Moonpointer : Buddhist Blog of Everyday Dharma




  1. Pages:
  2. «
  3. 1
  4. 2
  5. 3
  6. 4
  7. 5
  8. 6
  9. 7
  10. ...
  11. 81
  12. »
  • Ad

  • Poll

    Which is Your Favourite of the Eight Holy Places?

    View Results

    Loading ... Loading ...
    • Polls Archive
  • Slideshow

      Get the Flash Player to see the slideshow.
  • Random Photos

    Kiyomizu-Compound2.gif MtKoya-KonpondaitoPagoda.gif Ryoanji-Pond1.gif P1020231 Tenryuji-DarumaPainting2.gif P1030014Ds Chionin-AmidaBuddha1.gif P1020285 NyakuojiShrine-Path.gif
  • Stonepeace@Twitter

    • That it is possible to be more and more enlightened is more important than whether enlightenment is possible or not [though it is]. 2010/03/12
    • The real magic is not in the mystical but in the demystification of what seems magical. This is called enlightenment. 2010/03/10
    • Bodhisattvas think of what others need first, while ordinary beings think of what they want first. 2010/03/09
    • While rationalisation is good if it benefits, it is evil if it harms, while only realisation [of things as they are] is both good and true. 2010/03/09
    • The path to ultimate freedom lies in being less and less bound by both physical and mental shackles. 2010/03/08
  • Subscribe Moonpointer-Daily

    Subscribe
  • Subscribe Moonpointer-Weekly

  • AdLinks

  • Moonpointer Friends

  • Past Blogs







  • Links

    • Buddhist Channel
    • LivingVegan
    • Peta
    • Sea Shepherd
    • Sharkwater
    • TDE
    • VSS
  • Tags

    • acceptance
    • agnosticism
    • Amitabha Buddha
    • Amituofo
    • Anatta
    • anger
    • Anicca
    • animal welfare
    • appeal
    • appearance
    • appreciation
    • Arahat
    • Arhathood
    • arrogance
    • art
    • aspiration
    • astrology
    • asura
    • atheism
    • attachment
    • attitude
    • aversion
    • beauty
    • belief
    • blame
    • blessing
    • blessings
    • bliss
    • Bodhicitta
    • Bodhidharma
    • Bodhisattva
    • Bodhisattvas
    • book
    • boredom
    • Buddha
    • Buddha-nature
    • Buddhahood
    • Buddhas
    • calmness
    • celebration
    • change
    • chanting
    • chaos
    • charity
    • clinging
    • commitment
    • communication
    • compassion
    • complacency
    • complaint
    • concentration
    • confidence
    • conflict
    • conscience
    • consumerism
    • contentment
    • courage
    • craving
    • cruelty
    • cult
    • death
    • dedication
    • defilements
    • delusion
    • demon
    • depression
    • design
    • desire
    • despair
    • destiny
    • deva
    • devotion
    • Dharma
    • Dharmakaya
    • Dharmapala
    • diligence
    • disappointment
    • discrimination
    • distraction
    • dogma
    • domestication
    • doubt
    • dream
    • duality
    • Dukkha
    • dying
    • ego
    • Ehipassiko
    • empathy
    • emptiness
    • enlightenment
    • enmity
    • Environmentalism
    • equanimity
    • euthanasia
    • evil
    • evolution
    • existential crisis
    • existentialism
    • expectation
    • faith
    • fantasy
    • fate
    • fear
    • feelings
    • finance
    • forgiveness
    • Four Noble Truths
    • freedom
    • free enquiry
    • friendship
    • gamble
    • game
    • generosity
    • ghost
    • give blood
    • globalisation
    • God
    • gods
    • goodness
    • gratitude
    • greed
    • grief
    • Guanyin
    • guilt
    • guru
    • haiku
    • happiness
    • harmony
    • hatred
    • healing
    • heavens
    • hell
    • honesty
    • honey
    • hope
    • humanity
    • humility
    • humour
    • hungry ghost
    • ignorance
    • illusion
    • impermanence
    • intention
    • interconnection
    • interde
    • interdependence
    • intoxication
    • invest
    • investment
    • jealousy
    • judgement
    • justice
    • Kalyanamitra
    • karma
    • killing
    • kindness
    • koan
    • leadership
    • letting go
    • liberation
    • life
    • light
    • loss
    • love
    • loving-kindness
    • lust
    • lying
    • Mahayana
    • mandala
    • mantra
    • Mara
    • marriage
    • materialism
    • meaning
    • meaning of life
    • meditation
    • memory
    • merits
    • Middle Way
    • milk
    • mind
    • mindfulness
    • miracle
    • moment
    • monastics
    • money
    • monster
    • morality
    • mystery
    • myth
    • nihilism
    • Nirvana
    • Noble Eightfold Path
    • nothing
    • now
    • offering
    • Organic
    • organ transplant
    • pain
    • paradox
    • paramitas
    • parenthood
    • parinirvana
    • past lives
    • patience
    • peace
    • percception
    • perception
    • perfection
    • perseverance
    • pilgrimage
    • politics
    • pollution
    • possibilities
    • power
    • practice
    • prayer
    • prayers
    • precepts
    • prejudice
    • pride
    • priority
    • procrastination
    • prophesy
    • punishment
    • Pure Land
    • Pureland
    • purity
    • purpose
    • quantum
    • reality
    • reason
    • rebirth
    • rebirths
    • recycling
    • reflection
    • refuge
    • regret
    • regrets
    • rejoice
    • relativity
    • relics
    • religions
    • repentance
    • resistance
    • respect
    • responsibility
    • retreat
    • retribution
    • reverence
    • ritual
    • sacrifice
    • Samsara
    • Sangha
    • self
    • self-fulfilling prophesy
    • selfishness
    • selflessness
    • sex
    • sexuality
    • shojin ryori
    • shrine
    • sickness
    • sincerity
    • skilful means
    • smile
    • sorrow
    • speciesism
    • speech
    • stealing
    • Stonepeace
    • Stream-winner
    • stress
    • stubbornness
    • stupa
    • stupidity
    • suffering
    • suicide
    • sun
    • Sutra
    • Sutta
    • technology
    • terrorism
    • The Dalai Lama
    • Theravada
    • Threefold Refuge
    • time
    • tradition
    • transience
    • translation
    • Triple Gem
    • True Happiness
    • True Love
    • trust
    • truth
    • truthfulness
    • twitter
    • universe
    • Vegetarianism & Veganism
    • vengeance
    • victory
    • violence
    • virtues
    • vow
    • war
    • wealth
    • will
    • wisdom
    • writing
    • Zen

Why I Didn’t Promise Her

By shiqin on 27 Feb 2010 under Odds & Ends | Your Comment | Tags: Amitabha Buddha, mindfulness, Pure Land, vow

A friend once asked me
to never forget her,
to remember to ’save’ her,
to lead her to Pure Land,
should I reach there first.

I didn’t promise her
because me being mindful of her
cannot bring her to Pure Land,
while it is her mindfulness of Amituofo [Amitabha Buddha]
that can lead her to Pure Land.

Amituofo is already her best friend,
instead of me,
whether she knows this or not.
He already made unshakable vows to help all.
Who am I, an unenlightened fool to compare?

I might not reach there faster.
Please don’t place any ‘bets’ on me.
I won’t place ‘bets’ on her either.
Let us all just be mindful of Amituofo,
And he will do the rest!

(pic: http://cafepress.com/+amituofo_ringer_t,16932044)




Life, Door & Veil

By shian on 27 Feb 2010 under Comics & Graphic Novels | Your Comment | Tags: compassion, mindfulness

From ‘Prince of Persia’ by A. B. Sina et al:

Guiv: (Injuring a lion that almost killed him in defence; without killing him) No one gave me the power to take life.
Peacock: (When lion pounces on Guiv again and is slashed dead) No one gave you power to spare life.

Comments: We give ourselves the power to take or spare lives from moment to moment. Choose mindfully!

Peacock: Why open [the door]?
Guiv: Because, Peacock, that’s what a door is for. (Forces it open and almost falls into a pit)
Peacock: A door is also to be closed.

Comments: A door is for opening and closing at the right time in the right way, and may or may not hide something. Open and close mindfully!

Man 1: Why is he veiled, anyway?
Man 2: They say he’s too ugly to show his face.
Man 3: I heard he’s too beautiful to show his face.

Comments: A veil can hide ugliness or beauty, but why must it hide only ‘extremes’? It can also conceal plainness or something else. But why speculate at all? Why not just unveil the truth mindfully if you can?




Operation Bogus Bust (Part 2)

By zyrius on 26 Feb 2010 under Current Affairs | 3 Comments | Tags: lying, monastics, stealing

bust

Please feel free to…

1. Send this link http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/02/operation-bogus-bust-part-2 to share this article with your friends.
2. Download the above A3 poster at
http://moonpointer.com/downloads/bustbw.pdf (Colour version at http://moonpointer.com/downloads/bustcolor.pdf) for pasting at hotspots and giving to shopowners where bogus monastics frequent.
3. Download the above as
A5 flyers at http://moonpointer.com/downloads/bustflyer.pdf to circulate at the same hotspots.
4. Translate the poster to other languages applicable for the Singapore context.

Below is a related unpublished letter to share, that was sent to press.

More Policing Against Bogus Monastics Needed

From the complaints of various friends, the appearance of bogus monastics or so-called ‘Buddhist monks and nuns (in white)’ is clearly still a recurring problem in Singapore. They thrive partly due to the still prevalent ignorance of the public that they are unholy confidence tricksters in disguise. As such, it would be good if the Singapore Police Force (SPF) regularly reminds the public via various media that such criminals should be reported and not supported.

This is especially so as under the Miscellaneous Offences Act, ‘anyone who collects alms or solicits charitable contributions under false pretences can be fined up to $2,000 or jailed up to three months, or both.’ Educational posters created by SPF in various languages put up at public places of worship and housing estates could prove useful in stamping out bogus monastics too.

In the past, bogus monastics usually stood stationary at busy public places to solicit for money (instead of food or basic non-monetary daily requisites, which is what genuine monastics would seek locally). However, after some legal scares, these criminals are much smarter nowadays, by being mobile with their bowls, moving from place to place. With this change in their methodology, it is much harder to apprehend them, even when the police are called for.

If the police wish to more conscientiously trace and weed out these increasingly cunning illegal elements, they ought to respond to calls upon sightings of bogus monastics by arriving swiftly in plain clothes to tail bogus monastics to their headquarters. From personal experience a few years back, I once called the police for investigating the identities of two bogus monastics, who were standing outside the popular temple at Waterloo Street. To my surprise, they had informers. Upon sighting two uniformed policemen some fifty metres away, the ‘monks’ fled, while the police arrived puzzled at the empty crime scene.

Related Article:

The below article was published in the January-March 2010 issue
of Nanyang Buddhist (Singapore Buddhist Federation’s quarterly magazine)

Operation Bogus Bust (Part 1)
http://moonpointer.com/new/2009/09/bust-the-bogus




Logo for ‘A Tit for a Tat’ Series

By shian on 25 Feb 2010 under Odds & Ends | Your Comment | Tags: humour, wisdom

Presenting the logo for Moonpointer.com’s
‘A Tit for a Tat’ series!
If you have ideas for a better design, do let me know!

There are now more than 100 aT4aT entries,
all of which aim to be pithy dialogues marrying wit with wisdom.

If you havn’t seen them yet,
you can read them backwards from entry #103 onwards at
http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/02/speak-up-or-hang-up




(Concise) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’

By zyrius on 24 Feb 2010 under Current Affairs | 1 Comment | Tags: God, harmony

From http://buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=22,8959,0,0,1,0 &
http://kmspks.org/download/clear_misconceptions.pdf (slightly different version)


[This is a concise version of the article at http://tinyurl.com/ronytan]

With regards to the article at http://buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=57,8912,0,0,1,0 on Pastor Rony Tan’s misconceptions on Buddhism, this article hopes to rectify the misrepresentations of Buddhism in his online videos. (The videos can be seen at http://youtube.com/user/miraculoustv)

1. Last Words of the Buddha: The Buddha’s last words were ‘Subject to change are all conditioned things. Strive on with diligence.’ He was urging us to strive on the way (the Noble Eightfold Path) to liberation (Nirvana; enlightenment) that he already discovered, walked and shared.

2. Definition of Nirvana: Nirvana is the perfectly blissful state of liberation from all causes of dissatisfactions, that the historical Buddha personally realised and taught. How swiftly it is attained depends on how diligently one practises the Noble Eightfold Path to realise the necessary wisdom. As Nirvana is eventual with practice, many have attained it in history. It is a state of awakening led to by the awakened.

Read more




Goodness & Truth

By shian on 23 Feb 2010 under Odds & Ends | Your Comment | Tags: compassion, delusion, evil, goodness, truth, wisdom

Good intentions are not good enough if they arise from delusion.
This is why Buddhism pays attention to both
goodness (compassion; the opposite of evil intentions, speech and actions)
and truth (wisdom; the opposite of delusion).

- Sisyphusian




What’s Always Cool?

By shian on 23 Feb 2010 under Movies/TV | Your Comment | Tags: compassion, wisdom

This is one of my favourite Batman scenes from the 1966 TV series. Watch and listen carefully. It’s side-splittingly hilarious! It made me think…. this could had been pretty cool in its time, but is now seen as mostly as super camp. Now look at how much darker Batman has become in our times. Even a brief scene of Batman in action in broad daylight is seen as totally uncool.

I wondered what constitutes the true and universal meaning of ‘cool’ – that is really timeless. And the answer suddenly struck me. Cool is nothing to do with trying to be so. What’s always cool is genuine compassion coupled with wisdom – in all its forms. Super cool. (No real shark was hurt in the making of the above… I think. Come on… which shark would cling to a leg out of water for so long?!)




Speak Up or Hang Up

By shian on 23 Feb 2010 under Odds & Ends | Your Comment | Tags: communication, perception

A Tit for a Tat (103)

Tit: The caller hung up. So impatient!
Tat: What did you say?
Tit: I asked him to speak up – as I couldn’t hear him properly.
Tat: Maybe he couldn’t hear you properly too!
Tit: Huh?
Tat: Which is why he hung up – instead of speak up!

Next aT4aT: http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/03/excuse-for-less-mindfulness
Previous aT4aT: http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/02/whats-the-matter




What’s the Matter?

By shian on 23 Feb 2010 under Odds & Ends | Your Comment | Tags: ignorance, perception

A Tit for a Tat (102)

Tit: There’s no need for you to know it.
Tat: Why?
Tit: Because it doesn’t matter to you.
Tat: But how do you know it doesn’t matter?
Tit: And how do you know it does matter?
Tat: I don’t! I will know if it matters only after knowing what’s the matter!

Next aT4aT: http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/02/speak-up-or-hang-up
Previous aT4aT: http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/02/kockroach-karma




Do You Love Shocking Honesty?

By shian on 23 Feb 2010 under Movies/TV | Your Comment | Tags: acceptance, communication, guilt, honesty, True Love

Love is the only shocking act left on the planet. – Reed Bennett

If you are honest, and would like others to be honest, how would you take it if your otherwise perfectly ‘faithful’ spouse of many years tells you that she once had a very brief affair in your absence a long time ago? In the movie ‘Valentine’s Day’, an old lady confesses so to her husband so on Valentine’s Day itself – because she couldn’t stand the guilt.

At first, the husband couldn’t take it. He remarks that the newfound truth makes the rest of the relationship all lies – since it was covered up for some time. It seemed that he preferred not to know the truth – which seemed to spoil it all. But later in the night, he reflects and realises that love is about acceptance of a person, warts and all.

But what if you are the wife? Knowing your husband is honest and ‘prefers’ honesty, plus the fact that you are honest to him in all aspects other than the secret short-lived affair, would you reveal it to him – knowing that there is equal possibility of him accepting the truth versus feeling repulsion about it? Is it worth the risk? If someone admits their mistake to you out of love, shouldn’t you appreciate it instead of hate it?

Are some things really better off left unsaid? Does the truth, even ugly ones, always set us free? Or can it wreck our lives? Does it differ on a case by case basis? But aren’t relationships about honest communication of thoughts and feelings? If a relationship cannot withstand a little blemish, how true and worthy is it? Honesty should only strengthen instead of weaken it.

Unconditional love is the only truly shocking act in the universe. – Anonone





  • Features

    • About Us
    • Contact Us / Submit Article
    • Album : India
    • Album : Borobudur
    • Album : Hong Kong
    • Album : Japan 1
    • Album : Japan 2
    • Album : Japan 3
    • How I Became Veg*n
    • Japan Tales
    • Movie Reviews With Buddhist Views
    • Zeph Stories
    • A Love History
    • Poll Archive
    • Moonpointer Wall
  • New Posts

    • Why Not Cop Out?
    • From Asanga to Maitreya, Shantideva to Nagarjuna
    • How Vegan is Your Organic Food?
    • Two Monks Too Different
    • An Easy Gauge of Your Good & Evil
    • ‘A Serious Man’ with Serious Doubts?
    • This is a Bad Time
    • The Invisible Colour of Attachment
    • Buddha Astray?
    • Forgot What to Remember
    • Wisdom of Forgiveness
    • Unchanging Love
    • Who is the Real One?
    • Inconceivable Cosmic Proportions
    • India Adventures (12) : More Photos
  • Recent Comments

    keefreddiekeefreddie on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    jilexinjilexin on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    jilexinjilexin on An Easy Gauge of Your Good & Evil
    keefreddiekeefreddie on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    PleaseWriteInPleaseWriteIn on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    keefreddiekeefreddie on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    keefreddiekeefreddie on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    PleaseWriteInPleaseWriteIn on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    SKSK on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    WhynotWhynot on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    aBuddhistaBuddhist on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    keefreddiekeefreddie on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    keefreddiekeefreddie on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    WhynotWhynot on (Detailed) Clarifications of Misconceptions in Pastor Rony Tan’s Videos on ‘Buddhism’
    jane ongjane ong on What’s Wrong With Fur, Leather & Wool?
  • Food For Life

    Headquarters for the world's largest vegetarian food relief organization, serving up to one million freshly cooked vegetarian meals to the needy every day around the world.

  • Tweet

    • India Album is up! Click here

    • We are suspending our comment function on our old blogs till further notice. Please be patient with us. Thank you.

    • Share your views via commenting or write to us via Contact Us/Submit Article

    • You can still visit old Moonpointer by clicking here

  • Categories

    • Announcements (26)
    • Books (43)
    • Comics & Graphic Novels (53)
    • Current Affairs (25)
    • Designs (9)
    • Environmentalism (26)
    • Movies/TV (133)
    • Music (41)
    • Notices (2)
    • Odds & Ends (341)
    • Photojournal (96)
    • Poll (6)
    • Quotations (34)
    • Relationships (20)
    • Travelogue (21)
    • Vegetarianism & Veganism (82)
  • New Archives

    • March 2010 (27)
    • February 2010 (45)
    • January 2010 (56)
    • December 2009 (32)
    • November 2009 (56)
    • October 2009 (34)
    • September 2009 (55)
    • August 2009 (59)
    • July 2009 (55)
    • June 2009 (60)
    • May 2009 (29)
    • April 2009 (49)
    • March 2009 (59)
    • February 2009 (54)
    • January 2009 (53)
    • December 2008 (63)
    • November 2008 (18)
  • ADBooks

  • More Links






  • Veggie Posters

  • RSS Buddhist Vegan Fellowship

    • Introducing Kyabje Chatral Rinpoche
    • Not A Laughing Matter
    • 狄葆贤语录 Quote by Di Baoxian
    • 愿云禅师《护生歌》
    • 弘一大师语录 Quote by Master Hongyi
  • RSS TDE

    • 11.03.10 : The Real Magic | An Easy Gauge of Your Good & Evil | How
    • 04.03.10 : Do the Worthier | Can a ?Creator God? be 'Created'? |
    • 25.02.10: Praise & Blame | Correcting Rony's Mistakes | What If the
    • 19.02.10 : How Best to Protect the Dharma | Misconceptions in Rony T
    • 05.02.10 : What's Left To Do | What If the Joke's On You? | Please F
  • RSS Buddhist Channel

    • Beloved Korean monk Pup Jeong dies
    • China refutes Dalai charge on annihilating Buddhism
    • A group of Buddhists rejected by Pyongyang
    • Tzu Chi: For the common good
    • The heart of Buddhism
Avatars by Sterling Adventures
  1. Pages:
  2. «
  3. 1
  4. 2
  5. 3
  6. 4
  7. 5
  8. 6
  9. 7
  10. ...
  11. 81
  12. »




Creative Commons License