Drunk in this world

Recently I read the following from the Tricycle Magazine

So long as the mind feels pleasure and pain, it’s drunk. Even while practicing the dhamma, it’s drunk, you know. People can get drunk eating rice—there’s no need to drink alcohol. If you eat a lot of rice, you can get drunk—drunk on rice. The same with the dhamma: Don’t get drunk on it. When people are drunk on the dhamma, they don’t stop. They keep on talking. If they see anybody coming, they want to grab him by the arm and give him a sermon on the dhamma. That’s a sign that they’re drunk on dhamma. They go after everybody: “I want to teach that person; I want to do this person a favor by teaching him the dhamma”—and so they do a favor to the entire country by teaching the dhamma. That’s a sign of drunkenness. Being drunk on the dhamma is no different from being drunk on alcohol. They’re really similar. Don’t go there. You have to look carefully, again and again, for sometimes something is dhamma, but it’s drunk. That’s not right.
From Still, Flowing Water, by Venerable Ajahn Chah, trans. Thanissaro Bhikkhu © 2013. Reprinted with permission.

And I have been reflecting on it for the past two days. The more I reflect, the more I feel that this phrase is so true! As our minds get "taken over", drawn totally into the story of things, it becomes like when one is drunk. One just simply follows without discernment. One becomes unclear of what is happening and one's heart just goes off tangent. As such, the training is to be constantly mindful. When mindfulness is strong, and one already is educated on Right View, then it is difficult for 'distractions'/defilements to grow. It's like it loses fuel to burn, no oxygen to burn and it dies of natural death.

However, in a society like Singapore, with too many things to do and too little time, our minds are pulled in all directions and it is tough to practice in this manner. However, if we keep the thought of practicing in our minds, whenever there is an opportunity, likw when we are walking from place to place and especially if we are alone, we will clarify our minds, meaning to make it clear and see things clearly. Slowly, this will grow and then we will be able to do it better and better and slowly it will start to break into other parts of our lives. I think this is how we can practice in Singapore....without going anywhere else.So, I hope everyone can always keep the heart to practice at the back of their head and clarify their minds :) Then the world will then be a better place with less 'drunkards' :)

The greatest curse of life

The master says that practicing gives you strength, strength to say no to your karma and break the chain of unwholesome activities.

Your (bad) karma is like a curse. These unwholesome ways of thinking, rooted in anger, ignorance and greed, solidified into habits, habits of the mind, we sometimes call habitual tendencies. These are what leads us through our lives on a day to day basis.

Zen and Buddhism tells, "hey wake up now! What are you doing?" if we are mindful, this wake up call is often heard. If not, we go along with our habits developed since long ago. The thing is these habits are formed over a long time and they literally created us! We are re-made of them so many times, they are all around and it's hard to notice them. It's camoflaged into the fabric of our thoughts. However, when we become more mindful, we suddenly realise that those habitual tendencies and defilements are driving us to do things. Sometimes, we notice, but as soon as we notice, we get lost in them the next moment, mired in their midst.

It is like being cursed. Curses control our minds, forcing us to see, hear or do things we normally would not see, hear or do. Defilements and habitual tendencies are exactly like that. If you are clear, you immediately know that you are not like this and would not do such things. At this time, if your are strong, you maintain this clarity and do not identify with the curse, thus breaking the curse. This is where the strength that the teacher talks about comes in. The seeing is the first step, the strength combined with the clear seeing breaks the curse. If your seeing is not clear enough, you would not be able to uproot the curse and would need to continually deal with it as it tempts you continuously. If your seeing is clear, you trace it to it's root in your mind and uproot it totally in one full effort.

It is so with curses and also with habitual tendencies and defilements. They chain us without us knowing, prod us in certain directions and we follow them unknowingly. So it is said, clear mind, clear mind, watch, watch! And then at the same time, develop and train your strength. Strength helps to sustain clear mind and clear mind puts strength to good use.

In buddhist meditation we train both. Clear mind in knowing what is and what is not and strength in bring back the mind and not letting it get swept away into the stories of our mind.

Be clear right here right now. Ultimately still, take your place in the centre stage of your life. Remember, all around you, it is all false. Yet, in my tradition, they say, one more step is necessary, what is it? What is worthy enough for us to live and engage our lives in?

One last thing: Be careful, if you are not totally empty, karma will have a hold on you!! If you are totally empty, anything I say is just wind.

Emptiness and your life

These days, after a diamond sutra chanting and Dharma talk by Shifu, i've been feeling an intense sense of emptiness. I keep recalling shifu's words that everything is actually just an empty shell. Yet as I go through life, I do so pretty much as a normal person. The Truth is, all is empty, empty of substantiality, empty of substance. All things without exception are thus. At such a time, nothing is important anymore and you know there is nothing to cling to. When u realise you are clinging to something by habitual energy, reminding yourself of this truth or using this truth to break down the thing you are attached to, you find that whatever you are attached to automatically distintegrates and breaks apart. But, only if you notice, and decide to do so.

Once in a talk, someone asked Shifu what is the meaning of life. Shifu said there is no meaning.

If everything is empty, then of course there is no meaning. After all 'meanings' are imposed on things by us. It is we who make things meaningful. In fact, it is all fabricated on the basis of insubstantial empty things.

So the question remains, why do we live in this world? What are we to do now?

When one's life loses all meaning, it is actually quite similar to the start of depression, before depression sets in. The emptiness is similar. However from this emptiness, there are two ways to go. Embracing the emptiness, recognising it, and choosing to stay happy, or rejecting the emptiness and think that you have lost everything, go into shock and then becoming depressed over it. In fact, nothing has changed. Everything has always been meaningless and empty.

Yet since meaning is created and decided upon by us humans, from this point on, you can actually decide what meaning you want to give to your life. So the question is, what do you want to do with your life?

where are we

In the end, we are just looking for a place to establish our selfness.

The truth is, we don't know ourselves. We are all made up, and because we were made up, there is no place to establish our selves as this is where I belong or I am like this; this is what I like/dislike. In fact, because of the fact that we were all made up, we can be made into anything. There is no limit to what we are, what we can be or can do. Any limits or constraints are also made up and ultimately false.

So, knowing this, the only question left is and always has been, what are you going to do?

Free!!! hahahaha!

Also, u know, after tdy's class, I had a deep feeling that we are all sooooo free, in this world, the truth is there is nothing stopping us! The barriers and constraints that limit us is not really there... Nothing is truly tangible and not clinging or attaching to them
and giving them weight, they become nothing. Even weight is weightless! The truth is that nothing can actually limit us... We limit ourselves! If we can free our mind, slowly break through these conceptual barriers, the whole world opens up! You don't have to be limited by what limits you! Cos there is actually nothing limiting you... Even you yourself is breaking up!

U know, actually this vajrayana thing is sooo similar to zen in the ultimate goal... There is almost no difference! Just that vajrayana explains more stuff in greater detail, in zen u kind of walk on a dark road or in the haze with a light in front leading the way.. Not much explaination is given in detail... But they are essentially the same!! So free! Hahaha!! So free! Even Vajrayana is so free if your know, the masters came up with creative methods to get your mind habituated, but to make it work, u got to put in a great deal of effort n be careful of all the pitfalls of being attached to forms! It's not easy too actually.. I expect some people to never get it too! Similar to zen, some people never really know what really is sitting. But a good master is needed!

Haha one great big whole, to acheieve the same thing! Work hard my friends, and do not be deluded! There is nothing real, but don't forget our dear friends!

The Pen and the Paper

The pen and paper meet before the words appear.. The paper thanks the pen, but actually, the pen thanks the paper too :) without the paper, nothing is possible. In this mutual participation, books are written.

Based on empty intangible thoughts, stories that men and women create with their imagination, they record using the disposable, recyclable bodies of pen and paper. Find me one truth that i can hold on to in all this mess! In the first place, does it even exist?

Hey you there, wake up!! Don't you see that the pen needs to write and the paper needs to hold the words. The men and women need to think and so the people have things to read! When the people read, the people will know, that they are but pen and paper, women and men; And they wouldn't be dreaming, about things to write.

So you there, don't be dreaming too! You have something to do. Stop wasting time and lazing around, in this empty recycled world, some work still needs to be done.

Letting instincts rule

These days, I have been letting my instincts rule and have been making a few mistakes and created undesirable outcomes. Words like swords shoot out of my mouth, though not in anger, but out of instinct still rather than well thought out processes.
Here are some words:

Instinct rule in daily life,
Mistakes made with unwanted outcomes.
Words like swords shoot out of mouths,
Hands like axes, cut without mercy.

Tell me how to keep my calm,
Tell me how to know my words.
Tell me how to win this war,
Tell me how to cultivate.

A thousand years of training,
War is lost in a moment.
Keep your men tight,
Do not loose them.
Look from above,
Don't be too involved.
It is just a play.
It is but a show.

Why take it so seriously?
Have some humour they say,
make your life fun.
Don't take things so personally.
Except of course, your own personal practice.

All things are of causes and conditions.
Do not act rashly,
Do not act blindly.

Act in measured steps,
Act in wisdom.
Act in clear seeing,
Act in clear looking.

All are but passing illusions,
No use getting so involved,
And pushing these boundaries.
Act with these conditions,
Till opportunities arise.
Then after having tested,
Act with your heart,
Act with your head.
Above all,
Act with all mindfulness.

Do not let up!!

All things

All things are in and of themselves all things.