My first kathina in 2008 - 19 October at Sukatoh Buddhist Centre, Singapore

The monks chanting before the dana of food was being offered.

After the prayers, the people lined up to offer food to the monks in their alms bowls.

The "Star" of the day! Listening to dharma with full mindful relaxation.

One can see the full concentration in one of the followers here.

It was a meaningful Sunday spent for me, observing kathina at the Sukatoh Buddhist Centre. I met a few bros and a sis from Siam Amulets forum joining us there. I wish to highlight an enlightened being, luang phor's pet chihuaha, which sat at the same podium as the monks throughout the entire chantings. It was so relaxed as you can see in one of the pics above. It is indeed blessed to hear the chants everyday.

Monks and Money by Ajahn Brahmavamso

In the light of the case of a local monk who was charged recently of 10 counts of misappropriation of the funds at the organisations under him (see the last post), this article "Vinaya - Monks and Money" is a timely remainder of not mixing the two.

"The issue has been controversial for over 2,000 years. Around 200 years after the Buddha's final passing away, there arose a great quarrel in which "both endless disputations arose and of not one speech was the meaning clear" [1]. This dispute arose because a large community of monks were accepting money in defiance of the Vinaya. The proceedings of the dispute became known as the Second Council and it sowed the seed of the first great schism in the Buddhist world, which happened soon after.

Then, as now, there is no excuse for uncertainty on this point, for the Buddha's own words make it plain...

On Monks and Money

Buddhist monks (bhikkhus) and nuns (bhikkhunis) are not allowed to accept money for themselves. Nor are they allowed to tell a trustworthy layperson to receive it on their behalf and keep it for them (e.g. keeping a personal bank account). Such practices are explicitly prohibited in the 18th rule of the section of Vinaya called Nissaggiya Pacittiya.

Nor may monks or nuns buy and sell things for themselves using money. This is prohibited by the 19th rule in the Nissaggiya Pacittiya.

Some people argue that these two rules refer only to gold and silver but such a view is indefensible. The Vinaya specifically states that these rules cover "whatever is used in business" [2], i.e. any medium of exchange.

Other people try to get around this rule by saying that it is only a minor rule, inapplicable to monastic life today. Indeed, the Buddha once did say that the Sangha may abolish the "lesser and minor" rules.

But is this rule a minor one?."

Click here to continue reading the full article.

What's is the name? A sad day for buddhists here

The word "venerable" suddenly appears irrelevant or rather irreverential. Goh Kah Heng, the birthname of the famous personae Venerable Ming Yi has been charged with 10 counts including forgery, misappropriation of funds and conspiracy to give false information to the Commissioner of Charities. The venerable appears vulnerable now.

This is the high conduct expected of those in position of power, whether secularally or spiritually. The public expects the high standards of conduct that go with the position. A monk, in this case, has a moral obligation higher than a layperson.

No doubt this venerable, who has since stepped down from all positions and responsibilites in his capacity of his spiritual organisation, has done good work. Millions of dollars have been raised due to his acrobatic stunts for the Renci hospital. He was from a top secondary school when he decided to enrobe and became a monk. He is fairly young in his mid-forties and has a long future ahead in his mission for his hospital as well as his religious journey. Suddenly, events took a turn for the worst, and now he has stepped down from all his positions and responsiblilites. Will he be disrobed? Well, in my opinion, disrobing will not undo the deeds he has done.

His good work will certainly be remembered by the public and the buddhist fraternity. The paradox is: a life's good works can be tarnished by a single embelishment. It is like a drop of ink on a white parch of cloth. We don't see the whiteness; we focus on the black spot.

I guess humans have high expectations for public figures. A monk is a public figure. His name came with religious connotations and people of faith respect him for this. If the person was to disrobe or never enrobe, doing good work, the impact of moral embelishment will not be far-reaching and ramifying.

The impact of this case of Goh Kah Heng is a case of a good monk whose position demands a higher moral conduct than a good man. Mr Goh Kah Heng is certainly a good man.

Meatless at Seattle

"Seattle is famed for its natural beauty, technological savvy and sometimes paralyzing addiction to consensus. It's also increasingly known as a burgeoning paradise for those who steer clear of meat (vegetarians) and those who avoid meat, eggs, milk and other animal products (vegans).

Had Oprah spent the 21 days of her recent vegan cleanse diet around these parts, she'd have found weeks of options at her fingertips.

There's a vegan doughnut shop (Mighty-O), vegan bakery (Flying Apron), vegan grocery (Sidecar for Pigs Peace), vegan-friendly bar and ice-cream parlor (Georgetown Liquor, Molly Moon's), a vegan deli (Hillside Quickie) and nearly a dozen vegan restaurants. And that's just in Seattle proper."

To read the full article, click here.

Website of the Month - Mahasati Meditation

What is the meaning of Mahasati Meditation?

"Mahasati" is a Pali (ancient Indian language) term. Maha means great or big; Sati means self-awareness or mindfulness. So Mahasati means great self-awareness, total self-awareness, or perfect self-awareness. If one cultivates self-awareness, he/she will be able to know his/her bodily movement more and more. When he/she knows the bodily movement all the time, the "knowing element" will work by itself automatically. At this point, the knowing element grows/develops up to its full capacity. It's then called "Mahasati."

Introduction taken from Mahasati Meditation website:

In today's complex and hectic world, meditation is playing a more and more important role for those who seek psychological well-being and balance. Many teachers, mostly from the East, provide many different forms of meditation. Some teachers use breath-counting and breath-concentration. Others teach concentration on a mantra or a koan. Some tell their students to visualize a religious image or some form of light or color. These methods all share the same central theme - the concentration of the mind.

Luangpor Teean, an important teacher in the world of Thai Buddhism, introduced a new way of looking at and practicing meditation - Mahasati Meditation. He taught that meditation is the art of seeing things as they are with awareness and wisdom. Usually we see the world and everything around us through the filter of our concepts or thoughts and through our mental images which we have collected in our daily life since childhood. Thus, these thought are both the source of human activity and human suffering. Thought is, for Luangpor Teean, the source of greed, anger and delusion.

Luangpor Teean said that we cannot simply suppress greed, anger, and delusion by keeping moral precepts, nor can we suppress them by maintaining calmness through some form of meditation based on concentration. Though these activities are useful to some extent, we need to go to the root of suffering: to let awareness see through and break through. When we see things as they are, outside of thought, the mind changes its qualities completely. At the very moment of awareness, the mind immediately becomes active, clear, and pure. With this active, clear, and pure mind we will realize the law of nature and the freedom of life. And then, we will be free from suffering.

Mahasati Meditation is a form of moving meditation. In Mahasati Meditation the practitioner moves rhythmically with their awareness open to the movement of body and mind. The movements are simple and repetitious, yet Mahasati Meditation is a powerful, deep, and advanced method for self-realization.

Periods of sitting mediation alternate with walking meditation. There is complete flexibility in the amount of time spent on each posture. Even when practicing as part of a group each meditator is free to sit or walk as they so wish.

The aim of Mahasati Meditation is to attain direct insight into one's self-freedom from pain and suffering, and to attain a healthy mind, one that is stable and wise. This healthy mind benefits not only the practitioner, but is also a beneficial influence on the practitioner's surroundings, including those who are close to him/her, and to society in general.

Vipasanna demonstrated by luang phor Thong

Move one body part at a time so that you are aware of only that one movement.

Physical health and spiritual health are connected to each other?

"An integral part of many people's lives, religion defines patterns of worship and socialization, but its impact, if any, on health is unclear. Some studies show a benefit to religious practice, while others -- including much of the research into prayer -- fail to prove its health value.

The question of the role something as unquantifiable as religious belief might play in health troubles some scientists in an age when mainstream medicine is turning ever more toward epidemiological science to define research protocols and to determine the validity of treatments.

That said, it's not hard to understand why being religious might be good for the body, experts say. Religious people often attend regular services; this puts them in a socially supportive environment, which has widely acknowledged health advantages. And some religions promote healthful diets and discourage unhealthy behaviors such as drinking alcohol and smoking.

"Religions package many of the ingredients of well-being to make them accessible to people," said Richard Eckersley, a visiting fellow at the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health at the Australian National University in Canberra. And the "psychological well-being" that religion can promote is "linked to physical health through direct physiological effects, such as on neuroendocrine and immune function, and indirect effects on health behaviors, such as diet, smoking, exercise and sexual activity."

To read the complete article, click here.