When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: “If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.” It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself:...

The Buddha taught, ‘Even if low-down criminals should cut you limb from limb with a double-handled saw, if you filled your mind with hatred, you would not be practising my teachings.’ Seriously challenging… but if we become angry, it only adds mental agony to the physical...

Because cat-lovers love stray cats, they are increasingly neutered by them, so as to save them from being culled. Because cat-lovers love stray cats, they are less and less of them. Excess love drives the beloved to (near-)extinction? It is not always a bad thing though, as long as there is...

Good to be wary of those who hesitate to exercise their moral responsibility, by playing safe and sticking to the imperfect letter of the law written by the unenlightened. Good to be wary of becoming one of those, who skirt around making firm moral stands, who are ambiguous,...

Other than the fact that sour cream is made by robbing calves of milk from mother cows, another good reason to avoid sour cream is that you can’t tell if it has really turned...

Occasionally, I write politely and detailedly to other Buddhist teachers and non-Buddhist authors to ask or comment on certain issues, such as perceived misportrayals of the Dharma on their part. Some of whom are prominent. Their websites portray them to welcome query emails. But hey…...

Lost a good idea within a finger snap Arghhh! Imagine if this happens on the deathbed. Arghhh! Not a good idea then, no matter how good it seems. Amituofo! (Best thought and...

He gave his shoes a shake, to empty it of any dirt, before putting them on. But he had forgotten, that he has dirt on the soles of his feet, as he put on the shoes. This, in fact, is the reason why he always has dirt in his shoes. When we focus on looking for faults out there, we forget to...

Anjali! As our left and right brains represent our rational and emotional sides, when we place our palms together in reverence, may it be the coming together of our wisdom and compassion, the unifying, centering of our head with...

If a pet has died, will you get a new pet? Will you relive the possible pain of departure again? Will you be better braced, or too shakened? The same questions apply to all relationships, which will end in one way or another. Ultimately, the question is - How ready are you for your ongoing...

Sometimes, a photograph as a self-portrait is the best representation of yourself. But this only represents how you see yourself. Is it the most accurate portrayal of you? Sometimes, a photograph as a self-portrait is the best representation of our self-deception, which might deceive others...

It is a mystery to me, how he really looks like, for he looks so different in different pictures, and in person, from different angles. It is not exactly that I never took a good look, but that it is impossible to take a conclusive look - because people change, faces change. Me...

Which is the true face? The one beneath the hair? The one beneath the make-up? The one beneath the expression? The one beneath the skin? Which is the true face? The one that has no body? The one that has no shape? The one that has no form? The one that is in the mind? Which is the true...

A Tit for a Tat (330) Tit: I don’t associate with jerks! Tat: Am I a jerk? Tit: A jerk by definition won’t define oneself as one! Tat: A jerk by definition might define another as one! Tit: Am I a jerk? Tat: No one sees themselves as jerks, while they might see others to be...

Rāhul was raised by his mother and grandfather, King Suddhodana. When he was seven years old, the Buddha returned to his home city of Kapilavatthu at the request of his father who missed him dearly. On the seventh day of his return, Yasodharā took Rāhula to see his father, the Buddha....

I love how this piece of news is flipping perceptions around: http://independent.co.uk/news/science/candles-shine-new-light-on-diamonds-2339499.html Diamond dust forged in candle flames ‘Magical’ transmutation An unlikely haiku. Another wonderful reminder of how forms deemed...

A very powerful speaker, with no wasted words. Just when you think he’s going overboard to get on your nerves, he holds back and explains the indignation with solid hard facts. And he keeps you listening and reflecting. I can imagine many school kids transformed by his lectures. If...

A Tit for a Tat (329) Tit: Sometimes, folks enter the lift with overpowering perfume. Tat: Hold your nose then. Tit: That seems rude? Tat: Is wearing overpowering perfume rude too? Tit: Kind of… but… Tat: Just hold your breath then! Tit: Don’t I have the right to show my...

Sunyata (Emptiness) = Anicca (Impermanence) + Anatta (Unsubstantiality; Non-self) Anicca refers to all physical and mental phenomena not being with solid fixed nature at any time as they change from moment to moment. Anicca describes phenomena in terms of nothing physical and mental enduring...

This has been going around in email. But it’s good to share it here too: (The lines in blue are my additions.) 1. No point using limited life to chase unlimited money. 2. No point earning so much money you cannot live to spend it. 3. Money is not yours until you spend it. 4. When you...