Note: This article was written in 6th June, 2006 by Hachi, and later transferred to Beelationship for the article of “Hachi’s Dream-Relationship heals people, community and the world-“.
With what do you associate art?
Art museum, drawing, dancing, pottery, dyeing, expressing yourself……I imagine those.
However I have been feeling that those are styles of art.
I wonder something common and deeper is laid under those styles.
If so, what is that?
I felt I finally found the answer to the question by reading this book.
“Go for it, Buddhism! The era of temple Renaissance” ([がんばれ仏教！ お寺ルネサンスの時代」 上田紀行 著)
I would like to write about how I happened to know the book first.
Noriyuki Ueda is a professor of cultural anthropology, specialized in religion and healing for social change.
He seemed to be chosen as one of the popular professors at university, which I could see easily because his lecture was really interesting, fun to listen and has lots of things to learn at the symposium of Japan Transpersonal Association.
His story about writing a book was so impressive that I kept a record in the article.
I hoped someday I could give a lecture like him.
What was the most impressive story in his lecture?
Well, it was about the process how his latest book was born after his long-term slump.
He went to see a monk, talk about his inner experience with crying.
Then he found the meaning of writing his another book: just for introducing the monk who saved him, not for his ego which concerned the book would be needed by people.
The story made me buy the book to know more about that.
I have been reading the book while I go to work by bus.
It is plain but informative, really touching, encouraging people to think about the true meaning of healing including the style of funeral.
Those stories made me associated with the essense of town planning, and feel really encouraged to know therapy could be possible in a town not only in a therapy room.
Okay, let’s dig into main theme of the article.
What is art?
Let me quote what I was impressed from the book, which originally was printed on the flyer of a temple.
(Before the part, the author explained that temple were supposed to be both the place for learning, joy and relief to support quality of life, and the place for social art to change our society.)
“Artistic job can be everywhere in our daily lives
When it comes to artistic job, people imagine becoming an artist, or working at places like a theater or a gallery.
However, art has wide range of meanings and has to be more common.
Artistic job is the essence of variety of jobs.
For example, in the social welfare, people using their artistic talent has been focused.
(parasitically omitted)
They practice an artistic relationship as an important factor for supporting the quality of lives of their people.
The point is that every moment in our daily lives has chance for practicing art and making your job art.”
“Artistic job can be a sustainable business model.
The origin of the word of art is “the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination in order to solve difficulties”.
The place for practicing your art can be your town.
Through the job in which you take care of people, I would like you to let your relationships unfold artistically.
Another definition of artistic job is to discover the sustainable business model in which people can enhance the quality of live in your town.”
In response to this part, the author, Mr.Ueda wrote like this:
”Artists are the people who can see the light and shadow in people’s life.
The light and darkness cannot be seen by people living only in consensus reality.
The expression or existence of artists let us be aware of the meaning of life and awaken power within us to live.
Those kind of social artists is needed.
Temples can be a potential place and monks can be a potential existence.”
What do you think about that?
I felt those are what I would like to do in the future.
First, I thought I would like to practice my art in my work immediately as the important elements of enhancing children’s quality of time.
As I was reading the book in the bus to my work, I simply thought I could be more artistic.
My job is to take care of children after school, support them to spend their time in our facility and let them go back to their home safely.
If I minimize my power, I could think that it would be okay to spend time not to happen anything dangerous to children.
However, thinking of preventing children from a dangerous accident, safety was not guaranteed through plain relationship.
If I tell children “please don’t do that, it is not safe because….” and they accept what I say, you can see relationship between me and children working effectively.
If I shout to children “don’t do that!” annoyingly, children won’t feel they were really taken care of.
Guaranteeing a safety environment happens when relationship is working.
Also I think good relationship discover more interesting and original activities.
To do so, I think it is so important to watch every child carefully, and realize my inner experience.
What can it be possible?
I think it is artistic mind: ability of being able to see not only what I can see but also what I cannot see, like an attitude and a feeling of children and myself.
I often describe the artistic mind as extra inner power of adults but now I would like write that is artistic mind in order to create more fun and enhance the quality of time with children and co-workers.
Secondly, in the future, I would like to discover a sustainable business model to enhance the quality of life.
I don’t care how large it will be but I would like to work on it.
At the moment, I work everyday and train myself.
In my big picture, when I become a therapist, I imagine working at a place where includes broader meaning and relationships like a town rather than a therapy room somehow.
In the place, people can talk about anxiety of raising children or the meaning of life as an individual or group activities.
I might not call myself a therapist.
I feel it will be a fuzzier role.
I don’t know what it will be like but I would like to be an existence which people recognize me as an someone who is interesting to ask about a flow of life.
If the idea is too hard for me. I would like to work on something interesting and thought-provoking like that.
If that can be happened in my hometown, it will be more fun.
I dream more of exciting learning and education system for children, and hospice medical care which people make feel relived.
The high quality of recreation activities would make busy people relaxed and connect them deeply with their souls.
I think LOHAS is the keyword for the future, which is increasingly popular these days.
LOHAS means lifestyles of health and sustainability.
As you can see, sustainability is included in the word of LOHAS as well.
I feel discovering sustainable businesses model requires me to be an existence who cannot to be replaced.
I need to work on that first…!
Well, I wrote about what was on my mind during reading the book.
I would like to ask you again:
What is art for you?
Even if you are not interested in art like oil painting or sculpture, I suggested that the meaning of art is broader including sentient communication and unfolding relationships in daily lives.
I think, in that meaning, the expression of art in the book became arts, so that the title of this article followed the way.
Okay, lets call it a day!
“Go for it, Buddhism! The era of temple Renaissance” ([がんばれ仏教！ お寺ルネサンスの時代」 上田紀行 著)