Day 35-36: Hermeneutics

I found a new approach I'd like to look at again in my Dictionary of Sociology. Hermeneutics sounds in many way like semiotics. It is about how to interpret a text by trying to understand what could have influenced the author's mind, social context included.

Source: Hermeneutics. (2007, April 29). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
Retrieved 18:57, May 10, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hermeneutics&oldid=126832920

Hermeneutics

Hermeneutics may be described as the development and study of theories of the interpretation and understanding of texts. In contemporary usage in religious studies, hermeneutics often refers to study of the interpretation of Biblical texts. It is more broadly used in contemporary philosophy to denote the study of theories and methods of the interpretation of all texts and systems of meaning. The concept of "text" is here extended beyond written documents to any number of objects subject to interpretation, such as experiences. A hermeneutic is defined as a specific system or method for interpretation, or a specific theory of interpretation. However, the contemporary philosopher Hans-Georg Gadamer has said that hermeneutics is an approach rather than a method and, further, that the Hermeneutic circle is the central problem of interpretation.

Essentially, hermeneutics involves cultivating the ability to understand things from somebody else's point of view, and to appreciate the cultural and social forces that may have influenced their outlook. Hermeneutics is the process of applying this understanding to interpreting the meaning of written texts and symbolic artifacts (such as art or sculpture or architecture), which may be either historic or contemporary.

In the last two centuries, the scope of hermeneutics has expanded to include the investigation and interpretation not only of textual and artistic works, but of human behaviour generally, including language and patterns of speech, social institutions, and ritual behaviours (such as religious ceremonies, political rallies, football matches, rock concerts, etc.). Hermeneutics interprets or inquires into the meaning and import of these phenomena, through understanding the point of view and 'inner life' (Dilthey) of an insider, or the first-person perspective of an engaged participant in these phenomena.

Day 34: Sociology of Knowledge

In my Dictionary of Sociology (Penguin, 2000), there was no mentioning about Sociology of Literature, per se. But I accidentally found it casually mentioned under Sociology of Knowledge. According to the Dictionary, Soc of Lit typically asks how social institutions influence particular literary forms or novelists.

However, when I tried to look up Soc of Knowledge in Wiki, hoping to find some reference to Soc of Lit, I couldn't find any. Wiki's entry for Soc of Knowledge is as follows.

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Sociology of knowledge. (2007, April 1). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 17:54, May 8, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sociology_of_knowledge&oldid=119560664

Sociology of knowledge

The sociology of knowledge is the study of the relationship between human thought and the social context within which it arise, and of the effects prevailing ideas have on societies. (Compare history of ideas.)

The term first came into widespread use in the 1920s, when a number of German-speaking sociologists wrote extensively on it, notably Max Scheler, and Karl Mannheim with Ideology and Utopia. With the dominance of functionalism through the middle years of the 20th century, the sociology of knowledge tended to remain on the periphery of mainstream sociological thought. It was largely reinvented and applied much more closely to everyday life in the 1960s, particularly by Peter L. Berger and Thomas Luckmann in The Social Construction of Reality (1966) and is still central for methods dealing with qualitative understanding of human society (compare socially constructed reality).

Although very influential within modern sociology, the sociology of knowledge can claim its most significant impact on science more generally through its contribution to debate and understanding of the nature of science itself, most notably through the work of Thomas Kuhn in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (see also: paradigm).

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It seems, for many people, when they think about knowledge, they seem to think mostly of science. That's why there was no mention of other branches of Soc of Knowledge here, which is too bad.

Within this week, I plan to finish the first chapter of my proposal and make an appointment with my adviser to see him some time next week to discuss my progress.

From last meeting with him, I have shifted my attention to semiotics and was able to tighten up my objectives. Let's see what he thinks.

Day 28: An Ecclectic Mix of New Learning

• Today I feel like a child in a candy store. Well, literally and figuratively. Yes, I over-consumed (again) on the sweets and chocolate. But, I'll continue to use stress as my convenient excuse for the time being!

• Now, the figurative part, the windfall benefit of tidying up my bookshelf the other day means I ran into old textbooks that I found most useful at this time! One that is worth mentioned here is "Qualitative Research: A Personal Skills Approach" by Professor Gary D. Shank of Duquesne University.

• It was written in a pleasant-to-read, natural way. It is as if he were standing in front of you, telling the stories of his experience. His approach to effective quali research really rang a bell: he bases it on our sensory awareness! This is exactly what I have been doing while I was working in advertising! More importantly, what the book says is exactly what I have been telling people what vipassana or mindfulness meditation is all about!

• This means I've been on the right track all along! Cool! This book gives me more confidence! Moreover, I was pleasantly surprised to find it discusses, among others, semiotics as well. It was grouped together with Grounded Theory and Phenomenology under the Chapter on "Interpreting" your qualitative research.

• The book began with teaching the observing and listening skills, both skills required in a good quali researcher. The more I look back, the more I see the similarities between vipassana meditation and quali research!

• In essence, Lord Buddha has shown the world how to conduct an effective qualitative research: observing without judgement! He did it so well, observing what goes on with his own body and mind until he got Enlightenment!

• If we only apply this same mechanism to whatever we observe, we would then be likely to get Enlightened, too, so to speak! But first, we must build the "Baramee" or the charisma and all the charactertistics fit for a Buddha first! The first thing that came to my mind is "Kanti Baramee!" A good researcher needs to be patient, believe me! That's the thing you'll need the most!

• And while performing some search on the net today, I came across several terms relating to semiotics that I would also like to pursue also as a reference to my Literature Review Chapter of my dissertation. And that is about Morphology, Lexicon, and Philology.

• First, I must say that I want to use these approach to explain my discovery about the word "Nen" in Japanese. I won't divulge in details here. But let's just say I plan to explain it in light of the following studies.

Morphology (linguistics) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morphology_(linguistics)

Note created May 3, 2007

Lexical morphology

Lexical morphology is the branch of morphology that deals with the lexicon, which, morphologically conceived, is the collection of lexemes in a language. As such, it concerns itself primarily with word-formation: derivation and compounding.

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Etymology - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etymology

Note created May 3, 2007

Etymology is the study of the history of words - when they entered a language, from what source, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.

In languages with a long written history, etymology makes use of philology, the study of how words change from culture to culture over time. However, etymologists also apply the methods of comparative linguistics to reconstruct information about languages that are too old for any direct information (such as writing) to be known. By analyzing related languages with a technique known as the comparative method, linguists can make inferences about their shared parent language and its vocabulary.

• Basically, this is it for today. I'm going to read the rest of the chapter of that book by Professor Gary Shank now. Good night! :-)

Day 27: Reading Up Semiotics

Today I was out most of the day so I didn't spend as much time as I want to read to my heart's content on Semiotics. I brought the book with me everywhere I went, though, and tried to sneak a page here, a paragraph there anywhere I could. I managed 21 pages today. But it was a full, delibrated 21 pages with lots of highlights and stuff. I didn't want to miss a thing!

Upon returning home, I also tidied hp my room a bit coz the books are piling up again! But I managed to throw away a lot of junks also. So, I'm happy!

I am thinking of re-writing my dissertation strategy again. There are simply too many things I wanted to do or plan to do, and I start to feel lost (again!) I need a fresh eye to help me organize, I guess!

Better go to bed now. Ciao!

Days 21-23: Importance of Issue, Objectives

My grandma passed away on April 25, 2007. Therefore, Days 21-23 have been pretty hectic for me.

Nevertheless, I managed to bring along a book to read whenever I could and made some progress, although I didn't blog about it.

Most of what I have been reading these past few days was on semiotics. I found this very helpful in trying to help me with my introduction chapter. I rewrote (again!), part of the intro and also made some changes in my objectives.

I plan to get the mindmap look right before I delve into the details in actual writing than just bolstering ahead wildly like I did last time. I told myself I already have most of the materials I need for the intro chapter anyway. The most important thing is I need to get my foundation right.

Because if my research questions or my objectives are not clear, that would result in a lot of wasted time ahead down the road. So I keep tell myself to be patient.

Here is the latest revised version of my mindmaps. It has grown bigger from the previous version, so I have to split the map again.

(Click to see bigger map)

Day 20: New Mindmap (Again!)

Ah, well, without much further fanfare, here it is!

I realize I have to get some more books on semiotics, because I got stuck already at the theoretical level! :-P


I have to keep reminding myself that I'm looking for hidden connotation, and nothing else!


Well, Ciao for now!

Day 19: New Mindmap for Intro Chapter

I don't know how many times I have written and re-written my introduction chapter! The thing is, if I have been working on the same file and on the same computer and with the same software, it wouldn't be too difficult to track.

But my working habit is as erratic as my thought and wild imagination would take me! So, that's too bad indeed. Because I think I may have made a new world record already for the most-rewritten opening chapter dissertation in history! hee hee hee

Well, but this time, I do have a lot of confidence! That's the big difference! I made very little change to my latest installment. And I sort of have pretty clear idea where I am heading to. I'm far from finishing the first intimidating chapter, but at least I don't get stuck at the first two headings anymore (background and importance of issues).

Now, for the first time, I think I am quite articulate about it. At least I am quite firm on my standpoint and know from what angle I'm going to look at Bushido.


Therefore, without any further explanation, let's take a look at my latest installment:

(Click on graphics to see bigger-sized photo)

Today I also discovered in my private collection at home a textbook I bought when I first started this Ph.D. program that I never got around to read yet titled, "Mass Communication Theory." At that time I bought that book out of sheer "hunch" because I felt that since I'm a graduate of School of Communication Arts, I'd better know a thing or two about such theories.


Well, in fact we all have to take those courses as an undergrad. And, I'm so embarrassed to admit to the whole world, I got an A in it. How, I really had no idea! The thing is, after 20 years of not using it at all, consciously, that is, in my line of work, it is really difficult to try to recall any of those theories.


So, you could say that I bought that book that was written by one of the faculty of my School, Faculty of Communication Arts at Chulalongkorn University, out of sheer sense of insecurity! I simply need something to fall back on in case somebody ask me one day!


And, would you believe it, approximately 3 years after I bought that book (without much chance to really read it except for flipping through the first few chapters), I picked it up again today and delved right in enthusiastically with so much hunger. Why? Because now the focus on my dissertation has become chrystalized and I realized that that book was sent to me somehow with a definite purpose! I am going to do a Content Analysis for my Dissertation! And it is described in minute details in the very last chapter of the fateful book!


As I read more and more, I realized that I have been doing content analysis all along without realizing it! Even in my line of work when I was in the private sector. It has become my second nature. We just did not call it that way, that's all. And when you are in the setting of a private sector, the word "theory" did not come up that much. You just work on your own experience and more of a guts feeling or tried and true approach of the information you have from the field.


Needless to say, this boosts up another confidence for me, which I have to watch it carefully, otherwise I would get too carried away and it could get too dangerous now that I am trying to do things in the academic field. I could not operate like a 007 I used to anymore! I need a backup team, so to speak. And my backup team presents itself as all kind of references, and theory!


I start to understand now, how some people, once their engine has started, could continue to work around the clock, especially young people! Although I'm not that young anymore (unless "young-at-heart" also counts!,) I feel that I could go on and on non-stop on my project. I have to remind myself all the time to take a break to eat, exercise, sleep, and do other things that human beings do!


And this reminds me that I should have gone down to exercise long time ago already! Gee, I think I have spent too much time polishing my ideas on my mindmap! Never mind, I know that the clearer I could get my ideas upfront, the easier my work would be later. I don't want to rewrite my intro chapter and in essence rewrite the world record again, that is!

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**N.B.** Just realize I should change my objective a bit from looking for "Mindfulness Theme" to "Mindfulness Motif." I think this is called Mindlessness! :-p

Day 15: Why Bushido is Still Relevant

Today I didn't have much time to do research or write because I had to teach spochan to the kids and also take Japanese class myself. (Taihen da!)


But since I made a resolution to myself to make some progress on my dissertation everyday, I managed to put my thoughts together on a mindmap, and also make a mental note of which books I would use as reference to my point. In fact, I used to write some articles about it already in Thai. So, when it's time for me to put it together in my dissertation, it's easier for my to put them all together when I look at it from my mindmap.



Without much further fanfare, here it is:

(Click to see a larger mindmap)

I also did some more speed-reading on a Thai textbook in Thai titled, "Japan Built Its Nation with Patriotism and Loyalty," by Ajarn Yupa Klangsuwan and still could not make up my mind which part(s) of the book would be most useful to me for more in-depth reading and quoting in my dissertation.

In this book (p.115, as footnote 13), Bushido was referred to as a "Law" developed since the Kamakura era (1100s) for the "higher-class" samurai to teach responsibility and preach ideology and was later adopted in mid 19 century as the ethical code of conduct to help build the nation with patriotism and loyalty by focusing on selfless sacrifice.

Although according to this book Bushido was said to have had an influence from Zen, it was labelled as a "Confucius' Thoughts and Way of Life."

Ok, not bad for a busy day like this, ne? :-)

Day 14: Research, Research & Research

Not that I am too lazy to come up with a more appropriate title for today's entry, but this is really what I have been doing all day! I was going full speed and so immersed in doing one research and reading after another that I forgot to eat on time, postponing my excercise, and even skipped my Japanese class!

At the end, my back hurt so much from sitting too many hours today, so I had to go down to excercise anyway.

Among other things that I need to find soonest is how or where I could get the Japanese version of the book titles that I plan to use for my content analysis. But as I continue to comb the web, more questions came up in my mind. It was more as a self-doubt: am I really sure these would be the books I will use? Have I really explored enough? Should I tried investigate Tokugawa's other literature some more?

I finally ended up did more research on Tokugawa society, religion, and thoughts. I also did look up more Bushido resources from that era. I did make many clips and put it on my Google Notebook for future reference. I also spent some time skimming through my saved bookmark in Yahoo My Web and told myself may be I should start first from there because I have at least 50 fine Bushido resources there in store.

Tomorrow I may not have that much time to work on my dissertation because I have my sword class. But at least I think today I did cover a lot of ground.

I will give the list of literature I plan to cover to my sensei this weekend and hear what he thinks. May be he can even lend me his own copy, if he has some! Being a samurai sword teacher, I see no reason why he wouldn't have ALL of them! hee hee hee

They are (in no particular order):

1. Budo Shoshinshu
2. Hagakure
3. The Unfettered Mind
4. The Live-Giving Sword,
5. The Book of Five Rings

Well, actually I have some more in mind. But at least these 5 would be my basic starting point!

Can't wait to roll up my sleeves and delve right into this project!

Oh, my eyes are so tired. I'd better try to get some sleep. Didn't have enough sleep for many days now. My brain just refuses to rest. I will need all the rest I could get for my sword practice tomorrow!

Day 13: Met w/ Advisor, Got New Direction

Is it a co-incident that I happened to have an appointment with my chief advisor on Day 13?

Well, depends how you look at it. There are both good news and bad news.

Bad news first. After an hour of a very fruitful discussion, he gave me a new direction again! In other words, I would not be doing what I have been painstakingly putting together during these past few weeks anymore. But that's normal for Ph.D. students. We do change our topics or directions for thousands of times before it sort of comes together.

But it was not so bad as Apollo 13! What I mean is that, my proposal was not completely shot down. We did not really take it apart. My advisor quite liked it, actually. And he also believed and said, perhaps for the first time, that looks like I'm going to make it this time (!). He told me to keep the Bushido part (which is exactly what I had in mind!), and ditch the Budo practice. That could take the role of background support info.

Now comes the big announcement. He wants me to take the SOCIOLOGY OF LITERATURE's approach! Basically, I'm going to do a content analysis of Bushido literature from Tokugawa period! And may be some other literature by samurais during that time. I have the list of books I want to do already! It is in the Table of Content of the Introduction Chapter I gave him today. But may be I have to do some more research on Japanese literature, just in case that question comes up during my defense...

In fact, it's back to square one. Because this is what I originally proposed to JSPS and got my research grant for: looking for mindfulness elements in Bushido literature from Tokugawa period and analyze it in the social context of Tokugawa society in order to understand it better!

So, I think my advisor purposedly let me trying to find my way around for 3 years, reading everything I could relating to sociology, only to find out that my initial hunch was right in the first place! Gosh, what a clever way to teach! He has been very patient for 3 years, watching me growing up academically. Or have I? hmmm...May be not, because I guess I have forgotten what I read in the first year already! Darned!

Anyway, his approach is similar to my sword sensei, though. He waits until he sees that I'm ready. Then he told me what to do next. Sort of. He did not really tell me what to do, just give me more list of books to read (as usual) and told me to write. However, this time I really have to catch up fast with the reading list which I normally was too lazy to do. Big mistake! The list piles up fast, man! And before you know it, you feel you are never going to make it!

So, the first thing I did after coming back home after seeing him was Googling "Sociology of Literature." I groaned soon after the result came up? Why? First, the field was not covered in Wiki. And for me, if it is not in Wiki, then, something must be really, really wrong!

And, boy, was I right! Gosh, how come my advisor always send me on to the most difficult path? Why is that? Consider this:

The sociological interpretation Of literature is not a favorite son of organized social science. Since the emancipation of the study of literature from the rigid research dicta and historically cogent laws of philology, almost everybody with a fair access to reading and writing feels entitled to offer historical, aesthetic, and sociological criticism and generalization. The academic disciplines which have been traditionally charged with the history and analysis of literature have been caught unaware by the impact of mass literature, the best seller, the popular magazine, the comics and the like, and they have maintained an attitude of haughty indifference to the lower depths of imagination in print. A field and a challenge have thus been left open and the sociologist will have to do something about them.

Frankfurt School: On Sociology of Literature by Leo Lowenthal 1948

http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/lowenthal/1948/literature.htm

If I have more time and energy, I'll update some more about my revised proposal. But I have to do the actual revision first!

Like John Lennon once said, you win some, you lose some. You can't really have it all, I guess. But if you ask me how I felt after my first meeting with my chief advisor for the first time in what seems like aeons, I guess it's pretty ok. At least I got the answers I wanted for today. And I could work with more focus, although it seems I'm going to have even more work load than ever before with the new area I have to cover (soc of lit) and also some other books he mentioned today.

Again, the takeaway from this meeting is

• Keep Bushido, drop Budo.

• Drop Leadership Theory, develop own Operational Term for "Mindfulness" to use in Content Analysis.

• Methodology = Content Analysis.

• Content to be Analyzed = Bushido Literature from Tokugawa Period.

• Analytical Framework to make it Soc of Lit instead of just literature review = "Social Millieux" (or should it be Millieure?)

He also mentioned about Great Tradition and Little Tradition. Oh, there are still many more to read and understand. He emphasized the use of language and its symbolic interpretation. He also listened with interest and expressed agreement when I explained the changing meaning of the word "Nen" in Japanese to him. He said I could include that in my dissertation also.

So, what theories are we looking for now? Social exchange theory? Symbolic theory? Gee, I start to sound more and more like the professor in the Davinci Code who interprets the meaning of stuff in history. But that's what I'm about to set to do, to "decode" Bushido, the code of conduct for the legendary Tokugawa Samurai.

There you go, another title for my dissertation. I should start keeping tab of the ever-changing title of my dissertation, actually. May be that would be the last finishing touch of the whole work even! Don't you think?

Ok, as of today, let it be recorded as:

"Bushido Decoded: Unlocking the Mindfulness Elements in
Tokugawa Samurai's Code of Conduct"

Hmm...I like it. Sounds like "Matrix Reloaded" and "Da Vinci Code" reel into one! hee hee hee Well, we'll see if I could really reload it from the past decode it and deliver what this title promises!

Day 12: Progress Report Wrap-up

It's one of those days where your brain takes a break and won't come back easily!

Anyway I managed to get a few things done: progress report in Thai language that I had to prepare for the National Research Council of Thailand, the special update I prepare for my advisors and I even finished tidied up one bookshelf, a Japanese language studies.

I guess the reason my brain simply would not co-operate is because my lack of sleep! Last night I could not bring myself to sleep and I managed only 2 and a half hours before waking up at my usual time! Then I somehome dragged myself on all day. Now it's almost 2:30 of another day. I can't understand myself sometimes. My body is tired, but when I want to go to sleep, I can't. The brain simply would not shut down. And to think that I DID meditate yesterday already!

Today actually I planned to do a speed-reading on a Thai textbook called Sociology of Religion. It's easier to do speed-reading in your native language of course. Yesterday I flipped through it quickly already once and noticed they have something on Phenomenology that was interesting.

I also read a bit more on Phenomenology today, from the thickest book in my house, something like the Library's Refrerence-Sized Encyclopedia of Sociology. I guess it's around 900++ pages. It's from U.K. Luckily Phenomenology doesn't sound as bad in this book as ethnography! Strange... Looking at all those arguments, I guess those academia did spend a lot of time arguing on abstract ideas that don't mean much to me. How I wish I could tell them that there are many things more important in life, such a mindfulness training! If only they could learn of their real sufferings! May be they would stop their pointless arguments altogether!

I think the real reason I'm struggling so long is I was trying to find some theory that I would really believe in! I think to do a Ph.D., you really have to have a passion in every single detail of your study. I mean, I can't defend my work half-heartedly, can I? It's a like a soldier going to war. I remember a line from a Hollywood movie, Robin Hood. "Is this worth dying for?"

Well, so far, not yet. But lately I have been pretty excited about Transformational Leadership Theory. Because, for the first time, I feel this kind of leader is similar to Lord Buddha, my true hero. It might be strange for other people who has not practiced mindfulness meditation and get to "know" Lord Buddha as I did. Well, I didn't get to know him personally either. All I know is he was a man, a great one. What he discovered was really difficult to practice, but yields immense benefit, even for starters like me. And the more I practiced what he taught, the more I become inspired by him. Have I been transformed? I guess so. Not in a big way yet, but I think I have found all the answer I need in life. I have found the peace within. But I guess I could not use the internal experience as the bibliography for my dissertation!

Day 11: Phenomenological Sociology

Didn't make much progress today. My illness confined me to bed most of the afternoon again. I must ask my doc in next visit if this is the result of my sleep apnea, allergy, hypoxia, hypothyroid, or all of the above. :-p It's not fun living with all those symptoms and more when you try to do a dissertation. It's worst when they all hit you at the same time when you think you just had it going for the first time in 3 long years!

Well, complaints aside, I had a good day because I managed to get another great tip from my friend! This time, in a form of clear explanation of the phenomenological approach that I could perhaps use in my dissertation! It got me excited for the first time! The light at the end of the tunnel seems to be bigger by the day!

However, like in Buddhism's teaching, my joy did not last long. After I checked my Encyclopedia of Sociology, I discovered that Phenomenology is a bad boy of Sociology! Would I ever get away from this curse? Just look at this excerpt:

Phenomenological sociology has not greatly influenced sociology as a whole and has also been subjected to extensive criticism. It has been argued that it deals with trivial topics, is purely descriptive, has had very little empirical application and neglects the notion of social structure. (Abercrombie, Hill & Turner, 2000, p. 262).

I still have to find out more about all this. But one thing that perhaps cheers me up a bit was the "See Also:" part at the bottom of the entry. Among others was the term "Verstehen," the German word for Insight or Understanding that was one of the first terms in sociology that actually thrilled me. Come to think of it, there has been almost no other sociological terms that has ever made an impression on me in a big way, although "Sociological Imagination" came pretty close.

Needless to say, I fell for the word Verstehen not because of its exotic and sexy accent, but because of its close meaning to the idea of Insight as in Insight Meditation in Buddhism which means Vipassana Meditation which is what I really want to talk about in my dissertation.

So we'll see. May be phenomenological sociology would be my answer after all, academically controversial and all that, if I get my advisor's blessings, of course.

Day 9: Going Quanti? I Must Have Gone Crazy!

It's not difficult to guess that math and I do not look eye to eye!

In fact, thanks to the educational system in Thailand, I did not have much chance to make any eye contact with math and stuff since Grade 9 in High School because I happened to choose the English-French major.

So, the idea of trying to do my dissertation based on a quantitative reseacrh laden with math and statistical equations is a bit appalling, if not surprising.

But, worse comes to worst, it may be my only remaining option?

Today, this idea sort of presented itself to me. Reluctantly, I made a note of it in my Google Notebook. Well, who knows, I may really have to use it later, when all else fails, that is!

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Factors involved in this study are:

• Mindfulness

• Bushido

• Budo

• Transformational Leadership Development

How about:

1. Find the relationship between Mindfulness and Transformational Leadership Development (Using the concept of Mindfulness in Buddhism and Transformational Leadership Theory in Psychology to develop tools to measure such relationship.)

2. Find the relationship between Mindfulness and Bushido during Tokugawa period (by content analysis in the period's Bushido literature)

3. Find the relationship between Mindfulness in Koryu Budo (by observant participation.)

If it can be proved that

• Mindfulness is an important factor that contributes positively to transformational leadership deelopment, and
  

• that same "mindfulness" exists abundantly in Bushido way of living and Budo practice,
  

• then, it may be possible to say that Bushido and Budo contribute positively to transformational leadership development.

Which means, I'm done!



Oh...the suffering of having to go through all this!


Kids, don't try Ph.D. studies at home! :-p


I'd rather be in my Meditation Retreat! :'-(

Day 7: World Premiere

Hello World,

Can't Believe I'm starting another blog.

Well, I'll keep it brief to serve its purpose.

I'm logging my daily progress on my dissertation as opposed to emailing it to a few of my closed friends.

My goal? To get over it within a year.

Don't laugh! I've been stuck for more than 3 years.

So, today I decided to open this blog after working on a mindmap to update my advisors on my latest work-in-progress.

Today it's extrememly hot in Bangkok and I have hypoxia again! Darned! Just when I thought I would have it right and get going!

Tonight I hope to be able to update some more.

Please pray for me, world, for my dissertation is for you all.

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Late Addition: To see my update for advisors, which is yet to be finished, go here For some inexplicable reason, I could not send my file from Google Documents to this blog. hmmm.... I wonder why? Is it a signal that I should do more meditation?

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