Letting Go

 When you let go, you are allowing something that is meant to be in your life to enter into your life and you feel at ease. I would like to share an adage by Buddhist Venerable Master Sheng. Hopefully you find it useful too. 

"面对它,接受它,解决它,放下它。"

"Face it, accept it, deal with it, let it go."

Image from Big Panda, Tiny Dragon by James Norbury

The Journey Big Panda and Tiny Dragon

 I had a wonderful day reading at the bookshop yesterday. I spent fruitful hours reading the latest magazines and books like The Journey Big Panda and Tiny Dragon which is an inspiring book on coping with change and obstacles in this beautifully illustrated book inspired with Buddhism philosophy. Sometimes, having  a great friend or spouse to navigate this life journey makes it much more palatable. 

Interesting Talk by Ajahn Brahm

I enjoy dhamma talk by Ajahn Brahm. Many years ago, I attended a dhamma talk at Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery.  He has a degree in theoretical physics from Cambridge University but became a monk in 1974. He is humourous monk who share interesting dhamma talk. 

In this video, he talk about out-of-body experiences that others experience via meditation or near-death experiences. Many people who experienced Near-death experiences also talked about out-of-body experiences. You can read about interesting near-death experiences here.

Many who survived after experiencing near-death experiences, gained insight to living. For example, Ajahn Brahm also shared about the best selling author Anita Moojani who wrote the book Dying to be Me. Her cancer disappeared after she experienced near-death and she realised what caused the cancer. She decided to just live fearlessly and be herself instead of trying to meet others' expectations. 

The Middle Path

Before enlightenment, Buddha spent 6 long years practicing asceticism and long fasting, causing his body to be weak. One day, he heard someone playing a string instrument and came to the realisation that the Middle Path is the way for achieving the liberation of body and mind.  

Cultivation is like playing a musical string instrument. The string will snap if it is too tight, or not make any sound if it is too loose. Indulgence in sensual pleasure or extreme penance are attachments. The Middle Path is the way for achieving the liberation of body and mind.  

When You See the Leaf, You See the Universe

I enjoy watching this Buddha drama series even though it is in Hindi language but luckily there are English subtitles. 

 

In this short video below, Buddha realised that there is no duality, except oneness.

"This leaf contains the sun, the moon, the stars and everything. This leaf would not exist without the sun. There would be rain without clouds. And this leaf would not be there without rain. 

Earth, space, time, mind, everything is present in this leaf. Just as this leaf was never born, I too had never taken birth. We all have simply manifested. Therefore we can never die. We would only disappear. Entire universe is connected."

 

Maudgalyayana Saves His Mother 目犍連尊者救母 and Hungry Ghost Festival

First posted on 11 August 2018

In Singapore and East Asia countries, on the 7th Lunar month of the year, most Chinese will observe the Hungry Ghost Festival by making food offering to their deceased ancestors. On the 15th day of 7th Lunar month, the gate of hell is opened for the hungry ghosts to roam the living world. 

In Singapore, there will be getai performance where singers will dressed up and performed on temporary stages in the heartlands. Front row seats will be empty as they are reserved for the wandering spirits. Do take note that burning of offering is from Taoist practice. Generally Buddhists don't burn offering. 

The origin of the Hungry Ghost Festival is influenced by Buddhism, from the  Ullambana Sutra on how Maudgalyayana Mujian Nian目犍連尊者saves his mother from suffering in the hungry ghost realm.

Among Buddha's disciples, venerable Maudgalyāyana (目犍連尊者) is foremost in psychic powers. Using his psychic power, he found that his mother was in the hungry ghost realm. Maudgalyāyana tried to offer her food, but the food burst into flames each time she tried to eat. Maudgalyāyana therefore seek the help of Buddha, who advised him to make merit to the Saṃgha and transfer it to his mother. This helped his mother to be reborn in heaven.

 Image from the straits time.

Front row seats reserved for the wandering spirits. Image from the straits times.

Making food offering to the spirits. (Image from wikipedia). Please do not eat these food offering  for the wandering spirits. 

(From Wikipedia) 

In teaching, Maudgalyāyana relies much on such powers. Varying accounts in the Pali Canon show Maudgalyāyana travelling to and speaking with pretas (spirits in unhappy destinations) in order to explain to them their horrific conditions. He helps them understand their own suffering, so they can be released from it or come to terms with it. 

Maudgalyāyana is able to use his powers of mind-reading in order to give good and fitting advice to his students, so they can attain spiritual fruits quickly.^[64] He is described as using his psychic powers to discipline not only monks, but also devas and other beings. 

Mulian Rescues His Mother 

Maudgalyāyana Mulian Rescues His Mother  or Mulian Saves His Mother From Hell is a popular Chinese Buddhist tale originating in the 3rd century CE, inspired by tales from India of Maudgalyayana, who becomes Mulian in the Chinese stories. Mulian, a virtuous monk, seeks the help of the Buddha to rescue his mother, who has been condemned to the lowest and most painful purgatory in karmic retribution for her transgressions. Mulian cannot rescue her by his individual effort, however, but is instructed by the Buddha to offer food and gifts to monks and monasteries on the 15th day of the 7th lunar month, which established the Ghost Festival (Chinese: 鬼 節; pinyin: guijie)

The account of Maudgalyāyana looking for his mother after her death is widespread. Apart from being used to illustrate the principles of karmic retribution and rebirth,in China, the story developed a new emphasis. There Maudgalyāyana was known as "Mulian", and his story was taught in a mixture of religious instruction and entertainment, to remind people of their duties to deceased relatives. Its earliest version being the Sanskrit Ullambana Sutra.

Senses Can Be Illusionary

In Heart Sutra Lecture 5, Venerable Guan Cheng shared that our senses can be subjective and illusionary. When we perceive through our senses, getting sensation, we have three kinds of sensations-pleasant, unpleasant and neutral. Perceiving through our senses give empirical evidences. So we also call reality existent as empirical reality which is different from experiential thinking. 

When we use our senses, we attach to what we can touch, what we can see, what we can hear and taste. So empirical evidences could be illusory. Everybody could be a little different in the empirical senses. But we can generally agree that when we see red, it is red unless the person is colour blind. Or howling is from dog and other might say its from the wolf.  It depends on how you perceive. So senses are not really trustworthy. 

We have to go introspective to see what we are seeing. For example, people who see a half moon from the sky will just think the moon is semicircle if he has no knowledge on how the position of earth, sun and moon results on how we see the different shape of the round moon. 

The Buddha said we cannot totally trust our senses. The Buddha's teaching is not on what you are seeing but to research on how you see it. The process of seeing it. Is what you are seeing right or wrong. You have to know how you see it, then you know how right you are.