Daily Readings

Verse for May 17, 2008

    137.    As a lotus is unsoiled by water, even so, Nirvana is unsoiled by defilements. This is the one special quality of a lotus that is present in Nirvana.
    As cool water is a means of allaying fever, even so, Nirvana, which is cool, is the means of allaying the fever of all the defilements. Again, as water is a means of quenching the thirst of men and beasts when they are exhausted, frightened, thirsty and overcome by heat, even so is Nirvana a means of dispelling the craving for sense pleasures and the craving for more and continued becoming. These are the two special qualities of water that are present in Nirvana.
    As an antidote is the salvation of beings who are afflicted by poison, even so, Nirvana is the salvation of beings who are afflicted by the defilements. Again, an antidote puts an end to disease; even so, Nirvana puts an end to all sorrows. And again, an antidote is life-giving nectar; even so, Nirvana is life-giving nectar. These are three special qualities of an antidote that are present in Nirvana.
    As the great ocean is empty of corpses, even so, Nirvana is empty of the corpses of the defilements. Again, the great ocean is vast, unbounded and not filled by all the rivers that flows into it; even so, is Nirvana vast, unbounded and not filled by the beings who attain it. And again, the great ocean is the home of great creatures; even so, Nirvana is the home of Noble Ones, great beings who are stainless, their defilements destroyed, who have attained the powers and become masters of their own minds. And finally, the great ocean is blossoming with countless, various and abundant and quite pure corals of knowledge and freedom. These are the four special qualities of the great ocean that are present in Nirvana.
    As food is the sustainer of the lifespan of all beings, even so, Nirvana, when it is realized, is the sustainer of the lifespan by driving out old age and dying. Again, food is the giver of strength of the psychic powers in all beings; it is producer of beauty in all beings. Even so, Nirvana, when realized, is the producer of special qualities in all beings. And again, food is the calmer of distress in all beings; even so, Nirvana, when realized, is the calmer of the distress of the defilements in all beings. And finally, food is the remover of the weakness of exhaustion in all beings; even so, Nirvana, when realized, is the remover of all the weakness of exhaustion in all beings due to sorrows. These are the five special qualities of food that are present in Nirvana.
    As space is not born, does not age or die, does not cease here or arise there, is hard to define, cannot be stolen by thieves, is supported by nothing, is the realm of birds, without obstruction and unending - even so, Nirvana is not born, does not age or die, does not cease here or arise there, is hard to define, cannot be stolen by thieves, is supported by nothing, is the realm of the Noble Ones, without obstruction and unending. These are the eleven special qualities of space that are present in Nirvana.
    As a precious gem is the granter of desires, even so is Nirvana the granter of desires. As a precious gem gives delight, even so does Nirvana give delight. As a precious gem is rich in lustre, even so is Nirvana. These are the three special qualities of a precious gem that are present in Nirvana.
    As red sandalwood is hard to obtain, even so, Nirvana is hard to obtain. Again, red sandalwood is unequalled for its lovely perfume; even so is Nirvana unequalled for its lovely perfume. Yet again, red sandalwood is praised by good men; even so is Nirvana praised by the Noble Ones. These are the three special qualities of red sandalwood that are present in Nirvana.
    As the skimming of ghee has a beautiful colour, even so, Nirvana has the colour of special qualities. The skimming of ghee has a sweet smell; even so, Nirvana has the sweet smell of virtue. Again, the skimming of ghee is flavourful; even so, Nirvana is flavourful. These are the three special qualities of the skimming of ghee that are present in Nirvana.
    As a mountain peak is lofty, even so, Nirvana is lofty; as a mountain peak is unshakable, even so is Nirvana unshaken; as a mountain peak is difficult to climb, even so is Nirvana difficult for the defilements to climb. And again, as no seed can take root on a mountain peak, even so, no defilements can take root in Nirvana. Finally, as a mountain peak has neither like nor dislike, even so, Nirvana has neither like nor dislike. These are the five special qualities of a mountain peak that are present in Nirvana.

Miln.318

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Human beings are not light bulbs … …

By Wakeupnow on May 15, 2008 in Dharma | 0 Comments

Human beings are not light bulbs … … they cannot simply be switched on and off.

What do you think?

China disaster!

By Wakeupnow on May 13, 2008 in Dharma | 0 Comments

As though twins by birth, the Myanmar cyclone disaster is followed by this China earthquake disaster …

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080513/ap_on_re_as/china_earthquake;_ylt=AqRs37zTkVYMYHzBWIHcm_qs0NUE

http://tieba.baidu.com/f?kz=376894098

Let’s extend our prayers and meditation to them.

Myanmar disaster

By Wakeupnow on May 13, 2008 in Dharma | 0 Comments

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080507/ts_nm/myanmar_cyclone_dc

As is already in the news … disaster struck Myanmar recently. Let us offer our prayers and kind thoughts to them.

At the same time, if we can, offer them practical help through some of the organisations who are able to reach the disaster areas.

http://www.fireflymission.org/cyclone_00.html
http://www.redcross.org.sg/myanmar_cyclone_src.htm

May all sentient beings be free from thoughts of harm,
May all sentient beings be free from danger and harm,
May all sentient beings abide in loving kindness and compassion,
May all sentient beings be Well and Happy!

It’s not all about winning … really!

By Wakeupnow on May 1, 2008 in Dharma | 0 Comments

Central Washington offers the ultimate act of sportsmanship 

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/columns/story?columnist=hays_graham&id=3372631

Western Oregon senior Sara Tucholsky had never hit a home run in her career. Central Washington senior Mallory Holtman was already her school’s career leader in them. But when a twist of fate and a torn knee ligament brought them face to face with each other and face to face with the end of their playing days, they combined on a home run trot that celebrated the collective human spirit far more than individual athletic achievement.

So What? … …

By Wakeupnow on Mar 16, 2008 in Dharma | 0 Comments

So What?
So What!
So What!?

“So what” … sweet sound to the ears, and perhaps the mind as well.  Two over months ago, Jan 3 2008 to be exact, during a Dhamma talk at Taipei Buddhist Centre, an participant uttered these magic words “So What?”.  To some it was a challenge to the explanations given, while to others, its a curt retort to the speaker.  To me, I just love it! … if monks are allowed to at least ‘love’ some idea … ;)

To me, it was excellent that that man thought of the question “So what?”.  It implied to me that he was interested in not just listening to mere recitation of someone’s teachings, but is genuinely concerned about the practical implications of it.  Or at least that’s how I interpreted his “So what?”.  If he meant it any other ways, I didn’t know it. :)

I replied by congratulating him on his question; that we Buddhist and non-Buddhist alike need to open our eyes to see and our mind to inquire, to paraphrase myself that day.  My point is that, when we read a book, or listen to a talk, we should listen with an open heart, but not just take everything as it is and leave it at that.  We should inquire further on the practical implications of it in our daily lives!

Each time we attend a talk or a class, we should ask ourselves, how does knowing this help us?  Or others?  Or both?   How do I apply it in my life to bring more peace and less stress?

For that matter, we should not just ask ourselves this question when it comes to Buddhist Teachings,  but to other things as well.  So you didn’t get that promotion this time round … so what?  So she likes someone else and not you (or him you or otherwise) … so what?  So your son failed in his exams … so what?  Now I’m not advocating the other extreme of aloofness.  Rather, I’m saying, put things in perspective.  Make a checklist of things going right for you.  By right, I don’t mean perfect, I mean “good enough”.  Then compare the thing that didn’t work out for you.  You’ve managed so far in your life without that one thing, so why should it, or the lack thereof, make you miserable now?

Sometimes we give ourselves reasons to be miserable and we should stop.  And learn to be content and not spend our precious human life searching the world for a better life.   Instead, we can and should learn to reflect more on our own life and be grateful.  Having more does not always bring more happiness.  More often than not, it leads to more worry and stress.

So the next time, you encounter something, be it a teaching or a difficulty in life, ask yourself … So what? :)

The Mathematics of Happiness

By Wakeupnow on Jan 22, 2008 in Dharma, Ramblings | 2 Comments

When I first learnt about Probability Theory in secondary school, I went nuts! I fell in love with it, as it seemed almost magical that we could somehow synthesize or calculate the probability of something happening! I feel like I’m a psychic! Boy, was it fun finding out that the chance of a ‘1′ occurring from an unbiased dice was 1/6 or 0.1666666… 6667… or that the chance of even numbers occurring was 1/6 + 1/6 + 1/6 or 3/6 or 1/2. Ok, it is intuitive to arrive at 0.5 or half, but the maths behind it is the marvel.

The other thing that was fun about probability was that there were the card games. It seem like many math teachers are very into card games as many questions revolves around the probability “of drawing the next Ace from the deck, given a certain hand that was already played”. I half guess that this obsession with cards might have stem from the poor financial status of teachers in general. Literature and linguistic teachers will poke fun at the social rich strata while the mathematicians will dream about striking it rich by winning at this weekend’s poker game or blackjack! Of course, there are the boring apple and oranges in a bag questions and red and blue marbles questions, but those are for kids and no one got rich guessing apples and oranges or marbles!

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