This song should be the anthem of the Occupy Movement that's spreading around this country.
"WAR AND SLAVERY
EXPLOITATION
THE COMMON BASIS OF A WESTERN NATION
OFFICIAL VERSION, A FALSIFIED STORY
THE TRUTH LIES BURIED IN A SHROUD OF GLORY
INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE AREN'T SERVING TIME
FOR BEING INVOLVED IN ORGANIZED CRIME
BUT STASHED AWAY IN BEAUTIFUL MANSIONS
GUESS WHO PROVIDES FOR THEIR GENEROUS PENSIONS
OPPRESSION, IGNORANCE, CENSORSHIP RULE
EDUCATION IS MORE THAN WHAT'S TAUGHT IN SCHOOL
FORCED IN A MOLD, HELD DOWN BY THREATS
DECISIONS ARE MADE OVER OUR HEADS
BUT THERE IS A WAY TO REFUSE AND RESIST
WE DON'T NEED TO BE RULED WITH THE IRON FIST
WE ARE THE PEOPLE, WE ARE STRONG
LET'S MAKE UP OUR MINDS AND PROVE'EM WRONG
BLACK MAN WHITE MAN YELLOW MAN
BLACK MAN WHITE MAN RIP THE SYSTEM (X2)
RELIGION AND TV, WE'RE UNDER THE THUMB
PRONE TO BELIEVE 'COZ WE'RE ALREADY NUMB
BUT THERE IS A WAY TO REFUSE AND RESIST
WE DON'T NEED TO BE RULED WITH THE IRON FIST
WE ARE THE PEOPLE, WE ARE STRONG
LET'S MAKE UP OUR MINDS AND PROVE'EM WRONG
BLACK MAN WHITE MAN YELLOW MAN
BLACK MAN WHITE MAN RIP THE SYSTEM (X2)
Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki - it's the Hiten Mitsurugi style's ultimate move. But why did it take Kenshin, a master of this style, so long to learn it?
Kenshin, for the entirety of his life, has been locked in a constant battle with his inner demons. The particular demon in question was no demon to question - the hitokiri battousai - the greatest assassin of the late Edo period, his former-self, consumed him. Battousai 'the Manslayer' was a legend all over Japan, and especially feared in Kyoto, in the Empire's capital. Throughout the rebellion and the years that followed, Kenshin's name garnered fear and repute and as soon as the battle was over, and the Rebels had defeated the Loyalists, Kenshin disappeared.
The following 10 years he fought the ghost of his past, atoning for his former sins as being one of the most ruthless killers that ever wielded a blade. He would take up the sakabato or "reverse-blade sword" and made a vow to never kill another living being again. He would instead make it his life's work to protect the weak and innocent people from the blade of the wicked with his sword and body as a sacrifice and atonement for his past. This Kenshin was the rurouni, the wanderer. Fighting for the people and those he loved, this is Kenshin's 1st battle. Though he protected the people with his sword, through all the torment and self-loathing, somewhere along the way Kenshin lost all value of his own life as he convinced himself of being the peoples' shield.
Those who knew his former strength always sought to challenge him and would mock him for what they perceived to be an unforgiveable weakness: the legendary 'manslayer' turning peace-maker was something they could not stomach. And so they fought, they tested him, they threatened him, his loved ones, and all that was dear to him just to get a challenge from the legendary swordsman that was nestled deep within his soul. His enemies tried to awaken him, knowing it would destroy them and himself, but they didn't care. They wanted him to forsake the ideal that he so desperately tried to live by and the renewed self that kept his spirit alive. This is Kenshin's 2nd battle, to fight off his enemies, not with the strength of the Battousai, but as a rurouni, and not just to win the battle for himself, but to educate and rectify his enemies.
Kenshin's 3rd battle lay also within himself, but more so concerned his will to survive. The years of being a ruthless killer took away his desire for life, but it was this crucial ingredient that his master realized Kenshin lacked. This was the missing element in the otherwise perfect warrior. He had no desire to live, and so the manslayer that lived deep in his heart took over his soul, and though he learned to use that power to protect the weak, he didn't care about the consequences it would have upon his own self. It didn't matter to him anymore. Kenshin's fight was with his former self, one that he didn't always win and a battle which most certainly took its toll upon him.
This backdrop sets the stage for this scene, where Kenshin's master teaches him the final two sword techniques of the Hiten Mitsurugi style and the vital life lessons that come along with them.
The Kuzu Ryu Sen is an attack that comes from all angles, it cannot under any circumstance be parried or blocked. One is left to simply accept their fate passively. Unless of course, they have the will to survive; a will so strong that it can defeat the fatalistic acceptance of the Kuzu Ryu Sen. This act of survival and love for life and of self, of pro-activism and care, strength, and will-power is the technique known as Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki. It took Kenshin the longest time to learn this move because he didn't have the courage to accept the responsibility of living his own life. It is here, that Kenshin realizes that he "still...[cares.]"
It's a powerful scene for me not only because I love the character of Kenshin and can identify with him so well, [minus the killing part] but in fact, I feel it speaks to almost everybody in that everyone has a "manslayer" of some sort who attempts to dwell in their own dark side and even incite injurious (and self-injurious) action. For some its drugs, for others its sex, food, sports, music, games - whatever it is, everybody seeks that escape from reality which feels good in the short term but hurts them in the long-term. It's the pursuit of their "fix" or their "song." This is the manslayer in us all. It's this manslayer that eats away at us, no matter how well we hide it or channel it into something positive. Here is also where I relate to Kenshin.
I have tried to channel my negative traits into a positive path in life by seeking to help others and hope to stay committed to this goal. However, my own internal "battousai" sometimes gets the better of me and I lose sight of everything that's important, and on occassion, even the beauty and gift of life itself. I too echo the statement of Kenshin where my own "chaotic revolution" stripped me of all desire for life. But its this very element that is missing within me as well. To feel the love for self, the love for life and to cling to it, to not seek death, to not accept fate fatalistically, to not accept the blade of Kuzu Ryu Sen though it scoffs at us hoping we desperately accept and give-in - No. This is not the purpose of our existence.
We are meant to be great, to be strong, to stand up and defend, to work hard, to live every moment, to cry and laugh, to hurt and heal, suffer and enjoy every breath of life that we are blessed to have - we were meant to fight back the blade of Kuzu Ryu Sen and the blade of "absolute death" and all it throws at us. We are not meant to throw in the towel. We were meant to fight back with the blade of life. We are the blade of Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki, and today we are unsheathing this blade. Today, we are no longer hitokiri battousai, we are rurouni. Today, we have mastered the technique!
So I've reached the decision that I will be discontinuing my other blog, Shawn's Egocosmology. The reasons for this are mostly for organizational purposes but also because I just don't update that one enough. Traffic to the site had been waning for some time and frankly my intent and directions have changed since I first started it. Originally its purpose was to be a place for my anecdotal pieces; more personal and reflective in nature. Now, as I said in my 2nd post ever on this site (http://prisoner786.blogspot.com/2008/10/sky-is-limit.html)
you can look forward to that kind of stuff here - all on one page! I may be adding other categories to my posts to reflect this change and to keep things fresh here. Be on the look out for TMI posts from yours truly in the future...well, if you're into that sort of thing.... :o For those who actually read the other blog, no worries, I will be exporting all whopping 13 entries (lol) here, so those who had followed it (and those who didn't) won't be missing a thing. In the coming days I'll be posting up the content from that blog here so stay-tuned kiddies. Thank you for all who supported and visited the site. Now, I'll be busy seeing off an old friend...it's been fun Wordpress. To God we belong and to Him we shall return.
In view are these swaying trees and starry nights.
The sleepy bird gets no worm, just more sleep.
Business in the marketplace, first thing
You see, my industry is entertainment
Story-telling and errands by day
Dreams and pastimes by night
Forgotten by the morning.
Constantly on the stay, I slowly catch hedonism's headlines
In my embroidered sheets and decorated bed
Tired, I read the hollow pages
"Now then, how many nothings happened today?"
Relationships just get in the way
I understand, you see, I'm a busy man myself
Who has time for romance when there's lust?
See here my important matters, see how consumed I am
and yet see what is missing.
In the womb, kicking with resting
In the world, patience with comforts
In the after-world, questioning with anxiety
And more resting.
Therefore, do not make my tombstone tall
Nor trouble yourselves over eulogies
My junction with time is brief
My life of sub-stance, null.
Just do me one favor, if you will
When it’s my time
Let it be known that I toiled and struggled hard.
*Note - My apologies for the ugly-spacing but for some reason I can't undo these errors without a great deal of annoyance. Please bare with it, thank you.
Well this is a track [below] from Trent Reznor's new band formed last year, "How To Destroy Angels." The band consists of Trent and his wife Mariqueen Maandig (formerly of band West Indian Girl) and Atticus Ross (who worked with Trent on The Social Network film's soundtrack.) Their first collected work is a six-track EP made available for free download on their website:
This track in particular had the most Nine Inch Nail-ish sound to it, in my opinion (a good thing,) while the rest were alright (similar in style to Trent's later work in NIN.) Though I wasn't blown-away by anything on this EP, I have to admit I am looking forward to new material from Trent and the addition of a female lead may make things interesting. I also want to see if his musical style will change now that he's supposedly happy with his wife and kid. Let's see where this goes.
Cool album cover:
We watched this short-film on the last day of our graduate class on grief, loss, and bereavement. Originally intended for children but anyone can take something away from this.
A specimen of empathy. A colonel of care. A vicegerent of vices. A general of genesis. A steward of servanthood. A lieutenant of lethargy. A private of passions. A warrior for ideals. A patron of peace. A warden of Paradise. An inmate of Earth. A fraction of a mosaic. A mosaic of a fraction.
