Happy Birthday

Our tour guide Bao-Hong said: “Today is someone’s birthday and we are going to have a Birthday Party.” We all sung happy birthday songs for this happy fella.  After I sung the Chinese happy birthday song, AC asked me: “Is this truly happy?” I said: “Why not? I know that we are one step closer to our grave yard but we should not be sad!” I know that birthdays mark us one year less in our life. But please think in this way, we are one year closer to reborn/transmigration. In Buddhism we believe our body is just like a piece of clothing that we have put on and the day reborn/ transmigration means we can pick new clothes to wear. Although we don’t know what kind of clothes we can have but there is always a hope. Hope for a better one!

So happy birthday to him! Happy birthday to me! Happy birthday to everyone!

Please note: To be able to pick a nice beautiful clothe, we have to:

Avoid do all the evil acts;

Should do all the good and kind acts and

Purify our mind.

Good luck to all!

Superstitious

There are many superstitious things that Buddhist believes in. Things that they can collect merits such as burning a lot of incenses, asking or monk’s blessing, getting merits by visiting Buddhist holy sites and so forth. To my understanding, burn incense is to remind us of our virtue. Do we have any virtue? Fruit offer is to remind us whether we have cultivated our self or not? Flower offer is to remind us phenomenon is impermanent. There won’t be any merit to collect if we don’t use these to reflect on ourselves.

During the trip to Sri Lanka, our tour guide BH offered some incenses to me. I said no thank you. I have my own incense, right inside me to offer to the Buddha and Bodhisattvas. She also gave me a plate of flowers so that I could offer it to the Buddha at the Tooth temple. She insisted that I must have this. I could not go in with empty hands. Sigh. Someone in the group asked: “How come some plates have lotus flowers and my plate has none?” I asked: “Does it matter?” Does a lotus flower awaken you to enlightenment?

Our group seemed to enjoy the blessings from the monks. They requested the Thai monks in Thailand to bless them. When we were at the Sri Dalada Maligawa Tooth temple at Kandy, they got the blessing from various head monks. AC asked why I didn’t ask for blessing. I said thank you very much, I have my own blessing. I don’t dare to take up anyone’s blessing from now on. I have learnt my lesson back in the year 2013 India trip. 

I walked around the Bodhi tree at the Kelaniya temple. AC asked: “Why did you walk around the tree? Are you asking for any merit?” I said: “No, I am not asking any merit. I walk around the tree because I see this tree as I see Buddha. I see Buddha’s teachings. I see impermanence. I see a great man who stroke for liberation not for himself but for all human beings. I pay respect to my great teacher.” Why on earth would I ask for merit in this way?

Buddha taught us in The Kalama sutta:
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.

Wat Yannawa (Relics temple)

This temple houses many golden monk statues and various monks’ relics including Buddha’s top 10 disciples such as Ananda and Maha Kassapa. I burst into tears when I saw not one but many monks who practised and liberated from this Samsara. Their great effort moved me; I prostrated with my gratitude to the patriarchs from all over the world who showed us the way; who carried the light of Wisdom and passed it onto us.

Let me pay my gratitude
To all patriarchs around the world
Your ascetic, self-cultivation, preach Dharma
Vowed to leave us
Your body relics
To show us the right path
Keep the sangha in order
All these virtues are endless merit
Please let me show my respect
With all my heart
Prostrate in front of you
Thanks for your great effort!

My troubles

On the trip to Sri Lanka, one of the group members knew palmistry. She read my palms and said: “Poor you! You have a lot of sickness showing on your palm. But you have an easy life.” I totally agree with what she said. Since I was born I had Alpha Thalassemia. I have Tuberculosis. I had my bowel cancer 3 years ago. I have lots of cysts in my body. I broke my collar bones when I was six and now it is still aching. These are my physical sickness. My other sicknesses are my mental sickness. I have loads of negative feelings such as anger, greed, hatred, jealousy, ego, envy and so forth. I have to admit I am a person full of diseases.

She also said: “Your life is very short. You need to practise hard on Buddhism to be able to have a longer life.” I laughed out loud. AC over heard her comment and said: “I would like to swap my life with you. My palms show I have long life.” I said: “No way! Your life is yours and my life is mine. I don’t mind dying young. What am I going to do with such a long life?” My sickness is mine and I wouldn’t want anyone to have it.

On 2nd of September, we went to see a cultural show at Kandy. On the way back to our hotel, Viji our tour guide pointed to the lake and said: “Sri Lankan believes if you throw food over your head to feed the fishes in this lake, then all your troubles will eaten away by these fishes.” Thus our other tour guide Bao Hong bought popcorns. The group happily threw the popcorn over their head and wished all their troubles to go away. There was one bag left and Bao Hong offered it to me. I was reluctant but she insisted. Hence I stood on the bridge and made a wish. I wished all the fishes will be liberated from this samsara. I then threw all the popcorn over my head. Accidentally they landed on AC’s head. AC cried out and I laughed. It was the funniest thing I’ve never seen. I told him he is now having all my troubles. What a beautiful Sri Lankan tale! I wish someone can take my troubles away. But on second thought without all these negativity, how do I know life is impermanent? How would I know life is within our breath? No way will I give my best friends away to someone or anyone.

A mango leaf (Chỉ là hình thức mà thôi!)

Outside Wat U Phai Rat Bamrung, there is a huge Bodhi tree. Someone said this Bodhi tree was a sapling of the Bodhi tree from Sri Lanka. I picked up a leaf from the ground and started to analyse it. The leaf shape was not the same as the one from Bodh Gaya. My face looked puzzle. AC saw and said: “This tree is the same species as the one in Bodh Gaya.” I asked: “How come the leaf is so big?” AC asked: “What if Buddha sat under a mango tree instead of this tree? What is the different between this leaf and a mango leaf? ” This is so true. Bodhi leaf or mango leaf it is just a leaf. Nothing more than a leaf and yet I was attached to the shape and size of the Bodhi leaf. My old habit of differentiation was telling me this is not the same tree. So what if this is not the same. Leaf is leaf and why do we place such an important to this particular leaf. Dog knows this number 7th mind is working. (Don’t worry if you don’t understand what is mean by number 7th mind.) AC was like a mirror; he showed me a reflection of my old habit inside me.

At Anuradhapura, we visited a Bodhi Tree which was brought from India by King Asoka’s daughter, the nun Sanghamittra. Our group leader requested a sapling to plant in Australia. The head of the Sri Maha Bodhi temple said we have to send in a request to be approved by the council. I told him I have the Bodhi seeds from Bodh Gaya. He said: “No, it’s not the original. If we grow from seed then it will become another tree.” Original! What is original? I thought I got STUCK in the leaf and now someone got STUCK in the tree. This is not only a tree but ORIGINAL tree.

Dream

When Thay Tâm Tuận mentioned the word “Dream”, my mind went through lot of things. I thought about my parents, my brothers and sisters, my jobs, my money, my cars, my house, my friends, my hatred, my travel, my Dharma learning, my teachers, my right, my wrong, my ego and my life. All these that I’ve attached through my life is just like a dream and yet I am enjoying being in this dream. A momentary enjoyment causes my transmigration. Is this worth it?

What is my father? What is my mother?

What is my husband? What are my children?

What are my brothers? What are my sisters?

What is love? What is affection?

What is success? What is failure?

What is being born? What is dying?

What is sickness? What is old aged?

What is cause? What is effect?

What is right? What is wrong?

What is a car? What is a house?

What is power? What is privilege?

What is “I”? What is “You”?

What are the things that I can hold on to?

When I am alive, I attach to these things

But when I die, what can I take with me?

Only the karmic force will come with me

Like the shadow

Stand by me wandering in this Samsara.

I have awakened at this moment but I don’t know how long I will fall into this “Dream” again. 

Pilgrimage

There are two types of pilgrimage: physical and mental. Physical: we visit the sacred/holy sites. Mental: we use the holy sites to reflect on our inner self.

There are holy sites all over the world. If we are Buddhist, we visit India, Myanmar, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, China, Thailand, Lao, Cambodia, Vietnam, Japan, Korea and etc…. Each country has its own holy sites. When we visit these sites we should respect the local’s history and their belief. We should not have hatred towards a particular site. Pilgrimage is for both physical and mental. If the site offends us then we just simply walk away. You may not like it but others may find it fascinating. There is no need to make a big fuss and criticise it. This only shows our ego and we cannot tolerate others. When I am in a church or other temple, I respect their God(s). I respect their rituals and I respect their followers. Even the site offends us, we still can learn much from it if we use a calm and serene mind to look at things. Every site is pure-land.

In 2007 India pilgrimage trip I visited a Hindu cave temple, a monk asked me to touch the Lingam stone. I didn’t know what it is. Everyone walked in the temple will touch this stone, so I did. The monk saw and laughed. I looked closely to the stone and realise it is a male sex organ. It was disgusting! I watched all the people around me and felt pity for them. I know why we are in this samsara because we dwell in the craving of sex. I didn’t swear at that monk who took me to this cave temple. I didn’t even shown any sight of unhappiness, but from now on I have to be careful not to touch anything that people ask me to.

Site Pilgrimage
All holy sites
I respect, I admire, I accept
No prejudge, no hatred, no expectation
Use a serene mind to see
There is no good or bad, no right or wrong
Happy to accept each site


Inner Pilgrimage
Each step I follow
Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and the respectful Sanghas
As my models to follow
Their loving kindness and compassion, wisdom, joy, no attachment
Their vows for sentient beings
I can only reflect
Lessen my greed, hatred, ignorance and ego
Live in the joy of Chan.