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The mysterious ephemerality of life has long been symbolized by the sakura (Japanese cherry blossom).
In the Iyo district of Japan, there is an age-old story called Jiu-roku-zakura (“the Cherry Tree of the Sixteenth Day”). This story
tells the tale of an elderly Samurai warrior who had cherished a particular cherry tree for most of his long life.
As the tree began to die, the warrior thought of a way to save it.
He decided to give up his own life so that the tree may flourish. The Samurai
did this by committing ritual suicide beneath the sakura.
Within one hour of the warrior’s sacrificial death, this tree began to
blossom anew. A Japanese
Buddhist belief states that it continues to live today.
Recent news headlines are somewhat reminiscent of this story. The Tokyo AFP reports that
there currently exists “a cosmic mystery” that is uniting Japanese scientists and monks.
A sakura seed that
orbited our planet for eight months in the International Space Station was afterwards planted in the soil of Mother Earth.
It then “bloomed years [‘possibly a full six’] earlier than expected – and with very surprising flowers…”
These flowers now continue to remind us of life’s beautiful mysteries.
Resources
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/cherry-blossom-meaning.html
http://news.yahoo.com/cherry-tree-space-mystery-baffles-japan-085044593.html
Copyright April 12, 2014 by Linda Van Slyke All Rights Reserved
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