Self-Titled

Ikkyu, the Zen master, was very clever even as a boy.  His teacher had a precious teacup, a rare antique.  Ikkyu happened to break this cup and was greatly perplexed.  Hearing the footsteps of his teacher, he held the pieces of the cup behind him.  When the master appeared, Ikkyu asked: “Why do people have to die?”

“This is natural,” explained the older man.  ”Everything has to die and has just so long to live.”

Ikkyu, producing the shattered cup, added: “It was time for your cup to die.”

From Zen Flesh, Zen Bones.

This made me laugh.  Clever kid.  I’ll try to remember this technique the next time I do something bad.

Sozan, a Chinese Zen master, was asked by a student: “What is the most valuable thing in the world?”

The master replied: “The head of a dead cat.”

“Why is the head of a dead cat the most valuable thing in the world?” inquired the student.

Sozan replied: “Because no one can name its price.”

From Zen Flesh, Zen Bones.

Is my identity constant or variable? On the one hand, my identity could be some thing or things about me that always have and always will be unique. On the other hand, my identity could be the variable but unique combination of my characteristics at any given moment, like my location, appearance, personality, relationships, and memory. I think it is a mix of the two. I think my choices identify who I am. My choices are set in stone; I leave them behind me in time and they mark the paths I have walked. My journey is unique to me; no one ever has, nor ever will, tread the same path. Yet my choices are driven by my current characteristics, which are not always a product of my choices. While my identity is bound to an ever-lengthening sequence of choices, that identity is also constantly evolving as I make new choices, which in turn are influenced by characteristics inside and outside my control.

This reminds me of one of my favorite scenes from Babylon 5:

What a sad thing you are! Unable to answer even such a simple question without falling back on references, and genealogies, and what other people call you! Have you nothing of your own? Nothing to stand on that is not provided, defined, delineated, stamped, sanctioned, numbered and approved by others? How can you be expected to fight for someone else when you haven’t the fairest idea who you are?