#zafus

[yogadaily]

(via Pincha Mayurasana | Posturas de yoga para principiantes, Fotografía de yoga, Ejercicios gluteos mujer  || Curated with love by yogadaily) 

[thegodthief]

Any recs for zafu cushion sets? Preferably with a cotton cover and natural material fill. My go-to is gone and I don't trust search engine results.

[purityofislam]

Enclosed in New York Inspiration for a small contemporary enclosed medium tone wood floor and brown floor living room remodel with purple walls, no fireplace and no tv

[gripyoga]

Grip Zafu & Zabuton- Grip Meditation Zabuton is the perfect companion to your zafu.

👉👉You may also order online at https://gripkart.com/in/grip-zafu-zabuton-combo-meditation-cushion-seat-with-support-for-best-kneeling-and-sitting-support-while-meditating-or-practicing-yoga-purple-color 👉👉For more details visit: https://gripyoga.com/grip-zabutons/

👉👉You may also call us at Toll-Free No: 1800 208 7711 👉👉WhatsApp at +91 98919 07711

[mahoromouse]

Bucchigiri?! Name Meanings Part 3

Continuing some name analysis with the other Minato Kai members, present and past:

Douman Kenichirou / 道満拳一郎

拳 ("ken") means "fist" and is often as a suffix in the names of martial art moves. 一 ("ichi") means "one", and related terms like "first", "best" and "only". 郎 ("rou") means "son" and is a common ending in typically male names. 道 ("dou") means "road", "way", or "path" and can include concepts such as "method" and "principle". 満 ("man") means "full" or "complete". This same character is used to spell out the first name of Matakara's brother's name, Mitsukuni (the character is read as "mitsu" here) and I'll talk a bit about that in a bit. As a complete name, Douman Kenichirou makes sense in that invokes his belief in hand-to-hand combat without weapons ("the way of only fists").

Zabu Kakeru / 座布翔

The characters that make up his last name, 座布 ("zabu"), are usually read as the common word "zafu", the term for a specific type of seat cushion used in Zen Buddhist meditation. 翔 ("kakeru") can also be read as "shou" meaning "soar" or "fly". His full name being along the lines of "Flying Cushion" probably relates to the magic carpet that features in the Disney version of Aladdin.

Sakigake Komao / 魁駒男

魁 ("sakigake") can mean "one who charges ahead of others", which so far seems to be Komao's general approach to situations. 駒 ("koma") can mean several things:

(rare) foal, young horse (or generally) horse

(shogi, chess) piece, man

someone controlled by another: a pawn, a puppet

男 ("o" or "dan") can also be read as the word "otoko" meaning "man" and is a common ending in typically male names.

Asamine Mitsukuni / 浅観音満邦

As mentioned earlier, 満 ("mitsu" or "man") can be read most directly as "full" or "complete". This is the same character used in the last part of Kenichirou's surname (Douman, 道満). This probably relates to the fact that both have been leaders of Minato Kai. 邦 ("kuni") means "home country" and usually refers to Japan itself.

As I said in a previous post, "Asamine" can be divided into two parts, 浅 and 観音. 浅 ("asa" can mean "shallow", "superficial", "frivolous", "wretched", or "shameful" while 観音 ("mine") translates to "Guanyin" ("Kannon" in Japanese), a goddess-like figure in Chinese Buddhism associated with compassion and mercy. Since Mitsukuni has yet to appear in the story, it's difficult to know exactly what is meant by this name, though I personally think something may not be as it seems with either Mitsukuni or Matakara.

[fehlerhaftekunst]

Little gifts for Ken and Zafu

Furaffinity | Telegram | Twitter | Tumblr | Instagram | Deviantart | Ko-fi | Mastodon | Commission Info

[hoursofreading]

There are times in life when nothing helps, when you just have to feel terrible for a while. All you can do is go through the agony and come out the other end of it. It’s a gift, in a way, to hit the bottom (though it doesn’t feel that way at the time). If you lie on the grass, you can’t fall down.

There’s a saying in Zen that “inquiry and response come up together.” Perhaps that’s what prayer is. To make an inquiry is already to get a response, because asking implies that there’s something else there. And there’s not even a time lag. The moment you’re asking for help, you’re already getting it, though it may not be the help you thought you wanted. Once, when I called Zen teacher Reb Anderson in despair, he came to Berkeley to see me. We sat on a park bench in a playground, and he told me, “The universe is already taking care of you.” I said this mantra to myself over and over: “The universe is already taking care of me.”

I wasn’t afraid to be alone with my skin because I wasn’t alone; there was nothing, not the width of a cell, between me and the rest of the universe.

One late afternoon at the end of a hard summer, while I was visiting friends on Cape Cod, I walked barefoot and alone down the beach and into the salty water. There were no people about, so I took off my bathing suit in the water and flung it up on the sand. I swam and swam and felt the water touching every part of me. I was in it—no dry place left. I wasn’t afraid to be alone with my skin because I wasn’t alone; there was nothing, not the width of a cell, between me and the rest of the universe. I did a somersault under the water and looked up at the shiny membrane above me. My head hatched into the light, and I breathed the air and knew that I would be all right. No, not would be, but was already. I was back in my life.

I’m more than two years out of the desolation, and I still don’t know why I suffered so much, or why I stopped. I can neither blame myself for the suffering nor take credit for its cessation. I sit again—I mean on a zafu—but not as much as I used to. I also bow and chant and pray. I’ve stopped taking Zoloft, though I’d return to it without shame if I thought it would be useful.

I practice curiosity. What is it to be born a human being? What does it mean to be embodied in your separate skin? There are many other (and more reliable) paths out of the delusion of separation besides having a boyfriend—things like writing and swimming, for example. And most of all, there’s studying this human life. You could call it buddhadharma, or you could call it something else. It doesn’t matter.

I now admit that I sit zazen for a reason: I want to understand who I am (if anybody), and how I’m connected to the rest of it. And yes, I want to stop suffering and I want to help others stop suffering. When I was in despair, time passed slowly, so slowly. Now it sweeps by faster and faster, gathering momentum. The shortness of life stuns me.

[nichirinpen]

With this list, can you guess which Hashira I'm writing for? :3

Ache

Boredom

Curiosity

Daylight

Enigma

Falling

Gasp

Heart

Ignore

Jovial

Kisses

Laughter

Moonlight

Nighttime

Open

Pressure

Quick

Run

Stalling

Tension

Udon

Vibrant

Wet

Xanthic

Yawn

Zafu

[liminalpsych-in-teyvat]

Notes for A Matter of Duty - Chapter 16 - Mind the deluge

There was a grunt from the cell, and a flinch of shoulders, and water dripping— Thoma's heart tangled with his lungs in a hitch of breath and a stumbling rhythm. His searching gaze followed the droplets up, up, up to a ceiling slick with condensation, suffused with a subtle Hydro glow. No. No. He wouldn't.

I am three weeks behind schedule thanks to three weeks of no ADHD medication due to the shortage. Finally got back on it and managed to write the chapter but wow. I now understand why I didn't write prose fiction for so many years. Much harder to just force myself to write when I'm not properly medicated.

Anyway, apologies for the delay, and the next few chapters might be a little slower than usual because I have other deadlines. I'd hoped to have this all done before other project deadlines came looming, but then I lost three weeks and now… I get to try to do them simultaneously and I'm upset about it. I get 10 more days of fanfic writing and then I have to dive deep into other projects for a few weeks, so hopefully I'll get one more chapter out before then.

Thanks to: PancakeBeast for beta reading, the Hidden Akasha Records discord for putting up with my flailing, and my nesting partner Hrefna for the martial arts consult and references.

Notes and references:

Ayato's throw of Thoma is a fairly standard martial arts throw. Thoma probably expected it and tried to roll with it, but not quite quickly enough for how reactive Ayato was. (And Hrefna tested it out for me, and doing that particular throw doesn't exert much in the way of strain on the area where Ayato was injured.)

The cushions on the crate are a zabuton or zaniku (flat square cushion) and a zafu (round cushion).

The versatile tenugui makes another appearance, this time as onigiri wrapping.

Not really much else this time, actually. Lots of poking around the Genshin wiki and game images and that's about it.

Summary of the fic itself with content warnings, tags, etc so you can decide if you want to read it or not before you click on the link.

A Matter of Duty https://archiveofourown.org/works/47604337?view_full_work=true

A year after the death of Ayato and Ayaka's parents, the clan succession is contested from within and without. Kamisato Ayato will do anything—anything—to ensure the safety of his family and the stability of his clan.

But powerful supporters come at an unimaginable price. When Ayato's own sacrifices aren't enough, he is forced to involve Thoma in a web of intrigue and exploitation that will push them to the breaking points of their bodies, their minds, and their very hearts.

or: Kushiel's Dart meets Genshin Impact in a quick-scorch-to-slow-burn romantic drama of court intrigue, sexual politics, and sacrifice.

Note: Mind the tags. More specific content warnings will be given at the beginning of each chapter, and the story tags will be updated as needed. All characters in sex scenes are adults.

Rating: Explicit. It's porn with plot. Porn as a vehicle for plot, or plot as a vehicle for porn, you can interpret it either way. (I prefer: porn and plot as a vehicle for ~feels~)

Tags that I'm not actually turning into tags here, but it gives you an idea of what you're in for: Kamisato Ayato/Thoma (Genshin Impact), dubious consent but not between Ayato and Thoma, slow burn, sex ed, first time, self-sacrifice, humiliation, exhibitionism, oral sex, anal sex, bdsm, bad bdsm etiquette, rough sex, breath play, impact play, bondage, service kink, abuse, sadism, codependency, shame, guilt, jealousy, possessiveness, trauma, ptsd, dissociation, political sex work, or sex work for political maneuvering, or political survival sex work if that’s a thing, exploitation, blackmail, political machinations, political intrigue, no aftercare, maybe someday some aftercare, hurt/comfort, mostly hurt for a long time but eventually comfort, oblivious disaster gays, for such socially savvy people they are terrible at personal relationships, dominant Ayato, submissive Thoma, top Ayato, bottom Thoma, Ayato is incredibly parentified, Thoma has no sense of self-preservation, self-sacrifice isn't a contest but don't tell Ayato and Thoma that, it's like the snipe-the-check game at restaurants but with sex and politics, Kushiel's Impact, no really this was in my drafts for the longest time as Kusheline Thomato Fic, everyone's an adult in this timeline except Ayaka, she gets protected at all costs, original characters out of necessity, finding appropriate existing Inazuma npcs for some of these roles was impossible

Full fic: https://archiveofourown.org/works/47604337?view_full_work=true

Chapter 16 - Mind the deluge

There was a grunt from the cell, and a flinch of shoulders, and water dripping—

Thoma's heart tangled with his lungs in a hitch of breath and a stumbling rhythm. His searching gaze followed the droplets up, up, up to a ceiling slick with condensation, suffused with a subtle Hydro glow.

No. No. He wouldn't.

Chapter contains: nightmares, implied torture (mild), hurt/comfort.

[elementalgod-aj]

Anthro Allies Remastered (Part 12)

Now for the Final Post for the Anthro Allies. we've seen the Animals Now we see The creatures that are placed in the stories

Object People, Food People, Toons, Automatons, Mythical Creatures, Ghosts, Spirits, Extraterrestrials, Higher Beings, (Angels, Demons, Nephilim's, Gibborims, Cambions, Nephalems, Godabi' s) & Primordial's and Gods

Objects People/Food People

Ortensia (Candy Person)

Jeovanni (Candy Person)

Wowser (Lego Fusion)

Jem (Homunculus)

Sally (Doll)

Timmy (Toy)

Toons

Enigma (Human Turned Toon)

Quiver (Human Turned Toon)

X'Eterra (I'Gaia & T'Oatari) (Toon Fusion)

Kieno (Playdoe toon)

Automatons

X.E.R.O. (Cyborg)

G.I.Z.M.O. (Cydroid)

Ignika (Android)

Patho-Gen (Virus)

Transmute (Technorganic)

Scott (Animatronic)

Gyro & Noid (Droids)

Lottie & Bolts (Bots)

Arsenal (Mech)

Proto (Giant Robot)

Mythical Creatures

Goboro (Golem)

Tulipia (Nymph)

Khemic (Substance Glob)

Vexus (Tetra Arm)

Baladar (Dragon)

Josephine (MothMen)

Tatsuo (Yokai)

Utara (Centaur)

Jamming (Sonar)

Yare (Builder)

Cetus (Sea Monster)

Mimi (Kaiju)

Ghosts and Spirits

Yondara (Spirit)

Nekros (Reaper)

Drocsid (Ghost)

Aura (Soul)

Noelle & Karol (Ancient Wendigo)

Oizta (Eldritch Horror)

Lore (Esoteric Being)

Aliens/Extraterrestrials

Blight

Vyoid

Orbit

Avula

EMP

Dyna

Quartz

Xytaxa

Gram

Yearn

Pymala

Yula

Higher beings

Primia (Angel)

Rampent (Demon

Clouduroy (Cherub)

Iza (Imp)

Bygone (Begone/Beyond) Nephalems

Zodiac (Harmony & Unity) Nephilim

Zenith (Cambion)

Vandalia (Gibborims)

Faye, Uto, Wallop, Zafu, Sentinel, Quickdraw, Knight, Frag, Xebec, Nynx

Primordial's and Gods

Paradigm (Celestial)

Iota (Ex God)

Ultra (Primordial)

Balance (Demi God)

Previous

(For More Information About The Earthdemons, Neo demons, The Anthro allies , the O'Kong family and more of theses characters as well as updates please visit the @the-earthdemon-hub for more)

[umbrum77]

After the last season. Lin confronts Suyin about su's relationship with kuvira. But suylin had found out about Lins relationship with Korra and Asami. Lin storms away.

Hours later.

Lin sitting alone in a garden in Zafu. The metal bench was not uncomfortable.

Su comes up to her. "Hey"

Lin snarls and turns away. Su sits on the bench next to her.

Lin almost growls "What do you want?"

Suylin shrugs, "Well I figured we could talk about our much younger girlfriends."

Lin blushes deep. "I'm not talking about this with you "

"Who else do you have to talk to about it?"

The question sits in the silence it creates.

Su breaks it first. "I'm not going to pretend that I don't love having a young woman to share my bed with. But it's... weird...it's more then that. I love watching kuvira grow. I love teaching her. I love what she teaches me. I love her different way of looking at things. It's just different you know? It feels right."

There is silence again. Su can wait.

Finally Lin let's out a long sigh and let's her head fall back. "They make me feel young. Ive never felt young. I just feel like when I grew up I spent all my time getting ready to be on the police force and making sure mom was not mad at me, and never just lived. Asami knows all these places in the city to get the tea that I have never heard of before. Korra will just drag me out of work to see street performers. When Im with them...I...it's like a second chance at life. To do the things I missed and have that joy that I didn't have."

Lin leaned forward and held her hands on her head "this is stupid. They are way to young, this is stupid and wrong."

Su put her hand on her older sisters shoulder.

"You are allowed to be happy Lin. Even a little selfish. You are allowed to be happy."

[yogadaily]

(Airlift Line Up Bra - Espresso: Buy for €94  || Curated with love by yogadaily) 

[thegodthief]

Things have been rough for a bit. But you are easily one of the strongest and most courageous people I know. I'm never going to let you forget it :P What has made you happiest this month, though- no matter how tiny?

Yea, so my hand slipped... :)

~~~

The frogs are back. The SoCal's IE (no, we are not unpacking that moniker) is not a wet one even though downtown San Bernardino will always be a sopping swamp no matter how many concrete and steel baffles they install underground. When I moved in to this apartment building several years ago, the frogs would begin sounding off the moment the temps dropped below 74F and continue until spring dried out into summer temps. Then new folks moved in recently and declared the frogs to be a noisome scourge and petitioned the leasing office to get rid of them.

And they did.

No more frog song in autumn.

But guess what.

The frogs are back.

The anti-pest devices are vibrating away in the landscaping but they can't put down poison because it's too close to living spaces and they can't dig out the landscaping that the frogs dig under because the city said so and they can't nuke the utility easements nearby that harbored the frogs in previous years, so the frogs adjusted to the new conditions and came back.

There's one announcing his virility even as I type this answer.

~~~

The experience of using a fountain pen. The way the nib slides across the paper. It doesn't need to be dragged. If you're dragging a fountain pen, something is wrong with the ink flow and the nib should be looked at. Using a fountain pen taught me how to have a gentle hand, and that physical experience translates to personal encounters.

Am I speaking forcefully because that's how I was raised? Because that's the example others have shown to me? Because that's what is expected of me? I surprise many people at work who expect me to be a caffeine-addled bitch barking orders about compliance and obedience and are so surprised to hear a gentle voice asking how can things be done better and what do they need to begin just so.

When I writing my language notes, the light is just right that I can see the ink's reflection change as the paper accepts it and it dries. From a shining ribbon of light, it yields to the paper and becomes a dark demarcation of intent. Here, a thought was made manifest and a mark was left upon the world. That the thought was how Marcus is stuffed with cheese is neither here nor there. It is the process that matters.

It encourages me to write more, and to write with more flourish, even though my skill is not worthy of historical records. I have shimmering inks and inks that leave a surprise hue on the edges as it dries and so many colors and so many pens, but for all the expensive pens and inks that I have, it is the $25 knockoff that has become my most used pen and a $11 bottle of black ink that I had forgotten about for a literal decade that is my most used color because the combination of those two are dependable.

~~~

Over five years ago, I purchased a zafu meditation pillow set. The zafu itself was hard as a rock (but still quite comfortable) and I wondered then how they were able to stuff it so well without popping stitches. The craftsmanship was just that good. Near daily use of the set has resulted in a nearly defeated pillow and I was unsure if the pillow could be resuscitated. The manufacturer offered a restuffing service and in looking at that cost, I was seriously considering just buying a new zafu and relegating the old one to couch duty.

I waited so long to make up my mind, I had completely missed that the manufacturer had closed up the shop, leaving me to the online wolves for purchase options. I had ordered and paid for the set I had because of the craftsmanship. It had been recommended by someone I trust. The amount I paid was not trivial and I would not be considering a random Amazon vendor to approach that same level of quality.

So I asked for recommendations for the fill and decided that the only way to restuff this pillow was to do it myself. Did you know a pound of kapok stuffing is a pillow in its own right? And that for the very low cost of the stuffing and the shipping it took to reach me, I could have purchased a new three-piece pillow set if not three new zafus?

But it wouldn't have been the same, ya know? Sure, I could have bought new cushions with synthetic fill and with cover patterns that will be pleasing to look at but how long will they last? Five years? Five months? Am I considering a cushion or one of Vimes's boots?

So last week, I took the cover off the zafu for the first time. (It never needed a run in the laundry, don't you dare judge me.) My daughter and I pored over the interior cushion for some time as we looked for the seam that was supposed to permit access to the stuffing. We admired the stitching that held up to my mass all these years and was concerned that we would have to cut through those same bulwarks when my hand literally slipped and pass through the overlapping fabric that held the stuffing in place.

No zipper, button, or lace closure was present. just several inches of overlapping fabric that when covered by the cushion cover, held all of the stuffing in place with minimal migration of anything larger than dust.

We sat on the floor and she helped me. Rather, she played with the stuffing as she handed pieces to me. And as we did as we were doing, we talked. Some things serious, and some things playful, and it was just good to be in each other's company without expectation or deadlines and the way both of our jobs have been, to just be was a comfort.

I would up putting a third of a pound of the new stuffing into the pillow. I think I overstuffed it because the cover was very tight to put back on and it took a lot of pulling and pinching to get the cover to fit in place again. But when I was done, the zafu was comfortably hard and have a nice thunk sound when struck.

It felt like rescuing a friend.

Since last week, the cushion has settled some. I'm going to give it another week before I decide if I have to put more stuffing in or not. It's a shame that the manufacturer went out of business, and I understand the business pressures of why, so keeping this set as well as I can is a priority for me. There's something about a well-crafted item that makes it worthwhile to maintain.

I could have just given up and did the more financially responsible thing of purchasing more sets with the cost of the filling. But not all returns are tangible, and I'm glad I have a way to keep this set for at least another five years.

~~~

Three little bits of happiness for you. I hope this helps.