Friday, December 26, 2008
Im going away....
Few hours later i will be boarding on a plane to the deep mountain forest of thailand to meditate. Probably to become a monk for a short perioud.. see you guys again next year...
Friday, November 28, 2008
Words of Wisdom
The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider Freeways , but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.
We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to life not life to years. We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor. We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better things.
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but accomplish less. We've learned to rush, but not to wait. We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.
These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom.
Remember.... Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.
We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to life not life to years. We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor. We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better things.
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but accomplish less. We've learned to rush, but not to wait. We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.
These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom.
Remember.... Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Somdet Phra Buddhacharn Toh Phomarangsi
Somdet Toh — his formal title was Somdet Budhacariya (Toh Brahmaransi) — was probably the most famous and widely loved monk in nineteenth century Thailand. A skilled meditator closely associated with the royal family, he was famous for many reasons, but his wide popularity rests on two things: Despite his rank, he was easily approachable to people on all levels of society; and he made amulets that — because of his meditative prowess — were reputed to be very powerful. He was also famous for his wisdom and wit. Since his death, in 1872, a cult has grown up around his memory, with many mediums throughout Thailand claiming to channel his spirit.
This is his picture if you guys don't know who he is.
http://saengthai.org/?p=19
At the same time, many legends have grown up around his name. Here are a few of my favorites. I can't vouch for their accuracy, but they all carry a good lesson, which is why they merit passing on.
Somdet Toh was an illegitimate son of a nobleman who eventually became King Rama II. The story goes that one day in 1787 or 1788, when the nobleman was in northern Thailand cleaning up after the Burmese invasion, he happened to get separated from his troops. As he rode along on his horse, he came across a house with a young woman about sixteen years old standing in front. Thirsty, he asked her for some water. She went to the well, got a bowl of water — in Thailand in the old days, they would drink water out of a bowl, rather than out of a glass — and crushed a lotus flower over the bowl, sprinkling the stamens all over the surface of the water. Then she handed the bowl to him as he was sitting on his horse. He took one long look at the stamens on top of the water and then had to drink the water very carefully so as not to swallow them. As he handed the bowl back to her, he asked her, "Was that a trick?"
"No," she said. "I saw that you were so thirsty that you might gulp the water down and end up choking on it. So I figured this would be a good way to make sure that you drank slowly."
Well. He asked her, "Are your parents around?" So she fetched her parents. They didn't know who he was, but he was obviously a nobleman, so when he told them, "I'd like to have your daughter," they gave their consent. So she joined the king in the army camp, but as the campaign was ending he said to her, "I'm afraid I can't take you down to the palace with me, but in case you do have a child by me, here's my belt. Give the child my belt and I'll know that it's my child. I'll take care of him or her in the future." So he left her and went down to Bangkok.
Her whole family soon followed down to Bangkok when they discovered that she actually was pregnant. They moved onto a floating house moored on the bank of the Chao Phraya River in front of a monastery, Wat In. She gave birth to a son and named him Toh, which means "large." When he was old enough, he was ordained as a novice. A few years later, when the nobleman had become King Rama II, the family took Novice Toh to Wat Nibbanaram — currently Wat Mahathaad, a temple right across the road from the Grand Palace — and showed the belt to the abbot. The abbot took the belt to the king and the king said, "Yes, that's my son." So he later sponsored Novice Toh's ordination as a monk.
When Prince Mongkut — later Rama IV — was ordained as a monk, Phra Toh was his "older brother monk," the one who gave him his initial training in Dhamma and Vinaya. Soon after Prince Mongkut's ordination, his father died, and although by birth Prince Mongkut was next in line for the throne, the Privy Council chose one of his half-brothers to reign as Rama III instead. When this happened, Phra Toh decided it would be wise to leave Bangkok, so he went into the forest. Prince Mongkut stayed on as a monk for 28 years, until Rama III passed away. He was then offered the throne, so he disrobed and was crowned King Rama IV.
Soon after his coronation he sent out word to fetch Phra Toh back to Bangkok. Officials went into the forest, dragging back any monk they could find, and asking, "Is this the monk?" "No." "Is this the monk?" "No." Finally word got to Phra Toh, and he came out voluntarily. The king gave him the title of Somdet — which, next to the Supreme Patriarch, is the highest title a monk can hold — and put him in charge of Wat Rakhang, the monastery across the river from the palace.
Rama IV is remembered as a wise and humane king. Somdet Toh's own epithet for him — in a brief poem he wrote summarizing the history and prophesizing the future of the Chakri (Bangkok) dynasty — was that he maintained or embodied the Dhamma. And Rama IV's desire to have Somdet Toh near the palace is an indication of his wisdom. He knew that, as king, he would have trouble finding people fearless and selfless enough to tell him frankly when he was wrong, and so he wanted his former teacher nearby to perform this function.
But even as the king's former teacher, Somdet Toh had to exercise tact and skill in criticizing the king.
One story tells that one day early in his reign, the king — and remember, he had been a monk for twenty-eight years — was sitting out on the boat landing in front of the palace drinking with his courtiers. So Somdet Toh came paddling across the river in a small boat. The king, displeased, said to him, "Here I've made you a Somdet. Don't you have any respect for your title? How can you paddle your own boat?" The Somdet replied, "When the king of the country is drinking in public, Somdets can paddle their own boats." Turning around, he paddled back to Wat Rakhang. That was the last time the king drank in public.
Another time, Rama IV felt that since Thailand had been laid waste by the Burmese, many ancient Thai customs had disappeared, so new customs should be developed to replace them. So he decided, "Wouldn't it be nice if we had a boat parade at the end of the rains retreat? Every monastery in Bangkok will be responsible for decorating a boat, and we'll have a contest to reward the best-looking boat." So the royal decree went out that every monastery in Bangkok had to decorate a boat for the parade.
When the day for the parade came, a long line of beautifully decorated boats floated past the royal reviewing stand — except for one, a little canoe carrying a monkey tied to a leash with a sign on its back. The king's immediate reaction was anger: "Somebody's making fun of me." He had his officials check the roster to see which monastery was responsible for the boat, and it was Wat Rakhang, Somdet Toh's monastery.
So they took the sign off the monkey to see what it said. It said, "Willing to lose face in order to save cloth," which rhymed in Thai, but didn't make any more sense in Thai than it does in English. A few days later, the king invited Somdet Toh into the palace for a meal and a Dhamma talk, after which he asked him, "Suppose someone sponsored a boat with a sign like this on the back of a monkey. What do you think it might mean?" And the Somdet said, "Well, it might mean that monks don't have any resources of their own to decorate boats and it's certainly not appropriate for them to ask for donations from laypeople to decorate boats, so the only course left open to them would to have been to put their robes in the pawn shop. So they were willing to lose face in order to save their robes." That was the last time the parade was ever held.
Another story concerns a funeral in the royal palace. Funerals in the palace could go on for a hundred days before the cremation. Every night they'd invite four monks to chant. The famous, high-ranking monks would chant toward the beginning of the hundred days, and by the end of the period they were getting down into the ranks of the junior monks. One night toward the end of this particular funeral they invited four young monks who had never seen the king before in their lives. And this was back in the days when if the king said, "Off with your head!" it was off with your head. So they were nervous about their performance. After all, the king had been a monk for 28 years. He would know if they made any mistakes in their chanting.
Finally the king entered the room, followed by his entourage. Now, Rama IV had a rather stern and fearsome appearance, and as soon as the monks took one look at him they went running behind a curtain. This infuriated the king. "What is this? Am I a monster? An ogre? What is this? Disrobe them immediately!" So a royal decree was written up and sent over the river for Somdet Toh to disrobe the monks. He happened to be sitting at a writing table, next to a small altar where incense was burning. Taking one look at the royal decree, he placed it over a stick of incense, burned three holes in it, and sent it back across the river to the palace. The king, of course, had studied Buddhist doctrine; he knew what the three fires were: the fire of passion, the fire of anger, and the fire of delusion. The Somdet's message was, "Put them out." So the monks didn't have to disrobe. That's how you criticize a king.
Once, however, Somdet Toh didn't get away with criticizing the king. There is a tradition recorded in the Apadanas that the Buddha's clan, the Sakyan clan, started from a time when the sons and daughters of a particular king had to leave their country. They took up residence in Kapilavastu, the area that eventually became the Buddha's home. After building their city and settling in, they looked around the area for spouses but couldn't find anyone who was high-born enough for them to marry. So the brothers ended up marrying their own sisters. That's the tradition recorded in the Apadanas to explain the name of the Sakyan — "One's Own" — clan.
One day Somdet Toh was giving a talk on this topic in the royal palace, and after discussing this point he continued, "Ever since then it's become a custom among royal families. Uncles go running after their nieces, cousins go running after their cousins..." Now, Rama IV's major queen was his niece, so again he was furious. "You cannot stay in this country!" he said. So Somdet Toh was banished from Thailand. Now, in Thailand the civil law does not extend into the sima, the territory immediately around ordination halls. For instance, if a thief goes running into a sima, the police have to get the abbot's permission before they can go into the sima after him. So the Somdet returned to Wat Rakhang and moved into the ordination hall. For about three months he didn't set foot outside the sima.
Meanwhile, the king had forgotten all about the banishment order, and one day he said, "We haven't had Somdet Toh over for a talk in a long time. Let's invite him over." So the invitation went across the river to the monastery, but word came back, saying "I cannot set foot in this country, remember?" "Oh," the king said, "I forgot." And he lifted the banishment order.
So it wasn't an easy thing to criticize kings in those days. Even if you were his personal teacher, you had to be careful.
Of course, not all of Somdet Toh's comments about the king were critical. After all, the respect he felt for the king was what had inspired him to leave the forest to be of help in the first place.
One of the most famous stories about their relationship concerns a Dhamma talk Somdet Toh gave in the palace. Palace Dhamma talks were highly ritualized affairs. The talk was expected to be long and literary, preceded with and followed by many elaborate chants and other formalities. Once Rama IV invited Somdet to present such a talk and had prepared an especially large pile of offerings to be presented to the Somdet after the talk — a sign that he was looking forward to an especially long and learned disquisition, to test the Somdet's knowledge of the Dhamma. After the beginning formalities, however, Somdet Toh said only one sentence: "The king already knows everything there is to know." Then he chanted the ritual passages to conclude the talk and returned to his seat on the dais, quiet and composed. Immensely pleased, the king presented him with the offerings, commenting that that was the best Dhamma talk he had ever heard. (Ajaan Lee tells the story that later another monk tried the same trick, but with different results: The king was so offended that he had the monk stripped of his ecclesiastical titles.)
At another, similar event at the palace, Somdet Toh began the closing blessing with the standard chant:
Yatha varivaha puraParipurenti sagaramEvameva ito dinnamPetanam upakappati...
Just as rivers full of water fill the ocean full,Even so does that given here benefit the hungry ghosts...
As he reached this point in the chant, the king in a very unusual breach of Buddhist etiquette called out, "Why are you giving all the merit to the hungry ghosts? What did they do to deserve it?"
Somdet Toh, without missing a beat, backed up to change the last line:
Evameva ito dinnamSabbam rañño upakappati...
Even so does everything given here benefit the king...
The king, who was fluent in Pali himself, was delighted with the Somdet's ability to think on his feet.
There are many other legends concerning Somdet Toh that don't deal with the king. Ajaan Fuang, my teacher, especially liked to tell a story of how Somdet Toh dealt with high-ranking lay people who would visit monasteries and waste the monks' time in idle conversation.
Somdet Toh ate his meals in a small open pavilion in front of his dwelling. If a stray dog wandered past, he would toss a little food to the dog — which meant that, over time, a whole pack of dogs would regularly come to sit around him at his meal time, waiting for food. This meant that if any high-ranking lay people wanted to come pay their respects and chat with him while he was eating, they'd have to bow down to the dogs as well. As a result, only the people who weren't too proud to bow down to the dogs got to talk to him during his mealtime.
Another story concerns a wealthy layman who wanted to invite Somdet Toh to his house for a meal and a Dhamma talk. Events like this would often be fairly public, with the donor inviting many friends and relatives to participate in the meal offering and to hear the talk. So the layman sent his servant to convey the invitation to Somdet Toh, saying that he wanted Somdet Toh to give a talk on a lofty topic, the four noble truths. Now, it so happened that the servant wasn't familiar with the term, "four noble truths" — which in Thai is ariyasat. To him, it sounded like naksat, or zodiac. So he told Somdet Toh that his master wanted to hear a Dhamma talk on the zodiac. The Somdet knew that this couldn't possibly be right, but the servant's mistake amused him, and he decided to use it as an opportunity to make a Dhamma point — and have a little fun at the same time.
When the day for the talk arrived, he went to the layman's house and, after the meal, got up on the sermon seat and began the talk by saying, "Today our esteemed host has invited me to deliver a Dhamma talk on the zodiac." He then proceeded to describe the twelve houses of the zodiac in a fair amount of detail. Meanwhile, the master was staring daggers at the servant. After finishing his description of the zodiac, the Somdet then added, "But, regardless of what house of the zodiac people are born into, they are all subject to suffering." With that, he switched to the four noble truths — and probably saved the servant's job.
Another time some Christian missionaries came to visit the Somdet. One of the missionary strategies in those days was to show off their knowledge of science so as to dazzle the heathens, win their respect, and possibly win converts. With Somdet Toh so closely associated with the king, perhaps they thought that if they could convert him, the king might be converted as well. So they discussed various scientific topics with him, and finally touched on the fact that they had proof that the world was round. The Somdet, instead of being surprised, said, "I know. In fact, I can show you where the center of the world is." This surprised the missionaries, so they asked him to show them. He got up, took his staff, went out in front of his hut, and planted the staff firmly on the ground, saying, "Right here."
"But how could that be?" they asked him.
He answered, "If the world is round, it's a sphere, right? And any point on the surface of the sphere is as central as any other point on the surface."
After that, the missionaries left him alone.
On the final day of the Rains retreat in 1868, Rama IV passed away. His eldest son, Prince Chulalongkorn, who was now Rama V, was only fifteen years old. As a result, the running of the government was placed in the hands of a Regent — Chao Phraya Sri Suriyawong (Chuang Bunnag) — who was to hold this office until Rama V reached maturity. (In a later reminiscence, Rama V stated that during this period he lived in constant fear of being assassinated.) Shortly after the Regency was instituted, Somdet Toh — who was now 80 — appeared at the Regent's palace in the middle of a sunny day, carrying a lit torch that he held aloft with one hand, and a long, narrow palm-leaf Dhamma text that he carried at a backward-sloping angle under his other arm. After he had walked through the palace halls in this way, word reached the Regent. The Regent respectfully approached Somdet Toh and asked him to take a seat, after which he assured him that he understood the Somdet's message: He would not allow his deliberations to be overcome with the darkness of defilement, and he would hold to the Dhamma as a rudder while steering the ship of state.
Four years later Somdet Toh passed away.
This is his picture if you guys don't know who he is.
http://saengthai.org/?p=19
At the same time, many legends have grown up around his name. Here are a few of my favorites. I can't vouch for their accuracy, but they all carry a good lesson, which is why they merit passing on.
Somdet Toh was an illegitimate son of a nobleman who eventually became King Rama II. The story goes that one day in 1787 or 1788, when the nobleman was in northern Thailand cleaning up after the Burmese invasion, he happened to get separated from his troops. As he rode along on his horse, he came across a house with a young woman about sixteen years old standing in front. Thirsty, he asked her for some water. She went to the well, got a bowl of water — in Thailand in the old days, they would drink water out of a bowl, rather than out of a glass — and crushed a lotus flower over the bowl, sprinkling the stamens all over the surface of the water. Then she handed the bowl to him as he was sitting on his horse. He took one long look at the stamens on top of the water and then had to drink the water very carefully so as not to swallow them. As he handed the bowl back to her, he asked her, "Was that a trick?"
"No," she said. "I saw that you were so thirsty that you might gulp the water down and end up choking on it. So I figured this would be a good way to make sure that you drank slowly."
Well. He asked her, "Are your parents around?" So she fetched her parents. They didn't know who he was, but he was obviously a nobleman, so when he told them, "I'd like to have your daughter," they gave their consent. So she joined the king in the army camp, but as the campaign was ending he said to her, "I'm afraid I can't take you down to the palace with me, but in case you do have a child by me, here's my belt. Give the child my belt and I'll know that it's my child. I'll take care of him or her in the future." So he left her and went down to Bangkok.
Her whole family soon followed down to Bangkok when they discovered that she actually was pregnant. They moved onto a floating house moored on the bank of the Chao Phraya River in front of a monastery, Wat In. She gave birth to a son and named him Toh, which means "large." When he was old enough, he was ordained as a novice. A few years later, when the nobleman had become King Rama II, the family took Novice Toh to Wat Nibbanaram — currently Wat Mahathaad, a temple right across the road from the Grand Palace — and showed the belt to the abbot. The abbot took the belt to the king and the king said, "Yes, that's my son." So he later sponsored Novice Toh's ordination as a monk.
When Prince Mongkut — later Rama IV — was ordained as a monk, Phra Toh was his "older brother monk," the one who gave him his initial training in Dhamma and Vinaya. Soon after Prince Mongkut's ordination, his father died, and although by birth Prince Mongkut was next in line for the throne, the Privy Council chose one of his half-brothers to reign as Rama III instead. When this happened, Phra Toh decided it would be wise to leave Bangkok, so he went into the forest. Prince Mongkut stayed on as a monk for 28 years, until Rama III passed away. He was then offered the throne, so he disrobed and was crowned King Rama IV.
Soon after his coronation he sent out word to fetch Phra Toh back to Bangkok. Officials went into the forest, dragging back any monk they could find, and asking, "Is this the monk?" "No." "Is this the monk?" "No." Finally word got to Phra Toh, and he came out voluntarily. The king gave him the title of Somdet — which, next to the Supreme Patriarch, is the highest title a monk can hold — and put him in charge of Wat Rakhang, the monastery across the river from the palace.
Rama IV is remembered as a wise and humane king. Somdet Toh's own epithet for him — in a brief poem he wrote summarizing the history and prophesizing the future of the Chakri (Bangkok) dynasty — was that he maintained or embodied the Dhamma. And Rama IV's desire to have Somdet Toh near the palace is an indication of his wisdom. He knew that, as king, he would have trouble finding people fearless and selfless enough to tell him frankly when he was wrong, and so he wanted his former teacher nearby to perform this function.
But even as the king's former teacher, Somdet Toh had to exercise tact and skill in criticizing the king.
One story tells that one day early in his reign, the king — and remember, he had been a monk for twenty-eight years — was sitting out on the boat landing in front of the palace drinking with his courtiers. So Somdet Toh came paddling across the river in a small boat. The king, displeased, said to him, "Here I've made you a Somdet. Don't you have any respect for your title? How can you paddle your own boat?" The Somdet replied, "When the king of the country is drinking in public, Somdets can paddle their own boats." Turning around, he paddled back to Wat Rakhang. That was the last time the king drank in public.
Another time, Rama IV felt that since Thailand had been laid waste by the Burmese, many ancient Thai customs had disappeared, so new customs should be developed to replace them. So he decided, "Wouldn't it be nice if we had a boat parade at the end of the rains retreat? Every monastery in Bangkok will be responsible for decorating a boat, and we'll have a contest to reward the best-looking boat." So the royal decree went out that every monastery in Bangkok had to decorate a boat for the parade.
When the day for the parade came, a long line of beautifully decorated boats floated past the royal reviewing stand — except for one, a little canoe carrying a monkey tied to a leash with a sign on its back. The king's immediate reaction was anger: "Somebody's making fun of me." He had his officials check the roster to see which monastery was responsible for the boat, and it was Wat Rakhang, Somdet Toh's monastery.
So they took the sign off the monkey to see what it said. It said, "Willing to lose face in order to save cloth," which rhymed in Thai, but didn't make any more sense in Thai than it does in English. A few days later, the king invited Somdet Toh into the palace for a meal and a Dhamma talk, after which he asked him, "Suppose someone sponsored a boat with a sign like this on the back of a monkey. What do you think it might mean?" And the Somdet said, "Well, it might mean that monks don't have any resources of their own to decorate boats and it's certainly not appropriate for them to ask for donations from laypeople to decorate boats, so the only course left open to them would to have been to put their robes in the pawn shop. So they were willing to lose face in order to save their robes." That was the last time the parade was ever held.
Another story concerns a funeral in the royal palace. Funerals in the palace could go on for a hundred days before the cremation. Every night they'd invite four monks to chant. The famous, high-ranking monks would chant toward the beginning of the hundred days, and by the end of the period they were getting down into the ranks of the junior monks. One night toward the end of this particular funeral they invited four young monks who had never seen the king before in their lives. And this was back in the days when if the king said, "Off with your head!" it was off with your head. So they were nervous about their performance. After all, the king had been a monk for 28 years. He would know if they made any mistakes in their chanting.
Finally the king entered the room, followed by his entourage. Now, Rama IV had a rather stern and fearsome appearance, and as soon as the monks took one look at him they went running behind a curtain. This infuriated the king. "What is this? Am I a monster? An ogre? What is this? Disrobe them immediately!" So a royal decree was written up and sent over the river for Somdet Toh to disrobe the monks. He happened to be sitting at a writing table, next to a small altar where incense was burning. Taking one look at the royal decree, he placed it over a stick of incense, burned three holes in it, and sent it back across the river to the palace. The king, of course, had studied Buddhist doctrine; he knew what the three fires were: the fire of passion, the fire of anger, and the fire of delusion. The Somdet's message was, "Put them out." So the monks didn't have to disrobe. That's how you criticize a king.
Once, however, Somdet Toh didn't get away with criticizing the king. There is a tradition recorded in the Apadanas that the Buddha's clan, the Sakyan clan, started from a time when the sons and daughters of a particular king had to leave their country. They took up residence in Kapilavastu, the area that eventually became the Buddha's home. After building their city and settling in, they looked around the area for spouses but couldn't find anyone who was high-born enough for them to marry. So the brothers ended up marrying their own sisters. That's the tradition recorded in the Apadanas to explain the name of the Sakyan — "One's Own" — clan.
One day Somdet Toh was giving a talk on this topic in the royal palace, and after discussing this point he continued, "Ever since then it's become a custom among royal families. Uncles go running after their nieces, cousins go running after their cousins..." Now, Rama IV's major queen was his niece, so again he was furious. "You cannot stay in this country!" he said. So Somdet Toh was banished from Thailand. Now, in Thailand the civil law does not extend into the sima, the territory immediately around ordination halls. For instance, if a thief goes running into a sima, the police have to get the abbot's permission before they can go into the sima after him. So the Somdet returned to Wat Rakhang and moved into the ordination hall. For about three months he didn't set foot outside the sima.
Meanwhile, the king had forgotten all about the banishment order, and one day he said, "We haven't had Somdet Toh over for a talk in a long time. Let's invite him over." So the invitation went across the river to the monastery, but word came back, saying "I cannot set foot in this country, remember?" "Oh," the king said, "I forgot." And he lifted the banishment order.
So it wasn't an easy thing to criticize kings in those days. Even if you were his personal teacher, you had to be careful.
Of course, not all of Somdet Toh's comments about the king were critical. After all, the respect he felt for the king was what had inspired him to leave the forest to be of help in the first place.
One of the most famous stories about their relationship concerns a Dhamma talk Somdet Toh gave in the palace. Palace Dhamma talks were highly ritualized affairs. The talk was expected to be long and literary, preceded with and followed by many elaborate chants and other formalities. Once Rama IV invited Somdet to present such a talk and had prepared an especially large pile of offerings to be presented to the Somdet after the talk — a sign that he was looking forward to an especially long and learned disquisition, to test the Somdet's knowledge of the Dhamma. After the beginning formalities, however, Somdet Toh said only one sentence: "The king already knows everything there is to know." Then he chanted the ritual passages to conclude the talk and returned to his seat on the dais, quiet and composed. Immensely pleased, the king presented him with the offerings, commenting that that was the best Dhamma talk he had ever heard. (Ajaan Lee tells the story that later another monk tried the same trick, but with different results: The king was so offended that he had the monk stripped of his ecclesiastical titles.)
At another, similar event at the palace, Somdet Toh began the closing blessing with the standard chant:
Yatha varivaha puraParipurenti sagaramEvameva ito dinnamPetanam upakappati...
Just as rivers full of water fill the ocean full,Even so does that given here benefit the hungry ghosts...
As he reached this point in the chant, the king in a very unusual breach of Buddhist etiquette called out, "Why are you giving all the merit to the hungry ghosts? What did they do to deserve it?"
Somdet Toh, without missing a beat, backed up to change the last line:
Evameva ito dinnamSabbam rañño upakappati...
Even so does everything given here benefit the king...
The king, who was fluent in Pali himself, was delighted with the Somdet's ability to think on his feet.
There are many other legends concerning Somdet Toh that don't deal with the king. Ajaan Fuang, my teacher, especially liked to tell a story of how Somdet Toh dealt with high-ranking lay people who would visit monasteries and waste the monks' time in idle conversation.
Somdet Toh ate his meals in a small open pavilion in front of his dwelling. If a stray dog wandered past, he would toss a little food to the dog — which meant that, over time, a whole pack of dogs would regularly come to sit around him at his meal time, waiting for food. This meant that if any high-ranking lay people wanted to come pay their respects and chat with him while he was eating, they'd have to bow down to the dogs as well. As a result, only the people who weren't too proud to bow down to the dogs got to talk to him during his mealtime.
Another story concerns a wealthy layman who wanted to invite Somdet Toh to his house for a meal and a Dhamma talk. Events like this would often be fairly public, with the donor inviting many friends and relatives to participate in the meal offering and to hear the talk. So the layman sent his servant to convey the invitation to Somdet Toh, saying that he wanted Somdet Toh to give a talk on a lofty topic, the four noble truths. Now, it so happened that the servant wasn't familiar with the term, "four noble truths" — which in Thai is ariyasat. To him, it sounded like naksat, or zodiac. So he told Somdet Toh that his master wanted to hear a Dhamma talk on the zodiac. The Somdet knew that this couldn't possibly be right, but the servant's mistake amused him, and he decided to use it as an opportunity to make a Dhamma point — and have a little fun at the same time.
When the day for the talk arrived, he went to the layman's house and, after the meal, got up on the sermon seat and began the talk by saying, "Today our esteemed host has invited me to deliver a Dhamma talk on the zodiac." He then proceeded to describe the twelve houses of the zodiac in a fair amount of detail. Meanwhile, the master was staring daggers at the servant. After finishing his description of the zodiac, the Somdet then added, "But, regardless of what house of the zodiac people are born into, they are all subject to suffering." With that, he switched to the four noble truths — and probably saved the servant's job.
Another time some Christian missionaries came to visit the Somdet. One of the missionary strategies in those days was to show off their knowledge of science so as to dazzle the heathens, win their respect, and possibly win converts. With Somdet Toh so closely associated with the king, perhaps they thought that if they could convert him, the king might be converted as well. So they discussed various scientific topics with him, and finally touched on the fact that they had proof that the world was round. The Somdet, instead of being surprised, said, "I know. In fact, I can show you where the center of the world is." This surprised the missionaries, so they asked him to show them. He got up, took his staff, went out in front of his hut, and planted the staff firmly on the ground, saying, "Right here."
"But how could that be?" they asked him.
He answered, "If the world is round, it's a sphere, right? And any point on the surface of the sphere is as central as any other point on the surface."
After that, the missionaries left him alone.
On the final day of the Rains retreat in 1868, Rama IV passed away. His eldest son, Prince Chulalongkorn, who was now Rama V, was only fifteen years old. As a result, the running of the government was placed in the hands of a Regent — Chao Phraya Sri Suriyawong (Chuang Bunnag) — who was to hold this office until Rama V reached maturity. (In a later reminiscence, Rama V stated that during this period he lived in constant fear of being assassinated.) Shortly after the Regency was instituted, Somdet Toh — who was now 80 — appeared at the Regent's palace in the middle of a sunny day, carrying a lit torch that he held aloft with one hand, and a long, narrow palm-leaf Dhamma text that he carried at a backward-sloping angle under his other arm. After he had walked through the palace halls in this way, word reached the Regent. The Regent respectfully approached Somdet Toh and asked him to take a seat, after which he assured him that he understood the Somdet's message: He would not allow his deliberations to be overcome with the darkness of defilement, and he would hold to the Dhamma as a rudder while steering the ship of state.
Four years later Somdet Toh passed away.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Starting of School
Today is my first lesson from the University of South Australia. The module seems very hard and dry to me. Seems like i'm going to have a hard time for this 16months... Omg..
I think in order to pass or get good grades, i need to study everyday or every other day. Zzzz. I'm already so tied up by my work, oh god.... Please let me breeze through this!
Anyway on the way back home just now around 11pm, a old lady's car stopped by our side and told us to wind down our car window. I spoke to her and realised she was lost in town for more than 2 hours and she was so afraid.
She looked like a rich tai tai with ang moh blood and was speaking with an accent. She looks so poor thing when she was asking for help. In the end we decided to lead her to somewhere near her house at holland road.
Halfway through the journey, we stopped the car and i went to sit in her car as she was driving so slow until i scared she will lose us. When i got into her car, i saw her face. She has a very old and compassionate face. Just by looking at her, it really warms my heart. She kept thanking us for the help we had rendered.
Loads and loads of thank you from her all the way until we reached her house. Anyway i should be the one saying thank you to her. Thanks for giving me a chance to do a good deed and freeing her from her fear. She made my day. I will smile to sleep tonight. ^_^
Lovingkindness is giving others happiness..
Compassion is removing others' bitterness..
Joy is freeing others from suffering..
This is what i live for.
I think in order to pass or get good grades, i need to study everyday or every other day. Zzzz. I'm already so tied up by my work, oh god.... Please let me breeze through this!
Anyway on the way back home just now around 11pm, a old lady's car stopped by our side and told us to wind down our car window. I spoke to her and realised she was lost in town for more than 2 hours and she was so afraid.
She looked like a rich tai tai with ang moh blood and was speaking with an accent. She looks so poor thing when she was asking for help. In the end we decided to lead her to somewhere near her house at holland road.
Halfway through the journey, we stopped the car and i went to sit in her car as she was driving so slow until i scared she will lose us. When i got into her car, i saw her face. She has a very old and compassionate face. Just by looking at her, it really warms my heart. She kept thanking us for the help we had rendered.
Loads and loads of thank you from her all the way until we reached her house. Anyway i should be the one saying thank you to her. Thanks for giving me a chance to do a good deed and freeing her from her fear. She made my day. I will smile to sleep tonight. ^_^
Lovingkindness is giving others happiness..
Compassion is removing others' bitterness..
Joy is freeing others from suffering..
This is what i live for.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Five (5) lessons to make you think about the way we treat people.
1 - First Important Lesson - Cleaning Lady.
During my second month of college, our professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions until I read the last one:
'What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?'
Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning woman several times. She was tall, dark-haired and in her 50's, but how would I know her name? I handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank. Just before class ended, one student asked if the last question would count toward our quiz grade. 'Absolutely,' said the professor. 'In your careers, you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say 'hello.'I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned her name was Dorothy.
2. - Second Important Lesson - Pickup in the Rain
One night, at 11:3 0 p.m., an older African American woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rainstorm. Her car had broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help her, generally unheard of in those conflict-filled 60s.. The man took her to safety, helped her get assistance and put her into a taxicab.
She seemed to be in a big hurry, but wrote down his address and thanked him. Seven days went by and a knock came on the man's door. To his surprise, a giant console color TV was delivered to his home. A special note was attached..
It read: 'Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway the other night. The rain drenched not only my clothes, but also my spirits. Then you came along. Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside just before he passed away.. God bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving others. 'Sincerely, Mrs. Nat King Cole.
3 - Third Important Lesson - Always remember those who serve.
In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less,a 10-year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him..
'How much is an ice cream sundae?' he asked. 'Fifty cents,' replied the waitress. The little boy pulled is hand out of his pocket and studied the coins in it.
'Well, how much is a plain dish of ice cream?' he inquired. By now more people were waiting for a table and the waitress was growing impatient.'Thirty-five cents,' she brusquely replied.
The little boy again counted his coins.'I'll have the plain ice cream,' he said. The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away. The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and left. When the waitress came back, she began to cry as she wiped down the table. There, placed neatly beside the empty dish,were two nickels and five pennies..
You see, he couldn't have the sundae, because he had to have enough left to leave her a tip.
4 - Fourth Important Lesson. - The obstacle in Our Path.
In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock Some of the king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the King for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the stone out of the way.
Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. Upon approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. After the peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the King indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway. The peasant learnt what many of us never understand!
Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition.
5 - Fifth Important Lesson - Giving When it Counts...
Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at a hospital, I got to know a little girl named Liz who was suffering from a rare & serious disease. Her only chance of recovery appeared to be a blood transfusion from her 5-year old brother, who had miraculously survived the same disease and had developed the antibodies needed to combat the illness.. The doctor explained the situation to her little brother, and asked the little boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his sister.
I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep breath and saying, 'Yes I'll do it if it will save her.' As the transfusion progressed, he lay in bed next to his sister and smiled, as we all did, seeing the colour returning to her cheek. Then his face grew pale and his smile faded.
He looked up at the doctor and asked with a trembling voice, 'Will I start to die right away'.
Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the doctor; he thought he was going to have to give his sister all of his blood in order to save her but he had chosen to save her anyway.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Our Mind
Generally speaking, there are hundred types of offences. But if we were to look for their origin, we may see that they are all stemmed from our mind. If we can control our mind without being selfish or pursuing self-satisfaction, we do not have to investigate every offence, such as the attachment to fame, benefits, desires, materials and others.
If our mind is working towards all goodness, it will naturally be enveloped in the upright essence. All defiled thoughts will naturally disappear. Just like the sun which dwells in empty space, all ghosts and evils will not dare to reveal themselves. This is the principle on "Penetrating the origin and the path is revealed." This is the best method in reforming our conduct at the mind level.
Offences arise from our mind. So we should reform at the mind level. Just like chopping off a poisonous tree, we must first remove the roots. The branches and leaves would fall down by themselves. It is not necessary to cut down every branch and pluck off the leaves!
To reform at the mind level is to control the mind. Once a false thought arises, we should be aware of it and subdue it. Then we will not commit further mistakes and this is the best method. Of course this isn't going to be easy but all the more we should learn meditation to control our mind!
We commoners are full of faults which are as many as the spines on a porcupine fish. If after some introspection and we are still unable to see our mistakes, we must have been the most careless people who are very much deluded.
Look out for this, people with grave offences are mostly dull, forgetful and full of afflictions. When they see a good man, they become regretful and spiritless. They also do not care to hear true words or genuine principles and wish to get away at that very instance.
Try to learn and practise meditation guys.. No point keeping ur body so clean and pretty but your mind is so cloudy and dusty. Think about it... Body is impermenant.
If our mind is working towards all goodness, it will naturally be enveloped in the upright essence. All defiled thoughts will naturally disappear. Just like the sun which dwells in empty space, all ghosts and evils will not dare to reveal themselves. This is the principle on "Penetrating the origin and the path is revealed." This is the best method in reforming our conduct at the mind level.
Offences arise from our mind. So we should reform at the mind level. Just like chopping off a poisonous tree, we must first remove the roots. The branches and leaves would fall down by themselves. It is not necessary to cut down every branch and pluck off the leaves!
To reform at the mind level is to control the mind. Once a false thought arises, we should be aware of it and subdue it. Then we will not commit further mistakes and this is the best method. Of course this isn't going to be easy but all the more we should learn meditation to control our mind!
We commoners are full of faults which are as many as the spines on a porcupine fish. If after some introspection and we are still unable to see our mistakes, we must have been the most careless people who are very much deluded.
Look out for this, people with grave offences are mostly dull, forgetful and full of afflictions. When they see a good man, they become regretful and spiritless. They also do not care to hear true words or genuine principles and wish to get away at that very instance.
Try to learn and practise meditation guys.. No point keeping ur body so clean and pretty but your mind is so cloudy and dusty. Think about it... Body is impermenant.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Vegetarian
Don't mistreat a person just because he is poor or he is an outcast. Everybody is the same, please don't not judge people by appearance.
One does not become an outcast by birth, one becomes an outcast by living badly. Just like a true gentlemen is not somebody who is born in a good family but someone who behave properly.
I'm now a vegetarian for 49days. Alot of people commented that i'm stupid and suffering for nothing. But i really beg to differ. Firstly, im eating too much unhealthy food like Mac, long john and KFC. Sooner or later it will impose a serious problem to my health. Secondly, its a test of my determination whether i can endure for 49days. If i can't even complete this simple task, what else more can i achieve in life?
The first week was full of temptation, fried chicken and others kept appearing in front of me. Its hard to endure, but im now already at my second week. I'm feeling quite good now. I felt improvement in my spiritual practice too! It was said that the 49days of vege helps to cleanse your body in spiritual term. I don't really believe it initially until i tried it. ^_^
He who receives kindness should never forget it, but he who performs it should never remember it.
One does not become an outcast by birth, one becomes an outcast by living badly. Just like a true gentlemen is not somebody who is born in a good family but someone who behave properly.
I'm now a vegetarian for 49days. Alot of people commented that i'm stupid and suffering for nothing. But i really beg to differ. Firstly, im eating too much unhealthy food like Mac, long john and KFC. Sooner or later it will impose a serious problem to my health. Secondly, its a test of my determination whether i can endure for 49days. If i can't even complete this simple task, what else more can i achieve in life?
The first week was full of temptation, fried chicken and others kept appearing in front of me. Its hard to endure, but im now already at my second week. I'm feeling quite good now. I felt improvement in my spiritual practice too! It was said that the 49days of vege helps to cleanse your body in spiritual term. I don't really believe it initially until i tried it. ^_^
He who receives kindness should never forget it, but he who performs it should never remember it.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Amen
The world is changing. Sad to say that and i'm sad to know that. Taking aeroplane isn't safe anymore because of the changing weather. Realise that small commercial planes can't even fly now?
Just heard from my friend that SIA don't even fly small planes to KL. They changed to big ones. I'm not surprised if another air crash is going to happen soon because of the changes in the air layer and the weather high up in the sky.
Alot of things are going to happen. 50% of the population are going to die. But seems that only a handful of people believe me. Well.. for those who believe in me, repent for your wrong doings now and do more charity. Change over to a new leaf from today onwards. There might still be a way out for you if you are one of the affected one.
My advice: Don't travel in September 2008 and sell your stocks and investments. Good that if you get it, or else i also cannot do much to help you. May God Have Mercy On The World.
Just heard from my friend that SIA don't even fly small planes to KL. They changed to big ones. I'm not surprised if another air crash is going to happen soon because of the changes in the air layer and the weather high up in the sky.
Alot of things are going to happen. 50% of the population are going to die. But seems that only a handful of people believe me. Well.. for those who believe in me, repent for your wrong doings now and do more charity. Change over to a new leaf from today onwards. There might still be a way out for you if you are one of the affected one.
My advice: Don't travel in September 2008 and sell your stocks and investments. Good that if you get it, or else i also cannot do much to help you. May God Have Mercy On The World.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Story time
Story time again.. short one. Im tired of typing.. Haha..
This story is about a young man who went to a Zen master to learn from him. In order to take the young man as a disciple, the Zen master made the young man agree to do everything that he said.
The young man agreed and the master called an elderly monk and set up a go board. He told the young man, "You will play Go with this monk. If you lose, I'll cut off the monk's head." The young man was nervous at first but later his concentration exceeded anything he had experienced.
He was able to place each Go piece as if it were an extension of his own body and mind. Eventually he had the advantage on the old monk who was also deep in concentration. Then the young man looked into the old monk's eyes and his heart opened up. He thought, "I have wasted my life and this old man has led a life of devotion and service.
The young man deliberately made a bad move to give the old man the advantage. At that point, the Zen master knocked all of the pieces off the board and said to the young man, "Now you are ready to be my disciple.
First you learnt discipline and concentration and then you learnt compassion. With awareness and a great heart as the foundation of your practice, you will be able to eliminate all of your bad habits."
The Buddha has never forced others to do what others do not like to do. He merely taught virtue and evil, and the choice in one's own life is in one's hands. To find one's peace of mind, one should see that all phenomena are impermanent.
Only through that it is possible to be detached in adverse circumstances and to have freedom from vexations. The Buddha's teachings allow us to know that there is no one in the world who can bring you suffering, only yourself... These are indeed words of wisdom and food for thought.
Sentence of the day: Violence can overpower a person's body but not his mind. With love, no one is your enemy; hence you wouldn't need to defeat anyone.
All these are just randomly blogged. May seems messy but please pardon me. I'm tired. Good night!
This story is about a young man who went to a Zen master to learn from him. In order to take the young man as a disciple, the Zen master made the young man agree to do everything that he said.
The young man agreed and the master called an elderly monk and set up a go board. He told the young man, "You will play Go with this monk. If you lose, I'll cut off the monk's head." The young man was nervous at first but later his concentration exceeded anything he had experienced.
He was able to place each Go piece as if it were an extension of his own body and mind. Eventually he had the advantage on the old monk who was also deep in concentration. Then the young man looked into the old monk's eyes and his heart opened up. He thought, "I have wasted my life and this old man has led a life of devotion and service.
The young man deliberately made a bad move to give the old man the advantage. At that point, the Zen master knocked all of the pieces off the board and said to the young man, "Now you are ready to be my disciple.
First you learnt discipline and concentration and then you learnt compassion. With awareness and a great heart as the foundation of your practice, you will be able to eliminate all of your bad habits."
The Buddha has never forced others to do what others do not like to do. He merely taught virtue and evil, and the choice in one's own life is in one's hands. To find one's peace of mind, one should see that all phenomena are impermanent.
Only through that it is possible to be detached in adverse circumstances and to have freedom from vexations. The Buddha's teachings allow us to know that there is no one in the world who can bring you suffering, only yourself... These are indeed words of wisdom and food for thought.
Sentence of the day: Violence can overpower a person's body but not his mind. With love, no one is your enemy; hence you wouldn't need to defeat anyone.
All these are just randomly blogged. May seems messy but please pardon me. I'm tired. Good night!
Monday, June 2, 2008
Missing you
I just watched Sex is Zero 2. A lame korean comedy but i actually cried at the last part. Seems like im especially weak in my emotions. I know it but i can't do anything. Sometimes even when i see a bee dying, i will drop some tears and say some prayers for it. I know its kinda gay for a guy to do that, but cmon.. THATS ME!
The guy in the show let the girl he loved went away because he wanted her to live better with another guy. In that instance, so many mixed feelings surfaced up from my mind. I'm not going to make the same mistake again.
I won't let the girl i love slip through my hands again... I want to hold your hand tightly no matter how tough is the road ahead. Though i haven't tell her that i like her yet. Haha. But i really miss her very much. Even one sms from her will change my mood for the day, adding rays of rainbow to my life. ^_^ Especially at this moment when im going through a hard time. Just hope this time it will work out just fine!
Thanks Adeline for the encouraging sms. The moment i open my eyes this morning and i saw ur beautiful sms. I felt much better! See ya when you are back from Houston. Many thanks again.
The guy in the show let the girl he loved went away because he wanted her to live better with another guy. In that instance, so many mixed feelings surfaced up from my mind. I'm not going to make the same mistake again.
I won't let the girl i love slip through my hands again... I want to hold your hand tightly no matter how tough is the road ahead. Though i haven't tell her that i like her yet. Haha. But i really miss her very much. Even one sms from her will change my mood for the day, adding rays of rainbow to my life. ^_^ Especially at this moment when im going through a hard time. Just hope this time it will work out just fine!
Thanks Adeline for the encouraging sms. The moment i open my eyes this morning and i saw ur beautiful sms. I felt much better! See ya when you are back from Houston. Many thanks again.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Tests
So many tests are coming my way. Not those school's tests. Real tests in life. Its driving me crazy. So many obstacles and stuffs to see how will i react to it.
Its just the beginning but i'm already so stressed out. Especially in my workplace, its living hell for me. I dread going to work everyday. Politics, biased and so many more. Just because i don't smoke and drink, don't go out to find whores with them or go KTV makes me an outcast.
But seriously, i can't be bothered. They can say whatever they want. I know what im doing. When their evil seeds are ripe, they will come to grieve... I really pity them now. Hopefully they will realise their mistakes and repent. Most of them have wives and kids at home. Their wives prepare dinner and kids eagerly waiting for daddy to come home for dinner but they are out there having sex with prositutes.
Thats so damn disgusting for me. I can't imagine if their wives come to know about it. Some even said that its because their wives are pregnant so they are doing this. Damn Cock la. They are in pain for 10months for your sake and this is how you repay them. Bastards. In my workplace i really seen the worst in men. Over 90% of the guys there are the same.
I really don't know how to help them. When i preached to them, they always think that im a mad man trying to talk nonsense. I already know what's the repercussion that are installed for them. May god bless them and give them a chance to repent.
Human beings are dying. More than 50% of the humans will be wipe off from the surface of the earth soon. Humans are ignorant. They think they are smarter than god. Or rather some think that they are god just because they have power to manupilate things or situations.
From my point of view, humans are merely ants trapped in a big bowl. crawling round and round and getting nowhere. They died and are reborn into the same bowl again and again. They never try to look beyond the bowl and find ways to get out of the bowl. Think about it...
Over 2500 years ago in India, a stone was found with the following engraving:
1)Who is the greatest sage?
2)Who is a fool?
3)Who is a clever person?
4)How to attain everlasting happiness?
Nobody could answer these questions until Buddha is born and he answered the following questions with these answers.
1)He who is enlightened about the truth of the universe and life is the greatest sage.
2)He who does not know about cause and effect is a fool.
3)He who understands the meaning of life and lives happily is a clever person.
4)To attain everlasting happiness, one should practise the dharma.
As for the second question, i will answer slightly differently from the Buddha. He who knows about the cause and effect and does not believe in it is a fool.
Everything that i said is in my point of view, so just listen to it with a open mind. How will you see a cup that is filled with water halfway up? Half full or half empty? Its just a matter of perception, there is no right or wrong. Good night.
Its just the beginning but i'm already so stressed out. Especially in my workplace, its living hell for me. I dread going to work everyday. Politics, biased and so many more. Just because i don't smoke and drink, don't go out to find whores with them or go KTV makes me an outcast.
But seriously, i can't be bothered. They can say whatever they want. I know what im doing. When their evil seeds are ripe, they will come to grieve... I really pity them now. Hopefully they will realise their mistakes and repent. Most of them have wives and kids at home. Their wives prepare dinner and kids eagerly waiting for daddy to come home for dinner but they are out there having sex with prositutes.
Thats so damn disgusting for me. I can't imagine if their wives come to know about it. Some even said that its because their wives are pregnant so they are doing this. Damn Cock la. They are in pain for 10months for your sake and this is how you repay them. Bastards. In my workplace i really seen the worst in men. Over 90% of the guys there are the same.
I really don't know how to help them. When i preached to them, they always think that im a mad man trying to talk nonsense. I already know what's the repercussion that are installed for them. May god bless them and give them a chance to repent.
Human beings are dying. More than 50% of the humans will be wipe off from the surface of the earth soon. Humans are ignorant. They think they are smarter than god. Or rather some think that they are god just because they have power to manupilate things or situations.
From my point of view, humans are merely ants trapped in a big bowl. crawling round and round and getting nowhere. They died and are reborn into the same bowl again and again. They never try to look beyond the bowl and find ways to get out of the bowl. Think about it...
Over 2500 years ago in India, a stone was found with the following engraving:
1)Who is the greatest sage?
2)Who is a fool?
3)Who is a clever person?
4)How to attain everlasting happiness?
Nobody could answer these questions until Buddha is born and he answered the following questions with these answers.
1)He who is enlightened about the truth of the universe and life is the greatest sage.
2)He who does not know about cause and effect is a fool.
3)He who understands the meaning of life and lives happily is a clever person.
4)To attain everlasting happiness, one should practise the dharma.
As for the second question, i will answer slightly differently from the Buddha. He who knows about the cause and effect and does not believe in it is a fool.
Everything that i said is in my point of view, so just listen to it with a open mind. How will you see a cup that is filled with water halfway up? Half full or half empty? Its just a matter of perception, there is no right or wrong. Good night.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Thailand Trip
Im back from my 8days trip to Bangkok and Phuket. It was quite fun and happening but the bad thing is i was sick throughout the 8days. I was popping pills and antibiotic throughout the whole trip but my illness still couldn't recover. It was definitely frustrating.
Though it was a plainly relaxing trip, but i still visited alot of temples as the 8days fell on Vesak day. On the fourth day, i wanted to visit the famous big sleeping Buddha temple but the taxi driver drove me to another temple that i didn't intend to go.
After i reached the temple for some time then i realised it was actually the one of the Thailand King's temple. I was pretty delighted to unintentionally drop by. ^_^ Then one uncle appeared from no where and started talking to us in Teo Chew and brought us to one of the small houses behind the temple. I just followed him blindly and he brought us to see a monk.
I never thought much of it and just donated some money and daily stuffs to the monk. Much to my surprise, the uncle told me that this monk is the second highest monk in the temple. The monk did some fortune telling on me and my friends. Its like what other monks and fortune teller said about me. Nothing reallly new to me but im happy to meet him. He gave me a pendant before i left and it was a rewarding unintentional trip!
Nothing much to blog about my trip already except some strange happenings again. My best friend had much more strange encounters than me. Lol. Anyway here are some understanding of Buddha and his teaching. Its abit harder, so see whether you guys can catch it.
Buddha's teaching is a way of life, not a way of belief. His teaching is very scientific, very empirical, very practical. He is not a philosopher, not a metaphysician.
He is a very down-to-earth man. Buddha says that you can change your life, beliefs are not needed. In fact, beliefs are the barriers to real change. Start with no belief, start with not metaphysics, start with no dogma. Start absolutely naked and nude, with no theology, no ideology. Start Empty! Thats is the only way to come to truth.
Though it was a plainly relaxing trip, but i still visited alot of temples as the 8days fell on Vesak day. On the fourth day, i wanted to visit the famous big sleeping Buddha temple but the taxi driver drove me to another temple that i didn't intend to go.
After i reached the temple for some time then i realised it was actually the one of the Thailand King's temple. I was pretty delighted to unintentionally drop by. ^_^ Then one uncle appeared from no where and started talking to us in Teo Chew and brought us to one of the small houses behind the temple. I just followed him blindly and he brought us to see a monk.
I never thought much of it and just donated some money and daily stuffs to the monk. Much to my surprise, the uncle told me that this monk is the second highest monk in the temple. The monk did some fortune telling on me and my friends. Its like what other monks and fortune teller said about me. Nothing reallly new to me but im happy to meet him. He gave me a pendant before i left and it was a rewarding unintentional trip!
Nothing much to blog about my trip already except some strange happenings again. My best friend had much more strange encounters than me. Lol. Anyway here are some understanding of Buddha and his teaching. Its abit harder, so see whether you guys can catch it.
Buddha's teaching is a way of life, not a way of belief. His teaching is very scientific, very empirical, very practical. He is not a philosopher, not a metaphysician.
He is a very down-to-earth man. Buddha says that you can change your life, beliefs are not needed. In fact, beliefs are the barriers to real change. Start with no belief, start with not metaphysics, start with no dogma. Start absolutely naked and nude, with no theology, no ideology. Start Empty! Thats is the only way to come to truth.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Love
Although i understand that love and desire are the root of sufferings but i still can't help falling in love. Probably i still yearn for a warm hug from the girl and the care and concern that i will get.
But behind all these feelings lies many unpleasant feelings too. Quarrelling, debating, misunderstanding and finally the breakup. Do i really wanna go through all these again?
Perhaps my best friend will tell me to wake up my idea and snap out of it. She always DO. I'm going to forget about everything and lead my life naturally.
There are alot more things to life other than love. I can spend this love to more misfortunate people who are suffering. ^_^
Lovingkindness is giving others happiness..
Compassion is removing others' bitterness..
Joy is freeing others from suffering..
This is what i live for.
But behind all these feelings lies many unpleasant feelings too. Quarrelling, debating, misunderstanding and finally the breakup. Do i really wanna go through all these again?
Perhaps my best friend will tell me to wake up my idea and snap out of it. She always DO. I'm going to forget about everything and lead my life naturally.
There are alot more things to life other than love. I can spend this love to more misfortunate people who are suffering. ^_^
Lovingkindness is giving others happiness..
Compassion is removing others' bitterness..
Joy is freeing others from suffering..
This is what i live for.
Share your happiness
Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle and the life of the candle will not be shortened.
Happiness never decreases by being shared....
Hatred never ceases by hatred,
but by love..
Happiness never decreases by being shared....
Hatred never ceases by hatred,
but by love..
Saturday, May 3, 2008
To All Married Couples and Singles Who Intend To Get Married
Please spend 10mins of your time to make a change in your life if possible...
When I got home that night as my wife served dinner, I held her hand and said, I've got something to tell you. She sat down and ate quietly. Again I observed the hurt in her eyes.
Suddenly I didn't know how to open my mouth. But I had to let her know what I was thinking. I want a divorce. I raised the topic calmly. She didn't seem to be annoyed by my words, instead she asked me softly, why? I avoided her question. This made her angry. She threw away the chopsticks and shouted at me, you are not a man!
That night, we didn't talk to each other. She was weeping. I knew she wanted to find out what had happened to our marriage. But I could hardly give her a satisfactory answer; I had lost my heart to a lovely girl called Dew. I didn't love her anymore. I just pitied her!
With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce agreement which stated that she could own our house, 30% shares of my company and the car. She glanced at it and then tore it into pieces. The woman who had spent ten years of her life! with me had become a stranger. I felt sorry for her wasted time, resources and energy but I could not take back what I had said for I loved Dew so dearly.
Finally she cried loudly in front of me, which was what I had expected to see. To me her cry was actually a kind of release. The idea of divorce which had obsessed me for several weeks seemed to be firmer and clearer now.
The next day, I came back home very late and found her writing something at the table. I didn't have supper but went straight to sleep and fell asleep very fast because I was tired after an eventful day with Dew. When I woke up, she was still there at the table writing. I just did not care so I turned over and was asleep again.
In the morning she presented her divorce conditions: she didn't want anything from me, but needed a month's notice before the divorce. She requested that in that one month we both struggle to live as normal a life as possible. Her reasons were simple: our son will be having his exams in a months time and she didn't want to disrupt him with our broken marriage.
This was agreeable to me. But she had something more, she asked me to recall how I had carried her into the bridal room on our wedding day. She requested that everyday for the month's duration, I will carry her out of our bedroom to the front door ever morning. I thought she was going crazy.
Just to make our last days together bearable, I accepted her odd request.
I told Dew about my wife's divorce conditions. She laughed loudly and thought it was absurd. No matter what tricks she applies, she has to face the divorce, she said scornfully. My wife and I hadn't had any body contact since my divorce intention was explicitly expressed. So when I carried her out on the first day, we both appeared clumsy. Our son clapped behind us, daddy is holding mummy in his arms! His words brought me a sense of pain. From the bedroom to the sitting room, then to the door, I walked over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed her eyes and said softly; don't tell our son about the divorce. I nodded, feeling somewhat upset.
I put her down outside the door. She went to wait for the bus to work. I drove alone to the office.
On the second day, both of us acted much more easily. She leaned on my chest.. I could smell the fragrance of her blouse. I realized that I hadn't looked at this woman carefully for a long time. I realized she was not young any more. There were fine wrinkles on her face, her hair was graying! Our marriage had taken its toll on her. For a minute I wondered what I had done to her.
On the fourth day, when I lifted her up, I felt a sense of intimacy returning... This was the woman who had given ten years of her life to me. On the fifth and sixth day, I realized that our sense of intimacy was growing again. I didn't tell Dew about this. It became easier to carry her as the month slipped by. Perhaps the everyday workout made me stronger.
She was choosing what to wear one morning. She tried on quite a few dresses but could not find a suitable one. Then she sighed, all my dresses have grown bigger. I suddenly realized that she had grown so thin, that was the reason why I could carry her more easily. Suddenly it hit me; she had buried so much pain and bitterness in her heart.
Subconsciously I reached out and touched her head. Our son came in at the moment and said, Dad, it's time to carry mum out. To him, seeing his father carrying his mother out had become an essential part of his life. My wife gestured to our son to come closer and hugged him tightly. I turned my face away because I was afraid I might change my mind at this last minute.. I then held her in my arms, walking from the bedroom, through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her hand surrounded my neck softly and naturally. I held her body tightly; it was just like our wedding day.
But her much lighter weight made me sad. On the last day, when I held her in my arms I could hardly move a step. Our son had gone to school. I held her tightly and said, I hadn't noticed that our life lacked intimacy. I drove to office... jumped out of the car swiftly without locking the door. I was afraid any delay would make me change my mind... I walked upstairs. Dew opened the door and I said to her, Sorry, Dew, I do not want the divorce anymore.
She looked at me, astonished. Then touched my forehead. Do you have a fever? She said. I moved her hand off my head. Sorry, Dew, I said, I won't divorce. My marriage life was boring probably because she and I didn't value the details of our lives, not because we didn't love each other any more. Now I realize that since I carried her into my home on our wedding day I am supposed to hold her until death does us apart.
Dew seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave me a loud slap and then slammed the door and burst into tears. I walked downstairs and drove away. At the floral shop on the way, I ordered a bouquet of flowers for my wife. The salesgirl asked me what to write on the card. I smiled and wrote: 'I'll carry you out every morning until death do us apart'.
The small details of our lives are what really matter in a relationship. It is not the mansion, the car, the property, the bank balance that matters. These create an environment conducive for happiness but cannot give happiness in themselves. So find time to be your spouse's friend and do those little things for each other that build intimacy. Do have a real happy marriage!
Relationships are made not to exploit, not to be broken.
We teach some by what we say
We teach some more by what we do
But we teach most by what we are
You don't get to choose how you are going to die, or when, but, you can decide how you are going to live, here and now.
Remember:
People will forget what you said ...
People will forget what you did ...
But people will never forget how you made them feel....
When I got home that night as my wife served dinner, I held her hand and said, I've got something to tell you. She sat down and ate quietly. Again I observed the hurt in her eyes.
Suddenly I didn't know how to open my mouth. But I had to let her know what I was thinking. I want a divorce. I raised the topic calmly. She didn't seem to be annoyed by my words, instead she asked me softly, why? I avoided her question. This made her angry. She threw away the chopsticks and shouted at me, you are not a man!
That night, we didn't talk to each other. She was weeping. I knew she wanted to find out what had happened to our marriage. But I could hardly give her a satisfactory answer; I had lost my heart to a lovely girl called Dew. I didn't love her anymore. I just pitied her!
With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce agreement which stated that she could own our house, 30% shares of my company and the car. She glanced at it and then tore it into pieces. The woman who had spent ten years of her life! with me had become a stranger. I felt sorry for her wasted time, resources and energy but I could not take back what I had said for I loved Dew so dearly.
Finally she cried loudly in front of me, which was what I had expected to see. To me her cry was actually a kind of release. The idea of divorce which had obsessed me for several weeks seemed to be firmer and clearer now.
The next day, I came back home very late and found her writing something at the table. I didn't have supper but went straight to sleep and fell asleep very fast because I was tired after an eventful day with Dew. When I woke up, she was still there at the table writing. I just did not care so I turned over and was asleep again.
In the morning she presented her divorce conditions: she didn't want anything from me, but needed a month's notice before the divorce. She requested that in that one month we both struggle to live as normal a life as possible. Her reasons were simple: our son will be having his exams in a months time and she didn't want to disrupt him with our broken marriage.
This was agreeable to me. But she had something more, she asked me to recall how I had carried her into the bridal room on our wedding day. She requested that everyday for the month's duration, I will carry her out of our bedroom to the front door ever morning. I thought she was going crazy.
Just to make our last days together bearable, I accepted her odd request.
I told Dew about my wife's divorce conditions. She laughed loudly and thought it was absurd. No matter what tricks she applies, she has to face the divorce, she said scornfully. My wife and I hadn't had any body contact since my divorce intention was explicitly expressed. So when I carried her out on the first day, we both appeared clumsy. Our son clapped behind us, daddy is holding mummy in his arms! His words brought me a sense of pain. From the bedroom to the sitting room, then to the door, I walked over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed her eyes and said softly; don't tell our son about the divorce. I nodded, feeling somewhat upset.
I put her down outside the door. She went to wait for the bus to work. I drove alone to the office.
On the second day, both of us acted much more easily. She leaned on my chest.. I could smell the fragrance of her blouse. I realized that I hadn't looked at this woman carefully for a long time. I realized she was not young any more. There were fine wrinkles on her face, her hair was graying! Our marriage had taken its toll on her. For a minute I wondered what I had done to her.
On the fourth day, when I lifted her up, I felt a sense of intimacy returning... This was the woman who had given ten years of her life to me. On the fifth and sixth day, I realized that our sense of intimacy was growing again. I didn't tell Dew about this. It became easier to carry her as the month slipped by. Perhaps the everyday workout made me stronger.
She was choosing what to wear one morning. She tried on quite a few dresses but could not find a suitable one. Then she sighed, all my dresses have grown bigger. I suddenly realized that she had grown so thin, that was the reason why I could carry her more easily. Suddenly it hit me; she had buried so much pain and bitterness in her heart.
Subconsciously I reached out and touched her head. Our son came in at the moment and said, Dad, it's time to carry mum out. To him, seeing his father carrying his mother out had become an essential part of his life. My wife gestured to our son to come closer and hugged him tightly. I turned my face away because I was afraid I might change my mind at this last minute.. I then held her in my arms, walking from the bedroom, through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her hand surrounded my neck softly and naturally. I held her body tightly; it was just like our wedding day.
But her much lighter weight made me sad. On the last day, when I held her in my arms I could hardly move a step. Our son had gone to school. I held her tightly and said, I hadn't noticed that our life lacked intimacy. I drove to office... jumped out of the car swiftly without locking the door. I was afraid any delay would make me change my mind... I walked upstairs. Dew opened the door and I said to her, Sorry, Dew, I do not want the divorce anymore.
She looked at me, astonished. Then touched my forehead. Do you have a fever? She said. I moved her hand off my head. Sorry, Dew, I said, I won't divorce. My marriage life was boring probably because she and I didn't value the details of our lives, not because we didn't love each other any more. Now I realize that since I carried her into my home on our wedding day I am supposed to hold her until death does us apart.
Dew seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave me a loud slap and then slammed the door and burst into tears. I walked downstairs and drove away. At the floral shop on the way, I ordered a bouquet of flowers for my wife. The salesgirl asked me what to write on the card. I smiled and wrote: 'I'll carry you out every morning until death do us apart'.
The small details of our lives are what really matter in a relationship. It is not the mansion, the car, the property, the bank balance that matters. These create an environment conducive for happiness but cannot give happiness in themselves. So find time to be your spouse's friend and do those little things for each other that build intimacy. Do have a real happy marriage!
Relationships are made not to exploit, not to be broken.
We teach some by what we say
We teach some more by what we do
But we teach most by what we are
You don't get to choose how you are going to die, or when, but, you can decide how you are going to live, here and now.
Remember:
People will forget what you said ...
People will forget what you did ...
But people will never forget how you made them feel....
Sunday, April 20, 2008
The Seed
A successful business man was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business. Instead of choosing one of his directors or his children, he decided to do something different.
He called all the young executives in his company together. 'It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO,' he said. 'I have decided to choose one of you.' The young executives were shocked, but the boss continued. 'I am going to give each one of you a seed today - a very special seed. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next CEO.'
One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He went home and excitedly, told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed. Every day, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown.
After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow. Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew.
Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing. By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure.
Six months went by - still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however. He just kept watering and fertilizing the soil - he so wanted the seed to grow.
A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their plants to the CEO for inspection. Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick at his stomach. It was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right.
He took his empty pot to the board room. When Jim arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful.......in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed. A few felt sorry for him!
When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives. Jim just tried to hide in the back. 'My, what great plants, trees, and flowers you have grown,' said the CEO. 'Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO!'
All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the financial director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified. He thought, 'The CEO knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me fired!' When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed. Jim told him the story. The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim, and then announced to the young executives, 'Here is your next Chief Executive! His name is Jim!'
Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed. How could he be the new CEO the others said? Then the CEO said, 'One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds; they were dead - it was not possible for them to grow. All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers.' When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you.
Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive!'
Moral:
If you plant honesty, you will reap trust.
If you plant goodness, you will reap friends.
If you plant humility, you will reap greatness.
If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment.
If you plant consideration, you will reap perspective.
If you plant hard work, you will reap success.
If you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation.
So, be careful what you plant now; it will determine what you will reap later.
He called all the young executives in his company together. 'It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO,' he said. 'I have decided to choose one of you.' The young executives were shocked, but the boss continued. 'I am going to give each one of you a seed today - a very special seed. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next CEO.'
One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He went home and excitedly, told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed. Every day, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown.
After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow. Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew.
Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing. By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure.
Six months went by - still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however. He just kept watering and fertilizing the soil - he so wanted the seed to grow.
A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their plants to the CEO for inspection. Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick at his stomach. It was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right.
He took his empty pot to the board room. When Jim arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful.......in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed. A few felt sorry for him!
When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives. Jim just tried to hide in the back. 'My, what great plants, trees, and flowers you have grown,' said the CEO. 'Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO!'
All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the financial director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified. He thought, 'The CEO knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me fired!' When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed. Jim told him the story. The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim, and then announced to the young executives, 'Here is your next Chief Executive! His name is Jim!'
Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed. How could he be the new CEO the others said? Then the CEO said, 'One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds; they were dead - it was not possible for them to grow. All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers.' When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you.
Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive!'
Moral:
If you plant honesty, you will reap trust.
If you plant goodness, you will reap friends.
If you plant humility, you will reap greatness.
If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment.
If you plant consideration, you will reap perspective.
If you plant hard work, you will reap success.
If you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation.
So, be careful what you plant now; it will determine what you will reap later.
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
The Wooden Bowl Story
I guarantee you will remember the tale of the Wooden Bowl tomorrow, a week from now, a month from now, a year from now.
A frail old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law, and four-year old grandson. The old man's hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred, and his step faltered. The family ate together at the table. But the elderly grandfather's shaky hands and failing sight made eating difficult. Peas rolled off his spoon onto the floor. When he grasped the glass, milk spilled on the tablecloth. The son and daughter-in-law became irritated with the mess. "We must do something about father," said the son. "I've had enough of his spilled milk, noisy eating, and food on the floor." So the husband and wife set a small table in the corner.
There, Grandfather ate alone while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner. Since Grandfather had broken a dish or two, his food was served in a wooden bowl! When the family glanced in Grandfather's direction, sometimes he had a tear in his eye as he sat alone. Still, the only words the couple had for him were sharp admonitions when he dropped a fork or spilled food. The four-year-old watched it all in silence.
One evening before supper, the father noticed his son playing with wood scraps on the floor. He asked the child sweetly, "What are you making?" Just as sweetly, the boy responded, "Oh, I am making a little bowl for you and Mama to eat your food in when I grow up." The four-year-old smiled and went back to work. The words so struck the parents that they were speechless. Then tears started to stream down their cheeks. Though no word was spoken, both knew what must be done.
That evening the husband took Grandfather's hand and gently led him back to the family table. For the remainder of his days he ate every meal with the family. And for some reason,neither husband nor wife seemed to care any longer when a fork was dropped, milk spilled, or the table cloth soiled.
On a positive note, I've learned that, no matter what happens, how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.
I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles three things: a rainy day, the elderly, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.
I've learned that, regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life.
I've learned that making a "living" is not the samething as making a "life."
I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.
I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw something back. I've learned that if you pursue happiness, it will elude you. But, if you focus on your family, your friends, the needs of others, your work and doing the very best you can, happiness will find you.
I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision. I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one.
I've learned that every day, you should reach out and touch someone. People love that human touch -- holding hands, a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back.
I've learned that I still have a lot to learn!
A frail old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law, and four-year old grandson. The old man's hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred, and his step faltered. The family ate together at the table. But the elderly grandfather's shaky hands and failing sight made eating difficult. Peas rolled off his spoon onto the floor. When he grasped the glass, milk spilled on the tablecloth. The son and daughter-in-law became irritated with the mess. "We must do something about father," said the son. "I've had enough of his spilled milk, noisy eating, and food on the floor." So the husband and wife set a small table in the corner.
There, Grandfather ate alone while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner. Since Grandfather had broken a dish or two, his food was served in a wooden bowl! When the family glanced in Grandfather's direction, sometimes he had a tear in his eye as he sat alone. Still, the only words the couple had for him were sharp admonitions when he dropped a fork or spilled food. The four-year-old watched it all in silence.
One evening before supper, the father noticed his son playing with wood scraps on the floor. He asked the child sweetly, "What are you making?" Just as sweetly, the boy responded, "Oh, I am making a little bowl for you and Mama to eat your food in when I grow up." The four-year-old smiled and went back to work. The words so struck the parents that they were speechless. Then tears started to stream down their cheeks. Though no word was spoken, both knew what must be done.
That evening the husband took Grandfather's hand and gently led him back to the family table. For the remainder of his days he ate every meal with the family. And for some reason,neither husband nor wife seemed to care any longer when a fork was dropped, milk spilled, or the table cloth soiled.
On a positive note, I've learned that, no matter what happens, how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.
I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles three things: a rainy day, the elderly, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.
I've learned that, regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life.
I've learned that making a "living" is not the samething as making a "life."
I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.
I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw something back. I've learned that if you pursue happiness, it will elude you. But, if you focus on your family, your friends, the needs of others, your work and doing the very best you can, happiness will find you.
I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision. I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one.
I've learned that every day, you should reach out and touch someone. People love that human touch -- holding hands, a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back.
I've learned that I still have a lot to learn!
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Nowadays
Alot of unbelievable stuffs are happening to me these few weeks. I don't know how to write it or post it in the blog. Its just amazing and overwhelming.
I am busy for every single day. Only get to sleep few hours everyday. I feel so tired... But i guess everything is worth it.
Anyway i always didn't mention this person in my blog before. Today it shall be the first time. The only person that i can have a heart to heart or intellectual talk with. Thanks for spending your whole week of leave seeing my face. Though you are irritating, but im glad you are always there. You promise the Ramen.. but you failed to deliver. Like always.. Good nite.
I am busy for every single day. Only get to sleep few hours everyday. I feel so tired... But i guess everything is worth it.
Anyway i always didn't mention this person in my blog before. Today it shall be the first time. The only person that i can have a heart to heart or intellectual talk with. Thanks for spending your whole week of leave seeing my face. Though you are irritating, but im glad you are always there. You promise the Ramen.. but you failed to deliver. Like always.. Good nite.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Happy Valentine's day
Seeing roses everywhere. Couples hand in hand... When i saw that, i was smiling to myself. I'm just happy for them who found their love who they can share their lives with.
What a lonely day for me, still thought that i will be working night shift so that i wont be affected so much. In the end, they want to let me to go home early for the night. What for man... I don't even have a girlfriend to spend with.
The past 4 yrs of valentine's day was fun. Cracking my brain to think of presents n words to write. Making roses until i sweat so much. Buy roses and thinking how to romantic. Haha. Seeing your valentine smile and happy is the best reward you can have.
Anyway wish that you can enjoy this day with your date and be happy. Others is not important. When you love someone, most importantly is to let him/her to be happy. Men cannot be so selfish. All the best...
P.S To those i can't make it to go out with tonight.. No offence. I just want to be alone. Thank you and have fun!
What a lonely day for me, still thought that i will be working night shift so that i wont be affected so much. In the end, they want to let me to go home early for the night. What for man... I don't even have a girlfriend to spend with.
The past 4 yrs of valentine's day was fun. Cracking my brain to think of presents n words to write. Making roses until i sweat so much. Buy roses and thinking how to romantic. Haha. Seeing your valentine smile and happy is the best reward you can have.
Anyway wish that you can enjoy this day with your date and be happy. Others is not important. When you love someone, most importantly is to let him/her to be happy. Men cannot be so selfish. All the best...
P.S To those i can't make it to go out with tonight.. No offence. I just want to be alone. Thank you and have fun!
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
The Dependent Origination
Where is the source of human grief, lamentation, pain and agony? Is it not to be found in the fact that people are generally ignorant and also willful?
They cling obstinately to lives of wealth and honour, comfort and pleasure, excitement and egoism, ignorant of the fact that the desire for these very things is the source of human suffering.
From its beginning, the world has been filled with a succession of calamities, over and above the unavoidable facts of illness, old age and death.
But if one carefully considers all the facts, one must be convinced that at the basis of all suffering lies the principle of craving desire. If avarice can be removed, human suffering will come to an end.
Because of their ignorance, people are always thinking wrong thoughts and always losing the right point of view. Clinging to their egos, they take wrong actions. As a results, they become attached to a delusive existence.
In reality, therefore, it is their own mind that causes the delusions of grief, lamentation, pain and agony. Be the master of your own mind. Control your thoughts and not let your desire overule youself. If the latter happens, in a moment of folly, you might do something that you will never do in your normal state. Thats how most of the murders and raping of women happens. When these happens, you will be due for heavy punishment.
There is 3 kinds of main karmic effects.
1. Bodily karma: intentional actions through the body.
2. Verbal karma: intentional actions through speech.
3. Mental karma: intentional actions through the mind.
Mental karma is considered to be the most significant because it is the origin of all other karma. Thought precedes action through body and speech. Bodily and verbal deeds are derived from mental karma. E.g. When you have an evil thought of using a baseball bat to hit someone, you might think its alright as since its just a thought and you are not doing it. But one day when you see that person and when you really get angry, this mental thought will cause you to really hit that person. If this thought doesn't exist in your mind, all these happenings won't be able to take place!
Alot of people are ignorant that the fact of a single small evil thought in your mind will still plant a bad karmic seed. They think that since nobody will know what is on their mind, so its alright to have evil thoughts. Every thoughts and every actions are being recorded down. Believe it or not. When the day that you need to leave this world comes, you shall know what i'm saying is true or not.
Whether you want to grief or happily leave this world is all up to you....
They cling obstinately to lives of wealth and honour, comfort and pleasure, excitement and egoism, ignorant of the fact that the desire for these very things is the source of human suffering.
From its beginning, the world has been filled with a succession of calamities, over and above the unavoidable facts of illness, old age and death.
But if one carefully considers all the facts, one must be convinced that at the basis of all suffering lies the principle of craving desire. If avarice can be removed, human suffering will come to an end.
Because of their ignorance, people are always thinking wrong thoughts and always losing the right point of view. Clinging to their egos, they take wrong actions. As a results, they become attached to a delusive existence.
In reality, therefore, it is their own mind that causes the delusions of grief, lamentation, pain and agony. Be the master of your own mind. Control your thoughts and not let your desire overule youself. If the latter happens, in a moment of folly, you might do something that you will never do in your normal state. Thats how most of the murders and raping of women happens. When these happens, you will be due for heavy punishment.
There is 3 kinds of main karmic effects.
1. Bodily karma: intentional actions through the body.
2. Verbal karma: intentional actions through speech.
3. Mental karma: intentional actions through the mind.
Mental karma is considered to be the most significant because it is the origin of all other karma. Thought precedes action through body and speech. Bodily and verbal deeds are derived from mental karma. E.g. When you have an evil thought of using a baseball bat to hit someone, you might think its alright as since its just a thought and you are not doing it. But one day when you see that person and when you really get angry, this mental thought will cause you to really hit that person. If this thought doesn't exist in your mind, all these happenings won't be able to take place!
Alot of people are ignorant that the fact of a single small evil thought in your mind will still plant a bad karmic seed. They think that since nobody will know what is on their mind, so its alright to have evil thoughts. Every thoughts and every actions are being recorded down. Believe it or not. When the day that you need to leave this world comes, you shall know what i'm saying is true or not.
Whether you want to grief or happily leave this world is all up to you....
Monday, February 4, 2008
隨緣
Here is a story that i wanna share with you......
Long time ago... There is a man who is supposed to get married with his girlfriend on this certain date. But when the date comes, his girlfriend left him and married another man.
This man became so devastated.. He fell ill and couldn't get out of his bed. His family members used all types of methods to help him but to no avail. A monk came by this area and heard of this story, so he decided to help this man to get out of his misery.
He went into his room and ask him to look into a special mirror. In that mirror, he saw a woman's corspe lying naked by the sea. Then a man walked by, take a look at the body, shake his head and left.
The second man walked by, took off his clothes and put it on the woman's body and walked away. The third man walked by, he dug a hole and carefully buried the woman's body.
The monk said to him," That woman is your girlfriend's past life and you are the second man who gave her your shirt. So the reason why both of you will be together in this life is because she is just returning you the favour.
But for the third man who buried her, she needs to repay him for her whole lifetime and that is her current husband... After listening to it, the man finally become enlighten and recover from his illness....
For many of us, when our love ones leave us, we are often trapped in deep misery. But always remember this story as for the one who left us, they are just returning a favour or you are returning the favour. Your true love will come one day... Lets wait for that faithful day. What is yours, shall be yours. Nobody can take that away from you. 隨緣............
Sorry for the broken english.. Its hard to translate a chinese story to english. Good night folks.
Long time ago... There is a man who is supposed to get married with his girlfriend on this certain date. But when the date comes, his girlfriend left him and married another man.
This man became so devastated.. He fell ill and couldn't get out of his bed. His family members used all types of methods to help him but to no avail. A monk came by this area and heard of this story, so he decided to help this man to get out of his misery.
He went into his room and ask him to look into a special mirror. In that mirror, he saw a woman's corspe lying naked by the sea. Then a man walked by, take a look at the body, shake his head and left.
The second man walked by, took off his clothes and put it on the woman's body and walked away. The third man walked by, he dug a hole and carefully buried the woman's body.
The monk said to him," That woman is your girlfriend's past life and you are the second man who gave her your shirt. So the reason why both of you will be together in this life is because she is just returning you the favour.
But for the third man who buried her, she needs to repay him for her whole lifetime and that is her current husband... After listening to it, the man finally become enlighten and recover from his illness....
For many of us, when our love ones leave us, we are often trapped in deep misery. But always remember this story as for the one who left us, they are just returning a favour or you are returning the favour. Your true love will come one day... Lets wait for that faithful day. What is yours, shall be yours. Nobody can take that away from you. 隨緣............
Sorry for the broken english.. Its hard to translate a chinese story to english. Good night folks.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Tears
I used to drop alot of tears whenever it comes to relationship problems. So many types of mixed feelings. So silly that i wanted to end my life..
I guess thats just part of growing up. Understanding love and experiencing the problems of love. Its been a few months already. Hope that you are doing fine and feeling happy. You will always be part of my prayers. Keeping you safe and sound. Thats the end of my first love story. 1514 days. This will be my last drop of tears for you.... :'(
When i cry again, i won't cry for myself. Those shedded tears can fill the ocean a million times over. From now onwards, i will only cry for others.....
I guess thats just part of growing up. Understanding love and experiencing the problems of love. Its been a few months already. Hope that you are doing fine and feeling happy. You will always be part of my prayers. Keeping you safe and sound. Thats the end of my first love story. 1514 days. This will be my last drop of tears for you.... :'(
When i cry again, i won't cry for myself. Those shedded tears can fill the ocean a million times over. From now onwards, i will only cry for others.....
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Disasters
I just read a book that a monk had forseen that alot of natural disasters are coming our way. Life will not be the way like it used to be...
Humans only blame the nature for the natural disasters and blame the people for being unlucky to get involved in the accidents. Well... This is actually not the case. Everything happened for a reason.
All kinds of evil phenomena are appearing in this world as human's minds are not as they used to be, and virtue and morality have deteriorated.
One abbot of a big temple swore to a big crowd of buddhists that if anything he said is wrong, he is willing to go to hell and never come back. He said, "Over half of the human population in the world is going to perish and those who will be left will be people who culitivate the Way, who cultivate truly, those who recite the Buddha's name, those who recite Sutras, these are the people that are able to remain."
Of course this is in the buddhism context. I believe no matter which religion you are in, as long you lead a righteous life and help people, you will be saved from these disasters.
Those high monks who can meditate and enter a high level of concentration, can actually see alot of things happening before hand. He is not the first monk that actually said that these disasters are coming. I heard it alot of times from other monks too.
So lets just not to be ignorant anymore. What if all these are true? By that time it happened, it will be too late to change anything. Who will take care of ur family, wife and kids if you are gone? Don't be so selfish and think for your family. Start to do good and repent for your wrong doings.
Humans are born without money and we can't take any money with us after we died. No point trying so hard now to backstab people to get that promotion or that little money. So what if you are very rich? An accident may just take your life away tomorrow.
There is only 1 thing that we can take with us after we pass on... Thats only wisdom. We should be working hard to gain it instead of money! Think it through...
Humans only blame the nature for the natural disasters and blame the people for being unlucky to get involved in the accidents. Well... This is actually not the case. Everything happened for a reason.
All kinds of evil phenomena are appearing in this world as human's minds are not as they used to be, and virtue and morality have deteriorated.
One abbot of a big temple swore to a big crowd of buddhists that if anything he said is wrong, he is willing to go to hell and never come back. He said, "Over half of the human population in the world is going to perish and those who will be left will be people who culitivate the Way, who cultivate truly, those who recite the Buddha's name, those who recite Sutras, these are the people that are able to remain."
Of course this is in the buddhism context. I believe no matter which religion you are in, as long you lead a righteous life and help people, you will be saved from these disasters.
Those high monks who can meditate and enter a high level of concentration, can actually see alot of things happening before hand. He is not the first monk that actually said that these disasters are coming. I heard it alot of times from other monks too.
So lets just not to be ignorant anymore. What if all these are true? By that time it happened, it will be too late to change anything. Who will take care of ur family, wife and kids if you are gone? Don't be so selfish and think for your family. Start to do good and repent for your wrong doings.
Humans are born without money and we can't take any money with us after we died. No point trying so hard now to backstab people to get that promotion or that little money. So what if you are very rich? An accident may just take your life away tomorrow.
There is only 1 thing that we can take with us after we pass on... Thats only wisdom. We should be working hard to gain it instead of money! Think it through...
Monday, January 21, 2008
Jesus
It was not the nails that held christ to the cross, but his love for you and me....
Just remember that all the religions are the same. Teaching us to do good and be righteous. Don't look at it differently. Its the people inside that are making us dislike each other's religion.
Jesus didn't ask his followers to condemn buddhism. Its all humans speaking in the name of Jesus. Humans.... Not Jesus. Don't fall into the wrong path..
Just remember that all the religions are the same. Teaching us to do good and be righteous. Don't look at it differently. Its the people inside that are making us dislike each other's religion.
Jesus didn't ask his followers to condemn buddhism. Its all humans speaking in the name of Jesus. Humans.... Not Jesus. Don't fall into the wrong path..
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Poor Kids
As singaporeans, if we look around us. We are considered very lucky and fortunate.
In 3rd world countries, humans are dying every single second due to illness and starvation. I just received a mail appealing for donation. Those african kids are becoming blind because of drinking stagnant water that are dirty.
This illness can be easily cured by an inexpensive tube of antibiotic ointment. But they can't even afford it. Imagine that your children are going blind and as a parent, you cannot do anything to save them.
Whenever i tell my friends around me about donation, they will find thousands of excuses to hold that penny in their pocket. $6 to you might be only enough to buy a Macdonald's meal. But it can save a human life in other country. So please cut down on your macdonalds and donate some money to those poor kids. Macdonalds only give you more health problems that you can imagine.
When you are fortunate and eating well, please spare a thought for those people that don't even have anything to eat. Share your happiness around and let them smile for once...
I thank you on behalf of those poor kids.
http://www.mmi.org.hk/index.html
In 3rd world countries, humans are dying every single second due to illness and starvation. I just received a mail appealing for donation. Those african kids are becoming blind because of drinking stagnant water that are dirty.
This illness can be easily cured by an inexpensive tube of antibiotic ointment. But they can't even afford it. Imagine that your children are going blind and as a parent, you cannot do anything to save them.
Whenever i tell my friends around me about donation, they will find thousands of excuses to hold that penny in their pocket. $6 to you might be only enough to buy a Macdonald's meal. But it can save a human life in other country. So please cut down on your macdonalds and donate some money to those poor kids. Macdonalds only give you more health problems that you can imagine.
When you are fortunate and eating well, please spare a thought for those people that don't even have anything to eat. Share your happiness around and let them smile for once...
I thank you on behalf of those poor kids.
http://www.mmi.org.hk/index.html
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Thailand Trip
Its been some time since i came back from my thailand pilgrimage. Haven't updated anything on the trip yet.
Alot of strange and spiritually stuffs happened during the trip. May sounds too magical or mysterious to majority of the people. So i'm not going to say anything on that.
First day, we went to a certain temple in bangkok to find a monk. His name is Su Na and his title is Chao Kun. Chao Kun is a title given to high ranking monks. We couldn't find him at the temple and so we went asking around among the monks. We were told that Chao Kun had left for retreat in the border of thailand, near Cambodia.
We arranged a mini van and a monk to visit Chao Kun the next day. It was a long trip.. Took around 4hours plus to reach the temple. Its a nice hut with serene surroundings. Felt so peaceful over there. We had problems communicating with Chao Kun as he only know abit of english and my friend only speak abit of thai. Its hard but most of the questions we managed to get across to him by body language. Haha.
He gave us quite a number of items to bring back with us. Statue, amulets, pendants and holy water. He invited us to stay in the temple when we come to thailand again. I think the main purpose is to meditate for a few days. He took our telephone numbers and namecards in order to contact us when he comes to singapore. Very kind and friendly man. I think he is around 70 over years old.
The next day we went to a temple in the outskirt of bangkok. A driver in the hotel took us there. He can speak english pretty well. So we got him to interpret for us. The monk name is Luang Phor Wank. Luang Phor is a title for Teacher or father in thai. Chao Kun is higher than a Luang Phor. This monk knows quite alot of things but couldn't tell us much. I think most probably is because of his ranking. He kept emphasizing that Monks also have their code of conduct. So he cannot say much. In the end, we just walked around the temple and saw the remains of his teacher. Died quite long ago already but his body is still intact. His body didn't rot and was placed in a glass coffin for people to see.
When a person achieved enlightenment, there are a few phenomenon that one could observe. When a body couldn't rot, thats one of the phenomenon. Anyway it was a fruitful and enjoyable trip. We learnt quite alot of things over there.
Alot of strange and spiritually stuffs happened during the trip. May sounds too magical or mysterious to majority of the people. So i'm not going to say anything on that.
First day, we went to a certain temple in bangkok to find a monk. His name is Su Na and his title is Chao Kun. Chao Kun is a title given to high ranking monks. We couldn't find him at the temple and so we went asking around among the monks. We were told that Chao Kun had left for retreat in the border of thailand, near Cambodia.
We arranged a mini van and a monk to visit Chao Kun the next day. It was a long trip.. Took around 4hours plus to reach the temple. Its a nice hut with serene surroundings. Felt so peaceful over there. We had problems communicating with Chao Kun as he only know abit of english and my friend only speak abit of thai. Its hard but most of the questions we managed to get across to him by body language. Haha.
He gave us quite a number of items to bring back with us. Statue, amulets, pendants and holy water. He invited us to stay in the temple when we come to thailand again. I think the main purpose is to meditate for a few days. He took our telephone numbers and namecards in order to contact us when he comes to singapore. Very kind and friendly man. I think he is around 70 over years old.
The next day we went to a temple in the outskirt of bangkok. A driver in the hotel took us there. He can speak english pretty well. So we got him to interpret for us. The monk name is Luang Phor Wank. Luang Phor is a title for Teacher or father in thai. Chao Kun is higher than a Luang Phor. This monk knows quite alot of things but couldn't tell us much. I think most probably is because of his ranking. He kept emphasizing that Monks also have their code of conduct. So he cannot say much. In the end, we just walked around the temple and saw the remains of his teacher. Died quite long ago already but his body is still intact. His body didn't rot and was placed in a glass coffin for people to see.
When a person achieved enlightenment, there are a few phenomenon that one could observe. When a body couldn't rot, thats one of the phenomenon. Anyway it was a fruitful and enjoyable trip. We learnt quite alot of things over there.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Laughing Buddha Quote
Industriously planting young sprouts in the fields, lower your head and you'll find the skies in the water. One's purity of mind is of utmost importance, a step in retreat is in fact advancement.
This is the quote from Laughing Buddha's book. Or some people may call him Maitreya.
Whatever things happen, just laugh it away.. Tackle hard problems with soft techniques. E.g When Maitreya Buddha was spat on the face from some gangsters, he didn't get angry. He merely just laughed out and walk away.
This explains the sentence,"A step in retreat is in fact advancement." You have good anger management and have attained a higher level of tolerance.
This is the quote from Laughing Buddha's book. Or some people may call him Maitreya.
Whatever things happen, just laugh it away.. Tackle hard problems with soft techniques. E.g When Maitreya Buddha was spat on the face from some gangsters, he didn't get angry. He merely just laughed out and walk away.
This explains the sentence,"A step in retreat is in fact advancement." You have good anger management and have attained a higher level of tolerance.
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