Yesterday I finished 3 days of deep exploration into the Tree of Life with a lovely Japanese group. Staying in the peaceful area of Kudanshita Tokyo today I find a contrast that echoes a significant dynamic within the Tree – the Yang and Yin of the two pillars either side of the central pillar of the Tree.
Yang
I have just seen the Torii (entrance gate) to the Yasukini shrine. It is supremely imposing – towering high above and constructed out of steel, it is unyielding. It is the entrance to the shrine that commemorates those who have died in the service of Imperial Japan – particularly the soldiers of the Japanese army – itself a highly disciplined structure. It strikes me that this gate shows one side of the Japanese character, highly disciplined, a strength of will that does not bend in the face of difficulty.
The imposing steel gate to the Yasukini shrine
Yin
And now, just across the main road, I sit in Kitanomaru park. It is very peaceful with its lake and trees. With its water and trees swaying in the wind it shows the soft side of Japan. There is a graceful, feminine yielding side to Japan – it can be seen in the way some women indicate “No” here – simply a graceful inclination of their hand, head and body inflected in a slight arc as they smile. In this gesture is the softness and elegance of yin in Japan.
Kitanomaru park
Watashi and Boku
These two qualities of Japan are embedded in the language itself. While in England we have basically one word to refer to ourself – “I” – Japanese has a multitude of possibilities. Chief amongst these are “watashi” and “boku”. A woman would never say “boku”. It is too direct, too strong – too yang. Boku is a male word. But while a man would use boku, nevertheless, when he is in the presence of a superior – say his boss at work – then he will use the softer word watashi instead. Watashi is a yin word. It is a soft form of I – yielding and feminine. The woman rarely strays from watashi while the man moves back and forth from yang to yin according to the outer circumstance.
Mastering Yin and Yang
So, in the way I can move between the rigid steel gate of the Yasukini shrine to the softness of this lakeside park, in the way that the polarities of Yin and Yang appear within the Tree of Life, so the Japanese people move between yin and yang within themselves through their language.
Between the two sides of the Tree is the pure consciousness of the central pillar, the consciousness that may step into either yin or yang. As a human being we need not be polarized on one side or the other, we may learn to flow between them: one moment strong and yielding in the next.
Is this the mastery of the King position in the Tree? He must be both strong and merciful, holding the sword in one hand and the scales in the other? I now realize that this is probably the meaning of this image which appears in the Rider Waite Tarot card of Justice. Though in Aura-Soma it connects the severe side to the middle, in traditional Kaballah this path connects Chesed and Geburah across the Tree, bridging yin and yang.
The King holding Sword and Scales in Rider Waite's Tarot card of JusticeJustice
I will be doing a Level 3 in Glastonbury next month – if you would like to learn more deeply about the Tree of Life it is a great chance. With several trainee teachers present I expect to go more deeply than usual … find out more.
