The value of our ultimate goal for a Buddhist

As a Buddhist we need to know our goal. What do we want to achieve? We know Prince Siddhartha Gautama sat under the Bodhi tree and attained enlightenment. What does it mean to reach enlightenment? Why do we want to reach the goal as prince Siddhartha had reached?

Here are two definitions from the Internet that I have found:
Enlightenment is a state of perfection wisdom and entails insight into Sunyata. (www.amtfweb.org/english/understandhtml/english-wisdomintro.htm )

The person who has perfected this insight and abandoned all defilements is an arhat, one who is liberated from the cycle of samsara. While alive he enters a sort of conditional nirvana, and at death he enjoys the peace of complete nirvana. (http://buddhism.about.com/od/enlightenmentandnirvana/a/What-Is-Enlightenment.htm)

A state of perfection wisdom can lead us to liberation from suffering. So this is our goal as a Buddhist. Thien Tanh Khong (TTK) has techniques which can help us travel from this shore (our worldly mind= intellect, mind-base and consciousness) to another shore (enlightened mind=Precuneus). From the most basic techniques such as listening to a bell, being objective by using our natural awareness through to the most advanced techniques such as seeing the phenomenon as such (The truth of nature), attaining the understanding of sunyata (non-self) or seeing the phenomenon as an illusion. The 'Don't Talk' is the most unique technique from TTK and uses science to explain how meditation can affect the human body. The founder of TTK Venerable Thich Thong Triet used his own meditation experience and his brain to prove we can enlighten as Buddha if we practise the RIGHT way. All his hard work and effort has proved the Buddhist goal is achievable through scientific research done at the University of Tuebingen in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2013 using fMRI (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging).
 
Someone said to me once we have experienced the suchness/thusness mind that we requite to search for more, ie Theravada Buddhism. Now we understand what we want to achieve and the value of our goal – the perfection wisdom. Once we have attained this stage of perfection of wisdom, do we want to search on for more? Should we even need to ask this question? To me once we have attained this stage, we see as Buddha sees, we hear as Budhha hears and we feel as Buddha feels. By attaining this stage all the Theravada, Mahayana and Vajrayana suttas should ultimately be clear and understood for that person. What more do we want? If a person asks this question after s/he has attained this stage, should we ponder if this person has reached this particular stage?

Sibling's love and hate

煮豆燃豆萁, 豆在釜中泣。
本是同根生,相煎何太急。

by Cao Zhi (192－232)
Three Kingdoms（220-265）

Burning the beanstalk to cook beans,
The beans are crying in the pot:
" Originally we were grown from the same root,
Why are you boiling me so urgently? " 

This Quatrain of seven steps poem described sibling’s quarrels and the fights between them similar to animalistic behaviour, it is against justice and it should not be allowed in human nature, especially as a Buddhist.

As siblings we ought to love, care, tolerate and accept each other even more than people outside the family. We are not wild animals who consume our siblings. We are human beings. Human beings have love, compassion and understanding. As a Buddhist we promote these human values, we love our neighbours let alone our siblings. As humans we also make mistakes and make wrongdoings causing pain to others. However it is important to forgive each other and move on. For those who have hurt us we should show compassion rather than seek retaliation. This will only cause more suffering

I hope whoever is suffering can use it as an experience to learn and reflect and be able to face the problem and come out of the experience with confidence and understanding. I have a mantra which I created for my husband to chant as followed: 
“If anything beyond our control, we have to let go.”
 
We can’t change others but we can change ourselves. So please accept our own siblings as siblings and be a happy family.

I had a colleague who didn’t talk to his sister for more than 10 years as a result of a family piano. His mother had passed away and his sister had wanted the piano. The two siblings eventually went to court and at the end his sister won the court case. However she lived in Canberra and it was too expensive to move the piano from Adelaide to Canberra so she left it at her brother’s house. Until now the piano is still at my colleague’s place. He told me this story and I said to him to make the first move, to forgive his sister and visit his sister as a surprise. He did and now they are happy brothers and sisters again. I just could not comprehend how something so small could stop two siblings from talking to each other for more than 10 years. Is it even worth it?

We only have this lifetime to be brothers or sisters. Is it not sad to see this relationship deteriorate? Buddha has said to be with another person is a result of affinity. Please do not waste this affinity that we are given and let it go to waste.

Who am I?

A monk asked me to tell him " who am I?" and demanded to have my answer straight away. Here was my answer:

Who am I?

I am my mother's smile

I am Nicholas' anger and unsure

I am a white cloud high up in the blue sky

I am the sunshine

I am your mind while you reading this

I am the computer I am working with

I am Greg and Martin, even Thay (Spiritual teacher)

I am a cup of tea

I am nothing and yet everything, everywhere, as you said who am I not?

27/7/2005

To be free or not to be free

There are many, many things that bind (sannojana-gocchakam/結使/ kiết sử) us, that fetter us since we were born till we died. We cannot be free even though we live in a free country. Here are the ten fetters from the Pali canon's Sutta Pitaka (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fetter_(Buddhism))

1. belief in a self (Pali: sakkāya-diṭṭhi)
2. doubt or uncertainty, especially about the Buddha Dharma (vicikicchā)
3. attachment to rites and rituals (sīlabbata-parāmāsa)
4. sensual desire (kāmacchando)
5. ill will (vyāpādo or byāpādo)
6. lust for material existence, lust for material rebirth (rūparāgo)
7. lust for immaterial existence, lust for rebirth in a formless realm (arūparāgo)
8. conceit (māna)
9. restlessness (uddhacca)
10. ignorance (avijjā)

We often let these fetters lead our nose to form our actions, thoughts and speech; because of these invisible chains, we are not free.

In the year 2000 I started learning Buddhism. My husband was against with the idea of me going to the temple. I was very depressed and unhappy. I started to see these fetters in my life. This took me a whole year to work out how to get out from these invisible chains.

These invisible chains are only present in our mind when we think about them. The thought of these chains are the chains themselves. Although we are bound to sickness, old aged and death because of this body, but for other bondages we can come out of it if we truly understand its origin. Where is the root of these bondage?

Behind all these bondages there is ego (’I’); because of this ego there is desire and crave from the outside world. The outside world consists of six external objects: visible forms, sounds, odours, tastes, tactile and mental objects.

For example: I see a rose.
‘I’ = Self
See = External six senses: eye, ear, nose, tongue, skin and mind
           Internal six senses: see, hear, smell, taste, touch and thought
Rose = one of the six external objects (visible objects, sound, odor, taste, touch and mental objects).

In the Satipatthana Sutta Buddha taught us when our six senses meet the six external objects, we understand how the arising of the non-arisen fetters comes to be; we understand how the abandoning of the arisen six internal senses come to be; and we understand how the non-arising in the future of the abandoned the six internal senses come to be.

A technique from Thien Tanh Khong is ‘Don’t Talk’. ‘Don’t Talk’ doesn’t mean verbal speech, this means no mental dialogue. ‘Don’t Talk’ is a complete silent in our mind, no judging, no comment and no self-talk. By using this technique we can have our six senses as six senses and external objects as external objects. There isn’t a connection between six senses and six external objects.

Without this connection we are free. We are free from our six internal senses; we are free from the six external objects and we are free from these ten fetters. Thus we see the world in an objective way. Without this ‘I’ and without this connection between senses and objects, we are truly free from all these bondages.

To be free or not to be free, it is in your own hands. No one can free you! It is you who bind yourself to all these fetters. It is you, who are the master of yourself not these fetters.

A rumour - My own death

In October one of my friends called me and sought confirmation whether I was still alive. When I picked up the phone and said hello, she said: "Thank goodness you are still alive!" I asked: "Did you expect me to be dead?" She told me someone started this rumour about I have been to heaven. Someone even said my ashes had been placed in Thien Tu Hy Xa. She said the Chinese temple knew about this news. I was wondering who started this rumour.

Last night I went to a Vietnamese fundraising dinner. I bumped into a friend. She grasped my hands and said thank goodness I look well. I laughed out loud and asked, "Did you also expect me to be dead?" She went on and said, “So-on-so said you are dead and told so-on-so about this. Now at TAFE (my previous workplace) knew you are dead. So I asked a friend of yours at the Chinese temple about your ashes. She said that your ashes must be at Thien Tu Hy Xa because you go to that temple." I said: "Ah.... I understand who spread this rumour now." She asked: "Aren't you upset? You should tell that person off about this rumour." I said: "No, I am not upset and I won't tell that person off." She asked: "Why not?" I laughed and said: "It is all up to that person to say what she wants to say. I have no control of her speech. If she wants to say something, let her. Maybe she has psychic power that she has seen me transform from an old me to a new me in some way. The old me has dead and a new me has born."

After I have joined this new group of Thien Tanh Khong, I feel I have reformed. This group opened a door to my own treasure cave. I have learnt so much and yet more to come. The beauty of this group is to provide me with some tools to dig up my own treasures within. The theories they provide are clear and concise, easy to understand and follow, not just base on belief.

At Buddha's time, he gave a dharma talk on Kalama sutra. Here is the text:
Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it.
Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many.
Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books.
Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders.
Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.

In Thien Tanh Khong, no belief is involved. I only need to work on myself to achieve what I want to achieve! I only need to practise daily and maintain my four postures (sitting, walking, standing and lying) full awareness with wordless cognition. No secret or back doors that I can go for. Yes, the old me with all the misunderstanding about the phenomenon and the Buddha dharmas is dead and this new me has reborn in a world of Không nói (Silence).

Smile

Smile is the most contagious disease. One person smiles then the whole group of people smile. People use to ask how come I look so young. I don’t look young at all but I often dress myself with a smile.

On my recent trip to Bhutan, I went with a friend. When our guide Karma asked how old are we? Of course we let him guess. At the end we had to tell him our age. I was so surprise that my friend said she frequently feels like she is 80 years old and yet she is much younger than me. I felt sorry that she felt that way. I am a bit shy to admit I feel like I am still a 16 year old on the inside. I have to laugh out loud. Sigh…

In Bhutan, I have seen many beautiful smiles from the young to old generation of this country. They don’t look well off but they seem happy. Karma told us: “This country promotes inner happiness, not being materialistic.” I also observed people in Vietnam. They don’t smile. Instead their faces express sadness, anxious, stress and unfriendliness. I remembered back in 2008 I went to Vietnam with a group of Westerners. One commented how come he said hello and smile to the Vietnamese’s, and they didn’t say hello and smile back to him. He had culture shock because he didn’t receive a smile from people. I asked him to understand the hardship people live in that country. They just could not smile. I asked a Taxi driver why people are so unhappy. He said because they want too much and they are never satisfied. In comparison Vietnam is much advance and well off than Bhutan but their people are not as happy as the Bhutanese. Hmmm… This makes us think ….

People call me little sunshine
'cause I often wear a smile
I smile first thing in the morning
'cause it is good to be alive
I smile in any situation
'cause I know good or bad still will pass

It is a disease
It is contagious
Once it gets start, it spreads
It travels fast
It travels wide
A single smile like mine
Could reach any corner of the world
Please start with a smile today
To infect this unhappy world. (To bring hope into this unhappy world)

Looking for Superpower

During my second Vipassana retreat in 2014 at day 4th I had an extraordinary experience. At that time my mind was as calm and tranquil as it could be. Suddenly I felt a hot boiling feeling which began from the top of my head running down to the tips of my toes. It felt as if my whole body was in sauna. I observed my sensation, moved on and did not pay too much attention to it. It again happened the next day at the similar time. I was puzzled and thought: “Hmmm… strange! Is this some sort of special power?” I requested a time to see the teacher. I reported this sensation of mine to her. She looked at me and asked: “How old are you?” I said I am 51 years old. She smiled and said this is a hot flash during menopause. I burst into laughter. I told her that I thought I had some sought of superpower. We both laughed out loud. I am still laughing while I am typing this. As a worldly people we all love to have superpower, don’t we?