Lately I’ve been thinking about a poem. It’s a special Zen poem, very important in my tradition (I’m a Buddhist, in case I haven’t mentioned.) Usually this poem is used to talk about Big Truth with a capital T. But I’m reflecting on this poem as a way to explore harmony at home.
The poem’s title is Sandokai and was written by Shitou Xiqian, a famous Zen master. The poem has many translations in English, all helpful to understanding the original Chinese. Here are some translations of the title:
Harmony of Difference and Equality
Merging of Difference and Unity
Meeting of Relative and Absolute
Can you see how this might help with the home? Here are the ideas I’m thinking of:
Harmony of Public and Private Spaces
Merging of Formal and Informal
Meeting of Host and Guest
Let’s look at one little section of the poem. (Here’s the full poem – it has a lot of obscure Buddhist references which I am skipping; scroll to page 20). I like the following section because it stands on its own:
In the light there is darkness, but don’t take it as darkness
In the dark there is light, but don’t see it as light
Light and dark oppose one another like the front and back foot in walking
Each of the myriad things has its merit, expressed according to function and place
Phenomena exist, box and lid fit, principle responds, arrow points meet
“In the light there is darkness, but don’t take it as darkness.”
Light and dark are not the same thing, but they depend on each other. This is the nature of harmony. I think it’s helpful to think of harmony in terms of flow.
Think of the flow of the sun rising and falling. When the sun comes up, the dark fades away. When the sun goes down, the light fades away. This is an ongoing, unending cycle. The light flows into darkness. The darkness flows into light. This continues endlessly, without hesitation or fear.
“Like the front and back foot in walking”
This line is another great metaphor. Walking doesn’t exist without the flow of our feet. The front foot becomes the back foot, the back foot becomes the front foot, and voila, we are walking. This is harmony.
Let’s carry this idea of harmony into the home.
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