In many cultures, ancestors are looked upon with such respect that it's not uncommon to worship them. Ancestors are said to be more knowledgeable because they, unlike younger generation, had direct access to the Supreme Power, or gods, or the Creator, and thus, had received the ultimate wisdom from Him or they, which was to be the society's guidelines on living and perceiving life.
Nowadays, in the so-called modern society, the teachings of ancestors have become a thing of the past. Many people choose rationalism instead and laughed at "old teachings" that they considered as full-of-non-sense myth. They're clearly lacking imagination, I say. Can't they see that our ancestors were insightful visionaries and master storytellers?
Doesn't it amaze you that even today, God-knows how many years after our ancestors started inventing their stories, everyone still love to learn about them? And it's not just the scholars either; commoners who know nothing about anthropology and classics enjoy reading creation myths, tales of the underworld, and folklore too. These stories, whether they're created by a single person or developed for generations until taking their current forms that we know of today, still retain their magic, despite not being able to retain their power as means of social control anymore.
Nevertheless, I can't help marveling at the comprehensiveness of these ancestors-created stories, be it a myth, legend, or folklore. Maybe that's why everyone likes them. They tell you everything: about how the world and men (and women) were created, why animals can't talk, what actually happens when a volcano erupts, what happens after a person dies, and so on.
Even though to us they are but amusements, they're certainly believable enough that there was a time when people actually based their lives on them. If a myth told them to sacrifice humans as to avoid the wrath of a goddess, they would obey it unquestioningly. If a legend said that a malevolent spirit lived in a particular area and better be left alone, they would never come near that place.
And if you still thought that such stories could only come out of ignorant minds that were incapable of seeing beyond the supernatural, you'd better think twice. Haven't it occurred to you that the ones creating these stories--the sages or shamans or priests or whoever they were--were in fact really intelligent? Maybe they posed a restriction in order to protect their natural resource, or maybe they presented such logic to evoke fear and submission. Talk about a visionary. Or a tyrant.
One thing's for sure, though. I wish I can have one tenth of their creativity so that I can come up with a bestseller book. Ha, keep on dreaming, mate!
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Words of a Rambling Idiot 8/31/2008 08:49:00 AM
I think I had childhood dream once, just like everyone. But just like many people, I left it at childhood. And now I forget what it was. It doesn't mean that I don't remember what I wanted to become when I was a kid. Let me list down some for you: an archeologist, a paleontologist, a goalkeeper, a writer, a comedian. But I'm not talking about professions here. I'm talking about my life's calling, my purpose on earth, something that made me go Aha! and said, "This is what I want to do for the rest of my life." If I really did know my purpose once, I'd say that I don't remember what it was anymore.
And since I don't know my purpose of being here, you can pretty much say that I'm lost right now. Wandering around, feeling restless, not knowing for sure what I'm doing here. Oh, and please, don't give me all that "Preparing yourself for the everlasting life" or "Struggling in order to obtain God's grace" thingy. Everyone says that all the time that it's become lame (people will butcher me for saying this). It doesn't mean that I don't believe in the afterlife or God; it's just that I believe each person has his/her own way on earth. And I haven't quite found my way yet, which is annoying.
Some might say that I should stop complaining and tell me to be thankful for what I've got. The "get a job, settle down" bXXXXXXt. But I can't just sit back, relax, and enjoy the scene. It's a state of convenience that makes me inconvenient. It's like comfortably watching a TV show and then suddenly realizing that there's something important that you gotta do. It's just that you forget what that "important" thing is.
I don't even know what I'm writing about anymore. It's just a random thought really. You can all shove it down the toilet if you like, be my guest.
Friday, August 15, 2008
TSUBASA RESERVoir CHRONiCLE chapter 188-196 (CLAMP) 8/15/2008 07:45:00 AM
Recent chapters are somewhat boring because CLAMP was building a background story for Syaoran (whom I referred to as Real!Syaoran, despite his real name not being Syaoran after all), which means no Kurogane nor Fai nor Mokona (that sucks!). "Clow Country" appeared in these chapters, but it's not like the Clow Country we'd seen in the beginning of the series. It looked like Clow Country anyway, with desert and all that. But its king was Fujitaka, not Clow Reed.
I feel bad for those reading this who never even read TSUBASA RESERVoir CHRONiCLE because I know you guys won't understand what I've written so far. Nevertheless, on with the review....
Chapter 188: The Ruins on That Day
The gang continued their journey to the ruins. There, they found a place filled with water—pools, mini falls; you get the idea. But the weird thing was, nothing was moving (including the supposed-to-be dripping water). Syaoran said that it was because time stopped at that place.
Chapter 189: Inherited Resolve
The recollection of Syaoran's past began. Young Syaoran was seen in front of Yuuko's shop. Saying that he had no wish, Syaoran told Yuuko that his father sent him there since, according to his mother's dream, someone was out there waiting for the boy. But when Syaoran asked what the price for traveling to another world might be, Yuuko said she had received it from his mother (and guess what it is: the star staff CCS's Sakura used). And so, Yuuko sent him to "Clow Country", where he met this girl in that watery place....
Chapter 190 (the translated title wasn't written on the scanlation)
The girl's name was Sakura, and she was undergoing a purification ceremony, which would last for seven days (the "seven days" part was actually mentioned in chapter 188, but I think it's more befitting to place it here). Surprised at seeing Syaoran, she fell to the water. But when Syaoran reached out to her to help her stand, Sakura refused adamantly (she apologized afterwards, of course) because she was not to be touched for that seven days. The priestess, Sakura's mother (who looked like Kinomoto Nadeshiko of CCS), came to take her back to the palace since the ceremony was over for that day. Syaoran tagged along as well, and in the palace he met the king of Clow, Sakura's father. As Syaoran and Sakura went off together, the king and his wife (a.k.a. the priestess a.k.a. the queen) talked about how Syaoran was the one destined for Sakura.
Chapter 191: The Seven-Day Promise
Not much information in this chapter, except for Yuuko's saying that Syaoran would only be permitted to stay in Clow Country for seven days. After that, he would return to his original world (Japan). Little Touya and Yukito made a cameo, by the way.
Chapter 192: Overflowing Memories
This chapter was even less informative than chapter 191. Just some cutesy scene starring Syaoran and Sakura (I've had enough of it; one would've, reading CCS). Syaoran's father made an appearance in this chapter, giving his son his sword (and you know what, the sword was like that of Li Syaoran of CCS; again, the CCS reference). And so did Watanuki.
Chapter 193: Seventh Birthday
Nothing notably interesting. Just the typical CLAMP dialogue about believing what the future holds and the sorts. The chapter ended with Sakura's falling into some kind of a trance when she and Syaoran were going stargazing two nights before the purification ceremony was over.
Chapter 194: The Tone that Calls the Princess
The trance thing--well, it seemed that Sakura heard the sound of a bell calling her from the ruins and had vision of something bad that was about to happen ("Syaoran, no! It's dangerous. Stay back!"). Worried, Syaoran suggested to the king that he accompanied Sakura during the ceremony. The king said he'd rather be there with her himself but didn't want to put everything Sakura had worked for to waste (since no one but Sakura was allowed to be there once the purification ceremony took place). And considering that the water didn't seem to mind Syaoran's being there (the ceremony wasn't canceled out when Syaoran arrived at the site the other day), the king agreed that Syaoran's accompanying Sakura was probably a good idea.
Chapter 195: The Border of the World
Syaoran and Sakura were at the ruins. Suddenly, the place shook and a rent materialized out of nowhere. Surprise, surprise, it's Fei Wong Reed. Syaoran went, "Sakura!"
Chapter 196: A Moment's Hesitation
Trying to save Sakura from Fei Wong Reed's evil clutches (oh, I love those words: evil clutches), Syaoran was close to grabbing her hand when he hesitated, realizing that Sakura should not touch and be touched by anyone until the ceremony ended, and it gave Fei Wong Reed the chance to engrave "the seal of death" to her body. And this "seal of death", well, it looked like THE feathers. I should mention that at this point, I was not surprised finding out that Sakura's real name was not Sakura.
I feel bad for those reading this who never even read TSUBASA RESERVoir CHRONiCLE because I know you guys won't understand what I've written so far. Nevertheless, on with the review....
Chapter 188: The Ruins on That Day
The gang continued their journey to the ruins. There, they found a place filled with water—pools, mini falls; you get the idea. But the weird thing was, nothing was moving (including the supposed-to-be dripping water). Syaoran said that it was because time stopped at that place.
Chapter 189: Inherited Resolve
The recollection of Syaoran's past began. Young Syaoran was seen in front of Yuuko's shop. Saying that he had no wish, Syaoran told Yuuko that his father sent him there since, according to his mother's dream, someone was out there waiting for the boy. But when Syaoran asked what the price for traveling to another world might be, Yuuko said she had received it from his mother (and guess what it is: the star staff CCS's Sakura used). And so, Yuuko sent him to "Clow Country", where he met this girl in that watery place....
Chapter 190 (the translated title wasn't written on the scanlation)
The girl's name was Sakura, and she was undergoing a purification ceremony, which would last for seven days (the "seven days" part was actually mentioned in chapter 188, but I think it's more befitting to place it here). Surprised at seeing Syaoran, she fell to the water. But when Syaoran reached out to her to help her stand, Sakura refused adamantly (she apologized afterwards, of course) because she was not to be touched for that seven days. The priestess, Sakura's mother (who looked like Kinomoto Nadeshiko of CCS), came to take her back to the palace since the ceremony was over for that day. Syaoran tagged along as well, and in the palace he met the king of Clow, Sakura's father. As Syaoran and Sakura went off together, the king and his wife (a.k.a. the priestess a.k.a. the queen) talked about how Syaoran was the one destined for Sakura.
Chapter 191: The Seven-Day Promise
Not much information in this chapter, except for Yuuko's saying that Syaoran would only be permitted to stay in Clow Country for seven days. After that, he would return to his original world (Japan). Little Touya and Yukito made a cameo, by the way.
Chapter 192: Overflowing Memories
This chapter was even less informative than chapter 191. Just some cutesy scene starring Syaoran and Sakura (I've had enough of it; one would've, reading CCS). Syaoran's father made an appearance in this chapter, giving his son his sword (and you know what, the sword was like that of Li Syaoran of CCS; again, the CCS reference). And so did Watanuki.
Chapter 193: Seventh Birthday
Nothing notably interesting. Just the typical CLAMP dialogue about believing what the future holds and the sorts. The chapter ended with Sakura's falling into some kind of a trance when she and Syaoran were going stargazing two nights before the purification ceremony was over.
Chapter 194: The Tone that Calls the Princess
The trance thing--well, it seemed that Sakura heard the sound of a bell calling her from the ruins and had vision of something bad that was about to happen ("Syaoran, no! It's dangerous. Stay back!"). Worried, Syaoran suggested to the king that he accompanied Sakura during the ceremony. The king said he'd rather be there with her himself but didn't want to put everything Sakura had worked for to waste (since no one but Sakura was allowed to be there once the purification ceremony took place). And considering that the water didn't seem to mind Syaoran's being there (the ceremony wasn't canceled out when Syaoran arrived at the site the other day), the king agreed that Syaoran's accompanying Sakura was probably a good idea.
Chapter 195: The Border of the World
Syaoran and Sakura were at the ruins. Suddenly, the place shook and a rent materialized out of nowhere. Surprise, surprise, it's Fei Wong Reed. Syaoran went, "Sakura!"
Chapter 196: A Moment's Hesitation
Trying to save Sakura from Fei Wong Reed's evil clutches (oh, I love those words: evil clutches), Syaoran was close to grabbing her hand when he hesitated, realizing that Sakura should not touch and be touched by anyone until the ceremony ended, and it gave Fei Wong Reed the chance to engrave "the seal of death" to her body. And this "seal of death", well, it looked like THE feathers. I should mention that at this point, I was not surprised finding out that Sakura's real name was not Sakura.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
The So-called Activists 8/12/2008 09:42:00 AM
I got my first lesson on students' dynamics from an upperclassman two years my senior. She said, "There are two types of students here. The SOs [study-oriented students] and the activists. Most students in the Pharmacy Department are SOs." Despite my having been a college student for only several months at that time, I had already understood the underlying meaning in her statement. She was clearly of the latter type, and she obviously didn't think highly of the former type.
The sentiment is that activists are good, and the SOs are bad. I mean not bad and good in moral context, but more in terms of social standing. The SOs are seen as unsociable, nerds, and ignorant. And the activists, whether they're the ones who spend their times holding protests, engaging in meetings until late at night, making publications, participating in/setting up festivities in a regular basis, or just hanging around leisurely in their organization's HQ, are the life and blood of the country. (The head of the main student body in my university is called "President"; therefore, comparing a university with a country is not unreasonable.)
I have to admit that I was an SO and yes, it's infuriating, being degraded indirectly like that. But the thing that annoys me the most was the I'm-better-than-you mentality, which is tolerable, if it's really true. However, that's not the case. The truth of the matter is, SOs and activists are not that different at all, especially when you see how they're doing in the real life, after finishing college.
Yes, there are a few activists who remain true to their words, words of an activist (you'll see what I mean in a short while), but there are only a small number of them; and for them, I offer them my utmost respect. But most of them, well, they're all talk. I remember the ones most persistent in criticizing our detachment ("Why can't you participate more? We need to be united, so give more time to think about our concern as a unit!") and the proudest in showing off their busy schedule ("There's a meeting at five, be sure to come! And there's this proposal that needs sending.") are the ones end up as the most loyal corporate rats, ever. Or the greediest when it comes to milking money. Like a person I know who used to be an activist promoting students' welfare, but now is working as a marketing guy for a pharmaceutical company, whose responsibility is to cut deals with doctors so that they would prescribe medicines produced by the company. And if you wonder what's wrong with it, it's nothing really; just the fact that in this country those illicit deals are the main factor composing drug production cost that it becomes so expensive beyond patients' ability to buy medicine.
In the end of the day, labels are just...labels. They give you a small glimpse of reality, but they never show the whole picture. So often that people get so consumed with labels sticking on them they're too busy feeling more superior and sophisticated than others, albeit unconsciously. They've forgotten that it's the spirit that really counts. And because of that, in this particular case, the label, status, and notable activities in their college years don't make them better than anybody else. They simply give a longer list of things they could brag about on their CVs. And what's so gratifying about that?
Note: If you're annoyed reading this, it's an indication that you're one of those so-called activists I mentioned above. If not, well done for you.
The sentiment is that activists are good, and the SOs are bad. I mean not bad and good in moral context, but more in terms of social standing. The SOs are seen as unsociable, nerds, and ignorant. And the activists, whether they're the ones who spend their times holding protests, engaging in meetings until late at night, making publications, participating in/setting up festivities in a regular basis, or just hanging around leisurely in their organization's HQ, are the life and blood of the country. (The head of the main student body in my university is called "President"; therefore, comparing a university with a country is not unreasonable.)
I have to admit that I was an SO and yes, it's infuriating, being degraded indirectly like that. But the thing that annoys me the most was the I'm-better-than-you mentality, which is tolerable, if it's really true. However, that's not the case. The truth of the matter is, SOs and activists are not that different at all, especially when you see how they're doing in the real life, after finishing college.
Yes, there are a few activists who remain true to their words, words of an activist (you'll see what I mean in a short while), but there are only a small number of them; and for them, I offer them my utmost respect. But most of them, well, they're all talk. I remember the ones most persistent in criticizing our detachment ("Why can't you participate more? We need to be united, so give more time to think about our concern as a unit!") and the proudest in showing off their busy schedule ("There's a meeting at five, be sure to come! And there's this proposal that needs sending.") are the ones end up as the most loyal corporate rats, ever. Or the greediest when it comes to milking money. Like a person I know who used to be an activist promoting students' welfare, but now is working as a marketing guy for a pharmaceutical company, whose responsibility is to cut deals with doctors so that they would prescribe medicines produced by the company. And if you wonder what's wrong with it, it's nothing really; just the fact that in this country those illicit deals are the main factor composing drug production cost that it becomes so expensive beyond patients' ability to buy medicine.
In the end of the day, labels are just...labels. They give you a small glimpse of reality, but they never show the whole picture. So often that people get so consumed with labels sticking on them they're too busy feeling more superior and sophisticated than others, albeit unconsciously. They've forgotten that it's the spirit that really counts. And because of that, in this particular case, the label, status, and notable activities in their college years don't make them better than anybody else. They simply give a longer list of things they could brag about on their CVs. And what's so gratifying about that?
Note: If you're annoyed reading this, it's an indication that you're one of those so-called activists I mentioned above. If not, well done for you.