It is hard to read or watch the news at the moment. Though not doing so feels wrong, I cannot go too deeply into the carnage without feeling depressed, helpless or even panicked. What can we, as individuals, do to change this situation? Some Buddhist friends of mine might say that you can only change yourself from within and that this transformation will slowly change the world, little by little – though that can surely only work as a long term philosophy. It cannot change what is currently happening in war zones right in this moment.
Though Buddhism has a long history of violence in Japan and elsewhere – you only have to look at the ethnic cleansing massacres of the minority Muslim Rohingya in Myanmar for a shocking example, right now, far away in Kamakura, I am immersing myself much more frequently than I used to in the calm and elegance of the ancient zen Buddhist former capital in which I live, with a fuller appreciation of its relative ultra-serenity. After peak hours, when it bustles with tourists both foreign and domestic , there is a very poetic and dignified atmosphere here in Autumn, a time when the city feels especially beautiful.
Earlier in the year, I injured my knee in an accident and couldn’t really exercise. It is better now, and I am enjoying just cycling about here and there, past temples and artisan shops and cafes, the trees starting to turn, the moon last night unusually large and partly hidden behind zephyr clouds. Wistful, sad in a way. Dense with religion and history.
In the afternoon, on a whim and because it was pay day, I decided to meander down to my favourite incense shop, just a minute or so from the Hachimangu shrine, where I have recently discovered the the ephemeral pleasures of niobukuro ( ‘scent bags’), delicately aerated muslin sachets containing incense and flowers, spices, herbs, perfect for indolent aesthetes, that you insert in an embroidered pouch – I chose one in ochre- and then place on your person, or in drawers, or – as the lady advised me, in a wallet, the idea being that pleasing but unplaceable scent follows you about or is released at certain moments during the day. Unlike the sharp sprays to the throat and neck of alcoholic perfumes I witnessed back in England this summer ( just too strong ! too volatile ! ), this method of perfuming is much more subtle, yet also deeper and perhaps more potent than you might initially imagine
(will continue in a minute or in my lunch break as I am now on my way to work and don’t want to lose the post as I walk along – )
Where is part 2? I was enjoying that.
The day got way busier than I had anticipated.
Will resume !
Do you put these sachets in clothing drawers?
It’s a new thing for me, but yes – that is apparently one way of using them but originally they were created to be tucked into kimono
I am 60 years old and have one of these sachets that I received whilst living in Japan. I was 10 years old. It still smells wonderful and evokes a cascade of wonderful living in Japan memories.
Wow – the scent has lasted that long ? How lovely.
I know that I am going to become fully obsessed with them.
Love the idea. Ooh, and that fabric is so lovely. I can imagine how good they smell, and how serene a feeling they might invoke.
Escapism of this small, benign and gently mood-enhancing type is essential right now. Funny: I’ve been wondering why I’ve been so focused on my fragrances lately, really getting into them, spraying/dabbing them copiously and often. It just hit me. It’s to drown out the noise of the world right now.
Honestly it is
Sorry. Evoke! Just heading to bed . . . Zzzzzzz