Aphorism

"When you pray move your feet"-African Proverb

I really like this saying and try to follow it as much as possible. When I first heard it, I didn't understand it . The aphorism kept me wondering for a long time since I knew there was a deeper meaning. Then I finally understood what it was trying to say; you can't just wish for something to happen, but instead you have to work hard to get it. Sometimes, people pray to God or wish upon a star, but they don't realize that a fairy won't come out of the skies to grant them their wish. I think God or other supernatural creatures were not created to convert people into unproductive machines that just dream; they are a moral support for people to set a goal, start something, work hard for it, and reach it. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you shouldn't dream. You should be full of dreams, but you should be willing to make them true. 

I follow this often. When I am in semester exams, I study hard and review the things I don't know, and I don't feel safe until I know everything. Unlike me, other people just pray or wish they will get a good grade. In my opinion you can't expect God to give you good grades without you working for them. Another example is when I play an important tournament. I practice a lot for it. This way I will be ready for the tournament, and I won't need luck to win. Instead, I will use all I have to try to win it. This is the way I think, and there may be people that disagree, but I do think just praying will get you anywhere.

This quote relates to Joseph Campbell’s “Heroes Adventure” in one main way. Joseph Campbell says that to be a hero, you have to be willing to sacrifice something. Every hero has to work really hard to be able to complete his/her heroic action. He says "the adventure thet the hero is ready for is the one that he gets" this means that you have to be prepared to achieve something and you have to work for it. No hero has ever just wished to be a hero and has become one. Heroes undergo transformations and many sacrifices that make him a hero. In fact, Jospeh Campbell says "heroes go through death and resurections". The aphorism says that if you want something, you have to fight for it, you have to work for it, and work requires sacrifice. Obviously this quote is not only for those who want to be heroes, it fits for every goal a person has, no matter how small it is.

Siddhartha Section 4 (pages 95 - 122)

Respond to the text personally

In this part of the book, Herman Hesse talks about the relationship Siddhartha and his son have. Young Siddhartha doesn´t like his father. The boy is used to living in a luxurious house, using expensive clothing, eating all the food he wants, and receiving the help of many servants. His life by the river is the total opposite; he has to work; there is little food; and there are absolutely no servants to follow his orders. I can't relate to their relationship, but I can relate to one thing; when I do something bad, I can relate to one thing; when I do something bad, I hate when my parents respond in a calm way because then I feel guilty, and I feel like I'm the only bad person in the family. Likewise, young Siddhartha hates that his father respond so calmly to his bad behavior.

On page 100 his feelings are explained. “This father who kept him in this wretched hut bored him, and when he answered his rudeness with a smile, every insult with friendliness, every naughtiness with kindness, that was the most hateful cunning of the old fox. The boy would have much preferred him to threaten him, to ill-treat him.” I can relate to the feelings of the boy. When I do something bad I prefer that my parents shout at me or punish me. I don´t like when they just say something like “you should´ve thought better” or “I expected better from you”. Their calmness at these moments irritates me. I´m not sure why this happens, but I think it’s because when they shout they make you feel like they are bad too, and that they are the bad people. When they punish you, you don´t feel so regretful because you feel they are culpable too by being mean. When your parents react calmly you see they are disappointed, so you feel sad, and regret what you did. You punish yourself and I think that punishing yourself and feeling guilty is harder and more important than when others try to fix your mistakes. I think that Young Siddhartha didn´t like his father reacting calmly because deep inside he would be sorry for his actions. Young Siddhartha didn´t want to regret his actions, instead he wanted to look like a tough guy who had no deep feeling. “There was nothing about this father that attracted him and nothing that he feared.” (Page 100). The boy wants to be tough and his father´s acts of kindness prevent this from happening.. 

Hyperlink 

Poll:

http://poll.pollcode.com/7wmje

Siddhartha Section 3 (pages 60 - 94)

Connect text to another book, a film, work of art, a comic or any other creation

In this part of the book, Siddhartha abandons his rich, luxurious life. After a long sleep by the river he notices it has many things to teach him. I related what he learned from the river to the teaching of Taoism. Siddhartha and Lao Tzu have very similar ways of observing the river.

"'Love this river, stay by it, learn from it.' Yes, he wanted to learn from it, he wanted to listen to it. It seemed to him that whoever understood this river and its secrets, would understand much more, many secrets, all secrets." (Page83). 

In this part of the book, Siddhartha observes, analyses, and concludes that the river has millions of things to teach him. The river becomes one of his most profound instructors. Similarly, Taoism uses the flow of the river to demonstrate the movement of life. Lao Tzu believed in wu wei or non-action, and he used the river as the best example to describe it. The ferryman´s way of navigating the river is similar to what Taoism says; you can´t fight a river; you have to let it take you. Taoism believes that the power of rivers is derived from non-action. The river just flows, but it has many properties and characteristics that only the river can have. Taoists say "Be still like a mountain and flow like a great river". On page 83 of Siddhartha Herman Hesse describes what Siddhartha was thinking: "He saw that the water continually flowed and flowed and yet it was always there; it was always the same and yet every moment it was new." Siddhartha notices the properties of the river and starts helping the ferryman with his job, so he can listen and learn from the river. Vasudeva, the ferryman, tells Siddhartha that he won´t be the one to teach him, “the river knows everything” and it will teach him. (Page 86)

Siddhartha Section 2 (pages 30-59)

Ask questions to later answer

• Will Siddhartha ever leave Kamala like he left his father, Govinda, and the Samanas?
• What is more valuable, what he learned from the Samanas or what he learned from Kamaswami?
• What is his relationship with Kamala?
• Will he ever return to his humble, "Samana style" life?
• Which life does he prefer? (Rich merchant or poor and spiritual)
• Will he ever see his family and friends (Govinda) again?
• Will Siddhartha and Kamala get married or have a kid?
• Will Siddhartha work the rest of his life with Kamaswami?
• Would Siddhartha consider me a "falling leave controlled by the wind" or a "star which travels a defined path"? (page 58)
• How does his life with Kamala and Kamaswami help him reach Nirvana?
• What makes Siddartha go from being a Samana to a merchant?
• Why did he stop himself from desiring the woman at thr river (page 42) but not from wanting Kamala?
• Did Siddartha get off track with Kamala and Kamaswami or will it help him reach his goal?
• How can you desire to reach Nirvana if it means "free from desire"?

Siddhartha Section 1 (pages 1-29)

Connect text to another book, a film, work of art, a comic or any other creation

In this part of the book, Siddartha starts as part of a rich, powerful family. He wants to reach Nirvana, but he  notices he won't be able to reach it with his current life. He leaves his father and goes to live and learn from the Samanas. After a while he notices that he won´t be able to reach Nirvana with the Samanas either. He goes to the Buddha and notices that the only way he will be able to reach Nirvana is by himself. I can connect this book to a movie called Go Figure. In this movie, Katelin wants to be a professional ice skater. When she has the opportunity to train with a professional coach she takes it and trains really hard to go to the Olympics. 

 In the movie, Katlin wants to change her ice skating coach since she thinks it’s time to move on and improve. Siddhartha’s goal in life is to reach Nirvana, but he feels that he will never reach his goal with they Samanas or his father. None of the people he knows has reached Nirvana, so he feels that they won´t help him reach it either. "Siddhartha had begun to feel the seeds of discontent within him. He had begun to feel that the love of his father and mother, and also the love of Govinda, would not always make him happy, give him peace, satisfy and suffice him." (Page 3). Here he notices that he has to begin his journey to find a new teacher. In the movie, Katelin, the main character wants to go to the Olympics but she knows that with her current coaches she will never make it. When she gets the opportunity to work with Natasha, a professional Russian coach, she works really hard to get to the Olympics. Siddhartha and Katelin both have to sacrifice a lot of things to reach their goal, and they leave their teachers, families, and friends to begin a journey and a new life. The difference between them is that Siddhartha ends up continuing his journey alone. He doesn´t stay with the Buddha; Siddhartha believes he will do better alone. He finds his inner self and decides he will teach himself. “But he has given to me Siddhartha, myself." (page 29). In Go Figure, Katelin does stay with the Russian coach, but also discovers that figure skating and having the best coach is not the only thing that matters in her life. Both characters learn an important lesson that will help them in the rest of their journey.

The Tao in Rainbow Fish

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6S4IPMs5ZY

"This is Just to Say" Parody

I have killed your dog that was on my porch. I plucked his eyes out and broke his four legs.

And which was so cute and friendly,

And who you probably loved

Forgive me for killing him. You´ll never see him again, but I enjoyed his death.

I have used up all the hot water in my bath.

And which you would have probably enjoyed

Forgive me but it was a delicious bath, now I´m cozy and clean.

I have deleted your 100 page essay

In which you probably spent allot of time doing.

Forgive me, but you´ll have to do it again. I enjoyed pressing that button that said "erase"

I have stolen your car that was on your garage.

And which was probably really expensive.

Forgive me but it was so pretty, and it runs so fast. It´s the best car I´ve ever had.

Oxymoron and Paradox

This frase is often found on books, documents, exams, and manuals so the reader knows its not a printing mistake, but the blank page is left there on purpose. This is a paradox because the text on the page keeps it away from being blank. Its contradicting since it say´s its blank when its actually not.

The symbol Yin -Yang represents the Chinese understanding of how the natural world works. The Yin - Yang represents light and darkness put together to mean everything. This is an oxymoron beacause light or white (yang) and darkness or black (yin) have two opposite meanings, and they are being put together to describe something (in this case "everything")

This image is an oxymoron. It's contradictory to say "act naturally". If you act its not natural, so it contradicts itself. The definition  of natural is: characterized by spontaneity and freedom from artificially, affection, or inhibitions, it means not altered, treated, or disguised. The definition of act is the opposite. When you act you are being "artificial, and your attidude is being "altered or disguised". They are two words that mean two opposite things and are put together for a certain purpose.

This image is also an oxymoron because a copy can´t be original. It is often found in books, scripts and other types of written paper. If it is original how can it be a copy? The definition of copy is: an imitation or reproduction of an original. When you say "original copy" it contradicts itself.

Definitions gotten from:

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/

Passage 4.14

The Master said, "Do not be concerned that you lack of official position, but rather concern yourself with the means by which you might becomes established. Do not be concerned that no one has heard of you, but rather become a person worthy of being known"

Confucius wrote many quotes called Analects. Many people guide themselves through life based on this Analects since they talk about righteousness, education, poverty, government, and being humble. I agree with many of these Analects, and I chose one to talk about.

I think that its trying to say that your position or rank is not important. What´s important in life is being good. You should be humble, not looking for fame but looking for kindness, happiness, and helping others and maybe that will take you to fame,  but you should do it from your heart not to gain fame. You shouldn´t be worried about your fame, rather you should be worried about your goodness and what you can do to change the world. It is not about being known. Its about doing something worth being known for.

I like what it is trying to say, and I try to follow this. I´ve never wanted popularity or fame I prefer people liking me for who I am and what I´ve done. When I began playing squash, no body had faith in me. I was a girl, I was small, and didn't seem to have any strength at all. I didn't care. I wanted to be the best at it (not to prove anyone wrong but for myself). On my first tournament I was willing to give my best. On the first match I was playing against a bigger girl than me and she seemed stronger too. My sister said:

"Good luck, she's going to beat you".

I didn't care. I started playing and was losing but then I got all my strength out and won. Then I had many other matches, and I won them all. I had won the first tournament, but I wasn't looking for the first place. I was trying to prove myself and work hard, and show that anyone can win.

Spellbound

1. I think it is important for Ted to win the Spelling Bee because he is really intelligent and he feels different in his school. Ted doesn´t have friends and is left out. When he goes to the spelling bee he will find that he is not the only one that likes school and likes to study. The spelling bee will be full of people that are just like him and he won´t feel as lonely in the world.
2. Its also important for Neil to win the spelling bee because he has allot of pressure from his parents and the people around him. He has put allot of effort into the spelling bee, studying 7,000 to 8,000 words a day. His dad is really strict and he has even payed people to prey for Neil so he can win. Neil wants to win so that all that effort he put into this pays off and he won´t disappoint anyone.
3. Words I learned how to spell:

• kookaburra
• heleoplankton
• ecclesiastical
• hellebore
• apocope
• encephalon