Cherry Blossom Festival

Happy Blossom Festival

April 3 will be our dear Helene's 25th birthday and our dear friend Candace's 70th.  It has been sweet to adopt the habit of "Hanami," the many centuries - old practice of picnicking under a blooming Sakura or ume tree. (Wikipedia)

In the 3rd century it was only the elite who would practice this tradition. 

Dan and I like many others have had a meal out under the blossoms, and I spent the better part of an afternoon under a tree thinking of our dear spring birthday sweethearts. I include Sarah who will turn 27 April 23 and on her birthday we remember Candace's mom Helen, Edna Whiteley and Gillian Anderson.  HappyBirthday dear ones you are lovely, long lasting flowers in our lives.

Emperors planted cherry blossoms to denote their territory...hence the proliferation.  

We saw a 15 year old girl standing staring into a fully blossomed tree. Everyone is taking pictures of them as if in the next second the wind will sweep all the petals away. They are likened to clouds for good reasons.

For this short time of the blossoms, huge trees burst out in magnificent blossoms and then within days the petals are blown into the streets and rivers. People take this time to remember how beautiful life is yet how short, they marvel at the beauty and pay attention because it is so short lived.

The symbolism for the Japanese is about the ephemeral nature of life and a Buddhist concept of mono no aware, or pathos of things, or empathy, or sensitivity to ephemera. A deep and gentle sadness about the reality of life's impermanence. (Wikipedia)

Often Dictators co-opt a people's long loved symbols for their own purposes in order to influence many people and hide any destructive intent. That was done here during the war, when the fleeting life of the blossoms was likened to the brilliant burst of a young kamikaze pilots life. 

People in Japan reclaim the simple practice of a quiet, gentle walk under the cherry blossom symbol as a meditation on the beauty of our swift journey in this life. We talked to many people who came out to enjoy the beauty. 

Every age of person is out for a bike ride, walk, picnic or just to sit. The only place or time we can think of huge groups of people specifically out to meditate on a marvel of nature encases like this is sometimes in Vancouver in the summer on a particularly beautiful summer day and tons of people go down to Spanish banks to picnic and walk along to enjoy the ocean and perhaps a particularly low tide. 

In this huge city of many and varied attractions people are out to enjoy the blossoms in the several days they are in full bloom. There is a society which tracks and publicizes the blossom schedule throughout Japan. Don't you love that!

Sakura burst into bloom 

blow away on the wind

Beneath it I watch and wait. 

ssm

Sweet Darkness

 You must learn one thing.

The world was made to be free in.

 

Give up all the other worlds

except the one to which you belong.

 

Sometimes it takes darkness and the sweet
confinement of your aloneness
to learn

 

anything or anyone
that does not bring you alive

 

is too small for you.

 

~ David Whyte

Lord Maita

IIn Kanazawa a huge garden and palace in the Maida family for 13 centuries. More info coming.

The Japanese celebrate cherry blossoms

And though we truly respect their attention to this delightful sign of spring we are generally adverse to crowds and avoids the blossoms in the main garden. I have vowed to ride under the cherry blossoms near our Tokyo home every day. Their sweet smell fills the air.

You do not have to cut down old trees!

  

These guys are working hard to prop 

this pine up ....could last another 25 years or more. Great artfulness is attended to every branch and  intense care is taken of every old tree especially in temple grounds.

This palace space has been redone in the old construction .. No nails, wooden pegs and slings.

 

Some of the huge walls have a circular pattern and little rocks used to chink the huge rounded boulders but this one is smooth fitted rocks of irregular sizes. I think this one would withstand more attacks don't you?

Two old ones here propped up.

I've seen this symbol in on a Buddhist 

Zen Walk

DT  Suzuki a Zen Philospher from the late 1800' s to the 1960's.  More notes to come.

DT Susuki Foundation Museum andeditation area.

The building creates its own quiet world very distinctly separate from the city.

Take the walk here.

Peace and healing dear friends and family.