Daily Wisdom (4)

There are many afflictive emotions such as conceit, arrogance, jealousy, desire, lust, closed-mindedness, and so on, but of all these, hatred or anger is singled our as the greatest evil. This is done for two reasons. One is that hatred or anger is the greatest stumbling block for a practitioner who is aspiring to enhance his or her altruism and attain a good heart. Second, when hatred or anger are generated they have the capacity to destroy one's virtue and calmness of mind.

Chinese Dinner

Here is the Chinese dinner I prepared for friends tonight.

The Tofu skin with cabage.

Stir fried mushroon king with pork.

Dry stir fried green beans. (from my garden)

stir fried duck eggs and chive. ( all from my own home!)

Hot sour potato!

Bitter melon!

Soysause pork ribtip!

Dry pan fried belt fish!

We had good time eating them with beers!

Daily Wisdom (3)

In the case of the death of a person who has been engaging in non virtuous practice, the consciousness would start dissolving from the upper part of the boy an withdraw within the heart. In the case of a person who has performed virtuous activities, the dissolution of the heat starts from the lower part of the boy an finally withdraws at the heart. In both cases the transference of consciousness would take place at the center.

Daily Wisdom

The advantage of relying on a spiritual teacher is that if you have accumulated an action that would project you into a negative state of existence, the result of that could be experienced just in this life in the form of minor sufferings or minor problems, or even experiencing the result in a dream and through that way one could destroy the destructive result of negative actions.

Daily Wisdom - By his holiness the Dalai Lama

If you get proud and haughty as a result of long study and understanding, it is very unfortunate. If we see pride among people who have no idea about Dharma practice, it is understandable. However, if afflictive emotions and haughtiness are present among Dharma practitioners, it is a great disgrace to the practice.

The 17th Gyalwang Karmapa's Teaching Sessions on Lineage Practices

1 --- ( Four Common Foundations )

Guru: His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje
Sponsor: Taiwan Hwayue Foundation
Date: 12/30/2005 -- 01/03/2006
Place: Vajra Vidya Institute, Varanasi, India
English Translation: Chen Tsao Shin, Chen Li An

Fist of all, we are all gathered here at a very auspicious place, a place where our supreme Teacher, Buddha Sakyamuni, gave his first teaching of Dharma- Saranath.

When Buddha turned the First Wheel of Dharma, there were only five people in the audience. But today, we have hundreds of participants here. We can say that the Blessings of the Great Compassionate Buddha has never declined, rather is has been flourished and been spread widely.

Though the doctrine, which propounded by the Buddha, has been prospered since 2500 years ago. Buddhism has drawn attention from and learned by more people in the 21st century. Not only those who already have faith in the Dharma, but also those who have no religions belief. are attracted by the doctrine of non-violence, and the practice of loving-kindness and compassion taught in the scripture. and gradually give rise to confidence and joyfulness toward dharma.

Why are there more and people practice Buddhism today? It is because the teaching of the Buddha o not only aim to benefit his own disciples, but to incriminately benefit countless sentient beings as well.

In the east many Buddhist traditions are still well preserve today, especially the Mahayana Buddhism tradition from India and the first place it was spread to is China. This is a very auspicious event in history.

(to be continued)

Shangri-LA

Read for a week, I finished the last pageof The lost Horizon this morning. Putting down the book, I am still thinking. Thinking about the mystery Shangri-La, the blue moon valley, thinking about the unbelievable longevity, the preserved youth. Thinking about the secret Buddha lamasery. I am so impressed by the whole book!
Since the book was published in 1930s, everywhere in the world are looking for The Shangri-La! And where is the blue moon valley? where is the Shangri-La? Is it in our mind? in our own heart?

A lady I admire!

A late afternoon, a beautiful accordion music came out from the NICU hallway.

Working in a “pod” for babies, I could not help to peek to see where the music came from: That is Her! My co-worker!

I want to call her the charming lady! Or here, in short, I would refer her as Ms. Charm. She was taking care of a baby girl with poor prognosis. She has been in the NICU since she is born and now she is 4 months old!

Knowing the prognosis, the NICU stuff are trying to give the little girl a fulfilled enjoyable life as long as she lives. There are several primary nurses taking care of her everyday so that she can have a “family” around her all the time. Ms. Charm is one of the “family members“. That day, she took her accordion to the unit and played the music outside of the little girl’s room for her. And on the hallway, lady G. is dancing with the rhythm while she is stocking all the C-lockers in the unit.

What a charming evening in the NICU!

I have only worked here in the NICU for a year, I do not know much about anyone. With the difficulty of the language and the different background, it even make it harder for me to really get involved in the culture. But for my limited observation, I am touched by the compassionated care and the loving, caring hearts the NICU stuff have!

I admire Ms. Charm not only for her love care giving to the babies but also for her self improvement, her truthfulness, her caring characters, her versatility and her confidence.
I remembered when I first met her as a student, she was in a blue hospital scrub dress with a book in her hand. She introduced her self as “New for the NICU” and had the same preceptors as I did and commented that my preceptors are ‘nice team”. Later on, I always seen her has book in hand and have bright smile on face when she talk to people.

She is physically fit and ride her bicycles to work most time. She is fluent in English and Spanish. For her Spanish language improvement, she even took couple months off work and went to Mexico to practice. After she came back, she went on and passed her interpreter examination! She also can speak some Chinese as well!

She is not only a INCU nurse, she is also a lactation consult certified so she really can help the nursing Mom for breast feeding. I appreciate one time she helped me for a nursing Mom and I learned how to help them at the same time from her. It is very important to be able to help the nursing Mon as a NICU nurse. The babies are immature and the mom are mostly young. They both need to learn how to make the breast feeding work.

Recently, Ms. Charm is getting oriented to be the delivery support team member. The book in her hand change to the NRT text book and she is trying to attend every delivery! Even at her dinner break, she would never want to miss any single opportunity to learn. Yesterday, I personally seen how she admitted a new baby. As a new NRT nurse, she was so organized and within two hours, she got everything done! I am so proud of her and I wish someday I can act just like her!

She is the person I really admire, as a nurse, as a co-worker, as a person.

Chinese love story

An incredible love story has come out of China recently and managed to touch the world. It is a story of a man and an older woman who ran off to live and love each other in peace for over half a century.

The 70-year-old Chinese man who hand-carved over 6,000 stairs up a m ountain for his 80-year-old wife has passed away in the cave which has been the couple's home for the last 50 years.Over 50 years ago, Liu Guojiang a 19 year-old boy, fell in love with a 29 year-old widowed mother named Xu Chaoqin..

In a twist worthy of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, friends and relatives criticized the relationship because of the age difference and the fact that Xu already had children.

At that time, it was unacceptable and immoral for a young man to love an older woman.. To avoid the market gossip and the scorn of their communities, the couple decided to elope and lived in a cave in Jiangjin County in Southern ChongQing Municipality.

In the beginning, life was harsh as hey had nothing, no electricity or even food. They had to eat grass and roots they found in the mountain, and Liu made a kerosene lamp that they used to light up their lives. Xu felt that she had tied Liu down and repeatedly asked him, 'Are you regretful? Liu always replied, 'As long as we are industrious, life will improve.'In the second year of living in the mountain, Liu began and contin ued for over 50 years, to hand-carve the steps so that his wife could get down the mountain easily.
Half a century later in 2001, a group of adventurers were exploring the forest and were surprised to find the elderly couple and the over 6,000 hand-carved steps. Liu MingSheng, one of their seven children said, 'My parents loved each other so much, they have lived in seclusion for over 50 years and never been apart a single day. He hand carved more than 6,000 steps over the years for my mother's convenience, although she doesn't go down the mountain that much.'

The couple had lived in peace for over 50 years until last week. Liu, now 72 years, returned from his daily farm work and collapsed. Xu sat and prayed with her husband as he passed away in her arms. So in love with Xu, was Liu, that no one was able to release the grip he had on his wife's hand even after he had passed away.

'You promised me you'll take care of me, you'll always be with me until the day I died, now you left before me, how am I going to live without you?' Xu spent days softly repeating this sentence and touching her husband's black coffin with tears rolling down her cheeks.

In 2006, their story became one of the top 10 love stories from China , collected by the Chinese Women Weekly. The local government has decided to preserve the love ladder and the place they lived as a museum, so this love story can live forever.

Evening at my yard

Ours new bike

Stir-fryed Pork with Garlic whistles

This is a traditional Chinese dish. Using Garlic whistles to make the pork more flavorful.

1) Some pork meat, cut as Julienne.
2) Cut the garlic whistles as short segments and the hot poppers and thin slice.

3) stir-fry the pork meat with onion and ginger in a flat pan.

5) When the pork is about ready, add the garlic whistles and hot poppers.

6) stir-fry them together and add some soy souse.

7) Keep stir-fry.

8) They start to look good!

9) When the garlic whistles are cooked, put them in a plat.

10) Serve with Snow Pea and Cherries, a glass of beer would make it more enjoyable!

Shepherdess

http://www.sygz.dqt.com.cn/yangxudong/gqxs-mygn.mp3

Girl from the other side of the mountain,
whose flock do you lead?
Tears soak your clothing.
Why so sad.

The mountain is desolate.
The grass is scorched.
My master waits and holds a whip.

Girl from the other side of the mountain,
The wind is so cold.
Your clothes are so light.
Go back to village.

The wind may kill me,
But I will stay with my friends.
My master waits and holds a knife.

Rose and me

The Essence of Buddhism

The Essence of Buddhism

Teaching by His Holiness The Seventeenth Karmapa

The essence of the Buddhist teaching is as the following verse states:

Do not commit any evil actions.

Engage in excellent virtue.

And tame your own mind ----

This is the teaching of the Buddha.

The entire Buddhist dharma can be summarize by the instruction to give up harming others and to benefit them. The spiritual friends of the Kadampa tradition taught that the entirety of the Buddhist scriptures as well as the lesser and greater yanas are included in these two. Being a “Buddhist” involves three things - giving up harming others, benefiting them and taming one’s own mind.If you possess these three, you are a Buddhist.A Buddhist, or someone who practices the Buddhist teachings regardless of their particular practice, should never harm others, should benefit other beings wither directly, implicitly or indirectly through their actions; and should not mix their physical and verbal actions with thoughts that disturb the mind, such as non virtue an mental afflictions.
If you can move on the perfect path of taming your mind, are always mindful of guarding your mind and possess the proper ethical discipline to do that, you have properly taken to heart what it means to be a Buddhist.
(Will continue)

An Aspiration For the World

World, we live and die on your lap.
On you we experience all our woes and joys.
You are our ancestral home of old.
Forever we cherish and adore you.

We wish to transform you into the pure realm of our dreams.
We wish to transform you into a land for all creatures.
Equal for all and free of prejudice.
We wish to transform you into a loving, warm and gentle goddess.

Our hope in you is so ever resolute.
So please be the ground on which we all may live
So all these wishes may come true,
So all these wishes may come true.

Do not show us the dark side of your character,
Where nature's calamities reign.

In every section of our world's land
May there thrive a fertile field of peace and joy,
Rich with the leaves and fruits of happiness.
Filled with the many sweet scents of freedom.
May we fulfill our countless and boundless wishes.


Composed in 2005 bu His Holiness Ogyen Drodul Trinley Dorje, the seventeenth Gyahwa Karmapa

Translated under the guidance of The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche by Tyler Dewar
Musical arrangement by Christopher Stagg and Tyler Dewar