My mind has now attained
The Unconditioned Nirvana
And reached the end of all Cravings
The Buddha
On the day of Enlightenment
Have we reached what we want to get in life? Yes, we may have only to find that we need to go for more. That will be frustrating. But does it mean we go for nothing instead? How then do we live?
To stop craving is not to stop living for that will not be what the Buddha did. He lived but he did not let wanting control his life. He was at peace with life. He neither denied or gave up life nor did he go for more and more.
It is pertinent to dwell into the happiness in life that has bearing on Vesak. There are four kinds of happiness one can get in life and enlightenment is the ultimate or fourth when one ceases wanting, or at least try to minimise craving.
Health is one of them. We moderate how we live and eat. Eating is poised as a necessity and not a desire (wanting).
We also moderate physical activity so that we do not over exert and wear out the body and do not stay idle so that we are lifeless and have no energy for life.
By doing these two, we have health. Health, the Buddha said, is the highest gain.
The second happiness is contentment. Contentment is the greatest of wealth. A man may be poor but if he is contented with what he has he is happy. It is as simple as that. It comes from not denying or rejecting life and not wanting more than we can have in life for now.
It comes from being logical and pragmatic. We do not suffer from what we want, that is, we do not crave. Craving is when we suffer or are in pain from what we want.
Live within means. Go for what we can earn or get at comfortable pace of life. Do not live life like a race - the rat race they say. Be peaceful. Go for the workable and sustainable in the long term.
But do not be lazy and be good for nothing by doing nothing in life. That will be destroying life, not loving life and a mistake.
Just go for an easy livelihood - right living that is. This is the in-between - neither having no livelihood or job means nor over working to the bone and limit.
Consider our abilities, capabilities of our health and life situations and do the doable and that can be sustained. The process or means must be as pleasant as the ends or gains.
If the ends or gains are not worth it, then reappraise strategy in life. No point being wealthy and yet suffering from the wealth because one needs to have more and more to be in that position. Do not overstretch oneself. That would be untenable for the long haul.
The third happiness is simply to be self confident. Be self-reliant and be confident. Do not depend on others all the time or more than necessary, otherwise we may suffer if they fail to be of help to us.
Self confidence is the best friend or kin. This is the third happiness from cultivating the peaceful and less wanting way of life.
The ultimate happiness is from having the good habit or way of life by living more and craving less. Then we truly have the divine bliss of enlightenment when we are no longer burdened at all by desires or cravings - and able to live light and right.
That will be the day. We are then no longer conditioned and controlled by life - the cravings or desires in life. We live for life and not life live for us by having more with less and not less with more.
Then we are near to bliss of life by being far from wants and the mores of life. The far may be near and the near far. Lord Bo Tien did say this.
By being far from wants and the mores in life, we are near to more life and the bliss of peace of life.
By being near to wants and the mores in life, we end up having less of life - far from more life and the bliss of peace in life.
True peace or joy of life is the greatest bliss or happiness. This comes with no craving - the wanting that makes us suffer and yet have wanting that makes life work and bring on peace. This will lead to buddhahood.
There is neither the wanting that brings pain nor the not wanting at all that destroys or denies life. It is the balance of this two polar opposites. There is the wholesome wanting to have the peace - the ultimate is nirvana - the essence of the joy of Vesak.
Even before this is attained, there are the other three happiness of health, contentment and self confidence preceding spiritual bliss.
The Buddha delivered us the best joy and gift in life. It is the gift of truth summarized in this stanza which aptly summarises Vesak Joy for the last 2558 years and way beyond 2558 years since His enlightenment as the fully enlightened one.
Health is the highest gain
Contentment the greatest wealth
Self confidence is the best kin
Enlightened life is the best bliss
Vesak joy comes from being uplifted and enlightened by what Buddha taught. It should be like the old days when one chance meeting with the Buddha and just a stanza from the Buddha can bring light to the reader or listener. This is still true today if men are insightful and there is insight after knowing just a stanza from the Buddha. Just a stanza will do.
But the distractions of the modern world seem to deny men from being lighted up in life despite reading tons of literature on the teachings of the Buddha. In the old days, it is by word of mouth - the oral tradition, they say.
Nowadays we have printed literature and the internet. But yet there is no quick insight and awakening because the basic truth eludes grasp of men because it is buried away by layers of literature added on year upon year.
We need to dig into institutionalized religion like archaeologists to decipher the very basic and only the very basic will do. This the good lord Lord Bo Tien refers to as the inner truth. Such a basic can be found in any faith.
Below is an example from the Bible. The emphasis is to go back to nature and the basics and not be lost by wants and mores of life and to have green pastures and stay away from stormy life of wants and live beside the quiet waters of life with less wants and more life.
The Lord is my shepherd.
I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down
in green pastures
He leads me beside
quiet waters
Psalms 23: 1 - 2
Vesak joy of enlightened way of life so as to have more peace with less wants is beyond confines of a religion and is for all beings not just men. It is for all men regardless of religions. The truth the Buddha shared is for all and can be realized by men of all religions and will hopefully improve the clarity, understanding and grasp of their respective religions.
Indeed, it is a joy of truth of life that will be there for all beings beyond 2558 years. The truth of life was there even before Gotama became the historical Buddha. It is not the purview of religion.
It has to do with true peace in life that transcends the egos and wants. It transcends the ego boundaries of men and as such must transcend religion as institution but can be facilitated by religions and secular society which serve to draw men to search for peace and meaning of life.
The peace of life that culminates in nirvana - enlightened life is what beings and men must have. Call this Vesak joy or what have you matters not as a rose by any name is just as sweet.
The joy of Vesak can be with any one who follows his heart and not be constrained by the norms set by men in the name of religion. What matters is what goes through the heart and not what one does or what goes through the gut.
This is said by none other than Ji Gong the Living Buddha who was asked to leave the monastery for not conforming to norms. He ate meat and drank wine but succeeded where the other monks who toed the rules more to please men failed.
It is not in worshiping or idolizing a Buddha or saint or in putting up a show of conforming that makes one pure and have the joy of enlightened life. But it is in putting the heart into what counts that matters. It is the purity of the spirit - purity from the heart that brings peace that is the same joy of the Buddha Gotama on the very first Vesak Day when he eradicated cravings.
But the distractions of the modern world seem to deny men from being lighted up in life despite reading tons of literature on the teachings of the Buddha. In the old days, it is by word of mouth - the oral tradition, they say.
Nowadays we have printed literature and the internet. But yet there is no quick insight and awakening because the basic truth eludes grasp of men because it is buried away by layers of literature added on year upon year.
We need to dig into institutionalized religion like archaeologists to decipher the very basic and only the very basic will do. This the good lord Lord Bo Tien refers to as the inner truth. Such a basic can be found in any faith.
Below is an example from the Bible. The emphasis is to go back to nature and the basics and not be lost by wants and mores of life and to have green pastures and stay away from stormy life of wants and live beside the quiet waters of life with less wants and more life.
The Lord is my shepherd.
I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down
in green pastures
He leads me beside
quiet waters
Psalms 23: 1 - 2
Vesak joy of enlightened way of life so as to have more peace with less wants is beyond confines of a religion and is for all beings not just men. It is for all men regardless of religions. The truth the Buddha shared is for all and can be realized by men of all religions and will hopefully improve the clarity, understanding and grasp of their respective religions.
Indeed, it is a joy of truth of life that will be there for all beings beyond 2558 years. The truth of life was there even before Gotama became the historical Buddha. It is not the purview of religion.
It has to do with true peace in life that transcends the egos and wants. It transcends the ego boundaries of men and as such must transcend religion as institution but can be facilitated by religions and secular society which serve to draw men to search for peace and meaning of life.
The peace of life that culminates in nirvana - enlightened life is what beings and men must have. Call this Vesak joy or what have you matters not as a rose by any name is just as sweet.
The joy of Vesak can be with any one who follows his heart and not be constrained by the norms set by men in the name of religion. What matters is what goes through the heart and not what one does or what goes through the gut.
This is said by none other than Ji Gong the Living Buddha who was asked to leave the monastery for not conforming to norms. He ate meat and drank wine but succeeded where the other monks who toed the rules more to please men failed.
 |
| Ji Gong never a 'monk' but a living buddha. His beggar rags was his robe but a buddha no less. He is more than worthy of mention on Vesak Day for one who never made it in a temple as monk - defrocked and not given robes or markings of monks, a fate no better than being criminalized on the cross but he became no less a buddha Ji Gong Huo Fo. He was pure at heart despite drinking and merry making, dancing and prancing with children and monkeys but always right neither indulgent nor denying life going for some token comforts to sustain purity of heart in life never acting holy wholly and acting the part though he is one Can we be like him if not a little then even just a wee bit will do. Then peace in life with vesak joy we have day on day That would be nice and wholesome, won't it be so? |
It is not in worshiping or idolizing a Buddha or saint or in putting up a show of conforming that makes one pure and have the joy of enlightened life. But it is in putting the heart into what counts that matters. It is the purity of the spirit - purity from the heart that brings peace that is the same joy of the Buddha Gotama on the very first Vesak Day when he eradicated cravings.
