Yesterday was Vesak Day where Buddhists worldwide commemorate the day when the historical Sakyamuni Buddha attained his enlightenment more than 2500 years ago and started a work that spans throughout the rest of his living days to spread the message of love, wisdom and compassion.
In addition to visiting temples, offerings and prayers, it is essential to reflect upon the wisdom of Buddha's teachings. These reflections will in turn enable us to imbue our daily activities with a little more wisdom and a little more compassion that will transform our lives into joyful living which will bring about more happiness into the lives of ours and others that we come into contact. This i believe is the surest way to pay homage to the Buddha and his lifetime teachings.
Buddha has taught much and one important aspect of his teachings is to live in the here and now, to be mindful of the present moment. What does it truly mean to be mindful of the present moment? Many mistaken this as a doctrine to indulge ourselves now in this moment without a care for both our past and future. This view and understanding cannot be anymore erroneous from Buddha's true intent.
To be mindful of the present moment indicates the underlying need to embrace our past, understanding that we cannot the exact person we are in this very moment in time unless everything that has transpired before us happened exactly the way it did. Only when we are armed with such right understanding and view, can we find acceptance of our past, people and conditions surrounding us with loving kindness. This opens our minds and hearts to our past actions, both individual and collective, and their karmic effects, providing us with the means to forgive within and without.
When we are mindful of the present moment, we also become aware of our actions and how it will affect our future and their ripples through time, through generations to come. We will realise that when Buddha advised us not to chase the future, things that has yet come to pass, he did not mean for us to ignore our future. On the contrary, he is asking us to be responsible for our own future and generations to come by taking care of the here and now. To live in a sensible and responsible manner instead of wasting our time and efforts on dreaming grandeur illusions that will not materialise in the future unless we make the conscious effort to build the foundations in the present.
Buddha has summed it up most effectively in a single statement, "You are the child of your past, parent of your future, the captain of your own ship." We have steered to this spot today because of our past actions, and unless we can reconcile this understanding with ourselves, we will never be able to see clearly where we are steering towards with our current actions.
Dukkha muccantu, Yattha-laddha-sampattito, Mavigacchantu kammassaka - May all be free from suffering, May all that is gained not be lost, All are owners of their own kamma.
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