Daily Buddhist Verses

last SG · 2005-05-29T17:49:29+00:00

Our normal way of relating people is to see ourself as separate from the others.To objectify beings as separate you and make them an object of attachment is...

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The Zen master Hakuin was praised by his neighbours as one living a pure life.

A beautiful girl whose parents owned a food store lived near him. Suddenly, without any warning, her parents discovered she was pregnant.

This made her parents angry. She would not confess who the man was, but after much harassement at last named Hakuin.

In great anger the parents went to the master. "Is that so?" was all he would say.

After the child was born it was brought to Hakuin. By this time he had lost his reputation, which did not trouble him, and he took very good care of the child. He obtained milk from his neighbours and everything else he needed.

A year later the girl-mother could stand it no longer. She told her parents the truth - the real father of the child was a young man who worked in the fish market.

The parents of the girl at once went to Hakuin to ask for forgiveness, to appologise at length, and to get the child back.

Hakuin was willing. In yeilding the child, all he said was: "Is that so?"

~13th century Zen Teacher Muju, Shaseki-shu

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One, who eats too much, easily becomes sick. One, who talks too much, easily gets into trouble. Sometimes misunderstandings arise because the listener is sensitive while the speaker is careless. Both parties develope resentment and hatred, which gives rise to endless retaliation in the future. This is why ancient sages advised us to "Talk less and chant the Buddha's name more". The less we speak, the better it is for the less trouble we will be in. Ideally, we would only speak when it was necessary.

~ Ven. Chin Kung

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What is born will die,
What has been gathered will be dispersed,
What has been accumulated will be exhausted,
What has been built up will collapse,
And what has been high will be brought low.

~ Buddha

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Ikkyu, the Zen master, was very clever even as a boy.

His teacher had a precious teacup, a rare antique. Ikkyu happened to break this cup and was greatly perplexed. Hearing the footsteps of his teacher, he held the pieces of the cup behind him. When the master appeared, Ikkyu asked, "Why do people die?"

"This is natural," explained the older man. "Everything has to die and has just so long to live."

Ikkyu, producing the shattered cup, added: "It was time for your cup to die."

~ Zen Teacher Muju, Shaseki - shu

Owl^ SG

As you embrace the higher consciousness, you begin to see the futility of religious hearts Behind all religion is a universal element

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Those who wish to guard their practice
Should very attentively guard their minds,
For those who do not guard their minds
Will be unable to guard their practice.

~ Shantideva, A Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of life

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In mordern times, we should continue to imbibe new knowledge and not be proud or arrogant. The image of Buddhists is very important as they represent not only themselves but their religion. A Buddhist can be others' role model but without poise, one will lose one's dignity and others will lose their respect for you.

~ Ven Shi Fazhao

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Suffering I teach, and the way out of suffering.

~ The Buddha

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A man travelling across a field encountered a tiger. He fled, the tiger after him. Coming to a precipice, he caught hold of the root of a wild vine and swing himself down the edge. The tiger sniffed at him from above. Trembling, the man looked down to where, far below, another tiger was waiting to eat him. Only the vine sustained him.

Two mice, one white and one black, little by little started to gnaw away the vine. The man saw a luscious strawberry near him. Grasping the vine with one hand, he plucked the strawberry with the other. How sweet it tasted!

~ A parable in sutra.

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The more you looked into how an ignorant consciousness conceives phenomena to exist, the more you find that phenomena do not exist that way. However, the more yo look into what a wise conscioueness understands, the more you gain affirmation in the absence of inherent existence. Lust and hatred are ruled by ignorance and so cannot be generated limitlesly.

~ Dalai Lama

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"Going with the flow [sui yuan]" does not mean sloppiness or pessimism but moving according to causes and conditions - to advance when it is time to do so and to stop when it is more beneficial to stop. To be able to take things on and let them go is a sign of ease and effortlessness.

~ Ven. Shi Fazhao

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Hogen, a chinese Zen teacher lived alone in a small temple in the city. One day four travelling monks appeared and asked if they might make a fire to warm themselves.

While they were building the fire, Hogen heard them arguing about subjectivity and obectivity. He joined them and said: "There is a big stone. Do you consider it to be inside or outside your mind?"

One of the monks replied, "From the Buddhist viewpoint everything is an objectification of the mind, so I would say that the stone is inside my mind."

"Your head must feel very heavy," observed Hogen, "if you are carrying around such a stone like that in your mind."

~ Zen teacher Muju, Shaseki shu

An Eternal Now SG

Both subject (i.e mind) and object are void Smile

One who sees object in subject, and then subject in object, knows non-duality.

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Do not attach to changing form,
Maintain the mind of stillness,
Do not be moved.

~ Buddha

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If we are always dwelling on thoughts that we have heavy karmic obstacles and fear that this will keep us from achieving attainment, then we definitely will not achieve. Why? If we do not believe that we can achieve, then even the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas cannot help us.

~ Ven Chin Kung

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It's man's own mind,
Not his enemy or foe,
That lures him to evil ways.

~ Buddha

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A zen student came to Bankei and complained: "Master, I have an ungovernable temper. How can I cure it?"

"You have something very strange," replied Bankei. "let me see what you have."

"Just now I cannot show it to you." replied the other.

"When can you show it to me?" asked Bankei.

"It rises unexpectedly." replied the student.

"Then," concluded Bankei, "it must not be your own nature. If it were, you could show it to me at anytime. When you were born you did not have it, and your parents did not give it to you. Think it over."

~Zen teacher Muju

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My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness.

~ Dalai Lama

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We should investigate the body within the body. Whatever's in the body, go ahead and look at it. If we just see the ourtside, it's not clear. We see hair, nails, and so on and they are just pretty things which entice us. So the Buddha taught us to look inside the body. What is in the body? Look closely and see! We will see many things inside that would surprise us, We've never seen them. Wherever we go we carry them with us, but we still don't know them at all.

~ Ajahn Chah

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Are life and death scary?
We, who are pure spritual consciousness,
become human when wearing the clothes of a human;
become a dog when wearing the clothes of a dog;
become a fish when wearing the clothes of a fish;
become a insect when wearing the clothes of a insect;
become bacteria when wearing the clothes of bacteria.
So, we, who are pure spiritual consciousness,
may not be a human being, or some flying creature,
or a four-legged beast.
Now, which one are we?
None of them!

~ Master Hsin Tao

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