by Richard
A beautiful film I recently saw is Perfect Days by Wim Wenders. It tells the story of a man cleaning public toilets in Tokyo, who brings meticulous attention to his work and an appreciation of the life around him: wind through the leaves, or sunlight through the trees.
In the film, trees are a recurring theme. Every morning the man waters a collection of bonsai plants in his apartment, and takes great care in handling new saplings. The same routine is repeated each day.
Bonsai practice is historically entwined with Zen, and is well established worldwide. You can find the national bonsai collection in Canberra, which is on a hilltop by the Arboretum. About 100 plants are looked after by volunteers here, and they insist that daily watering is most important thing. Some plants in the collection were established in the 1950s, which means they’ve had continuous care and watering over a lifetime of 25,000 days. This is remarkable to consider, but it isn’t particularly rare, with some plants from Japan and China being over 800 years old. There’s even a 400-year-old bonsai that survived the Hiroshima bombing, which is still alive today.
Bonsai philosophy and Zen share many elements, but I’m especially reminded of the importance of daily watering. Similarly, one of the foundations in our Zen practice is in sitting each day. I noticed this during a period of recent travelling, when I had little opportunity to sit and somehow felt much less grounded. It reminded me of the time I once had a Bonsai tree, which died after I forgot to water it.
Daily practice is important then, but from time to time the bonsai needs to be disturbed. Intensive practice occur such as pruning and repotting, and similarly in our Zen practice there is Sesshin. Sometimes, branches need to be cut away to keep the plant healthy. Altogether with daily practice, this way of care over a lifetime allows the plant to be handed down through many generations.
At the entrance of the Canberra display is a small poster with a writing by bonsai master Saburo Kato called The Spirit and Philosophy of Bonsai:
“People who love bonsai appreciate the beauty of nature and plant trees in small containers. In doing so, they learn from nature and learn a philosophy of life.
“First, the Roots …Firmly rooted trees give us a feeling of stability and security
“Second, the trunk and the way it’s formed …After many years the aged characteristics and bark appear, and you can sense the added character and personality of each tree.
“Third, the Branches …because branches and leaves are growing strongly, beautiful flowers can bloom.
“Bonsai are loyal if you water and fertilise regularly with loving care. Life is more meaningful when we attend these little plants. We learn the essence and dignity of life! Even the life of the bonsai is older than us. So bonsai must be passed on to the next generation to preserve the life in the tray. This is important.”
Stepping outside the Arboretum and looking down the hill, you can see a motorway winding through the valley with traffic rushing this way and that, and beyond that lies the city and politics. As with practice, Bonsai trees make a bit more sense to me: caring for them is unrushed and unassuming. And don’t forget to water the plants each day.