绕山而过，越山而行？

Bad Karma

Bad karma and delusion:

Evil spirits riding upon the horse of the mind,

Corroding the very thread of life.

Carried helplessly along by them,

Thus bad karma generates more bad karma

As we wander through the six realms of existence.

人身难得

This precious human life, a boat that can carry us

To higher wisdom and eternal happiness,

Has only now been gained. If we do not use it

To travel to the jewel island of enlightenment,

And instead allow ourselves to die empty-handed,

Are the very veins of our heart not corroded?

The human life with its freedoms and endowments

Is a supreme vessel for spiritual training.

Think over the precious opportunity that is yours

And take advantage of it.

Do not leave yourself armed only with regret

When the Lord of Death strikes.

Bubble Business

I have been spending too much time in worldly matters. When will I settle my mind down to spend the rest of my life on thing that is really worth doing - spiritual practice? What is holding me back from doing so?


Dhammapada 170:
One who looks upon the world as a bubble and a mirage, him the King of Death sees not.


《金刚经》：
一切有为法，如梦幻泡影，如露亦如电，应作如是观

时间不早了，功课还没做

While I was in secondary school, I used to participate in quite a number of Extra Curricular Activities (ECA) and was holding some posts in a few societies. I spent quite sometime in those activities. Once a teacher hinted that we should put more priority in our study instead of in ECA.

Sometimes I left the school quite late after ECA. I would feel a bit of stress and regret after thinking that my classmates who were not active in ECA could have finished their school homework and perhaps have finished revising what the teachers taught on that day.


It is the same feeling that I have now under a different context. But the fundamental of my stress and regret remains the same, i.e. not spending time in what is more worthwhile. When I see the monks, nuns and others who are working hard on their spiritual practice, I will feel how much I lag behind in my spiritual practice. Sometimes I wonder when I will re-prioritize what is worthwhile in my life. I wonder when I can reduce my "ECA" and concentrate more in my practice. Time is running short after each passing day and yet tasks that are worth doing are undone...

我的老师是太子

总是放不下对钱财、名誉、虚荣的执著。想想当年的悉达多太子，看到老、病、死的痛苦后，毅然放下太子的享受，离家寻找解决之道。从太子到修行人，生活条件方面的差距真的是天渊之别。现在，我只是想放下高薪工作，有需要的话，找一分简单的 part-time，这样，就有更多的时间可以修行。生活上不会有太大的转变，不必吃苦。为什么这么一个小小的“牺牲”都做不到呢？我须要放下的，简直无法比拟太子的放下。

计算一下储蓄，加上可能的part-time收入，应该是没问题的。到底什么使我放不下呢？

现在有一分高薪的工作，邻里亲朋都看得起。如果放下这分工作，自己在钱财方面差人之后，他们会这么看呢？放下这虚荣吧！别在乎别人的看法，自己很清楚自己的选择。虚荣有什么用呢？放下吧，没错的！佛陀当年不是舍掉太子的尊荣吗？

Where do I start?

Life is tough. Reality is cruel. Fortunately, there is hope to get out of these miseries - The Ancient Path pointed out by the One who Shows the Way - The Buddha.

"You yourselves should make the effort, the Tathagatas only show the way." (DP 276)



In following the path, I am very grateful to have pointers from the practitioners - the monks, the nuns, and other fellow lay practitioners. Sometimes I like to write down their words for future reference. Sometimes I also like to note down anything I find useful from reading the suttas and other books. Also, I like to note down thoughts that pop up and doubts and conflicts that arise while treading the Path. Overtime, I find it not easy to organize the data.

What is a good way to organize them? Perhaps blog can help. Let me try that.