pointing at the moon

leaden commented on the word pointing at the moon

December 14, 2011

rolig commented on the word pointing at the moon

This is a wonderful image! Very Zen. Do you know anything about where it comes from?

December 14, 2011

ruzuzu commented on the word pointing at the moon

Ruzuzu looked at the image and was enlightened.

Commentary: This superstition came to me through my mother and my grandmother. Back in the old days, in the old country, one didn't point at the moon because it would be "disrespectful." I think there's a moon goddess, but I can't remember what her name is--it might be Laima. Anyway, as Leaden has illustrated for us, pointing at the moon is a common Zen symbol for attaining enlightenment. So, the bad luck for me here takes the form of cognitive dissonance. I think my grandmother and the Buddhists would agree about not killing spiders, though.

December 14, 2011

oroboros commented on the word pointing at the moon

This book has a prominent place in my library it was one of those that initially set my feet upon the path...

December 14, 2011

leaden commented on the word pointing at the moon

It’s “Godo no tsuki” (“Moon of Enlightenment”) from the very popular 1885-1892 woodblock print series Tsuki hyaku sugata (月百姿) (One Hundred Aspects of the Moon) by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (月岡 芳年). The British Museum has a print. The following website is nice for thumbing through the series:

http://yoshitoshi.verwoerd.info/

December 16, 2011

rolig commented on the word pointing at the moon

Thanks, leaden! What beautiful work this is! So I suppose one message in the image is that happiness points the way to enlightenment but is not enlightenment.

December 16, 2011

ruzuzu commented on the word pointing at the moon

Rolig, that reminds me of the sixth step of the Ten Bulls.

December 16, 2011