Confucianism and Daoism - Harmony

We have been reading Trying Not To Try as well as part of The Analect. We also have been discussing on the two main philosophers, Confucius and Laozi, along with theirs philosophies. 

“Confucius compares the process of self-cultivation to a grueling, lifelong journey toward sage-hood; Laozi tell us to stop, turn back, and go home to our primordial roots, to "being an infant" or to "honoring the Mother" (Trying Not To Try, 99)

Often time, when people look at this quote, they claim to be either Confucianist or Daoist. Are you a Confucianist or Daoist? Or are you both? 

There was a question during the discussion that I thought it is worth thinking about. Do you think that the application of both philosophies would be better for our lives than just either one of them? Personally, its' a "yes" for me. Are you wondering how? 

Let me tell you my little story.

By the time my little sister turned 5, we had plenty of arguments and even fights. Since then, those quarrels have turned me into a completely different person, changing my personality and my mood. I would become really aggressive at a drop of a pencil and will start every argument that I could have with my sister. As these quarrels happened more often, my parents didn't seem to care anymore. They simply ignore them.

Thank you to my Asian Literature class for the introduction to the Self Cultivation Project, I had found the solution to put me back into my initial state.

After one week of strictly following rules I had laid out for myself in the beginning, my sister and I were both able to talk to each other in more calm voices; the days of fighting like cat s and dogs were over. Moreover, I used Confucianism, trying to cultivate myself in caring more for my sister. At the same time, I would tell myself to stop and to relax when things escalated as if I had thoroughly understood Daoism.

Related to this context, Cinasthana Today summarizes the true attitude of Chinese intellectuals as - they followed the teaching of Confucius when they were success, but would turn to Daoism when they were frustrated.

I believe that Confucianism and Taoism both have contributed to tradition of holism emphasizing the interpersonal harmony and the interconnection between humans.  

Jiro Ono, Selfish or Love or Both?

"Awarded a prestigious 3 star Michelin review, and sushi lovers from around the globe make repeated pilgrimage, calling months in advance and shelling out top dollars for a coveted seat"

Kohada

We may all have heard of the fame of Jiro Dreams of Sushi and its 99% on Rotten Tomatoes, which described this film to be "beautiful, thoughtful and engrossing".

Jiro Ono - The Sushi Master

Besides liking this movie as a sushi lover and a success-seeker, I find some aspects of Jiro's life very controversial. 

"He should just keep doing the same thing for the rest of his life", "Now you have no home to come back", "I told him to leave and open this restaurant", "they did not want to do this at first, but I manage to convince them to" 

In the beginning of the movie, his eldest son mentioned that he did not want to do this job; he completely hated it but somehow his dad had "convinced" him to carry on this glamorous career. And now both of his sons are famous sushi chefs too. Is Jiro being selfish, or is this just his love towards his children? Could it be both?

When Jiro got kicked out of his house at the age of 9, he started religiously practiced making Sushi for fifty years at the the same spot in a subway station. Somewhere in the middle of the film, his sons said that they thought there was stranger in their house at night but it turned out to be Jiro. Working from 5 am to 10 pm, his work did not permit him to spend much time at home and as a result, be there for his kids. When his business hiked up the hill, he forced them to followed his path even though his elder son wanted to go into university. He said that he had "convinced" him, but at the same time you would never know what he really told his son. After succeeding to this level, Jiro is reluctant when it comes to leaving this profession.

At the same time, a reason why Jiro forced his sons to carry on his sushi making job, could be that he was protecting them from the harsh realities that he had to face after being thrown out of his house. I am glad that he did not kick his sons out of the house like his parents did because "often the way how you were treated by your parents is a direct reflection of how their parents treated them." Also, what I see here is that Jiro and perhaps the Japanese society value the unity of people and their the family legacy. Many Asians tend to followed their parents’ careers (even today) because that is all they have been exposed to. To carry on the family tradition, perhaps, Jiro compelled his sons to do the same.

To me, Jiro is definitely a loving father however, a complicated one. 

Prawn sushi

But to sum up this movie, DO NOT watch this movie unless you are full!