Monday morning - a brand new week! Or is it?…..
Is there really such thing as a brand new week? Or is this simply the next day in the history of our world - a history we are responsible for writing, for this next little while?
Just as Bono and U2 pay homage in this week’s video to everyone who has made music what it is today, I cannot watch this video without thinking of all the people who have dedicated their lives to making our world what it is. What a gift they have given us! (Unlike the video, though, their words are not lip-synced to such a catchy tune. Can you believe how well this is done?)
(9/08 update - the ability to put the video in this post has been disabled, so here is the link - sorry!)
The history of our world is now in our hands. But history isn’t just the past - it is today, tomorrow. We are creating history with every second that passes, just as Louis Armstrong and Billie Holiday did with their music. Where are we taking history next? What will the next chapter of this story be?
Infinite gratitude towards all things past. Infinite service to all things present. Infinite responsibility to all things future. *
In music and in life, these are incredible instructions for starting not just the week, but every day. We are creating the future, this week, this day, this moment. Let’s see what we can make of the world!
Have a great Monday and a great week, all!
(U2 has posted a subtitled version of Window in the Skies at its website, so you can see who everyone is in the video - from Vladimir Horowitz , Nat King Cole and Ella, to Frank Zappa, Elvis (Presley and Costello), and Elton John, right up to The White Stripes and bands I am too old to have heard of - not to mention David Byrne’s Talking Foot! Just click here and then click where it says Test your rock ‘n’ roll cred here. When the box pops up, follow the red words to choose high/medium/low speed connection - and ignore the NOTE that says you must register. It should play just fine.)
(If you are new to the Monday Morning Rock Out, you can find previous Rock Outs here - enjoy!)
* When philosopher and theologian Huston Smith asked Zen master Daisetz Suzuki, “What is zen?” these words were his reply.
Hildy, In your Monday morning rock out 6 you use the statement “Infinite gratitude for all things past….” and say that this was told by D. T. Suzuki to Huston Smith. I have been looking for source information about this statement. I first came across this statement in the documentary “The Wisdom of Faith” by Bill Moyer in which he interviews Huston Smith. Smith tells the story of his practice under a roshi in Japan as a youny man and states that at the end of the practice period the roshi used this statement to sum up the Zen life. Unfortunately in the documentary Smith does not tell the name of the roshi. Do you somehow know that that roshi was D.T. Suzuki, or do you have different information. I’d be grateful for any help. Thanks kit
Kit - I believe I found it here:
http://godquest.org/buddhism.htm
I hope that is helpful. Hildy