I reckon most of us have heard the famous quote: “When a butterfly flaps its wings in one part of the world it can cause a hurricane in another part of the world.”
According to Wikipedia, “the ‘butterfly effect’ as the term was originally called, was the brainchild of MIT meteorologist Edward Lorenz.
“In 1961 while working as an assistant professor in MIT’s department of meteorology, Lorenz created an early computer program to simulate weather. One day he changed one of a dozen numbers representing atmospheric conditions, from .506127 to .506.
“That tiny alteration utterly transformed his long-term forecast, a point Lorenz wrote about in his 1972 paper, “Predictability: Does the Flap of a Butterfly’s Wings in Brazil Set Off a Tornado in Texas?
“Lorenz’s meteorological investigations eventually became called the “butterfly effect,” the concept that small events can have large, widespread consequences.
“Translated into mass culture, the butterfly effect has become a metaphor for the existence of seemingly insignificant moments that alter history and shape destinies.”
This was no butterfly.
The horrific images coming at us from Japan, along with everything else they show us, serve as yet another reminder of how all of us, everywhere, are connected. And this is not only about “mother nature” either. If “we” spill 205.8 million gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico, that goes there. If “they” are obliged to release radioactive steam from their nuclear reactors, that comes here. What happens here – what “we” do, impacts “them”. What happens there – what “they” do, impacts “us”. We/they, are one.
The proof, (if we needed it) that we are one, arrived direct from Asia, from across thousands of miles of ocean – nonstop – right on our doorstep (our “dockstep”, actually), even before the photos from Japan. We live in a houseboat in San Francisco Bay. This clip was filmed and posted on You Tube by that sweet Ashley, our next-door neighbor. I’m sure she won’t mind if I share. Have a look.
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Practice Tip:
By now you know that I close all my posts with the word “Metta”. I’m often asked what that means:
“Metta”, in Pali, means loving kindness, and active interest in others.
Its cultivation is a popular form of meditation in Buddhist practice. It begins with the “meditator” sending loving kindness to him/herself, then their loved ones, then strangers, then “enemies” and finally all sentient beings. For this, you do not need to be a “meditator”, just a loving, concerned, human.
This would be a really good time to offer “Metta” to those deeply suffering in Japan (and all beings everywhere).
To help you do that, click on this link to a video showing the creation of a beautiful, beautiful, CD created by Jennifer Berezan and Friends, called “In These Arms”. This video demonstrates the essence, the very heart, of “Metta practice”. You can watch and listen, or, if you prefer, just listen while you send loving kindness out into the world.
*BTW, If you are reading this in your email, the media links won’t work. Click on the title of this post, which will bring to this actual post on my site. There, the links will work.
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May all beings everywhere, be happy.
May all beings everywhere, be safe.
May all beings everywhere, be free.
Dear Reader, please, be kind to yourself,
Metta,
Michael
