Date: 01/05/08
Length of time spent reading:
45 Minutes (2 pm to 2:45 pm, app.)
Physical Location:
a slow Red Line train between the Jackson and Granville stops in a car smelling of urine
Text Title :
Master Dogen’s Shobogenzo, book 1, Translated By Gudo Nishijima and Chudo Chase
Text Location:
Pages 91-96 - (11) Uji - “Existence-Time”
What were the most interesting things in the environment? Explain.
Visually:
The faces (and glances) of the other riders who could smell a very strong scent of urine. There was a homeless man slumped forward on a seat in the middle of the train. I could also see the legs of someone laying across the seats in the vestibule in the front of the car. The contrast between pretty, well-dressed people and the odor of a urinal.
Aurally:
A mother said to her two children, “Ooo- something smells like ass,” when they boarded the car.
A man said: “I think some of the security guards let their dogs go on the train– you know what I mean?”
Other Comments:
I actually found it hard to read because the odor was so strong so I put the book away in my bag and attempted zazen.
