February 18
THE SPIRITUAL EYE
Perception varies with beings. A man is viewed as food by the tiger, as a friend or foe in the battlefield and as father by the son at home.
The cousins Yudhishthira and Duryodhana belonged to the same royal family. They were educated by the same master Drona. They searched in the same world. The former could not find a single bad man in the world. The latter could not find a single good man. As is one’s mind so is one’s eye.
Holy men are gifted with the spiritual eye. They cognize Divinity in the entire Creation.
--- Vedanta
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ROCHEFOUCAULD
RÉFLEXIONS OU SENTENCES ET MAXIMES MORALES
57
Quoique les hommes se flattent de leurs grandes actions, elles ne sont pas souvent les effets d'un grand dessein, mais des effets du hasard.
58
Il semble que nos actions aient des étoiles heureuses ou malheureuses à qui elles doivent une grande partie de la louange et du blâme qu'on leur donne.
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57.—Although men flatter themselves with their great actions, they are not so often the result of a great design as of chance.
58.—It would seem that our actions have lucky or unlucky stars to which they owe a great part of the blame or praise which is given them.
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Essay
Cutting back
減らすこと
It’s the end of a long, busy day at work. The whole day was packed with one big news story after another and I barely had time to catch my breath.
So what do I do?
I grab a beer out of the fridge, plop down on the couch, take a long sip and relax. Bliss!
Prior to the pandemic and my move to teleworking, I might have gone to a bar with a co-worker or two for a quick drink.
This might be a familiar situation for those who drink alcohol: A cold beer or a glass of wine has a way of relieving stress.
It’s not just about stress relief though: I also just love the taste of a nice craft beer. In fact, I’m the proud president of The Japan Times’s Beer Club.
And while no one would ever say alcohol is healthy for you, it has long been said that it is OK to drink occasionally.
Canadian government guidelines used to say men should have no more than 15 drinks per week to avoid health problems. The limit was 10 for women.
That was fine for me. I might drink beyond that limit on rare occasions, but only when I’m on vacation or during the New Year’s holiday break.
But earlier this year – in the middle of one of those busy days at the office – I saw an article that put a damper on my love of beer.
A new report found that even small amounts of alcohol can cause several kinds of cancer. Because of this new information, Canada’s guidelines were updated to say that “no amount of alcohol is safe” and that more than two drinks per week is considered risky for your health.
This news came as quite a shock. Two drinks a week is a lot different than 15. That quickly made me rethink my after-work routine.
Prior to the report, I was already trying to limit my drinking. Part of that is due to becoming a father. I want to make sure I’m around to see my daughter grow up. She’s also awake at 7 a.m., and sometimes much earlier, so anything more than two beers the night before is a bad idea.
I also discovered that I can relieve that after-work stress with nonalcoholic beer.
Nonalcoholic beer is not quite the same as the real thing, but it’s close enough to be satisfying.
Still, two drinks a week feels like a difficult target. Instead, my goal is to limit myself to a handful of drinks over the weekend and avoid those very relaxing after-work drinks.
For now, I won’t give up alcohol entirely.
After all, I have a beer club to run. (Joel Tansey)
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Joshua 009
Chapter 9
***** The Gibeonite Deception *****
1 And it came to pass, when all the kings which were on this side Jordan, in the hills, and in the valleys, and in all the coasts of the great sea over against Lebanon, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard thereof;
2 That they gathered themselves together, to fight with Joshua and with Israel, with one accord.
3 And when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done unto Jericho and to Ai,
4 They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up; (古びて破れたのを繕ったぶどう酒の皮袋)
5 And old shoes and clouted upon their feet, and old garments upon them; and all the bread of their provision was dry and mouldy. (繕った古ぐつを足にはき ; mouldly = moldly / musty)
6 And they went to Joshua unto the camp at Gilgal, and said unto him, and to the men of Israel, We be come from a far country: now therefore make ye a league with us.
7 And the men of Israel said unto the Hivites, Peradventure ye dwell among us; and how shall we make a league with you?
8 And they said unto Joshua, We are thy servants. And Joshua said unto them, Who are ye? and from whence come ye?
9 And they said unto him, From a very far country thy servants are come because of the name of the LORD thy God: for we have heard the fame of him, and all that he did in Egypt,
10 And all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, which was at Ashtaroth.
11 Wherefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spake to us, saying, Take victuals with you for the journey, and go to meet them, and say unto them, We are your servants: therefore now make ye a league with us.
12 This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we came forth to go unto you; but now, behold, it is dry, and it is mouldy:
13 And these bottles of wine, which we filled, were new; and, behold, they be rent: and these our garments and our shoes are become old by reason of the very long journey.
14 And the men took of their victuals, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the LORD.
15 And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them.
16 And it came to pass at the end of three days after they had made a league with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors, and that they dwelt among them.
17 And the children of Israel journeyed, and came unto their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, and Chephirah, and Beeroth, and Kirjathjearim.
18 And the children of Israel smote them not, because the princes of the congregation had sworn unto them by the LORD God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the princes.
19 But all the princes said unto all the congregation, We have sworn unto them by the LORD God of Israel: now therefore we may not touch them.
20 This we will do to them; we will even let them live, lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath which we sware unto them.
21 And the princes said unto them, Let them live; but let them be hewers of wood and drawers of water unto all the congregation; as the princes had promised them.
22 And Joshua called for them, and he spake unto them, saying, Wherefore have ye beguiled us, saying, We are very far from you; when ye dwell among us?
23 Now therefore ye are cursed, and there shall none of you be freed from being bondmen, and hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.
24 And they answered Joshua, and said, Because it was certainly told thy servants, how that the LORD thy God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you, therefore we were sore afraid of our lives because of you, and have done this thing.
25 And now, behold, we are in thine hand: as it seemeth good and right unto thee to do unto us, do.
26 And so did he unto them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, that they slew them not.
27 And Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the altar of the LORD, even unto this day, in the place which he should choose.
