Tag: zen

My New English Translation of the Yijing!

UK: Honouring Richard Hunn – My Finished Translation of the Book of Change! (4.5.2026)

I was studying the reading (interpretation) of ancient and traditional Chinese ideograms with my teacher – Richard Hunn (1949-2006) – between 1989 and 2006 (as a private student). An offshoot of this was the mastering of the modern (simplified) Chinese text and its corresponding “pinyin” (spell-hear) phonetic alphabet. Since 1949, the Communist Party of China (CPC) has worked wonders reversing the 90% illiteracy-rate and turning it completely around. Today, throughout the entirety of China (a big place) around 90% of the people are literate with some elderly and/or disabled people suffering various (understandable) barriers to being able to read and write. In these cases, various literate citizens are tasked with reading and writing for these individuals – so as to ensure that all their rights are fully pursued and applied under the 1956 Socialist Constitution (and its various updates and improvements).

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Zen of Galmpton! (24.8.2035)

Here we are. Zen is Ch’an in reverse – which is good as perception is the wrong way around. Turn it the right way around – and Zen becomes Ch’an the right way around. Not always an easy task – like catching a steam train whilst it is obscured by it’s own smoke. What a joy such contradictions are. They exist to test our perception and determination. As such, nothing else matters. We all look up – and we all look down – just like every koan (gong-an) you may have viewed. Still, none of it matters if you cannot lay it all down. None of it matters at all.

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Western POWs Were Also Victims of Japanese Imperialism!

China: Lurch to Right Paints Japan as “Victim” of WWII! (17.8.2025)

Earlier this month, Hiroshima and Nagasaki held their annual atomic bombing commemorations. From Ishiba to local officials and citizens, speeches focused overwhelmingly on Japan’s suffering under nuclear attack, with little mention of Japan’s wartime aggression abroad. In Nagasaki, residents interviewed stressed the horrors of the bombings but rarely acknowledged Japan’s role as an aggressor.

The emphasis has shifted public perception. An NHK poll found only 35 percent of Japanese now see the war as one of aggression, compared with 52 percent in a 1994 survey.

In contrast, 67 percent of respondents said they “still cannot forgive” the atomic bombings, up 18 percentage points from a decade ago.

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Shaolin Latest: Shi Yongxin’s Brother [Liu Yingbiao] of Shaolin Painting & Calligraphy Institute – “Missing”! (2.8.2025)

The reputation of the former Head Monk of the famous Shaolin Temple – Shi Yongxin – literally collapsed overnight! The trouble he has caused has not been limited only to himself! After Shi Yongxin got into trouble, his brother – Liu Yingbiao – quite literally disappeared from public view – with the media reporting that he has gone “missing”.

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Master Yin Le - the New Head Monk of the Shaolin Temple!

China: Shaolin Temple [少林寺] Quickly Appoints New Head Monk! (30.7.2025)

Years ago, when I first accessed the internet, I used to argue with young Americans (and some UK and EU people) that the gongfu they were learning for vast amounts of money in China and the West – was not real and product of youth-orientated (Western-derived) gymnastics. They were so brain-washed they thought the lay-men who taught them in robes were real Shaolin monks! Furthermore, they said that our gongfu was “old fashioned” and “out of date”! Many of the ethnic Chinese “teachers” were greedy and money-orientated – seeing spirituality as “weak”. I stopped arguing as I did not want to be seen as attacking the CPC – which I would never do. In return, I was asked to appear on Chinese TV and explain my connection to China – but I politely refused. The last thing I wanted was further exposure and hundreds of people asking for instruction. It is important to live humbly and simply – and not for show. It is best to disappear and not be seen. If in doubt, keep out of sight.

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Shi Yongxin, the abbot of Shaolin Temple. (File photo/China Daily)

China: Shaolin Head Monk – Shi Yongxin – Under Investigation for Alleged Criminal Offenses! (28.7.2025)

In Japan, a Buddhist monk or nun can get married, produce children, eat meat, and drink alcohol. In other words, these people are lay-people in robes – but are practicing dishonesty. A group of Chinese Ch’an monks had been following the Vinaya Discipline when they travelled to Japan to spread the Ch’an Dharma – but returned with Japanese wives and children – and wearing lay-clothing – eating meat and drinking alcohol. In front of Xu Yun – these “monks” petitioned the post-1949 government of China to permanently abolish the Ch’an requirement for monks and nuns to be celibate and vegetarian. Xu Yun is said to have loudly slapped the table – stating that the Chinese government should do the exact opposite – that is, integrate the Vinaya Discipline into the fabric of China’s secular law. If a man or woman wants to be an ordained Buddhist monk or nun, then it should be a legal requirement – punishable by secular law – if they fail to uphold the rules and regulations of the lifestyle they have chosen to follow. Being a Buddhist monastic is a “job” that requires a strict form of lifestyle.

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