“Speak no evil, see no evil, hear no evil, so! We’re the Goody Goody Monkeys every place we go. Never have we gone astray, don’t believe in being gay (*note* “Gay” meant “Rakish” during the 30’s) being good’s the only thing we know! So… speak no hi-de, see no hi-de, hear no hi-de-ho! Not a single wild oat will we sow! We’re so very very good, wouldn’t be bad if we could.
Speak no evil, see no evil, hear no evil, no!”
Piracy: Lyrics from reruns of the 1935 Metro Goldwyn Mayer Happy Harmonies cartoon “Good Little Monkeys” waft through the air… at least thru my head. An immediate involuntary response to the trio of subtly situated 7” simulated simian statuettes. Sitting stolidly still atop a thrift store shelf.
“Arrr!” the internal infernal thirty-pirate rises. To sail through thrift store aisles, yard sales and roadside refuse in search of treasure. Ah, but we’ve sworn off our pirating ways on account of too much accumulated crap (a year sober). But they’re fun monkeys and so they accompany me on the ride home.
History: We are of course speaking of the Three Wise Monkeys (or mystic apes)- Iwazaru, who covers his mouth and speaks no evil. Kikazaru, covering his ears, hearing no evil. Mizaru, with eyes covered to see no evil. Originating from Hidari Jingoro’s 17th-century carving over a door of the Tosho-gu shrine in Nikko, Japan. The carvings are believed to have incorporated Confucius’s Code of Conduct, and are perhaps a cornerstone to Buddhism. History lesson complete- thank you Wikipedia.
The 4th Monkey: Though not incorporated into the original carvings, in some variations there is a fourth monkey depicted. This monkey has either its arms crossed over its chest or covering its genitalia with a guilty look on its face. This later ape would be Sezaru, embodying the principle of “do no evil.”
5 Monkey Variant: There is a cautionary tale of consequence that displaces the Japanese origin a bit. In it there are two additional monkeys added to the original three. Nameless, (poses in questionable debate) the representatives of “touch no evil” and “taste no evil”. We’ll call them “Touchy” and “Tasty” for this rendition.
As the story goes the five monkeys were brothers and against parental wishes went out to experience the ways of the world. On their ill-fated adventures, Touchy and Tasty succumbed to temptation. Tasty over-indulged on food and spirits. Finally tasting poison out of curiosity and dying an agonizing death. Touchy committed acts of violence and was killed or put to death as a result.
The other three bore witness to their brothers’ demise. In response covering eyes, so as not to see their torment. Covering ears, so as not to hear their screams of agony. And covering mouths, to never speak of what they’d seen. Returning hastily home- three wiser monkeys.
A dark lesson of morality there. Listen to your folks or die? Or at least don’t face the world till you are as wise as they.
Other Monkeys: Perhaps with the evolution of immorality in our world we need a few more anti-evil monkeys. Maybe one with his nose plugged- smell or snort no evil? Another holding out a firm hand refusing a blunt- toke no evil. Great anti-drug images and the ‘monkey on your back’ gets a more positive image. Fighting monkeys with monkeys.
A monkey turning his head away from his cell phone, thumbs bent back from the screen- text no evil. Another with his finger on his cells image delete button- send no evil. For the sake of manners, a little ape covering his bottom- pass no evil.
Maybe some positive monkeys? One with a hand over his brow and pointing- look out for evil.
Pausing mid sit (hovering) and looking down with a surprised look- don’t sit on evil. Maybe one simply running away- get the hell away from evil.
But wait, if we don’t see, hear, taste, smell or touch it, how do we know it? If we don’t speak it, how can we warn others? Awareness of evil requires interaction. It can’t be blocked out or ignored in hopes it will simply go away. We must deal with it head on, for that is the only way good will triumph. Because life is not a spectator sport.
I welcome almost all questions, comments via through the Focus, or E-mail me at [email protected]. Hope to hear from ya, until then try and stay focused! See ya.
