The Buddha in mud

Once there was a thief. One day he was found while he was breaking into a house. Off he ran as fast as he could, until he reached a dam. He jumped to the bank of the dam, fearful of the people in hot pursuit after him. Looking around, there was no bush to hide in, so he just sat down on a clump of weeds full of mud. Petrified with fear of being caught, he dared not move, just sat motionless with his eyes closed. The pursuers were startled when they found a muddy man sitting motionless. They asked themselves: “Who is this man?” One of them thought this man looked like someone in meditation, so he told the others: “He’s a monk in meditation!” Everybody became respectful, they bowed to him and asked: “Master, we are sorry to bother you, but did you see a man running by earlier? We are looking for a thief.” The thief reply: “Oh no... I did not notice anything…” So they left, but came back after a while. The thief was still sitting there, because he did not know where to go. Thinking this is a kind of profound meditating practice, the pursuers were full of respect. They asked him to become the monk of the village’s temple, which until now had been without any residing monk. Being in such a situation, the thief had no other choice than to accept it. 

Although living in the temple, a thief was always a thief. He soon thought of stealing the valuable things in the temple and take off when there was a chance.

That morning, he went into the main shrine, removed all the valuable statues, worshipping appliances etc... stuffed them into a bag and got ready to go. Suddenly there came a crying believer, because a member of his family just passed away last night. The believer asked him to go to his house to pray for the dead. The thief hastily put down his bag, acting as though he was just dusting and cleaning the appliances. He comforted the believer, took his name on a piece of paper, then promised to go there to pray. Sighing disappointingly for his foiled plan, he put back all the stolen things and set out to the believer’s house. Before that, he was careful to bring along one of the prayer book that he found in the shrine.

And so the days went by, he stayed in the temple waiting for the good time to leave. But he never had the chance. Believers kept coming, asking questions, or inviting him to their house for funeral prayers, and to be able to serve them he had to read and learn the sutras. Soon he began to practice meditation, chanting the Buddha’s name to relieve himself of his worries and stress. The old thief who was forced to become a monk now had to learn to live the life of a monk, and unexpectedly, this simple life gradually brought peace to him.

A year passed by. His daily schedule now was like the schedule of a real practitioner. He worked all day, cleaning, growing the vegetables, practicing meditation and chanting the sutras every morning and night. He partook in the joy, the sadness of the peasants in the village, shared with them the products that he grew by himself. Looking back at his previous life, he was horrified. How can he think of stealing from these poor, hard working people! He was ashamed of himself. From now on, he would make time to repent for his past sins. 

Henceforth, he was transformed from a thief to a real practitioner. All traces of his past life were now erased. He became a new person, a person of goodness and a spiritual support for the people of the village.

 (Collected)

33 People Who Prove The World Isn’t Such A Broken Place After All

1. This generous tipper:

 

 

2. This hero, who just did the right thing:

 

3. This stranger, whose pay-it-forward scheme might just catch on:

 

 

 

4. This grocery store employee, who knows a simple thing like tying someone’s shoes can make their whole day:

 

 

5. This pet-lover:

 

6. This team of paramedics, who didn’t just stop at saving an the man’s life:

 

 

7. This exotic car forum, who banded together to help a disabled kid live his dream… over, and over again:

 

 

8. This sports team, who let a kid with a congenital heart defect live his dream:

 

 

9. This animal lover, who knows the power of one good night of sleep:

 

10. This guy, who cleared his conscience after 13 years:

 

 

 

11. These folks, who just want to return an expensive phone to its rightful owner:

 

 

12. This good samaritan:

 13. This animal hospital, who truly knows how significant a pet can be to a person:

 

 

14. Dan:

15. This mailman, who knows the importance of getting something other than junk mail every once in a while:

16. And they say kids these days have no morals:

 

 

17. This loving launderer, who put off their load to make sure a stranger’s was dry:

 

 

18. This kind soul:

 

 

19. This firefighter, who heroically rescued what was clearly “more than just a pet”:

 

 

 

20. This lady, who unknowingly demonstrated that kindness begets kindness:

 

 

21. This guy, who gave a kid the world for a brief moment in time:

 

 

22. This guy, who probably missed his train to help this lady with her bags:

 

23. This “citizen of the Earth”:

 

 

24. This dry cleaner, who believes everyone should look their best when trying to get a job:

 

 

25. This team, who in a display of utter sportsmanship helped an injured opponent score:

 

 

26. This samaritan, who helped a stranger get where they were going:

 

 

27. This crowd, who figured the fan in the wheelchair deserved to see the show just as much as anyone else there:

 

 

28.Rugby player Brian O’Driscoll, who visited his biggest little fan in the hospital:

 

 

29. This officer, who handcuffed himself to a suicidal woman so she knew she wouldn’t go alone:

 

 

30. This barber, who offers haircuts at the cost of one hug each:

 

 

 

31. This biker, who held up traffic to help an older lady cross the street:

 

 

 

32. This guy, who saw a person in need and realized he could help:

See Source here

 

 

What is the most impotant thing a child should learn?

A young man went to seek an important position at a large printing company. He passed the initial interview and was going to meet the director for the final interview. The director saw his resume, it was excellent. And asked, '
- Have you received a scholarship for school?' The boy replied, " No '.
-' It was your father who paid for your studies? '
-' Yes.'- He replied.
-' Where does your father work? '
-' My father is a Blacksmith'
The Director asked the young to show him his hands.
The young man showed a pair of hands soft and perfect.
-' Have you ever helped your parents at their job? '
-' Never, my parents always wanted me to study and read more books. Besides, he can do the job better than me.
The director said:
-' I have got a request: When you go home today, go and wash the hands of your father and then come see me tomorrow morning.'

The young felt his chance to get the job was high.
When he returned to his house he asked his father if he would allow him to wash their hands.
His father felt strange, happy, but with mixed feelings and showed their hands to his son. The young washed his hands, little by little. It was the first time that he noticed his father's hands were wrinkled and they had so many scars. Some bruises were so painful that his skin shuddered when he touched them.
This was the first time that the young man recognized what it meant for this pair of hands to work every day to be able to pay for his study. The bruises on the hands were the price that he payed for their education, his school activities and his future.
After cleaning his father's hands the young man stood in silence and began to tidy and clean up the workshop. That night, father and son talked for a long time.

The next morning, the young man went to the office of the director.
The Director noticed the tears in the eyes of the young when He asked him: -' Can you tell me what you did and what you learned yesterday at your house?'

The boy replied: -' I washed my father's hands and when I finished I stayed and cleaned his workshop '
-' Now I know what it is to appreciate and recognize that without my parents , I would not be who I am today . By helping my father I now realize how difficult and hard it is to do something on my own. I have come to appreciate the importance and the value in helping the family.

The director said, "This is what I look for in my people. I want to hire someone who can appreciate the help of others , a person who knows the hardship of others to do things, and a person who does not put money as his only goal in life". ' You are hired '.

A child that has been coddled, Protected and usually given him what he wants, develops a mentality of " I have the right ' and will always put himself first, ignoring the efforts of their parents. If we are this type of protective parent are we really showing love or are we destroying our children?
You can give your child a big house , good food , computer classes , watch on a big screen TV . But when you're washing the floor or painting a wall , please let him experience that too.
After eating have them wash the dishes with their brothers and sisters. It is not because you have no money to hire someone to do this it's because you want to love them the right way . No matter how rich you are, you want them to understand. One day your hair will have gray hair, like the father of this young man.
The most important thing is that your child learns to appreciate the effort and to experience the difficulties and learn the ability to work with others to get things done. "

 (Collected)

Go Beyond Words : See For Yourself

In my own practice, I did not know or study much. I took the straightforward teachings of Buddha gave and simply began to study my own mind according to nature. When you practice, observe yourself. Then gradually knowledge and vision will arise of themselves.

If you sit in meditation and want it to be this way or that, you had better stop right there. Do not bring ideals or expectations to your practice. Take your studies, your opinions, and store them away.

You must go beyond all words, all symbols, all plans for your practice. Then you can see for yourself the truth, arising right here. If you do not turn inward, you will never know reality. I took the first few years of formal Dharma text study, when I had the opportunity, I went to hear various scholars and masters teach, until such study became more of a hindrance than a help. I did not know how to listen to their sermons because I had not looked within.

The great meditation masters spoke about the truth within oneself. Practicing, I began to realize that it existed in my own mind as well. After a long time, I realized that these teachers have really seen the truth and that if we follow their path, we will encounter everything they have spoken about. Then we will be able to say, “Yes, they were right. What else could there be? Just this.” When I practiced diligently, realization unfolded like that.

If you are interested in Dharma, just give up, just let go. Merely thinking about practice is like pouncing on the shadow and missing the substance. You need not study much. If you follow the basics and practice accordingly, you will see the Dharma for yourself. There must be more than merely hearing the words. Speak just with yourself, observe your own mind. If you cut off his verbal, thinking mind, you will have a true standard for judging. Otherwise, your understanding will not penetrate deeply. Practice in this way and the rest will follow.

 Ajahn Chah - A Still Forest Pool pp.10-11

NO AJAHN CHAH - Reflections

KAMMA...

- When those who do not understand the Dhamma act improperly, they look all around to make sure no one is watching. But our kamma is always watching. We never really get away with watching.

- Good act bring good result, bad actions bring bad result. Don't expect the gods to do thing for you, or the angels and guardian deities to protect you, or the auspicious days to help you. These things aren't true. Don’t believe in them. If you believe in them , you will suffer. You will always be waiting for the right day, the right month, the right year, the angles or the guardian deities. You'll only suffer that way. Look into your own actions and speech, into your own kamma. Doing good, you inherit goodness, doing bad you inherit badness.

- Through right practice, you allow your old kamma to wear itself out. Knowing how things arise and pass away, you can just be aware and let them run their course. It is like having two trees: if you fertilize and water one and do not take care of the other, there is no question which one will grow and which one will die.

- Some of you have come from thousands of mile away, from Europe and America and other far-off places, to listen to the Dhamma here at Nong Pah Pong monastery. To think that you've come from so far and gone through so much trouble to get here. Then we have these people who live just outside the wall of the monastery but who have yet to enter through its gate. It make you appreciate good kamma more, doesn't it?

- When you do something bad, there is nowhere you can go to hide. Even if others don’t see you, you must see yourself. Even if you go into a deep hole, you'll still find yourself there. There's no way you can commit bad actions and get away with it. In the same way, why shouldn't you see your own purity? You see it all - the peace, the agitation, the liberation, the peace, the bondage we see all these for yourself.

NO AJAHN CHAH

Is Buddhism Scientific?

Science is knowledge which can be made into a system, which depends upon seeing and testing facts and stating general natural laws. The core of Buddhism fit into this definition, because the Four Noble truths (see below) can be tested and proven by anyone in fact the Buddha himself asked his followers to test the teaching rather than accept his word as true. Buddhism depends more on understanding than faith.

What did the Buddha Teach?

The Buddha taught many things, but the basic concepts in Buddhism can be summed up by the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eight fold Path.

What is the First Noble Truth?

The first truth is that life is suffering i.e., life includes pain, getting old, disease, and ultimately death. We also endure psychological suffering like loneliness frustration, fear, embarrassment, disappointment and anger. This is an irrefutable fact that cannot be denied. It is realistic rather than pessimistic because pessimism is expecting things to be bad. lnstead, Buddhism explains how suffering can be avoided and how we can be truly happy.

What is the Second Noble Truth?

The second truth is that suffering is caused by craving and aversion. We will suffer if we expect other people to conform to our expectation, if we want others to like us, if we do not get something we want,etc. In other words, getting what you want does not guarantee happiness. Rather than constantly struggling to get what you want, try to modify your wanting. Wanting deprives us of contentment and happiness. A lifetime of wanting and craving and especially the craving to continue to exist, creates a powerful energy which causes the individual to be born. So craving leads to physical suffering because it causes us to be reborn.

What is the Third Noble Truth?

The third truth is that suffering can be overcome and happiness can be attained; that true happiness and contentment are possible. lf we give up useless craving and learn to live each day at a time (not dwelling in the past or the imagined future) then we can become happy and free. We then have more time and energy to help others. This is Nirvana.

What is the Fourth Noble Truth?

The fourth truth is that the Noble 8-fold Path is the path which leads to the end of suffering.

What is the Noble 8-Fold Path?

In summary, the Noble 8-fold Path is being moral (through what we say, do and our livelihood), focusing the mind on being fully aware of our thoughts and actions, and developing wisdom by understanding the Four Noble Truths and by developing compassion for others.

GOOD QUESTION, GOOD ANSWER- Bhikkhu Shravasti Dhammika

Get angry

People get angry because they are hurting, they are not at ease. But if we are happy, we can never get angry at someone else; it is only when we are depressed, tired, frustrated, having a hard time; when we have got some sickness in our hearts, that is when we can get angry at other people. So when someone is angry at me I feel compassion and kindness towards that person, because I realise that they are hurting.

The first time I went to see someone who was supposed to be enlightened, I thought, "Crikey! I had better make sure I meditate before I get within ten miles of him, because he is bound to be able to read my mind, and that would be so embarrassing!" But an enlightened person is not going to be cruel and hurt you. An enlightened person is going to accept you and put you at ease. That's a wonderful feeling, isn't it: just to accept yourself. You can just relax, no anger and irritation. There is that great understanding, great enlightenment, that you are all right. What a lot of pain that would take away from human beings' lives; what great freedom it would give the people to participate in the world, to serve in this world, to love in this world, when at last they realise that they are all right. They do not have to spend so much time getting themselves right, changing themselves, always afraid of making mistakes. When you are at ease with yourself you will be at ease with other people, no matter who they are.

- Ajahn Brahm
excerpted from On Making a Mistake