Tag: wisdom

There is a tension between learning and expressing, between internalising and ‘externalising’. There is so much to learn, while there…

The ushnisha refers to the protuberance on the crown of the Buddha. It is one of the 32 special physical…

In the movie ‘(Avatar): The Last Airbender’, one of the baddies shouts to his henchmen who capture him, ‘Do not…

A friend visited a monastery in China, and came across a monk who told her that a couplet at a…

Someone asked if I was more left-brained or right brained. Not that I’m no-brained, but I couldn’t really say. Are…

A donkey’s strength renders him trapped, to be a beast of burden, fed and used. (Two of his hooves bound…

Question: Does the Buddha teach a systematic way of cultivating wisdom? Answer: The Buddha’s teachings are valuable precisely because they…

From His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, ‘Compassion is not a luxury, it is a necessity for human beings to…

Q: Is helping my enemies the right thing to do? A: It is right, provided that it doesn’t harm anyone, and…

If the lotus symbolises spiritual purity, as it blossoms despite roots in mud (which represents defilements), does the offering of…

About once or twice a year, I get calls from strangers, directed from people who don’t know the answer, who…

Q: Some Buddhists like to cast lots, e.g. at Guanyin temples. Are these lots’ words from Guanyin Bodhisattva? A: There…

(Thank you, Scorpio East, for the premiere tickets!) Though ‘Aftershock’ retells the terrible tragedy of the 1976 Tangshan earthquake which…

Q: I was not aware that the purpose of life is to realise True Happiness (via enlightenment). I thought all along…

These ideas came to mind on which leadership model to use for Buddhist organisations… 1. We should use the Dharma…

These thoughts came to mind while visiting the Taipei Palace Museum: That exhibited is more that the stuff itself. What…

Upon entering Dharma Drum Mountain’s resource library is an interesting artwork. It’s called 心经影壁 or ‘Wall of Images of the…

The Six Perfections (Paramitas) are essential qualities to be practised and perfected for the realisation of True Happiness (Buddhahood; Nirvana;…

In ‘Green Hulk/Red Hulk’ by Jeph Loeb, one of the most mysterious yet useless characters in the Marvel comics universe,…

(The first verse is somewhat a haiku!) The most important parts of Iron Man are not made of iron –…