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The grasshopper quest
The most ancient chewing herbivorous insects, plaguing the earth for 250 million years.
Grasshoppers are mostly plant-eaters. At high population densities they can change colour and behaviour and form swarms, becoming a serious pest of cereals and vegetables and causing famine. When this happens they are called locusts.
Male grasshoppers spend much of the day stridulating - singing by rubbing body parts together. Their songs express sexual maturity, the desire for social cohesion and individual wellbeing. Conflicts between males over copulation rarely escalates beyond ritualistic displays.
Plain blue door
There are few signs of the grandeur hidden behind the plain wooden doors with flaking blue paint and there are few signs of delusion of grandeur behind the figure in a faded blue kasaya recklessly reaching for the door handle. It is adventurous to reach for the handle of the door into the unknown, it is foolhardy to seek out another and another, it is reckless to do it this many times. Perhaps this door with the flaking blue paint will be the final handle to be reached for. Perhaps this door will reveal what is sought.
The surprisingly heavy wooden door with the flaking blue paint opens with an ominous creak for the the reckless figure revealing a courtyard of a small temple. The reckless figure, a mature student of all matters pertaining to marginal religions, has not seen a temple quite like this one. It has parts that are not often seen together, fascia that clash with decorative sculptures that clash with symbolic totems - much like the reckless mature student who has gathered together a patchwork of disparate beliefs to heart.
To the right of the reckless lifelong student is a hat stand, and a sign that reads: ALL ENTERING THE HOUSE OF MASKS MUST DISROBE, DON THE PROOFFERED MASK, AND TAKE A VOW OF SILENCE.
The lifelong student is not reckless.
The lifelong student is proactively seeking to fill the existential void of deeper meaning that lies within all of us and thus, without hesitation, removes the faded blue patchwork kasaya, dons the GRASSHOPPER mask and climbs the steps to the entrance of the temple.
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask stands tall, examining the frieze on the entrance wall, waiting for understanding and inspiration, breathing slowly, deeply, opening the body to experience the new. After the breathing comes the drills. The first is quiet, gentle and precise. The drills that follow become harder and faster, taps become slaps and slaps become punches. The meditation becomes a performance but no one arrives to appreciate the performance. And so the performance ends, the exhausted body rests on the top step, prone.
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask is woken by the tannoy: HEAR YE, HEAR YE, BE UPSTANDING FOR THE GRASSHOPPER AND THE ANTS IS ABOUT TO BEGIN.
The grasshopper and the ants
THE ANTS were industrious
Working hard, planning for their future
GRASSHOPPER was a romantic
And loved to sing
And sing GRASSHOPPER did
Through youth and into middle days
Until bedraggled and hungry, begging cup in hand
GRASSHOPPER approached the ANTS
The ANTS laughed at the tenacity
They sent GRASSHOPPER away
Hungry, cold and destitute
The Outer Sanctum
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask feels affirmed. The story of the GRASSHOPPER and the ANTS was a true self reflection, a reflection of everything that had led up to this moment. And the moral was simple, to keep metaphorically singing. Always keep singing no matter the struggles, no matter the hardships to be endured.
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask moves from the entrance to the outer sanctum.
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask stands tall, examining the architecture of the outer sanctum, waiting for understanding and inspiration, breathing slowly, deeply, opening the body to experience the new. After the breathing comes the drills. The first is quiet, gentle and precise. The drills that follow become harder and faster, taps become slaps, slaps become punches. The meditation becomes a performance but once again no one arrives to appreciate the performance. And so the performance ends, body prone.
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask is woken by the tannoy: HEAR YE, HEAR YE, BE UPSTANDING FOR THE ASS AND THE GRASSHOPPER IS ABOUT TO BEGIN.
The ass and the grasshoppers
GRASSHOPPER was singing, so beautiful and sweet.
ASS was enchanted, the singer did entreat
Pray tell me the secret, your singing so elite
Tis the dew, dear lovely, dew’s all you should eat
So with only dew to drink, happiness was complete
And in a short time died of hunger, stupid ASS
The inner sanctum
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask has a disconcerting worry: the message of the story lies in the futility of an ASS seeking to sing like the GRASSHOPPER, but the thought passes as quickly as the corpse passes from the outer sanctum carried away by the dispersing crowd.
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask proceeds deeper into the inner sanctum.
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask kneels to examine the seemingly mundane, everyday objects in the shrine, looking for connections, seeking within for understanding and inspiration, breathing slowly, deeply, opening the body to a new experience. After the breathing comes the drills: starting quietly, gently with concentrated precision then progressing to be harder and faster. Taps become slaps and slaps become punches. This is no longer a meditation but a performance. However, yet again no one arrives to observe the performance. And thus the performance ends, a spent body lain prone.
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask is woken by the tannoy: HEAR YE, HEAR YE, GATHER ROUND ONE AND ALL FOR NOW BEGINS THE FOX AND THE GRASSHOPPER.
The fox and the grasshopper
So up FOX looked, all a lushious lip-licking
Visualizing grasshopper and a deepest dick-dicking
Come sing down here, sweet voice a stick-slicking
I hear what you say, your lustful tasking
I'll stay right up here, what you really asking
Your words may be sweet but your strapon’s alarming
The Tower
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask harbours a small doubt that this is the true path to enlightenment. The lessons are too mundane and the motivations too carnal. The doubts, however, fade away as the fox with the phallus leaves the sanctum.
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask progresses up to the tower with a little bit of a feeling like the gamer gets when approaching the big boss.
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask stands tall, gazing up to the architecture of the tower, filled with a hope that this will be the moment of the revelation. Breathing slowly, deeply, opening the body to receive. The breathing naturally progresses into the drills. The drills start quiet, gentle and ordered. They progress through urgency into a performance of slaps and punches, blows resounding out, calling for someone to witness the performance, to witness this, the ultimate performance. And even here in the tower, no one comes. Eventually the performance ends and the exhausted body lies prone.
The naked lifelong student with the GRASSHOPPER mask is woken by the tannoy: HEAR YE, HEAR YE, A FINAL CALL FOR THE GRASSHOPPER AND THE EAGLE..
The grasshopper and the eagle (owl)
The noise was incessant, though not altogether unpleasant
Please give it a break, your song’s a mistake
Noisy GRASSHOPPER chirp, loud louder now berserk
This is how to win a fight - all sweetness and light:
Your singing’s divine, come share my sweet wine
But inside the hovel, poor GRASSHOPPER did grovel
Cause out came fat stick, to beat down the singing prick
Goodbye GRASSHOPPER
