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MoonCentral (Archive : Feb 2005)

2 Essays

What If? (In Memory of a Child, a Bird and Kevin Carter)
Writing as a Spiritual Practice (Why I Write Anything at All) -shian

23/02/05 09:48 PM

Not the Dharma

The history of Buddhism is not the Dharma (the Buddha's teachings leading to ultimate freedom).
The culture of Buddhism is not the Dharma.
The languages of Buddhism in not the Dharma.
The rituals of Buddhism is not the Dharma.
The above are about the Dharma, but is not the Dharma per se.
They might centre around the Dharma, but are only on the outskirts of the Dharma.
Are you a Dharma-centric Buddhist?
If not, you might be only a superficial Buddhist?
Don't miss the Dharma. -shiqin

21/02/05 12:08 PM

Blindness of One's Lack of Humility

Your spiritual eyes should at least see some of the obvious haze of delusion shrouding them, and not be blinded by it such that you do not even realise it is there, that it is only part of a bigger haze. The path to clarity of vision comes from recognition of our essential blindness. The way to Enlightenment begins this way with humility. This is why it is wise to be humble, for only the humble can become wiser through continual realisation of both their gross and subtle mistakes of views and actions. The proud are the blind, who have either stopped learning or have yet to even start. -stonepeace

21/02/05 11:47 AM

Maps

The sutras are maps to liberation. The words on them are symbols for showing the directions. It is perfectly alright to question a map, but the answer of its accuracy comes from using it. To merely hold onto a map or to muse over its symbols is to miss its real purpose. Liberation is the destination beyond the map and its symbols, which only point to the truth (of the nature of reality) and is not the truth itself. This is what the Buddha meant when He said He had not spoken a single word of the Dharma, for the truth cannot be put in words, and can only be experienced. -stonepeace

21/02/05 11:18 AM

Tears of Gratitude

It happens once in a while - tears of gratitude , not sadness, flowing freely during spiritual practice. Gratitude at having encountered the precious Dharma, at being touched by the Compassion and Wisdom of the enlightened ones. Resonance. It happened to me last night during night chanting. It is a sign to me that I am not taking the Dharma for granted, while becoming more aware of my shortcomings. Realising this is heartening, encouraging. Some teachers say unless you cry, your spiritual practice has not really started yet. Am not sure if this applies to everyone, but I see what they mean. -shiqin

21/02/05 10:41 AM

Repent Anyway

I repent for my lack of humility, for assuming that in this day, I have done nothing that needs my repentance. -stonepeace

18/02/05 12:01 AM

Hey, It's Really Nothing Personal!

How can it be a personal thing against you when he doesn't even know you personally? -stonepeace

A woman at a queue kind of yelled at me for being accidentally out of line. But I did not react negatively by yelling back to tell her to take it easy. Because I realised she didn't look like she was purposely provoking me. As I observed, I realised that was kind of the way she talks - in a loud voice. I was glad I didn't give an eye for an eye. The above one-liner by Stonepeace then came to mind. -zeph

17/02/05 11:47 PM

Always Dedicate Merits

Sincerely dedicate your merits to all beings everyday, even if you are not conscious of having done any good. Interestingly, even if you had no merits, your generosity itself, in wanting to share merits creates merits. -stonepeace

17/02/05 11:45 PM

Nothing Attained After Sharing the Heart Sutra

Something funny happened after I gave the concluding sharing session on the Heart Sutra in Sutra Discussion Class last night at Awareness Place Meditation Centre... I caught myself expecting a sense of joy (which usually arises after I give a class) of having completed the two-parter lessons. This craving lasted for about 3 hours, before I realised that I was ironically not living the sutra's message of not seeking attainment of any kind. "There is no wisdom and no attainment." Not that I did a good job, it definitely could had been much better, but it was not exactly poorly delivered too. But if I did not yearn for the sense of satisfaction, and lived the after moments with an ordinary mind instead, it would had been much more equanimous - the way the mind should be, especially after an exposition on such a wonderful sutra. Well, every time I share on the Heart Sutra, I learn something new in a new way. Good... but yes, nothing is attained of course. Nothing should be clung to because there is nothing that can be clung to. -shian

17/02/05 11:36 PM

Zeph & Frens List

In another list related to TheDailyEnlightenment.com, here's the latest "Enlightenment through Entertainment" Dharma-Inspired Movie Review - Constantine... the Constant Bodhisattva? -shian

17/02/05 11:22 PM

Joined Moonpointer-Weekly?

You are cordially invited to click here to join our Moonpointer-Weekly E-Newsletter which updates you on our latest offerings. See a sample of the latest newsletter here. -fellow moonpointers

15/02/05 01:55 PM

Where in the WWW are We?

As to date, if you Google "Buddhist blog", moonpointer.com ranks number 2. It used to rank at the top a while ago. If you Alexa "Buddhist blog", it ranks number 3 and its stats say there had been 4,282,532 hits ( I'm not sure since when though - but we were founded some time in 2003). It ranks number 1 on MSN and 2 (and 4) on Yahoo. Thank you world, for interconnecting us, to let us share the Dharma with an unseen audience. Thank you for your visible and invisible support. -fellow moonpointers

15/02/05 01:34 PM

Why "Mother" Sentient Beings?

It is customary in Tibetan Buddhism to address all sentient beings as "Mother sentient beings", since chances are that in the many rounds of rebirths, everyone had at some point been a loving Mother to us. Sometimes fellow Buddhists wonder why the emphasis is on seeing other beings as "Mothers", since chances seem equal too, that they could had been our harmful enemies in our past lives. Well, the reason is simple. Consider these two scenerios - in the first, everyone sees everyone as an "Enemy sentient being", and in the second, everyone sees everyone as a dear "Mother sentient being." What do you think the first scenerio will develop into? Lots of violence and hate probably. The second scenerio however, nurtures the growth of unconditional compassion and universal filial piety beyond one's present relations. Sentient beings are of empty and thus changing nature. They can be seen as of any relationship to us now or in the past. But one who is wise will choose to see them in the light most skillful for the betterment of oneself and the world. There is no other beneficial relationship more easily related to for the nurturing of compassion than that to one's loving Mother. How can you not care for an ant, which is your kind long-lost Mother? -zyrius

Comments: The help, love and kindness a mother gives us far exceeds all the evils another sentient being can do to us. Because a mother, together with a father, provides the conditions through which we are conceived. They are the source of life upon which all are possible. That is why I think our mother as the one who held us for 9 months and provided the conditions for us to be humans exceeds all other conditions/conduct other humans or beings can do to us, be it positive or negative. In that sense, the kindness of the mother exceeds all worldly kindness and evils. Because without a mother to conceive and give birth to us (in human realm especially where we can practice the Dharma), then no life is possible. Thus also indirectly, mother too provides the conditions of Buddhahood and liberation, by providing us conditions for a precious human rebirth. -LK Assaji

15/02/05 12:42 PM

The Empty Karma Behind the Tsunamis

A Buddhist saying goes, "To endure suffering is to end suffering; To spend blessings is to end blessings."

What the saying means is that to gladly experience unavoidable suffering is to exhaust bad karma, which also makes way for the fruition of good karma. Viewed this way, suffering becomes a blessing instead. Vice versa, to experience well-being without creating more good karma is to exhaust our limited good karma. Viewed this way, spending our blessings makes way for the fruition of bad karma. In these ways, it becomes "good" to experience the bad and "bad" to experience the good. No, this is not a twisted masochistic attitude. It is a simple but effective thought-transformation practice to motivate us to cultivate more good karma without complacency or attachment, and to have no aversion towards any inevitable fruition of bad karma.

If you reflect harder on the saying, it also means that karma is empty of any fixed characteristics - there is ultimately no such thing as "good" or "bad" karma. What matters is how we see and deal with ripening karma and what new karma we sow. Traditionally, one's karma is labelled "bad" the moment one suffers, and is labelled "good" the moment one enjoys a favourable state. But whether one chooses to see suffering as suffering (bad) or enjoyment as enjoyable (good), is entirely up to one's attitude in the moment. It is totally fine to enjoy the moment, but the wise would be simultaneously mindful that enjoyment is not at the price of becoming complacent and attached - a price which might have to be paid for later.

A powerful example of the emptiness of karma is the 2004 Asian tsunami tragedy, which has claimed about 280,000 lives to date, which was labelled by many as the result of the massive fruition of collective bad karma. In truth, it cannot be specifically labelled as good or bad. This is because as much as the tsunamis might have wrecked lives, it has also taught the the victims and the world at large on the importance of human unity, respect for nature, the fragility of life, and countless other invaluable universal lessons. Thus, the tsunamis were essentially empty of any fixed characteristics or intentions; they were simply natural reflections of the empty changing nature of karmic cause and effect at play.

When we realise the emptiness of karma, we become free of karma's trappings. We will then naturally abide in an ever-equanimous state of mind, which allows us to graciously accept anything that happens to us, be it so-called "good", or "bad", which are mere mental labels resulting from our attachment to "good" experiences and aversion to the "bad" ones. -shian

14/02/05 06:31 PM

Have Someone

Happy Valentine's Day! On the subject of love, I remember Dy remarking to me that "It is good to have someone, isn't it?" I know what she means, but that remark disturbed me somewhat. Only now, about a year later, did I realise that the idea of "having someone" is an illusion, in the sense that no one can have anyone, even if one holds another in his or her arms. This is simply because people change all the time, be it for better or for worse. True love is not a thing you can get, but a process of continually understanding another and continually meeting his or her needs for spiritual, and if needed, worldly betterment. If you think you "have" someone and will live happily ever after from this moment onwards, you are wrong. Love is not a prize to gain. Because you can't have anyone, you can only choose to love another person without conditions or attachment, and to learn to let this love grow to encompass more and more. Only then is the love true, spiritual and sacred. -shiqin

14/02/05 05:30 PM

MoonCentral Archives / Articles / Links Up

As you might have noticed, MoonCentral's list of entries here just grows longer and longer. To make you scroll less and search for articles easier, we decided to archive past entries by the month - as you can see at the top of MoonStations on your right. You can also read MoonCentral entries reverse chronologically by clicking "More Entries" at the foot here, and at that of each archive. Articles and Links have also been added to MoonStations. -shian

14/02/05 03:10 PM

The Question of Knowing

I don't know how he (any other person) knows about it, if he really knows or can know about it at all. What I can only know now is what I know. I also know that I have to be sincere to myself all the time, or I'll end up tricking myself every time. The more honest I am to myself, the more I know myself and the nature of what I really know. The path to the truth requires you to first be truthful to yourself. Only so can you see the truth of that beyond yourself. -stonepeace

14/02/05 02:30 PM

Withering Flowers

Was explaining to a friend that the offering of flowers upon a Buddhist shrine is not to beautify it, but to remind us of impermanence, so as to treasure our life which so fleetingly passes by. He sighed that he prefers not to offer flowers, because it saddens him greatly every time he clears them, since they wither so quickly. This reminded me that my explanation was half-complete - we should treasure our life... but without attachment. Exactly for the same reason - because it passes by so quickly. The Buddha had already made peace with the law of impermanence, and this making peace liberated him from all attachment, giving him ultimate freedom. It is us who have not made peace. Thus indeed are the offerings we make not really for the Buddha, but as reminder lessons of the Buddha for us. It seems that the more my friend rejects withering flowers, the more he probably should offer flowers on a regular basis... perhaps till he accepts them. -zeph

14/02/05 02:09 PM

Killing Flowers

I remember giving a temple tour. We came across the Bodhi Tree, a descendent of the original which the Buddha sat under to attain Enlightenment. I remarked that the Buddha was very ecologically conscious. In His time, He administered precepts to the Sangha not to break branches off trees and of the like. A participant of the tour later came up to me and asked why is it that Buddhists offer flowers so much, and how that seems to violate the Buddha's intention of protecting nature. I could only smile and reply, "You are right. I have never thought of this before." May we always choose to offer flowers for the right reason. May we always choose "not to offer flowers" for the right reason. I tend to be the latter.-zeph

14/02/05 02:06 PM

World at Your Feet

A friend came by my house and exclaimed that the view from the window was simply stupendous. He said that it gave him the feeling that he had conquered the world, that the world was at his feet. I find this interesting because I had the opposite feeling. The view makes me feel aloft from the world and worldliness. It gives me a feeling of detachment and liberation. One wants to own the world while another wants to be free of the world, to be free of wanting anything of the world. This view, is an arbitrary asymmetrical Rorschach test. In fact, everything we encounter in this world with our six senses is an inkblot test. You see what you are thinking and feeling, seldom what you are looking at. -shiqin

14/02/05 01:50 PM

Reading Past Lives

"I miss him. But I can only miss him... But is this so? I can let go too." Reading past diaries, I am apalled by how I was sometimes so immature, yet in some instances so mature. Fretful that I might be taking two steps forward and three steps back on the path of spiritual cultivation, I pause to reflect. I'm glad to say that I'd grown on the whole. Like the recollection of semi-familiar past lives, this re-reading. Have always found it useful to write diaries because not only does it help sort out your thoughts, it also serves as a mirror in time to come, to see how far we have outgrown our old "selves" for the better. Diaries are not self-records, but bear testimony to the truth of non-self! -shiqin

12/02/05 12:19 PM

Appeal for Articles on Religious Harmony

We are seeking articles on religious harmony for an upcoming publication.
Please share with us your experiences on the subject.
Buddhist scriptural writings and comments on them on the subject are also welcomed.
Please send by the "comment" link below.

07/02/05 07:36 PM

Goodwill

Good is it to express good-will to those of good-will.
Superior is one who expresses good-will even when given ill-will.
It is all too easy to express ill-will.

The superior way is often not the easier way -
that is why so few walk it,
that is why walking it is superior. -stonepeace

07/02/05 07:18 PM

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