Living with Taste

Tastes are different; people are different.

A pudding only has taste when I put it in my mouth.

Sour, sweet, bitter and pungent are main tastes in China and elsewhere.

The nitishastras, or collections of wise sayings, were committed to writing beginning around the first century C.E. and by the tenth century had become a highly appreciated literary form for the development of literary ability and good taste, used "to teach cultured men right behavior." . . . "Tibetan scholars felt interested in translating into Tibetan the Indian nitishastras to acquaint the common people of Tibet with the Indian views on practical life." cites John T. Davenport in Ordinary Wisdom: Sakya Pandita's Treasury of Good Advice (2000, 6)

The learned Sakya Pandita (1182–1251) likely borrowed stories from all the nitishastras, and at the back of at least one of these translated treatises is the Panchatantra. Tales and lessons from the Buddhist Jataka tales (birth tales) are also a common reference in many Tibetan verses of wise sayings.

A very popular verse form, an intent to teach cultured ways of living and interchanges, literary ability, appreciation of folk wisdom, fables and good tales went together to form highly appreciated verses of practical appropriateness, or "good taste". Also illiterate people could benefit from the verses, by memorising some of them.

In Ordinary Wisdom (Ibid.) Sakya Pandita writes: "Even without eating a crab apple One can tell its taste by its colour." (p. 47)

"The wise, having experienced the taste of knowledge, avoid prideful arrogance and petty-minded complacency," says the commentator Sakya Khenpo Sangyay Tenzin (p. 50)

A food may taste delicious,
But if indigestible, who will eat it? (v. 299)

Some people are obsessed with the indiscriminate and tasteless piling up of assets over the years . . . poor beggars can actually be observed going about free of the three sufferings associated with wealth - first acquiring it, then guarding it, and finally losing it. Some great masters have said,

The mind is tormented when overly attached to riches;
Be content, not totally preoccupied with wealth! (p. 190)

And then there is "the one taste of release" -

"Just as in the great ocean there is but one taste - the taste of salt - so in this Doctrine and Discipline [dharma and vinaya] there is but one taste - the taste of freedom [or release]." - Ud 5.5. Uposatha Sutta, translated from the Pali by John D. Ireland.

Some make much out of the salt taste metaphor, ignoring it is just metaphoric on behalf of the Way of Buddha and the End Goal, so to speak - as he clarifies in the Gentle Middle Way, the Apannaka Sutta and other ancient discourses.

Humans are allowed methodical study and skilful implementations

Techné (Greek) is the sort of technology that yields good returns in a life. As for dogmatism, better refrain. The fruit of clever inspections may get you many solid, welcome dinners. One facet of wariness lies in this nudge: The search for pearls may take place under the surface, where there are dangers for inexperienced ones in particular.

Learn to test out things carefully before you invest; that is basic . But there is more to science than that. One way that Albert Einstein favoured and openly admitted he used to find out many of his best ideas, is called thought experiment, Gedanken experiment. It serves and is used as complementary to methodical explorations otherwise.

To reach up to savoury theories, consider many experiences. You can apply such measures as suit the challenges and the best possible outcomes (including understanding and theory) you are wanting to find out of.

Professional angling had better be as healthy as can be. Also, one usually has to take many things (factors, variables, conditions) into account.

Quite precious is the sort of studies and surveys that pay lots of interest later. Consider the claims as carefully as manage to do, at any time.

Good sayings may sum up research findings, professional outlooks and theories, and may include lessons of ages in the form of study keynotes and savoury proverbs, and may be systematised too.

Adhere to you heart if you have it or find it

Luckily, neither Jews nor non-Jews need Jesus if they are well, he tells in the Bible. It is much overlooked and possibly neurotic. [Matthew 9:11; Mark 2;17; Luke 5:31-32].

Jesus appears to be rather out of tune with the Law of Moses by his claimed father. He broke basics that the Old Testament claimed were instituted by God, and in the end Jesus was executed. Jewish thinking in the matter was that trying to be equal to God was his error.

His was a much too failing way to save Jews at large, who still do not want him, but consider him one of the false Messiahs.

Further, those who claim the supremacy of vicarious sacrifice, may be hard, neurotic or psychotic Game-ridden ones (Games are also called hanky-pankies). The fisherman may come by stealth; the law-adorned misleading agent of cults and the like may come by stealth too, and fear is at bottom of their so-called fruits.

The day you realise that many basic, rather essential teachings of Hindus and Buddhists are higher, you might start by taking less or no part in killing along. For example, Buddha shows in the Apannaka Sutta what is beneficial and right in most ways, and delineates there are our types of persons:

• One sort torments and tortures himself.
• Another sort torments others, but not himself.
• Another kind torments and tortures himself, and also others.
• A fourth sort torments and tortures neither himself nor others. He lives in the here-and-now, sensitive to happiness, with an uplifted mind.

Also, avoid the company of fools, counsels the Buddhist scripture Dhammapada. Its chapter 5 brings views about "The Fool". Sampled:

As long as the evil deed done does not bear fruit, the fool thinks it is like honey; but when it ripens, then the fool suffers grief. (verse 69)

We may learn the art of meditation and profit from the good sides to it, including insights to awaken to. Basic Buddhist teaching is also that much bad can be counteracted by well accomplished good deeds that build merits. It may be better to refrain from killing innocents, like animals, but if unward things have been done, try and redress them or counterbalance many of them by good deeds - all in all. Buddha says it counts. Quite general Buddhist standards are designed for becoming better fit and happy too.

Have taste to ease your life

What is food to one man is bitter poison to another. - Lucretius, 99-55 BCE.

It sometimes happens due to allergies, and also because of inadequate or very bad handling of the food. At times we may detect rotten food by tasting some of it, at other times we may eat poisons that amount to kill us - preferably not. Some poisons taste good, even. And that means we may not always trust to taste for our wellbeing. Also, the tastes of others may be different. Regardless, we may cultivate what tastes we have.

The German-British psychologist Hans Eysenck (1916-97) verified the factor "taste" to be a statistically valid one. According to that and unknown to so many people, (good) taste is a factor to be reckoned with. At the time of his death, Eysenck was the living psychologist most frequently cited in science journals. And to repeat, that "grand old man" in European psychometry among other things lays bare that taste is a factor to be reckoned with [Eysenck 1981, 71-102].

Aesthetic appreciation may be understood as a general, quite objective factor that is largely independent of individualt taste, and which is at bottom of so-called good taste as well. Studying the taste factor, Eysenck finds that extroverts tend to prefer bright, modern pictures, introverts tend to prefer older, less colourful pictures [Eysenck 1981 90-92]

Extrovert (opposite to introvert): In popular usage it means an outward-turned or outgoing, gregarious person; a person characterized by extroversion. Someone primarily turned outward or to things outside of oneself and not that much with one's own thoughts and feelings.

Extrovert persons tend to be comparatively more outgoing, talkative and energetic in the outward spheres, whereas introverts usually act in more reserved and solitary ways. The American society is said to be an extrovert one - although there are differences among Americans too.

More stringently, and in step with Carl G. Jung's use of the terms, an extrovert is energized by being around other people, wheras an introvert is energized by being alone. [Cf. WP, "Extraversion and introversion"]

Cultural factors do not seem to influence judgements of 'beauty'. The factor of aesthetic sensitivity is indeed general. [Eysenck 1981 98-99]

Good art can serve deep facts of living. There is one art of good customs and another for the bridegroom, and so on. Living well means a whole lot. There is much to master. Not to seek to appear holy-looking can help, and having a good friend along the road tends to help.

The taste for art can be developed. It should help to learn basics of a field and practice much, so as to develop one's taste. Try if you like. One may find, "To develop my own taste, I first need to be genuine, not crooked, not vain."

"If it's original, it may not be called fine; If it is called fine, it is hardly original and brand new - you might guess that too, and not be a bit flattered if flattery comes your way. Instead, try to be above it as you realise artistic sides to yourself without ignoring, "It takes one to know one." Possibly. The case of Pablo Picasso is illuminating in its way.

A Case for Pablo Picasso

Picasso did as many artists first do: He was profoundly disappointed with studies, and gave up his formal studies for good. He studied and made his form of copies of old masterpieces. He also tried to reconceive the originals he copied. [Warnke 1995, 48, 73]

After learning the craft came periods of experiment and of gradually locating a personal style. After mature mastery came a late period that essentially plays variations on familiar themes. [Warnke 1995, 19] ◊

Even great art may have flaws and weaknesses - adjust to that as well. Picasso haters and lovers alike saw his talent as something demonic. One American critic called him the "devil incarnate" in 1910; and the "New York Times", generally a restrained and proper paper, gnashed that he was the very devil and that his audacity was breathtaking, when his first American exhibition was held in Alfred Stieglitz's Photo Secession Gallery in New York in 1911. Not many years later, German critics (and not even the worst) were busy perpetuating the usual equation of visual deconstruction with insanity, viewing Picasso himself as a neurotic and pithily announcing: "People are no longer locked away in asylums, Nowadays they found Cubism." [Warnke 1995, 12] [3]

His whole life long, Picasso had certain fundamental weaknesses, and positioned the eyes "wrongly". Yet collectors began to take an interest in his work, seeing the weaknesses along with his technical command, compositional subtlety, and other strengths, [Warnke 1995, 48, 21, 83, 23, 27, 73]

This was widely claimed: Picasso was basically a chameleon. However, he was also marked by curiosity and interest in experiment [Warnke 1995, 26, 27, 21] ◊

The young Picasso was "all charisma and self-confidence". Artistic autonomy of means . . . is the very core of Picasso's art. He stood up as an artist with great self-assurance. [Warnke 1995, 13, 19, 24]

Prepare for this: At last Picasso learnt and reached proper, childlike art. Picasso attained to drawing more like a child than anything else. [Warnke 1995, 10, 27, 31] [5]

In later life Picasso visited an exhibition of children's drawings. He observed, "When I was their age, I could draw like Raphael, but it took me a lifetime to learn to draw like them." [T+]

Compare

✑ Picasso Art, Anecdotes and Quotations

✑ Boost Your Child's Self-Esteem

✑ Boosting Self-Esteem

✑ Self-Assertiveness

✑ Art and Artists

Advance toward the Goals

Good taste and taste enough may be outward signs of fine sensibility.

Consider living an art with other forms of art in its belly. The great-art goal is simple: advance to a lush countryside and relish its pleasures. Be solidly armed with decent contemplation, affirmations, congenial companionship, good reading, and behaving all right too.

In good training you mayget feedback about each stage of elevation and increased mastery attained, so no one fools anyone greatly in such matters.

There are so many keen on outsmarting people around the world.

Good outfit counts. Being shapely too.

In the West, people keep pets if fit human conditions are lacking, and conditions are quite lonely. If so, many sorts of pets offer good company. As long as we behave like humans and do not make ourselves reciprocal to dog ways we may get along well. If so: Better adapt dogs to live with humans than adopt humans to dog ways as "the leader of the pack" or something gnarling and bossy. Some members of flock life tend to attune to Führers (leaders) like cattle to the farmer. It may or may not show up in the form of "loyalty" that is not elevated or elevating. (3)

Many humans get stunted and unrealistic - Scapegoating of some sorts of deviant manners may also be ascribed to stunted or dwarfed individualism.

Being a free, dandy-like fellow doesn't have be bad at all.

Go for the home life if you can. It might pay after the first adjustments. Otherwise there should have been no marriages left. Proficiently adapted hints could help your future life or your children, and some day some may end up as blossoming householders. [T+]

But the trends are against it. Better realise:

1. Conditions have in turn exploited nearness to the land (countryside) by using families to serve industrialisation. Large families of many generations and clan ties have been split up.

2. Families have been and are used further, to dance to the tunes whistled by urban and industrial living. It has been followed by decline in the family unity and solidarity, with many divorces in its wake.

3. Today nearly half of the marriages break. And what is on the rise is going solo. Lots of people in the UK and Scandinavia do it. There is statistics on it. It could be seen in the perspective of splitting up families from large to small and none. In that case it is linked to great abuse of humankind on the altar of urbanism, industrialism, progress for "things", and lack of care for humans. Well, in some cases it might be. In other cases not. People are different.

Today, for the first time in centuries, the majority of all American adults are single. . . .

The statistics are startling. . . .

People who live alone today cluster together in metropolitan areas and inhabit all regions of the country . . .

Living alone is one of the . . . most poorly understood issues of our time.

(Source: Eric Klinenberg. Going Solo (2014, 4-6, passim)