Monthly Archives: April 2014

Ecuador 13: Week 3, Posada de Tigua to Isinlivi

Posted on April 12, 2014 by Rosan Daido

    When we left Chugchilán, we were not only a group of six, but eight.  Two dogs were accompanying us.  We tried everything to chase them back.  It did not work.   The path soon lead us to gorgeous … Continue reading →

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Blueberry Blooming

Posted on April 12, 2014 by Rosan Daido

                                             – Picture sent by Erin –      

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Ecuador 12: Week 3, Posada de Tigua to Isinlivi

Posted on April 11, 2014 by Rosan Daido

      We did stay one more day in Mama Hilda and decided to visit the Cloud Forest. The Cloud Forest is on the top of the mountain. In order to get to this place, we had to rent … Continue reading →

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Ecuador 11: Week 3, Posada de Tigua to Isinlivi

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Rosan Daido

    Like every day in the morning, the weather was beautiful and allowed us to get a stunning view down into the Quilotoa crater.  Sparkling green water is filling the 2 miles wide caldera, formed by a collapse of … Continue reading →

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Buddha’s Birthday: Flower Festival

Posted on April 9, 2014 by Rosan Daido

      The northern Buddhist tradition celebrates the Buddha’s Birthday, also called “Flower Festival” (hana-matsuri: 花祭り) on April 8, when flowers are in full bloom.   The Buddha entered into nirvana (no wind of karma blowing up and down) … Continue reading →

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Ecuador 10: Week 3, Posada de Tigua to Isinlivi

Posted on April 9, 2014 by Rosan Daido

    The Hacienda Posada de Tigue is a farm and  a cosy, welcoming inn.  The iron stove in the entrance hall was radiating heat all day, a real treat on a cold and rainy day. The Hacienda was the … Continue reading →

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Beyond Brains

Posted on April 8, 2014 by Rosan Daido

    Recently we posted the video “Zen and the Brain” here. We have been discussing Dependent Origination in our Friday classes, and I spoke about the vast width and depth of Dependent Origination awakened to by the Buddha in time and space. The Buddha said that what he described to people is only a small part of it, like a few leaves in the palm compared to the leaves of an entire jungle.   In connection with the above Jimu showed me the book Buddha’s Brain – the   Practical Neuroscience of Happines, Love & Wisdom. The authors of this book admit that no one knows the full nature of the brain of a Buddha or of any other person, and that something transcendental is involved with the mind, consciousness, and the path of awakening.   The triune brain theory of reptilian, paleomammalian, and neomammalian brains is interesting, but it overstretches. The triune function of head-heart-hara (guts) is essential for our psycho-somatic selves. The mind-brain parallelism is intriguing but oversimplified. Mind-world (and mind-body-world) unity is the essential understanding of Buddhism.   Our genes carry on billions of years’ evolution throughout the universe, constantly, depending on their situations and developing through their surroundings. Our bodies and brains cultivate and create new abilities and actualities like babies, adults, bodhisattvas, and buddhas. Buddhas and bodhisattvas regard themselves and others as babies limitlessly growing in the limitless worlds.   4/6/14                 … Continue reading →

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Ecuador 9: Week 3, Cuenca and Surroundings

Posted on April 8, 2014 by Rosan Daido

          20 miles west from Cuenca lies the Cajas National Park.  Cajas in Quichua means “gateway to the snowy mountains”. The area is between 10,000 and 17,000  feet high and is covered by tundra. 270 crystal … Continue reading →

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Ecuador 8: Week 3, Cuenca and surroundings

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Rosan Daido

    Cuenca is a colonial town of great beauty.  It was dedicated as a World Heritage Site by Unesco. The streets are filled with indigenous people called Cholas. They are mestizos, people of mixed race, who dress in their traditional regional costumes. During the time of Colonialism, the mestizos were the most discriminated.  The Catholic Church considered the mestizos as people having no soul.         Cuenca is also a center for crafts.  The famous Panama hat is produced in this town. We did not visit the production site, but a car selling hats was catching our attention.     It was Carnival time when we visited Cuenca.  During the three day holiday, people spray each other with a white foam and splash each other with buckets of water.  We could see this custom in a little town north of Cuenca during a visit to a local market.   The women wear embroidered blouses with short colorful skirts.  The skirts have a hem.       A specific hem indicates the region the woman is from. The chola hat is most famous. It is a straw hat stiffened with white color and a black band.  The location of two tangling balls indicate the marital status of the woman.                  Cutting a rubber band at the local market       … Continue reading →

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Lilac: Lilas (Lila)

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Rosan Daido

        Lilac just started blooming in beautiful color sent by Erin     Note: Lilas (French, Persian meaning dark blue, lila or lailakku in Japanese, nīla in Sanskrit meaning dark blue): In flower language purple lilac means the first … Continue reading →

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