In ‘Made of Wood’ by Ed Brubaker, Batman says this -

‘There’s a moment… right before my grapple cable goes taut… when it’s just me and the ground hovering somewhere far below… a moment of freefall… a moment of total calm. I will never tell anyone how much I enjoy that moment. Or how good it feels on some mornings to see the sun rising over my city… after a full night’s work. In the light of a new day, it almost feels like Gotham is lifting itself out of the mire… Feels like all my work, all my sacrifice, is worthwhile. Seeing the sun gleaming off those skyscraper… gives me something I need to go on each night. Helps me carry on my mission.’

Batman manages to enjoy brief respites in mid air despite the tedium of his continual mission – a moment of suspension in ‘nothingness’, when all is let go off, including his attachment to justice and aversion to crime. Isn’t this the true meaning of rest – that is both physical and spiritual? There is also rest that comes from knowing a worthy hard night’s work is done. True contentment must arise from having done one’s best; not from doing nothing. Later, he tells Green Lantern this -

‘I know that feeling [of despair, when the police radio announces more crimes]. That moment of satisfaction that’s always ripped away too soon. But there’s good people here, too… people worth fighting for.’

The only reason Bodhisattvas stay in Samsara is not because they are samsaric, but that we are. There is only one kind of despair that it alright – that which leads to the end of despair, which enlightened beings realise, as they continue aiding those in despair.

The above is a fan video, while here’s a different interpretation of the lyrics of ‘Morning Star’ by Flunk:

… You are my morning star
It’s just the way you are
When the orange sky
Kiss the night goodbye…

It’s not the way you move
It’s not the way you walk
It’s just the way you are
Oh you’re my morning star

It’s just the way you are
You are my morning star
Ah, ah, ah, ah , ah, ah
My morning star

It is said that the dawn of the Buddha’s enlightenment culminated at the moment he saw the rise of the Morning Star, which is really the planet Venus at its brightest – in the East at sunrise in the morning or in the West at sunset in the evening. (Venus is also called the Evening Star, though stars technically are suns, though they resemble untwinkling stars.) Relating to it, here’s this:

Truth is my Morning Star.
Truth – you’re just the way you are.
Without you, there is no point, no beacon, no light.
Ah, ah, ah, ah , ah, ah…
My morning star.

Ironically, though non-vegetarian non-nature-lovers are less compassionate
than non-vegetarian nature-lovers who protect selective animals,
they are less discriminative as they don’t bother about all animals in general,
other than wanting to eat some of them.

Every animal needlessly facing the knife
for someone’s meal is an endangered animal,
even if there are millions of them [e.g. chickens].

- Stonepeace

Related Article:
Something Interesting about Some Nature-Lovers
http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/05/something-interesting-about-nature-lovers

Most importantly,
instead of focusing on complaining or fearing
that others pull down our socks (e.g. denigrate Buddhism),

is that we pull up their socks up so high,
that the disagreeable find it hard to pull them down,
or to pull theirs as high as ours.

S: Long general Buddhist courses (some spanning years, including degrees) might appear comprehensive, but this is often an illusion as there are so many topics to cover, that it is a matter of touch and go for many sub-topics. For example, if I know there is a place in Singapore that teaches the Pure Land practice in English, with as much detail as I do, there would no need for me to hold classes on the subject. I’ll just gladly promote this course. Also due to the lack of time for coverage, general courses also unwittingly end up giving partial and thus biased unbalanced views of certain teachings. Sad but true.

M: Yes, kind of inevitable but still, it can be avoided. Certain foundational teachings that are much easier to accept or understand, which are also important should make known to more – provided that they are taught inside-out and with clear explanations. Briefly touching on them will not be beneficial especially when doubts are not cleared and may produce even more doubts. This is the problem. I am not learning enough, or in fact I should say I don’t know what is enough. It is challenging to learn the Dharma correctly and completely.

S: Yes, basic core teachings should be taught clearly and made readily available. Probably the only feasible way to avoid the problem of long general Dharma courses diluting specific teachings is that there are detailed courses on them offered too. As long as we are unenlightened, we have not learnt and practised enough. The good news is that once Pure Land is reached, all the essential Dharma can be mastered there. That’s why it’s so important to reach Pure Land – to enrol in the best school in the universe! In this sense, for now, learning and practising general Dharma teachings, coupled with the Pure Land teachings is the least that should be done – for the safest passage towards liberation. Amituofo

In Digha Nikaya (I,164), the Buddha taught,
‘Those things about which there is no agreement,
let us put aside.
Those things about which there is agreement,
let the wise bring up, discuss and examine.’

Does this mean we should
religiously avoid differences to prevent conflict?
The more the wise share the similarities openly,
the more are they able to accept their differences frankly too?

If we focus on our differences
in the beginning,
will we ever reach common ground,
for accepting one another?

Q: I am in a dilemma as to whether I should have another kid. I don’t see why I should have another child to take away my attention from my present one.

A: If you decide not to have a second child, it’s good to explain the above to her when she can understand.

Q: But my kid will be all alone in this world if we as parents pass away. Hopefully, there will be a supportive marriage.

A: All parents hope for their children to have good families – but after doing their best to nurture them, they do have their own karma to live through, though subject to changes, as according to their choice of attitude and action.

Q: As a parent, I can’t stop worrying. I heard of a sad story about my friend’s child who died in an accident. Why should I be thinking about something which may never happen?

A: Your concern is not unfounded, as life can be unpredictable. However, having a second child just as a ‘back-up plan’ in case the first departs is actually a kind of selfishness. The truth is, since life can be unpredictable, there is no guarantee that this ‘back-up plan’ will work out well either. Living in Samsara, we all take calculated risks – even when it comes to family-planning. What matters is planning best we can, while preparing for the worst-case scenario. This is actually being realistic and learning to make peace with our decisions and whatever happens or not.

Q: I don’t want to have another child because of peer pressure, but I feel guilty about not giving my kid a sibling.

A: Yes, there’s no need to do something just because someone thinks it’s better. Do it only when you know it should be done. The truth is, while having another child can provide a sibling for your kid’s support, having another child also means another family member to support, to worry about. Whatever you decide, it’s important to make peace with it. If you are still uncertain, you might want to weigh the pros and cons in a chart and assign weightage to each point to decide which decision you are slanting towards? It’s good to discuss this with your husband too, also factoring in the points above.

I once listened to someone’s grievances overnight.
She was planning to kill herself.
When dawn broke, she felt reborn.

I didn’t give much advice
because I didn’t know what to say.
In fact, I shared my grievances too. (We wept hard.)

It was the power of empathy,
of being there for each other,
of self and mutual acceptance, that healed us both.

Only with acceptance of the First Noble Truth of suffering,
can we really face suffering,
and move on the the end of it (The Third Noble Truth) with hope.

Below is an interesting excerpt, followed by personal comments on them:

From ‘“Muscular” versus “Liberal” Secularism and the Religious Fundamentalist Challenge in Singapore’ by Kumar Ramakrishna (S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Singapore) 10 June 2010 (http://www.rsis.edu.sg/publications/workingpapers/wp202.pdf):

Excerpt: It should be noted, however, that the State’s Muscular Secularism policy is not all about tough punitive measures per se. Complementing tough legislation to preserve religious harmony is a set of less draconian policies that have sought the same broad objective through promoting a sense of overarching commonalities in the midst of religious diversity. For instance, the so-called Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) in public housing, introduced in 1989, aims to prevent the development of ethnic and religious enclaves within the public housing estates where 8 out of 10 Singaporeans reside. The National Development Minister’s justification for the policy demonstrates clearly the set of core assumptions underlying the State’s extant Muscular Secularism policy:

“Racial harmony is not a given for Singapore. It’s not a given for any multi-racial society … the EIP must remain. By maintaining a multi-racial environment in our housing estates, schools, shops and playgrounds, we maintain social stability, racial harmony and religious tolerance, and keep Singapore safe, secure and prosperous for all races.” [“Ethnic Integration Policy”, available online at http://74.125.153.132/search?q=cache:F7zjtmd1XsJ:www.pl.sg/ShowBinary/BEA%2520Repository/Docs/doc_RH_Ethnic%2520Integration%2520Policy.doc+ethnic+integration+policy&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=sg (accessed 29 January 2010).]

The inauguration of the EIP, incidentally, coincided with the abolition of the Religious Knowledge programme in the same year. Originally introduced in 1982 in an attempt to inculcate moral and especially Confucian values in the educational curriculum, two years later the programme was made a compulsory subject in secondary schools, [Monte Rice, “Emergence of Buddhist Revivalism as the Primary Challenge to Church Growth in Singapore”, Church and Society, Vol. 6, No. 1 (2003), p. 19.], with students able to opt to study Islamic, Hindu, Buddhist, Confucian, Bible or Sikh Studies. However, it was eventually found that the curriculum had had the unintended side effect of actually intensifying the religious fervour of students as well as emphasizing inter-religious differences. [Nasir et al., Muslims in Singapore, p. 79.] Against the backdrop in the late 1980s, as noted above, “of both increased proselytism by Christians and emerging Islamic fundamentalism”, the State “scrapped the Religious Knowledge curriculum in 1989 out of concern for racial cohesiveness”, [Rice, “Emergence of Buddhist Revivalism”, pp. 19–20.] replacing it with a religiously neutral and less divisive “Civic and Moral Education Programme”.[ Nasir et al., Muslims in Singapore, p. 79.]

Comments: The above in bold is understandable (if true), but it engenders a new problem… When detailed formal religious education of choice is ‘suppressed’ in public schools, less people are able to understand and appreciate their own religion or that personally slanted towards, while learning about watered down teachings of ‘all’ religions in general. With less education, it can be easier for inter-religious misunderstanding and intolerance to fester. Education can foster inter-religious harmony better, as long as it is coupled with emphasis on its importance by the government too.

As attested by the infamous Pastor Rony Tan fiasco in 2010 in Singapore, whereby he managed to preach to a big audience that laughed along (showcasing his misconceptions about Buddhism and Taoism, and putting his ‘talkshow’ online), the scraping of the Religious Knowledge in schools can allow misconceptions to grow. It is entirely possible that if the Religious Knowledge module was kept in place, Christian students will indirectly learn more from their Buddhist friends about their faith and learn to respect them, thus being less likely to grow up to be one of the members of the audience laughing at Tan’s poor and disrespectful jokes. Who knows? They might even educate Tan about his misunderstanding. (See http://tinyurl.com/ronytan for detailed clarifications of Tan’s misconceptions, which were summarised and publicised by Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery and Singapore Buddhist Federation (in the form of magazine articles and posters), as available at http://www.kmspks.org/download/clear_misconceptions.pdf) Religious Knowledge indirectly but definitely helped to nurture citizens like myself, who learnt it in a Catholic school, appreciated it, and return to share it at the same school upon invitation, becoming able to clarify misconceptions.

An email apology:

Dear Si’Ann (sic),

Referring to our tele-conversation,
our sincere apologies for any misunderstandings or miscommunication if any.
May you be well and happy.

___,
President of ___

My email reply:

To ___,

It is really incredibly simple… Once again, all notices of fund-raising activities (including robe-offering) of all organisations must state where the proceeds (robes/money) go to. This is the policy for transparency that all readers [of the Buddhist newsletter I run] will appreciate. We reserve the right to ask for the inclusion of appropriate information. Apologies for seeing the need to drive the above across strongly, as it was not ‘heard’ despite repetition in written and spoken words many times. This will be the last formal response on this issue. For future dissemination of your organisation’s notices, the very next one (whether it includes robe-offerings or not) must state the above. Response to the above is appreciated only by email, as such matters need to be properly recorded. If there is no reply to your replies to the above, please re-read this mail mindfully, as it probably means the above is not adhered to.

Namo Amituofo
May the true Dharma spread far and wide and last a long time.

Further reflections:

I didn’t appreciate the continual refusal to include a note on where the money (from the robe-offerings) go to, while demanding that I disseminate such an incomplete activity notice. I didn’t need explanations to me by phone. (The president traced my contact number.) What I wanted was an explanation to readers. The president also tried not to reveal the name of the anonymous person I previously corresponded with on the issue. After repeated asking, a name was given. This person (who was rude and sarcastic) might be the same person as  ‘they’ are using the same email address? If they are the same person, is there intention to hide something? The conversation went around in so many circles that I decided to raise my voice – to make sure the above was clearly heard once and for all.

Increasingly gone are the days when robe-offering is to offer a monastic a robe because he needs a robe. Robe-offering is increasingly becoming symbolic only – in some places. The robe is increasingly becoming a token to represent money instead of dedicated Dharma practice? Money is donated by devotees to buy a robe (that is often pre-prepared) and it is ritually passed to a monastic. One monastic can receive many robes – that he will never use in his lifetime, while the robes might be given to other monastics overseas, or….? But where does the excess money go to? Even if it is seen as alright (unless it is seriously frowned upon in the Vinaya?) to use robe-offerings as a means to raise funds for worthy causes, these causes should be clearly stated – so that donors know what they are giving for and decide if the cause is worth supporting. What audacity too, to press the voluntary service I run, to meet unreasonable demands. The newsletter had also been helping this organisation free of charge many times, and this organisation had never contributed anything practical to the survival of the newsletter. (TheDailyEnlightenment.com is an independent service not run by any Buddhist organisation.)

As the editor, I have the right and responsibility to protect readers from possible corrupted use of funds contributed in good faith. This is especially important as some big charities were found to be misusing funds. Sure, it’s just a small centre, so the president said. But what does that mean? That I should take the robe-offering notice less seriously? All I wanted is that a spade be called a spade. (E.g. ‘This robe-offering is for donating robes to monastics?’ E.g. ‘This robe-offering is for fund-raising to help run the centre?’) Is that too much to ask for? If there is reluctance to comply to something so simple, I seriously doubt the centre’s willingness to publicly account for the gathered funds. The president even slipped and said the organisation is a registered company, before correcting that it’s a registered society. Traditions might change in practice for practical reasons, but truth is always cherished and should be sought and upheld. Please have the wisdom to ask where your donations go to when you contribute to charities – because this protects the integrity of the organisation and the good will of other donors. Do remember this – monastic robes represent the noble and sincere quest for truth and goodness. It is irresponsible as donors to give blindly too. (The president’s apology is actually inadequate as long as the policy is not adhered to in practice.)

Origins of Robe-Offering:

(From http://www.buddhamind.info/leftside/lifesty-2/kathina.htm)

According to the scriptures, a group of thirty bhikkhus (monks) were journeying together with the intention of spending the retreat season with the Buddha. However the Vassa began before they reached their destination and it was required that they stop travelling. Accordingly, although they lived harmoniously during the retreat, the bhikkhus were unhappy at not being able to be with the Master. When they were allowed to travel again, the bhikkhus continued on to see the Buddha. Hearing of their unhappy sojourn, he decided to cheer them up by allowing them to roam freely after the Rains Retreat to gather cloth for robes. The Buddha knew that nothing is so uplifting as sharing and generosity, and so then established a procedure whereby the bhikkhus could agree among themselves to make a gift of the cloth so acquired to one of their number. And so, when they had enough cloth, the bhikkhus set about sewing a robe. In those days the method used involved spreading the pieces of cloth on a frame and stitching them together. This frame was called a Kathina.

Robe-Offering Today:

From that time until now, lay supporters have made a point of offering cloth at the end of the Vassa; it being allowed that this offering can take place at any time during the four weeks following the end of the retreat. The Sangha are not allowed to request the offering, so it is important that the initiation of the offering and its organisation be done entirely by the lay people. Actually, the ceremony is held in such high esteem that it is rare that the Kathina doesn’t take place and supporters will usually agree on a date with the abbot of the monastery well in advance. The cloth, according to the Buddha’s advice, must be offered to the whole Sangha, not to any particular individual, so that the bhikkhus have to formally agree as to which of them should receive the cloth. About three metres of cloth are needed: enough to make up at least one of the main robes. Once the cloth has been offered, the entire community tries to take part in the activity of sewing the new robe, it being stipulated that this robe be cut, sewn and finished before the dawn of the next day. Until recent times finishing always involved dyeing the robe as well, and even today, in traditional forest monasteries in Burma and Thailand, white cloth is given and whilst some of the bhikkhus are cutting and sewing, others are preparing the bath of natural dye.

Robe-Offering Ceremony:

Usually one person has undertaken the task of co-ordinating the occasion; this work may have started as far back as the Kathina of the previous year. Although all that is required is enough cloth to make up one robe, it’s usually the case that all sorts of things are offered: everything from socks to tools to stamps and winter fuel. On the day of the festival people begin arriving at the monastery early – some may have come the night before. Bhikkhus and nuns from other monasteries will have been invited and be gathering also. By about 10:00 a.m. everyone is beginning to settle and at around 10.30 a.m. a meal is offered to the Sangha and then everyone helps themselves to the remainder of the food. About 1.00 p.m. the ceremonial offering of cloth and requisites takes place with one donor leading the assembly of lay people in taking the Refuges and Precepts and then announcing the offering using the following formula. This would be done in both Pali and English.

“May we venerable Sirs,
present these robes together with the other requisites to the Sangha.
So, Venerable Sirs, please accept these robes and the other requisites from us,
for our long-lasting welfare and happiness.”

The cloth is formally presented to two bhikkhus who have been agreed upon by the Sangha. In turn they announce the donation of all the Kathina offerings and then nominate one senior and well-respected member of the community to receive the robe once it has been made up. The unanimous agreement in silence by the Sangha is strengthened by the collective utterance of “Sadhu” (it is well). At this point some of the bhikkhus leave and begin cutting the cloth. Later, others will join them. The formal Sangha Act (Sangha Kamma) of receiving a Kathina offering will be completed later in the evening (sometimes very late depending on whether or not the sewing goes smoothly) when the finished robe is ceremonially presented to the appointed bhikkhu. Part of the acknowlegement of the offering by the two appointed bhikkhus:

Kale dadanti sappañña vadaññu vitamacchara
Kalena dinnam ariyesu ujubhutesu tadisu
Vipassannamana tassa vipula hoti dakkhina.
Ye tattha anumodanti veyyavaccam karonti va
Na tena dakkhina una tepi puññassa bhagino.
Tasma dade appativanacitto yattha dinnam mahapphalam
Puññani paralokasmim patittha honti paninan’ti.

Those who are wise, generous and free from selfishness give at the appropriate times.
Then what is given to those who are worthy and morally sound
is an offering of great purity and substance.
Those who likewise show appreciation or perform acts of service
make no lesser offering and they also share in this merit.
Thus in giving, the heart is unbounded,
what is given is of great fruit and those meritorious deeds
bring about good fortune in the life to come.

A Tit for a Tat (143)

Tit: Do I look fat?
Tat: If you suck in your belly, you won’t.
Tit: So I do look fat?
Tat: If you suck in your belly all the time, you won’t ever!

Next aT4aT: http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/06/curry-favour
Previous aT4aT: http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/06/isnt-it-more-interesting
About aT4aT: http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/02/logo-for-a-tit-for-a-tat-series

Friend: Maybe he’s watching you and thinking you’re raising the bar.
Man: Maybe. With God, you never can tell.
Friend: Sure you can. Just tell yourself God’s a good guy.
Man: Yah.

It can be hard to tell what are godly standards of goodness because some are believed to have strong pride and unforgiving wrath – if they are real. (How can the good be proud, jealous, angry…?)  If we can raise the bar in terms of moral conduct, above godly standards, does it make us better than the gods? Yes – why not? In Buddhism, all gods were ex-humans once, who raised the bar of goodness higher than that of most humans, which is how they became born as gods, including one who mistaken himself to have created the world. The Buddhas, however, have done so much good with so much wisdom for the sake of so many beings, that they raised the bar of perfectly selfless compassion all the way up to the highest possible.

Related Articles:

What Might a Cat Say?
http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/03/what-might-a-cat-say
What Did the Cat Say Again?
http://moonpointer.com/new/2010/05/what-did-the-cat-say-again

As summarised from Wikipedia, ‘the TV series (Drop Dead Diva) revolves around vapid blonde and aspiring model, Deb Dobkins who is killed in a car crash. She is brought back to life in the body of a recently deceased, intelligent, overweight lawyer named Jane Bingum. Initially horrified, Deb – in her new human form – discovers the meaning of inner beauty as she finds the ability to juggle legal cases. At the same time, Deb begins to rediscover her past while learning more about her inherited body’s current life and how Jane was treated when she was alive.’

Deb realises her former superficiality over her physicality and attempts to live a more spiritual and meaningful life. She also steps into and walks miles in the shoes of one who is relatively more spiritual but treated less well by the superficial, to experience the plight of those opposite of her.

When we observe the world, it can be frightening to see how many seem to base their confidence in life on their looks. This literally means they only ‘look confident’ but have little to be confident about, because beneath the skin-deep superficiality, it’s much ado about nothing much. The effects of the looks deteriorating or suddenly changing can be devastating. Yet, it can be for better or for worse, depending on how one learns from the experience. If one is, like Deb, forced to learn, one might as well do one’s best. But of course, it’s best to learn now, if it’s a case of superficiality over spirituality now.

True confidence arises from
true realisation of the Dharma.

- Stonepeace

Related Articles:

Penelope’s Piggy Plight
http://moonpointer.com/new/2009/04/penelopes-piggy-plight
What’s Missing is the Spiritual Factor
http://moonpointer.com/new/2009/04/whats-missing-is-the-spiritual-factor
Appearances as Reflections of Karma
http://moonpointer.com/new/2009/10/appearances-as-reflections-of-karma
Look! No Looks!
http://moonpointer.com/new/2009/03/look-no-looks

Yeas ago, I stuck a bright red sticker with the words ‘Namo Amituofo’ (Homage to Amitabha Buddha) on a dangerous sharp corner of a cabinet – to alert people from banging their heads on it. Yes, mindfulness of Buddha can save your life. It can even lead you to transcend the cycles of life and death! (Someone later stuck a piece of foam there.)

From http://groups.yahoo.com/group/thedailyenlightenment-realisation/message/225 four years ago, is the story of how I banged my head on that corner:

If you want to be free of pain,
be free of wanting the pain to free you.

- Stonepeace

In the pantry without lights on, I banged my skull on a sharp corner of a wall-hung cabinet. With an excruciating pain searing deep into my head, I clasped it with a hand, rubbing it vigorously… in the hope that it would dissipate faster, and not leave a bump on my head. Suddenly, my hand felt warm and sticky – there was fresh red blood on it – plenty of it. I rushed to the restroom and stole a look at the mirror. Other than during blood donations, I had never seen so much blood from myself before… it was in streaks smeared across my forehead. But the very instant I recovered from shock at the sight, the wound wasn’t that painful anymore… all that was left, was, to pardon my equally figurative and literal language, one “bloody mess”.

Out of unmindfulness, we injure ourselves, be it physically or mentally. And again out of unmindfulness, we aggravate the pain by mentally exaggerating the situation. Yet again, out of unmindfulness, we sustain the “gravity” of the problem. No matter how sharp is the pain you feel, even if it persists for some time, it will surely naturally fade away – because nothing physical or mental is permanent. No pain lasts forever. How comforting this truth is!  The next time your heart hurts so bad that you feel suicidal, just know that when you “hit rock bottom”, the only way is up! You just need to mindfully live out the “sinking part”. With open-hearted acceptance of your pain without attachment to it, you actually heal faster! But if your physical heart ever hurts, eg. while having a heart attack, please quickly do something to help yourself! But likewise, do so as calmly and mindfully as you can, because panic can prove deadly!

Back to the head-banging example, most of our pains are not much ado about “nothing”, but are indeed about “something”, though it eventually becomes “nothing”, whether it is fussed over or not. Don’t be mistaken that this advocates numbness or inaction; am instead encouraging active mindfulness or even some analysis. No need to embrace your pain tightly – just watch it openly. There are few experiences as liberating as consciously seeing the rise and fall of your feelings. You become genuinely convinced that, just as the Buddha taught, no physical or mental phenomenon stays static. It’s all too easy to agree with this in theory, but when you experience the flux of the elements first-hand, you realise the sheer insanity of clinging to pain, and become almost immediately free of its grip on you. During the mirror moment of shock, I was stunned and distracted from mentally sustaining my pain. Not doing so, it suddenly dropped to an all-time low. It was almost magic! But since I can’t create such zen-like “shocks” at will, it pays to further cultivate mindfulness, which is truly the miracle medicine for all suffering!