mettavalokanaya_international_buddhist_magazine_january_2020

www.mettavalokanaya.com

January | 2020

28 Edition

Absolutely

Free of Charge

Distribution Worldwide

Not For Sale

SRI LANKA’S LEADING

International

Buddhist Magazine & Website

www.mettavalokanaya.com l 2020 January l Mettavalokanaya l 1

Monk Life

Dignified Adviser

Mahopadyaya Most Venerable

Dr. Pannila Sri Ananda Thero

Chief Prelate of the Aththanagalla Sri Arahantha

Rajamaha Viharaya, Houston Buddhist Temple -

America, First Theravada Buddhist Temple - Taiwan

and the Secretary of the Los Angeles Dharma

Vijaya Buddhist Temple - America, the Chief High

Prelate of the Seenadi Sivu Korale Chapter

Founder / President / Chief Editor

Buddhika Sanjeewa

Absolutely free of charge

Distribution Worldwide

www.mettavalokanaya.com

Creave Director

Wijaya Wagaarachchi

Your comments

Chief Editor,

“Mettavalokanaya”,

Mettavalokana Buddhist Publications Centre,

No.104/E, Aththanagalla Road, Walpola,

Rukgahawila, Sri Lanka.

USA

CANADA

JAPAN

NORWAY

SWEDEN

TANZANIA

BANGLADESH

TAIWAN

SOUTH KOREA

FRANCE

INDONESIA

LAOS

CYPRESS

VIETNAM

BHUTAN

GREECE

MALAYSIA

NEDERLAND

THAILAND

HONG KONG

DENMARK

SCOTLAND

GERMANY

NEPAL

ITALY

CAMBODIA

INDIA

SRI LANKA

SINGAPORE

CHINA

MYANMAR

RUSSIA

AUSTRIA

SOUTH AFRICA

PHILIPPINES

SWITZERLAND

BELGIUM

ENGLAND

NEW ZEALAND

AUSTRALIA

Telephone - + 94 777 551666

Fax - + 94 3322 81257

E-mail - info@mettavalokanaya.com

Website - www.mettavalokanaya.com

Facebook - Mettavalokanaya

Some Photographs published in Mettavalokanaya

Monthly Buddhist Magazine were taken from

Internet. We give our special thanks for the

persons who have published the photographs via

Internet.

Mettavalokanaya Magazine is a registered

Magazine in Sri Lanka with International Standard.

Registered at Department of National Archives in

Sri Lanka 424551/05/01/2016

Registered at National Intellectual Property Office

of Sri Lanka ACT NO.36 OF 2003 - Class 16 / 179486

Registered at Department of the Provincial

Registrar of Business for Western Province in Sri

Lanka W/ATH/L/10474

Registered at International Standard Serial

Numbering Project (ISSN) 2345-9093 / BAR CODE 9

772345 909003

“Peace is a state of

mind and every person

has the ability to find

peace through their own

thoughts”….

- Most

Venerable Phra

Dhamrattanadilok

Maha Thero -

2 l Mettavalokanaya l January l 2020 l www.mettavalokanaya.com www.mettavalokanaya.com l 2020 January l Mettavalokanaya l 3

The Legend of

Golden Era….

Phra Dhammongkol Chedi

Nameem Chiewyai Panjathawat

was born on Wednesday, April

1, 1925, a Pathumthani native.

Ordained as a monk on Monday 28 May

2488 at Bang Na Temple, Pathum Thani

Province Until 1947 Have moved to the

temple at the Faculty of 4 Wat Arun

Ratchawararam The time when Phra

Thep Muni (Wan Thitiya Mano) came

to dominate Wat Arun Ratchawararam.

Therefore, moved to Faculty 1. Education

1951 The study of Phra Pariyat, the

examiner, the great divine at Wat Arun,

Ratcharawararam, 1999, received an

honorary Master of Buddhist Studies

degree. Department of Buddhism

Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya

University Rajabhat University, 1952, is

a primate 1, Wat Arun, Rachawararam

Phra Sophon Waraporn, 2000, is a

royal prince Phra Ratchasuthisophon

Wimol Worakijthatham Mahakanasorn

Bawornsangkharamakamasiri,

2009, is a royal deity Phra Thep

Mongkhon Rangsee Sanctuary

Wisutthisarnthawaratha Mahakanasorn

Bawornsangkharamamkhawasiri, 2014,

is a royal prerogative Phra Dhammongkol

Chedi Sri Phaisan Wihankit Museum

of Science Tawaratha Mahachanasorn,

Baworn Sangkanaram, Khamsawee

Phra Dhammongkol Chedi Former

abbot of Wat Arun, Ratchawararam

Ratchaworawihan Abused with old

diseases Admitted to the hospital at

Thonburi Hospital And die with calmness

At Thonburi Hospital, at 13.30 am, Siri,

93 years old, 73 years old, the temple will

move the body to Wat Arun. On Tuesday

1 August 2017 at 13.00 hrs., Then at 17.00

hrs. Ceremony of the funeral ceremony

and the royal ceremony of the royal

funeral ceremony at Phra Pariyatitham

School (Taro Wittaya Prasat), Wat Arun

Ratchawaram, Wat Arun, Bangkok Yai

District Bangkok, Thailand.

The Chief Abbot of Wat

Arun, Ratchawararam

Ratchaworawihan,

Thailand (Somkiat Kovido

Pali Grade IX)

Most Venerable Phra

Dhamrattanadilok

Thailand

And being a royal teacher, 1968, as

an assistant to the abbot of Wat Arun

Ratchawararam, 2528, as deputy abbot

of Wat Arun, Ratcharawararam, 1996,

appointed as preceptor

In 2008, acting as the deputy

abbot of Wat Arun, Ratchararamaram

in 2009, was appointed as the abbot

of Wat Arun Ratchawararam. On 5

December 1964, as a royal prelate


Modern

Circumstances….

Dhamma and Vinaya, much as the case

of Queen Anula and her large following

of several hundreds of women.

It would also prove, once again,

that according to the understanding of

the Ancient Arahants who lived within

the first five hundred years after the

Parinibbana -- at a time that all traditions

agree that the Dhamma was still present

in its pristine purity in practice and

realization within the Sangha -- that it

was (and is) a desirable thing to ordain

larger numbers of both men and women

who faithfully aspire to the full and

complete living of the Holy Life in the

monastic Sangha.

This does seem to be the prevalent

mood of both the early Sasana in

the Buddha’s lifetime up to the premissionary

period Buddhism in India

under the Emperor Asoka as well as in

the ensuing period of the great missions,

as evidenced by the early missionary

Asokan Missions period resulting from

their initial teaching in these lands.

Mahinda Thera ordains 30,000

men and Sanghamitta Theri ordains

1000 noblewomen (Sri Lanka). Sona and

Uttara Thera ordain 3,500 noblemen and

1,500 noblewomen in Suvannabhumi

(mainland SE Asia) Rakkhita Thera

ordains 37,000 persons in Vanavasa

(South India) Yonaka Dhammarakkhita

Thera ordains 2,000 persons, more than

half being women, in Aparantaka (Indian

West Coast) Mahadhammarakkhita

Thera ordains 13,000 persons in

Maharashtra (West India) Maharakkhita

Thera ordains 10,000 of the Yonas (in

the Greek lands along the Arabian Sea)

Mahadeva Thera ordains 40,000 persons

in Mahisamandala (Avanti) Majjhima

with Kassapagotta, Dundubissara,

Sahadeva and Mulakadeva Thera each

ordain 100,000 (Himalayan Region)

The apparent uniqueness of the

it may simply be that this one particular

record has happened to survive the ages,

while others have not, or have yet to be

discovered.

It is important to acknowledge,

however, that Northern and Southern

records differ in their inclusion of

Sanghamitta Theri in the history of the

conversion of the Isle of Lanka, for the

Northern records mention Mahinda (Skt:

Mahendra) alone, and do not say how

many people he ordained, but simply

that he firmly established the Sangha in

that land. This suggests the tendency in

at least some branches of the tradition

to record only the names of the great

male leader for posterity.

Nonetheless, these early records,

fully half of which record both very

large numbers of men and women

being ordained by early Arahanta

Dhamma teaching emissaries, whether

by bhikkhus alone or by bhikkhus

In modern times, if we look back to

the example of the Ancient Arahants

we find a very interesting picture. It

seems that in the very earliest days

of the Buddha Sasana that the Buddha

himself ordained bhikkhunis and that he

himself instructed the Bhikkhu Sangha

to do so, calling for them to fully ordain

many hundreds of women. It also

appears that the bhikkhunis themselves

were active teachers both of lay people

in all strata of society as well as teachers

and leaders of their own monastic

followings, numbering in several cases

into the hundreds and even thousands.

When we study the women’s

monastic discipline of the modern Palitext

Bhikkhuni Patimokkha, we find that

a bhikkhuni may not ordain more than

one student every other year, ostensibly

Sanghatheri, Preceptor,

The Chief Founding

Abbes of Dhammadharini

Monastery & Senior

Teacher in Residence at

Aranya Bodhi Hermitage,

California, USA

Most Venerable

Bhikkhuni Ayya Tathaloka

Mahatheri

USA

due to shortage of lodgings (Bhikkhuni

Pacittiyas 82 & 83). It has thus been

logically theorized that these precepts

must have arisen late in the Buddha’s

lifetime, after the Bhikkhuni Sangha

was very well established, with large

numbers of women entering the Order,

and the provision of lodgings a concern.

For this theory to hold true, we would

then expect to find, at least in records

postdating the Parinibbana, particularly

for those knowledgeable in Vinaya and

for those who were Arahantas, that

these precepts would be most excellently

followed in both letter and spirit.

However, when we look carefully at

the story of the international foundation

of the Bhikkhuni Sasana in the 3rd

century BC on the Isle of Sri Lanka by

the Arahant siblings Elders Sanghamitta

Theri and Mahinda Thera, as well as the

extant records of all of the other Asokan

Missions, we find that these Arahant

Elders seem to have been either: (1)

unaware of these precepts because

they had not yet been established, or (2)

aware of these precepts and aware of

reasonable exceptions to them, that is,

of variant cases where they applied and

didn’t apply - a knowledge now lost in

modern renditions of the Vinaya.

This is interesting in two ways

related to our modern circumstances.

If (1) were true, then this might lend

credence to the theories that there

were precepts established to control the

Bhikkhuni Sangha and subjugate it to

the Bhikkhu Sangha that were instituted

at least several hundred years after the

Parinibbana of the Buddha, and notably

after the time of the Asokan Missions.

This would also importantly tend to not

support speculations amongst some

contemporary Theravada Buddhists that

the Buddha himself established these

precepts for the sake of controlling

and even stifling the Bhikkhuni Sangha

because he did not want it to exist,

or wanted it to remain very small and

ineffective, or to die out quickly.

If (2) were true, it would also prove,

through the authoritative example of

the early Arahants, that these precepts,

in the way that they were practiced

in the early days, as understood by

fully enlightened Masters of Dhamma

and Vinaya, were circumstantial in

application, as other precepts also are,

in details that are now lost to us. That

is, these precepts were not meant to

be kept under every circumstance, but

rather that there were exceptions, such

as when the women to be ordained

were replete with offered lodging and

requisite support, as well as support in

good quality training and instruction in

records from this period which proudly

relate the numbers of both men and

women brought into the Sangha by the

Dhammadhuta Arahantas who traveled

and taught far and wide, ordaining both

men and women.

The case of Sanghamitta and

Mahinda is unique, however, as it is the

only record in which the presence and the

name of the ordaining female Arahanti is

recorded for posterity. All other records

show only bhikkhu Arahant emissaries

ordaining both men and women, or

ordaining what in some cases may have

meant men alone, or in other cases such

as that of Suvannabhumi meant simply

ordaining “people” without distinction

of gender in one record, the Mahavamsa,

but with distinction of gender inclusive

of both men and women in other

records such as the Samantapasadika

and the Sudassanavinayavibhasa. The

numbers below are of ordinations given

by Arahant Dhamma emissaries of the

case of Sanghamitta and Mahinda is

largely, if not completely, due to the

uniqueness of there being an extant

record, the Dipavamsa. This, in turn,

may be largely due to the fact that the

bhikkhunis of the tradition founded by

the most venerable Sanghamitta, as

recorded in the Dipavamsa, were highly

educated and skilled in practice and

teaching of both Dhamma and Vinaya,

and for unknown reasons seem to have

taken a particular interest, whether

earlier or later in their tradition, in

recording their own history over a

several hundred year period. It was

the authoring of the Dipavamsa - the

“Lineage of the Lamp,” “Chronicle of

the Lamp” or “Chronicle of the Island” -

that is thought to have inspired the later

Bhikkhu Sangha authored Mahavamsa

- the “Great Chronicle” - and perhaps

even inspired other Buddhist histories

of lineages and traditions such as the

Chinese “Transmission of the Lamp”. Or

“Respect to the

Dhamma and

Vinaya”….

and bhikkhunis, do show one thing:

They show an attitude of tremendous

positivity to the ordination of women

alongside the ordination of men in this

early original period of the Buddha

Sasana, within the first five hundred

years following the Parinibbana. And

significantly, for the Theravada tradition,

it is useful and important to acknowledge

that Sanghamitta Theri and Mahinda

Thera are the co-founders of the

International Theravada tradition that

has been passed on and lasted until this

present day, in the Theravada traditions

of Thailand, Laos, Sri Lanka, Cambodia

and Burma. Thus, the example of the

attitudes and behaviors of the founding

Arahants of this tradition, in its early and

pristine days, might be considered most

excellent precedent and example for

those who would like to conserve and

perpetuate the authentic and original

Theravada Buddha Sasana..


Chan

Meditation -

Heart to

Heart ….

In Chan, we sit in meditation, always

coming back to the breath, coming

back to the present moment. Why is

sitting “the practice” of Chan? Why

is it so fundamental? Where does it

come from? Is it our practice because

Buddha sat under the Bodhi Tree when

he became enlightened? Or because,

legend has it, Bodhidharma, the first

Chan patriarch, sat in front of a blank

wall for nine years?

Perhaps. But I would like to talk

about sitting and Chan from another

angle. Sitting is a part of our daily lives.

We take a rest by sitting. We sit to eat,

draw, write, and talk with friends. When

we share good things, we sit. You don’t

really have a good chat with someone

when you are standing up or walking.

When you want to talk heart-to-heart,

you sit. Sitting brings people closer

together. Sitting is a foundation. It’s part

of our development, both as individuals

and as a species. The child must learn to

sit before he can stand up. We distinguish

ourselves from animals because we

stand upright. Animals crawl. Sitting

is the transition between animals and

humans.

With sitting, we are able to

concentrate for long periods.

Worldwide Popular Chan

Master and Chief Abbot

of Mahabodhi Temple,

Singapore

Most Venerable Master

Zhengyan Guo Jun Thero

Singapore

It is our creative posture, our

posture of concentration and absorption

in the work of the mind and dexterous

tasks. It is said we evolved as humans

when we were able to stand upright and

use our hands. But think of how much

we owe to the person who sits, absorbed

in his or her task! When we are sad, we

keep to ourselves. But we also sit. Sitting

is a way to recover, to gradually let what

is inside us resolve. It creates stability.

There is a sense of grounding when we

sit. Sitting is a way to give we comfort.

I felt some of this when I first started

sitting on the small island of Pulau Ubin

outside Singapore. I went on retreat as a

teenager in a very small Buddhist center.

The experience of sitting deepened

for me in the mountains of Malaysia

outside Penang. I felt myself coming

back to my body. I felt myself coming

home. These early sitting experiences

were interwoven with the feeling of

being close to nature. The retreats

took place in a lush mountain jungle or

near the ocean. As I sat, I listened to

the aliveness of the forest and waves

lapping rhythmically against the shore.

My parents were concerned with what

was happening to me. They were very

simple people, involved in Chinese folk

beliefs. They worshipped many gods and

our ancestors.

I had the fire of Chan in me, and

I was often away. But my schoolwork

and character improved as I took to the

Buddhist path. They could not find fault. I

had been a lackadaisical, rebellious child.

My character reformed and they were

pleased. But they missed me. The feeling

of coming home when I first started

sitting was a coming back to something

that was already there. Chan is going

back to what we already have and know.

It is going back to our original nature.

What is that? Sitting. We know how to

do it. Chan is a rediscovery of what we

already have.

When we sit, we come back to

ourselves. When we finish thinking, we

stand up. When we want to say sorry

from our hearts, we sit. After that we

stand and embrace. And continue on the

path. This is my understanding of sitting.

To RELAX Is the beginning of Chan. To

relax your body and mind. Relaxation is

the goal and the main purpose of Chan

practice. Please do not misunderstand

me. To be relaxed is not to be lazy. To be

relaxed simply means there is no tension,

stress, or pressure.

So easy, we think: I know how

to eat, drink, and sleep. It is true that

relaxation may appear to be simple.

But it is not necessarily easy. How

do we relax? By coming back to the

breath. By coming back to the present

moment. Stop brooding over the past

and worrying about the future. The

past is gone and the future is always

unknown and uncertain. Breathe. One

breath at a time. Relax. To relax means

to be receptive. If you are able to relax,

you will absorb things easily and your

memory will be sharp and clear.

As you relax, you develop

tolerance and endurance and enlarge

the capacity of your heart and mind. You

open up. You are able to receive more.

Relaxation creates space. You become

more accommodating. You no longer

feel cramped and tight. A small heart

has no room. Buddha heart is as big as

the universe. Limitless. By learning how

to relax, we increase our ability to take

pain and cushion ourselves against the

inevitable problems and suffering that

comes from living.

Painful emotions and thoughts are

like naughty, mischievous children. They

pull your shirt, climb all over you, tug

your ears, and beat on you with their little

fists. The more you shoo them away, the

more they pester you. When you don’t

react and just relax, after a short time

they see that you are no fun and let you

be. When you react, the emotion says,

“Great! He wants to play with me. Let’s

play together.” So the emotion comes

back for more. Each time you relax, the

energy or strength of what’s bothering

you will weaken. In Chinese Buddhism,

we have the image of Maitreya, the fat,

smiling, happy Buddha. Children sit on

his head and shoulders and crawl all over

him. And the Buddha is still laughing

because he is very friendly and relaxed.

“Clear the mind &

calm down”….


The

Life Style….

Good deeds stand tall like a green

pine. While evil deeds bloom

like flowers. It seems the pine

is not as brilliant as the flowers.

When the frost comes, the pine will still

stand tall, While the flowers, withered,

can be seen no more”

This little poem artfully highlights

the principle of cause and effect. Good

deeds can be compared to a pine tree.

When we do a good deed it may not

attract much attention, whereas evil

Founder of the Fo Guang

Shan Buddhist Order

and Buddha’s Light

International Association

(BLIA) in Taiwan

Most Venerable Master

Hsing Yun

Taiwan

may at first seem appealing. When the

time of retribution comes, goodness, no

matter how plain, will beget goodness

while evil will only bring about ruin and

demise.

Let us use another example. Evil

can be compared to a grindstone. When

we use a grindstone everyday we do not

notice it getting used up, until one day we

realize it has become much smaller. Evil

people are like the grindstone, you do

not see from the surface that it is being

worn out, but actually it is wearing out

daily. Good people are like the orchid,

you do not see it grow, but actually it is

growing everyday. If you do evil deeds,

do not imagine no one will find out.

You cannot escape from cause and

effect or even your own conscience. So

do not worry about not getting good

results for the moment. Just look at the

flowers and grass in the garden. It seems

you cannot see them grow, but bit by

bit, they come to full blossom. There

is a saying which goes, “When one is

kind others take advantage of him, but

the heavens will not. When one is evil

people are afraid of him, but the heavens

are not”. So we do not have to be too

calculating about gain and loss for the

moment because karma works across

three lives, past, present and future,

never failing.

In ancient China, a young man went

to the capital to take a civil examination.

When the examiner was correcting

his paper, he noticed that one of the

characters was missing a dot. However,

as he was about to deduct points from

the exam score, a group of ants gathered

at the place where the dot should be

as though trying to hide the error. The

examiner tried to shoo the ants away. As

soon as he used his hand to brush them

away, another group of ants gathered at

the same place. He was surprised and

asked the student if he could explain

this phenomenon. The student then told

him that once while he was studying,

he noticed a group of ants searching for

food, not only did he not brush them

Goh Bee Wah

From Taipei, Taiwan

away but out of kindness, he fed them

a candy. As you can see, his kindness to

the ants was rewarded, cause and effect

never fail.

“Our conscience will tell us if we are

really good or bad, We don’t have to ask

what is the cause of our bad luck or good

fortune, There is no escape from the law

of cause and effect, It is just a matter of

time before the effects will come.”

“Our conscience will tell us if we

are really good or bad”. Others may not

be able to tell if we are really good or

bad, but we ourselves will know. Also,

heaven and earth will know. We cannot

escape from cause and effect. Thus, “We

don’t have to ask what is the cause of our

bad luck and good fortune”. If we really

want to understand what is the cause of

it, we do not need to turn to others. All

we have to do is ask ourselves. We reap

what we sow. We plant our own causes

and reap our own effects. There is an old

poem to this effect: If we want to know

what are the causes in our previous lives,

We are living the consequences of those

causes.

If we want to know what our future

lives will be like, All we have to do is look

at what we are doing today. Some may

have doubts in the law of cause and

effect. They may see some really nice

people fallen into hard times, while

some crooks are not punished and seem

to have everything going for them. What

they did not know is that it is the working

of cause and effect. Why are some nice

people in hard times? The reason is they

have not exhausted their bad karma from

previous lives. It is just like paying off an

old debt! Then why are some sinister

people enjoying a good life? The reason

is they have not exhausted their good

karma from previous lives. The law of

cause and effect spans three life times:

the present, the past and the future.

“There is no escape from the law

of cause and effect; it is just a matter

of time before, the effects will come”.

Some plants yield fruit every year. If we

plant this type of plants in the spring, we

should be able to harvest in the summer;

some karma will manifest in this life.

Some plants take two years to yield any

fruit; some karma takes two lifetimes to

manifest. Some plants take many years

to yield any fruit; some karma takes

many lifetimes to manifest.

There is no uncertainty in the law

of cause and effect; it is just a matter

of time. I just want to offer this piece

of advice. Good people should not get

frustrated if they did not see any fruits

for their good acts. Sinister people

should not think that they are lucky for

not getting caught, for their time will

come. There is no escape from cause and

effect.

(Special Thanking to Most

Venerable Miao Guang and Man Chien)

“Karma takes

many lifetimes to

manifest”….


In Tzu Chi, every day we walk the path

of compassion. Motivated by love for

others, we go to them to offer our

aid and care. But, how can we help

them in order to truly relieve them of

suffering? Where do we begin and how

should we proceed? All this requires

wisdom. To help others, we need to

bring forth not only compassion but also

wisdom.

Wisdom is like eyes that enable us to

see. Wisdom, insight, and understanding

enable us to determine whether we are

going in the right direction. It is very easy

to veer off the right path and with the

slightest change in direction our route

will change quite significantly so that

we will end up far off course. We need

the eyes of wisdom to keep us on track.

Along the way, there are also likely to

be pitfalls and obstacles. Only with the

vision provided by wisdom, insight,

and understanding can we successfully

The Founder of the

Buddhist Compassion

Relief Tzu Chi Foundation

Most Venerable

Bhikkhuni Dharma

Master Cheng Yen

Taiwan

Wisdom and

Compassion….

avoid these. While walking the path of

compassion, we therefore need to be

very alert.

To carry out the work of helping

others, we need to balance wisdom and

compassion. Both are important and

they are like our feet—without one or

the other, we would not be able to walk

properly. Equipped with the ability to

see clearly with the eyes of wisdom and

to walk forward thanks to the legs of

compassion and wisdom, we can surely

reach our destination and accomplish

what we set out to do.

Previously, we spoke of repenting

for our many unwholesome thoughts

and afflictions. But repentance is not only

about recognizing our errors and being

sorry for them. It is also about beginning

anew and doing things differently. This

change begins with our heart, beginning

with our five spiritual illnesses. So, after

repenting, we should make new vows

and aspirations:

Cultivating Compassion and the

Bodhi Mind

Knowing that many people in this

world are living in suffering, we vow to

bring forth our compassion to help relieve

people’s suffering, be their suffering

from disasters, war, poverty, or illness,

or from inner pain and unhappiness. We

vow to cultivate wisdom and develop the

bodhi mind (the awakened mind) so that

we may be better able to help all living

beings. Every day, we will hold these

vows in our hearts. Practicing the Thirty-

Seven Aids to Awakening** Aspiring

to the Buddha’s awakening, we vow to

diligently practice the Thirty-seven Aids

to Awakening which are the foundation

for Buddhist practice.

Practicing these thirty-seven

methods of cultivation,

we can purify our heart and mind

and remain untainted by unwholesome

influences in the external world. We vow

to mindfully practice the Thirty-seven

Aids to Awakening, always keeping to

the right path, with our hearts on the

Dharma. **The Thirty-Seven Aids to

Awakening comprise: the four subjects

of reflection the four proper lines

of exertion the four steps towards

transcendent powers the five roots the

five strengths the seven elements to

awakening and the noble eightfold path

Doing Good

Realizing how impermanent life

is, we vow not to get caught up in petty

things such as jealousy and unhappiness

with others. We vow to focus our

precious time and energies on doing

good for others and cultivating our heart

and mind, seizing the opportunities

before us to create something good for

others.

Eschewing Wrong Views

Wrong views are like a net that

traps us, making it difficult for us to pull

away from unwholesome patterns of

behavior. Having given rise to a correct

thought, we vow to hold onto it firmly

and keep our mind from falling once

again into wrong views. We vow to

practice by putting our good thoughts

in action, keeping ourselves on the path

of doing good, and developing a heart

of loving-kindness, compassion, joy and

equanimity so that misguided notions

will have no opportunity to enter our

mind and influence us.

Eradicating Doubt

In our hearts, there is doubt and

it is deeply rooted. Because of this, we

cannot believe in true principles and

cannot awaken. We vow to believe in

the correct Dharma, understand the

law of karma, and develop a true, nonmisguided

faith so we can learn the

Buddha’s teachings and awaken to truths

of life.

Transcending Jealousy

Jealousy makes our hearts small.

Seeing others’ success or talent, we

are envious and cannot feel happy for

people. Learning the bodhisattva way, we

vow to open our hearts wide to embrace

others with a pure heart, praising their

success and good qualities. Instead of

being envious, we vow to learn from

them and emulate their good so we may

become better people ourselves.

Eliminating Arrogance

We have so much pride and

arrogance in us. When we know more

than others, we feel better and above

them. With our inflated egos, we

become so big and cumbersome that

we are an eyesore. We vow to cultivate

humility by practicing the precepts of

right conduct, being tolerant towards

others, and respecting others. We vow

to be humble and “shrink” ourselves.

Then, we can become so small that we

can even enter others’ hearts and reside

there. This is the way of a bodhisattva.

Dispelling Ignorance

Ignorance is like a thick cloud that

darkens the sky, blocking the bright light

of our inner wisdom. We vow to clear

away our ignorance and delusion to

recover our Buddha nature, by learning

the Buddha’s teachings and carrying

them out in our daily lives. Listening

often to the teachings and immersing

ourselves in the Dharma, we are

reminded to watch out for wrongs and

become more aware of ourselves. We

vow to furthermore apply the teachings

by helping people in suffering, so we

can learn about suffering personally and

Goh Bee Wah

From Taipei, Taiwan

connect the Dharma to our experience.

Realizing how blessed we are, and with

deep compassion for people in suffering,

we vow not only to listen to the Dharma,

but to live it out in all our actions.

Overcoming Desire

Desire is like a sea that can drown

us. We vow to tame our desire and greed,

being mindful when they arise in our

heart and mind and taking care not to

let them grow. We vow to overcome our

stinginess by nurturing a heart of love for

others and helping people in need.

Dissolving Anger

The anger and hatred in us fill our

hearts with tinder. With the slightest

spark, a fire will burn wildly in our hearts.

When something displeases us, we

unleash our anger on people. Blinded by

our anger, we are full of ignorance and

wrong thinking, and we burn down all

our merits and all the good that we have

done. We vow to work on our temper so

there is no tinder left in our hearts.

“Doing good for

others”….


The ideal location for us to acquire

compassion is where there is

suffering or poverty. We can learn

to develop compassion in places

such as hospitals or slaughterhouses,

and completely dedicate our body and

mind to compassionate purposes.

Starting with a vow to benefit other

living beings is the perfect preliminary

practice to any method of cultivation.

This also guarantees benefits from

cultivation, becoming a skillful means to

prevent a flood of counter conditions and

obstructions from sweeping through.

The act of giving accumulates

virtuous merit and increases provisions

for practice. Merits which have been

planted as cause in the past matures into

present results. The materialized result

of good actions and meritorious virtues

provide a boost to all deeds and cause

them to become easily accomplished.

The basic step towards developing

Bodhicitta should begin with the mouth,

by preventing kitchens from turning

into slaughterhouses, refrigerators

into mortuaries, dining tables into

battlefields, and stomachs into animal

cemeteries. Becoming vegetarian with

a compassionate motivation is fulfilling

the practice of oneness with others.

Almsgiving is a contribution. And

contribution must come from our heart!

While helping with our heart, and giving

with our hands, we recover the joy of

kindness, compassion, and Buddha

dharma that make us feel that we are

living in a purified world.

“Patience is a virtue and it is the

spring to plentiful bliss.” For total bliss

rests on the word, patience. “Total bliss

shadows where the heart is”, words

of Huineng, the Sixth Patriarch of Zen

Buddhism in China. Bringing about bliss

is not only limited to giving financial

donations, by attending oneself deep at

heart, letting go needless worries, and

forgoing upsets and fights, one stands to

raise infinite bliss and moral strength.

Of the Buddhist endeavors, on

self-disciplines, one is to recite buddha’s

The President of Life TV,

Abbot of Hong Fa Zen

and other Monasteries in

Taiwan

Most Venerable

Master Hai Tao

Taiwan

name, to cause no death, to repent

one’s behaviors, words and wrongful

intentions and to follow buddhist vegan

diet. To the society, one is to care for

all life forms, to reprint sutras for free

distribution, to educate for kindness and

compassion and to promote dharma’s

teaching. Buddhist student s shall

endeavor as such at home and at work.

Maintain a wholesome mind

while doing good deeds and avoid

making comparisons with others.

Endeavor with joy and cheerfulness for

accomplishments within the limits of our

abilities. Whether or not others realize

our effort, it matters not.

Life reincarnates. While you may

be silently doing good deeds without

anyone’s knowledge in this life, the

resulting good Karma will affect you in

the lives to come. Although your bad

actions today may allow you to enjoy

success, wealth, and even avoid the law;

the bad Karma will still catch up with you

in future lives.

Eyes of

Compassion….

真正能讓我們學習慈悲的地方 , 是在有

苦難的地方、貧窮的地方 , 像醫院、屠

宰場

等 , 都是我們學習慈悲的道場 , 奉獻身心的慈

悲伽藍。以利益其他眾生的願望作為起始 , 這

是從事任何修行法門的圓滿前行 , 也是確保修

行獲致成果 , 不會被逆緣和障礙的

洪流襲捲而去的善巧方便。

布施就是累積福德資糧。福德是我們過

去種的因 , 現在的果報成熟了。善法福德果報

現行 , 做任何事皆有助緣 , 也容易成就。發菩

提心最基本要從嘴巴作起 , 廚房不要變成屠宰

場 , 冰箱不要變成殯儀館 , 餐桌不要變成殺戮

戰場 , 肚子不要變成動物的墳墓 , 以大悲心吃

素 , 就是人我一體的實踐。布施是一種付出 ,

而付出首要在發心。一種利他的發心 , 在付出

的當下 , 心中自然清涼、法喜、快樂 , 當下便

猶如身在淨土。

忍辱多福」, 所有的福都是在這個「

忍」字。六祖大師曰 : 一切福田 , 不離方寸。

我們要修福 , 不只是布施錢財 , 能運用這

心 , 放下一切不必要的煩惱 , 不與人爭執 , 福

德自然無量。

顆

佛教徒的事業 , 對內就是指唸

佛、戒殺、懺悔、茹素 ; 對外就是指護生、印

經、教育與弘法。如此才是佛弟子們應持的家

Goh Bee Wah

From Taipei, Taiwan

業與事業 !

做好事 , 要保持歡喜心 , 不要計較自己

做得比別人多。自己能做到的 , 就以歡喜心盡

力去做 , 不用怕別人不知道 , 也不要怕別人知

道。

“Develop

Compassion from

your bottom of

heart”

生命會輪迴的 , 這輩子你默默地做善事

沒人知道 , 但是這個善業會影響你生生世世 ;

你今天做一些壞事雖然你成功了、發大財了 ,

逃過法律 , 但是這個業力生生世世還是找你。


Theravada Theros from Sri

Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar and

Sambodhi Sangha(Chinese

Sangha) cosigned the

“Development and Cooperation

Agreement of Buddhist Sangha”. On

October 30, 2019, Most Venerable

Kirama Wimalajothi Maha Thero from Sri

Lanka together with Theravada Theros

from Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar

and America, as well as Ven. Vūpasama

Thero from Sambodhi Sangha(Chinese

Sangha) cosigned the “Development

and Cooperation Agreement of Buddhist

Sangha”, at Nairong Temple in Bangkok,

Thailand.

This <Development and

Cooperation Agreement of Buddhist

Sangha> mainly includes three parts: 01.

Exchange and cooperation: All Sanghas

establish cooperative partnerships

on cultural exchange, friendship, and

mutual development, to advance the

development of each party involved. 02.

Promote Buddhism: All Sanghas work

together to promote the Dharma and

Vinaya of Theravada Buddhism around

the world. 03. Chinese Sangha: All

Sanghas cooperate to help the Chinese

community to establish the “Four

Noble Truths Sangha”, to strengthen the

development of Theravada Buddhism.

All the Theros signing this

agreement have many years of exchange

and cooperation. They fully trust each

other, and have a consensus on the

further cooperation and development

Development

and Cooperation

Agreement of

Buddhist Sangha….

of Buddhist Sangha. Most of the content

of this agreement represents the sincere

intention of Ven. Vūpasama Thero, who

established the “Four Noble Truths

Buddhist Sangha” in Chinese community

and are all agreed by the Theros who

attended the meeting. Ven. Vūpasama

Thero had also received “The Pillars of

Ashoka Award” and “The Most Notable

Contribution Award” from Buddhism

Promotion Center of Thailand and Royal

Thai Advisors.

At 7:00 pm, on October 29,

all the Theros discussed the current

situation and dilemma of Buddhism,

as well as the importance and purpose

of the cooperation and development

of Buddhist Sangha. Many Dharma

supporters also participated in the

discussion. At the beginning of the

meeting, the host introduced all the

Theros from different countries, and

then invited Theros to express their

opinions. A reputable Thai Medical

President of Buddha’s

Sangha Association, The

Chief Monk of Original

Buddhism Sambodhi

Sangha Society in Taiwan,

Saddhamma Cultural

Centre & Holy Buddha

Monastery, Jiaohe City,

China

Most Venerable Bhikkhu

Vūpasama Maha Thera

China

Doctor presented his experience on

psychological education and society

welfare in the Thai community.

Finally, Ven. Vūpasama Thero from

Sambodhi Sangha(Chinese Sangha)

explained the theme of this meeting

to the attendees — “the Development

and Cooperation of Buddhist Sangha”.

Ven. Vūpasama Thero had also received

“The Pillars of Ashoka Award” and “The

Most Notable Contribution Award” from

Buddhism Promotion Center of Thailand

and Royal Thai Advisors.

First of all, Ven. Vūpasama Thero

mentioned: “In this visit, I deeply felt

the warm hospitality of Thai people.

I am touched by the considerate

arrangements made by Thai Theros,

making me want to be a Thai myself

too”. The audience laughed heartily

thus established a congenial meeting

atmosphere. Afterwards, Ven. Vūpasama

Thero expressed his appreciations to

all the Theros from different countries,

for their common concerns on “how to

develop the future of Buddhism”. The

main focus of this meeting is how to

confront and respond to the challenges

of modern society to Buddhism.

Ven. Vūpasama Thero said:

Although Western society believes

in God, the prosperity of Western

society is built upon science rather

than faith. What is science? There are

four basic elements of science: (1) to

be practical; (2) to be evidence-based;

(3) the practical effect can be similarly

reproduced; (4) responding to the needs

of the realistic world. Therefore, the four

basic elements of science are actually

characteristics of the Four Noble Truths.

There is no conflict between the Four

Noble Truths and science.

In the past century, except for

Islam increasing believers mostly

through breeding population, the

religious believer of all other religions

has declined. The cause of the decline

in religious faith and believer is not the

differences and conflicts of religions, but

the domination of science in the modern

world. For example, the reason for the

decline in Buddhists is not Christian

churches or Islamic mosques, but

schools, universities, research institutes,

academic centers, giving updated news

internet information, and knowledge

for modern life. Because the main axis

of modern young people’s learning is

knowledge and abilities led by science,

and through the platform of social

structure and life experience, it has

been repeatedly proven that “science is

the most effective realistic way to solve

problems”. Therefore, the elites and

young people of modern society believe

in and supported science instead of

religion, belief, or philosophy.

Ven. Vūpasama Thero mentioned:

“In God We Trust” is printed on American

banknotes, which clearly states that the

United States believes in God. However,

the United States constitution clearly

stipulates the principle of “separating

religion from government “. The

strength of the United States is not due

to Christianity. It uses the science and

the Four Noble Truths as the standard

on governing the country. In contrast, in

all countries that believe in Buddhism in

Asia, the Buddhist monks and lay people

believe in Four Noble Truths. Even

Mahayana Buddhism does not deny

the Four Noble Truths. There has never

been a Buddhist sect against Four Noble

Truths. However, we should deeply

introspect on “do we regard Four Noble

Truths as a religious belief or the criterion

of our daily life?” Buddhism is more than

just faith. Independent of any sects, all

religious activities and social charity are

valuable contributions. However, for

Buddhism to expand, the practice based

on religious activities and social charity is

not enough to support the proliferation

and prosperity of Buddhism.

Ven. Vūpasama Thero mentioned:

Over the past 30 years, the number

of young people believing in science

continued to increase. To their life

experience, “science is realistic and

factual knowledge can effectively

solve one’s life problems.” With

the development of science, young

people who believe in religion and

study philosophy continued to decline,

especially in Buddhism. The central

teachings of Buddha Sakyamuni — Four

Noble Truths, is neither beliefs, religions,

nor even Hinayana. If Buddhism is a

religion by faith only, Buddhism will

have no tomorrow unless human society

abandon science. Buddhism must

recognize the main axis of modern human

society, and return to Four Noble Truths

with scientific principles. It teaches the

public how to solve problems practically

and effectively, to develop life, and to

get rid of sufferings. Only in this way,

can Buddhism sustain today and prosper

tomorrow. At the end of the meeting,

all the Theros reviewed the contents

of the <Development and Cooperation

Agreement of Buddhist Sangha> and

reached a consensus, in response to

Ven. Vūpasama Thero’s proposal “Unify

the Buddhist Sanghas with Four Noble

Truths”.


The Middle

Way….

An outstanding aspect of the

Buddha’s Teaching is the

Eightfold Path, which is to be

adopted as a noble way of life.

Another name for the Eightfold Path is

the Middle Path. The Buddha advised

His followers to follow this Path so as to

avoid the extremes of sensual pleasures

and self-mortification. The Middle Path

is a righteous way of life that does not

advocate the acceptance of decrees

given by someone outside oneself. A

person practices the Middle Path, the

guide for moral conduct, not out of

fear of any supernatural agency, but

out of recognizing the intrinsic value in

following such an action.

He or she chooses this selfimposed

discipline with a definite end

in view: self-purification. The Middle

Path is a planned course of inward

culture and progress. A person can

make real progress in righteousness

and insight by following this Path even

without engaging in external worship

and prayers. According to the Buddha,

anyone who lives in accordance with the

Dharma will be guided and protected by

that very universal Law. When a person

lives according to Dharma, he or she

will also be living in harmony with the

universal law.

Every Buddhist is encouraged to

mound his or her life according to the

Noble Eightfold Path as taught by the

Buddha. One who adjusts one’s life

according to this noble way of living will

be free from miseries and calamities

both in this lifetime and hereafter. One

will also be able to develop the mind

by restraining from evil and observing

morality.

The Eightfold Path can be compared

to a road map. Just as a traveler will need

a map to reach a destination, we all need

the Eightfold Path which shows us how

to attain Nirvana, the final goal of human

life. To attain the final goal, there are

three aspects of the Eightfold Path to be

developed by the devotee. One has to

develop Sila (Morality), Samadhi (Mental

Culture) and Pañña (Wisdom). While the

three must be developed simultaneously,

the intensity with which any one area

is to be practiced varies according to a

person’s own spiritual development. A

devotee must first develop morality, that

is, his or her actions should bring good

to other living beings. One does this

by faithfully adhering to the precepts

of abstaining from killing, slandering,

stealing, becoming intoxicated or being

lustful. As one develops one’s morality,

the mind will become more easily

controlled, enabling one to develop

one’s powers of concentration. Finally,

with the development of concentration,

wisdom will arise.

Gradual Development

With His infinite wisdom, the

Buddha knew that not all humans

have the same ability to reach spiritual

maturity at once. So He expounded the

Noble Eightfold Path for the gradual

The Chief Incumbent of

Buddhist Maha Vihara,

Brickfields Kuala Lumpur,

Malaysia

Most Venerable Datuk

Kirinde Dhammaratana

Nayaka Maha Thero

Malaysia

development of the spiritual way of

life in a practical way. He knew that not

all people can become perfect in one

lifetime. He said that Sila, Samadhi, and

Pañña, must and can be developed over

many lifetimes with diligent effort. This

Path finally leads to the attainment of

ultimate peace where there is no more

satisfactoriness.

What is Right Understanding? It is

explained as having the knowledge of

the Four Noble Truths. In other words,

it is the understanding of things as they

really are. Right Understanding also

means that one understands the nature

of what are wholesome karma (merits)

and unwholesome karma (demerits) ,

and how they may be performed with the

body, speech and mind. By understanding

karma, a person will learn to avoid evil

and do good, thereby creating favorable

outcomes in life. When a person has

Right Understanding, he or she also

understands the Three Characteristics

of Life (that all compounded things

are transient, subject to suffering, and

without a Self) and understands the Law

of Dependent Origination. A person with

complete Right Understanding is one

who is free from ignorance, and by the

nature of that enlightenment removes

the roots of evil from the mind and

becomes liberated. The lofty aim of a

practicing Buddhist is to develop the

mind to gain Right Understanding about

the self, life and all phenomena.

When a person has Right

Understanding, he or she develops Right

Thought as well. This factor is sometimes

known as ‘Right Resolution’, ‘Right

Aspirations’ and ‘Right Ideas’. It refers to

the mental state which eliminates wrong

ideas or notions and promotes the other

moral factors to be directed to Nirvana.

This factor serves a double purpose of

eliminating evil thoughts and developing

pure thoughts.

Right Thought is important because

it is one’s thoughts which either purify or

defile the mind. There are three aspects

to Right Thought. First, a person should

maintain an attitude of detachment

from worldly pleasures rather than being

selfishly attached to them. One should

be selfless and think of the welfare

of others. Second, the person should

maintain loving-kindness, goodwill

and benevolence in the mind, which is

opposed to hatred, ill-will or aversion.

Third, one should act with thoughts of

harmlessness or compassion to all beings,

which is opposed to cruelty and lack of

consideration for others. As a person

progresses along the spiritual path,

one’s thoughts will become increasingly

benevolent, harmless, selfless, and filled

with love and compassion.

Right Understanding and Right

Thought, which are Wisdom factors,

will lead to good, moral conduct. There

are three factors under moral conduct:

Right Speech, Right Action and Right

Livelihood. Right Speech involves respect

for truth and respect for the welfare for

others. It means to avoid lying, to avoid

back biting or slander, to avoid harsh

speech, and to avoid idle talk. We have

often underestimated the power of

speech and tend to use little control over

our speech faculty. But we have all been

hurt by someone’s words at some time

of our lives, and similarly we have been

encouraged by the words of another.

It is said that a harsh word can wound

more deeply than weapons, whereas a

gentle word can change the heart and

mind of the most hardened criminal.

So to develop a harmonious society, we

should control, cultivate and use our

speech positively. We speak words which

are truthful, bring harmony, and are

kind and meaningful. The Buddha once

said ‘pleasant speech is sweet as honey,

truthful speech is beautiful like a flower,

and wrong speech is unwholesome like

filth’.

Tribute to Most Venerable Dr.

Kirinde Sri Dhammananda Maha Thero.

“Moral conduct is

Right Action”….



Banka

Lungshan

Temple

Amazing

Values for

Buddhist’s

World….

Banka was renamed “Wanhua” in

accordance with the Japanese

pronunciation of the term as an

adjustment by the administration

system during the Japanese rule.

President of Lung Shan

Temple of Taiwan &

Vice President of World

Fellowship of Buddhists.

Dr. Steven S. W. Huang

Taiwan

Originally, it was the transliteration

of “Banka,” which is in the Ketagalan

language of the Pingpu tribe, meaning

canoe. At the time, the folks of the Pingpu

tribe sailed along the Danshui River on

canoes to transport sweet potatoes and

other farm produce in order to trade

with the Han Chinese.

In the past, the Han Chinese

migrated to and explored Taiwan by

sailing across the Taiwan Strait. The

waves were strong and the torrents

were great at sea. From time to time,

shipwrecks occurred. In addition, Taiwan

was an unexplored and nasty place

with a dangerous environment. In 1709

(during the reign of Emperor Kangxi),

Chen, Lai, Zhang Exploration Company,

formed by people from three counties

in Quanzhou (namely Jinan, Nanan

and Huian) and Tongan, obtained a

permit from the government to explore

the island. They began to explore the

Taipei Basin systematically. Later on,

people from the three other counties

migrated to Taiwan as well. Along with

them, they carried the incense pouch

from the temple of their hometown to

seek the deities’ blessings. Gradually,

a settlement was formed in Banka. In

1738 (the reign of Emperor Qianlong),

they requested the Guanyin Bodhisattva

of the Lungshan Temple in Jinan, Fujian

to divide her spirit then they carried it

to Taiwan. Worshippers raised funds to

build the Banka Lungshan Temple.

The Banka Lungshan Temple was

refurbished in 1815 (the reign of Emperor

Jiaqing) after a major earthquake. In

1867 (the reign of Emperor Tongzhi),

it was refurbished again after it was

damaged by a rainstorm. In 1919 (the

reign of Taisho of Japan), the beams and

pillars were eaten by termites, so Monk

Fuzhi, abbot of the temple, raised funds

to rebuild the temple. He took the lead

and donated all of his savings, about

7000 dollars, to rebuild it. This helped

shape the look of the Lungshan Temple

that we have now. In 1945, the temple

was damaged during WWII and the Main

hall was totally ruined. However, the

statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva was still

sitting on the lotus seat solemnly. In the

past, when there was an air raid, people

would seek refuge under the goddess’s

lotus seat. Since then, the goddess’

power and grace became known to

people. The motifs of the engravings

were mainly taken from the Romance of

the Three Kingdoms and Investiture of

the Gods.

Banka Lungshan Temple current

president is Dr. Steven S. W. Huang,

President of Lung Shan temple of Taiwan

& Vice President of World Fellowship of

Buddhists. He is the Professor of Chinese

Cultural University, Taiwan. National

Parliament and Congressman of Taiwan

for 10 years. Banka Lungshan Temple

includes, Guanyin Bodhisattva / Mañjuśrī

/ Samantabhadra / Skanda / Samghārāma

/ Eighteen Arhats / Da Kui Xingjun /

Wenchang Dijun / Ma Ye / Ziyang Fuzi /

Fudezhengshen / Chenghuang Ye / Long

Ye / Shuixian Zunwang / Taiyang Xingjun

/ Tianshang Shengmu / Taiyin Xingjun /

Zhusheng Niang Niang / Chitou Furen

/ Shier Pozhe / Sanguan Dadi / Guan

Sheng Di Jun / Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva /

Yuelao Shenjun / Huatuo Xianshi.

艋舺 , 於日治時期的改正制度中以同音

日本語改寫成「萬華」, 原為平埔族凱達格蘭

語 Banka 的音譯 , 意為獨木舟 , 乃當時平埔族

人以獨木舟自淡水河上游載運蕃薯等農產品與

漢人交易因而稱之。昔漢人至臺拓墾 , 乘船渡

越臺灣海峽 , 其風浪強勁 , 海流湍急 , 時有翻

船喪生變故 , 加上早期臺灣北部乃一未開發蠻

煙瘴癘之地 , 環境險惡。清康熙 48 年 ( 西元

1709 年 ), 由泉州三邑人 ( 晉江、南安、惠安

三縣合稱三邑 ) 及同安人共同組成的「陳賴章

墾號」取得官方許可 , 有組織的開墾臺北盆地

後 , 陸續有其他三邑人士渡海來此 , 並攜帶原

鄉廟宇香火袋以祈神佑。在艋舺地區漸成聚落

後 , 於乾隆 3 年 (1738) 迎請福建省晉江縣安

海龍山寺觀世音菩薩分靈 , 合資興建艋舺龍山

寺。

正殿屋頂則採歇山重簷式 , 四面走馬廊

共四十二根柱子構成 , 殿外牆堵留有多幅著名

書法家石刻 ; 殿內的螺旋藻井不費一釘一鐵 ,

全由斗栱相嵌築構而成。後殿屋頂亦為歇山重

簷式 , 兩翼為硬山單簷 , 屋脊為財子壽泥塑剪

黏 , 為典型儒、道教諸神佛供奉處。左右護龍

各配有鐘樓與鼓樓 , 晨鐘暮鼓 , 採用轎頂式扁

六角形屋頂 , 造形獨特 , 全臺首見。全寺屋頂

脊帶和飛簷由龍鳳、麒麟等吉祥物造形 , 飾以

剪黏和交趾陶 , 色彩瑰麗 , 堪稱臺灣剪黏藝術

之精華。艋舺龍山寺於民國 107 年升格為國定古

蹟 , 身為臺北市重要的信仰中心 , 艋舺龍山寺

除持續加強古蹟維護外 , 每年定期舉辦傳統節

慶祭典及民俗活動 , 如農曆正月花燈展覽、四

月浴佛節 , 以及於民國 102 年登錄為無形文化資

產的中元盂蘭盆勝會等 , 同時亦定期辦理各大

專院校獎學金 , 認助清寒學生助學金 , 不定期

舉辦冬令救濟、急難救助、捐贈消防車及各類

消防器材、復康巴士。民國 94 年再於板橋文化

路興建文化廣場大樓 , 舉辦佛學講座、各類藝

文活動、社教研習班 , 編印季刊及農民曆等 ,

並持續推動公益慈善事業 , 以善盡宗教弘法利

生 , 淨化人心 , 福利社會大眾之宗旨。

“Pay respects to

the Buddha and

Bodhisattva”….


Buddhists

Vegetarian

Dietary

Practices….

It is shown statistically that Buddhists

are mostly vegetarians. Since the

modern-day vegetarian diet is

primarily cooked with blended oils, it

increases the chance of causing the blood

lipids and cholesterol of vegetarians’

to be higher even higher than nonvegetarians.

We strive to develop

medicines for lowering cholesterol by

clearing and detoxifying the blood,

which is a suitable health remedy for

vegetarians and monks in particular.

Insufficient detoxification and

Meditation Teacher,

Specialist for Chinese

Medicine and Health

Practitioner

Dr. Karashima Isamu

(Aka Shin Yong)

Japan

insufficient nutrients are the typical

characteristics of the monks’ health

condition caused by the vegetarian

diet over a long period which results in

malnutrition because of lack of protein

and physical exertion during spiritual

practices. Therefore, it is likely that

a huge percentage of vegetarians are

undernourished, and being in a state of

insufficient nutrition will cause reduced

function since the internal waste cannot

be drained out of the body. These are the

two major characteristics of vegetarian

dietary practices. Therefore, the two

effective approaches we now strongly

recommend for the monks are on one

hand to nourish their livers and kidneys

mildly so that the body will eventually

achieve self-cultivation, while to

exterminate the internal body waste. By

implementing the method of reinforcing

and reducing treatment simultaneously

to help reach the standard of physical

balance, which aligns harmoniously with

the theoretical viewpoint of meditation.

It is essential to make the method of

extracting traditional Chinese medicine

reach a certain energy standard.

The extraction of traditional Chinese

medicine must be standardized. This is a

reform that Chinese medicine must deal

with urgently at present, for this concept

must be conveyed. The following

Chinese 3 herbal remedies are natural

health series products recommended

for vegetarians to enjoy a good quality

of life. The raw materials used are

precious Chinese medicinal materials

carefully selected and developed by

Changshoutang Co., Ltd.

01. 長寿宝 [Choujuhou]

It has the effects of nourishing the

liver, kidney, qi, and blood, and the effects

of activating blood circulation, removing

blood stasis and turbidity, removing free

radicals and peroxide value in the body,

improve immunity and enhance antiviral

ability to inhibit the growth of cancer

cells. It clinically applies to those who

are frail and old, and whose immune

antibodies are low. For postpartum and

postoperative patients’ quick recovery

and those with low immunity and family

history of tumors, taking this product

can improve the immune-enhancing

antibodies to reduce the chance of

disease, and play the role of preventing

cancer.

02. 金聖 [Kinsei]

It has the effects of nourishing

the kidney, clearing and detoxifying

the liver, strengthening the spleen and

stomach, and has the effect of improving

immunity and enhancing antibodies.

It clinically applies to frail and ill, weak

waist and knees, impotence premature

ejaculation, menstrual blood loss,

low sexual function, and hepatitis B,

liver cirrhosis, spleen and stomach

dysfunction, digestive and metabolic

disorders. It can be used for postpartum

and postoperative patients. It includes

adjuvant treatment for menopausal

syndrome.

03. 素肌源 [Suhada]

It has the effects of regulating

the human body’s metabolic function,

promotes gastrointestinal peristalsis,

clear stools, and eliminate toxins

from the body. It has a therapeutic

effect on hyperlipidemia, habitual

constipation, hypertrophy, skin acne

and lipid reduction, and pigmentation.

It has adjuvant treatment for diseases

caused by metabolic dysfunction such

as coronary heart disease, hypertension,

hyperlipidemia, diabetes, hyperuricemia,

and menopause syndrome. Its main

function is to remove toxins. And toxin

means that the human body cannot

metabolize the waste that is excreted

from the body, including costly fats

such as free radicals, peroxides, and

cholesterol. These garbage deposits

around the organs of the human body,

forming parts such as fatty liver, bowel

stools, and blood vessel tendon stasis.

Overtime accumulation of too many

wastes inside the body can cause

disease. chiang@wangroup.us.

Born in Beijing, China in 1953,

Karashima Isamu (new name after

neutralization to Japanese 95, Aka Shin

Yong ) had studied traditional Chinese

medicine since childhood with his uncle,

who served as a physician at the Royal

Court Hospital and was assigned to

look after the daily regimen of Empress

Dowager Cixi and Emperor Pu Yi’s

towards the end of the Qing Dynasty,

and with no off springs yet leaving many

valuable data on court health, little

Isamu got to learn uncle’s calligraphy.

Since writing with brushes was the

only means of penmanship back then,

naturally, medical prescriptions were

composed in small but proper Chinese

calligraphy artistically. And in practicing

to write with medicinal materials as

samples he familiarized himself with

lots of prescriptions unexpectedly,

he developed the ability to recite the

prescription for medical decoction and

pulse diagnosis until he comprehended

the basic knowledge of Chinese

Medicine such as body acumen, pulse,

acupuncture, and prescriptions.

After graduating from high school

he was drafted to serve in the military,

where he once helps cured a fellow

soldier who suffered from abdominal

pain, with acupuncture treatment. He

later studied at the Fourth Military

Medical University through the Military’s

recommendation owing to his strong

background knowledge in traditional

Chinese medicine. After graduation, he

engaged in clinical work at Beijing Army

General Hospital until the conversion of

workplace to Chinese Medicine Hospital

where he’d regularly commute to his

uncle’s to continue studying Chinese

medicine after work, meanwhile, finished

writing his Imperial Daily Regimen log,

and a book on health and titled Longevity

Fruit soon after the Cultural Revolution

leaving it unpublished.

In 1987, he came to Tokyo, Japan,

to study the Japanese way of regimen for

long life, since Japan has been recognized

as the world’s number one country for

longevity and the aging population.

This provided a good opportunity for

him to further study and start the

building of his business in creating

natural remedies for pursing longevity.

In 1995 he established Longevity Hall

Co., Ltd., (aka Changshoutang Co.,

Ltd.) in Tokyo and attached it with the

Longevity Hall Medical Health Center,

besides Chinese clinical medicine, he

performed research and development

on the royal court secret recipes, which

were passed down to him by his uncle,

and to do formula change for the

current common and difficult diseases,

through repeated clinical trials and

deployment of prescription ratio, he has

developed over 30 plus kinds of health

care products over the years. In 2003

the establishment of Longevity Co., Ltd.,

was founded in Taipei and started the

production of newly developed products.

Different from the traditional production

methods in the past, instead, the new

manufacturing process adopted modern

high-tech extraction methods, so it

enables the product to provide the most

effective results with minimum dosage,

whereby it stands out from other similar

products. Our organization aspires to

develop more and better products,

hoping to make more contributions to

the betterment of mankind.


Buddhism with

Many Social

Services….

The Most Venerable Bhikkhuni

Longmen took refuge in Dharma

at an early age. She enjoyed

reading the sutras, and this offset

the suffering which she experienced as

her family was quite poor. The sutras

and family poverty proved fertile ground

for her to later become a Bhikkhuni

with great compassionate response to

those in need of basic necessities. She

took refuge in the Sangha and relied

upon Venerable Haiyuen with whom

she ordained. Then she created Sangha.

She taught them the sutras, in particular,

the Lotus Sutra, the Flower Adornment

Sutra, and the Diamond Sutra which

brought forth great joy to her and her

students.

Next, Venerable Bhikkhuni

Longmen began founding temples:

Avalokitesvara’s Temple in Pingtung

County in 1992, Huayen Temple in

Taoyuan in 2000 and Yuantong Temple

in Kaohsiung in 2006. By 2011 she was

invited to take over Dharma Wheel

Monastery in Pingtung. Equal to her

efforts to provide temples, spiritual

refuge, to her students and the

community, she attended to the needs of

the poor and disadvantaged by providing:

food, medical care, scholarships for

students, emergency care, and funeral

assistance via foundations and centers

which she established. Pingtung

Charity Foundation & Kaohsiung Charity

Foundation in 1992, Pingtung Resources

Center in 2013, Pingtung Food Supply

Center & Free Food Delivery Station in

2017 which serves the homeless, elderly

and poor.

Bhikkhuni Longmen uplifted the

lives of many via Buddhist teachings

and development of cultural resources,

as well. In 1994 she established the

Buddhist Forum of Taipei; in the same

year she established the Culture and

Education Foundation in Pingtung. She

is currently President of the Pingtung

Buddhism Association and Secretary of

the Pingtung Bhikkhuni Association. In

2010 she established a Buddhist school

in Kaohsiung which offers classes in

Buddhism, Buddha Image Painting,

Japanese, English, etc. to benefit people

in the neighborhood. In 2018 she took

over an elementary school in Pingtung

to set up a pilot program. By 2019

Goh Bee Wah

From Taipei, Taiwan

she established a Community Art and

Culture Learning Center in Kaohsiung.

Venerable Bhikkhuni Longmen devotes

herself to the propagation of Buddhism,

social services, and the development

of culture and art in Taiwan, Malaysia,

Singapore and China with great joy and

delight in every step that she takes. She

has only one motivation – to benefit all

sentient beings.

The Chief Abbot - Golden

Dragon Mountain,

Falun Chan Temple,

Huiguang Qianshou

Guanyin Temple, South

Putuo Yuantong Temple,

Yuantong Puxian Culture

and Education Foundation

Most Venerable

Bhikkhuni Shih Longmen

Taiwan


The Chief Sangha

Nayaka of Singapore &

Chief Incumbent of the

Buddhist Maha Vihara, in

Singapore, The Lecture of

Singapore Buddhist & Pali

University, The Director

of Wijayananda Buddhist

Training Institute,

Dharshana Visharada

Most Venerable Dr.Galle

Uditha Thero

Singapore

family depends on this confidence. If

husband or wife is not confident to each

other the family is subject to collapse,

innocent children will also have to suffer

due to the misbehaviour of parents. It is

also conducive to constant quarrels and

fighting between them. Finally it can be

ended in cutting and killing each other

too. Those who commit adultery are also

subject to be unhealthy of both mentally

and physically. There are many people

who suffer from sexually transmittance

illnesses too.

causes of material success of any

business company also.

Taking intoxicants

Taking of intoxicants causes the

untidy nature of the individual as he is

subject to drunk and many sicknesses. He

loses his wealth having many drunkards

surrounding him as his friends. He is not

safe, his wife and children also are not

safe. His family status is going to dog

reigning over by social insults, abusing,

and despising. He would summand

poverty and debts in spite of success in

his life. He won’t be welcome any more

by his friends when he has lost himself.

Finally, he may die like a beggar being

disappointed in his life. Therefore, one

must be mindful in doing things and

behaving.

These five moral rules in Buddhism

condition many benefits as Buddha said.

Virtuous man becomes rich as he does

not need to spend anything same like

culprits do as they were forced to pay

fines and receive punishments. He gets

popularity and good reputation from the

Peaceful and Happy

society through five

principles….

As a result of killing life becomes

short. As a result of hurting

and being violent towards the

others the culprits suffer from

many sicknesses as it is said in Kamma

Vibhanga Sutta. A pig butcher who killed

pigs for fifty-five years living just behind

the Jetavana temple in Saawatti in India

suffered for seven days walking and

crying like a pig and he was born in the

hell after death.

Therefore taking life of another

reacts sever results although it won’t

be immediate but when the kamma is

matured. A goat laughed when a man

wanted to kill him then he cried in

sadness. Then man was in puzzle with

the dual actions of perplexity. He was

told that the goat was happy as it was

ending of its Kamma by completing

five hundred times of effects caused

by killing of a single animal that it has

committed in past life and it was sad as

that karma was going to pass to the man.

Then the man stopped killing it but the

goat was killed by lightning as the karma

was inevitable.

A family killed a pig. Then an

Arahant stopped them cutting it until

he comes. He advised them to cut the

belly of the pig carefully. When they cut

the belly of the pig there was a snake in

the pig. Then Arahant told them to cut

the belly of the snake. Then there was

a frog in the belly of the snake. Arahant

revealed that they all have been family

members. Accordingly, we eat the flesh

of our own family members without

knowing it. Abstaining of killing is not

only a precept but there is positive

action of an individual to show kindness

to all beings. He should not use any

instrument to attack any being too.

Stealing

Abstaining from stealing means

one cannot take any one’s property

without permission. Not only stealing

something from another but taking a

salary without doing the job properly

and wasting time in spite of working

also are considered stealing. Taking a

service from a person who belongs to

someone without permission is also

stealing according to the Dhamma. That

belongs to the category of stealing of

mobile properties. Many problems in

the society have been conditioned by

this offence. It creates doubts and fear

among the community and the business.

One becomes poor every life due to

stealing.

Adultery

The third precept of abstaining

from sexual misconduct is very

important to maintain the peace and

harmony in the family. Faithfulness

between husband and wife cements

relationship and love. Wellbeing of the

Lying

Abstaining from lying is next

precept that is conducive to the

disappearance of confidence of both

individually and socially. No one wants to

give any responsibility to a liar. He may

destroy himself as well as others through

his cheating and frauds. Speaking of

truth and maintaining the honesty could

be beneficial in achieving the success

and highest goal of an individual. This

honesty and truthfulness are the root

“Show kindness

to all beings“….

society and associates. He can be brave

and glorious in a crowd as he bears moral

conduct. He is able to die mindfully and

is born in a blissful realm according to

the teaching of the Buddha.

Society based on these principles

is peaceful. The family can be happy

and successful. Finally, those who follow

these moral principles not only help

themselves but also help others through

their exemplary life.


Weaving a

beautiful World,

co-creating

Paradise on

Earth….

sleeping parts of our DNA, reconnecting

us with our innate body wisdom, our

natural regenerative power and essence

of what and who we are, in the here and

now of our individual physical homes on

Earth: our bodies, and our shared home:

Mother Earth.

One of the simplest and most

powerful practices I found so far is the

Body-Zen-Meditation practiced and

taught by Master Hung Chi Sung and

Teacher Lynn Gong of Taiwan. While

it is rooted in the Buddha-Body and

the Zen-Mind, it was birthed through

Master Hung and Teacher Gong

religious believes.

Heart-to-Heart, Soul-to-Soul, in

Human Form, we weave a beautiful

World and co-create Paradise on Earth.

We each and all have suffered enough

and have inflicted enough suffering on

ourselves, on each other and on planet

Earth. Out of this suffering, we have

opened to Love and to the heartfelt

soulful wish to ease and lighten the

path for each other. Now, the time has

come to truly put that into action and to

remember the Creator Beings we each

and all are, constantly co-creating with

each other and the Universe.

My dear sisters and brothers here

on Earth, I invite you to connect directly

with me, should this resonate with you

and should you feel the call to exchange,

share and consciously co-create.

Mother Earth is ascending, she

is moving upwards on her

evolutionary cycle, coming

out of the dark, the shadow

side of the Universe, the lower, denser

realms into lighter, brighter, higher

vibrational realms. And so is the whole

Galaxy that Earth is part of. And I guess

most likely the whole Universe, given

that all is inter-connected and One.

My personal experience of this

natural ascension process was one of

a very rude and painful awakening. It

started with a complete breakdown

of my body-mind-soul system, leading

me into deep healing and complete

transformation of my inner and outer

world. Everything got shattered, there

was chaos, confusion, almost unbearable

physical and emotional pain, as my soul,

my essence was reaching through to

reconnect.

As I peeled back the layers, what

I discovered was my beautiful resilient

heart, my essence – beautifully woven

by Creation into my own unique divine

blueprint and with the same thread, the

same fabric that we all, that all of Creation

is woven with: Love. Love is a vibration

and a force and when that vibration,

that force flows freely in and through us

again, when our body has regenerated

itself to a more pure and original smooth

state, we as a whole human being,

an embodied consciousness, become

Founder of Spiral Seeds

Consulting & Projects –

Sustainable & Holistic

Wellbeing of People &

Planet

Regenerative Living

Design & Development for

Enterprises, Communities,

Regions and Cultures

Gabriele (Gabi) Seewald

Austria

walking, talking, doing Love-Force-Field-

Beings.

Over the years, I found, that living

heart-centered, regenerating the body

so it can hold higher consciousness on

a cellular level is very difficult in a world

full of data, distractions and busi-ness.

So, I asked to be shown the most simple,

most effective, most direct, joyful,

easeful and graceful ways and practices,

that allow people anytime, anywhere,

to regenerate their body-heart-mind,

reconnect with their essence and live

from and as embodied love.

I found that what we need most

are not more teachings nor more

information, but simple practices that

help us remember what we already

know, that reconnect us with the wisdom

and the well, the source of wellbeing, of

regeneration in us – quite literally in our

DNA. Then we naturally and effortlessly

seek the connection with others, with

nature, with that which truly nurtures us

and we make the choices and take the

steps that change our lives, our world to

a more beautiful, healthy, harmonious

one.

It happens naturally, once the

frequencies of love, of joy, of peace,

of ease and grace become embodied

in us, which through the body and the

heart naturally lead to peace, clarity and

focus of mind. And we recognize and

realize the Creator Beings that we are,

together weaving a beautiful world and

co-creating paradise on Earth. It is so

beautiful. So complex, and yet so simple.

I found the simplest and most powerful

practices for myself and for most people

I have had the honor to work with over

the years, are body-based practices that

mimic nature and animals, that help us

to completely let go on a deep cellular

level, and hence reconnect us with our

essential nature in the body, awakening

regenerating themselves after each

of them had suffered a severe road

accident many years ago. Another one is

the Womb-Moon-Yoga Practice birthed

by Awakening Body-Consciousness

Priestess Zoya Lu. This practice gracefully

awakens the spiral chakra system of

energetic lunar-solar twin relationships,

unites these alchemical twins within our

body temples and promotes integration

and healing between the masculine and

feminine inside our psyche and soul.

Both practices are very loving,

gentle and embodied. They immediately

bring a sense of relief and wellbeing to

over-tired and over-tensed bodies and

minds, open the heart and are easy,

simple and joyful. They are also easy

to relate to for many people – East and

West, North and South, Women and

Men, Girls and Boys – anywhere in the

World to accept and to practice, beyond

any personal, family, society, cultural or

Being that and remembering that,

why would we not want to create each

day, each moment more beautiful than

the previous? Enjoying the gift that we

are to each other and to the world and

sharing our light, our love, our energy

with the world for the wellbeing of all.

That, to me, is the Essence of Buddhism

and all religious and spiritual practice.

We are ascending together with Mother

Earth and if we surrender fully and allow,

she will just carry us and nurture us, birth

us into our new loving divine humanity.

Together with partners, we are cocreating

regenerative communities and

projects, where we place the health, the

sustainable and holistic wellbeing of the

whole system, of people and planet, at

the core of our eco-nomic activities and

work in a regenerative way as a whole

ecosystem, the human-made ecosystem

mimicking the natural ecosystem and

working in harmony with each other.

“Heart-to-Heart

we weave

a beautiful

World”….


Aakash Asia (Thailand)

Amazing tour arrangements for you always….

Lanka Sumeda Incense Sticks

- Since 1989 -

Exporting

Now we are

USA | UK | Canada | France | Germany | Australia

Maldives and many African countries….

Maldives

Malaysia

Nepal

100%

Sri Lankan

Product

Thailand Cambodia Sri Lanka

Aakash Asia (Thailand) Co., Ltd.

RK BIZ Centre, 36/12 Motor Way Road,

Sub-District Klong Songtonnoon, District Lad Krabang, Bangkok 10520, Thailand.

Office line : +66 2171 7959 / +66 2171 7945, Fax : +66 2171 7946

Hotline : +66 86 344 6872

Email: info@aakashasia.com | Web - www.aakashasiasrilanka.com

Manufacturers, Distributors & Exporters of Incense Sticks, Incense Powder & all Incense Products

Thai Sumeda (Pvt) Ltd

WEB - www.thaisumeda.com | E-MAIL - thai.sumeda@yahoo.com


In this time of disaster and chaos, the

most necessary ability is to respond

immediately. If you miss the critical

moment and make the wrong choice,

you may lose your job, property, loved

family and friends, close relationships,

precious life, freedom, and even

everything. There is no fixed answer to

chaos, but there are ways to develop

resilience.

To live in this world, you need

to be flexible rather than rigid. Water

always gets where it wants to go, and

no matter what blocks it, water can run

through it after all. Let the wisdom of

today’s strains blend in, make yourself

like water, relax and flexible, and flow to

your destination.

Awakening inner mindfulness,

dance with change, and expand infinite

possibilities softly. Even in hell, you can

create heaven and create hope and

joy for yourself and others. Start to

World Popular Dharma

Lecture & Buddhist

Books Publisher

Liang Chung Ming

Taiwan

Awakening

Inner

Mindfulness

find yourself at this moment, and after

learning the Dharma in person, you will

find that it is possible to often be in a

relaxed state of awakening, even in the

most stressful situations.

Even in a seemingly competitive

situation, it is still possible to stay awake

to other people, he is just another

“emerging from the consciousness”,

and everything comes from this

consciousness.

We must learn to perceive the

predicament under the restriction. In

fact, the predicament is completely an

imagination. The world is inherently

changeable and change without change

is beyond the current wisdom that

restricts it. The so-called change means

that we make appropriate adjustments

to external changes. But the inner

consciousness is clear and not affected

by the external changes. The inner mind

can stay away from the dualistic thinking,

can escape from the predicament,

develop the light of life, and can stay at

all times. In the tranquility, awareness is

flowing, free, and unattached.

The original meaning of dharma

in Sanskrit is to seek all fundamental

characteristics, or essential “methods”

or “paths”. It refers to the principle or

energy that makes the universe orderly.

It is not only the reason why things are

so, but also the way to understand why

things are so. When the external world

is on the brink of chaos and danger, the

Dharma teaches us to keep calm.

Goh Bee Wah

From Taipei, Taiwan

喚醒內在的覺知在這災難混亂的年

代 , 最需具備的能力 , 就是當下應變。錯

過關鍵的時刻 , 做出錯誤的抉擇 , 你可能

失去工作、財產、所愛的家人朋友、親密

關係、寶貴的生命、自由 , 甚至是一切。

應對混亂沒有固定的答案 , 但培養應變能

力卻有一定的方法。活在這個世界上 , 要

隨機應變而非墨守成規。水總是到得了它

要去的地方 , 而且無論是什麼東西阻擋

它 , 水終究能貫穿阻礙。讓當下應變的智

慧融入內在 , 讓自己像水一樣 , 放鬆而有

彈性 , 就能流向自己的目的地。

喚醒內在的覺知 , 與變化共舞 , 柔

和展開無限的可能 , 即使身在地獄 , 也可

以創造天堂 , 為自己與他人營造希望與喜

樂。開始找回此時此刻的自己 , 在親自學

習「法」之後 , 你會發現經常處於放鬆的

覺醒狀態是有可能的 , 甚至是在最有壓力

的情況中。即使是在一個表面看來很競爭

的狀況中 , 還是有可能對其他人保持清醒

的覺知 , 他只是另一個「從意識掉出」的

人 , 而萬物也是從這個意識而來。

我們必須學會洞察制約下的困

境 , 其實困境完全是一種想像 , 世事本來

就是剎那變化無常 , 變而不變是超越這制

約當下的智慧 , 所謂的變是指我們對外在

的變化做出適當調整 , 但內心清清楚楚的

覺知 , 不被外在的變化產生情緒的影響 ,

內心才能遠離二元對立的思維 , 就可以從

困境中跳脫出來 , 開展出生命之光 , 時時

刻刻都能安住在寧靜之中 , 覺知當下是流

動、自由、不執著的。「法」dharma 的

梵文原意是尋求一切根本的特性 , 或本質

的「方法」, 或「路徑」。它指涉的是使

宇宙井然有序的原理或能量 , 既是事物何

以如此的原因 , 也是瞭解事物何以如此的

路徑。當外在世界處於渾沌的危險邊緣而

搖晃不已時 ,「法」教導我們要保持平

靜。

“Develop the light

of life”….


World Famous Buddhist

Speaker, Author & Lecture

from Thailand

Col. Pongsak Tangkana

M.D.

Thailand

The

Kamma….

And don’t forget to thank kammas

that come so that you can pay

them back. The lessening and

refraining of kamma must be

done with your repentance towards

your kammas, and asking for forgiveness

over your kammas committed in the

past, telling them that you gladly pay

for kammas, rightly or wrongly, asking

for forgiveness. Then you consider your

life to see if your dukkha (Suffering)

has decreased, and sukha (happiness)

increased? Try that! There’s nothing

damaging. As for “kamma abolition”,

the “abolition” is not to commit new

kammas. You have to consider whether

in your daily life, you intend to make

anyone suffer, with dukkha from your

actions or from your words? Do you

encroach or exploit the lives of others?

Do you encroach or exploit nature? You

should review and consider your own life

each day, every day, how you conduct

the life? Fish and other animals you

eat for food, partly are kamma of the

animals towards you, and partly are sent

by heaven to test you. You have no way

of knowing if any animal is a result of

kamma or sent as a test.

For the latter, when you eat it, you

conduct a new kamma. Before eating any

types of animal meat, you should think

that they are sent by heaven to test you.

Therefore, you should be thankful for its

purity, and eat only sufficiently to sustain

life and to conduct good deeds. Results

of your good deeds are dedicated to that

animal as well. It then gets the virtue

from your good deed as a compensation,

and thus a debt of kamma is cleared.

What is important is that a new kamma

is not created. Such a practice enables

you to “abolish” a potential new kamma.

You should review your life every day.

Considering whether each day of your

life is positive or negative, by seeing

whether you get sukha or dukkha each

know why nature created “day and

night”. Day is meant for humans to

conduct one’s life with wisdom, knowing

to be the true giver, accumulating merits

for oneself, and purifying one’s mind,

while nighttime is for humans to relax,

so that one can review one’s own deeds

during the day, in order to do more

good deeds and stop bad ones. Through

such consideration, day by day, every

day, one’s mind will be more and more

purified, and the practice should be

carried on, as the purity is infinite!

True compassion will never occur

if human beings misunderstand nature.

Humans know that everything on Earth

is nature. If asked, who creates nature,

no one could provide a definite answer

as there is no evidence assured. Some

religions teach that God created the

world. And what has God created the

world and humans for? Has anyone ever

thought that God allows human beings to

be born so that they use their magnificent

wisdom to create good deeds, and to be

givers? At the same time, various devices

have been prepared for humans to learn.

You can just consider, if on this earth,

there exist only animals and things in

nature, everything is already in balance.

Is not it true, nature is already in good

balance?

But wherever humans appear,

imbalance occurs. Where humans

gather, destruction entails. They do not

rebuild after they destroyed, no effort

is made to restore balance, so how can

the balance in nature continue? Most

humans are consumed by greed, leading

to destruction and encroachment.

Have they ever realized that heaven

has sent warning signs to human’s time

after time? Have they ever wondered

why natural disasters, be they storms,

floodings, tsunamis, or earthquakes,

diseases? such as bird flu, SARS, new

strains of influenza, and others, occur to

them? Humans know that diseases are

caused by virus of this or that form and

shape, but do they know why there must

be this or that disease?

What are those diseases meant

for, who sent them, and why? Have they

ever noticed that these were because

of too much greed and selfishness? The

destruction of nature by humans has

been too much, while humans are a part

of nature themselves. Humans are sent

by heaven to learn as givers, but they

instead are compelled to be the takers!

They only seek benefits for themselves,

becoming more and more selfish!

Without any regard for fellow human

beings and nature, people on Earth

today suffer more and more! Consider

this, presently there are a lot of facilities

and utilities created by humankind for

their comfort, as they think that they

are smart, and can conquer nature

therefore, the more they conquer

nature, therefore, the more they

conquer nature, the happier they should

be! But why are they suffering more and

more? Why are they committing suicide

every day?

Why are people these days leis

happy than those in former days?

In former days, there were not any

facilities or utilities that contributed to

the comfortable lives of humans like

today. Just ask yourself why. Humans

know that everything depends on

the mind, and yet they do everything

for their physical comfort, nurturing

only their own sankhara, (body),

obsessed with materials and money,

encroaching or exploiting on others,

as well as destroying nature! At the

same time, some aggravate their own

“Compassion and

Forgiveness”….

physical conditions, not conducting life

moderately, utilizing their own sankhara

(body) in earning and amassing wealth

to feed their defilements, never knowing

the words, sufficient or just right for

themselves, not knowing the right level

of anything, striving for the superlative

level, competing to be the best, the

richest!

Humans therefore use most of

their time in earning money, seeking

wealth, without knowing what they

want the tremendous wealth for, They

forget to look at themselves, and forget

the word “just right”. How much would

they have to work to nurture their

bodies? Have they ever considered the

soul? Have they ever considered their

own citta vifitiana? Have they ever been

compassionating towards themselves? A

true compassion is not to boast to others

but comes from the heart. The true

compassionate person must know how

to do for one’s own citta virifiana as well

as of others. You must regard all humans

and animals lives as well as nature is as

precious as your own life. They all love

their lives as you love your own. You

should love others’ lives just as you

love your own life. Because to harm or

to encroach on others makes your own

citta viiiriana suffer. With such a thought,

you will never harm the lives of others

any more.

True compassion can then take

root, and your life will be happy, not

just claiming or pretending to be happy.

Do not lead your life by just deceiving

yourself day by day. As if that’s not

enough, you also deceive others,

claiming that “I am big so I must be

happy, I am rich so I must be happy, I

am powerful so I must be happy. These

are my happiness.” Consider carefully, is

it true happiness, or a pretended one.

The statues of the Lord Buddha, all look

downwards, to give humans meaning in

gaining the wisdom that each must look

at oneself, rectify oneself, and the world

can become peaceful by itself. Are you

correcting yourself or trying to correct

others?

If correcting oneself, life will be

happy, but if one keeps looking at others

and tries to correct others, troubles

will come with no end in sight. Unity

can never occur if human beings do

not look at themselves! If they look

at themselves more, they can correct

their own mis¬takes so human life will

be more happy as well. As looking at

oneself makes human beings realize

their own sukha and dukkha, thus they

can lay down their own dukkha, so only

have sukha. Having sukha, they can

consider laying down sukha at the end,

then joy will follow. No one can lay down

dukkha or sukha for another, but only

for oneself. This is what human beings

should do themselves! Do you know

why human beings find it difficult to

forgive one another? Because most of

them do not believe in the law of kamma

(Law of the universe). If someone does

something to you,



paintings and more. The biggest reason

for why I continued painting Buddhist

paintings is the inexplicable joy I feel

when and after painting. Learn happily,

paint happily and enjoy the dharmic joy

you feel after you’ve painted.

It takes a lot of patience and

attention to details when painting

meticulous styled paintings. After

you’ve painted for some period of time,

you’d feel less anxiety and unease,

your thoughts will become more clear,

and you’d even feel that things will go

smoother when you’re taking care of

business. What makes me feel the most

touched is the selfless dedication of our

teachers. The classes are completely free

of charge, not to mention we are able to

receive endearing and earnest guidance.

Besides the teaching of painting

techniques, there is also the explanation

of Dharma. Immersed in the sentiment

of love and bliss, I sincerely respect and

appreciate these compassionate and

loving teachers. Conclusion: The Buddhist

paintings that are being taught here are

mainly comprised of Bodhisattvas, with

some aspects of traditions incorporated

in new ideas. We welcome all whom has

affinities with us to come and learn to

paint Buddhist paintings.

Wisdom and

Compassion

by Paintings….

The Buddha’s and Bodhisattvas

paintings we learn about their

giving, wisdom, and compassion.

When painting Buddhas and

Bodhisattvas, we would see their

dignified images, and learn to set our

我來自中華民國的台灣 , 在台北的「陳

裕源老師佛畫藝術推廣協會」, 學畫已有三

年 , 我的感想是 :(1) 建立信心。初中上過美術

課後 , 就沒提起畫筆 , 直到年近六十歲才學佛

畫。沒有繪畫基礎 , 但在老師的鼓勵下 , 已完

成十多幅畫。(2) 法喜充滿。讓我持續繪畫的最

大原因 , 就是難以言喻的愉悅。快樂的學習 ,

快樂的繪畫 , 以及享受完成佛畫的欣喜。(3)

情緒穩定。工筆畫需要很大的耐心和細心 , 畫

久了 , 情緒少了躁動和不安 , 思惟也變得清

晰 , 做事都變得很順利。最讓我感動的是老師

們無私的奉獻。完全不用學費 , 卻能得到親切

又認真的教學 , 不只是畫技的傳授 , 還有佛法

的解說。處在愛與幸福的感覺裡 , 我由衷的敬

佩與感恩這些發心的老師。結語 : 這裡所教的

畫像 , 以佛菩薩像為主 , 在傳統中有創新的構

想。歡迎有緣人參訪學畫。

The Chairman of the Chen

Yu Yuan Buddhist Art

Association and world’s

most popular Art Teacher

Chen Yu Yuan

Taiwan

minds on their purity and reflect on their

merits. After the painting is finished,

it could inspire viewers to appreciate

Buddhas’ and Bodhisattvas’ many

virtues. Therefore, painting Buddhas is

such a special and incredible practice,

simply because it is good for oneself and

good for others.

One of student said, After taking

art classes in junior high school, I haven’t

picked up the paint brush a single time. It

is only until recent years, after I’ve turned

sixty, that I finally started learning to paint

Buddhist paintings. I had zero painting

skills, but with the encouragement of my

teachers, I have already completed ten

“Peaceful minds

design with

meaningful”….


The Fifth

Week after

Enlightenment

all fetters. In the Dvayathanupassana

Sutra (contemplation of dualities)

Buddha said,

“With craving as his companion, a

man wanders on for a long, long time,

as in this state here and in that state or

anywhere else, and does not end this

inglorious Sansara.

To make people understand this,

Buddha dwelled under this Banyan tree,

whilst the thought arose in the mind of

Enlightened One that Four Foundations

of Mindfulness is the only path to

elimination of craving.

The mundane people who have not

attained the first state of stream entry

(Sothapaththi) needs to realize this and

ensure that they take full advantage of

being born human in this life by walking

on the path to purification. Buddha did

not dwell in 7 different places, a week at

each place for any cosmetic exercise, but

to tell us of the super-mundane meaning

so that we too walk that same path of

Four Foundations of Mindfulness.

Buddha spent the fifth week under

the Banyan tree named Ajapala.

In the traditional understanding

most claim that the meaning

of the word Ajapala is, Aja meaning

the Goat and Pala meaning the Goat

herder. Thus, most view this tree as

a place where goat herders came for

shelter after bringing their Goat herds

to graze the surrounding grassland. This

again is to look from an external and

somatic perspective and not from super

mundane perspective of Dhamma.

Buddha told Bhikkus, “while

dwelling under this Banyan tree on the

banks of river Neranjana in solitude

a thought came to me that this Four

Foundations of Mindfulness is the only

path for the purification of beings of all

defiling. What are these four? Here a

Bhikku having jettisoned craving and ill

will, will dwell mindful of this body, of

feelings, of mind and of things that arise

in mind.” (It is also important for Yogis to

know why Buddha the Enlightened One

Formerly Senior

Commercial Manager at

Sri Lankan Airlines and

presently Consultant to

Air India GSA in Sri Lanka.

Sugath Rajapakse

Sri Lanka

in Four Foundations of Mindfulness Sutra

expounded the Living contemplating the

body in the body as the first of the four

foundations.

Of the ten fetters, the first one is

false view that this body (Kaya) is true,

and the meditative Yogi in meditation

of breath observation will realize that

this body is of the four great elements,

and what is in this body is there in other

bodies and what is there in other bodies

is there in this body. Such Yogi will

jettison the first three fetters leading to

stream-entry. One may also refer Vijaya

Sutra. The Rupa in the Nama-Rupa is

form-perception. We have illustrated

our consciousness with trillions of such

form-perception in this life as well as

lives before. That is also why the Rupa

is explained as akin a mass of water

bubbles, seen from afar as solid, but

closer examination reveal it is a mass of

tiny bubbles. But we the mundane take it

as one and build the I syndrome Sakkaya

Ditti.)

Jappa in Magahi language means

craving, desire and Ajappa means not

having craving, desire. In the Ajita Sutra

in Sutta Nipatha, Parayana Vagga, the

ascetic Ajita asked Buddha a question,

“with what is the world shrouded,

Because of what doesn’t it express, with

what is it smeared of, to him what is the

great danger & fear”. Buddha replied,

“with ignorance the world is shrouded,

because of stinginess and heedlessness

it does not express, craving is the smear I

say & suffering is its great danger”.

Craving is the dhamma that binds

us to this samsara and to the world of

our six touch-agencies. The Banyan tree

as it germinated from the Banyan seed

and begins to grow bigger, will spread

out with many branches covering a large

ground area and from these branches

buttress roots will arise and go to the

earth binding the branches to earth.

Thus over a period of time the tree will

spread over a vast area with buttress

roots binding the branches to earth. This

is akin to craving binding us to this Loka

or our six-touch agencies, this body. So

the worldly mundane people ingrained

in craving bind themselves to the Loka,

while the Buddha dwelling among the

mundane humans and gods is free from

“Nama-Rupa

is formperception”….


Taiwan

Now in

The World’s Delicious Vegan Foods

Regal Lotus Restaurant

188, Section 5, Nanjing East Road, Songshan District,

Taipei City, Taiwan.

www.regal-lotus.com | +866-02-2761-1259

All You Can Eat | American | Chinese | European Contemporary | Family

French | Hong Kong | Hot Pot | Italian | Japanese | Nordic Cuisine | South

East Asia | Vegetarian Cuisine


中

華國際觀光協會詹秀蓉理事長應

江西省、南昌市丶吉安市等單位

臺辦之邀請 , 親自帶領協會重

要幹部前往該處作為期五天四

夜 (10/18~22 日 ) 慈善、公益、藝術、文化、教

育 , 觀光丶旅遊之交流參訪活動 , 常住當地知

名企業家尹美炬董事長 ( 金泉國際公司董事長 )

, 同時也是本會名譽理事長 , 以及全國臺企聯

莊秋萬副秘書長 ( 也是本會名譽理事長 ), 二位

日理萬機之企業負責人暫時拋下繁忙之公務 ,

全程陪同詹大師交流參訪 , 同時更有遠從日本

專程搭機至上海再轉機到南昌的知名女企業家

櫻井美惠子 , 黃海東董事長 , 他們二位也是本

會總顧問 , 他們四位成功企業家之所以如此具

足的表現出此等精神及情義 , 都是受到詹大師

慈悲喜捨精神感召而前來 , 並且甘之如飴 , 無

怨無悔的付出 , 真的令人感佩。

當日到達南昌市已晚 , 接受當地臺辦以

30 道美食之熱烈歡迎 , 雖然南昌當時正舉行全

國 VR+5G 會議 , 很多單位 , 無法出面接待 , 但

已經感受到當地的熱情 , 第二天 , 參觀尹美炬

董事長所開發之繩金塔歷史文化街區開發案 ,

該案已投資金額近 50 億 , 後續尚有數 1O 億之投

資 , 此項工程非常浩大 , 也是尹董事長至今最

得意並津津樂道之成功作品。下午參觀滕王閣

( 全國三大名樓之一 ), 尹董事長並取得滕王閣

週邊精華廠區之經營權 , 滕王閣平日約 8、9 千

人 , 假日有 2 萬人參觀之紀録 , 尹董事長眼光

獨具之投資 , 必獲豐碩成果。

第三天參訪九龍溪田園示範區 , 午餐在

深具特色之明清園文化博物園享用 , 該園由幽

默風趣之説書人帶動下 , 讓大家享受了一番不

同風情之精彩午宴 , 晚餐接受省臺辦鄧主任 ,

徐副主任之餐宴 , 鄧主任為人平易近人 , 且異

常孝順 , 詹大師特地致贈鄧主任以黃金泥書寫

之 " 禮運大同篇 " 橫幅 , 徐副主任是教育家 , 也

是文化人 , 更是虔誠的佛教徒 , 詹大師特致贈

黃金泥書寫之 " 佛說吉祥經 " 橫幅 , 深具慈善公

益藝術之交流意義。

第四天參加 2019 年第九屆贛臺 ( 吉安 ) 基

層農會交流懇談會 , 詹大師並上臺發表 3O 年

來始終如一為慈善公益 , 抄寫佛經不輟之心路

歷程 , 時間長達 21 分鐘 , 受到了與會者熱烈迴

響 , 並感動臺中前來的參加座談會之成員。

最後一天參觀尹董事長在泰和縣成名的

佳作 ( 在市中心所興建之庭園樓房 ), 中午並在

尹董事長之金泉酒店用餐 , 尹董事長在此次參

訪中最後歡送午宴中感動激昂 , 並承諾為二岸

作最佳的文化 , 慈善 , 公益作出貢獻 , 感動了

在埸所有參與者 , 尹董事長並致贈每位當地特

產二瓶白鳳烏雞酒及二盒島上貢茶 , 而來自日

本的櫻井美惠子及黃海東二位貴賓全程無微不

至且細心的照護詹大師 , 讓與會者體會到他們

的用心付出 , 而莊秋萬名譽理事長不但全程參

與陪同 , 且事前規劃詳盡 , 才能使得此次交流

參訪活動得以圓滿 , 莊董事長並親自前往機埸

櫃枱為大家作最後登機作業作最佳叮嚀關懷 ,

Goh Bee Wah

From Taipei, Taiwan

讓每位登機後方始離去 , 此等用心費心 , 真的

很感人 , 也因為他們無私的付出 , 詹大師特致

贈黃金泥大悲咒予莊秋萬董事長 , 黃金泥勸世

文及心經予尹美炬董事長 , 詹大師並向每位接

待官員推薦尹、莊二位董事長 , 且在每場致詞

時都會提到尹丶莊二位董事長 , 希望臺商在江

西 , 乃至全國都能經營得當 , 並觀懷弱勢 , 繼

續不忘初心的從事慈善 , 公益之美事 , 不致辜

負詹大師之善德美意 , 詹理事長對此次參訪成

員 ( 楊豐祿 , 彭火興 , 湯玉鸞三位副理事長 ,

黃永基監事長 , 周高燈蘭 , 王家蓁二位理事 ,

陳兆霖 , 黃玉瑞二位行政總顧問 , 林振量秘書

長 , 簡秀穎財務長 ) 的整體表現及促進二岸文化

藝術觀光旅遊之用心交流給予肯定的讚譽 , 也

為此次參訪活動劃下圓滿的句點。


Zen Practice, Zen

Realization, Zen Views….

Is it true that we can only achieve this

through Zazen (Zen Meditation)? Any

other form of Zen practices that we

could use to help us in achieving this?

Zen is something you need to mingle

yourself with. You got to practice and

realize its essence! When we talk about

Zen cultivation, it means investigation

and realization and your realization

comes from your vigorous investigation.

Founder of Museum

of World religion, Ling

Jiou Mountain Buddhist

Society, Museum of World

Religions (MWR), and the

Global Family for Love and

Peace (GFLP)

Most Venerable Dharma

Master Hisn Tao (Chan

Master Hsin Tao)

Taiwan

What are you investigating then? You are

investigating the source of everything,

which is your. Primordial Point. Once

you realize your Primordial Point, you

can then begin anew with so many

possibilities.

It’s just like clearing your

storeroom and make it back to ‘zero’.

Once everything is cleared, you then put

in some new things —something that

you would like to keep and use in the

future; not something useless and messy

as before. So, to ‘clear’ all your negativity

and return to your Primordial Point —

this is the real practice of Zen. Everyone

has emotions and feelings. Let’s assume

that there’s a very angry man who come

to see you, how would you teach him to

‘clear’ his emotions and return to zero?

Will you teach him how to meditate? I’ll

ask him to ask himself: “What is THIS?

Why and what happened?” — This is

how we cultivate Zen! So we must first

find out the reason? Ah, just go straight

“The way of

Suffering to

Happiness”….

to its cultivation! Just `Zen’ it out. Ask

yourself some questions and then

breakthrough them, and then Boom!!!

— Some realization will come!

Just ‘Zen’ into all your questions and

doubts — different doubts has different

way of cultivation, and it will bring out

different solutions. Have you ever had

many problems or difficulties in your

life? Of course, I did. My problems made

me who I am today. So, do you consider

yourself a kind of prophet now? A: No,

not like that. When an angry person

comes to you, look at him and find out

the reasons why he is angry? What are

the reasons? What’s the point of being

angry? That’s my job as a Zen teacher.

That’s all. So, what’s the point of being

angry? You have to cultivate the doubts

and `Zen’ it out! “What are the negative

effects of being angry? What are the

benefits of being peaceful?” - Just ‘Zen’

them out! So, do you need to see them

on one to one basis to sort things out? I

teach them to do the same practice just

`Zen’ it in and ‘Zen’ it out. Very simple

and effective as well. Same Zen method,

but it will give you different solutions for

different problems.

How long would it take to do this

kind of Zen cultivation? It depends on

individual. It really depends on your

‘force of awaking’. It depends on your

level of realization. It depends not on

me but solely the person who ask the

questions. Generally speaking, will it

take a long time? It’s like doing some

detective works — we need to look

for many signs and clues. ‘Just do it!’

and ‘Zen it yourself’ are Zen’s ultimate

motto in finding the true answers of

life. Merely sitting in Zen position is not

enough? Our way of cultivation is to do

sitting Zen. When you do sit Zen, are

you cultivating your question/problem/

doubt? There are some prerequisites to

do sitting meditation. But when you sit

and cultivate the problem, you need to

focus on it 100%. Your answer comes

from your intense engagement with your

doubts.

So, we just sit together and ‘Zen’

it in and out in the way you described

instead of seeing you one by one?

Collective meditation or group practice

is a way to do it as well. When you sit

together with many Zen practitioners,

you are cultivating your own Zen and

everyone else is also doing the same.

In short, you will gain your individual

experiences (the answers) by doing

this group practice of Zen cultivation.

Everyone sit together, but everyone does

his/her own Zen cultivation? Exactly.

Same method is used, but everyone will

get different answers since they have

different individual doubts or questions.

Are you saying that different individuals

should gather together and do the same

Zen practice within this great circle of

Goh Bee Wah

From Taipei, Taiwan

Zen? Yes! Zen it in and out together; we

might use the same to do it, and everyone

will get their own unique answers.

Using the same to solve different

questions at once? Yes. The whole

practice of Zen is truly a self-realization

process. Let the answer comes by itself,

which is purely a DIY process? Yes.

No one can help you or give you the

solution. You have to help yourself out

— 100%. So, your duty is just to help

your students in searching for their own

answers? I will teach and discuss with

you about the method, but you got to

do it yourself. I am your GPS in leading

your way to where you want to be. Use

me and my guidance, and you shall reach

your solution/destination in no time.

This is so far the best method in doing

any consultation!

Did Zen cultivation solve any of your

own problems? A: Of course — it solves

my every day’s problems very well! Q:

Different problems at different time?

Exactly. Things change every moment

and every day. Nothing is permanent,

so do our problems. You solve all your

problems only by doing Zen cultivation?

Of course — I am a Zen Master! I do

Zen cultivation, and my realization and

clarity come from it; and then I use these

qualities to solve and deal with my every

day’s situations and problems. There’s

no greater source of solution than Zen

cultivation.

If you cultivate Zen, you’ll gain

realization; if you’re realized, clarity

will appear; when clarity appears, you

can solve your problems easily and

effortlessly. And you have had your own

confusions as well, and you also became

enlightened because of them? Zen says,

“No confusions, no Enlightenment.” — I

had 100, 1000 or even 10,000 types of

confusions — so did my realizations and

enlightenment! The key point here is our

willingness and commitment to engage

in Zen cultivation? You are right.

From Suffering to Happiness

— Mind Transformation and

Transcendence. Since when you’ve

discovered the preciousness of Zen? A:

Are you with your preciousness now?

Even since we practice Zen with you,

we’ve found many precious things along

the way! But is Zen meditation suitable

for everyone? Absolutely yes. Continue

your cultivation and investigation — do it

again and again, and you’ll become joyful

and happy one day! So, the ultimate goal

of Zen cultivation is to gain happiness?

Zen liberates you from all sufferings and

brings you real happiness. You must ask

yourself.


There is nothing more glorious

than peace. When we stabilize

our posture and calm our mind,

we can realize peace within

ourselves. Then we can radiate loving

kindness to those around us our family,

our community, our nation, and the

whole world. We can meditate like this:

“May I be happy. May I be peaceful. May

Executive Director and

Chief Incumbent of

Buddhism for Education of

Cambodia (BEC)

Most Venerable

Hak Sienghai

(Reahul Komar) Thero

Cambodia

Loving

Kindness - No

Boundaries….

I be free from anger. May I be free from

suffering.”

Why must we love ourselves first?

Because peace begins with the individual.

It is only by loving ourselves first that we

are able to extend love to others. Charity

begins at home. By protecting ourselves,

we protect the whole world. By loving

ourselves, we love the whole world.

When we say, “May I be happy,” we are

speaking for everyone. The whole world

is one. Life is one. We are all of the same

Buddha nature.

Loving kindness is a very powerful

energy. It radiates to all beings, without

distinction. It radiates to our loved

ones, to those toward whom we feel

indifferent, and to our enemies. There

are no boundaries to loving kindness. The

Dharma is founded in loving kindness.

The Buddha saw the whole world with

compassion. And so, our prayer for

personal happiness naturally grows into

a prayer for everyone, “May the whole

world be happy and free from suffering.”

Buddhist scriptures describe the

merits of loving kindness meditation.

They tell us that those who practice

loving kindness sleep well. They have

no bad dreams. They wake up happy.

They can focus their minds quickly.

Their minds are clear and calm. They

have no nervousness. No fire, poisons,

or weapons will harm them. They can

solve all the problems of the world. They

are loved by all sentient beings. Their

complexion becomes clear. They will

attain nirvana. Altogether, there are fiftytwo

blessings derived from meditating

on loving kindness.

When we love all beings, we gain

the blessing of fear-lessness. Our speech

and all of our physical and mental

actions become clear, and we become

free. The greatest happiness is found

in living without egoism. This is one of

the fruits of loving kindness. Another is

contentment with life as it is. Life often

seems burdensome, but it becomes

easy when we stop struggling. Moment

after moment, step by step, we can

experience life as something light and

pleasant. There is no need to hurry!

With loving kindness, we are like a

fish in clear water, never submerged by

the burdens of the world. We float down

the stream of time, easily, from moment

to moment. We have complete peace

in our eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body,

and mind, because we control all of our

senses. We have clear comprehension

about the purpose of our life and about

how to live happily. We also have clear

comprehension about the object of our

concentration and about I, my, and me.

The Buddha said, “There is no I, my, or

me,” and this becomes clear when we

put loving kindness into practice.

Typically, we are selfish about

our family, money, dwell-ing, name,

and fame, and also about the Dharma.

But when we put loving kindness into

practice, we become generous. We give

food, money, shelter, and the Dharma

freely to all. Loving kindness also means

friendliness. With loving kindness, all

enmity is transformed. Our enemies will

no longer hate us and, eventually, they

will return our loving kindness to us, as

friends.

Then anger controls us, we harm

ourselves and the people around us.

Anger burns the mind and the body.

The face becomes flushed, the heart

weakens, and the hands tremble. Our

first duty is to protect ourselves, so we

say, “May I be free from harming myself,

may I be free from anger.” Then we say,

“May I be free from harming others, may

I be free from anger.” When we analyze

anger, we find that it has no substance

of its own. It is always conditioned by

something else. There is no “I” to.be

angry. There is only the Dharma.

When we are angry, our face

becomes ugly. Anger is fire, and it burns

hundreds of cells in our brain and in

our blood. If we have loving kindness,

our faces become brilliant, radiant,

and beautiful. Loving kindness is like

water. If we leave boiling water sitting

“Loving

kindness is the

only way to

peace”….

for some time, it naturally be-comes

cool again. Sometimes we may boil with

anger, but we can cool down gracefully

by contemplating loving kindness,

anger’s opposite. The nature of water

is to cleanse. When the mind is angry,

it becomes soiled. Using the water of

loving kindness, we can cleanse our

mind. Like water, loving kindness flows

everywhere.

“Bodhi” means to wake up, to

see things as they are. When we wake

up to our anger, it loses all of its force.

Then anger gives birth to its opposite—

compassion, the compassionate heart of

the Buddha.

Non-action is the source of all

action. There is little we can do for

peace in the world without peace in

our minds. And so, when we begin to

make peace, we begin with silence—

meditation and prayer. Peacemaking

requires compassion. It requires the skill

of listening. To listen, we have to give up

ourselves, even our own words. We listen

until we can hear our peaceful nature. As

we learn to listen to ourselves, we learn

to listen to others as well, and new ideas

grow. There is an openness, a harmony.

As we come to trust one another, we

discover new possibilities for resolving

conflicts. When we listen well, we will

hear peace growing.

Peacemaking requires mindfulness.

There is no peace with jealousy, selfrighteousness,

or meaningless criticism.

We must decide that making peace

is more important than making war.

Peacemaking requires selflessness. It is

selflessness taking root. To make peace,

the skills of teamwork and cooperation

are essential. There is little we can do

for peace as long as we feel that we are

the only ones who know the way. A real

peacemaker will strive only for peace,

not for fame, glory, or even honor.

Striving for fame, glory, or honor will

only harm our efforts.

Peacemaking requires wisdom.

Peace is a path that is chosen consciously.

It is not an aimless wandering, but a

step-by-step journey. Peacemaking is the

middle path of equanimity, non-duality,

and non-attachment. Peacemaking

means the perfect balance of wisdom

and compassion, and the perfect

meeting of humanitarian needs and

political realities. It means compassion

without concession, and peace without

appeasement.

(Tribute to Most Venerable Maha

Ghosananda Thero)


WAT ARUN, RATCHAWARARAM

RATCHAWORAWIHAN

- THAILAND -

The Pride of Royal Thailand

"Wat Arun" or "Wat Arun Ratchawararam”, is a royal monastery Kind of

monarch means the monastery at the king Queen Crown Prince created

or restored as a part located in Wat Arun Yai District, Bangkok, Royal

Thailand. The architectural beauty that cannot be evaluated It also

stands out as a magnificent waterfront on the Chao Phraya River. Became

a symbol of beauty to the world and an important temple for a long time.

Wat Arun is an ancient temple that dates back to the Ayutthaya period,

formerly known as "Olive Temple" but when the reign of King Taksin the

Great with the intention of relocating the capital to Thonburi by marching

into the river and arrived in front of the olive temple . Therefore, changed

the name to "Wat Chaeng" until the reign of King Rama I, the reign of King

Rama I, ascended the throne. But not yet completed. He died King

Buddha Lertlapa Napalai, King Rama II, then proceeded to complete the

restoration. By giving the name of that temple "Wat Arun

Ratchawararam" and became the temple of His Majesty's reign.

Buddhika Sanjeewa, as the Founder, President & Chief Editor of Mettavalokana Buddhist Publications Centre, I printed and published this “Mettavalokanaya” Buddhist Magazine as

a publication of Mettavalokana Buddhist Publications Centre on January 13, 2020 at M. D. Gunasena & Co (Pvt) Ltd, No.20, San Sebastian Hill, Colombo 12, Sri Lanka.

Registered at Department of Post in Sri Lanka - QD/193/News/2018

mettavalokanaya_international_buddhist_magazine_january_2020

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?