The Toothache

When in pain and suffering, we are very aware of the intensity of both. We go around thinking, "I have such pain! And such terrible suffering because of this toothache!" But when we go to the dentist or the toothache goes away on its own and the pain is no longer, we happily say "The pain has stopped! I'm no longer suffering! This is really such a relief. I'm so happy!"

Then, we forget about both. Forgetting both, we do not realize how fortunate we are to no longer have that terrible pain.

So the next time you're feeling blah or thinking that you're just not feeling happy, tell yourself "Life is wonderful! I don't have a toothache!"

We Are All Human

All human beings have weaknesses and are prone to making mistakes. All human beings have the basic weaknesses of desire, hatred, and ignorance. These weaknesses are within human beings in varying degrees. Unless you are a perfect man or a Arahant, you are no exception.

Man is not satisfied with his life and never finds the purpose of life even after gaining the whole world.

Let us take a closer look at the weakness of delusion or ignorance: man is enveloped in ignorance. His mind is clouded by disturbances, difficulties and darkness. Out of ignorance, man creates suffering and he shares this suffering with his fellow man. The miseries and the worries that come to man are due to worldly condition, man’s unbalanced, uncultured mind and the reaction to the evil practices perpetrated by man.

Nobody is perfect in this world; everybody is liable to commit certain evil actions either intentionally or unintentionally. How can you think that you are free from evil?

“Fear and worry disappear when ignorance is dispelled by knowledge.”

If you can understand the nature of the weaknesses that are within man’s mind, then there is no reason for you to grumble ever your sufferings and miseries. You will have the courage to face and to tolerate all miseries and worries and sufferings that come to you.

“Nothing happens to man that is not contained within man.”(C. Jung)

~ Ven. Dr. K. Sri Dhammananda, You are Responsible

Doing it Again

Okay, I'm looking out my window again. (Resting my eyes after writing for several hours. And yes, you're right. I really do seem to do this a lot.) Immediately outside my window is a lawn. Beyond that is a road just wide enough for two cars and which ends in a cul-de-sac a little past my building. Beyond the road is a four acre pond with woods on the other side. The geese and ducks are swimming with their respective families of goslings and ducklings.

The road is quiet and safe. I often see parents walking with their children or teaching them to ride a bike. But today, the little girl from the next building went by pushing a baby stroller. (I think that's what they're called. I don't have much experience in this area. ;-)) She's only a head taller than the covered stroller. It's a gloriously sunny day and the lawn and woods are a deep green. The little girl has long blonde hair, which blows in the breeze.  

As she was passing by on her third or fourth circuit of walking, I heard the baby begin to cry. The girl stopped her very professional manner of walking, went around to the front of the stroller, put both hands on the bar in front of the stroller, and leaned in, seeming to access the situation. She gazed for a second or two, and then with her very professional manner stood up again and returned to her position behind the stroller and resumed her brisk, efficient walk. Apparently this assessment also assured the baby that it was okay because when she came back into sight again, the baby was no longer crying. 

There's no great message here. Just a few minutes of old-fashioned tranquility and good mid-western values. I see a little girl looking after her baby sister or brother. I see a group of young women sitting together on lawn chairs next to the grill while one woman brings food to the others. I also see a father showing his young son how to throw a ball. Nothing exceptional. Nothing dramatic. Just family members and friends sharing and looking after each other.

Perfect. 

The Only Really Good Stuff is at the Store

"Like most people visiting Asia, I have experienced the constant dripping of a rain of epiphanies during my stays.  One of these occurred on a trip to Northern Thailand, as I was standing on the edge of a new friend’s yard.  I admired the grove of towering bamboo that edged her garden boundary, in a row so straight I could have marked it off with a piece of thread, with not a single trace of bamboo growing out into the road. 

‘How do you do that?’ I asked her.  ‘How do you keep the bamboo from growing all over the place, outside of your yard?’

‘Well, that’s easy,’ she replied.  ‘Everyone knows how good bamboo shoots are in their dinner.  The minute one shows its head outside of my garden, someone takes it home.’

‘Oh,’ I said, ‘In Canada we hack down the bamboo and throw it in the bushes and buy bamboo shoots in a can at the store.’

But that is what North America is all about.  We have been trained that if it is right in front of our face (e.g. free, accessible) it is somehow inferior, and that the only really good stuff is at the store." (Food Security for the Faint of Heart: Keeping Your Larder Full in Lean Times, by Robin Wheeler, pg. 95)

In North America, the lives are many people are those of abundance. Most North Americans living now have only known good times. Sure there have been some difficult times, but they didn't touch everyone and were soon forgotten. And so we believe the past is forever behind us and the future will be an ever-increasing expansion of technology and scientific developments. 

Our distant ancestors were hunter-gatherers. Our more recent ancestors were farmers. What are we? Consumers. We do not grow food. Nor do we know the wealth of food in the wild that surrounds us.  What we do know is "charge it."  And freezers and microwaves so we can eat the artificial convenience food we charged at the supermarket.

We pride ourselves on being educated and not needing to get our hands dirty as our ancestors did. We believe the good times will go on forever. And we push the past even further away.

We do not live in a sustainable manner because we believe dominion over the earth gave us the right to plunder it. We do not do without so there will be something left for future generations. We are living in a tiny bubble of unprecedented prosperity that cannot be sustained, because we are using up the world's resources.

We are hacking down the bamboo, throwing it in the bushes, and buying bamboo shoots in a can at the store.

Timing is Everything

One day I was doing prostrations in my dorm room. The session was fairly long for me and I felt wonderful. As I left the building to go to the main building, I saw another nun. She approached me, looked at me for a second and announced that she had something to tell me. She admitted that, actually, she had had something for a few days but was afraid it would make me angry. (I know nuns are not supposed to become angry but this is still samsara.) She proceeded to tell me her news, and I smiled and said no problem. She was very relieved and we happily walked together to the other building.

To say something to others, we need to find the right words AND the right time.