Posted: Fri Mar 28, 2008 10:42 pm Post subject: An old story
Once, there was an evil landowner in ancient Japan, he was a terror to the people in his lands.
Many Samurai lost their lives trying to kill the landowner.
Then one day, a Samurai made an attempt. He waited for night, and got past the outer guards and into the perimeter. He made his way into the house stealthily. He got past the internal guards, and waited for a breath outside the bedroom of the evil landowner.
He drew his courage and entered the bedroom. There was the landowner, with 6 of his guards. The Samurai fought bravely but was eventually overcome and captured alive.
The landowner decided to make an example of the samurai, so her ordered all the local people to come and witness the warrior getting burned at the stake. Out of sheer fear, they all did as they were ordered, thus a large crowd was gathered to witness the death of the samurai.
He was tied to the stake, the wood beneath him set alight.
The landowner cackled as the flames licked around the samurais feet.
Then the fire engulfed the samurai, burning the bonds that tied his wrists. He grabbed the sword that the landowner was wearing and thrust it into his heart killing him instantly.
It was his last act, as then, before the eyes of all the witnesses, he turned to ashes. _________________
The peasants were obviosly jealous because the landowner had money and they didn't.
I find it interesting that in a lot of these fables the villian is usually rich.
I have a book about old English fables and folklore and the villian of the piece is usually a witch (if it's a woman) or rich (if it's a man).
The onus is on you to find the meaning and from that to learn about your own likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses, etc _________________ Please visit our main site
If you see it from the viewpoint of the landowner, you could interpret it as a warning about not abusing your power.
Without wanting to post too much, I have looked from different peoples shoes in the story, and drawn differing conclusions about what the story could tell us. If indeed it tells us anything, maybe it's just a story.
I think that another aspect could be to treat your enemy's with respect. A warrior should have a warriors death and not be humiliated for the ego of the powerful.
To respect your enemy's is perhaps to respect yourself and to show true strength in dignity.
In the end it was the landowners disrespect for a worthy opponent which caused his downfall. _________________ Please visit our main site
I'm so happy you see this story on different levels.
What at first seems like just a little tale to tell children, gets more and more complex each time you look at it.
Is it a story about goals? Or love? Respect? Power?
It could be about all of them, or none of them, or more. What it is about could say something about you, how you see it....
Do you see it the same way you feel it? Or hear it?
I have to say at the risk of being a bore, that I was shown most of what I wrote in a meditation involving evil knights and so called moral knights.
I had to free an evil knight and I was extremly reluctant but in the end I complied.
It was then that I was told "always respect your enemy, he is simply doing what he is meant to do".
It was a good lesson. If you can respect those who would kill you then surely you can achieve almost anything. _________________ Please visit our main site
But what did this landowner actually do to make him "evil", charge the peasants rent for using his land?
That doesn't make him evil it makes him a businessman.
It doesn't seem to matter what country or culture these stories come from there always appears to be a similar theme, the "have's" are evil and the "have not's" are downtrodden.
Maybe it would be better to start some new folklore tales in which the have-not's are encouraged to work thier way out of poverty.
to me the lesson is they both die so nothing is achieved ....
but then I understand that is the samuri way..
though that does not make it the right way. It seems to me so much waste so much death and little learning is taking place - why do they not talk and learn from each other?why is it that one is right and the other wrong and death is the only conclusion? _________________ as a babe drinks from its mothers breast so too does man milk mother earth
better to live and die by the sword than to sulk away like a coward who has no belief in anything _________________ as a babe drinks from its mothers breast so too does man milk mother earth
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oh yes I see that.....
