Chapter 13 : Origami

'Can anyone tell me what this is?' asked Sensei Yamada, indicating a bright

white square of paper at his feet.

The ancient monk sat, cross-legged, in his usual position on the raised

dais at the rear of the Buddha Hall, his hands gently folded in his lap. Trails

of incense weaved a curtain of smoke around him and mingled with his

grey spiderweb of a beard, making him appear ghost-like, as if the slightest

breeze could blow him away.

The students, also sitting in the half-lotus position, studied the squares

of paper laid out before them like large snowflakes.

'Paper, Sensei,' scoffed Nobu from the back of the class, grinning at

Kazuki for approval. But Kazuki just shook his head in disbelief at his

friend's idiocy.

'Never assume the obvious is true, Nobu-kun,' said Sensei Yamada.

'That's what it is, but it's much more than that. What else is it?'

Nobu fell silent under Sensei Yamada's glare. The sensei may have

been an old man, but Jack knew he'd been sohei, one of the notoriously

fearsome warrior monks of Enryakuji, once the most powerful Buddhist

monastery in Japan. It was rumoured the fighting spirit of these monks had

been so strong, they could kill a man without even touching him.

Sensei Yamada clapped his hands and called, 'Mokuso!' signalling the

start of the class's meditation. The koan had been set: 'It is paper, but what

else is it?'

Jack settled himself on his zabuton cushion in preparation for his zazen

meditation. Half closing his eyes, he slowed his breathing and let his mind

empty.

As a Christian, Jack had never encountered meditation, or even

Buddhism, prior to his arrival in Japan. At first he had found the process

and concepts difficult to grasp. He questioned whether, as a Christian, he

should be accepting them so readily, but three things had helped him change

his mind.

First, when he had raised the conflict of faith with Sensei Yamada, the

monk had explained to him that Buddhism was a philosophy open to all

religions. This was why the Japanese had no issues with following

Shintoism – their native religion – practising Buddhism, and even

converting to Christianity, at the same time.

'They're all strands of the same rug,' Sensei Yamada had said, 'only

different colours.'

Second, Jack had discovered that meditation was quite similar to the

act of praying. Both required focus, peaceful surroundings and, usually,

reflections upon life and how it should be led. So Jack decided he would

think of meditation as simply another form of praying to God.

Third, during a particularly deep meditation, he had experienced the

vision of a butterfly overcoming a demon and this vision had helped him

win his taijutsu fight in the Taryu-Jiai contest.

This had been the proof that encouraged Jack to open his mind to the

possibilities and benefits of Buddhism, even if he remained a Christian at

heart.

Through daily practice he had become adept at meditation, and in no

time at all his mind was focused on the piece of paper before him, trying to

unravel the mystery of the koan. Even though no answer was immediately

forthcoming, he wasn't worried. He knew enlightenment, satori as Sensei

Yamada called it, took patience and intense concentration.

Yet, whichever way he looked at the paper, it was still merely a sheet

of paper.

A whole stick of incense had burnt through by the time Sensei Yamada

called a halt to the meditation, and Jack was no closer to experiencing

satori.

'Mokuso yame!' said the sensei, clapping his hands once more. 'So, do

you have an answer for me, Nobu-kun?'

'No, Sensei,' mumbled Nobu, bowing his head in shame.

'Anyone else?' invited the sensei.

Kiku raised her hand tentatively. 'Is it kozo, Sensei?'

'What makes you say that?'

'The paper is made from the fibres of the kozo tree,' explained Kiku.

'A fair suggestion, but you are still thinking too literally. How about if

I do this?'

Sensei Yamada picked up his paper and folded it several times.

Initially shaping it into a smaller square, he then bent the sheet in

increasingly intricate folds. Within moments, the flat piece of paper had

been transformed into a small bird.

He placed the paper model on the floor for all to see.

'So what is it?'

'A crane!' said Emi excitedly. 'Our symbol of peace.'

'Excellent, Emi. And folding a paper crane is like making peace –

some of the steps are awkward. At first, it may even seem impossible. But,

with patience, the result is always a thing of beauty. This is the art of

origami.'

Sensei Yamada took a fresh piece of paper from a small pile behind

him.

'So let me rephrase my opening question for you to meditate on. The

koan is now: what is it that origami teaches us? But first watch me closely,

so that you can all make your own cranes.'

Sensei Yamada repeated the complex combination of folds that would

create the little bird. There were more than twenty individual steps. When

the sensei made his last move, pulling at the corners of the model to form

the wings, he was left with a perfect miniature crane in his palm.

In Jack's hand, though, was a crumpled piece of paper.

Jack realized that origami was far more difficult than it appeared. He

looked around at the others. The attempts by Yamato and Saburo were

equally flawed, and even Akiko's model appeared rather lopsided with one

wing vastly larger than the other. The only student to have folded a crane

perfectly was Yori, who was pulling at its tail and making the little bird's

wings flap.

'It seems some of you need more practice,' observed Sensei Yamada,

who selected a second piece of paper and laid it in front of him. 'So who

can tell me what this is?'

'A crane!' chimed the class in unison.

'Certainly not!' admonished Sensei Yamada, much to the confusion of

his students. 'Use the eyes of your mind, not the eyes in your head.'

Picking up the paper, he folded and bent the sheet, his fingers

dexterously manipulating it into ever more complex shapes. The students

gasped in astonishment at the finished model.

'This is quite clearly a butterfly,' said the sensei with a wry smile, and

in his hand was a lifelike replica of a butterfly, complete with antennae.

'Tonight, I want you all to practise making a paper crane like I showed you.

And while you do this, meditate on what origami is teaching you.'

The class collected up their pieces of paper and filed out of the Buddha

Hall.

'Remember the answer is in the paper!' Sensei Yamada called after his

departing students.

Jack, however, remained behind. He waited until everyone had gone,

then approached his sensei.

'You appear troubled, Jack-kun. What's on your mind?' asked Sensei

Yamada, arranging his butterfly and crane models on the altar at the foot of

the shrine's great Buddha statue.

Jack summoned up the courage to speak about his personal fears. 'I've

been told that a Christian priest has been killed by daimyo Kamakura. Is

this true?'

Sensei Yamada nodded sadly. 'I've heard this news too. It's an

unfortunate case.'

'So the daimyo does intend to kill all Christians in Japan?' exclaimed

Jack, alarmed to hear that the rumours were right.

'Who told you that?' said Sensei Yamada, raising his eyebrows in

surprise. 'As I understand, the death was not religiously motivated. The

priest bribed a court official and so was punished for his crime. Granted,

such a thing has never happened before and daimyo Kamakura does seem to

be taking a hard line with foreigners, but this doesn't automatically mean all

Christians are under threat.'

'But I'd heard that the daimyo was going to expel all foreigners by

force,' Jack insisted. 'And that would include me!'

'You needn't worry,' replied Sensei Yamada, smiling warmly at Jack.

'If Masamoto-sama thought you were in danger, he would make moves to

ensure your safety.'

Jack realized that Sensei Yamada was right and his idea of escaping to

Nagasaki on his own had been idiotic, as well as completely unnecessary

with Masamoto as his protector. But he was also aware of the strict

hierarchy of Japanese rule. Kamakura, as the daimyo of Edo, was an

influential man, and Jack wondered whether Masamoto wielded enough

power to guard him from the higher authority of a lord.

'But isn't a daimyo more powerful than a samurai?' he asked. 'Can

Masamoto-sama really protect me from him?'

'We're talking about Masamoto-sama here. Possibly the greatest

swordsman to have lived,' said Sensei Yamada, chuckling at the idea.

'Besides, even if daimyo Kamakura was contemplating such a foolish

notion, he would have little support for such ideas. Foreigners are needed in

Japan since they bring in good trade.'

Sensei Yamada got up and walked Jack to the Buddha Hall's entrance.

From the top of the stone steps, he pointed across the rooftops to Nijo

Castle.

'As you're well aware, the ruling lord here in Kyoto is daimyo

Takatomi. But daimyo Takatomi is not just responsible for this province. He

governs Japan as one of the appointed regents and he's popular among the

samurai lords. He likes Christians and foreigners. In fact, he likes them so

much, I've heard that he's converting to Christianity himself. So he

wouldn't allow anything like that to happen here.'

Sensei Yamada smiled and placed a reassuring hand on Jack's

shoulder.

'Jack, you are perfectly safe.'