Another day, another possibility. We don't know what tomorrow might be. _()_
Ein neuer Tag, wieder eine Möglichkeit. Wir wissen nicht was morgen sein wird. _()_
ថ្ងៃ ថ្មី មួូយ ជា ឳកាស ថ្មី មួយ ទៀត។ យើង មិន អាច ដឹង មុន នូវ អ្វី ដែល នឹង កើតឡើង ថ្ងៃ ស្អែក
"Dhammo have rakkhati dammacāriṁ"
"N'atthi santi param sukham"
I have free ticket if someone needs, because I can not go finally.
DESCRIPTION
All Ceylon Buddhist Congress together with SuttaCentral are delighted to invite you to celebrate the launch of SuttaCentral.net in Sri Lanka.
"VISHWA SHANTHI SUTRA"
SuttaCentral.net is an international website containing Early Buddhist texts, translations, and parallels in forty langauges including Sinhala.
The wisdom of the Buddha has been preserved in a vast ocean of ancient texts. Many of these scriptures have now been translated into the world’s languages.
SuttaCentral brings these together and makes them freely available. Setting aside the boundaries of language and tradition, we let the Buddha speak for himself.
The programme line up for VISHWA SHANTHI SUTRA include:
Seth pirith chanting by maha sangha and guided meditation followed by a dhamma desana by Ajahn Sujato.
ALL WELCOME
Please be seated by 2.30 PMto help us start on time.
Kauai Update
by Bhikkhu Subhuti
Kauai Update April 22
Aloha!
I have been in Kauai since April 9th. It has been a rough start but things are getting better everyday. If you have paid attention to the news, you may have noticed an unheard of 30" of rain in 24 hours. Actually, there were several days of incredible amounts of rain, but only the third day broke the records. See https:www.washingtonpost.com
I was in a tent in Anini Park during that time and I am still in Anini Park. I am a little more dry now. On the record breaking day, I took a nap after my meal and when I woke up, I felt the floor and it was like a water bed. Luckily, I had a Thermarest that someone let me borrow. It became like a raft. When I looked outside my tent, there was water surrounding it. My tent was caved in because the wind ripped some of the straps to hold it down. We all moved to a higher point and away from the wind. By then, the worst had come.
Now things are drying out and I am trying to find a schedule. I am not doing a daily house by house pindapatta like before because I need to find reliable food. However, I do need to leave the park almost everyday and there is interaction with the locals multiple times per day. I love that part. Most people are curious and nice to me. I often give a blessing to those who donate food or rides and explain how it works and what the meaning is.
They help me sustain ky life, maintain a physical appearance, be happy, and sustain my energy levels. These things will come back to them through cause and effect. My job is to bring awareness to this fact and remind them. My belssing is really nothing more than that.
I am well taken care of by the universe. One day, I wanted to go to the Thai restaurant in Kapaa but when I ask a coffee shop owner where the new location was she told me they were closed for the next two weeks. It was a let down and I did not know how I would eat that day. That restaurant fed me in 2015 and it was a sure thibg. Now they were closed. About 30 seconds after hearing about the closure, a lady asked me if she could offer me some food. So far, I have been taken care of.
Tomorrow, I think I will press my luck by going for alms inside the park exclusively. The major food pantry was today and everybody is "rich" in food.
Most people inside the park are very poor. The KEO homeless outreach van stops by here on every Monday too. Hawaii has a huge homeless problem because housing is too expensive and it is easier to be homeless in Hawaii compared with New York.
I knew some of this before coming here, but I did hope that a stable living situation would have been arranged like last time. Anini Beach Park would be a backup if a place was not found. That backup plan is in effect now.
It is not so bad though. I get to sleep by the ocean, and my tent is only 40 feet from shore. There seems to be a nice group of people here too.
I have a bus card and can travel throughout the island. Everyday, there seems to be many questions thrown at me. Usually they are all of the same questions like "Are you a monk?". Then it continues from there. When I tell them that I have not touched money in 17 years, a profound "Wow" comes out if their mouths. It is always the same word, "Wow.". Then I tell them more rules and what I did before as a layperson and more "wows" cone out.
It has been fun, but it is not very stable nor easy. Day to day, I just don't know what I will do for food. However, I have not gone hungry and have been fed well so far.
Some things related to vinaya (monk rules) and the Suttas cone out by living in the park. First, the monks have often lived in the King's parks. Since this is a government owned park, it is almost the same. Second, monks oftsb have to worry about getting their bowl and robes stolen. I often travel with my bowl and 3 robes, and almost everything I have. It is a rule for monks to do this if you cannot lock your door. It is an interesting experience, but not something for all monks. Life is difficult, and monks are quite spoiled in Asia with "sure thing" food and lodging. Never the less, I look forward to the day when I can be spoiled again with a stable lodging and stable food too. Perhaps that will be on Kauai.
I have a one way ticket and I am alone this time. I have the flexibility to stay if things work out. We will see how things fly over the next few months.
Aloha!
The Lord Buddha taught that his Dhamma, when placed in the heart of an ordinary run-of-the-mill person, is bound to be thoroughly corrupted, but if placed in the heart of a Noble One, it is bound to be genuinely pure & authentic, something that at the same time can be neither effaced nor obscured.
So as long as we are devoting ourselves merely to the theoretical study of the Dhamma, it can't serve us well. Only when we have trained our hearts to eliminate their 'chameleons' — their defilements — will it benefit us in full measure. And only then will the true Dhamma be kept pure, free from distortions & deviations from its original principles.
— Phra Ajān Mun Bhūridatto
