Kitagawa Utamaro Ukiyo-e, wabi-cha

Wabi-cha, or wabi-tea, is a style of Japanese Tea Ceremony particularly associated with Sen no Rikyu and Takeno Joo before him.  Wabi-cha emphasizes simplicity.  The term came into use in the Edo era (1603 to 1868), prior to which it was known as wabi-suki, suki generally referring to the concept of “artistic inclination,” and “wabi” literally meaning ‘forelorn’.

adapted from wikipedia.org

Zen Chime Clock with Japanese Maple Leaves in Honey Finish

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl St.

Boulder, CO  80302

yugen, a profound mysterious sense of the beauty of the universe

Yūgen is an important concept in traditional Japanese aesthetics.  The exact translation of the word depends on the context.  In the Chinese philosophical texts the term was taken from, yūgen meant “dim”, “deep” or “mysterious”.  In the criticism of Japanese waka poetry, it was used to describe the subtle profundity of things that are only vaguely suggested by the poems, and was also the name of a style of poetry (one of the ten orthodox styles delineated by Fujiwara no Teika in his treatises).

Yugen suggests that beyond what can be said but is not an allusion to another world.  It is about this world, this experience.  All of these are portals to yugen:

“To watch the sun sink behind a flower clad hill.  To wander on in a huge forest without thought of return. To stand upon the shore and gaze after a boat that disappears behind distant islands.  To contemplate the flight of wild geese seen and lost among the clouds.  And, subtle shadows of bamboo on bamboo.”  

Zeami Motokiyo

Yugen is said to mean “a profound, mysterious sense of the beauty of the universe… and the sad beauty of human suffering”.

adapted from wikipedia.org

Japanese Maple Leaves Dial Face, the Zen Alarm Clock for a progressive awakening

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

plum blossoms, one of the four noble gentlemen

The “Four Gentlemen”, also called the Four Noble Ones or Four Friends, in Chinese art refers to four plants: the orchid, or ran; the bamboo; the chrysanthemum, or kiku; and the plum blossom, or ume (italics are in Japanese).  The term compares the four plants to Confucianist junzi, or “gentlemen”.  A painting or decoration incorporating all four plants is also known as the “Four Gentlemen”.  They are most typically depicted in traditional ink and wash painting.  The “Four Gentlemen” belong to the category of bird-and-flower painting in Chinese art.

The Four Gentlemen have been used in Chinese painting since the time of the Chinese Song Dynasty (960–1279) because of their refined beauty, and were later adopted by artists in Korea, Japan, and Vietnam.  As they represent the four different seasons (the plum blossom for winter, the orchid for spring, the Chrysanthemum for autumn, and the bamboo for summer), the four are used to depict the unfolding of the seasons through the year.

adapted from wikipedia.org

Zen Alarm Clock with Chime and Dream Kanji Dial Face

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

zen monk

The term mendicant refers to begging or relying on charitable donations, and is most widely used for religious followers or ascetics who rely exclusively on charity to survive.

In principle, medicant orders or followers do not own property, either individually or collectively, and have taken a vow of poverty, in order that all their time and energy could be expended on practicing or preaching their religion or way of life and serving the poor.

Many religious orders adhere to a mendicant way of life, including the Catholic mendicant orders, Hindu ascetics, some dervishes of Sufi Islam, and the monastic orders of  Janism and Buddhism. In the Catholic Church, followers of Saint Francis of Assisi and Saint Dominic became known as mendicants, as they would beg for food while they preached to the villages.

adapted from wikipedia.org

Digital Zen Alarm Clocks, available in maple, walnut, bamboo, and black lacquer

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

A Buddhist monk begging as a komusō

A komusō, was a Japanese begging monk of the Fuke school of Zen Buddhism, during the Edo period of 1600-1868.  Komusō were characterised by the straw basket (a sedge or reed hood named a tengai) worn on the head, manifesting the absence of specific ego.  They are also known for playing solo pieces on the shakuhachi (a type of Japanese bamboo flute).

These pieces, called honkyoku (“original pieces”) were played during a meditative practice called suizen for alms, as a method of attaining enlightenment, and as a healing modality. The Japanese government introduced reforms after the Edo period, abolishing the Fukè sect.  Records of the musical repertoire survived, and are being revived in the 20th century.

adapted from wikipedia.org

Kanji Dial Face in Honey Finish, Zen Alarm Clocks with a progressive chime

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

Hana Wachigai, the crest of the Izumo Genji clans (Oki, Enya, Takaoka)

Mon, also monshō, mondokoro, and kamon, are Japanese heradic symbols.  Mon may refer to any symbol, while kamon and mondokoro refer specifically to family symbols.

There are no set rules in the design of a mon. It most commonly consists of a roundel encircling a figure of plant, animal, man-made, natural or celestial objects, all abstracted to various degrees. 

Religious symbols, geometric shapes and kanji were commonly used as well.  Virtually all modern Japanese families have a mon, though modern usage is rare.  Many Japanese may no longer recognize their own family’s mon.

adapted from wikipedia.org

Zen Chime Alarm Clock, Digital Black Lacquer by Now & Zen

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

torii gate, Meiji-jingu Shrine, Japan

A torii is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance or within a Shinto shrine, where it symbolically marks the transition from the sacred to the profane.  The presence of a torii at the entrance is usually the simplest way to identify Shinto shrines, and a small torii icon represents them on Japanese road maps. They are however a common sight at Japanese Buddhist temples too, where they stand at the entrance of the temple’s own shrine, called chinjusha and usually very small.

adapted from wikipedia.org

Bamboo Zen Timers, a meditation tool

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

calm the mind, zen timers by Now & Zen, Boulder, CO

In Medtitation everyone most likely experiences two of the five hindrances.  They are boredom, which is half-hearted action with little or no collectedness and restlessness-worry, which is the inability to calm the mind. 

The first three enlightment factors (mindfulness, investigation, energy) are to be used when experiencing boredom to regain collection, the last three enlightment factors (tranquillity, collection, equanimity) are to be used when experiencing restlessness and worry to regain collectedness.

adapted from wikipedia.org

Bamboo Zen Timers, a meditation tool

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

Chrysanthemum Flower

The Imperial Seal of Japan is a crest used by members of the Japanese Imperial family.  The Emperor of Japan, used a 16 petal chrysanthemum with sixteen tips of another row of petals showing behind the first row.

Shinto shrines either displayed the imperial seal or incorporated elements of the seal into their own emblems.

Shinto is the natural spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people.  The word Shinto (“Way of the Gods”) was adopted from the written Chinese combining two kanji: “shin” meaning gods or spirits (originally from the Chinese  word shen); and “tō“, or “do” meaning a philosophical path or study (originally from the Chinese word tao).

Modern Shinto does have a central theological authority but no singular Theocracy.

Zen Timepiece, a bowl/gong alarm clock and timer in cherry finish

adapted from wikipedia.org

Now & Zen Headquarter Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

cherry blossoms

What a strange thing!

to be alive

beneath cherry blossoms.

                                            -Issa-

maple zen timer for meditation and yoga

Now & Zen

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302