A farmer planted some Chinese bamboo seeds. For one whole year, he watered them and fertilized them.
Nothing happened.
The farmer’s wife said, “Why don’t you plant something else and stop wasting your time with this nonsense?”
The farmer just smiled at her and said, “Just wait.”
The next year, the farmer faithfully watered and fertilized the seeds.
Nothing happened.
His wife became very exasperated with him and insisted he plant onions or some crop that would bring them some quick cash.
The farmer just smiled and said, “Just wait.”
The third year came and went with the farmer patiently watering and fertilizing the bamboo seeds. By this time, his wife was quite upset and in her frustration, went and planted her own garden.
The fourth year came and went. By this time, the wife thought her husband was completely crazy. After all, HER garden had earned them a good living!
The fifth year came. Still, the farmer steadfastly refused to plant anything else. He patiently watered and fertilized his bamboo seeds.
Suddenly, during the fifth year, the bamboo sprouted. The Chinese bamboo tree seed lies dormant for five years before sprouting.
It grew ninety feet in just six weeks, and quickly overtook the whole garden!
The farmer harvested the bamboo and made a huge profit.
========
It can be very discouraging when it appears we’re doing everything right and nothing is happening. But if you keep on going, things WILL happen and you’ll start seeing the rewards of your efforts.
If you want great results 5 years from now, plant those seeds now. Water them with positive thoughts and fertilize them with loving feelings.
Every day, and I do mean every day, think about what you want your life to look like in 5 years. Even if you can’t quite fill in the details yet, if you just spend 5 or 10 minutes daydreaming about your life, your mind will create a mental image that becomes richer and more detailed every time. This will bring some incredible solutions to your awareness and if you act on that information, you’ll make great progress.
Even if it seems like progress is nonexistent, keep going. Keep your mind’s eye focused on the goal. Patience and persistence will yield great rewards!
And when it comes to the changes within you that come from meditation… there’s a lot going on under the surface that you may not be aware of at all, and you may be tempted to think that meditation is not working. It is! The seed has to be ready to sprout, and the timing cannot be rushed. When meditation has done its work by nurturing you, then your own amazing potential will sprout!
Monday, November 17, 2014
Friday, September 5, 2014
Machiavelli, Villian or hero? Part II
When I was at Princeton University in 1971, I had lunch conversation with a political major student. She said that 'politics' as well as 'political major' bear the baggage of 'bad reputation'. The more the history 'verifies' the prediction of The Prince , the worse the reputation for 'politics' and 'political science'. Politics in history has been considered as heartless, ruthless, cunning and dirty; no individual with dignity would like to be involved in politics.
The fact that Machiavelli was regarded as the father of the political science does not help improve images of politics and political science.
Does politics and political science has to be the way Machiavelli described, ruthless, cruelty, etc.?
How much trust we shall give historians or scholars who had elevated Machiavelli to the status of 'Father of the Political Science'. ? Can't we be so sure that historians and scholars are non-biased?
Growing up in Taiwan, I know first-hand that history can be so biased to favor the oppressor side. Chiang Kai-Sheik and his Chinese troops colonized Taiwan in 1945. The history I read was all about the glory of Chinese territory expansion; not a single word mentioning how many Tibetan and Muslim minority were killed in Tibet and in Xing-Jiang (新疆).
It needs to be recognized that history was written by people with social privilege and status and has never been written by the under-privilege populace. Those socially-biased 'historians' can always find justifications for the over-advantageous individual, can honor their hero such Machiavelli as the 'father' of political science, and can defend Machiavelli's statue by citing numerous examples including Hitler (1989-1945) Stalin ( 1878-1953) Mao Zedong (1893-1976) and Chiang Kai-Sheik (1887-1975) as these leaders all fit into the descriptions of The Prince.
One can say that if politics is for exploitation of a few against a populace, then political leaders can be ruthless against their opponent, can be deceitful to the populace, and can justify the means with their final goal of exploitation. The results of such exploitation were the misery of populace, stories of such misery were captured in numerous famous literature, including Victor Huggo's 'Les Miserables'.
Great political leaders do not have to be characters portrayed by Machiavelli. Abraham Lincoln was a typical example. Not only Lincoln had political skills to lead America in such a turmoil time, his personal and political moral or ethics are consistent, not what Machiavelli had preached that political and personal ethics are separate entity.
Machiavelli said that the prince must have troops to carry out his policy. That is true for colonial powers and for authoritarians. However, this is not true for spiritual political leaders such as Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948) and Martin Luther King (1929-1968) Jr. Both of them changed the history. None of this two spiritual political leaders have troops to back them up. To be continued.
The fact that Machiavelli was regarded as the father of the political science does not help improve images of politics and political science.
Does politics and political science has to be the way Machiavelli described, ruthless, cruelty, etc.?
How much trust we shall give historians or scholars who had elevated Machiavelli to the status of 'Father of the Political Science'. ? Can't we be so sure that historians and scholars are non-biased?
Growing up in Taiwan, I know first-hand that history can be so biased to favor the oppressor side. Chiang Kai-Sheik and his Chinese troops colonized Taiwan in 1945. The history I read was all about the glory of Chinese territory expansion; not a single word mentioning how many Tibetan and Muslim minority were killed in Tibet and in Xing-Jiang (新疆).
It needs to be recognized that history was written by people with social privilege and status and has never been written by the under-privilege populace. Those socially-biased 'historians' can always find justifications for the over-advantageous individual, can honor their hero such Machiavelli as the 'father' of political science, and can defend Machiavelli's statue by citing numerous examples including Hitler (1989-1945) Stalin ( 1878-1953) Mao Zedong (1893-1976) and Chiang Kai-Sheik (1887-1975) as these leaders all fit into the descriptions of The Prince.
One can say that if politics is for exploitation of a few against a populace, then political leaders can be ruthless against their opponent, can be deceitful to the populace, and can justify the means with their final goal of exploitation. The results of such exploitation were the misery of populace, stories of such misery were captured in numerous famous literature, including Victor Huggo's 'Les Miserables'.
Great political leaders do not have to be characters portrayed by Machiavelli. Abraham Lincoln was a typical example. Not only Lincoln had political skills to lead America in such a turmoil time, his personal and political moral or ethics are consistent, not what Machiavelli had preached that political and personal ethics are separate entity.
Machiavelli said that the prince must have troops to carry out his policy. That is true for colonial powers and for authoritarians. However, this is not true for spiritual political leaders such as Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948) and Martin Luther King (1929-1968) Jr. Both of them changed the history. None of this two spiritual political leaders have troops to back them up. To be continued.
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Machiavelli, villain or hero? -Part 1
Machiavellian, according to the dictionary, is being or acting in accordance with the principles of government analyzed in Machiavelli's The Prince, in which political expediency is placed above morality and the use of craft and deceit to maintain the authority and carry out the policies of a ruler is described. Yet, the writer of The Prince, was a historian, a writer, an independent thinker, and was considered to be the father of the political science. When he died in 1527, he was buried with honor at the Santa Croce Chapel (Florence) along side with Brunelleschi (the architect who built the dome), Michelangelo (the artist who sculpted David), Botticelli (the artist who painted the birth of Venus), Galileo (the astronomer who said the earth moved around the sun, not the other way around), and Dante (who wrote The Divine Comedy).
Machiavelli was born in Florence in 1469. In 1478 when Machiavelli was 9 years old, he witnessed the political violence, or the so-called Pazzi Conspiracy in which one of the de Medici brothers was killed while the other escaped the assassination attempt. He served as Sodeeini's Secretary (equivalent to today's Secretary of State) from 1498 to 1512. When de Medici regained power in 1512, he was tortured by de Medici. After Machiavelli survived the torture, he wrote the (either famous or notorious) book, "The Prince" in 1513.
The book, The Prince , was dedicated to the magnificent Lorenzo de Medici, to whom Machiavelli considered as a hero even he was tortured by Lorenzo de Medici in 1512.
The Pazzi Conspiracy was an assassination attempt on the de Medici family by the Pazzi family (political rival) who had allied with the Pope in 1478; the time when Machiavelli was only 9 years old. During the attack, Giordano de Medici sought asylum in a church unaware of the alliance between the church and the Pazzi. He was found and was executed at the church. Lorento de Medici, on the other hand, used a different tactics to escape the assassination. He took off his official robe, and disguised as an ordinary peasant, disappeared in a crowd. After he survived the assassination and returned to take revenge on the Pazzi family, the cruelty the Lorento took on his former enemy was far beyond anyone could have imagined. Lorento took no prisoner on his former enemy, not even small children or baby. Machiavelli took notes on this cruelty as part of the traits of 'The Prince'. " Men ought to be indulged or utterly destroyed for if you merely offend them, they take vengeance. But if you injured them greatly, they are unable to retaliate, so that the injury done to a man ought to be such that vengeance not to be feared." said Machivalli in his book, The Prince. In other words, cruelty was sanctioned by Machiavelli as the golden principle of the government. Machiavelli adored Lorento de Medici, for Lorento was cunning as a fox, and fiercely forceful and as a lion. According to The Prince, these are the traits a political leader must have. 'A political leader, if he cannot be loved and feared at the same time, the leader must be feared.' However, being feared is different from being hated. A leader must not steal property from populace, must not do violence against women. There is no need for generosity as the leader. 'It is too costly of being generous; besides, at the end, the leader must raise taxes to meet his financial need; to which people would hate.' There is no need for a political leader to keep promise, but he must appear to be honest. 'The Prince is never lack of legislative reasons to break his words.' The 'end' justifies the 'means'. Political expediency that includes deceitful tactics will always work because the populace that you govern are forgetful and complacent; they would end up support you if you satisfy their immediate needs. In this discourse, Machiavelli differed from Aristotle (384-322 BC) and Cicero (106-43). In Aristotle's view, politics is something 'ought to be', while in Machiavelli's view, politics is 'what is'. In Cicero's view, 'public and private moral (ethics) are the same', while in Machiavelli's view, politics has no relation to moral (ethics). --To be continued.
Saturday, August 16, 2014
Maki
With the Internet inundating with health information, it is very hard to tell which one is correct; which one is not. For incorrect information, we not only wasted our money, we might set ourselves in a dangerous path. The following story may be an exaggeration; however, most of us are eagerly sold by the snake oil salesman. Enjoy the story:
Once upon a time, there lived a poor family, with a peasant, and his wife, and his son, Maki. No matter how hard they worked on the field, they could never get rid of debt they had with their landlord. In fact, their debt grew every year, until when they would pawn everything they owned; and nothing left for themselves. Their landlord was heartless, and non-merciful. The landlord visited them often, and if he found out the peasant cannot pay the rent, the landlord would took away a bag of rice. That night, the whole family would go to sleep, hungry.
Such harsh living conditions killed both the spirit and the body fresh. In fact, within 5 years, Maki's dad and mom died. Maki had finally grew up, he vowed that he would refuse to live under such a miserable condition. "Things have to be changed." he said.
The harvest time finally came. It was corn this year. Maki divided his corn into 2 piles. One pile, he sold for 2 foxes. The other pile, he sold for a dozen of chickens.
Of the 2 foxes, he hid one in the ceiling; the other, he put a leash on the fox's neck. Everyday, he would walk with his fox in the village. Such a strange behavior, of course, attracted attention.
One day, the landlord stopped Maki and asked MaKi why he walked with fox everyday.
"Now, you are asking me to reveal my deepest secret to you. This fox is actually trained to 'steal chickens'. With this fox besides me, I am no longer worry about being hungry. "
Maki strode the fox's head, then released the leash.
"Go to get some chickens for me". Maki commanded to the fox.
Then Maki turned to the landlord.
"Come to my house, and see the chicken yourself."
The landlord visited Maki's hut. Surely, he saw a dozen of chickens in Maki's hut. Maki even invited the landlord for the chicken dinner. Over the dinner table, the landlord offered to buy the fox for 200 silvers.
"Oh, no, no. I won't sell the fox to anyone. However, if you insists, I would sell you for 400 silvers."
" You are such a hard bargainer. All right, I will buy the fox for 400 silvers". The landlord said.
Maki gave the landlord the fox he hid on the ceiling.
When the landlord took the fox home, he strode on the fox's head , released the fox and commanded the fox to steal chickens for the landlord. The landlord's wife sneered at him.
As soon as the fox was released, the fox dashed into the wood and disappeared. Meanwhile, the landlord was waiting for the fox to bring back chickens; the days turned week and weeks turned months. The fox never came back.
"Maki fooled me. He should be punish." The landlord was very, very angry.
The landlord's 'son-in-law' was a sheriff. The sheriff spent no time in arresting Maki, stripping him all clothes except the underwear. He tied him to a 'milestone' which is nothing but like a post secured to a very heavy weight. The sheriff and the landlord wanted Maki frozen to death in the bitterly cold winter night.
While he was tied to the 'milestone', Maki worked out pretty hard trying to lift up the milestone with both leg and back muscles. Instead of being frozen to death, Maki was actually perspiring. So, when the landlord and the sheriff saw that, there were shocked and puzzled.
"Nothing to be shocked, for I have a secret treasure. Look at this undershirt, this is no common shirt. The shirt makes me cool during the hot summer day and makes me warm during the cold winter night such as last night." said, Maki.
" Oh, let me have it. I will set you free plus 400 silvers". said the landlord.
"The shirt is not for sale for less than 600 silvers", said Maki.
"Oh, you are such a hard bargainer". complained the landlord.
The landlord set Maki free, giving Maki 600 silvers for Maki's undershirt. That night, he put on Maki's undershirt walking in the village with bitterly cold wind. Even less than 5 minutes, he was shivering while his wife and the people in the village sneered at him.
"That bastard. This time, I will certainly kill you." the landlord said.
Next morning, the sheriff arrested Maki. The sheriff tied Maki up, covering Maki with a big gunny sack, then tied the bag to a tree just overhanging a sea. The plan was to cut the tree branch, so that Maki with the sack would drop into the sea; Maki would certainly die of drowning. It was about lunch time. The sheriff told the landlord that he would 'finish' Maki after lunch.
Meanwhile over the lunch break, the landlord's father-in-law came to visit. Inside the gunny sack, Maki could see an old fellow with severe hunchback came, while no one outside could see Maki inside.
" I am just having the cure for my hunchback inside the sack. It does really work.", said Maki.
" Oh, really? I am just searching for a cure for my hunchback. Can I try your cure?" said the old fellow.
" I am not really sure about that. You know, I paid 100 silvers per hour for this cure", said Maki.
"I will pay you 300 silvers for the sack." beg the old fellow.
"All right, but hurry before I change my mind." said Maki.
The old fellow untied Maki, and released Maki from the sack. Maki tied the old fellow up; covering the old fellow with the sack, and tied the sack over to a branch over the sea.
Now, the lunch-break was over; the sheriff and the landlord came back to cut the branch and to send the sack with its victim to the sea. The old fellow cried out, "Don't do it, for I am your father-in-law". But the old fellow was so feeble that his voice was hardly heard.
The sheriff and the landlord cut the branch sending the sack with his father-in-law into the sea.
"That bastard is finally finished", said the landlord in satisfaction.
A month later, when the landlord saw Maki tending a dozen of geese, the landlord was shocked.
"Aren't you dead? Who are you?". asked the landlord
"Hi, Mr. Landlord. I did tumbled into the sea, where I saw the Dragon King. He liked me very much that he gave me many treasure, and married me to a beautiful mermaid. He wanted me to succeed his throne. But I love the Earth and the village very much that I ask for his permission to live on the Earth. The Dragon King reluctantly agreed. Here, I am." answered Maki.
Green with envy, the landlord said,
" Could you bring me to the dragon king? I will give you 1000 silvers."
" 1000 silvers? You must be joking? The dragon king wanted me to succeed his throne; I declined. Why do I need your 1000 silvers?" , said Maki.
"Sorry, I mis-spoke. But, is it possible for you to bring me to see the Dragon King?", asked the landlord.
Maki thought a while then said,
"All right, but you must keep the whole thing secret."
"Absolutely." said the landlord.
" Prepare me a wooden barrel and an iron block; set yourself with an earth-ware vat." said Maki.
By the time when the landlord got all the barrel, earth-ware vat, and iron bar ready, both Maki and the landlord set to the sea. After a while when they both were in the middle of the sea, the landlord grew impatient.
"When shall we knock the door of the sea palace?" asked the landlord.
"Now, we can do it."
" Your majesty, Dragon king. This is Your honest and righteous Maki. Please open the door of the sea palace for us." shouted Maki 3 times.
Then Maki knocked on his barrel 3 times; and used full strength knocked on the earth-ware vat. The vat shattered into pieces, and the landlord sank to the bottom of the sea.
Once upon a time, there lived a poor family, with a peasant, and his wife, and his son, Maki. No matter how hard they worked on the field, they could never get rid of debt they had with their landlord. In fact, their debt grew every year, until when they would pawn everything they owned; and nothing left for themselves. Their landlord was heartless, and non-merciful. The landlord visited them often, and if he found out the peasant cannot pay the rent, the landlord would took away a bag of rice. That night, the whole family would go to sleep, hungry.
Such harsh living conditions killed both the spirit and the body fresh. In fact, within 5 years, Maki's dad and mom died. Maki had finally grew up, he vowed that he would refuse to live under such a miserable condition. "Things have to be changed." he said.
The harvest time finally came. It was corn this year. Maki divided his corn into 2 piles. One pile, he sold for 2 foxes. The other pile, he sold for a dozen of chickens.
Of the 2 foxes, he hid one in the ceiling; the other, he put a leash on the fox's neck. Everyday, he would walk with his fox in the village. Such a strange behavior, of course, attracted attention.
One day, the landlord stopped Maki and asked MaKi why he walked with fox everyday.
"Now, you are asking me to reveal my deepest secret to you. This fox is actually trained to 'steal chickens'. With this fox besides me, I am no longer worry about being hungry. "
Maki strode the fox's head, then released the leash.
"Go to get some chickens for me". Maki commanded to the fox.
Then Maki turned to the landlord.
"Come to my house, and see the chicken yourself."
The landlord visited Maki's hut. Surely, he saw a dozen of chickens in Maki's hut. Maki even invited the landlord for the chicken dinner. Over the dinner table, the landlord offered to buy the fox for 200 silvers.
"Oh, no, no. I won't sell the fox to anyone. However, if you insists, I would sell you for 400 silvers."
" You are such a hard bargainer. All right, I will buy the fox for 400 silvers". The landlord said.
Maki gave the landlord the fox he hid on the ceiling.
When the landlord took the fox home, he strode on the fox's head , released the fox and commanded the fox to steal chickens for the landlord. The landlord's wife sneered at him.
As soon as the fox was released, the fox dashed into the wood and disappeared. Meanwhile, the landlord was waiting for the fox to bring back chickens; the days turned week and weeks turned months. The fox never came back.
"Maki fooled me. He should be punish." The landlord was very, very angry.
The landlord's 'son-in-law' was a sheriff. The sheriff spent no time in arresting Maki, stripping him all clothes except the underwear. He tied him to a 'milestone' which is nothing but like a post secured to a very heavy weight. The sheriff and the landlord wanted Maki frozen to death in the bitterly cold winter night.
While he was tied to the 'milestone', Maki worked out pretty hard trying to lift up the milestone with both leg and back muscles. Instead of being frozen to death, Maki was actually perspiring. So, when the landlord and the sheriff saw that, there were shocked and puzzled.
"Nothing to be shocked, for I have a secret treasure. Look at this undershirt, this is no common shirt. The shirt makes me cool during the hot summer day and makes me warm during the cold winter night such as last night." said, Maki.
" Oh, let me have it. I will set you free plus 400 silvers". said the landlord.
"The shirt is not for sale for less than 600 silvers", said Maki.
"Oh, you are such a hard bargainer". complained the landlord.
The landlord set Maki free, giving Maki 600 silvers for Maki's undershirt. That night, he put on Maki's undershirt walking in the village with bitterly cold wind. Even less than 5 minutes, he was shivering while his wife and the people in the village sneered at him.
"That bastard. This time, I will certainly kill you." the landlord said.
Next morning, the sheriff arrested Maki. The sheriff tied Maki up, covering Maki with a big gunny sack, then tied the bag to a tree just overhanging a sea. The plan was to cut the tree branch, so that Maki with the sack would drop into the sea; Maki would certainly die of drowning. It was about lunch time. The sheriff told the landlord that he would 'finish' Maki after lunch.
Meanwhile over the lunch break, the landlord's father-in-law came to visit. Inside the gunny sack, Maki could see an old fellow with severe hunchback came, while no one outside could see Maki inside.
" I am just having the cure for my hunchback inside the sack. It does really work.", said Maki.
" Oh, really? I am just searching for a cure for my hunchback. Can I try your cure?" said the old fellow.
" I am not really sure about that. You know, I paid 100 silvers per hour for this cure", said Maki.
"I will pay you 300 silvers for the sack." beg the old fellow.
"All right, but hurry before I change my mind." said Maki.
The old fellow untied Maki, and released Maki from the sack. Maki tied the old fellow up; covering the old fellow with the sack, and tied the sack over to a branch over the sea.
Now, the lunch-break was over; the sheriff and the landlord came back to cut the branch and to send the sack with its victim to the sea. The old fellow cried out, "Don't do it, for I am your father-in-law". But the old fellow was so feeble that his voice was hardly heard.
The sheriff and the landlord cut the branch sending the sack with his father-in-law into the sea.
"That bastard is finally finished", said the landlord in satisfaction.
A month later, when the landlord saw Maki tending a dozen of geese, the landlord was shocked.
"Aren't you dead? Who are you?". asked the landlord
"Hi, Mr. Landlord. I did tumbled into the sea, where I saw the Dragon King. He liked me very much that he gave me many treasure, and married me to a beautiful mermaid. He wanted me to succeed his throne. But I love the Earth and the village very much that I ask for his permission to live on the Earth. The Dragon King reluctantly agreed. Here, I am." answered Maki.
Green with envy, the landlord said,
" Could you bring me to the dragon king? I will give you 1000 silvers."
" 1000 silvers? You must be joking? The dragon king wanted me to succeed his throne; I declined. Why do I need your 1000 silvers?" , said Maki.
"Sorry, I mis-spoke. But, is it possible for you to bring me to see the Dragon King?", asked the landlord.
Maki thought a while then said,
"All right, but you must keep the whole thing secret."
"Absolutely." said the landlord.
" Prepare me a wooden barrel and an iron block; set yourself with an earth-ware vat." said Maki.
By the time when the landlord got all the barrel, earth-ware vat, and iron bar ready, both Maki and the landlord set to the sea. After a while when they both were in the middle of the sea, the landlord grew impatient.
"When shall we knock the door of the sea palace?" asked the landlord.
"Now, we can do it."
" Your majesty, Dragon king. This is Your honest and righteous Maki. Please open the door of the sea palace for us." shouted Maki 3 times.
Then Maki knocked on his barrel 3 times; and used full strength knocked on the earth-ware vat. The vat shattered into pieces, and the landlord sank to the bottom of the sea.
Friday, June 13, 2014
Dragon Prince--Vietnamese Creation Story
Here is the Vietnamese Creation Story, first told by Thich Nhat Hanh. I made small modification at the end. Enjoy the story.
Long ago, when the earth was dark and cold, a great bird sat on this earth for million of years without stirring. At last she laid two eggs: one red, the other ivory. The great bird flew away and disappeared into the dark space.
The red egg clapped, came with a crow carrying brilliant and dazzling light. The broken shells burst into fiery fire that burnt continuously for 7 months, melting the rocks of mountains into sands and creating patches of deserts on the earth.
The ivory egg began to radiate a soft and gentle light. When it was cracked open, came with graceful swan.
Both the crow and the wild swan flew away into the space on their own courses. Yet, they would fly around the earth periodically. When the crow came to the earth, it is hot, and dazzling bright. When it is swan's turn, it would be gentle and soft. The earth is no longer dark, cold and colorless. The earth has all shades of color. The air is filled with pleasant aroma.
The goddess, specifically the goddess A-Bee (阿美) at the 7th heaven took a note of this pleasant change of the earth. A-Bee told her sisters that the earth has changed to the better that it worth for them to explore the new earth. 4 goddesses including A-Bee transform themselves into 4 white swans and flew from the 7th heaven onto earth.
When the first bird touched the ground, she fold her wings and transformed into goddess. Other birds followed the same. How soft and beautiful the earth was. They laughed, sang, and danced along the purple slopes of a mountain. After a while, A-Bee broke away from other goddesses and knelt down on the ground, scooped up a handful of sand, smelled it. How delightful it was. She then put some of the sands into her mouth. The other goddess saw this; they came quickly and said loudly, "Do not eat them", they helped A-Bee spit out the sand; for if A-Bee swallowed the earthly sand, she would lose all her magic power and became as mortal as a human fresh.
It was almost time for them to fly back to the 7th heaven, because the fiery crow had almost finished his visit to the earth and it is about the time for the gentle and soft wild swan to come to the earth.
As goddesses transformed back to white swan and flew back to the 7th heaven, A-Bee fell behind and finally lost her power to fly because she had swallowed earthly sand. A-Bee was no longer a goddess, she would never be back to the 7th heaven.
A-Bee was so sad that she cried. She continued to cry for 7 years. Her tears came out of her eyes became water flew into rivers, lakes and finally the oceans. Everywhere, the water of her tears went, the meadow, shrub, trees and all animals thrive. Of course, fish in the river, lakes, and ocean were also thrived while they were nourished with her tear water. One of the fish, after swimming far from the other end of the ocean, jumped onto the shore and transformed into a handsome young man with a broad shoulder, bright eyes and strong, straight body. This young man was actually a prince at the 6th heaven, sent by his father, the dragon king to find out what was going on with the earth. This young man (we now called him the dragon prince) followed the river flow upward and finally reached a mountain where the goddess, A-Bee was weeping. The dragon prince spoke:
Sun shinning brightly
Sky and sea both blue
Butterflies flutter
By a river so new
Where have you come from?
Why do you weep alone?
Surprised by the prince's voice, she stopped crying and looked up. She looked straight into his eyes and answered:
Bright golden crow
Fragrant new earth
As white swan birds
We flew below
A taste of new earth
No longer can I fly
My sisters departed
I wait alone and cry.
Lost in a strange land
My tears become a river.
Both the prince and A-Bee began to have hearty conversation. In fact, they have already fell in love of one another. They talked for a long time. Suddenly, the prince noticed that something went wrong. Because A-Bee was no longer crying, the river began to dry up. The meadow turned yellowish, and the animal were dying.
The prince said to A-Bee, "I need to do something to save the plant, the animal, without you continuously crying to nourish the earth. I would fly to the crow and the wild bird to ask for their help to vaporize the water into the sky, and turned the water into cloud and rain. After that, I will be back to see you."
The prince talked to the fiery crom, asking him to stay above the ocean a bit longer. The heat from the crow would then vaporize water in the ocean to the sky. As soon as this happened, the prince asked the crow to leave and the wild swan to come. With the cool air, it condenses the vapor into cloud. On further cooling, the cloud turned to rain. For the first time, the earth had water, replenish itself through vaporization, cloud, and rain.
While the prince was busy working with the crow and the wild swan, the dragon king sent a messenger to warn the prince not to marry A-Bee who was no longer a goddess. The dragon king said that if the prince married A-Bee, he could not come back to the 6 th heaven, and would lose his immortality.
Well, it was too late. The prince had already made up his mind, and the goddess, A-Bee loved the prince. They loved each other, and they loved the earth. This love worth more than the immortality.
As the story goes, the prince and the goddess were happily married. Since they were no longer immortal, they died after many years of happy life together. Today, we now inherited such a beautiful earth with nurturing water, lush meadow, grass, and trees, and all sort of animals. What shall we do with such bounty inheritance?
Long ago, when the earth was dark and cold, a great bird sat on this earth for million of years without stirring. At last she laid two eggs: one red, the other ivory. The great bird flew away and disappeared into the dark space.
The red egg clapped, came with a crow carrying brilliant and dazzling light. The broken shells burst into fiery fire that burnt continuously for 7 months, melting the rocks of mountains into sands and creating patches of deserts on the earth.
The ivory egg began to radiate a soft and gentle light. When it was cracked open, came with graceful swan.
Both the crow and the wild swan flew away into the space on their own courses. Yet, they would fly around the earth periodically. When the crow came to the earth, it is hot, and dazzling bright. When it is swan's turn, it would be gentle and soft. The earth is no longer dark, cold and colorless. The earth has all shades of color. The air is filled with pleasant aroma.
The goddess, specifically the goddess A-Bee (阿美) at the 7th heaven took a note of this pleasant change of the earth. A-Bee told her sisters that the earth has changed to the better that it worth for them to explore the new earth. 4 goddesses including A-Bee transform themselves into 4 white swans and flew from the 7th heaven onto earth.
When the first bird touched the ground, she fold her wings and transformed into goddess. Other birds followed the same. How soft and beautiful the earth was. They laughed, sang, and danced along the purple slopes of a mountain. After a while, A-Bee broke away from other goddesses and knelt down on the ground, scooped up a handful of sand, smelled it. How delightful it was. She then put some of the sands into her mouth. The other goddess saw this; they came quickly and said loudly, "Do not eat them", they helped A-Bee spit out the sand; for if A-Bee swallowed the earthly sand, she would lose all her magic power and became as mortal as a human fresh.
It was almost time for them to fly back to the 7th heaven, because the fiery crow had almost finished his visit to the earth and it is about the time for the gentle and soft wild swan to come to the earth.
As goddesses transformed back to white swan and flew back to the 7th heaven, A-Bee fell behind and finally lost her power to fly because she had swallowed earthly sand. A-Bee was no longer a goddess, she would never be back to the 7th heaven.
A-Bee was so sad that she cried. She continued to cry for 7 years. Her tears came out of her eyes became water flew into rivers, lakes and finally the oceans. Everywhere, the water of her tears went, the meadow, shrub, trees and all animals thrive. Of course, fish in the river, lakes, and ocean were also thrived while they were nourished with her tear water. One of the fish, after swimming far from the other end of the ocean, jumped onto the shore and transformed into a handsome young man with a broad shoulder, bright eyes and strong, straight body. This young man was actually a prince at the 6th heaven, sent by his father, the dragon king to find out what was going on with the earth. This young man (we now called him the dragon prince) followed the river flow upward and finally reached a mountain where the goddess, A-Bee was weeping. The dragon prince spoke:
Sun shinning brightly
Sky and sea both blue
Butterflies flutter
By a river so new
Where have you come from?
Why do you weep alone?
Surprised by the prince's voice, she stopped crying and looked up. She looked straight into his eyes and answered:
Bright golden crow
Fragrant new earth
As white swan birds
We flew below
A taste of new earth
No longer can I fly
My sisters departed
I wait alone and cry.
Lost in a strange land
My tears become a river.
Both the prince and A-Bee began to have hearty conversation. In fact, they have already fell in love of one another. They talked for a long time. Suddenly, the prince noticed that something went wrong. Because A-Bee was no longer crying, the river began to dry up. The meadow turned yellowish, and the animal were dying.
The prince said to A-Bee, "I need to do something to save the plant, the animal, without you continuously crying to nourish the earth. I would fly to the crow and the wild bird to ask for their help to vaporize the water into the sky, and turned the water into cloud and rain. After that, I will be back to see you."
The prince talked to the fiery crom, asking him to stay above the ocean a bit longer. The heat from the crow would then vaporize water in the ocean to the sky. As soon as this happened, the prince asked the crow to leave and the wild swan to come. With the cool air, it condenses the vapor into cloud. On further cooling, the cloud turned to rain. For the first time, the earth had water, replenish itself through vaporization, cloud, and rain.
While the prince was busy working with the crow and the wild swan, the dragon king sent a messenger to warn the prince not to marry A-Bee who was no longer a goddess. The dragon king said that if the prince married A-Bee, he could not come back to the 6 th heaven, and would lose his immortality.
Well, it was too late. The prince had already made up his mind, and the goddess, A-Bee loved the prince. They loved each other, and they loved the earth. This love worth more than the immortality.
As the story goes, the prince and the goddess were happily married. Since they were no longer immortal, they died after many years of happy life together. Today, we now inherited such a beautiful earth with nurturing water, lush meadow, grass, and trees, and all sort of animals. What shall we do with such bounty inheritance?
Thursday, June 12, 2014
Mindful living; the thought of Thich Nhat Hanh
During my Richland retreat at the end of May, I was introduced into Thich Nhat Hanh (pronounced as Tik Nan Han) writing about mindfulness. Mr. Thich is a well-respected scholar, and poet. He was born in 1926 in Vietnam. At age 16, he became a Buddhist monk. During the 60s, he came to the U.S. and studied at Princeton University. He became very outspoken against the Vietnam War.
The following notes were taken from an audio tape 'mindfulness' of Thich Naht Hanh.
On Buddha,
Buddha is not a god, but an awakening person. Everyone has a potential to be a Buddha. Most of us are Buddha from time to time; but not all the time. This is because most of us are distracted or pre-occupied by the worry of either the past or the future, but not at the present. Only we are mindful at the present, we can be awakening, and can become a Buddha.
On Kingdom of the God.
Some says that we enter the kingdom of the God when we are dead. I disagree. I would say that only we live at the present, we can witness everything in the kingdom of god. Why? If we are mindful of the present, and we look at a piece of paper, we should also see cloud; because if there is no cloud, there will be no rain. And if there is no rain, there is no tree, and no paper. Similarly, if we are mindful of the present and see a piece of paper, I see the sunshine; for if there is no sunshine, nothing can live and there will be no trees and paper. Thus if we are mindful of the present, we witness everything of God's creation, or the kingdom of the God.
On Emptiness (空)
Emptiness means 'emptiness from connection' of everything. Look at this piece of paper. Would this piece of paper exist if there is no tree? Would this tree lives if there is no rain, or sunshine. Nothing in this world can be standing alone; we are all dependent on one another.
On Fear of Death
We are all afraid of death, simply we are afraid of turning 'something' into 'nothing'. This is absurd. In this world, we would never be able to turn 'something' into 'nothing'; we cannot turn 'nothing' into 'something' either. Look at this piece of paper. Where it is from? From a tree, of course. But where is the tree from? From the elements of the Earth, of the air; and of course of the water. It cannot come from 'nothing'. Similarly, when this paper is burnt, it releases all elements into the air and the Earth. It does not turn into 'nothing'. One day, I was walking with a nice kid of approximately 6 years old. She asked me, "Mr, Thich. What would be your next life." I smiled and said, "I am too much focused on this life, having no time to think about the next life. Well, my next life could be a beautiful butterfly. So, next time when you see a butterfly, do not kill it, because it could be the next life of someone you love."
The following notes were taken from an audio tape 'mindfulness' of Thich Naht Hanh.
On Buddha,
Buddha is not a god, but an awakening person. Everyone has a potential to be a Buddha. Most of us are Buddha from time to time; but not all the time. This is because most of us are distracted or pre-occupied by the worry of either the past or the future, but not at the present. Only we are mindful at the present, we can be awakening, and can become a Buddha.
On Kingdom of the God.
Some says that we enter the kingdom of the God when we are dead. I disagree. I would say that only we live at the present, we can witness everything in the kingdom of god. Why? If we are mindful of the present, and we look at a piece of paper, we should also see cloud; because if there is no cloud, there will be no rain. And if there is no rain, there is no tree, and no paper. Similarly, if we are mindful of the present and see a piece of paper, I see the sunshine; for if there is no sunshine, nothing can live and there will be no trees and paper. Thus if we are mindful of the present, we witness everything of God's creation, or the kingdom of the God.
On Emptiness (空)
Emptiness means 'emptiness from connection' of everything. Look at this piece of paper. Would this piece of paper exist if there is no tree? Would this tree lives if there is no rain, or sunshine. Nothing in this world can be standing alone; we are all dependent on one another.
On Fear of Death
We are all afraid of death, simply we are afraid of turning 'something' into 'nothing'. This is absurd. In this world, we would never be able to turn 'something' into 'nothing'; we cannot turn 'nothing' into 'something' either. Look at this piece of paper. Where it is from? From a tree, of course. But where is the tree from? From the elements of the Earth, of the air; and of course of the water. It cannot come from 'nothing'. Similarly, when this paper is burnt, it releases all elements into the air and the Earth. It does not turn into 'nothing'. One day, I was walking with a nice kid of approximately 6 years old. She asked me, "Mr, Thich. What would be your next life." I smiled and said, "I am too much focused on this life, having no time to think about the next life. Well, my next life could be a beautiful butterfly. So, next time when you see a butterfly, do not kill it, because it could be the next life of someone you love."
Monday, June 9, 2014
Vegetarian, but not vegetarian junk--Part 4. Conclusion
HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup) which is present in soft drink, fruit juice, and most of the processed food, when digested, it is metabolized to produce uric acid and triglycerides; both are markers of insulin resistance which can lead to many health complications, including hypertension, diabetics, and cancer.
The safest vegetarian diet is to eat plenty of vegetable, fruit, nuts, and avocado. Limit animal protein to approximately 5 gm per day. This type of diet will keep you healthy, and avoid many physician visit. After all, it is our responsibility to keep us healthy.
The safest vegetarian diet is to eat plenty of vegetable, fruit, nuts, and avocado. Limit animal protein to approximately 5 gm per day. This type of diet will keep you healthy, and avoid many physician visit. After all, it is our responsibility to keep us healthy.
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