Zeph'sJournal
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New entries here

http://milksucks.com

Milk Sucks

Wi: Anyone wants this packet of milk? I don't drink milk. Who drinks milk?
Zeph: Cows.

"There's no reason to drink cow's milk at any time in your life.
It was designed for calves, not humans, and we should all stop drinking it today."

-Dr. Frank A. Oski (Former Director of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University)

What's wrong with dairy (for humans & calves) ? : http://milksucks.com/dairyleaflet.pdf

11:18pmWed14Jan04|(0) |#35
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Raincloud

Zeph: Looks like it's going to rain...
Zlyrica: Maybe it's just a passing cloud.
Zeph: Clouds are always just passing by.
Zlyrica: So do non-cloudy days pass by too.

11:15pmWed14Jan04|(0) |#34
pic:www.terranova.nl/scotland/raincl.htm
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Unpleasant Truth

Speak the unpleasant truth, by all means -
but do it kindly, and make sure it is helpful.
If not, remain silent.

That's my personal summary of the Abhaya Sutta:
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/canon/sutta/majjhima/mn058.html

11:11pmWed14Jan04|(0) |#33
pic:www.bampfa.berkeley.edu/exhibits/goines/unpleasb.gif
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Everything

I owe everything to everything and everyone.
We owe everything to everything and everyone.
Everything and everyone is interdependent on everything and everyone.

11:02pmWed14Jan04|(0) |#32
pic:www.gettingitdone.com
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Sea of Books

I read an article in the papers about a bookworm who stacked so many books in his apartment that when they toppled, he was covered up to the neck with them. It was a case of almost drowning in books, as he was trapped for two days, shouting for help. Scary though somewhat amusing. A classic story of drowning in the sea of knowledge, lacking wisdom. Another concrete example that knowledge and wisdom are different things. He obviously know a lot (have knowledge), but is not very wise (have wisdom).

10:42pmWed14Jan04|(0) |#31
pic:www.cfdev.georgetown.edu/research/gurop/books.jpg
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Some Samsara Stuff

We're busy creating new sections for moonpointer.
Please pardon us if there are no entries here for a while.
But do check out on the right - Some Samsaric Stuff!
Stay tuned for new features soon.

12:32amFri19Dec03
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Foes?

George: Below is a section of dialogue from Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night between a Clown who is very good at playing with words and a nobleman, the Duke of Orsino.

Duke: I know thee well: how dost thou, my good fellow?
Clown: Truly, sir, the better for my foes and the worse for my friends.
Duke: Just the contrary; the better for thy friends.
Clown: No, sir, the worse.
Duke: How can that be?
Clown: Marry, sir, they praise me and make an ass of me; now my foes tell me plainly I am an ass; so that by my foes, sir, I profit in the knowledge of myself; and by my friends I am abused: ... (Act V, Scene 1)

Thanks, Zeph, for proving Shakespeare wrong.

Zeph: Haha :-] This reminds me of something related... In Vajrayana Buddhism, there's an "ironical" saying that our worst enemies are our best Bodhisattvas, more precious than the Buddhas- because in rearing their ugly side, they show us ours, and give us the opportunities to perfect our patience. Hmmm... Shakespeare is unenlightened afterall :-]

George: Thanks for that one, Zeph. I say something like that when I teach courses for teachers: "I apologise in advance for any aspects of the way I teach this course that are not to your liking. Please learn from my mistakes in order to be a better teacher of your own students."

Zeph: It would be good too, to tell them to tell you what they don't like - in order to learn from your mistakes in order to be a better teacher of your students :-]

9:59pmSun30Nov03|(0) |#30
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Suicidal

R: But I am really really very very tired and sick of life. I understand why peole have the courage to end their lives - cos they are so sick.

Z: Please forget that idea entirely. Suicide means dying in fear and hate. The Buddha tells us the destination will be hell, which is a world which corresponds to the mindstate of fear and hate. When we overcome problems, we can only become stronger. If not, we remain weak.

Don't jump from the frying pan into the fire. If you think this is hell, killing yourself will only land you in REAL HELL.

People who end their lives LACK courage to face problems. Death will NOT end the problems. There will be rebirth and as long as lessons are not learnt, we face them again and again. What's worse is that when you build up the habit of running away, you might contemplate suicide again in a future life when you face similar difficulties. Make a resolution to NOT get caught in this vicious cycle!

9:47pmSun30Nov03|(0) |#29
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Sweep

The cleaner who swept my office left on the floor some strands of what-you-call-it from his broom. It didn't make me mad - it made me reflect about whether I leave trails of destruction when I meant to be constructive, whether I sometimes do more harm than good despite good intentions. Let us sweep clean mindfully and leave only trails of purity.

9:31pmSun30Nov03|(0) |#28
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Love

Love can be everlasting only when accompanied by wisdom.

-Dharma Master Cheng Yen

Love of the Buddhas is everlasting!
Let us learn to love all beings like the Buddhas.

9:26pmSun30Nov03|(0) |#27
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Pay It Forward

When someone does you a big favour, don't pay it back... pay it forward.

-"Pay It Foward" movie tagline

Someone once wrote a poem about the positive chain reaction that a simple smile started... A truly selfless and compassionate deed, no matter how small, has a way of growing in intensity and blazing through the world in various forms, even if we don't get to know about it... Never believe that a kind deed vanishes into the ether the moment after it is performed. You may not see it, or even know about it yourself, but you have no idea how you inspired the recipient of your kindness to be a better person or pass on that compassion to others.

-Eugene Loh

She smiled at a sorrowful stranger.
The smile seemed to make him feel better.
He remembered past kindnesses of a friend
And wrote him a thank you letter.
The friend was so pleased with the thank you
That he left a large tip after lunch.
The waitress, surprised by the size of the tip,
Bet the whole thing on a hunch.
The next day she picked up her winnings,
And gave part to a man on the street.
The man on the street was grateful;
For two days he'd had nothing to eat.
After he finished his dinner,
He left for his small dingy room.
(He didn't know at that moment that he might be facing his doom.)
On the way he picked up a shivering puppy
And took him home to get warm.
The puppy was very grateful
To be in out of the storm.
That night the house caught on fire.
The puppy barked the alarm.
He barked till he woke the whole household
And saved everybody from harm.

-Anonymous



Everything we do is contagious - both the good and the bad.
Even being indifferent and apathetic, is contagious.

Too many onlookers are hanging around in life,
seeing the few people doing what should be done,
thinking they will never be tired,
that they don't need any help or encouragement.
Don't be an onlooker - be a practising Bodhisattva.

(Click pics for the "Pay It Forward" movie site)

-Zeph

8:45pmSun30Nov03|(0) |#26
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Taste

A plastic wrapper of a pastry chain reads, "Giving life to taste."
How true indeed - not that their meat-stuffed products are really tasty,
but that "lives" are "given" up for human greed and "taste".

It's just plain greed most of the time...
so much so that compassion takes second place,
and wisdom third.

Give me vegatarian samosas anytime.
This is already samsara enough.

10:45pmThu27Nov03|(0) |#25
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Matrix Dilemma

I think there is one glaring dilemma with the Matrix trilogy. Why should anyone wish to break free from the Matrix since the desert of the real isn't a nice place? Of course I can understand the inability to live the lie of illusion, but the Zionites do not seem to have a higher goal other than wake up everyone from the Matrix. The desert of the real is only the First Noble Truth of the prevalence of dissatisfaction. The Zionites need a spiritual path - to advance to the second, third and fourth noble truths! Realising Enlightenment is when the desert of the real becomes a Pureland - for a pure mind sees a Pureland wherever one is.

10:37pmThu27Nov03|(0) |#24
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Net in Net

Reading through these seemingly random thoughts, how do you feel? It struck me that going from entry to entry is like surfing the entire web itself randomly, picking up bits and pieces of information from all over the place. In that case, this is like a micro version of the internet. I hope you find your stay here meaningful. And er... in case you are bored, do drop by sometimes. Even though somewhat random, I do ensure useful reflections are blogged here. May you end your random surfing if you are bored and stick with us here :-] Blogging is definitely the next great current phase of the evolution of the internet - becoming personalised by one yet open to all. May the world use the internet for sharing more compassion and wisdom.

10:26pmThu27Nov03|(0) |#23
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Miss the Bus

A bus speeds by way in front of you. There is not enough time to make a dash for it. There is no need to see if is your bus number, because you are missing it anyway. Is knowing it not to be your bus going to make you any happier? Will you feel glad that you did not miss your bus? Is knowing it to be your bus going to make you unhappy? Will you feel regret for missing your bus? Even in simple everyday matters as these do we subject ourselves to gain and loss, going emotionally up and down. We should realise by now, that sometimes similar buses come just shortly one after another. Sometimes it's unpredictable. You can't tell for sure missing your bus means the next will come ages later. Take it easy - but make a dash if you might be able to make it to your bus. Why not? While I take it easy when I miss buses, I do dash too when possible. Am not telling you to be passive. Just for the record, I catch the bus four out of five times when I dash for it.

10:16pmThu27Nov03|(0) |#22
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Walk Away

I went into the CD shop and picked REM's "In Time" album and proceeded to the counter to pay, putting it on table. The two counter staff dilly-dallied their miscellaneous stuff, ignoring me totally for about two minutes, before I turned around and walked out of the shop at a normal pace, leaving the disc there. I wanted to teach them a mild non-violent lesson on plain courtesy, giving them a what was almost a customer's protest. Guess it isn't even exactly customer service we are talking about yet. They could have called me back, but they did not. I was telling myself... just walk away, without hatred... Then it hit me, that I had only about two minutes' worth of patience when it comes to these matters. Shame on me. I walked away from a test of patience, and I did not get what I wanted.

10:01pmThu27Nov03|(0) |#21
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Writing Rules

Sophie: So was the editing course good?

Zeph: Quite okay... but good reference texts recommended. I realise I was much more a writer than an editor - editing has heaps of rules - writing actually none haha. It is as if editorial work is ensuring the moralistic and politically correct aspect of publication. Not that I write naughtly stuff, but it does feel good to publish online uncensored. Then again, we always have our conscience to deal with. In this sense, every writer is his first editor too.

10:10pmWed19Nov03|(0) |#20
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Awake

SMS Message: Are you awake?
Reply (sleepily, awakened by the phone): Ya.
Reply to reply: Totally awake?

Obviously, no, conventionally and ultimately.

10:01pmWed19Nov03|(0) |#19
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100%

Star: My attitude is this - I enjoy working even if it stresses me out, even if my boss claims the credit for the end results. This time I am even clearer, it is not MY baby - I put 100% commitment, cultivating 100% detachment.

9 :55pmWed19Nov03|(0) |#18
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Clap

Koan: What is the sound of one hand clapping?... Slap!

9 :43pmWed19Nov03|(0) |#17
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Other Than

Juan: Wishing u every success then=) I know you know what you are doing, so I shan't say more =)
Zeph: Please make sure you are well and happy too! :-] That would be the best thing you can be for me... other than Enlightened, haha.

9 :34pmWed19Nov03|(0) |#16
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Providence

Q: Thank providence!
A : Who provides providence?
Q: Dunno.
A: You! And everyone and everything else, of course... and yours truly, interdependently, somehow, in some way. We have everything to be grateful for, for everything.

10:10amWed12Nov03|(0) |#15
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Have Fun

Have fun doing it, whatever it is. Do it joyously, even the laborious and unpleasant. It is not about doing only fun things, or to trivialise serious matters, but about doing them in a fun but sincere way. If you don't enjoy the process, even if it leads to a rewarding goal, you are only delaying your happiness, at your own expense. They say "work hard and play hard". I say, "make work play", and work won't be hard. But even in playing a game, you enjoy it only when you play well. When you play well, you win, in work or at play. Have fun!

9:03amWed12Nov03|(0) |#14
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Shoes

My shoes are falling apart, at where they are held together as originally separate pieces. It made me think about getting shoes which are as "one-piece" as possible. Things fall apart easier, expecially when they were originally apart. But then again, ultimately, everything is originally not apart, but interweaved in one single wholeness. It is our mind that separates and assembles things, segregating the universe into bits and pieces. If I can see this innate wholeness, I would probably make peace with the shoes easier. Nothing is truly lost or gained - causes and conditions just morph around the same old "stuff" that make up all.

9:30amWed12Nov03|(0) |#13
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For the Time Being

Sophie: Hey! The new big Buddha image in the temple has many holes in it!
Zeph: Don't worry, it's only temporary... it isn't ready yet... Then again, what is not temporary only? The image stands for the timeless though.

9:21amWed12Nov03|(0) |#12
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Waiting for Bus

Waiting for the bus...
The longer you wait, the more probable that it is coming?
Or the more it is probable that it is never going to come?
What makes us think either is true?

Sometimes we "wait" for Enlightenment.
With more and more rebirthing,
does it mean we are getting closer or further?

9:03amWed12Nov03|(0) |#11
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Fish is Vegetable?

It amazes me that some "educated" people still see fish as a vegetable or classified as vegetarian food. Is is because it is cold-blooded? Is it because fish don't (do they?) cry or blink their eyes? Is it because no one hear them scream? Somehow, their splattering around in spasms gasping for breath does not seem to drive home the message that they are sentient beings like us. If only fishermen can hear them scream. Please consider this blog a scream of injustice screamed on the behalf of all fish.

2:30amTue6Nov03|(0) |#10
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Same Language

The first rule for communication to be possible is to share a common intelligible language. The second rule is to speak the same language. The third rule is to understand the same language. Am I talking nonsense? Think about it carefully... If you don't get what I mean, we are not communicating here. Sigh... the imperfection of words. In cases like these, Zen's silence makes so much sense.

2:24amTue6Nov03|(0) |#9
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More Alright

Just when you think you are alright, you can be more alright- as long as you are not yet fully enlightened. While waiting fro a friend outside a bookshop, I swallowed some saliva for no particular reason. Suddenly, my right ear went pop a little, and it could hear better. Likewise, we do not see, smell, taste, feel and think clearly enough. And the only way you can now this is when you catch yourself doing it clearer, better.

2:15amTue6Nov03|(0) |#8
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Creating a Real Bodhisattva

Heard this amazing neat teaching, suppposedly from Venerable Cheng Yen. Here it is paraphrased- Since everyone has 2 eyes and 2 hands, 500 people united with will constitute a real life Guanyin (Avalokiteshvara) Bodhisattva with 1000 arms of compassion and eyes of wisdom. We can be Guanyn. we can let Guanyin work through us.

2:07amTue6Nov03|(0) |#7
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Rascal

At the meditation retreat, there is a kid brought along by his Father. He probably could not find someone else to babysit him. He sometimes makes a lot of noise. But everyone is tolerant of him. Sometimes I feel like telling him off, or his Dad. I wonder how he will recall being with us. Will he remember us as a bunch of nice friendly patient folks, be touched and become like us? Or will he become a bigger rascal that he is
now? Maybe no one complains because no one seems to be complaining. Maybe everyone thinks if everyone else can stand him, so should they be able to.

I wonder if we are doing him good or bad. I wonder if I'm the only one wondering. I wonder why I'm just wondering, and not doing something about it. Where is my compassion? Better safe than sorry right?

1:53amTue6Nov03|(0) |#6
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Cold

When the cool efficiency of the city
feels like cold bleakness,
it seems progress in the urban sense has gone senseless,
too far too fast.

4:42pmSun7Sep03|(0) |#5
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Is Life Unfair?

Zlyrica: Oh, he complained about life being unfair. I said life is fair.
Zeph: Tell him he can either think life is unfair and suffer or think it is fair and make do or break through best he can..

1:08amMon8Sep03|(0) |#4

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Am I Weird? (1)

And... I'm not weird- No one is- people seem weird only when they are not understood. When someone is labelled weird, it can mean the labeller has ceased trying to understand. Please don't ever call me "weird"- last heard "weird" from a friend who seriously did not understand or wish to. But then again, it's the person's choice.

1:28amMon8Sep03|(0) |#3

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Am I Weird? (2)

That much said, actually I am somewhat weird. Haha... :-] Thus this refutation of my own refutation of being weird.

1:32amMon8Sep03|(0) |#2

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Strong Personalities

C: I guess we must try to find Metta (Loving-kindness) to work with strong personalities such as her.

Z: And she must find enough Metta to work with strong personalities like me. I believe in telling people off if they lack awareness about their faults- or it will take too long for them to find out about themselves. Since she has strong personality, she should be able to stomach it right? Anyway, the next time I see her, am going to tell her- with Metta of course.

1:32amMon8Sep03|(0) |#1

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