Compassion and the Individual

Compassion and the Individual

by Tenzin Gyatso; The Fourteenth Dalai Lama

The purpose of life.
One great question underlies our experience, whether we think about it consciously or not: What is the purpose of life? I have considered this question and would like to share my thoughts in the hope that they may be of direct, practical benefit to those who read them.

I believe that the purpose of life is to be happy. From the moment of birth, every human being wants happiness and does not want suffering. Neither social conditioning nor education nor ideology affect this. From the very core of our being, we simply desire contentment. I don�t know whether the universe, with its countless galaxies, stars and planets, has a deeper meaning or not, but at the very least, it is clear that we humans who live on this earth face the task of making a happy life for ourselves. Therefore, it is important to discover what will bring about the greatest degree of happiness.
How to achieve happiness
For a start, it is possible to divide every kind of happiness and suffering into two main categories: mental and physical. Of the two, it is the mind that exerts the greatest influence on most of us. Unless we are either gravely ill or deprived of basic necessities, our physical condition plays a secondary role in life. If the body is content, we virtually ignore it. The mind, however, registers every event, no matter how small. Hence we should devote our most serious efforts to bringing about mental peace.

From my own limited experience I have found that the greatest degree of inner tranquility comes from the development of love and compassion.

The more we care for the happiness of others, the greater our own sense of well-being becomes. Cultivating a close, warm-hearted feeling for others automatically puts the mind at ease. This helps remove whatever fears or insecurities we may have and gives us the strength to cope with any obstacles we encounter. It is the ultimate source of success in life.

As long as we live in this world we are bound to encounter problems. If, at such times, we lose hope and become discouraged, we diminish our ability to face difficulties. If, on the other hand, we remember that it is not just ourselves but every one who has to undergo suffering, this more realistic perspective will increase our determination and capacity to overcome troubles. Indeed, with this attitude, each new obstacle can be seen as yet another valuable opportunity to improve our mind!

Thus we can strive gradually to become more compassionate, that is we can develop both genuine sympathy for others� suffering and the will to help remove their pain. As a result, our own serenity and inner strength will increase.



Our need for love
Ultimately, the reason why love and compassion bring the greatest happiness is simply that our nature cherishes them above all else. The need for love lies at the very foundation of human existence. It results from the profound interdependence we all share with one another. However capable and skillful an individual may be, left alone, he or she will not survive. However vigorous and independent one may feel during the most prosperous periods of life, when one is sick or very young or very old, one must depend on the support of others.

Inter-dependence, of course, is a fundamental law of nature. Not only higher forms of life but also many of the smallest insects are social beings who, without any religion, law or education, survive by mutual cooperation based on an innate recognition of their interconnectedness. The most subtle level of material phenomena is also governed by interdependence. All phenomena from the planet we inhabit to the oceans, clouds, forests and flowers that surround us, arise in dependence upon subtle patterns of energy. Without their proper interaction, they dissolve and decay.

It is because our own human existence is so dependent on the help of others that our need for love lies at the very foundation of our existence. Therefore we need a genuine sense of responsibility and a sincere concern for the welfare of others.

We have to consider what we human beings really are. We are not like machine-made objects. If we are merely mechanical entities, then machines themselves could alleviate all of our sufferings and fulfill our needs.

However, since we are not solely material creatures, it is a mistake to place all our hopes for happiness on external development alone. Instead, we should consider our origins and nature to discover what we require.

Leaving aside the complex question of the creation and evolution of our universe, we can at least agree that each of us is the product of our own parents. In general, our conception took place not just in the context of sexual desire but from our parents� decision to have a child. Such decisions are founded on responsibility and altruism � the parents� compassionate commitment to care of their child until it is able to take care of itself. Thus, from the very moment of our conception, our parents� love is directly in our creation.

Moreover, we are completely dependent upon our mothers� care from the earliest stages of our growth. According to some scientists, a pregnant woman�s mental state, be it calm or agitated, has a direct physical effect on her unborn child.

The expression of love is also very important at the time of birth. Since the very first thing we do is suck milk from our mothers� breast, we naturally feel close to her, and she must feel love for us in order to feed us properly; if she feels anger or resentment her milk may not flow freely.

Then there is the critical period of brain development from the time of birth up to at least the age of three or four, during which time loving physical contact is the single most important factor for the normal growth of the child. If the child is not held, hugged, cuddled, or loved, its development will be impaired and its brain will not mature properly.

Since a child cannot survive without the care of others, love is its most important nourishment. The happiness of childhood, the allaying of the child�s many fears and the healthy development of its self-confidence all depend directly upon love.

Nowadays, many children grow up in unhappy homes. If they do not receive proper affection, in later life they will rarely love their parents and, not infrequently, will find it hard to love others. This is very sad.

As children grow older and enter school, their need for support must be met by their teachers. If a teacher not only imparts academic education but also assumes responsibility for preparing students for life, his or her pupils will feel trust and respect and what has been taught will leave an indelible impression on their minds. On the other hand, subjects taught by a teacher who does not show true concern for his or her students� overall well-being will be regarded as temporary and not retained for long.

Similarly, if one is sick and being treated in hospital by a doctor who evinces a warm human feeling, one feels at ease and the doctors� desire to give the best possible care is itself curative, irrespective of the degree of his or her technical skill. On the other hand, if one�s doctor lacks human feeling and displays an unfriendly expression, impatience or casual disregard, one will feel anxious, even if he or she is the most highly qualified doctor and the disease has been correctly diagnosed and the right medication prescribed. Inevitably, patients� feelings make a difference to the quality and completeness of their recovery.

Even when we engage in ordinary conversation in everyday life, if someone speaks with human feeling we enjoy listening, and respond accordingly; the whole conversation becomes interesting, however unimportant the topic may be. On the other hand, if a person speaks coldly or harshly, we feel uneasy and wish for a quick end to the interaction. From the least to the most important event, the affection and respect of others are vital for our happiness.

Recently I met a group of scientists in America who said that the rate of mental illness in their country was quite high-around twelve percent of the population. It became clear during our discussion that the main cause of depression was not a lack of material necessities but a deprivation of the affection of the others.

So, as you can see from everything I have written so far, one thing seems clear to me: whether or not we are consciously aware of it, from the day we are born, the need for human affection is in our very blood. Even if the affection comes from an animal or someone we would normally consider an enemy, both children and adults will naturally gravitate towards it.

I believe that no one is born free from the need for love. And this demonstrates that, although some modern schools of thought seek to do so, human beings cannot be defined as solely physical. No material object, however beautiful or valuable, can make us feel loved, because our deeper identity and true character lie in the subjective nature of the mind.

Developing compassion.
Some of my friends have told me that, while love and compassion are marvelous and good, they are not really very relevant. Our world, they say, is not a place where such beliefs have much influence or power. They claim that anger and hatred are so much a part of human nature that humanity will always be dominated by them. I do not agree.

We humans have existed in our present form for about a hundred-thousand years. I believe that if during this time the human mind had been primarily controlled by anger and hatred, our overall population would have decreased. But today, despite all our wars, we find that the human population is greater than ever. This clearly indicates to me that love and compassion predominate in the world. And this is why unpleasant events are �news�; compassionate activities are so much part of daily life that they are taken for granted and, therefore, largely ignored.

So far I have been discussing mainly the mental benefits of compassion, but it contributes to good physical health as well, According to my personal experience, mental stability and physical well-being are directly related. Without question, anger and agitation make us more susceptible to illness. On the other hand, if the mind is tranquil and occupied with positive thoughts, the body will not easily fall prey to disease.

But of course it is also true that we all have an innate self-centeredness that inhibits our love for others. So, since we desire the true happiness that is brought about by only a calm mind, and since such peace of mind is brought about by only a compassionate attitude, how can we develop this? Obviously, it is not enough for us simply to think about how nice compassion is! We need to make a concerted effort to develop it; we must use all the events of our daily life to transform our thoughts and behavior.

First of all, we must be clear about what we mean by compassion. Many forms of compassionate feeling are mixed with desire and attachment. For instance, the love parents feel of their child is often strongly associated with their own emotional needs, so it is not fully compassionate. Again, in marriage, the love between husband and wife - particularly at the beginning, when each partner still may not know the other�s deeper character very well - depends more on attachment than genuine love. Our desire can be so strong that the person to whom we are attached appears to be good, when in fact he or she is very negative. In addition, we have a tendency to exaggerate small positive qualities. Thus when one partner�s attitude changes, the other partner is often disappointed and his or her attitude changes too. This is an indication that love has been motivated more by personal need than by genuine care for the other individual.

True compassion is not just an emotional response but a firm commitment founded on reason. Therefore, a truly compassionate attitude towards others does not change even if they behave negatively.

Of course, developing this kind of compassion is not at all easy! As a start, let us consider the following facts:
Whether people are beautiful and friendly or unattractive and disruptive, ultimately they are human beings, just like oneself. Like oneself, they want happiness and do not want suffering. Furthermore, their right to overcome suffering and be happy is equal to one�s own. Now, when you recognize that all beings are equal in both their desire for happiness and their right to obtain it, you automatically feel empathy and closeness for them. Through accustoming your mind to this sense of universal altruism, you develop a feeling of responsibility for others: the wish to help them actively overcome their problems. Nor is this wish selective; it applies equally to all. As long as they are human beings experiencing pleasure and pain just as you do, there is no logical basis to discriminate between them or to alter your concern for them if they behave negatively.

Let me emphasize that it is within your power, given patience and time, to develop this kind of compassion. Of course, our self-centeredness, our distinctive attachment to the feeling of an independent, self-existent �I�, works fundamentally to inhibit our compassion. Indeed, true compassion can be experienced only when this type of self- grasping is eliminated. But this does not mean that we cannot start and make progress now.

How can we start.
We should begin by removing the greatest hindrances to compassion: anger and hatred. As we all know, these are extremely powerful emotions and they can overwhelm our entire mind. Nevertheless, they can be controlled. If, however, they are not, these negative emotions will plague us - with no extra effort on their part! - and impede our quest for the happiness of a loving mind.

So as a start, it is useful to investigate whether or not anger is of value. Sometimes, when we are discouraged by a difficult situation, anger does seem helpful, appearing to bring with it more energy, confidence and determination.

Here, though, we must examine our mental state carefully. While itis true that anger brings extra energy, if we explore the nature of this energy, we discover that it is blind: we cannot be sure whether its result will be positive or negative. This is because anger eclipses the best part of our brain: its rationality. So the energy of anger is almost always unreliable. It can cause an immense amount of destructive, unfortunate behavior. Moreover, if anger increases to the extreme, one becomes like a mad person, acting in ways that are as damaging to oneself as they are to others.

It is possible, however, to develop an equally forceful but far more controlled energy with which to handle difficult situations.

This controlled energy comes not only from a compassionate attitude, but also from reason and patience. These are the most powerful antidotes to anger. Unfortunately, many people misjudge these qualities as signs of weakness. I believe the opposite to be true: that they are the true signs of inner strength. Compassion is by nature gentle, peaceful and soft, but it is very powerful. It is those who easily lose their patience who are insecure and unstable. Thus, to me, the arousal of anger is a direct sign of weakness.

So, when a problem first arises, try to remain humble and maintain a sincere attitude and be concerned that the outcome is fair. Of course, others may try to take advantage of you, and if your remaining detached only encourages unjust aggression, adopt a strong stand, This, however, should be done with compassion, and if it is necessary to express your views and take strong countermeasures, do so without anger or ill-intent.

You should realize that even though your opponents appear to be harming you, in the end, their destructive activity will damage only themselves. In order to check your own selfish impulse to retaliate, you should recall your desire to practice compassion and assume responsibility for helping prevent the other person from suffering the consequences of his or her acts.

Thus, because the measures you employ have been calmly chosen, they will be more effective, more accurate and more forceful. Retaliation based on the blind energy of anger seldom hits the target.

Friends and enemies
I must emphasize again that merely thinking that compassion and reason and patience are good will not be enough to develop them. We must wait for difficulties to arise and then attempt to practice them.

And who creates such opportunities? Not our friends, of course, but our enemies. They are the ones who give us the most trouble, So if we truly wish to learn, we should consider enemies to be our best teacher!

For a person who cherishes compassion and love, the practice of tolerance is essential, and for that, an enemy is indispensable. So we should feel grateful to our enemies, for it is they who can best help us develop a tranquil mind! Also, itis often the case in both personal and public life, that with a change in circumstances, enemies become friends.

So anger and hatred are always harmful, and unless we train our minds and work to reduce their negative force, they will continue to disturb us and disrupt our attempts to develop a calm mind. Anger and hatred are our real enemies. These are the forces we most need to confront and defeat, not the temporary �enemies� who appear intermittently throughout life.

Of course, it is natural and right that we all want friends. I often joke that if you really want to be selfish, you should be very altruistic! You should take good care of others, be concerned for their welfare, help them, serve them, make more friends, make more smiles, The result? When you yourself need help, you find plenty of helpers! If, on the other hand, you neglect the happiness of others, in the long term you will be the loser. And is friendship produced through quarrels and anger, jealousy and intense competitiveness? I do not think so. Only affection brings us genuine close friends.

In today�s materialistic society, if you have money and power, you seem to have many friends. But they are not friends of yours; they are the friends of your money and power. When you lose your wealth and influence, you will find it very difficult to track these people down.

The trouble is that when things in the world go well for us, we become confident that we can manage by ourselves and feel we do not need friends, but as our status and health decline, we quickly realize how wrong we were. That is the moment when we learn who is really helpful and who is completely useless. So to prepare for that moment, to make genuine friends who will help us when the need arises, we ourselves must cultivate altruism!

Though sometimes people laugh when I say it, I myself always want more friends. I love smiles. Because of this I have the problem of knowing how to make more friends and how to get more smiles, in particular, genuine smiles. For there are many kinds of smile, such as sarcastic, artificial or diplomatic smiles. Many smiles produce no feeling of satisfaction, and sometimes they can even create suspicion or fear, can�t they? But a genuine smile really gives us a feeling of freshness and is, I believe, unique to human beings. If these are the smiles we want, then we ourselves must create the reasons for them to appear.

Compassion and the world
In conclusion, I would like briefly to expand my thoughts beyond the topic of this short piece and make a wider point: individual happiness can contribute in a profound and effective way to the overall improvement of our entire human community.

Because we all share an identical need for love, it is possible to feel that anybody we meet, in whatever circumstances, is a brother or sister. No matter how new the face or how different the dress and behavior, there is no significant division between us and other people. It is foolish to dwell on external differences, because our basic natures are the same.

Ultimately, humanity is one and this small planet is our only home, If we are to protect this home of ours, each of us needs to experience a vivid sense of universal altruism. It is only this feeling that can remove the self-centered motives that cause people to deceive and misuse one another.

If you have a sincere and open heart, you naturally feel self- worth and confidence, and there is no need to be fearful of others.

I believe that at every level of society - familial, tribal, national and international - the key to a happier and more successful world is the growth of compassion. We do not need to become religious, nor do we need to believe in an ideology. All that is necessary is for each of us to develop our good human qualities.

I try to treat whoever I meet as an old friend. This gives me a genuine feeling of happiness. It is the practice of compassion.

http://dalailama.com/ (http://dalailama.com/page.166.htm)

The Moment is Perfect

"Spiritual practice is not just sitting and meditating. Practice is looking, thinking, touching, drinking, eating, and talking. Every act, every breath, and every step can be practice and can help us to become more ourselves."

From: “The Moment is Perfect”, Thich Nhat Hanh, Shambhala Sun, 2008.

Slow Down! Live Like a Zen Monk

Today our lives are so full with pressure from work, families, money problems and having to be in two places at the same time, that we give our selves little time to relax and listen to our inner being. We may not even feel part of the planet we live on, traveling through space in our own stress filled bubble, yearning for a different way of life. How can we take control our lives and cope with the stress we suffer in our modern western world with all the complexity of 24/7 lifestyles? Taking inspiration in the way Zen monks live and finding calm, simplicity, concentration and mindfulness in every activity helps. Zen monks devote their lives to being ‘present’ in everything they do, being dedicated to the philosophy of Buddhism and to serving others. (I have taken the following the pages of Leo Babauta's excellent blog "Zenhabits.net" see below).

1. Do one thing at a time.
Zen monks don’t multi-task. Being present in the moment means when you’re pouring water, just pour water. When you’re eating, just eat. When you’re bathing, just bathe. Don’t try to knock off a few tasks while eating or bathing. Zen proverb: “When walking, walk. When eating, eat.”

2. Do it slowly and deliberately.
Take your time, focus on what you are doing and move slowly. Make your actions deliberate, not rushed and random. Enjoy what you are doing. It takes practice, but it helps you focus on the task.

3. Finish what you are doing.
Concentrate your mind completely on the task in hand. Don’t move on to the next task until you’re finished the first task. If, for some reason, you have no choice but to move on to something else, try to at least put away the unfinished task and clean up after yourself. If you prepare a sandwich, don’t start eating it until you’ve cleaned the work top, and washed the utensils used for preparation. Then you can focus completely on eating the sandwich.

4. Try to do less.
A Zen monk doesn’t lead a lazy life: he wakes early and has a day filled with work. However, he doesn’t have an unending task list either — there are certain things he’s going to do today, and no more. If you do less, you can do those things more slowly, more completely and with more concentration. If you fill your day with tasks, you will be rushing from one thing to the next without stopping to think about what you do.

5. Put space between things.
Related to the “Do less” rule, but it’s a way of managing your schedule so that you always have time to complete each task. Don’t schedule things close together; leave room between the things on your schedule. That gives you a more relaxed schedule, and leaves space in case one task takes longer than you planned.

6. Develop rituals.
Zen monks have rituals for many things they do, from eating and cleaning to making tea and meditation. A ‘ritual’ gives something a sense of importance and if it’s important enough to have a ritual, it’s important enough to be given your entire attention, and to be done slowly and correctly, (see the post

• Drink Your Tea

You can create your own rituals, for the preparation of food, for eating, for cleaning, for what you do before you start your work, for what you do when you wake up and before you go to bed, for what you do just before exercise.

7. Designate time for certain things.
There are times in the day of a Zen monk designated for certain activities. A time for getting up, a time for meditation, a time for work, a time for cleaning, a time for eating. This ensures that those things get done regularly. You can designate time for your own activities, whether for work or cleaning or exercise or quiet contemplation. If it’s important enough to do regularly, consider designating a time for it.

8. Devote time to sitting.
Sitting meditation (zazen) is one of the most important parts of a Zen monk’s day. Meditation is really practice for learning to be present in the present. You can devote time for sitting meditation. You can use any activity in the same way, as long as you do it regularly and practice being present.

9. Smile and serve others.
Zen monks spend part of their day in service to others, whether that is for other monks in the monastery or people on the outside world. It teaches them humility, and ensures that their lives are not just selfish, but devoted to others. As a parent, you already spend some time in service to others in your household, and non-parents may already do this too. Smiling (from the heart), and being kind to others can be a great way to improve the lives of those around you. Also consider volunteering for charity work.

10. Make the everyday things you do become meditation.
Aside from sitting meditation (zazen), cooking and cleaning are two of the most exalted parts of a Zen monk’s day. They are both good ways to practice mindfulness, and can be great rituals performed each day. If cooking and cleaning seem like boring chores to you, try doing them as a form of meditation. Put your entire mind into those tasks, concentrate, and do them slowly and completely. It could change your entire day (as well as leave you with a cleaner house).

11. Think about what is necessary.
There is little in a Zen monk’s life that isn’t necessary. He doesn’t have a closet full of shoes, or the latest in trendy clothes. He doesn’t have a refrigerator and cabinets full of junk food. He doesn’t have the latest gadgets, cars, televisions, or iPod. He has basic clothing, basic shelter, basic utensils, basic tools, and the most basic food (they eat simple, vegetarian meals consisting usually of rice, miso soup, vegetables, and pickled vegetables).

12. Live simply.
The corollary of Rule 11 is that if something isn’t necessary, you can probably live without it. And so to live simply is to rid your life of as many of the unnecessary and unessential things as you can, to make room for the essential. Now, what is essential will be different to each person. For me, my family, my writing, my running and my reading are essential. To others, yoga and spending time with close friends might be essential. For others it will be nursing and volunteering and going to church and collecting comic books. There is no law saying what should be essential for you — but you should consider what is most important to your life, and make room for that by eliminating the other less essential things in your life.

(For more of Leo Babauta writing please visit http://zenhabits.net/).

Drink Your Tea Slowly

Drink your tea slowly and reverently,
as if it is the axis
on which the world earth revolves
– slowly, evenly, without
rushing toward the future;
Live the actual moment.
Only this moment is life.
~Thich Nhat Hanh

The following is taken from the Community of Interbeing Manual of Practice

1.9 The Tea Ceremony (please visit http://www.interbeing.org.uk/ and follow the links to manual of practice and "Tea Ceremony). The tea ceremony is not only a meditive practive for invited guests, I practice a stripped down version on my own as part of my meditation practice.

The tradition of tasting tea originated in China in about the 8th century and was brought to Japan by Zen Buddhists priests at the end of the Heian Period (12th century), who used it to prevent drowsiness during their long hours of meditation. The popularity of tea-drinking among the people began in the early 14th century.

A Zen priest named Sen Rikyu (1521-1591) established the tea ceremony in present form under the protection of a powerful lord, Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537-1598). Sen Rikyu had the idea of "Wa Kei Sei Jaku" as the essential ideals of the tea ceremony. This is the embodiment of the Japanese people's intuitive striving for the recognition of true beauty in plainness and simplicity. Such terms as calmness, rusticity, gracefulness, or the phrase "aestheticism of austere simplicity" may help to define the true spirit of the tea ceremony.

The Tea Meditation or Ceremony offers a wonderful chance for the community to come together in a spirit of joy and mindfulness. Several variants of this ceremony have been developed over time including ‘lemonade meditation’ for children and informal tea meditation where many of the formalities listed here are left out. It is a good idea to give advanced notice of a tea meditation so that participants can come prepared with contributions, bring musical instruments etc. Also, contributions from groups of people may need to be practised in advance.

The form of the tea meditation as described here is a very beautiful ceremony which has proved the highlight of many a retreat or Day of Mindfulness. The essential ingredients are joy, mindfulness and the deep reverence of each other’s company. Conforming to the detail of the ceremony helps support this practice. All parts of the ceremony are conducted slowly and with deep awareness of everyone in attendance. We are encouraged to breathe and dwell in the present moment, not worrying about ‘the next stage’ of proceedings. This in itself is a very deep practice.

The Tea Ceremony
The hosts for the Tea Ceremony will need to come together as a team well in advance. They will need to prepare the tea and biscuits, the meditation room and themselves in mindfulness in order to welcome their honoured guests.

Hosts:
Tea Master, Bell Master, Incense Offerer, Tea Offerer (who offers tea to the Buddha), Tea Servers (depending on numbers, usually two are needed), Assistant Tea Servers (one for each Tea Server)

Items needed: Incense, candles, matches, small bell, large bell, napkins (leaves can be used), biscuits, tea and teapots, milk/sugar/spoon, trays, plate with flower, tea and biscuit for offering to the Buddha

Welcoming the Guests
The hosts for the tea meditation stand in two rows each side of the entry door and bow individually to each guest as they enter the meditation room. The guests pass between the hosts and sit in sequence round the room facing inward, ushered to their cushions by the tea assistants. Whilst seated everyone enjoys sitting meditation, following their breath in silence.

Once everyone has been welcomed into the room the hosts take their seats. The bell master wakes-up and invites the small bell to signal to people to stand up, everyone facing the altar.
Incense Offering

The Tea Master goes to the altar, and the Incense Offerer walks mindfully to the altar and lights incense. After bowing to each other the Incense Offerer passes the incense to the Tea Master and stands to his/her side.

The Bell Master invites the large bell three times. The Tea Master chants the incense offering before passing incense to the Incense Offerer who places it at the altar. Bowing to the Buddha (or a shorter form of prostration) is now conducted. The Tea Master now turns to face the community and welcomes everyone to the Tea Ceremony. “A lotus to you, all Buddhas to be !”.The small bell is invited and everyone sits down.

Offering for the Buddha
A Tea Server mindfully pours tea into a cup to offer to the Buddha and holds the decorated plate/tray with tea and biscuit for offering at head level. The Tea Offerer walks mindfully to the Tea Server bows, takes the plate and walks mindfully to the Tea Master.

The Tea Master stands up, bows, takes the Buddha’s plate. Then he/she mindfully walks to the altar, bows, kneels and places the plate on the altar. The Bell Master invites the bell as the plate is placed on the altar. The Tea Offerer and Tea Master return to their cushions and bow to each other before sitting down.

Serving the Guests
The Tea Servers now pass the tray of biscuits. The Tea Servers first offer the biscuit tray to their assistants. Smiling and offering a lotus in gratitude, the assistant mindfully takes a biscuit and napkin, places them on the floor, then takes the tray. The assistant now offers a biscuit back to the Tea Server. The tray is then offered to the next person sitting to the side of the assistant. Each person takes a biscuit as described above before taking the tray and offering to the next person in the circle.

While the biscuits are passed, the Tea Servers pour the tea (filling as many cups as there are people present). When the trays for biscuits are returned the trays with tea cups are passed around the circle and received just like the biscuits. A small jug of milk and sugar bowl can be present for people who like milk and/or sugar in their tea.
Invitation to share

Once the empty trays are returned the Tea Master offers a gatha on enjoying tea and biscuits and invites everyone to enjoy their tea and biscuit. After a short while to enjoy tea in silence (eg 5 minutes) the Tea Master invites people to share songs, poems, experiences etc.

Ending the ceremony
The Bell Master should announce when there are five minutes left before the end of the ceremony. The Tea Ceremony ends with three small bells (i) to all stand up, (ii) to bow to each other, (iii) to bow to the altar. The hosts then go to the door first and bow to guests as they leave slowly and mindfully.

Year of the Rat

The Rat (Chinese:鼠), is the first of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac and is regarded as the protector and bringer of material prosperity. Being the first sign of the Chinese zodiacs, rats are considered leaders, pioneers and conquerors. They are charming, passionate, charismatic, practical and hardworking. Rat people are endowed with great leadership skills and are the most highly organized, meticulous, and systematic of the twelve signs. Rats are intelligent and cunning at the same time, rats are highly ambitious and strong-willed people who are keen and unapologetic promoters of their own agendas, which often include money and power. They are energetic and versatile and can usually find their way around obstacles, and adapt to various environments easily. A rat's natural charm and sharp demeanor make it an appealing friend for almost anyone, but rats are usually highly exclusive and selective when choosing friends and so often have only a few very close friends whom they trust.

Overlaid on the Chinese zodiac are the five elements (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water), the 2008 rat is an earth rat and people born in an Earth Rat year are said to be logical realists, shrewd, charming, ambitious, and inventive.

Polishing the Mirror.

There are times in our life when we are reluctant to face new challenges because our mind has become so full of doubt, finding our inner potential becomes difficult. Nichiren Dishonin used the analogy of a mirror to explain how we can dispel our illusion and replace it with new awareness.

"When deluded, one is called an ordinary being, but when enlightened, one is called a Buddha. This is similar to a tarnished mirror that will shine like a jewel when polished. A mind clouded by the illusions of innate darkness of life is like a tarnished mirror, but when polished, it is sure to become like a clear mirror, reflecting the essential nature of all phenomena and the true aspect of reality. Arouse deep faith, and diligently polish your mirror day and night"

There is no difference between a Buddha and an ordinary being because of our inate Buddha nature, therefore we all have the ability to change our lives and some times it only needs small changes to change the negative into the positive.

Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter

I am not sure how many I have seen this film but every time I see it, it is like seeing the film for the first time. Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter follows the story of two Buddhist monks, a Master and his young student who live in a small temple that floats on a lake in the mountains some where in Korea surrounded by a forest. The monks have to row ashore in a boat and seem to spend most of their time roaming through the forest collecting herbs for medicine, observing nature and learning deep and meaningful lessons about life.



The seasons are analogous to the different stages we pass through as we grow. In springtime the young monk is a 5-year-old boy growing up and discovering the world. The summer represents the teenager discovering latent sexual urges. Autumn represents the 30 year old man having committed murder and in trouble with the law. Winter our man is in his mid-life whose innocence has been corrupted. After paying for his sins over the course of many years, the monk finds inner peace and is reborn.


The film is superbly shot and the scenery stunning complemented by a very moving soundtrack the combination make this film a joy to watch, and its story is rich with messages about forgiveness and inner peace.



The Film Stars:
Oh Young-Su,
Lom Ki-Duk,
Kim Young-Min,
Seo Jae-Kyunc,
Ha Yeo-Jin

And is directed by:
Kim Ki-Duk

Sony distributed the film and there is an exclent website at:

• http://www.sonyclassics.com/spring/

The Tiger Monks of Wat Pa Luangta Bua

The Story of Phra Acharn Chan is the abbot of the “Tiger Temple” began 27 years ago when a doctor diagnosed him with leukemia and told him he had a very short time to live. Phra Acharn Chan’s response then was "Okay, I'm good luck because you and everybody in the world doesn't know when you are going to die but I know by myself I am going to die soon, so I have to do the good thing very quickly,"and become a monk. Later, Phra Acharn Chan became abbot at the monastery.

As civilization invaded rural Thailand, the wildlife drifted into this sanctuary. First there were birds, then wild boars wounded by local hunters. Eventually, the abbot says, the boars trusted him to care for them. Then they wandered off, only to return months later in even greater numbers. After the boar, it was a wounded tiger, and then villagers brought him another. There are now more than 15 tigers. These five-month-old cubs were born at the monastery. Dr. Somchai Visamong-Kolchai, the monastery, says the abbot cares for the animals as he would for humans because of a basic principle of Buddhism reincarnation.

“We believe that the tiger here used to be the monk, used to be our friend, our family, brother, sister.. And we or the abbot or the monks inside the tiger temple used to be the tigers. So, we are the same mind and spirit even if different in body, in shape, in form. In other words, whether animal or human, is not important. It is the spirit within the body that counts. If you have a power of love, a power of happiness in your mind, you can do everything. If the monks at the monastery do not take care of the tigers that may have been humans in their previous lives, the monks could be reincarnated themselves as an animal.

http://www.tigertemple.org/Eng/index.php

There is also a good website with a short film at:

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/week833/feature.html#

Thousand-Hand Guan Yin

I first saw the dance “Thousand hands of Guan Yin”, (Kwan Yin) during the Chinese spring festival 2005. The dance took me completely by surprise and I was so impressed by the grace and beauty of the dance I cried. I did not know then that all the dancers where deaf and dumb and from the China's Disabled People's Performing Art Troupe who have a website at:

• http://www.mydream.org.cn/

CCTV Internationl (Chinese television in English), has an interesting profile on the Disabled People's Performing Art troupe:

• http://www.cctv.com/program/rediscoveringchina/20060427/103626.shtml/
  

The lead dancer is Tai Lihua, Tai only became aware that she was deaf at the age of 5. She had been playing a game of tag with her friends. But when it came her turn to be blindfolded and chase the other children, Tai suddenly realized she was unable to do so. She got scared and couldn't stop crying.

The little girl had actually lost her hearing at age 2, when she had a high fever.

How she became a dancer was a direct result of her enrollment at age 7 in a school for children with disabilities. There she met a teacher who would tap her heels rhythmically on the floor to communicate with the children, since they could feel the vibrations.

Tai's father, seeing how inapt his daughter was at the "tapping" form of communication, bought the child some dancing shoes. Tai says "The shoes gave me an ability to express myself without words".

Please Visit:

• http://china.org.cn/english/NM-e/156143.htm/

Guan Yin is the Bodhisattva of compassion for further information please forfurther information visit:

• http:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guan_Yin

Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf

This excerpt from Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf is largely taken from the translator's introduction:

Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf, (Hachisu no Tsuyu) was the first edition of Japan's most popular and beloved Zen poet Ryokan, compiled by the nun Teishin. Ryokan was born in 1758 in the remote and snowy province of Echigo, located in northern Honshu, bordering the Sea of Japan. His father was the village headman and a haiku poet of some note, and Ryokan received a thorough education in the classics of China and Japan. Shy and studious as a boy, Ryokan was the local Don Juan for a brief period in his youth. Following a spiritual crisis around the age of twenty, however, he renounced his patrimony and entered a Zen monastery.

In 1780 Ryokan became the disciple of Kokusen, the top Soto Zen roshi of the period, and accompanied that master to Entsu-ji in Tamashima. Ryokan trained diligently at that lovely little monastery until Kokusen's death in 1791. Even though he had received formal sanction as Kokusen's Dharma heir, Ryokan spurned all invitations to head up his own temple and embarked instead on a long pilgrimage, wandering all over Japan during the next decade.

In his early forties, Ryokan drifted back to his native place, and he remained there the rest of his days, living quietly in mountain hermitages. He supported himself by begging, sharing his food with birds and beasts, and spent his time doing Zen meditation, gazing at the moon, playing games with the local children and geisha, visiting friends, drinking rice wine with farmers, dancing at festivals, and composing poems brushed in exquisite calligraphy.

A close friend of Ryokan wrote:
When Ryokan visits it is as if spring had come on a dark winter's day. His character is pure and he is free of duplicity and guile. Ryokan resembles one of the immortals of ancient literature and religion. He radiates warmth and compassion. He never gets angry, and will not listen to criticism of others. Mere contact with him brings out the best in people.

Once a relative of Ryokan's asked him to speak to his delinquent son. Ryokan came to visit the family home but did not say a word of admonition to the boy. He stayed the night and prepared to leave the following morning. As the wayward boy was helping tie Ryokan's straw sandals, he felt a warm drop of water on his shoulder. Glancing up, the boy saw Ryokan, with eyes full of tears, looking down at him. Ryokan departed silently, but the boy soon mended his ways.

The samurai lord of the local domain heard of Ryokan's reputation as a worthy Zen monk and wanted to construct a temple and install Ryokan as abbot. The lord went to visit the monk at Gogo-an, Ryokan's hermitage on Mount Kugami, but he was out gathering flowers, and the party waited patiently until Ryôkan returned with a bowl full of fragrant blossoms. The lord made his request, but Ryokan remained silent, Then he brushed a haiku on a piece of paper and handed it to the lord:

The wind gives me
Enough fallen leaves
To make a fire

The lord nodded in acknowledgment and returned to his castle.

Once, after the long winter confinement, Ryokan visited the village barber to have his shaggy head of hair shaved off. The barber cut one side but then demanded a ransom to finish the job: a sample of Ryokan's calligraphy. Ryokan brushed the name of a Shinto god, a kind of calligraphy that served as a good-luck charm. Pleased that he had outwitted the monk, the barber had the calligraphy mounted and displayed it in his alcove. A visitor remarked to the barber one day, "You know, there is a character missing from the god's name."

Such an omission negates the calligraphy's effect as a talisman, and the barber confronted Ryokan. Ryokan scolded him good-naturedly for his greed: "You short-changed me, so I short-changed you. That kind old lady down the road always gives me extra bean cake, so the calligraphy I gave her has an extra character in it!"

Old and infirm, Ryokan was finally obliged to leave his mountain hut and spent his final days at the home of one of his patrons in the village. Near the end of his life, he fell in love with the beautiful young nun Teishin. She was at Ryokan's side when he passed away on January 6, 1831, at age seventy-three.

Ryokan wrote thousands of poems and poem-letters, both Chinese and Japanese style, and scattered them about. These were treasured by the local folk and later lovingly studied and collected by scholars. The first edition of Ryokan's poems, titled Hachisu no Tsuyu ("Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf") and compiled by Teishin, appeared in 1835. Expanded collections of Ryokan's work have continued to be published over the years, and he is likely Japan's most popular and beloved Zen poet. As mentioned in the tale above, Ryokan's delightful brushwork, totally unaffected and free-flowing, is also highly esteemed, and Ryokan is venerated as one of the greatest calligraphers of all time in East Asia.

The practice of Zen and the appreciation of Zen art is now universal, and Ryokan's life and spirit speak to lovers of poetry, religion, and beauty everywhere. The selection of poems presented here reflects the range and depth of Ryokan's Zen vision. He focused on "things deep inside the heart," and his poems cover the spectrum of human experience: joy and sadness, pleasure and pain, enlightenment and illusion, love and loneliness, man and nature. Like those of his counterpart Cold Mountain (Han-shan), the legendary Zen poet of T'ang China, Ryokan's poems reveal the full, rich texture of Zen.

Good friends and excellent teachers—Stick close to them!
Wealth and power are fleeting dreams
But wise words perfume the world for ages.

Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf is published by Shambhala Publications, for further information please visit:

http://www.shambhala.com/index.cfm

The Health Benifits of Tai Chi 1. Asthma

Question from Jill:
Hi Cloud, Can Taichi help asthmatics, which I am, and panics, When I used to go to a church that did healing all the healers would be in a room doing tai chi, before doing healing.

Answer:
Thank you for your message. Yes, Tai Chi can help asthma sufferers and help with panic attacks. Qigong and its sister Tai Chi has been a cornerstone for traditional Chinese medicine for over 2000 years. It is possible that your healers use the same principles as does practitioners of Qigong and of Ayurvedic medicine from India. Tai Chi, (and Yoga), combines three major components, movement, meditation, and deep breathing; each is beneficial to the individual in a number of ways.

Movement - In Tai Chi all the major muscle groups and joints are exercised with the slow, gentle movements in tai chi improving balance, agility, strength, flexibility, stamina, muscle tone, and coordination. It is a low-impact, weight-bearing exercise strengthens bones and can slow bone loss, thus preventing the development of osteoporosis.

Meditation - Research shows that meditation soothes the mind, enhances concentration, reduces anxiety, and lowers blood pressure and heart rate.

Deep breathing - The combination of deep breathing and movement increases chest expansion and encourages greater air flow, an increased amount stale air and toxins is exhaled from the lungs allowing an increased inhalation of fresh air. The lung capacity is increased by stretching the intercostal muscles involved in breathing and releasing tension. It also enhances blood circulation to the brain, which boosts mental alertness. At the same time, the entire body is supplied with fresh oxygen and nutrients. The deep breathing of tai chi regulates the respiratory system, helping to treat respiratory ailments such as asthma, bronchitis, and emphysema.

Healing the Wounds

Thich Nhat Hanh in Ho Chi Minh city, leading Vietnamese monks in a Buddhist ceremony to heal the wounds of the Vietnam war 40 years ago.It has been estimated that over 1.4 million military personnel were killed in the Vietnam war, of which 6% were members of the United States armed forces. The estimates of civilian fatalities range from 2 to 5.1 million. Many of Thich Nhat Hanh's friends, family and disciples where killed during the war in Vietnam by both the guerillas and the Americans. Ben Tre, a city of three hundred thousand people, was bombed to destruction by the Americans after a number of guerillas entered the city and tried to shoot down American aircraft.

It was not only the people of Vietnam who suffered during the war. The young American soldier who was sent to Vietnam in order to kill and be killed also suffered, and that suffering continues today. It is not just the family but the nation that suffers in the end. War is War. It is misunderstanding and fear that lies at the foundation of the suffering and it is only by overcoming that fear and misunderstanding that one is able to heal the wounds and forgive.

Thich Nhat Hanh was abel to understand the nature of the suffering. Born central Vietnam in 1926 he became a monk at the age of 16. In the early 60’s he founded the School of Youth Social Service, (SYSS). The SYSS based its work on the Buddhist principles of non-violence and compassionate action. The organization rebuilt bombed villages, set up schools and medical centers, resettled homeless families, and organized agricultural cooperatives. He was banned from returning to Vietnam in 1966 after visiting the USA and Europe. He persuaded Martin Luther King, Jr. to oppose the Vietnam War publicly in America, and so helped to galvanize the peace movement. The following year, Martin Luther King nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize. Today Thich Nhat Hanh is one of the best known and most respected Zen masters in the world today, a poet, and peace and human rights activist.

"True peace is always possible, yet it requires strength and practice, particularly in times of great difficulty. To some, peace and nonviolence are synonymous with passivity and weakness. In truth, practicing peace and nonviolence is far from passive. To practice peace, to make peace alive in us, is to actively cultivate understanding, love, and compassion, even in the face of misperception and conflict. Practicing peace, especially in times of war, requires courage."

This weekend, on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month we in the UK remember the soldiers that fell in two world wars and all the other conflicts that have claimed countless sons’s, fathers, brothers, husbands and lovers. All good men who fought for “King and country”, but also, lets not forget the countless numbers of civilians on all sides who where killed in the “Name of Freedom”, the innocent ones caught up in the conflict over which they had no control. Let us learn from Thich Nhat Hanh and remember that and it is only by overcoming our fear and misunderstanding that will help us to heal our wounds and forgive.

Quotes from Daisaku Ikeda

Life is the blossoming of flowers in the spring,
the ripening of fruit in the fall,
the rhythm of the earth and of nature.
Life is the cry of cicadas signaling the end of summer,
migratory birds winging south in a transparent autumn sky,
fish frolicking in a stream.
Life is the joy beautiful music instills in us,
the thrilling sight of a mountain peak reddened by the rising sun,
the myriad combinations and permutations of visible and invisible phenomena.
Life is all things.

________________________

As long as we are human, we are destined to make mistakes.

We all fall prey to flawed beliefs and views.

What separates a forward-looking person from an intransigent one,

a virtuous person from a malevolent one, however,

is whether one can candidly admit to ones mistakes

and take bold steps to redress them.

Daisaku Ikeda

http://www.ikedaquotes.org/

In a Burmese Garden

Photograph by Alfred Molon (www.molol.de)

In a Burmese Garden

Under an ancient Buddha's Gaze-
white hibiscus
a blaze of bougainvillea
and majestic moths play.

The geckos are calling
above teak slats of the
monastery
and banana trees wave
their giant sleeves
in the hot wind

I have my fill
to stand with them-
my tall friends in the garden,
to praise the last ember of sunset
while the rats run free
and the stars cavort
in the skies
beyond Your laughing eyes.

Ayya Medhanandi (From "Tomorrow's Moon," 2005 Aruna publications)

Like Thailand and Sri Lanka, Burma, (Myanmar), is a country that has a long and rich Buddhist tradition. Although Buddhism had become firmly established in Burma by the fifth and sixth centuries CE, a significant development was the conversion of King Anawrahta to Theravada Buddhism in the eleventh century. Today, about 89% of Burmese people practice Buddhism and every town and village in Burma has a pagoda and a monastery, the traditional places for worship and education. The country is often called "the land of pagodas" of which the most famous is the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon.

Young monks studying at a monastery in Burma

Although Burma is a land rich in natural resources, its people are poor. The levels of poverty in some of the city's poorer districts are shocking, public transport is overcrowded, and for most of the population, electricity remains intermittent.

Burma is ruled by one of the most brutal military dictatorships in the world. The military regime is repressive and has been charged by the United Nations with “crimes against humanity” for its systematic abuses of human rights, denying freedom of expression and crushing any movement towards democracy.

Demonstrations against the dictatorship are not new. A national uprising on 8th August 1988, resulted in hundreds of thousands of people marching to demand a change of government. Today it is the Pro-democracy activists who are leading the demonstrations. On 19 August, Rangoon, (Yangon), saw the largest demonstration for several years when 400 protestors marched in the city. Now it is thought that thousands of protesters are dead or have been jailed and tortured for participating in earlier protests. The monks have asked civilians not to join them for fear of provoking reprisals by the security forces. Many monks have been savagely beaten at a sports ground on the outskirts of Rangoon, where they were heard crying for help and a former intelligence officer for Burma's ruling junta revealed that the bodies of hundreds of executed monks have been dumped in the jungle.

The body of an executed monk floating in the water.
(Picture taken from the Evening Standard web site
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/ 09/10/2007)

So where do they go from here? In his teaching on the Four Noble Truths the Buddha reminds us that:

1. Life means suffering. To live means to suffer, human nature is not perfect and neither is the world we live in. During our lifetime we have to endure physical suffering, pain, sickness, injury, tiredness, old age, and eventually death; and we have to endure psychological suffering like sadness, fear, frustration, disappointment, and depression.

2. The origin of suffering is attachment, attachment to transient things and the ignorance thereof. Transient things do not only include the physical objects that surround us, but also ideas.

Burma’s military junta is led by three generals and they wield absolute power. The most senior is General Than Shwe, 73. Maung Aye is also a career soldier and the second most powerful man in the country and Lieutenant General Soe Win, 58. Life too, for them is transient; they too suffer pain, sickness, tiredness, old age and death they too live in fear, fear that their lavish lifestyles and tyrannical ideology will end.

The natural law of cause and effect is called Karma. There is no higher instance, no judgement, no divine intervention, and no gods that steer man's destiny, but only the law of karma itself, which works on a global time frame. Deeds yield consequences either in the next second, in the next hour, day, month, year, decade, or even in the next lifetime, or in another distant lifetime. This applies to all of us monks, laypeople, and generals alike, but for as long as the Generals feed their delusion, greed, and aversion, they will generate bad karma.

Thich Nath Hanh, wrote in the Five Mindfulness Trainings, that we should be “aware of the suffering caused by the destruction of life”. We should be committed to cultivating compassion and learning ways to protect the lives of people, animals, plants, and minerals. We should be determined not to kill, not to let others kill, and not to condone any act of killing in the world, in my thinking, and in my way of life.

Thich Nath Hanh recently gave an interesting interview to Time magazine regarding Burma and about the issues regarding Global warming I have included the link below:

http://www.plumvillage.org/HTML/pressrelease/time_alreadyasuccess.html

The Four Noble Truths state that “The cessation of suffering is attainable.” (The Third Noble Truth) and states: The cessation of suffering can be attained through nirodha the unmaking of sensual craving and conceptual attachment. This means that suffering can be overcome through human activity, simply by removing the cause of suffering. The Fourth Noble Truth says that the path to the cessation of suffering is attained through a gradual path of self-improvement, which is described more detailed in the Noble Eightfold Path.

Chapter 10 of the Dhammapada is a verse on Violence which we should all remember.

10. Violence

All beings tremble before violence.
All fear death.
All love life.
See yourself in other.
Then whom can you hurt?
What harm can you do?
He who seeks happiness
By hurting those who seek happiness
Will never find happiness.
For your brother is like you.
He wants to be happy.
Never harm him
And when you leave this life
You too will find happiness.
Never speak harsh words
For they will rebound upon you.
Angry words hurt
And the hurt rebounds.
Like a broken gong
Be still, and silent.
Know the stillness of freedom
Where there is no more striving.
Like herdsmen driving their cows into the fields,
Old age and death will drive you before them.
But the fool in his mischief forgets
And he lights the fire
Wherein one day he must burn.
He who harms the harmless
Or hurts the innocent,
Ten times shall he fall -
Into torment or infirmity,
Injury or disease or madness,
Persecution or fearful accusation,
Loss of family, loss of fortune.
Fire from heaven shall strike his house
And when his body has been struck down,
He shall rise in hell.
He who goes naked,
With matted hair, mud bespattered,
Who fasts and sleeps on the ground
And smears his body with ashes
And sits in endless meditation -
So long as he is not free from doubts,
He will not find freedom.
But he who lives purely and self-assured,
In quietness and virtue,
Who is without harm or hurt or blame,
Even if he wears fine clothes,
So long as he also has faith,
He is a true seeker.
A noble horse rarely
Feels the touch of the whip.
Who is there in this world as blameless?
Then like a noble horse
Smart under the whip.
Burn and be swift.
Believe, meditate, see.
Be harmless, be blameless.
Awake to the dharma.
And from all sorrows free yourself.
The farmer channels water to his land.
The fletcher whittles his arrows.
The carpenter turns his wood.
And the wise man masters himself.

Talking Buddha.......

Buddhism as a part of the religious education curriculum in the UK has always been a weak subject in most schools and colleges. In an attempt to address this problem I organised a Buddhism workshop on Friday 8th June 2007. The aim of the workshop was threefold:

1. To offer a unique opportunity for the students at the college experience at first hand Mahayana, Theravada and Tibetan Buddhist traditions.

2. To enable a unique opportunity for the students to meet Buddhist monks and to learn about Buddhist monastic life.

3. To raise awareness of Buddhism in Devon.

The day started at 0900am and ended at 1430.Buddhism as a religion/philosophy dates back almost three thousand years, yet its practical philosophy means that it is even more applicable when confronting today's 24/7 lifestyle when the words faith and morality seem to have little meaning. In Buddhism, faith and morality comes not from a sense of believing in something because it is written in a book or attributed to a prophet or taught to you by some figure in authority. The meaning of faith in the Buddhist context is closer to the word “confidence”, knowing that something is true because you have seen it work, because you have observed or experienced that very thing within yourself. In the same way, morality is not a ritualistic obedience to some exterior, imposed code of behavior but that morality, in this case, is a self discipline influenced by the teaching of the Buddha.

For 2500 years the fundimental teaching of the Buddha has remained the same, not as a set of dogmas to be learnt and adhiered to at all cost, but rather as a set of propositions for each individual to investigate for himself. The Buddha was not a special or divine being and therefore being a Buddha is being nothing other than being an ordinary person who is aware of “this” state in their life. The development of this inner life state can enable all people to overcome their problems and live a fulfilled and active life, engaging fully with others and with society.

Suffering

"Now this, monks, is the noble truth of suffering: birth is suffering, aging is suffering, illness is suffering, death is suffering; union with what is displeasing is suffering; separation from what is pleasing is suffering… in brief, the five aggregates subject to clinging are suffering.”

~ The Buddha SN 56:11

Translator: Bhikkhu Bodhi
Samyuta Nikaya 56:11 In the Buddha’s Words,
Bhikkhu Bodhi (ed), Wisdom 2005, p. 76.

In the fifth month rains
no trace of a path
where I can make my way,
meadows of bamboo grass
awash in muddy water

Saigyo (1118-1190)

Happiness, (collections from the Dhammapada).

image: Declan Mccullagh Photography

Happiness

197. Let us live happily then, not hating those who hate us! among menwho hate us let us dwell free from hatred!

198. Let us live happily then, free from ailments among the ailing! among men who are ailing let us dwell free from ailments!

199. Let us live happily then, free from greed among the greedy! amongmen who are greedy let us dwell free from greed!

200. Let us live happily then, though we call nothing our own! We shall be like the bright gods, feeding on happiness!

201. Victory breeds hatred, for the conquered is unhappy. He who has given up both victory and defeat, he, the contented, is happy.

202. There is no fire like passion; there is no losing throw like hatred; there is no pain like this body; there is no happiness higher than rest.

203. Hunger is the worst of diseases, the body the greatest of pains; if one knows this truly, that is Nirvana, the highest happiness.

204. Health is the greatest of gifts, contentedness the best riches;trust is the best of relationships, Nirvana the highest happiness.

205. He who has tasted the sweetness of solitude and tranquillity, is free from fear and free from sin, while he tastes the sweetness of drinking in the law.

206. The sight of the elect (Arya) is good, to live with them is always happiness; if a man does not see fools, he will be truly happy.

207. He who walks in the company of fools suffers a long the way; company with fools, as with an enemy, is always painful; company with the wise is pleasure, like meeting with kinsfolk.

208. Therefore, one ought to follow the wise, the intelligent, the learned, the much enduring, the dutiful, the elect; one ought tofollow a good and wise man, as the moon follows the path of the stars.

Translation by F. Max Muller from the splended website:
http://www.textlibrary.com/TITLE/dhammapa/index.htm

Image: Declan Mccullagh Photography at http://www.mccullagh.org/image/d30-3/japanese-garden-buddha.html

Stress, Stress and even more Stress

Again I am at a loss as to how some people cope with all the stress in their lives, I find out about three men and their problems.

The first man went back to Greece with his wife and young daughter, after visiting his mother and father, (prior to the Easter celebrations,) he drove his wife and daughter to his mother in law and whilst he was there, received a phone call to say his father had just died. His holiday was spent dealing with father’s death and arranging a funeral, then had to jump on to an airplane and fly back to the UK 2000 miles away. Now back here he is racked with guilt, I should have gone home earlier, if I had seen a doctor he might be still living. He is now back at work in a very stressful job, doing part time study at university level and is not sleeping. How much will he take before he blows a fuse?

The second man is already about to blow his fuse, he is angry confused struggling with coming to terms with his past and is crying out for help, he says he’s ready to pack everything in and “bugger off”, but where does he run to? And what will he do when he gets there?

The third man I found in rather a tearful state reading a book from “Relate”, sounding as though things are already over between him and his wife. He desperately wants to keep things together and does not want his marriage to end, but who can he talk to? How does he release the emotional energy that is building up inside? Where can he go from here? I know that with Relate he will be in good hands and Marriage guidance is not my forte but helping him with the stress is where I am able to help in a practical way.

You must rise above
The gloomy clouds
Covering the mountaintop
Otherwise, how will you
Ever see the brightness?

Ryokan

Finding Happiness

Many believe that happiness is only possible when they have achieved certain objectives: finding a loving partner, landing a well paid job, attaining status at work or in the community, buying a new car, having nice holiday. I believe happiness, joy and peace come from being completely present in the Here and Now. Peace and happiness arise from the simplicity of just being and avoiding the internal mental commentary we carry in our minds through out our daily lives.

Happiness can be achieved directly, in any circumstances, right now. It is not an objective that you reach after long endurance, but a process that you participate in here and now. It is under your nose. True happiness is a peaceful state which arises when the anxieties of everyday life are quietened. A happy mind is naturally a peaceful mind.

From the moment of our birth, our minds become full of habits; the habit of unhappiness arises when our mind is focused on past unhappy experiences or fears about the future. When we dwell on our habitual unhappy mind, we fail to see that suffering is often the result of wrong perceptions. By focusing on and practising positive states of mind, we encourage our own mind to make new habits, "happy habits", and we begin to transform our lives. Therefore happiness is not a matter of faith, but a matter of practice.

Springtime at Bystock Lake (The Wood Element)

Walking beside Bystock Lake in early spring with the sound of wood peckers drumming on dead wood, fighting mallard ducks trying to establish territories and Great tits and Chaffinches darting through the trees. I try to look at Bystock Lake with my knowledge of the Chinese “Five Elements”.



The Wood Element
The element associated with spring is “Wood,” an Immature Yang element, influencing the climate with Wind and Coolness. The dominant colures are bright blues in the sky and greens of buds as they begin to fill and open. Anger is found in the emotions as “sap rises” and males in their peak physical condition fight for mates or to protect their females like the mallard ducks on the lake chasing off the other males they see as threats and the chaffinches darting from tree to tree calling to attract the females and establish territories.



We look the east to welcome the early morning sun, a sign that winter is ending and warmer weather is on its way and with the warmer weather the birth of the next offspring. Deep in the water vibrant green water lily leaves push their way upwards to the surface of the lake to catch spring sunshine.

The Fu organ associated with spring and the wood element is the Gall Bladder, the “minister of justice” and within the organism, directs the impulses of all other organs. The gall bladder is paired with the Liver. If it is the ability of the liver to plan then it is the ability of the Gall Bladder to “Decide” hence the term “Minister of Justice”

The Hart Sutra

Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva
when practicing deeply the Prajna Paramita
perceives that all five skandhas are empty
and is saved from all suffering and distress.

Shariputra,form does not differ from emptiness,
emptiness does not differ from form.
That which is form is emptiness,
that which is emptiness form.

The same is true of feelings,
perceptions, impulses, consciousness.

Shariputra,
all dharmas are marked with emptiness;
they do not appear or disappear,
are not tainted or pure,
do not increase or decrease.

Therefore, in emptiness no form, no feelings,
perceptions, impulses, consciousness.
No eyes, no ears, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind;
no color, no sound, no smell, no taste, no touch,
no object of mind;
no realm of eyes
and so forth until no realm of mind consciousness.

No ignorance and also no extinction of it,
and so forth until no old age and death
and also no extinction of them.
No suffering, no origination,
no stopping, no path, no cognition,
also no attainment with nothing to attain.

The Bodhisattva depends on Prajna Paramita
and the mind is no hindrance;
without any hindrance no fears exist.
Far apart from every perverted view one dwells in Nirvana.

In the three worldsall Buddhas depend on Prajna Paramita
and attain Anuttara Samyak Sambodhi.

Therefore know that Prajna Paramita
is the great transcendent mantra,
is the great bright mantra,
is the utmost mantra,
is the supreme mantra which is able to relieve all suffering
and is true, not false.

So proclaim the Prajna Paramita mantra,
proclaim the mantra which says:
gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha
gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha
gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha.

The Hart Sutra
The Heart Sutra is regarded as the summation of the wisdom of the Buddha. It expresses the insight attained by non-attachment and the doctrine of emptiness. The Heart Sutra is said to be the shortest and the most popular sutra in Buddhism. The Diamond Sutra in about 5000 words summarizes the six hundred volumes of the Maha Prajna Sutra, and the Heart Sutra in around 250 words summarizes the Diamond Sutra. There are many translations of the Heart Sutra and this one was for me the easiest to learn, (even though it may not be an accurate translation from the Sanskrit). There are many commentaries on the Heart Sutra, the following translation is one I found in Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heart_Sutra)

The Heart Sutra introduces the bodhisattva of compassion, Avalokiteśvara, who in this case is representing the faculty of prajña (wisdom). His analysis of phenomena is that there is nothing which lies outside the five aggregates of human existence (skandhas) — form (rūpa), feeling (vedanā), volitions (samskārā), perceptions (saṁjñā), and consciousness (vijñāna).
Avalokiteśvara then addresses Śariputra, who in this text — as with many other Mahāyāna texts — is a representative of the Early Buddhist schools, described in many other sutras as being the Buddha's foremost disciple in wisdom. Avalokiteśvara famously states that, "form is emptiness (Śūnyatā) and emptiness is form" and declares the other skandhas to be equally empty — that is, without an independent essence. Avalokiteśvara then goes through some of the most fundamental Buddhist teachings such as the Four Noble Truths and explains that in emptiness none of these labels apply. This is traditionally interpreted as saying that Buddhist teachings, while accurate descriptions of conventional truth, are mere statements about reality — they are not reality itself — and that they are therefore not applicable to the ultimate truth that is by definition beyond dualistic description. Thus the bodhisattva, as the archetypal Mahāyāna Buddhist, relies on the perfection of wisdom, defined in the larger Perfection of Wisdom sutras to be the wisdom that perceives reality directly without conceptual attachment. This perfection of wisdom is condensed in the mantra with which the Sutra concludes.

Amongst White Clouds

On returning from my morning walk I found a package from Canada in the mail box, the DVD "Amongst White clouds" has finally arrived. Since the time of the Yellow Emperor, some five thousand years ago, China’s remote Zhongnan Mountains have been home to recluses, enlightened Buddhist and Taoist Masters, monks and students who live in isolated hermitages dotting the peaks and valleys of the Zhongnan Mountain range. "Amongst White Clouds" shows the tradition of China's forgotten Zen Buddhist hermit’s of the Zhongnan Mountains, the hardship they endure as well as the joy, humour and compassion of the everyday lives of the Buddhist monks living in the Zhongnan Mountains.

The film was inspired by the book "Road to Heaven, encounters with Chinese Hermits" by Bill Porter. Road to Heaven is a brilliant book with lots of stories about the lives of early and present day Buddhist and Taoist hermit monks, Temples in the Zhongnan mountains. The sad part about the book is the lack of references, there are a few but I would like to follow the thread of some of the stories, eg. The meeting of the 88 year old Lao-tzi with the young Confucius (p37), and an interesting link between Taoism and Buddhism “After Lao-tzu joined the immortals, he was reborn Shakyamuni…” (p63). The recorded dialogue between Bill Porter and the Buddhist and Taoist hermit monks and their life in the Chungnan Mountains makes for interesting reading

In my view the film adds extra colour to the book, but in its own right the film is fascinating.

http://www.amongstclouds.com/

Yin and Yang and the Wu-Hsing Theory

"The terms Yin, the dark and Yang, the light, denote respectively the shadowed and light side of a mountain or a river. Yang represents the south side of the mountain, because this side receives the sunlight, but it connotes the north side of the river, because the light of the river is reflected to that side. The reverse is true as regards yin. The terms are gradually extended to include the two polar forces of the universe which we may call positive and negative."
WILHELM 1967 p297-298)

Ancient Chinese philosophers and sages are thought to have collected and first written down observations of the natural world around them during the Qin and Han dynasties (221BCE and 220CE). Their collection of writings formed the basis of the Chinese classic the “I-Ching” or Book of Changes. The sages believed that everything in the universe can be described in terms of a polar combination of entities which they called “Yin” and “Yang” and the Wu-hsing or five element theory which described a clyclic process of energy transformation of five basic types of energy, Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water.

Yin and Yang Theory
Yin and Yang formed the basis of a system in which all phenomena can be described in complementary groups, a natural law of opposites. According to theory, all things and phenomena in the universe contain two polar aspects, “Yin” and “Yang” that are both seen as being complementary to each other and at the same time, in opposition to each other, that is, one cannot exist without the other. It would be impossible for us to have any concept of “day” if we had no concept of “night” to compare it with, hot cannot exist without cold, and good can not exist with out evil. Yin and Yang are therefore both interdependent, and in conflict with each other.

Just as one side of a mountain faces south and is warmed by the sun, the north remains in the shade and is cooler. Yin and Yang are not mutually exclusive, within Yin there is an element of Yang and within Yang an element of Yin. Yin and yang are usually held in balance, that is, as one increase’s, the other decreases.

The interrelationships of every thing that exists can be expressed in the form of Yin and Yang and are represented as complementary and opposite entities and maybe expressed in tabular form, two broad categories of complementary terms, the list below is only a representation of the Yin and Yang phenomena and is by no means exhaustive.

Yin / Yang
Female / Male
Dark / Light
Cold / Hot
Rest / Movement
Static / Dynamic
Moon / Sun
Earth / Heaven
North / South
West / East
Winter / Summer
Solid (Liquid) / Vapour (Gas)
Condensation / Evaporation
Contraction / Expansion
Descending / Ascending
Below / Above
Lower part / Upper part
Left / Right
Night / Day
Water / Fire
Yielding / Resistance
Soft / Hard
Passive / Aggressive
Introverted / Outgoing
Quiet / Loud
Slow / Fast
Even / Odd
Wet / Dry
Chronic / Acute

Lunar Eclipse

Whilst I was offering incense to Buddha out side in the garden at 0530 this morning I became aware at just how bright the moon was in the sky, it was casting my shadow across the garden and on to a wall. When I looked in the direction of the moon, I saw it was almost a perfect sphere under the loest branch of our neighbours cherry tree, beautiful. I then savoured its beauty, captivated by the moon and the tree and the sound of birds and started to laugh as I remembered the story of when the famous Japanese scholar Kameda Bosai paid a visit to the Zen master and poet Ryokan.

Bosai found Ryokan sitting zazen on the porch of his hut, and waited—several hours—for the monk to finish, and then Bosai and Ryokan happily talked poetry, philosophy, and writing until evening, Ryokan rose to fetch them some sake from town. Again Bosai waited several hours, then grew concerned and began to walk toward the village. When he found Ryokan, a hundred yards away, sitting under a pine tree, he exclaimed, "Ryokan! Where have you been? I’ve been waiting for hours and was afraid something had happened to you." Ryokan looked up. "Bosai, you have just come in time. Look, isn’t the moon splendid tonight?" When Bosai asked about the sake, Ryokan replied, "Oh, yes, the sake. I forgot all about it," and headed off to town.

To be distracted by life’s moments is indeed a Zen virtue, though it is often a trial for friends.

In the evening I sat out on the beach watching the Lunar eclipse...............beautiful......look, isn't the moon splended tonight......

The thief left it behind

The moon

At the window.

Ryokan

Photo: Matt Ohman, Somerset.

The Year of the Boar

Year of the Boar
1911, 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019.

Sunday 18th February 2007 is Chinese New Year and the first day of the Spring festival.

The Boar character is naturally patient and cheerful, an outgoing jovial character, honest and and patient people. They are kind and careing. Sincere, diligant and generous. Boars born 2007 (and 1947) are "Fire boars" that is they have the characteristics of the fire element and are adventourous, bold and dynamic.

Famous Boars include:
Albert Schweitzer
Fred Astaire
Maria Callas
Tennessee Williams
Arnold Scharzenegger

Wet days and Qigong ways

Saturday and it is raining outside, it seems to have been raining for ever, but I get up at the same time every morning so when my wife and the boys are asleep I go into the front room and work through the daoyin and qigong exercises before doing the 8, 16 and the BCCMA 24 posture forms.

Xu Xiangcai says “Qigong, as an art of healing and health preservation, is thought to have originated as early as four thousand years ago in the Tang Yao times as a form of dancing. Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals or Lu's History (Lu Shi Chun Qiu) records: In the beginning of the Tao Tang Tribes, the sun was often shut off by heavy clouds and it rained all the time; turbulent waters overflowed the rivers' banks. People lived a gloomy and dull life and suffered from rigidity of their joints. As a remedy dancing was recommended. From the experience of their long-term struggle with nature, the ancients gradually realized that body movements, exclamations, and various ways of breathing could help readjust certain bodily functions. For example, imitating animal movements such as climbing, looking about, and leaping was found to promote a vital flow of Qi.”

Four thousand years ago the ancient ones practiced Qigong in caves to keep healthy when the weather prevented them from going out, what is the difference now?

Taichi in Kingsbridge

Yesterday, 4th February I started the Devon Tai chi instructor and the Chengman Ching development course with Matthew Rochford and Luke Shepperd and had a truly brilliant day. The course objective is to deepen our understanding of internal Tai Chi processes, use of mind intention (yi) and issuing forces that will lead us (the practitioner), to a deeper appreciation of taichi and our inner processes, over the course of the next eleven months.

One of Chengman ching’s students, Master Haung Xiangxian was renowned for his refinement of the art. Patrick Kelly trained closely with Master Haung for 22 years and his student Luke Shepherd (who has 25 years experience) and will be leading the development group during 2007. All training is held on a Sunday, 2-5.30pm at the Spanda Studio, Harbour House, Kingsbridge.

Patrick A Kelly was born in New Zealand in 1950. He studied martial arts from childhood. While completing his BSc in pure mathematics, he began Taiji with an experienced student of Master Huang Xingxian in 1973. In 1977 he moved to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia where he studied full time in Master Huang's school. In 1979, following tradition, Master Huang accepted Patrick Kelly as his personal disciple - the only non-Chinese to ever enter Huang's inner-school. From that time Patrick Kelly travelled and taught between Asia, New Zealand, Australia and Europe establishing a school in Auckland, NZ, in 1980. Huang often visited to teach in the NZ school and obtained permanent residency for NZ in 1992 shortly before he died. In that year, at the express wish of his teacher, Patrick Kelly established a Europe wide teaching network, where 20 senior students (20+ years Taiji and 10+ years with Patrick) and 80 close students (average 10 to 15 years Taiji) teach some thousands of students through their independent schools.

From: http://www.patrickkellytaiji.com/index.html

Luke Shepherd (b.1961). is the Principal Instructor and founder of Open Palm Taiji. He is a student of Patrick Kelly and has been training Taiji since 1981. His first 15 years training were with Richard Farmer of Rising Dragon Tai Chi. Rising Dragon's teachings emphasized meditation and personal development with a strong focus on connecting Taiji ideas to every day life. Luke taught as a Rising Dragon Instructor for 5 years in Cardiff prior to moving to Devon. Between 1991-97 he periodically lived in India under the direction of Ramana Maharshi's disciple Sri HWL Poonja. In 1997 Luke met Patrick Kelly. Since that time he has trained the internal aspects of body and mind under the guidance of Patrick. He formed Open Palm Taiji to share this with others.
He divides his time between teaching taiji, his personal training and his work as a sculptor and bronze caster.

From: http://www.abcbronze.co.uk/taiji/opthome.htm

Matthew Rochford. Matthew has been practicing Tai Chi since 1991 and completed a six year senior teaching course in 2002. During that time he has learnt many Tai Chi Forms and worked with leading teacher Peter Warr and trained with Professor Li De Yin from Beijing. Working professionally as an instructor Matthew has taught in a wide variety of locations from sheltered housing projects to The Mind Body Spirit Festival. He has also appeared on TV and Radio, sharing his enthusiasm for the art. As a professional writer on Tai Chi he has been published in national magazines and his first book ‘Total Tai Chi’ (MQ Publications) was released in the UK and USA during April 2003 and was recently translated into Spanish.

From: http://www.devontaichi.co.uk/index.php

A Beautiful Day

Saturday at last but woke early all the same so spent the first hour and a half doing my daoyin, qigong, and tai chi exercises. I then had a cup of "tea Kwanyin", (Chinese green tea), and half an hour's meditation before going for a walk along the seafront. This morning the sea was flat calm the sky blue and sunny, a beautiful day and suppriseingly warm for the time of year. I came across this poem by William Henry Channing 1810-1884.

Live Simply
To live content with small means,
to seek elegance rather than luxury,
and refinement rather than fashion;
to be worthy, not respectable,
and wealthy, not rich
To study hard, think quietly,
talk gently, act frankly;
to listen to stars and birds,
to babes and sages, with open heart;
to bear all cheerfully, do all bravely,
await occasions, hurry never
To let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious,
grow up through the common
This is to be my symphony.

Light At The End Of The Tunnel

There are times when I wonder how some people manage to survive with all the difficulties life has to throw at them. Over the past few months whilst I have been "off-line", I have been giving support to a number of people who's lives have been turned upside down with the sort of problems that the majority of us hope and pray will never happen to us

1. One couple's baby was born 16 weeks premature and spent its very short life in the confines of an incubator, unable to hold and feed their baby, their only contact was the view through the perspex lid.

2. A very intelligent man who is now living in political exile with his wife and daughter's but who's dream is one day to return to his native country and start his life again.

3. Another who is suffering from out and out bullying in the work place.

4. Two men in different companies suffering with stress at work. One of them is not sleeping at night and going through a relationship break down.

All these people have had problems that put mine into perspective and I realize that my problems are insignificant, the result of my own deluded mind. In truth we all suffer from time to time, our very existence is “suffering”, we do experience joy in this life, but life can't be all joy; even in the most fortunate of lives there must be suffering. In the same way that we can not have any concept of “light” without the concept of “dark”, or “hot” with out “cold”, “good” without “bad” so “joy” would be non existent without the experience of “Suffering”.

Buddhists use the Pali word “Dukkha” to describe what we in the west call suffering, (although suffering is not a direct translation of dukkha). Dukkha implies the generally unsatisfactory and imperfect nature of life. In Vol. II of The Three Basic Facts of Existence (Kandy: Buddhist Publication Society, 1983) Francis Story describes Dukkha or Suffering as:

Disturbance, irritation, dejection, worry, despair, fear, dread, anguish, anxiety; vulnerability, injury, inability, inferiority; sickness, aging, decay of body and faculties, senility; pain/pleasure; excitement/boredom; deprivation/excess; desire/frustration, suppression; longing/aimlessness; hope/hopelessness; effort, activity, striving/repression; loss, want, insufficiency/satiety; love/lovelessness, friendlessness; dislike, aversion/attraction; parenthood/childlessness; submission/rebellion; decision/indecisiveness, vacillation, uncertainty.

Siddhartha Gautama Buddha realised the existence of suffering when gave his first sermon at the deer park near Benares (Varanasi), India, on the “Four Nobel Truths” and the “Nobel Eightfold Path”.

The Four Nobel Truths:

(1) that existence is suffering (dukkha);

(2) that this suffering has a cause (samudaya);

(3) that it can be suppressed (nirodha); and

(4) that there is a way (magga) to accomplish this by following the Nobel Eightfold Path, (the way out of suffering).

The Nobel Eightfold Path.
1) Right Seeing.

(2) Right Thought.

(3) Right Speech.

(4) Right Action.

(5) Right Livelihood.

(6) Right Effort

(7) Right Mindfulness.

(8) Right Contemplation.

Whilst I can try my best to follow the Nobel Eightfold Path and find my way out of suffering I find that Tai chi helps me over come the "Stress" that accompanies the suffering, it helps me by "stilling my troubled mind" by helping me to relax and put my troubles back into perspective.

Back on line

Following the recent breakdown in communications when my trusty old computor fell ill, I am now pleased to anouce that it is now fully recovered and its little bit's either tweeked or replaced and is now running with a full head of steam.

A new year and a referbished computor.