I had a rather interesting experience in my last meditation.
This 'vision' of sorts began on the upper level of a house. The architecture was clearly Japanese and the room I was in appeared to be a bedroom of sorts. It was comfortably small and sparsely decorated with the exception of one or two small items. I was knelt in the centre of the room with a curious arrangement of trays before me, each containing various items and tools that seemed to be for applying make-up. After a minute or so of kneeling there I rose from my position and made my way over to a window in the wall to look out at the city - before my eyes there stood a sprawling metropolis, seemingly built into hills and mountains, all of the buildings clearly Japanese. As I was stood there an older woman entered into the room, dressed in a richly decorated kimono. She was talking to me in Japanese, yet I could clearly understand her - she told me to hurry up and that I was going to be late enough as it was.
I apologised and immediately returned to the middle of the room, kneeling before the trays again. I took a bowl of medium size and a brush - the bowl appeared to contain a thick, white paste. As I began to cover the brush in paint I heard footsteps going by my room but ignored them. When the brush was sufficiently coated I began to apply the paste to my skin, starting around the back of my neck/shoulder. I spent a great deal of time in that position applying the paste to my face, neck, shoulders and other exposed areas of flesh. When the process was completed I used a large hand-held brush to almost dust off the paste, making the makeup distinctly white and solid. I continued to apply the rest of the makeup before me, such as bright red lipstick and eyebrows drawn in with charcoal from a specially burnt piece of wood. When I had finished with the equipment I called another woman into the room who helped me dress properly and adjust my hair so that it was set a certain way.
When all was complete I rose from the floor, tidied away some of the trays and equipment and left the room. I emerged onto a staircase and was joined by another woman wearing similar clothing and identical makeup, one who I instantly understood I was good friends with. We descended the stairs in a somewhat awkward manner. At the base an elderly lady in a kimono was speaking in a hushed voice to a middle-aged gentleman. Noticing us, she told us that we needed to hurry if we were going to make our appointment. I had a strange feeling that there was something unusual with our arrangement, as though the two of us would not have been going alone under normal circumstances.
The two of us left the building and emerged into a cobbled road lined with buildings on either side. We were both carrying small umbrellas over our shoulder even though the weather was quite pleasant, making our way through the streets to some other destination. We engaged in conversation along the way - we were commenting that we should like to have apprentices of our own one day. Eventually, we came to a small building which appeared to have been built into a slope on the road (a foundation protruding out of one end to support it). We both entered to find a room filled with men knelt at short tables. We joined a table each and began to perform what I believe to be the tea ceremony. Next to me a very elderly and mean-looking Japanese man was sat: he was slightly overweight and had certainly not aged well over the years. I had the impression that this man was incredibly important, even if the place we were in was decievingly small. As I handed him is bowl the vision seemed to jump for a moment and I was stood once more with my companion, this time infront of the group in what I then suspected to be a local teahouse.
We both bowed and then I proceeded to the corner of the room, where I was handed a shamisen. I knelt there and began to play as my companion started to dance in a very traditional Japanese style. The memory ended abruptly then when I was suddenly disturbed from my meditation, but it was quite an interesting experience.
This post and discussion is continued in the thread Geisha past life?
This 'vision' of sorts began on the upper level of a house. The architecture was clearly Japanese and the room I was in appeared to be a bedroom of sorts. It was comfortably small and sparsely decorated with the exception of one or two small items. I was knelt in the centre of the room with a curious arrangement of trays before me, each containing various items and tools that seemed to be for applying make-up. After a minute or so of kneeling there I rose from my position and made my way over to a window in the wall to look out at the city - before my eyes there stood a sprawling metropolis, seemingly built into hills and mountains, all of the buildings clearly Japanese. As I was stood there an older woman entered into the room, dressed in a richly decorated kimono. She was talking to me in Japanese, yet I could clearly understand her - she told me to hurry up and that I was going to be late enough as it was.
I apologised and immediately returned to the middle of the room, kneeling before the trays again. I took a bowl of medium size and a brush - the bowl appeared to contain a thick, white paste. As I began to cover the brush in paint I heard footsteps going by my room but ignored them. When the brush was sufficiently coated I began to apply the paste to my skin, starting around the back of my neck/shoulder. I spent a great deal of time in that position applying the paste to my face, neck, shoulders and other exposed areas of flesh. When the process was completed I used a large hand-held brush to almost dust off the paste, making the makeup distinctly white and solid. I continued to apply the rest of the makeup before me, such as bright red lipstick and eyebrows drawn in with charcoal from a specially burnt piece of wood. When I had finished with the equipment I called another woman into the room who helped me dress properly and adjust my hair so that it was set a certain way.
When all was complete I rose from the floor, tidied away some of the trays and equipment and left the room. I emerged onto a staircase and was joined by another woman wearing similar clothing and identical makeup, one who I instantly understood I was good friends with. We descended the stairs in a somewhat awkward manner. At the base an elderly lady in a kimono was speaking in a hushed voice to a middle-aged gentleman. Noticing us, she told us that we needed to hurry if we were going to make our appointment. I had a strange feeling that there was something unusual with our arrangement, as though the two of us would not have been going alone under normal circumstances.
The two of us left the building and emerged into a cobbled road lined with buildings on either side. We were both carrying small umbrellas over our shoulder even though the weather was quite pleasant, making our way through the streets to some other destination. We engaged in conversation along the way - we were commenting that we should like to have apprentices of our own one day. Eventually, we came to a small building which appeared to have been built into a slope on the road (a foundation protruding out of one end to support it). We both entered to find a room filled with men knelt at short tables. We joined a table each and began to perform what I believe to be the tea ceremony. Next to me a very elderly and mean-looking Japanese man was sat: he was slightly overweight and had certainly not aged well over the years. I had the impression that this man was incredibly important, even if the place we were in was decievingly small. As I handed him is bowl the vision seemed to jump for a moment and I was stood once more with my companion, this time infront of the group in what I then suspected to be a local teahouse.
We both bowed and then I proceeded to the corner of the room, where I was handed a shamisen. I knelt there and began to play as my companion started to dance in a very traditional Japanese style. The memory ended abruptly then when I was suddenly disturbed from my meditation, but it was quite an interesting experience.
This post and discussion is continued in the thread Geisha past life?
