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Food for Thought - Part
1 Part 2
Part 3
Reflection Series:
1999 issues - Jul
Aug Nov/Dec
2000 issues - Jan
Oct
Others: - Ullambana
1 Just
Two Words
There
once was a monastery that was very strict. Following a vow of
silence, no one was allowed to speak at all. But there was one
exception to this rule. Every ten years, the monks were permitted
to speak just two words. After spending his first ten years at
the monastery, one monk went to the head monk. "It has been
ten years," said the head monk. "What are the two words
you would like to speak?"
"Bed...
hard..." said the monk. "I see," replied the head
monk.
Ten years
later, the monk returned to the head monk's office. "It has
been ten more years," said the head monk. "What are the
two words you would like to speak?"
"Food...
stinks..." said the monk. "I see," replied the
head monk.
Yet another
ten years passed and the monk once again met with the head monk who
asked, "What are your two words now, after these ten years?"
"I...
quit!" said the monk.
"Well, I
can see why," replied the head monk. "All you ever do
is complain."
·
Is it our habit to complain, complain and complain ? There are
times when we have to make the best of the circumstances or
situation we are in . Learn to count our blessings and the good
things that we have. Remember that in Samsara, nothing is perfect.
·
Patience, tolerance and forbearance are great virtues to develop.
Without these, we often give up on many things that we start upon
to do … Dhamma study, outreach work (Dana), meditation and
so on.
·
There is a saying : “There’s no gain without pain!”
The Path of Dhamma Practice and cultivation is a struggle …it
entails much effort, discipline, sacrifice and commitment.
Remember Siddharta Gautama struggled for 6 long years before
Enlightenment ….and he was a Bodhisattva with good paramis !
Reflecting on this, we know that we, defiled worldlings have even
to struggle more !
2.
TRANSIENT
A famous
spiritual teacher came to the front door of the King's palace.
None of the guards tried to stop him as he entered and made his
way to where the King himself was sitting on his throne.
"What do you want?" asked the King, immediately recognizing the visitor. "I would like a place to sleep in this inn," replied the teacher. "But this is not an inn," said the King, "It is my palace."
"May I
ask who owned this palace before you?" "My father.
He is dead." "And who owned it before him?" "My
grandfather. He too is dead."
"And this
place where people live for a short time and then move on - did I
hear you say that it is NOT an inn?"
·
We are ALL here for just a short time, and then move on.
Reflecting on this, shouldn’t we realize a sense of urgency
to practise Dhamma before it is too late ? Doesn’t it make
sense to develop our virtues and cut our defilements of greed,
hatred and delusion in this very short life of ours ?
·
Our true wealth does not lie in our material possessions or in
the people we love or attach to. We live and die and never really
own anything. How many people today think about this deeply ? Too
many people entrench themselves in their possessions and
positions.
·
What is our true wealth ? It is our Kamma and the Kamma potential
we store up in this fleeting life that will follow us from life
to life . When we reflect on this , we should waste no more time
to practise Dana, Sila and Bhavana the best we can .
3.
SELF-CONTROL
One
day there was an earthquake that shook the entire Zen temple.
Parts of it even collapsed. Many of the monks were terrified.
When the earthquake stopped the teacher said, "Now you have
had the opportunity to see how a Zen man behaves in a crisis situation.
You may have noticed that I did not panic. I was quite aware of
what was happening and what to do. I led you all to the kitchen,
the strongest part of the temple. It was a good decision, because
you see we have all survived without any injuries. However,
despite my self-control and composure, I did feel a little bit
tense - which you may have deduced from the fact that I drank a
large glass of water, something I never do under ordinary
circumstances."
One of the monks
smiled, but didn't say anything.
"What are
you laughing at?" asked the teacher. "That wasn't water,"
the monk replied, "it was a large glass of soy sauce."
·
We see this sort of behavior often in men. They feel they have
to put on a front to appear to be something that they are not .
What about us ? Do we sincerely watch and recognize our
mental weaknesses and take steps to improve ? Too often, we are
clouded in egoism and delusion. Sometimes, when in certain trying
situations, we are not aware of our silly actions until someone
else points it out.
·
To have a cool and composed mind … one with calmness and
equanimity needs a lot of mental training. Constant Dhamma
contemplation and meditation is essential to make our grow and be
strong. Many of us give up because we lack patience, effort,
determination and perseverance.
·
Conquering oneself is indeed the greatest challenge in our
life. We need to take the step now if we still haven’t
….we can ill-afford to wait until we grow old or until we
face with great problems. Even Zen Teachers struggle … what
more about us with our conditioned negative habits and reactions.
The wise man looks within and develops or cultivates his mind .
He constantly does battle with the Mara forces within us : greed
& craving, anger & ill-will, conceit & ego.
Note
If any Dhamma friend is interested to have an analysis of Man’s perpetual problem of fear and an explanation of the Buddha’s solution to the problem, please e-mail me. I’ll forward a beautiful article written by Bhikkhu Bodhi.
