Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Something to improve our JOINTS....

 As we advance in age, our body is getting stiffer, our joints are cracking and some of us have pain walking. I saw these among my friends and we are not that old either. So having joints problems are not due to age but how fast we worn out all the ''padding'' that we took for granted.
Here is a method which is better than popping all the Glucosamine. This is a natural way to counter all the backache and joint aches and are tested by some already. I believe this method is safe enough unless you totally cannot consume liquor.
Here, try it!
1) Buy 2 kg of golden raisins or yellow raisins.
2) Buy a bottle of Gin, you can get Beefeater London Dry Gin which is not so costly (definitely cheaper than your Glucosamine).
3) Put the golden raisins into the Gin. (If it is too much than use another container that can take 2 kg of raisins and a bottle of Gin.) Keep the bottle opened.
4) Note that you need to soak the raisins in gin for at least 7 days. In between please shake the raisins so that it mix well with the Gin..
8) After 7 days, you can scoop the raisins and put them into a container with lid.
9) Every time eat 5 to 9 raisins and eat it 2 or 3 times a day. Here is how you can eat it....
     - with salads
     - with ice cream
     - with oats etc.
The person who sent this article used to have cracking sound when he bend his knees but now he can walk and run very well. The swollen feet joints are no longer puffy and he can bend his fingers and clenched his fist.
You may ask, why is this method so effective? Actually this method was used by people long ago. They knew juniper berries are medicinal. Gin has juniper berries as its ingredient and therefore is effective when used with golden raisins.
I am not able to take liquor but to help me have better joints and free myself from Arthritis , I am consuming this as medicine and not eating/drinking the items (raisins and the gin) as an intoxicating indulgence!
Hope this sharing helps!

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

May I ask where is the Path...敢问路在何方



Earlier on when I posted on 'Journey to the West', I said that I will post the music to this wonderful Chinese Classic Literature. This song that I am posting is the latest serial made in 2012. The music is rearranged and sang by Dao Lang. With his low and husky voice, he injected impact and feelings into the song. Even if you do not know the story, from the song you will feel the perseverance and challenges that the Monk and his Three Disciples has to go through to achieve what they set out to do.

As in Butterfly Lovers or Phantom of the Opera, one needs not tell you the song title, the success of such classic songs are... when you hear it, you know it.
Here is the inspiring song. On the video you will see the painstaking preparations of the various personalities prior shooting. You will hear Dao Lang sing. Kudos to those who gave us so much enjoyment and thanks to all those behind the scene, without everyone we will not be able to sit in front of the TV to see such mesmerizing production.
Title : 敢问路在何方 (May I ask where is the Path)
           Gan wen lu zai he fang
你挑着担, 我牵着马
Ni tiao ze dan, wo qian ze ma
You lug the luggage, I lead the horse

迎来日出, 送走晚霞
Ying lai ri chu, song zuo wan xia
Together we saw many sunrises, and said goodbye to many sunsets

踏平坎坷, 成大道
Da ping kan ke, cheng da dao
The Path is hard to travel, and it leads to Enlightenment

斗罢艰险, 又出发, 又出发
Dou ba jian xian, you chu fa, you chu fa
Meeting difficulties and challenges along the Way, but we will not be hindered and carry on our Journey again.

啦啦 。。。。。
la...la...la...la...la...la...la......

一番番春秋 冬夏
Yi fan fan chun qiu dong xia
Many Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter passed by

一场场酸甜 苦辣
Yi chang chang tian xuan ku la
Experiencing all the Sour and Sweetness, Bitter and the like of Life

敢问路在何方,路在脚下
Gan wen lu zai he fang, lu zai jiao xia
May I ask where is the Path, the Path is beneath our feet

你挑着担, 我牵着马
Ni tiao ze dan, wo qian ze ma
You lug the luggage, I lead the horse

翻山涉水, 两肩双滑
Fan san se shui, liang jian shuang hua
Over the mountains and streams we travelled until we feel the burdens on  both shoulders

中日累点,人世上
Zhong ri lei dian, ren shi jian
It is tiring to strive in this Samsara

一路嚎歌, 向天涯, 向天涯
Yi lu hao ge, xiang tian ya, xiang tian ya
We sang along on the Path and we walked on and on

啦啦 。。。。。
la...la...la...la...la...la...la......

一番番春秋 冬夏
Yi fan fan chun qiu dong xia
Many Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter passed by

一场场酸甜 苦辣
Yi chang chang tian xuan ku la
Experiencing all the Sour and Sweetness, Bitter and the like of Life

敢问路在何方,路在脚下
Gan wen lu zai he fang, lu zai jiao xia
May I ask where is the Path, the Path is beneath our feet
敢问路在何方,路在脚下。。。。。。。。。。。
Gan wen lu zai he fang, lu zai jiao xia.............
May I ask where is the Path, the Path is beneath our feet
___________________________
Actually the Path to Enlightenment is not an easy Track because our Mind is clouded. It needs a lot of perseverance, patience, wisdom and believe to walk to the end. We walk this Path for the sake of all Sentient Beings and that is why we walk on and on until we reach our destination....Nirvana!
May all Beings be well and Happy !

Friday, September 21, 2012

Wise Sayings ...My very own




Kindness may not be returned with Kindness but need not be returned with Hatred.

Relationship cannot be measured by who gives the most and who get less.

To be alive is not guaranteed but death is guaranteed.

How long you will live is not guaranteed and when you will die is also not guaranteed.

You do not grow old now, it started when you are in your mother's womb.

All human beings have the same temperaments except some show more on certain traits.

Pain is universal - human or animals alike.

Human expressed pain vocally, animal's too. Do we only hear humans' pain and ignore animals' pain?

There are time we did not hear others pain BUT only our own pain.

Happiness is not given by others, it is a mental choice.

We complaint about others but never about our self.

Make peace with Yourself and that of your Surroundings.

There is no fairness in this World, the fingers on your hand are also uneven.

Why is it so hard to be Good and so easy to be Bad?

When is it the last time you realized that you are acting Bad. Are you apologetics?

Many people forget how to smile and be at peace with themselves.

Does it makes you inferior just to say ''I am sorry"?

It is not Fun taking other people's life, when your turn comes you will realized what goes around comes around.

Wisdom comes from your daily life and not that you are born with it.

Wisdom does not belongs to the intellectual, the beggar on the street has it too.

 Until we stop cyclic existences, we will travel around the Six Realms.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Shangpa Rinpoche


Shangpa Rinpoche is a wonderful person. He is soft spoken, humble and kind. His kindness is not verbal but he silently showed you he cares.

On 12th September 2012 (yesterday) was Shangpa Rinpoche's birthday. I do not follow the activities of the Temple so I was not aware. However, somehow, somewhere my connection with Rinpochela is strong as I came to know about it.  Upon entering his abode I saw a beaming Rinpoche. I wished Rinpoche 'Happy Birthday', long life, good health and all his wishes fulfilled as he wishes them to be. I wished that Rinpoche continues to benefit more Sentient Beings far and wide. I am very happy to see so much Guru devotions showered on Rinpoche. Various centres around the world sent in their well wishes and I am sure Rinpoche knows that he is much love by us.
But I have one wish for Rinpoche..."Please publish a Book with all the pictures you took". Rinpoche is an excellent photographer. I enjoyed looking at the pictures he took of nature.


Yesterday Rinpoche also launched his book "The Path of the Yogi" Past and Present Lives of Shangpa Rinpoche. The past Shangpa Rinpoche was an Enlightened Being. The Shangpa Rinpoche this life is no less. Rinpoche said last night that he paled as compared to his past life. No, Rinpoche. The Shangpa Rinpoche this life is just as Compassionate and Enlightened, if not more. Rinpoche had done so much for Sentient Beings. Even for this girl, who probably am a lost sheep from Shangpa Rinpoche's herds was made to feel that I am also one of his.

I have known Shangpa Rinpoche for many years now. He has a presence that a disciplined and practising master has. Initially I was afraid to see him privately as he projected the feelings that he sees through me. I felt inferior being the imperfect me. He actually make me aware that I am far from my practice of perfection.

In my spiritual upbringing, Monks are Buddha's representatives and they are practicing. Many forget that once they get close to a Monk they tend to forget their behaviors and become improper in action and speech. Some have high expectations and expected the Monks to be dedicated to themselves only. Actually Monks belongs to all Sentient Beings and the ultimate objectives is to deliver all Sentinel Beings away from sufferings.

To Shangpa Rinpoche showing kindness is naturally in him but the silent support he gave me during my most difficult times leave me eternally grateful.

Thursday, September 6, 2012

The Nagas Beings


Kenpo Dorje give us an understanding to why we need to perform Naga Puja monthly. I never knew the significant of this puja until I did it with Kenpo earlier however the understanding is that these beings are around us. We see some and we don't see some but if we accidentally offend them, we may get into trouble.
There are people who believe and of course there are those who will shake their heads and waved their fingers saying 'Wa lau...why you so superstitious huh?". Actually in Buddhism, we believe that there are living beings on the Six Realms of Existence. Many people have never seen the celestial dragon so to them...don't see mean non-existence. However snakes are also from the Naga family and many reptiles are too.
Nagas are very clean and pure beings - the celestial, sea and land are the same. I am not talking about snakes but the very dragon itself. So to appease them, all offering must be pure and clean. We are not able to offer anything that has meat and if we go out sea, if we can we should not wear or carry anything that is made of leather. As for attire, it is better to be in white. You will say 'what the fuss? you don't even see them". Well just think - Prevention is better than Cure.
Nagas are Dharma protectors but not all of them. Like human beings, not everyone is good so don't be gullible. Human beings when angered can beat you up or worst kill you. Nagas will not beat you up but can kill you. There are many people who out of the blues contacted Cancer and the word that comes with Cancer is DEATH. There are people who think it is bad luck but Buddhist will tell you it is a Karmic debt. People think that they will live to a ripe old age, yes because these people are enjoying their good fruits. What if you antagonized a Naga and your Karma debt is about to ripen? The Naga will take this opportunity to harm you.
So when you are digging the ground, renovating a house, going to the forest or walk the along long lonely road, even if you drive, please be mindful.
Attached a picture of the Golden Naga (Dragon) on top of MBS. Kangyur Rinpoche who we all acknowledged as the manifestation of  The Buddha of Medicine was performing Naga Puja on 18-7-12 at MBS. This picture was taken by a public and sent to LianHe Zaobao. It is not a super imposed picture. On that very same day, I was out in the sea with Ratna Rinpoche releasing Naga Vases and offerings and above the sky appeared a Rainbow and there is a red dot. How can two different phenomena appeared on the same day and about the same time?
Tomorrow (7 Sept 2012) is Naga Day again. So to those who wants to do a Naga Puja, you can checkout the website of Sakya Templing in Singapore.
May all Beings be well and Happy and be free from sufferings.

Friday, August 24, 2012

Journey to the West



…. is a great classic Chinese literature written around 16th Century. The said author was Wu Chen En and I give kudos to him as to how did he fabricated such an entertaining, magical and successful novel?
 
When people refer to the title, people cannot help but remember the Monkey God, SiWu Kong. The story circled around a Monk and his three disciples – the Monkey, Pig and Sandy. The white horse is actually a Prince of the Dragon family. 
 
This Classic has been made into movies, TV series and of course translated into simplified Chinese version as well as English books. It never fails to mesmerize the audiences and the readers with episodes of battles between good and evils. There are many characters in the story of animals spirits that after practicing of hundreds and thousand of years can turned into human and have magical powers. All these creatures craved to eat a piece of the Monk's flesh because it will give immortality.
 
It was said that the Monk, named XuanZhang did really existed. He was send by the Tang Emperor to India to bring back teachings of the Buddha so that it can benefit the people of China. During those days, travelling is by foot or horse and it takes months or years to move from one place to another.
 
My friend’s late father said that there are two possibilities and I believe many people think alike. The story was written by XuanZhang. Since he was on a spiritual journey and stopped at many places, he must have met many kind of people – the kind, the wise, the spiritual, the wicket, the cruel, the immortal etc. Instead of directly referring to them, he used different animals to represent these people and weaved a story around them. XuanZhang has a Royal Pass given by the Emperor so he was also the Diplomat of China at that time. He collected stories of various lands, culture and people and these will be stories that he will repeat to the Tang Emperor. To me this possibility is somewhat farfetched. To Buddhists practioners especially monks, they spent most of their time on spiritual learning and meditation so to write such stories is time wasting as it will not bring about Enlightenment. 

On the other hand, I felt that the possibility of Wu Chen En writing it was higher. The Author left his home town for Imperial Examination in the Capital. He was a filial son and his mother who lived her life in the village requested him to record what he saw on the way and tell her when he returned. Apparently the scholar passed the Imperial Examination and became an Imperial Officer. On his way home, he suddenly remembered his promised to his mother and fabricated these stories to entertain her.
 
Other than the literature, the Theme Song of Journey to the West is another Classic. No Journey to the West does not use this music score. Just by listening to the music/song you know the name to the movie immediately. Like the Classic Theme Song of Butterfly Lovers, this is another fantastic score. 

The title of the Theme Song is ‘May I asked where is the Path’. I love the music and the lyrics. I shall share this irreplaceable song next time when I decided to post music.
 
“Dare I asked where is the Path…the Path is beneath our feet…..”
 
The above picture is taken from the Internet and credit goes to the Artists/ Studio who created such beautiful animated character of the novel. Thank you.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Trying to Understand.....Heart Sutra



I  am self reflecting and thus self mutters. You may find what I am trying to reflect familiar and if you do, this means we are walking the same path.

" To Bodhisattva who are at ease with himself, has been practicing wisdom for a long time reflected on the impermanence of the 5 aggregates crosses the river of sufferings.

Sarila..Form is nothing but Emptiness..and..Emptiness is nothing but Form...thus Form is Emptiness and Emptiness is Form, So is Feeling, Thoughts, Actions and Senses are no difference.

Sarila, since all Forms are Emptiness, there is no Arising and Falling; no Impurity or Purity, no Increasing or Decreasing. When there is no Form, than there is no Feeling, Thoughts, Actions and Senses; there is no Eye, Ear, Nose, Tongue and Body; no colors, sound, smell, taste or sensation. There is no vision neither is there perceptions, there is no Ignorant or ending of Ignorant; there will be no Death or ending of Death; there will be no Suffering, The Cause of Suffering, The Ending of Suffering and the Path. There is no Lost nor Gain, since there are no Lost nor Gain, when Bodhisattva is practicing the Paramita, he does not hanker over Obstacles. Since he does not hanker over Obstacles he sees through them and have no Fear. Leaving behind all illusions, he reaches Enlightenment. All Buddhas of the Three Times, by practicing this Paramita attained the Highest Wisdom. The Buddhas know this Paramita is a Great Mantra, is an Enlightening Manta, is an Incomparable Mantra and a Mantra above all Mantras, this is nothing but the Truth. Thus the Paramita Mantra and here it is : Gatte Gatte Para Gatte Para Sam Gatte Bodhi Svaha "

The Heart Sutra has 260 words. It is a Sutra that will lead one to Enlightenment. It contains the Highest Wisdom of the Buddha and also the Essence of the Buddhist Teachings.

I use to chant it is Cantonese and reflect of each sentence. No complicating thoughts, just simply explain to myself. Every time I go back to this Sutra, my understanding is different.

So I pray for the understanding of this Sutra and may I attain perfection for the benefits of all Beings.