I found this rather sad

Over at a forum I hang at someone posted this little story.

__________

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousand of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work . Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule. A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk . A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work. The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars. Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston and the seats average $100. This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of an social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?

One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?

__________

There was a video on YouTube.



I found this rather sad. Are we so busy? Are we so wrapped up in our lives that we can't see beauty and passion anymore?

Sigh. I worry about people sometimes.

One of my favorite stories

And a little insight into how I think.

__________

Many years ago there was an old samurai who had decided to retire to become a priest.

But before he could do so he had to determine which of his three sons received the family sword.

So, after thinking a bit, he decided to test them. He went to a room in their home and placed a small wooden block on top of the shoji, the sliding door to the room. When the door was opened the block would fall and hit the person in it.

Then he called his youngest son to him.

The youngest son was a swordsman. He spent every available minute practicing with it. He was sharp, fast and deadly.

He came to the door and opened it. The block fell and struck him. He had his sword out and sliced the block in two before it hit the ground.

The old man stood up in a rage. "Get out of this house!" he shouted. "You are disowned! You do not understand what it means to be samurai and you never will."

Replacing the block the old man called his middle son to him.

This son spent a great deal of time studying the way of the sword. But there were other things he studied as well. They weren't his main point of interest though.

This son came to the door and opened it. The block fell and struck him. He caught it before it hit the ground.

Bowing to his son the old man said, "I am sorry, but you cannot receive the family sword. You do not yet understand what it means to be samurai. But I can see that one day you will."

Resetting his trap the old man had his oldest son come to meet him.

This son studied the sword, but it was just one of many things he studied. He wasn't a poor swordsman. It was just one of his many interests.

He came to the door, started to slide it open. He stopped then to reach up and pull down the wooden block. Entering the room he closed the door and replaced the block. Bowing to his father he asked, "Father? You wished to speak to me?"

"Yes," replied his father. "I have made my decision. You are the one who will receive the family sword as you are the one who most understands what it means to be samurai."

__________

Here's my interpretation of this story.

The sword represents power and the old man had to determine which of his sons received that power, and the responsibility that goes along with it.

The youngest son failed because he didn't have the awareness or the restraint required to use the power responsibly. He did not see the trap. And he reacted without restraint. There was no need to use his sword but he did.

For this lack of awareness and restraint his father cut him off from all power.

The middle son failed because he didn't have the awareness to receive the power. He did react with restraint though.

So his father didn't give him power, but also didn't cut off his access to it. There was a strong possibility the middle son would learn enough awareness to be worthy of power in the future.

The oldest son succeeded because he was the only one aware enough to avoid the trap. By being aware he removed the need to use his power at all. He acted rather than reacted.

This is why the old man gave him the family sword, the power. He was the one least likely to use that power. The eldest son was wise enough, aware enough, that he didn't need power.

There you go. One of my favorite stories, and how I think about it. It forms a major part of my beliefs and actions.

Have a great day, every one.

A little political philosophy today

All the forums I hang out at seem to have at least one thread on the nature of good and evil. So I'll post a bunch of aphorisms I keep close to my heart on this subject.

__________


What you resist, you become. - Old Taoist saying.

__________

Beware when you battle monsters,
lest you become a monster.
And as you gaze into the abyss,
the abyss gazes also,
into you.

Friedrich Nietzsche.

__________

To be angered by evil is to partake of it, stupid. - Matthewson's 23rd Edict, from The Book of Universal Truths and Other Humorous Anecdotes.

That is all. Carry on.

In a somewhat cynical mood

So I'm going to rant a little.

Most people don't want freedom. They don't want justice. They don't want peace or happiness or wealth or love.

They want their own way.

That isn't the same thing.

I'm done. Carry on.