While attending a Pure Land retreat, it struck me that there is a wide variety of differences in what participants bring along. Flanking the sides of the Buddha hall, they would put their bags, but usually first bringing one or more items from them, to put beside their meditation cushions for...

Before the retreat began, there was already a mysterious brown cloth placed on each meditation cushion. Many wondered what it was for. Was it for sitting upon? Was it for bowing upon? So as to keep the cushion clean? Some said it should be kept clean. Some just put it aside. No one had any...

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...

Moonpointer moderators will be away on the road soon, on Buddhist pilgrimage in India and Nepal. In the mean time, there will most likely be no new articles till after 3rd January 2010. Till then, merry Christmas and happy new year in advance! Spiritual retreats and pilgrimages are journeys...

Pic: Dharma Hall at Kong Meng San After lunch, just before the next round of the Pureland retreat recitation, I realised I had a piece of vegetable wedged between two teeth in a corner of my mouth. I tried to extract it with the tip of my tongue, but to no avail. I took a few sips of bottled...

是日已过命已随减, 如少水鱼斯有何乐, 大众！ 常勤精进如救头燃, 但念无常慎勿放逸。 The above verse was chanted just before we concluded our 1-day Pureland retreat at Dharma Drum Singapore yesterday. For the first time, it was really an admonition to me. Yes...

Hem: Should I go for a pilgrimage to ‘Buddha’s India’ or attend a Pure Land retreat?  Haw: Both are excellent! Why not go for both? Hem: I would love to, but I have limited annual leave to spare! Haw: Then you should decide based on your priorities. Hem: How should I do...

In the movie “Tokyo”, the last story is called “Hikikomori”, which refers to individuals who choose to isolate themselves from society by staying indefinitely indoors. Usually, they are disillusioned by life or the world in general, which led them to disconnect...

The Case of the Acccidental Cloud Meditation Other than the truth that you can realise this truth the clouds have the same nature* as you. - Stonepeace *Same nature of being impermanent and non-self With ample time to kill after finishing his tedious homework, Zeph heaved a deep sigh of...