for a moment.

*The photograph was taken by one of the monks of our Order. With Nine Bows, thank you.

You might want to read this news item about the world tour of some relics of the Buddha.

When I was in Taiwan in May a world tour of Buddha’s relics had recently been there. They had been successively enshrined in a number of temples during the celebrations called Wesak. (This marks the start of the Buddhist new year during which the Buddha’s Birth is celebrated). By all accounts this was a huge event with thousands of people walking past and paying their respects.

In July, back in the UK, I was taken to see some Relics in a temple in Birmingham. In a posting on July 15th I ponder on the issue of authenticity of such relics. Like the ones in the news item these were quite low key in their public presence yet non the less ‘present’ in an intangible sense.

Whoops! The link address referred to in the last article dropped out. Here it is. A fast line is needed.SVS Animation 10005 – Arctic Vortex

Time for a weather report. A number of far away people have a picture of Edmonton cold, white and beautiful and I’d just like to put the record straight. It’s mild and very brown, and beautiful too in a certain way.

This winter has been the mildest since 1930 something, with hardly any snow and hardly any seriously cold temperatures. But that is all about to change, for one day! The drop in temperature is due to the Arctic Vortex which is pushing cold air at Alberta. Tonight’s TV weather forecast shows an impressive mass of cold air spinning down from the top right of the screen bulging down to bottom left. We could have a high of -19 c on Thursday and then on Friday -2 c and Saturday -1 c. You can watch an animation of the Artic Vortex here.

Just because I wanted to end the day with something other than a spinning mass of air I offer this from the Denkoroku.

ITS solitary light, wondrously vast,
is never darkened
For the wish-fulfilling MANI-JEWEL
shines forth illumining everywhere.

This poem appears at the end of the chapter on Nagyaarajyuna, the fourteenth ancestor after Shakyamuni Buddha.