Category: Music

Everybody Wants to Rule the World

MCCOY: What he’s saying, Spock, is that a man who holds that much power, even with the best intentions, just can’t resist the urge to play God.

Star Trek, “Patterns of Force” (s2ep21), Stardate 2534.0

Since the beginning of time, powerful men have risen and then fallen. Doesn’t matter which culture, or which time period, sooner or later someone wants to be the Alpha, King of Kings, Pharoah, Shogun, President for Life, etc etc. It happens over and over again, and more often than not they self-destruct or their legacy crumbles after their death.

Take the case of Marcus Licinius Crassus, better known in history as simply “Crassus”. Crassus was absurdly rich. His wealth, and the political influence he bought with it, would make many hotshot-CEO’s today look like chumps.

And yet, Crassus died in 53 BCE with molten gold poured down his throat by Parthian warriors. His hated rival, Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (“Pompey”) was murdered on the beaches of Egypt a few years later. And of course the final member of this “gang of three”, Julius Caesar, didn’t last much longer.

We can look at examples and think to ourselves “what fools!”, but I think an even bigger lesson from this is that it can happen to any of us given the right circumstances. When we have power and authority, it is almost inevitable that we start to play god. In the Star Trek episode “Patterns of Force”, a historian tampered with an alien planet and (inadvertently) turned them into space Nazis.

The Ring of Power from J.R.R, Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series illustrates this. Any person who gets a hold of the Ring, whether they be wizards, kings or elf-lords or even just hobbits, inevitably become corrupted.

Even Galadriel, one of the last of the mighty Noldor Elves on Middle-Earth and among the wisest of the elf-lords, was briefly tempted when Frodo offered her the ring, asking him if he wanted her to be a queen “terrible and fair”. Yet unlike her kin, she was able to resist and avoided a more terrible fate.

I feel I would be tempted too. This week I am filling in for my boss who’s on vacation, and even with this small dose of authority, I feel tempted to throw my weight around. How much more so if I was a world leader.

Why are we prone to this behavior?

I suspect it’s simply ego: our desire to mold the world in our own image. Even if we believe we are doing the right thing for others, our own ego blinds us to realities on the ground. If I had such power, I would probably fall into the same trap. People with strong egos are even more blind because they want so badly to project themselves onto the world while choosing to ignore the suffering it causes.

Of course someone has to be in charge. There has to be some form of authority for societies (or offices) to function. But it has to be treated as a radioactive, hot potato: something to be handled very carefully.

Anyhow, rambling thoughts here from the “Ozymandius” of my workplace.

Something fun to end this post though (direct link).

Enjoy!

The Floating World

All conditioned dharmas
Are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, or shadows;
Like drops of dew, or like flashes of lightning;
Thusly should they be contemplated.

The Diamond Sutra, Translation courtesy of Lapis Lazuli Texts

It would be illogical to assume that all conditions remain stable.

Spock, “The Enterprise” Incident”, stardate 5027.3

The “Floating World”, or Ukiyo (浮世) is an old Buddhist term meaning the world of fleeting forms and temporary joys we live in as part of Samsara. It later became, in the 16th century onward, a term for the pleasure quarters of the city of Edo (later Tokyo) when it became the capital of the new Shogunate. The idea was simple: the pleasure quarters offered everything a person could want, if they could afford it, even if it was just part of the mundane, effervescent world.

Block print titled Taking the Evening Cool by Ryōgoku Bridge, c. 1745, by Okumura Masanobu, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

But it’s not hard to see that this kind of Floating World, with all its glamour and joys, can be found almost anywhere at any time. Even modern Pop Culture and entertainment, even social media, is just another form of the Floating World.

It’s not that the Floating World, modern Pop Culture, or social media inherently are evil, but they glosses over the pains and realities of life. For every successful actor or actress in Hollywood, it’s not hard to find many others who scrape by. Even those who succeed pay a very heavy price. For every person who greets you at the five-star restaurant with a smile, there are countless people in the back who are slaving away to wash the dishes, cut vegetables, and so on, to say nothing of the waiter’s own personal pains and dilemmas. For every pretty girl who smiles at you, she is glossing over her own pain and trauma. And so on.

Scratch the veneer and see a lot of people working hard to make customers, listeners or viewers happy, but themselves are stressed, exhausted, miserable, or unhappy with their lives.1 Just like the rest of us.

In a sense, the whole thing is a golden sham.

And yet, why do we still gravitate toward such things, even when we know they are transient and don’t provide any lasting happiness? I am no different. When I’ve had a hard day at work, and after dinner with the family, I don’t meditate; I sit down and play a Fire Emblem game. Even Lady Izumi, a thousand years ago, lamented her inattentiveness.

Because we are human, and being human is hard sometimes.

Still, it’s worthwhile to see one’s own behavior and learn from it: the way we flit from something fun to something else fun. Even that can be illuminating. I learned a thing or two just writing this post. 🤔

But yes, life is hard, and it hurts, and it’s exhausting. The joys in life are fleeting, and yet we chase after them for even a temporary respite.

Nonetheless, the house around us is still burning. Time is short.

1 Of course, if you’re thinking to yourself “better them than me”, do not be so sure.

Japanese Enka Music

When most people think of Japanese music they think of J-Pop, and “idol” girls, etc.1 But there’s a whole other side of Japanese music that is found everywhere, but a bit more of an acquired taste: Enka (演歌).

The closest comparison I can think of, is that Enka music in Japan is similar to Country music in the US: raw, folksy, culturally specific, etc. Compare this to Pop music which is usually polished for as wide an audience as possible. Enka instead harks back to a more bygone era of Japanese culture, so it has a nostalgic feel to it, while also using modern and instruments.

I have a lot of memories of my in-laws in Japan watching Enka singers on TV, and singing along with songs they grew up with. Even my late mother-in-law, who was usually pretty quiet, would sing her favorite tunes sometimes. It was very sweet. So, despite not being Japanese, I have a surprising number of memories and nostalgia for it.

But as a foreigner, it’s also hard to get into unless you know where to start. Enka is a big industry in Japan, and there are plenty of artists who come and go, famous songs, etc. Sometimes, even foreigners sometimes become successful Enka singers. I vaguely know some very famous singers (through my in-laws), but although I like Enka, I never really knew where to start.

Luckily, the family and I were watching this year’s Kohaku Uta-Gassen show on Japanese TV for New Year’s, and they often showcase mix of venerable artists as well as newer ones. This song, Kurenai no Chō (“crimson butterfly”, 紅の蝶) is by Yamauchi Keisuke (山内惠介), is great and I have been listening to it on repeat lately. You can purchase it overseas on iTunes and such.

Anyhow, while Japanese music is not always easy to find outside of Japan, you can find some good Enka artists, especially more modern ones, and find some music you might like. It’s hard to explain what Enka sounds like, but I hope you take the time to sample songs and get a feel for it. Enka is a really fun genre.

1 I never really got into J-Pop music after all these years. I had a big K-Pop phase some years ago, and occasionally still purchase an album or two, but J-Pop just never interested me.