I'll need to think of a better name, because I stole this one, but I think I need better tracking of the things I consume. When I did my master's, after reading each article or chapter in a book, I would write a short synopsis, not a review, covering the basic ideas of the texts and my opinions on it.

I think it's a good habit to get into for two reasons; first because it forces you to think a bit deeper, the old adage that the best way to learn something is to teach it, and second, because it really helps you when you want to remember what you've done. Maybe should look into evernote...

So, let's try it.

This week I read Shugendo: The Way of the Mountain Monks by Shokai Koshikidake. This book filled in a lot of gaps in my knowledge of Shugendo. It has a good outline of the tools of the trade that Shugendo monks use, and had good explanations of the logic behind the rituals, i.e. the ten realms of Buddhism. I will definitely keep this book for reference.

I've also been reading "Living Buddhas: The Self-Mummified Monks of Yamagata, Japan" by Ken Jeremiah (half-way down the page). I'm only about half-way through, but it's quite good as well. It has a good explanation of mummification in history, and then has explanations of the monks who self-mummified on the Dewa Sanzan. I think the self-mummified monks are an extremely interesting culture that has the potential to help a lot of people, because they sacrificed themselves for the sake of the people.

Akimbo is a podcast I listen to religiously. It's the only one I listen to as soon as I see it, without fail. Seth Godin is a genius. It's hard to believe that he can articulate his ideas all in one take like that. It's something I seek to emulate, one main reason why I am doing this blog.

I'm running out of time, so will leave it at that for now. But I expect to be adding to this more and more (maybe need a special page for this...)