tang dynasty times

Koto-ba

For Conrad (better late than never?)

Why Heidegger was NOT a charlatan!

It was precisely in this context that Heidegger wrote his essay, I think. And, the essay's main project was not (not at all) an attempt to come to terms with "the alterity of Japanese thinking," nor was it even to try and shine light on Japan's own cultural paradigm (clearing); but rather Heidegger was exploring-- in a poetic style-- the manner in which language is a reflection of our understanding of being-- and that that understanding of being changes over time and place. This is the first point .

Heidegger, to be sure, is not clear-spoken.

But neither was Kant and neither was Nietzsche. And like Kant and Nietzshe, Heidegger invented an elaborate vocaubalary which must be addressed if one wants to seriously engage his work. One could no more productively read Kant ignoring the technical terms. In particular in these latter essays, he adopts a poetical style (such as it is) that actually has something in common with Nietzshe's. And, this is the second point: just as your friend Matt suggested, the words have all been defined (except iki, which is the project of that particular essay in question I believe)-- therefore, as Matt said, it all does make sense (well, it at least is not nonesense) .   

The third point is that, the Japanese words are not obscure, but rather are everyday words. Kotoba and iki are in the lexicon of my 6 year old son, and Heidegger's take on their meaning and etymology (vis-a-vis the mysterious Count Kuki Shuzo) are also the standard take. That is to say that neither the word koto-ba, nor its etymology as presented in this essay by Heidegger are particularly problematic from a Japanese point of view.

Who am I, though, to state what is or is not problematic to a Japanese point of view?

Well, just to get rid of any possible doubt you might have, I went and asked Matoki Saito, who is a lecturer in philosophy at Hosei University. Not only does he manage the Heidegger Forum of Japan (an online mailing list for Heidegger scholars in Japan), but he is teaching the book A Dialog on Language (the book in question) this term in his Readings in German Philosophy class and is very interested in issues of multi-culturalism in Heidegger. When I asked Professor Saito about whether Heidegger got it right concerning kotoba, he had this to say:

HeideggerのLanguage=Sage=Koto/baの理解については、ご指摘のとおり、神道や禅、また中国思想からの影響がある、と言えるかもしれません。一説には、『存在と時間』執筆時にすでに道元の『正法眼蔵』に触れていたとい
う話もありますし、また有名な話ですが、後期には老子の翻訳を試みてもいます。そのような点から考えると、りあんさんご指摘のように、「木の葉にも神がいるという神道　＋　言霊という、最も日本的な考えを考慮したこと」も十分ありえたと言えるのではないか、と思います。

Concerning Heidegger's understanding of Language=Sage=Koto/ba, I think just as you suggested it can be said that his concept can serve as a reflectsion of Shinto, zen, and Chinese thought. There is one theory that Heidegger wrote Being in Time after having already read Dogen's Shobogenzo. And an even more famous anacdote tells of the philosopher's attempts in his later life to try and translate Laozi. With these points in mind, I think it is safe to agree with you that within his understanding of kotoba we can see the fundamentally Japanese concept of kotodama, as well as Shinto concepts of kami dwelling in nature (including tree leaves: the ba or kotoba).

Indeed, considering Heidegger's own knowledge of Japan was limited to say the least, I personally have always found it pretty incredible that he was able to get as far as he did in that essay; which is all to say that not only did Heidegger NOT have it wrong, but he was surprisingly relavant.

Returning back to Heidegger's aim in the essay, though.

What was his aim? Well, I think it was this: by analyzing the meaning of the Japanese term "kotoba" we can catch a glimpse of the Japanese understanding of being (ie "the lightening message of grace.") That is because language serves to "light up" (or make intelligeable) this understanding. At the same time language is rooted in the understanding-- as of course, different people in different cultures say different things. You can see this particularly easy in languages as different as Japanese and English, but even the same person will not say the same things when they speak English as when they speak Japanese (to say nothing of presentation and other cultural niceties).

This is not to say that language affects our understanding of the world, but rather to say that language is a reflection of our understanding of being.  

And again, his choice of "kotoba" is not an exploration of the uniqueness of the Japanese, but rather is just the particular example Heidegger chooses to utilize in order to make his point.

For those who wish to explore further, I would say start by looking at Shintoism, Kotodama and Manyoshu, for starters. In addition, this Japanese langauge wiki article on kotodama explains the way this unque understand of "word" is reflective of Japanese culture as reflected in modern day Shinto wedding ceremonies , or in the phrase:  「言霊の幸ふ国」　『万葉集』 (Manyoshu).

This also does a fine job of laying out the territory in terms of Being and Time.

Red Cliffs 赤壁

He said he wanted to create a salon like the legendary one that had existed at the Heian Court--a gathering place of aristocratic refinement, where a small group of people devoted to the arts and other intellectual pursuits could come together and enjoy each other's company. In a word, he was looking for stimulating conversation, and he thought that the Internet could actually make that a reality.

Think about it: here at our fingertips we have a technology that can put us in touch with thousands-- literally thousands upon thousands-- of people. With such technology, it should only be a matter of filtering-- to find just the right handful of people.

**

The Heian Court-- It was a world where the most brilliant minds of the time gathered. In clothing so beautiful it boggles the mind, they wiled away their days exchanging gorgeous love poems, attending banquets where dances from Central Asia-- slowed way, way down-- were performed by the light of the full moon, and with their dragon boats in the style of the Continent; they lived within a cloud of fragrant incense clouds and blossoming flowers.

They were not only connoisseurs of the highest rank, but they were performers of the arts as well-- as, of course, at that time "art" was not something to be viewed, but rather something to be practiced.

Just imagining how exquisite their world was-- well, who wouldn't be "green with envy?"

You can imagine how my friend's experiment went....

But, wait, perhaps you agree with my friend that surely the Internet could bring together a small group of such like-minded people? Think about it, though. What would a salon like he was envisioning really require?

Well, an Internet connection for one. And then an interest and commitment to talking about art or other intellectual matters perhaps?

While certainly that would be a great place to start, however, I cannot help but feel that like most every other conservation I see online, things would before long petter out. Politics will always generate heated discussion, but real intellectual community? Just taking the Heian court as an example, I think something more is required. And that something more is, I suggest, a shared literary and cultural background. I honestly cannot come up with anything else that would serve as the necessary framework for the kind of conversation my friend is looking for.

Not only would the shared background ensure that the cultural, artistic and psychological associations were being made that are the hallmark of a true salon, but it is perhaps the only real way to achieve elegant conversation of the kind he is talking about.

In that sense, I think we have lost much in our increasing drive toward specialization. Not that long ago, a university education perhaps at the very least included a cursory reading in Greek mythology or Latin; Roman history and Western philosophy. I remember once sitting in a bar with a group of Japanese colleagues and someone mentioned "summer nights"-- and that was it, as if on cue, they all chanted in perfect unison the famous opening lines written by the Lady herself, Sei Shonagon

Natsu wa yoru. In summer, it is the night. It is of course delightful when the moon is out, but no less so on dark nights when countless fireflies can be seen mingling in flight. One even feels charmed when just one or two pass by, giving off a gentle glow. Rainy nights, too, are delightful

夏は夜。月のころはさらなり。闇もなほ、ほたるの多く飛びちがひたる。また、ただ一つ二つなど、ほのかにうち光りて行くもをかし。雨など降るもをかし。

The words were a thousand years old. And, I thought, what line could a handful of random Americans repeat like that-- perhaps other than the Pledge of Allegiance?

This brings me to my second point. Most traditional salon societies (like that at the Heian Court) had a strong emphasis on learning "by heart." Westerners often disparage what they call "rote learning" but it does have a few merits. In fact, I would argue, that without this kind of "learning by heart," the shared cultural achievements of the salon would have been impossible-- because of course there was an undeniable emphasis on performing; for example, being able to reply with the perfect reference to an ancient poem, recognize the exact blend of aromatics, recall a historical precedent from the Continent, etc. These were all required abilities.  And for better or worse, it is this that is one glaring difference between conversations in the blogosphere and what we read about in the Tale of Genji.

**

With this in mind, I hear that the first installment of Red Cliff has been released and is playing in theaters in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Japan will not see the first part till November. The second part will be released throughout Asia in early 2009. The US and Europe are getting the short 1 part version (which is 2 hours compared to the full 4 hour original version).

Of course, I would give anything to be sitting in a Hong Kong movie theater right now watching it. Based on the Chronicle of the Three Kingdomswritten in the 3rd century, the 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms has got to be the most famous, most popular book in the world! And the Battle of the Red Cliffs is perhaps the book's most famous scene.

Anyway, long before the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was written, my favorite man from the Kingdom of Shu, Su Shi 蘇軾 penned two  beautiful essays, together known as Ode to Red Cliffs. I have re-read them a hundred times, and a hundred times, they have meant something different to me. I'm not the only one either, for a thousand years, calligraphers have tried their hand at producing their own rendition of the work. Some have made their compositions in standard script while others have made it in wild cursive. Some even have dashed out copies in illegible drunken script. The point being that anyone reading the work, would have known the actual words by heart . 

And because of this shared knowledge, slight re-interpretations or variations in brush-work; the infusing of emotion or abstraction-- even the blatant breaking of calligraphic rules would have been immediately comprehend-able to the literate viewer--- no matter how removed in time.

(脱線)

Did I mention that Su Shi is perhaps more famous under his pen name, Su Dongpo (蘇東坡). Have you ever heard of Dongpo pork? It is a stew dish said to have been invented by when Su Shi was preoccupied by a game of chess he was playing, he forgot the stew cooking on the fire.

There is a work of "art" housed in The Collection in Taipei called "Meat Shaped Stone." One of the latter Qing emperors was so delighted by this interestingly-shaped rock, and so reminiscent was it of Dongpo pork that he had a special mounting made and then placed the rock in the Collection. One of Japan's greatest authorities on the history of the Palace Collection Keiji Furuya, remained stunned by the inclusion of this piece and wrote:

As you can see, this rock bears an uncanny resemblance to the Chinese pork stew known as Dongpo pork. The braised skin and the fat of the meat are uncannily similar to the dish and even the red portion of the stone is reminiscent of the porous skin one finds in a piece of braised meat. If this rock were placed on a plate and served up for dinner, not many people would pause before raising their chopsticks.

It is unusual and fantastical-- surely a rock unique Under Heaven. Still, it lacks the virtue and spirit of jade. It is just a rock. And that the Qing Emperor decided to include this rock in the Collection is a mystery. If the Qing Emperor felt that objects no longer required the aspect of virtue, than perhaps we can understand why the dynasty was to soon fall.

**

And, I leave you with Red Cliff: