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Monkey mind
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Linguistic and cultural background
"Mind-monkey" (å¿ç¿) is an exemplary animal metaphor. Some figures of speech are cross-linguistically common, verging upon linguistic universals; many languages use "monkey" or "ape" words to mean "mimic", for instance, Italian (Wikt:scimmiottare|scimmiottare) "to mock; to mimic" < (Wikt:scimmia|scimmia) "monkey; ape", Japanese sarumane (ç¿çä¼¼ [lit. "monkey imitation"] "copycat; superficial imitation"), and English monkey see, monkey do or (Wikt:ape|to ape)). Other animal metaphors have culture-specific meanings; compare English (Wikt:chickenhearted|chickenhearted) "cowardly; timid'; easily frightened" and Chinese jixin (éå¿ [lit. "chicken heart"] "heart-shaped; cordate").The four morphological elements of Chinese xinyuanyima or Japanese shin'en'iba are xin or shin (å¿ "heart; mind"), yi or i (æ "thought"), yuan or en (ç¿ "monkey"), and ma or ba (馬 "horse").Xin and yi
The psychological components of the "mind-monkey will-horse" metaphor are Chinese xin or Sino-Japanese shin or kokoro ((Wikt:å¿|å¿) "heart; mind; feelings, affections; center") and yi or i ((Wikt:æ|æ) 'thought, idea; opinion, sentiment; will, wish; meaning'). This Chinese character å¿ was graphically simplified from an original pictogram of a heart, and æ ("thought; think") is an ideogram combining å¿ under yin ((Wikt:é³|é³) "sound; tone; voice") denoting "sound in the mind; thought; idea".In Chinese Buddhism and Japanese Buddhism, xin/shin (å¿ "heart; mind") generally translates Sanskrit (Wikt:citta|citta) "the mind; state of mind; consciousness" and yi/i (æ) translates Sanskrit (Wikt:manas|manas) "the mental organ; deliberation". Some Buddhist authors have used å¿ and æ interchangeably for "mind; cognition; thought". Compare these Digital Dictionary of Buddhism glosses- å¿ "Spirit, motive, sense. The mind as the seat of intelligence, mentality, idea. (Skt. citta) ⦠Thought, intellect, feeling; (Skt. mÄnasa)"
- æ "Thought, intellect; (Skt. manas; Tib. yid); the mind; (Skt. citta; Tib. sems)".
- xinmanyizu å¿æ»¿æ足 ["heart-full mind-complete"] "perfectly content; fully satisfied"
- xinhuiyilan å¿ç°ææ¶ ["heart-ashes mind-sluggish"] "disheartened; discouraged; hopeless" (or xinhuiyileng å¿ç°æå· with leng "cold; frosty")
- xinhuangyiluan å¿æ æäº ["heart-flustered mind-disordered"] "alarmed and hysterical; perturbed"
- xinfanyiluan å¿ç ©æäº ["heart-vexed mind-disordered"] "terribly upset; confused and worried"
The "monkey" and "horse"
File:Daoyin tu - chart for leading and guiding people in exercise Wellcome L0036007.jpg|thumb|Reconstructed Daoyin tu Drawings of Guiding and Pulling [Qi] in the Mawangdui Silk TextsMawangdui Silk TextsFile:Buddha with monkey.jpg|thumb|Madhu PurnimaMadhu PurnimaFile:Marbleized Clay, Tri-Color Glazed of Monkey Piggy-Back on Horse.JPG|thumb|Tri-color glaze porcelain, showing "monkey" (ç¿) and "horse" (馬). Tang dynastyTang dynastyFile:Chinesischer Maler des 10. Jahrhunderts (I) 001.jpg|thumb|Gibbons and horses, 10th-century Song dynastySong dynastyThe animal components of the "mind-monkey will-horse" metaphor are Chinese yuan or Japanese en ("gibbon; monkey; ape; (Wikt:ç¿|ç¿)) and ma or ba ("horse"; (Wikt:馬|馬)).Chinese yuan (*ç¿ now (Wikt:ç¨|ç¨) or nao; (Wikt:ç±|ç±)) originally meant the "agile gibbon, black-handed gibbon, Hylobates agilis" but now generally means "ape; monkey". Robert van Gulik concludes that until about the 14th century, yuan designated the gibbon, but due to extensive deforestation, its habitat shrank to remote southern mountains;{{r|Gulik1967_33}} from then on, "the majority of Chinese writers knowing about the gibbon only by hearsay, they began to confuse him with the macaque or other Cynopithecoids." Other common Chinese "monkey" names include feifei ("hamadryas baboon"; çç), hou ("monkey; ape"; (Wikt:ç´|ç´)), and mihou (ç¼ç´ or muhou; æ¯ç´) or husun ("rhesus macaque"; ç¢ç»), Victor H. Mair{{r|Mair1990_36}} reconstructs Old Sinitic *mug-gug, which "probably ultimately derives from the same African word as English 'macaque'" and is reminiscent of Sanskrit "maraá¹Äsana ('monkey posture')" (see Hanumanasana). These "monkey; ape" characters combine the "dog radical" ((Wikt:ç|ç)) with different phonetic elements, such as the yuan ((Wikt:è¢|è¢)) phonetic in yuan (ç¿).In Chinese mythology, yuan "gibbons" were supposedly long-lived because they could "absorb life-force" () , which is a daoyin () "Daoist gymnastic technique". Chinese classic texts mentioned "monkey leaping" and "monkey bowing" yoga.{{r|Miura1989_354}} One of the 2nd-century BCE Mawangdui Silk Texts depicts 28 Daoist gymnastic exercises, many of which are named after animals, including number 22 muhou ("macaque"). In the present day, "Monkey Kung Fu" () is a Chinese martial arts style and xinyuanyima ("mind-monkey will-horse") is a Daoist breath meditation technique. When one breathes in and out, one's concentration causes the generative force to rise and fall (in the microcosmic orbit) thus slowly turning the wheel of the law. Count from one to ten and then from ten to one hundred breaths with the heart (mind) following the counting to prevent it from wandering outside. When the heart and breathing are in unison, this is called locking up the monkey heart and tying up the running horse of intellect.{{r|Luk1990_48}} The Japanese kanji ç¿ is pronounced as Sino-Japanese en < yuan or native saru "monkey", especially the indigenous "Japanese macaque, Macaca fuscata". In Japanese Shinto tradition, the monkey deity Sarutahiko was a divine messenger. Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney contrasts how, "in earlier periods the dominant meaning of the monkey was that of mediator between deities and humans. Later in history, its meaning as a scapegoat became increasingly dominant."{{r|OhnukiTierney1987_41}}Chinese ma (馬 "horse"), which was the linguistic source for Sino-Japanese ba or ma (馬 "horse"), originally referred to Przewalski's horse and later the Mongolian horse, Ferghana horse, etc. Horses were considered divine animals in both China{{r|Creel1965}} and Japan. For the Chinese, Edward H. Schafer says,He was invested with sanctity by ancient tradition, endowed with prodigious qualities, and visibly stamped with the marks of his divine origin. A revered myth proclaimed him a relative of the dragon, akin to the mysterious powers of water. Indeed, all wonderful horses, such as the steed of the pious Hsüan-tsang which, in later legend [see the Xiyouji below], carried the sacred scriptures from India, were avatars of dragons, and in antiquity the tallest horses owned by the Chinese were called simply "dragons."{{r|Schafer1963_59}} For the Japanese, the ancient Shinto practice of offering shinme (ç¥é¦¬ "sacred (esp. white) horses") to shrines has evolved into the modern donation of symbolic Shinto ema (絵馬 [lit. "picture horse"] "votive tablets").Besides the "mind-monkey idea-horse" metaphor, monkeys and horses have further associations. In Chinese astrology, Horse ((Wikt:å|å); wu) and Monkey ((Wikt:ç³|ç³); shen) are the 7th and 9th of the 12 zodiacal animals. In Chinese animal mythology, monkeys supposedly bring good health to horses. The Bencao Gangmu{{r|trRead1931_400}} records the "custom of keeping a female monkey in the horse's stable to ward off sickness (the menstrual discharge of the monkey is said to give immunity to the horse against infectious diseases)".Early literary history of "mind-monkeys"
This section summarizes Chinese and Japanese developments of "mind-monkey" and "idea-horse" (yima or iba æ馬) collocations and their synonyms. The earliest known textual usages are presented chronologically.Chinese "mind monkey" collocations
Chinese authors coined "mind monkey" expressions from the Later Qin dynasty (384-417 CE) through the Song dynasty (960-1279 CE). In modern usage, some terms are considered Classical Chinese, but others like xinyuanyima "mind-monkey will-horse" are Modern Standard Chinese. Unless otherwise noted, translations are by Carr.{{sfn|Carr|1993|pp=154-9}}{| class="wikitable"|+Development of Chinese Mind-monkey Terms| Date (CE)| TextSimplified Chinese characters>Simplified characters | Traditional Chinese characters>Traditional characters| Pinyin| Wade-Giles | Literal and figurative language>Literal meaning |
(File:Xiyou.PNG|160px|thumb|illustration of Sun Wukong)
The c. 1590 Journey to the West popularized "mind-monkey" more than any other text. This famous Chinese novel centers upon the pilgrimage of Xuanzang to India, and frequently uses xinyuan and yima expressions.{{sfn|Dudbridge|1970|p=167}}{{r|Chang1983_200}} Many are found in the couplet titles of chapters, for instance, 30 "The evil demon attacks the true Dharma; The Horse of the Will recalls the Monkey of the Mind". The preeminent translator Anthony C. Yu{{sfn|Yu|1977|p=59}} describes controlling the mind-monkey and will-horse as "a theme central to the entire narrative and which receives repeated and varied developments." Chapter 7 has this exemplary poem:A monkey's transformed body weds the human mind. Mind is a monkey â this, the truth profound. The Great Sage [Buddha], Equal to Heaven, is no idle thought. For how could the post of [Bima "Assistant of Horses"] justly show his gifts? The Horse works with the Monkey â and this means both Mind and Will, Must firmly be harnessed and not ruled without. All things return to NirvÄna, taking this one course: In union with TathÄgata [Buddha] to live beneath twin trees.Tr. {{harvnb|Yu|1977|p=168}}.Many Xiyouji scholars allegorically interpret xinyuan "heart-/mind-monkey" as the protagonist monkey-man Sun Wukong and yima "idea-/will-horse" as the dragon prince White Horse that enters the story in chapter 15. There are long-standing scholarly disagreements over whether Sun Wukong evolved from Hanuman, the monkey hero in the (3rd century BCE) Ramayana. It is "imagistically proper" for Sun to be a monkey, says Mair, because "Zen thought symbolizes the restless and unbridled mind of man as an "ape/monkey-mind"."{{r|Mair1989_662}}Japanese "mind-monkey" collocations
(File:Aoki Harutsura - Kozuka with a Horse and Show Monkey - Walters 51634.jpg|thumb|Japanese edged-weapon furniture (kozuka, front) depicting horse and monkey, by smith Aoki Harutsura.)(File:Aoki Harutsura - Kozuka with a Horse and Show Monkey - Walters 51634 - Back.jpg|thumb|Japanese edged-weapon furniture (kozuka, back) depicting monkey, by smith Aoki Harutsura){{JapaneseBuddhism}}Japanese Buddhist monks not only imported Sino-Japanese vocabulary such as shin'en < xinyuan ("mind-monkey") and iba < yima ("idea-horse"), but also invented analogous Japanese words like i'en ("idea-monkey") and shinba ("mind-horse"). Unless otherwise noted, translations are by Carr.{{sfn|Carr|1993|pp=159-61}} The earliest known usages of relevant "mind-monkey" terminology are shown in the table below.{| class="wikitable"|+Development of Japanese Mind-monkey Terms| Date (CE)| Text| Kanji"Mind-monkey" in English
"Mind monkey" and "monkey mind" both occur in English usage, originally as translations of xinyuan or shin'en and later as culturally-independent images. Michael Carr concludes,
Xinyuan-yima å¿ç¿æ馬 "monkey of the heart/mind and horse of the ideas/will" has been a successful metaphor. What began 1500 years ago as a Buddhist import evolved into a standard Chinese and Japanese literary phrase. Rosenthal says a proverb's success "'depends on certain imponderables," particularly rhythm and phrasing.{{r|Rosenthal1989_361}} Of the two animals in this metaphor, the "monkey" phrase was stronger than the "horse" because xinyuan "mind-monkey" was occasionally used alone (e.g., Wuzhenpian) and it had more viable variants (e.g., qingyuan æ
ç¿ "emotion-monkey" in Ci'en zhuan). The "mental-monkey" choice of words aptly reflects restlessness, curiosity, and mimicry associated with this animal. Dudbridge{{sfn|Dudbridge|1970|p=168}} explains how "the random, uncontrollable movements of the monkey symbolise the waywardness of the native human mind before it achieves a composure which only Buddhist discipline can effect."{{sfn|Carr|1993|p=166}}
Translations
English translations of Chinese xinyuan or Japanese shin'en commonly include "mind monkey", "monkey mind", and "monkey of the mind".This first listExpanded from .{{harvnb|Carr|1993|loc=179, Table 5 Chinese-English Translation Equivalents}}. compares how 11 bilingual Chinese dictionaries translate xinyuanyima å¿ç¿æ馬 and yimaxinyuan æ馬å¿ç¿.- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ã his will is like a horse's, and his heart like an ape's; inconstant and strong (A Syllabic Dictionary of the Chinese Language, Williams 1874)
- ãå¿ç¿æ馬ã gibbon heart and horse ideas, â unsettled and wandering (A Chinese-English Dictionary, Giles 1919)
- ãå¿ç¿æ馬ã irresolute; vacillating; fluctuating ... Inconstant; fickle in the mind (A Complete ChineseâEnglish Dictionary, Tsang 1920, cf. next)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ã Unsettled in mind; fluctuating; wavering in purpose (A Complete ChineseâEnglish Dictionary)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ãThe intents of the mind and heart are like the horse and ape â very difficult to bring under control; undecided (Zhonghua Han-Ying dacidian, Lu 1931, cf. next)
- ãå¿ç¿æ馬ã Restless and unsettled (Zhonghua Han-Ying dacidian)
- ãå¿ç¿æ馬ã the intents of the mind and heart are like the horse and the ape â very difficult to bring under control; undecided (Mathews' Chinese-English Dictionary, Mathews 1943)
- ãå¿ç¿æ馬ã cannot make up one's mind; indecision; procrastination (A New Practical Chinese- English Dictionary, Liang 1971)
- ãå¿ç¿æ馬ã prone to outside attractions, temptations; in a restless and jumpy mood (Lin Yutang's Chinese-English Dictionary of Modern Usage 1972)
- ãå¿ç¿æ馬ã restless and whimsical; fanciful and fickle; capricious (The ChineseâEnglish Dictionary, Beijing 1979)
- ãå¿ç¿æ馬ã in a restless and jumpy mood / capricious (A New ChineseâEnglish Dictionary, Ding 1985)
- ãå¿ç¿æ馬ã restless and whimsical; fanciful and fickle; capricious; when one meant gibbon, he thinks of a horse (A Modern ChineseâEnglish Dictionary, Beijing 1988)
- ãå¿ç¿æ馬ã â capricious; restless â¡ indecisive (ABC Chinese-English Dictionary, DeFrancis 1996, cf. next)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ã indecisive; wavering (ABC Chinese-English Dictionary)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ã Clamorous demands of passion (Takenobu's JapaneseâEnglish Dictionary, Takenobu 1918)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ã overmastering passion (A Standard JapaneseâEnglish Dictionary, Takehara 1924)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ãPassions hard of control; uncontrollable passions (Saito's JapaneseâEnglish Dictionary, Saito 1930)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ãClamorous demands of passion; [uncontrollable] passions (Kenkyusha's New JapaneseâEnglish Dictionary, Takenobu 1931)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ã clamorous demands of passion; [uncontrollable] passions; wild horses of passions and flighty monkeys of desires (Kenkyusha's New JapaneseâEnglish Dictionary, Katsumata 1954)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ã uncontrollable passions (The Modern Reader's Japanese-English Character Dictionary, Nelson 1974)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ã clamorous demands of passion; (uncontrollable) passions (Kenkyusha's New JapaneseâEnglish Dictionary, Masuda 1974)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ã (uncontrollable) passions (Japanese Character Dictionary, Spahn and Hadamitzky 1989)
- ãæ馬å¿ç¿ã the clamorous demands of passion; (uncontrollable) passions (Kenkyusha's New JapaneseâEnglish Dictionary, Watanabe 2003)
Popular culture
Examples of "mind monkey" are predictably common in Chinese popular culture. For instance, Sam yuen yi ma (å¿ç¿æ馬) â the Cantonese pronunciation of Xinyuanyima ("mind-monkey will-horse") â was a 1999 Hong Kong movie (known in English as "The Accident") by Stanley Kwan. However, examples of "mind monkey" are surprisingly widespread in modern English culture. For instance, there are blogs named "Mind Monkey!", "Mind of the Monkey", "Monkey Mind", and "No monkey mind". In English-language publishing, fewer books are titled with "mind monkey", such as Master the Mind Monkey,{{r|Patkar2007}} than "monkey mind". "Taming" is common among Taming the Monkey Mind,{{r|Chodron1999}} Taming the Monkey Mind; A Guide to Pure Land Practice,{{r|Cheng2000}} and Taming Our Monkey Mind: Insight, Detachment, Identity.{{r|Krystal2007}} Other examples of book titles include Samba and the Monkey Mind,{{r|Williams1965}} Meeting the Monkey Halfway,{{r|SumanoPopp2000}} Your Monkey Mind Connection,{{r|Antoinette2007}} Still the Monkey,{{r|Alivia2007}} and "Tales For Your Monkey's Mind".Reedy, Steve Michael, 2016, "Tales For Your Monkey's Mind", Monkey Mind Tales.The originally Buddhist "mind monkey" metaphor is also known in popular English-language music. "Mad Melancholy Monkey Mind" is a band. There are albums entitled "Mind Monkey",{{r|Foreman1999}} "Monkey Mind",{{r|Stump2003}} and "Monkey Mind Control".{{r|Roulston2003}} Song titles include "The Monkey on the Mind"{{r|Wilkerson1960}} and "Monkey Mind".{{r|Rolnick2003}}See also
- Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
- Horse in Chinese mythology
- Monkeys in Chinese culture
- Monkeys in Japanese culture
References
- JOURNAL, Carr, Michael, 1993, 'Mind-Monkey' Metaphors in Chinese and Japanese Dictionaries, International Journal of Lexicography, 6, 3, 149â180, 10.1093/ijl/6.3.149,
- BOOK, Chang, Po-tuan, Cleary, Thomas, 1987, Understanding Reality: A Taoist Alchemical Classic, Honolulu, University of Hawaii Press, 9780824811396, CITEREFCleary1987
- BOOK, Dudbridge, Glen, 1970, The Hsi-yu chi: a study of antecedents to the sixteenth century Chinese novel, Cambridge University Press
- BOOK, Yu, Anthony C., 1977â1983, The Journey to the West, (4 vols.), Chicago: University of Chicago Press, CITEREFYu1977,
Further reading
- BOOK, Adamson, Eve, McClain, Gary R., 2004, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Zen Living, 2nd, The Penguin Group, 9781592572434,
- BOOK, Suzuki, Shunryu, 2006, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind, Boston, Weatherhill, 0-8348-0079-9, registration,weblink
- Whiten, Andrew. 1998. "Ape mind, monkey mind," Evolutionary Anthropology: Issues, News, and Reviews 5.1:3â4.
External links
- Go ahead, lose your mind â 'monkey mind' that is, March 14, 2008, Business First.
- THE COMPLETE 'MONKEY', May 9, 2008, ''The New York Times", David Lattimore
- Quieting the Monkey Mind, Ann Pizer
- MonkeyMind, free software from Inner Peace
- weblink" title="archive.today/20020613032004weblink">Coping with thought during meditation, Gordon L. Smith
- Monkey Mind & Horse Will, Muho Noelke
- {{in lang|ja}} æ馬å¿ç¿ææ§, Imari porcelain pattern of "will-horse mind-monkey" from Wakoku gosuiten, Kyushu Ceramic Museum
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