修行 (Practice)

修行，修行，修到行為止。

From dictionary, the word practice means repeated and systematic exercise for the purpose of acquiring proficiency. Simply said, "Practice till it's perfect."

And if we are to look at the Chinese words separately, it will more aptly describe the path of cultivation. 

修 - it can be described in English as the action to refine, to cut. What do we refine and what do we cut in our practice? We refine our character and we cut away our cravings. These two go hand in hand, one cannot be accomplished without the other.

行 - in English, it can be translated as the action of travelling, or simply the path. The path is a journey all of us undertake but what we cultivate, sow and reap is up to the individual. So the types of seeds we plant during this path will determine the fruits that we enjoy throughout the journey. 

Put the two together, it is not difficult to understand that the 修行 (Practice) is the path we travel to attain the right fruits from the right effort made in refining our character.

Ah Beng Musical

Broadway Beng - Benging you back to Basics delivers all the entertainment and laughter that their posters suggest. Its our first "Beng" experience but no doubt about it, Mark, Tracy, Cecilia and I had a wicked good time, all 90 mins.

Ah Phew (Broadway Beng) brought us back to his childhood, his teenage years through a number of skits. One of the more memorable skits was Justice Bao. Imagine Ah Phew as Bao, my goodness, its a recipe for a devastating proportion of comics (I get will back to that later).

As all four of are born in the late 70s, the stage backdrop was awfully familiar. If you are born in the 70s, grew up in the HDB neighbourhood like us, you will know of the playgrounds that are shaped after a dragon (very nostalgic, brought back lots of fond memories). And the design was quite ingenious, the eye of the dragon is a disco light ball.

Yes, you guessed it, there was a skit about tea dances, ever popular in the 80s. Skit was done with Ah Phew sporting the curry puff hair. It was the "in" hairstyle those days. Most guys would dream about having that perfect curry puff but just couldn't get it right despite using a whole bottle of gel. Of course, it looks absolutely ridiculous now if anyone of us tries to go out with that kind of hair.

Back to Justice Bao, i totally dig the way Ah Phew and his cast of CHIO BUs (beautiful girls in Hokkien) changed 威武 (Wei Wu - loosely translates as mighty) to Buay Who (meaning late, not in time) when they started the court session. Seamlessly, this led to a comic presentation of our current daily issues such as train breakdowns, White Paper and our children's education. 

Speaking of children, this was the part Ian entered the show. Who is Ian? An adorable eight year old boy who speaks way better Hokkien than most of us do these days. For the record, he even sang in Hokkien. Beat that.

Thinking back, there is an underlying message beneath all the laughter that the brains behind this production is spreading. The vision of our past, present and future and what we truly want as a Singaporean and our hopes for the next generation.

Do we want to become a nation where trains breakdown frequently due to overcrowding or let our children's childhood be filled with an uphill task of chasing after impossible academic achievements?

Or do we want to preserve our culture and foster a better environment where we can pass down things that matters more than paper chase and material gains to the next generation?

Ah Phew already has his answer when he said nearing the close of the show that he like to pass the baton to Ian when he is old. Ian can then take over his role as Beng and do the 152th Broadway Beng. But Ian has bigger hopes, he believes the 152th Broadway Beng will be done by his grandson, not himself.

As the Chinese saying goes, 人小小志氣大. I think we all have great hopes for Ian and our next generation. J

Equally Unique

As we grow older and understand more about ourselves, we realise that all of us are born unique and that is the very reason we are all equal. This is contrary to what we have been educated and conditioned to think about ourselves from young, that we are born special, that we can be a cut above the rest, different from others.

Yet old habits die hard. This is what results in our pride, our ego, our failure to see and realise our mistakes especially when one is made and pointed out by others. To overcome our habitual energies, we need to practice, to reflect constantly on our attachment to this self, this ego. Only with the practice of mindfulness, we will be able learn to catch ourselves when we are feeling prideful and let go of such feelings as they arise. 

By constantly reminding ourselves that we are inherently the same in our goal for happiness, our empathy for others will nauturally grow and we will find it easier for us to accept and consider people around us for every action and decision we take. This itself is also another form of mindfulness practice. If we practice well, harmonious living in our family and community is not only possible, it can also multiply joy many times over. 

That being said, it is also our responbility as adults of our own community to teach and guide the younger members that they are not as special as they believe they are. Instead, teach them and let them learn, let them explore how unique each and everyone of them is and that is the very quality that makes each individual equal and not so different.

Life

Most of us want an easy life but what we truly need is a good life. Bulk of the time, we do not realise what we want may not be good for ourselves. And even more so, how little we appreciate the fact that our true needs for betterment of our lives may not come easy.

Gardenasia - Q2 Team Event

Its our quarterly team event last friday and we went to Gardenasia at Kranji, a garden landscaping company. For our team event, we learn a bit more on how to recycle used plastic and papers and make them into small art decorations. 3 pics to share and they have abosolutely nothing to do with what we made during the session. I just happen to snap them when they gave us a little tour around their premises.

RWS S.E.A. Aquarium

Sharing a few pics from the recent visit to RWS S.E.A. Aquarium

Ah Mah Laa Kopi

Although grandma, whom we affectionately call Ah Mah, can no longer be with us physically but she continues to be us in all other aspects. I like how Bhante put it across, that we may be sad and there may be sorrow but more importantly when we think of her, we should remember all the goodness Ah Mah represents and celebrate her full life.

There is a little story about Ah Mah that i recall fondly with people who knows her. Allow me to also share this lovely memory with you. Whenever I say this little tale about Ah Mah, i start off telling everyone that grandma is a smart woman and she gets what she wants in the smoothest possible manner you can imagine. She's one slick lady, i grant you that :) 

Due to Ah Mah's condition, she is not allowed to have too much of any type of food and that includes coffee that most of us take for granted. But grandma do love her caffeine drink so. And each time we drink coffee, she will say in Teochew, "So fragrant! What drink are you having?" 

We will tell her its Kopi and she will smile at us, "Oh, that's very nice. Can you drink and leave a little to share with me?" Tendency is we share a 1/4 of a cup with her so she can have enjoy her small request  without causing any unncessary stress on her body.

And I realised she does that to each and everyone of us whenever we have a cup of coffee with us. I caught her asking one of our dhamma friend to share coffee with her after she already had some of mine. I exclaimed, "Ah Mah, you already had some! Hahaha. You are really good! At this rate you are asking, you probably be drinking the equivalent of a full cup of coffee, without anyone the wiser!

So there's Ah Mah with her 小把戲, don't you agree she is one smooth operator? :)

Unfeeling Mr Spock

A quote from Mr Spock - “You mistake my choice not to feel as a reflection of my not caring, while I assure you it was precisely the opposite.”

It sounds very ironic but this is and can be the truth sometimes. There can be stages in life when we choose not to feel, seemingly apart from the people we hold dear most, simply for the only fact that we care too much.

The attachment, the conditional love we invest in, grows to the extent that it overwhelms, magnifying our feelings a thousand fold for every related word and action we come into contact with. It becomes unbearable to feel, so we choose not to feel anymore, shutting out these emotions so it no longer cripple us, allowing ourselves to do what is necessary.

So how can we ever judge a person for not feeling as much as us? Beyond feeling is not a good measure of past caring ... 

Rabbit Hole

I watched Rabbit Hole by Pangdemonium, 2 weeks ago and wanted to write a quick recap to record some of my feelings and thoughts i had. Though i did not do so after the next day or 2, the thought to put it down so was constantly at the back of my mind. Unlike some impulses which sometimes falter and disappear after couple of days, this particular one did not. So, i guess i can't really classify it as an impulse, saying it a wish is probably more appropriate at this junction.

Rabbit Hole is more than just a ordinary theatre production, it did more than just entertain and wow the audience. It felt to me more like a call reaching to all of us who attended, to look inside our deepest memories and reflect on our life journey. The drama mainly revolves around a couple (Howie and Becca), their immediate family, relationships with one other and how they dealt with their own deepest emotions and experiences. There are several emotionally charged scenes in the entire show, 2 of them made a deep impression on me.

One was just right before the intermission. Howie discovered Becca accidentally recorded over a home video of their dead son, Danny. This gave rise to an argument with devastating results as they blamed themselves and each other for the loss of their son, ending up with both breaking down in shouts and tears. The atmosphere became intense and i caught myself with tears welling up, brimming. I was not alone, several members of the audience were sniffling and softly sobbing around me. The guy beside me literally broke down, 2 loud sobs and he dashed out of the theatre. i can only surmised he couldn't hold it back any longer and was considerate enough to leave the audience seats so not to disturb others. 

Why did it affect us so much? All of us lost someone dear to us before and in this particular scene, it reminded us of how we dealt with the loss especially for those who lost someone before their time. It brought back memories when we were at the bottom of that valley, we were not able to see pass our own suffering, we could not see how the other party too is grieving just as much. Because we could not empathise, we blame them for not mourning and not respecting the memories in the manner we deemed right.

The other was in the later half of the show. Becca and her mum, Nat were clearing up Danny's room and as they reminisced and talked about Danny. Becca asked if the loss, if the hurt will ever go away. Nat was silent for a moment and she said it doesnt and after some time, we just learn to live with it and it becomes part of us. So much so that we can almost believe its not there anymore. But when that happens, we reach in and we realise the hurt, the loss are still there. They never went away, it still pains but they changed into something we can live with and no longer cripple us from living and loving any longer. This really struck a chord deep in my heart because i too, believe thats how we cope with our loss, our sadness and pick up our innate capacity to live and love again.

Happy Birthday Qin

The Art of the Brick - Part 2

Here's the rest of the pictures from the exhibition. Its no easy matter trying to capture the essence of themes and messages the artist is attempting to bring across with his / her artwork.

In this exhibition, it is evidently more so. Every piece of these art exhibits was a direct result of months of effort by the artist, built one piece at a time. I cannot even pretend to tell you that i understood fully what he went through and hope to represent the exhibits in these photos. You have to experience them yourself. Meantime, I did my best here and hope you enjoyed these photos!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Art of the Brick - Part 1

Mark, Tracy, Cecilia and i went to The Art of the Brick exhibition held at the Marina Bay Sands ArtScience Museum over the weekend. For more info about the exhibition, you can click on this link - The Art of the Brick

Missing in action was Ryan and Lorine. Seems her foot were aching or hurting and stayed home to nurse it, giving the exhibit a miss. To the 2 of you - if you can find the time, go for it. The showcases are really amazing, its a shame to miss, so try not to :)

Anyways, here are some photos from the first room for sharing, more to come in future posts!

 

 

 

九份山城

你是否會忘情在一個越夜越美麗的九份山城嗎？

 

 

十分車站

十分車站. 你的十分幸福到達了嗎? 

 

猴硐貓村

Traffic Accident

Was involved in a traffic accident making my way home around 1am on 11th Aug and it happened just 2 streets away from home. Home at that point in the time was just another 2 more minutes of drive but we all know accidents tend to happen at the least expected places and time. 

The taxi driver too was pretty much unharmed but i can tell he was really shocked from the incident. After the collision, he asked me what to do. My mind was still recovering from the initial impact so i only remembered telling him to call the police and make a report - on the hindsight, it's a little funny that the taxi driver uncle should ask me what to do. i would have thought he knew better. 

Having said that, i checked myself for any visible injuries. Only seeing none and able to move my limbs around without feeling any pain, i got down from the cab. By this time, Uncle had called the police, turned off his engine and winded down the windows. It was only now that i realised how bad the other vehicle was banged up from the collision..

Below is a picture from STOMP the banged up the car was.

I'm grateful that there were passers-by to help us, offering advice and helping the injured parties onto the pavement, away from the accident site. It shows how people can come together in times of trouble and not all incidents reported in Singapore are ugly. There are always those unsung goodness that don't make it often enough to the news or reports.

The ambulance and police made it to the scene one after the other in around 10 mins. Overheard from the medic that one of the victims might have suffered a fractured collar bone. He was bandaged up and sent to hospital for further treatment. 

Officer took down my particulars and i was informed that the IO will be contacting me in future as i'm a involved party for this accident. After taking some further verbal instructions from both the police and medic, i was good to leave the scene.

Believe it or not, i walked home. I decided that the fresh air will do some good and let me walk my mind off the incident. In all, i'm just grateful that i got away pretty much unscathed and no lives were lost. I hope the other victims are now recovering well.

Sam & Sara

The Daily Enlightenment has recently launched a comic book. Using the Buddhist term Samsara, they have artfully split up the word and created 2 personalities - Sam & Sara. The 2 ventures into modern living and gets into various amusing situations that both you and i will find most familiar.

In the book, there are about 100 strips to read from and you can read them in random as each strip is a little story by itself. I like the way it is being presented - very interactive, down to earth and yet the messages behind them are not lost on the reader. These little adventures drawn comes not only with perceptive wisdom, they are presented with a sense of witty humour that is very appealing to me. Like they said, its "Zenny" and quirky.

I like it very much and most definitely recommend it for both young and old. So, have you got your copy? You can get a copy via this link - Sam & Sara - Get Yours Here

Wicked-ly Good!

It's been years since I last watched a stage production of any sorts, much less to say a musical.

With the rave reviews going on, I couldn't resist going to the musical Wicked before it finally ends its run in Singapore. I admit I was a little skeptical how good can the script or the plot gets when it is a spin off of one my favourite childhood stories, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

Boy, it did not disappoint and i simply fell into the magic of Oz once more. I can say it was definitely more than worth every single dollar I spent.

The cast was magnificent. The leads were pitch perfect. The stage setup was grand and the props were simply a joy to look at. Every element of the show was simply a piece of magical art. You have to be there to see it for yourself, the Emerald magic of Oz.

Beyond the visual treats, the musical also incorporated several values into its storyline. Themes such as standing up for what is right despite all odds, seeing someone beyond their appearances for what they truly are, etc were evident throughout the entire show.

And I also learnt, Wicked is the new Good and Black is the new Pink! :)

Kaki

Here's the full version of the 6 min short film by Roystan Tan that was recently shown on TV. Its by commissioned by the HPB (Health Promotion Board) to promote health screenings, in particular, colorectal cancer checks.

I like the whole setup and the song is fairly catchy (even mistook it for a french song when i first saw the video). All the elements pieced together nicely so i think Roystan Tan pretty much nailed this one. Maybe you will enjoy this 6 min clip Kaki as much as i do

First Precept - the Practice of Kindness

In Buddhism, we often speak of the 5 basic precepts that lay practitioners follow and today i'm putting down a short reflection on the first precept. Before i begin, you may ask what is a precept - precepts are generally regarded as principles that we adhere to that guide our daily thoughts, speech and bodily actions.

What is the first precept? Buddha said the first precept to a spiritual and harmonious life is to avoid killing. It is the practice of non-killing / non-violence, the practice to perfect the art of compassion. All practitioners are strongly encouraged to include all sentient beings and not just limit the practice to human beings in their practice of the first precept of non-violence. 

Why do we practice non-violence? When we reflect and look deeper into ourselves and our surroundings, we will quickly realise and understand that all beings, including ourselves have the innate wish to be well and happy. There is no being who will wish to suffer and remain in a state of unhappiness. This innate wish of non-suffering is one of the common connections that we can identify ourselves with the rest of the sentient beings and develop empathy.

And when we incorporate the practice into our daily life, we first learn and practice not to be violent and harsh with ourselves. We must learn to apply the practice of kindness and love to our own mind and body first. This means first learning to let go of negative thoughts and intentions that arise in our minds. Mind is the forerunner of all speech and actions. Entertain and water similar negative thoughts and it may soon come into realisation and we will find ourselves hurting both in speech and action.

Without learning the ability to take of ourselves, to take care of our own sufferings and to treat ourselves with kindness and compassion, we will not be able to treat our loved ones similarly in the same loving capacity. The ability to love and take care of others especially our loved ones lies basically in our ability to self-love and take care of ourselves.

As we practice and become more skillful in treating ourselves and others with kindness, we will generate lesser sufferings. As sufferings lessen, we will have more opportunities to cultivate and water the seeds of peace, love and compassion within us, more joy and happiness will then naturally arise in our daily living.

In order to become more skillful in our practice, we must temper it with both wisdom and understanding. Only with the right view and right understanding, our best intentions and efforts made towards our practice will not be wasted or generate undesired results. What is this wisdom necessary to ensure our efforts produce the right results? It is known as insight and not just any insight but insights to impermanence, non-self and interdependence.

Without this insight, it is difficult to realise our knowledge into true wisdom. True wisdom is when we learn to transform our knowledge into realisation, apply the knowledge in our daily thoughts, speech and actions. Most of you will agree with me that having knowledge is not sufficient and only upon practical application is the knowledge proven useful and worthy.

Our practice and the results we yield will vary from person to person as we are unique individuals living under unique conditions but most importantly is that we nurture the intentions of kindness and compassion and start on the path of liberation.

May all be well and happy on the path of practice and may the path bear you sweet fruits of love, peace and joy.