In ‘Aftershock’, a foster mother-to-be asks to ensure that the girl she wants to adopt really has no surviving family. She says she doesn’t wish to lose her after adopting. Made me reflect on how we knowingly form attachment, when we know we have to part with the...

From Itivuttaka 4.8:  This was said by the Blessed One, said by the Arahant, so I have heard: “Monks, brahmans & householders are very helpful to you, as they provide you with the requisites of robes, alms food, lodgings, & medical requisites for the sick. And you, monks,...

S: Stonepeace said, ‘One who says many to be evil might be the one most evil.’ (常说人人不好的人可能是最不好的人.) Is the monkey that points at evil instead of seeing, hearing and saying nothing about evil always evil? C:...

There are two unlabeled toilet cubicles in the office. Most males use one, that became the less clean one. It’s less clean, I guess, because males are generally less sensitive about cleanliness? But I’m not one of them! So now I use the other one, since there is no hard and fast...

A friend admiring butterflies posts this on Facebook, ‘What is the significance of a butterfly?’ I could say ‘It has potential huge significance!’ Think the Butterfly Effect! But I said this, ‘Remind me of this by Alice Walker: “The animals of the world...

There is already a dirt track formed along the shortcut (on the slope). Why not use it? Because it will deepen and broaden it, because it would promote creation of dirt tracks at the expense of more plants and insects. Related Article: Longer Route of...

Do you mind not calling me extreme… because I don’t support the cutting of any animal’s throat? because I don’t shove dead animals down my throat? because I don’t shove vegan food down any other human’s throat? because I don’t use stuff stolen from...

She spoke of her fears of how he might not return. I consoled her that we all face the same problem, that our loved ones might not return due to many reasons. Even if they do not walk out on us, they might die suddenly in a mishap, like her, like me, like anyone else. Even if he returns, it...

I encountered someone who seem perfectly normal, who turned out to be suicidal. I had a chat with him, to discuss his woes, with sprinkles of advice. I’m glad I didn’t pay less attention, that I didn’t turn away in his time of need, that I was able to offer a listening...

A mistake that many make is to ask non-specialists questions that require specialised knowledge. E.g. Why ask a Theravada teacher about Mahayana teachings if he is unlikely to know or practise them? Just as you won’t ask an eye specialist about the heart, why ask a heart specialist...

The waitress politely asked if I would like a drink. I shook my head in reply. A few minutes later… The waitress politely asked if I would like a drink again. I shook my head in reply again. She must have forgotten she had asked… So… Was she really polite two times, or...

W: Always choose the harder path, as they say, the harder path is always the right path… But what if both are equally hard? X: What happened to the Middle Path? W: The Middle Path doesn’t mean a path that is neither easy nor hard. It means doing the right thing. And doing the...

An extended dialogue: S: Is it possible to use soy milk as one of the auspicious offering items instead of cow milk for the Tara retreat? I’m making this request due to the plight of milk cows these days: ‘Cattle reared for milk production are exploited and made to suffer,...

In the light of some debate over the questionable integrity of a so-called ‘monastic’, she said, ‘Sometimes, I feel so ashamed to be a Buddhist!’ No need to feel shame as a lay Buddhist, I said, just because a so-called ‘monastic’ is shameless. Just take...

The more you learn the Dharma, the harder is it to share the Dharma, as you realise the depth of the Dharma. Yet… The more you learn the Dharma, the easier is it to share the Dharma, as you realise the essence of the...

I worry for Dharma friends who learn from many teachers, because they might become confused if there are (‘seemingly’) contradicting teachings (that they can’t reconcile). I worry for Dharma friends who learn from only one teacher, because they might become disappointed if...

Amulets might offer some protection - but they cannot protect anyone from eventual death. Amulets might offer some blessings - but they cannot give anyone eternal deathlessness (liberation). The true Amulet to don on oneself is Dharma practice, which creates boundless merits, which leads to...

A semi-fictitious conversation with a friend going on a three-week retreat of sorts… S: Come back enlightened! T: Huh? Er…. S: Okay, okay… come back ‘more...

What is this… without seven syllables – here? Haiku? What is this… that needs not rhyme? Haiku? What is this… with so many sets of three lines? Haiku? What is this… a joke, mystery or surprise? Haiku? (Haikus are traditionally three-liner poems structured in a...

Begin stationary, symmetrically with balance. Move in between, asymmetrically with balance. End stationary, symmetrically with balance. Balance is already a form of symmetry. Stationary meditation looks physically symmetrical though the mind is asymmetrical too, if it moves in any direction...