And Now, for Something Completely Different: Forest-Bathing Dogs
To appreciate today’s poem by yours truly, it’s necessary to understand Forest Bathing – Shinrin – a practice originally from Japan, and now enjoyed worldwide, even if it’s known by another name like “a walk in the woods.” But Forest Bathing is a lot more than a saunter under the trees. It is close to sacred – a walking meditation. But how would Shinrin be different for dogs?
For any of you interested in more details about Shinrin-yoku, here's a link to an excellent blog post essay by Luke Heikkila.
Forest-Bathing Dogs
One cannot believe in nothing and thus
avoid belief altogether – Iain McGilchrist
Forest-Bathing Dogs
or Simple Wisdom
Setting: In a Forest, the rising sun perks up two pair of ears. Noses shift and shimmer up and down, left and right – left and right – sniff and snarf at glowing sparks of light. Arf! Arf! This feels so good, they want to bite!
Characters: Pick your breed(s) – must walk, talk, pee, and poo
Plot: Two pups enjoying Shinrin-yoku, Forest Bathing, and intermittently contemplating the meaning of it all
Mood: Joyous and Contemplative with a wob of curiosity – mix well and enjoy
Theme: Sheer existence; vigilant attention
Act – the only one
Shinrin
Shinrin
Rin Tin
Rin Tin
Rin Tin Tin Tin
We love to run through the Forest just like him him
Hai!
Hai!1
We don’t wonder why why
We snort and sneeze as the rising sun finds no meaning in the dark
We scare away any beejeebies. We stay together – never apart
To any creepy heebies, we stand our ground and bark – Arf! Arf
We duck out our swinging, creaky doggie door
across the grass and gravel soundlessly
Our lifting paws pad with sniffling dreams and reveries
as we give each trunk and needle a thorough sniffing
and here and there we commence gravely digging
The familiar becomes new for us two
All that’s missing is a bone to chew
Finding only dirt in the hole we’ve excavated
No grubs, rotten carcasses, or sticks located
The price of empty headedness
is the loss of all self-references
We are reduced to being unastonished
to find no mouse that will let us pounce upon it
No suicidal vermin today
Existence’s face the same has its say
Now we trot along the Tranquil River of Heaven2
weaving through tree trunks like silky threads
Suddenly we dive deep into five-foot ferns to doo-doo our mess
We are supposed to stop and smell the pine trees’ needles
but our prime directive is to first do our peedles
The pine trees’ wisdom told us to leave collars and leashes home
How wise these long-time trees that cannot roam
This is Shinrin
Shinrin
About which we have no opinion
Inexhaustible treasure
beyond two canines’ skills to measure
which doesn’t bother either one of us
We’re too busy with the primal summoning us
Sometimes trotting under these primordial trees
fires sacred fears – makes us ill at ease
But never mind. Doesn’t matter
Our deegish minds hold only woof and chatter
Back to contemplating each flower’s splendid bonnet
Each so enchants us that we can’t help but to pee upon it
They don’t seem to mind or pay us any matter
as we whimper let go, trickling from our Old Yeller bladder
Yes, we walk and inhale our sacred Shinrin
keeping to minimum conversation
Still, we can’t help three A-roos in celebratory oration
This Shinrin-yoku3 so wonderful we want to share it
but who would be worthy to walk with us
someone who would join our small pack with no fuss
Wouldn’t be Lassie
She’s too classy
Wouldn’t be that Dog of Flanders
He just can’t mind his manners
No not Scooby-Doo
He doesn’t care where he poos
Same with Snoopy
He’s just a clingy groupie
101 Dalmatians is too many
Maybe one? Hmmm… no, not any
Fer shirly can’t be Todo
He’s not in Kansas or Minnesota
The Baskerville Hound’s too scary
She’d dig a hole and each of us bury
Never certain. Always right
Selection? Has little to do with choice
Panting, drooling as we go
All asudden we both know
It must be – can only be
Hachiko!4
Being from Nihon
He would know all about Shinrin
He might even have a shinken!5
Now emerges meaning from the dark
Enlightenment arises from the blades of our hearts
Imperfectly perfect known
Experience more because we already know
That less is more than least
This is the wisdom from the East
Beyond enlightenment comes the laundry6
leaves us without any quandary
Gratitude and deep elation
puts forearms down, butt up, half a full prostration
Yoga calls this puppy butt
Emaho!7 Finally, I can say whaz’ up
Exeunt
Notes:
- Yes (Japanese)
- Part of the landscape in Japan’s creation myth
- Yoku means bathing; shinrin means Forest (Japanese)
- Hachikō was a Japanese Akita dog remembered for his remarkable loyalty to his owner, Hidesaburō Ueno, for whom he continued to wait at the train station following Ueno's death. Hachikō was born on November 10, 1923, at a farm near the city of Ōdate, Akita Prefecture. He died March 8, 1935
- Live blade of the katana/sword
- Nod to the title of Jack Kornfield’s book of the almost same name
- How wonderful! (Tibetan)
"Gravely digging" Good one.
ReplyDeleteWe all need to get out in the wilderness, even if it's just that scrap of woods between the hotel and the road.