Q: How do you know that the Buddha’s teachings is the truth? A: Through active learning, practising, testing and questioning the teachings. There is no world religion or philosophy that confidently advocates as much diligent intelligent doubting  with clarifying, and personal...

From the graphic novel ‘Americus’ by MK Reed and Jonathan Hill is this amusing frame. According to the Bible, everything arose less than 6,000 years ago, while modern science points to fossils dated back to the Archean Eon, some 4.6 to 2.5 billion years ago. When Creationists...

From the movie, ‘An Education’ Headmistress: Have you set a date? Have you decided on a church? Jenny: We won’t be getting married in a church. David’s Jewish. Headmistress: Jewish? He’s a Jew? You are aware, I take it, that the Jews killed our Lord...

From the movie, ‘An Education’: Jenny: David, if tomorrow night does happen, it’s only ever going to happen once. David: Why will it only ever happen once? Jenny: Because the first time can only ever happen once. (She loses her virginity to him later.) David: It wasn’t...

What is good only for you is seldom really good for you, as it arises from selfishness. What is good for others is always good for you too, if it arises from selflessness. -...

Dukkha is suffering from Birth Ageing Sickness Death Departure from who/what we like, Being with who/what we dislike, Failing to achieve what we like or to be with who we like, Form, feeling, perception, mental formations, consciousness (Five Aggregates) subject to clinging Dukkha is from...

Review of ‘Walking The Tiger’s Path – A Soldier’s Spiritual Journey in Iraq’ By Paul M. Kendel The war genre for books has never been my cup of tea. To me, there is just too much stupidity and hurting in war. My first contact on the subject of war was through...

This is a response to Lee Yue Heng’s article ‘Fifty Steps Laugh At One Hundred Steps’ at http://ahhengwrites.blogspot.com/2012/05/fifty-steps-laugh-at-one-hundred-steps.html as on 21.05.12. It’s a strange title, with a strange explanation, because it assumes vegans...

There is an interesting pro-vegetarian article (28.01.12) titled ‘Why Buddhists Should Be Vegetarian’ at http://sujato.wordpress.com/2012/01/28/why-buddhists-should-be-vegetarian-with-extra-cute It comes from a Theravada monk, as a pleasant surprise. This particular set of...

Someone initiated a debate on vegetarianism on one of my pro-vegan Facebook posts: http://moonpointer.com/new/2012/05/all-mothers-deserve-respect-of-course Each non pro-vegan point from him was systematically debated over and overcome. Next, he writes a lengthy blog post, seemingly to...

Lee Yue Heng (L): [On his non pro-vegan link being deleted from S's Facebook profile.]  It seems like I was censored by Shen Shi’an. If it is indeed true, I concede that he has every right to suppress views that he did not agree with, but nevertheless I find it intriguing… Shen...

Here is a discussion initiated by L, which he claims to be robust, which isn’t, IMHO… At least, not from his side. But I’ll leave whether this is really so for readers to decide. If you are already pro-vegan, you might just wish to skip his parts, though they do seem to...

From ‘The Avengers’ movie: Steve Rogers: Doc… I think now is the perfect time for you to get angry.  Bruce Banner: That’s my secret, Cap[tain America], I’m always angry. Cap was suggesting Banner to transform into the Hulk there and then to help save the day....

A surprise email arrived on a mediation case between two people I helped some time ago. Here is my abridged reply: My apologies for any perceived and actual misgivings from my side. Reflecting on this, I sincerely believe I did the best I could back then to help, foolish and inadequate as I...

Advice to a Dharma student: If you don’t stick to a proper practice group with continual learning and guidance, these problems (which you just faced) of encountering deviated teachings via your random exploration are likely to recur. This is a reason why the Buddha clearly taught that...

There is no soul, as in an unchanging mental entity. If it is there, why did we change to be the way we are? If it is there, how can we change to be better? There is however, Buddha-nature - the potential to become enlightened, perfect in compassion and...

At a Buddhist temple, there were prayers… that ended with the wish for all beings to be well and happy. This is followed by the emcee announcing that they are organising a charity dinner, that it includes two special tables, catered for vegetarians. Wow! Amazing stuff… when, with...

“Hundreds of thousands of baby male chicks are either ground up alive or discarded like trash to die more slowly, piled by the hundreds, even thousands, on top of one another in bins every single day in order to satiate the egg and chicken-meat industry. The majority of male chicks are...

C: A young lady came looking for a job in a Buddhist organisation. Do you happen to know of any? S: Hmmm…. nothing on my list at the moment, but she might like to subscribe to www.TheDailyEnlightenment.com to look out at the Notices section. Also, she might want to try an unconventional...

Those we encounter, are seldom totally good or evil. If so, we choose to have gratitude for their goodness or to bear grudges against their evil. The first rewards oneself. The latter punishes oneself. Do choose...