Wisdom...

I have been contemplating on this for a while now. It is about compassion and killing

Putting aside Buddha's stories which have similar happenings but this is what I experienced myself.

One night I was having dinner with a group of friends in a private room. There is this full glass wall to ground window which we can look into a garden. As the sun sets, it got darker outside and the warm light in our room attracted some insects and reptiles. 

As we were waiting for our food and everyone were excited exchanging greetings, someone suddenly said "oh dear! look at that lizard, it is going to eat the moth!". All of us ran over to the glass window and with all the knockings tried to shoo the lizard off. Our compassion at work so the reaction is natural. When all the shooing were going on, I was watching and it suddenly occurred to me... 

".... the lizard was trying to take a meal, the moth was there and so became the bait. We were all trying to save the moth....what about the hungry lizard? Isn't the lizard also worthy of our compassion? What is the lizard going to eat? If the lizard did not eat the moth, the lizard will eat some other insects, so where is our compassion for the other insects?" 

 Do you have an answer?

This World is a cycle. Things happened for a reason. It is the natural eco system that World depends upon. We are part of this cycle because we are in the same realm as all other animals, insects and others. The only different is we are in different forms. Everything depend on each other to recycle. One is gone another will appear and it goes on. 

There is another story that goes like this... 

A boatman pushed the boat out to the river. In the course of the pushing, the boat slides over mud. On the boat there was a Monk and many other lay people. One man walked up to the Monk and asked "Shifu (meaning venerable master), did this boatman committed sin while pushing the boat out from shore to the river. In this pushing the boat slides over mud killing many creatures living in the mud?" Shifu looked at the person who asked the question and said "you are the one that have committed the sin, not the boatman". The person was shocked! The Monk further explained "The boatman is doing his work and he has no intention to kill. If you did not get on the boat, the boatman need not move the boat and therefore no lives were killed. Killing is completed with intention and you think about these creatures being killed. No one on this boat thought about it". 

Therefore many happenings are Cause and Effect of our actions. Did you get it???? 

A Day at the Garden....

I was at The Garden By The Bay on 16.8.2014 with my brother. I have taken some photographs with my handphone and put them up here. It is always a joy to see multicolored flora and fauna at display. Enjoy!

Public Spirits.....

Bravo! to the Australian for their public spirit. The picture is a very touching scene and so many hands. Kudos to the train staff for reacting fast enough so that the train did not moved off and cost a life. 

As I read this article, I also read some of the comments and I felt ashamed of the remarks. I do not know whether the people who posted are Singaporean or not but sure took the opportunity to run down the Singapore system. Some said that people are afraid of Fine. I totally agreed with one comment that some Singapore people will stand around and not help and later take opportunities to blame the train operator and the Government. This is typical Singaporean! No matter how the Government or the public authorities/ operators do their best, they are not able to meet everyone’s needs and it mean they are NO GOOD. People will only want more and more but not willing to be a little selfless; a little less critical. 

Some said such happened in Japan before. Are they saying that Japan have this happening all the time? Meaning it is no great deal and why are the Australian being applauded for good spirit? It is a news report, not vying for anyone to say good things so if one is a sour grape, get something to sweeten the mouth.

Public Spirit is in our heart. Whether you have or don’t it is in born. It is not the Fine of $5,000, weighing it against a person’s life. What if the person is your loved ones? Do you want people to help them of not? 

I am sure the authorities or the Government is not brainless. How will they Fine public spirit like this? This is an accident. Even if there is Fine, probably the Operator and they will need to improve the gap between the train and the platform. The Government and relevant authorities will do their part to lessen future accidents as much as possible. We, as the people just have to act like Human if there is a need. These bad mouth people are SAINT and they never make any mistake in their life. 

Some of the comments were impossible. We are educated but our thinking capacities are just limited to that ZERO mark. Some can be very vulgar and cynical with their choice of words. I am glad they are Small People (小人) just shooting their mouth off with nothing better to do. What will happen to our Country if they are Leaders? What’s wrong with all of US? 

If everyone do their part and does their due diligent, no Fine needs to be imposed. However with Fine, the people still go against it. I saw people riding bicycle over overhead bridge when there is an indication of Fine. They defied the Law and ignore pedestrian safety. There are Fine for NO U TURN but people still do because they believe they will not be caught. There are Fine for using handphones when driving but there are so many people doing it, some even text sms or watch videos oblivious of their own safety and that of Others. Of course there are Fine for speeding but the smart alex knows where to avoid the "Eye".

FINE is a handy excuse. If you are fined means you are against the Law and what’s wrong being Fine? You ask for it!!! 

Anyway GRACIOUSNESS is something the people must learn. GOT STYLE BUT GOT NO VALUE is wasting away one’s life. We are found of finding others’ faults but never see one’s wrong doing. Super Selfish.. double confirmed!!! 

Don’t need to scold me or throw bad eggs at me, I am also learning from all these people - the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Hopefully I pick up good habits! 

Star Gazing ...Perseid Meteors vs the Supermoon

I have always been interested in star gazing. In Singapore it is too bright. When I was working in Bintan, Indonesia I love looking at the night sky. The stars are so bright and I feel that I can just reach for the stars. It made me very happy. At time I search for the North Star and sometime I can find the various horoscopes. As I came back to Singapore, this interest falls into the back of my mind. Today I saw this news and and  am thrilled. I do not know whether we can see it in Singapore, but go out of the bright lights and see if you can see some meteors. Don't forget to make a wish. (Below are shared by Courtesy of NASA).

QUOTE The annual Perseid meteor shower finds itself in an unusual situation -- competing for attention in August with the supermoon. August's full moon will pose a problem for the Perseids as the bright light will black out dimmer meteors. 

The Perseid meteor shower peaks around Tuesday or Wednesday although there will be plenty of activity over the weekend and Monday. The Perseids gets its name as the meteors look like they originate from the constellation Perseus. Comet Swift-Tuttle is responsible for the Perseids as Earth crosses into the debris trail the comet leaves behind as it makes its way around the sun. 

Comet Swift-Tuttle has a large nucleus which means it leaves behind plenty of debris and in a good year, stargazers could see as many as 100 meteors per hour at the Perseids' peak. Comet Swift-Tuttle last passed Earth in 1992 and travels in a 133 year orbit around the sun. 

While many stargazers looking forward to the Perseids' peak are worried about the full moon Sunday and bright moon throughout the week, there are plenty of reasons to step outside and look at the night sky for a few meteors. 

Swift-Tuttle's debris stream is quite wide, which means you could still see meteors toward the end of month, and the Perseids is known as the "fireball champion," NASA said. Compared to other annual meteor showers, the Perseids have produced 568 fireballs, an extremely bright, streaking meteor, since 2008 compared to 426 for the Geminids and 319 for the Orionids. "The Perseids are rich in fireballs as bright as Jupiter or Venus. These will be visible in spite of the glare," said Bill Cooke, from NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office, in a statement. 

With the high rate of meteors and fireballs, chances are you'll see plenty of the Perseids despite the supermoon. Pre-dawn viewing yields the best results. In the northern hemisphere, stargazers should look towards the northeast to find the constellation Perseus. UNQOTE

 ScienceCasts: Perseid Meteors vs the Supermoon

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SINGAPORE......CHEERS!!!

9TH AUGUST 2014

MAJULAH SINGAPURA

 
UPDATED 13-8-2014

Happy National Day...48 going to 49!

Once again we will be celebrating our National Day 2014 on 9th August. This year the slogan is "Our People, Our Home".

This is a simple and yet powerful message. To a Country, the success is the People who make up the "Country". Without People, it will not be a country but just a piece of land on the map, probably unnoticed. To the People, the Country is their Home. It is a land that provides them livelihood, safety, peace and harmony and a continuity to the next generation and generations to come.

I live in Singapore I call my Home. I know the important of Harmony and the Unity of the People. You take a bundle of sticks and try to break them and it is not that easy. Once the bundle of sticks are loosen, others with bad intentions can infiltrate and break all the sticks one by one. Simple logic and all these "Others" may come from external source and internally too if we do not see the big picture.

A Home may have many restrictions and we have expectations as well but what matter most is Peace and Safety. May people practice Restraints and be less Selfish and a little more Selfless.

Therefore, this National Day, I pray for Singapore's Peace and Harmony, I pray for the safety of the People, I pray for a good Government, I pray that families are intact, I pray for those working overseas to be safe and protected and I pray for the happiness of the People. May we all always have food on our tables and in our stomach. May we all never be short of opportunities for gainful employment. Most of all, may we maintain Compassion and Wisdom in our daily life. Always have a smile for the person next to you.......

HAPPY NATIONAL DAY, SINGAPORE!