The month of October

Seems like this is going to be a monthly fixture, ie. month-end closing (hahah!). These sum up what happened in my month of October. 

"There is no season 

when such pleasant and sunny spots 

may be lighted on, 

and produce so pleasant 

an effect on the feelings, 

as now in October." 

-  Nathaniel Hawthorne

Note: The above beautiful photo of the Healing Lama is courtesy of a fellow Dharma brother, Tenzin Lobsang, owner of blog Lobsang Garden.  Thank you, bro! 

Fengshui your mind first

The well-known geomancer, Lillian Too, once said: "If nothing much happened to you last year, be thankful! This means nothing bad or traumatic like accidents, divorce, death in the family, job loss or robbery occurred. People tend to assume an exciting life refers to glamorous travel, parties, big events, promotions, money windfall, striking the lottery or other happy events resulting in fame and fortune. They forget an eventful life can also bring controversial or bad things. So if your life is not thrilling, be grateful."

I believe in feng shui and I also believe in life reading in relation to bazi 八字, because every individual's life journey is unique. According to bazi analysis, a person's character and certain events are all already mapped out at birth. However at the same time, I believe in controlling/changing our fate (although it is an uphill task, it IS possible). This is because how we behave at the present moment, will affect the future. Karma, my friend. Our fate can change for the better if we strive very hard to do more meritorious deeds. Even if we do not see the results in this lifetime, we could reap the fruits of our positive actions in the next life. So, nothing is ever constant or 'fixed' for life. Instead, we can make use of the tools and methods of feng shui and bazi to help us as a guide, to be prepared to ride out the rough times and know when to take advantage of the good times.

These days, there are still some people who view feng shui as being something "superstitious". Often, there are some friends around me who like to ask, "So after fengshui-ing your house, can you see any positive results?" or "after knowing your bazi, have you strike it rich?" etc.. To all these skeptics, I would usually reply, "Fengshui-ing your house or knowing your bazi does not mean it is your immediate ticket to success or wealth, and it does not necessarily mean you are going to be famous overnight. If you look at it the other way, maybe it is because you have done something to enhance your luck/life, you have had already prevented some tragedy or disaster or sickness from happening! You could have nipped the problem in the bud without realising it. I may not have strike it rich, but at least I am not dead". Dang. This would usually be followed by silence (of the other party).

You get the drift? Everyone is different. Everyone's perception of things is different. Everyone's life map is different. Not everyone will become rich in this life. Not everyone can be his/her own boss. Not everyone has perfect health. Not everyone will have a perfect marriage. How "lucky" or fortunate we are in this life depends on what we have done in the past as well as at this present moment, and also our own karmic disposition. But first and foremost, our mind must be receptive. At the very least, prevent the bad from happening.

Lillian Too explained that she has already spent a good 15 years popularizing and simplifying methods for people to tap into the first two types of luck that govern outcomes in our lives – tien (heaven), and ti (earth) luck. To harness luck from the earth, landscape, symbols and formulas are used. To benefit or overcome obstacles caused by the cyclic changes of time, we need to understand the cycles of our heaven luck through bazi reading.

The other new dimension is how we can tap into the knowledge of ren cai (mankind luck), which requires us to use the power of our own mind and sacred rituals to enlist the help of cosmic forces in the spiritual realm to cover obstacles. And this is what I was trying to convey in my earlier paragraph. This dimension is not religious, but spiritual. You can do something to clear your obstacles and thus enhance your luck and success, in this life and also the future lives. For example, if you attend a prayer session or perform a certain ritual, you could rid yourself of a huge obstacle from befalling you. Sometimes, instead of getting badly hurt in a car accident, you could have just had a brush with another car and got a dent instead. Be grateful for all that you have encountered. Be receptive and know how to help yourself, within your means/control and the universe in turn will be kind to you by helping you. Says Lillian, “feng shui works regardless of your religion but you MUST be kind-hearted, sincere and magnanimous".

Story of the Ant and the Lizard

A couple of months ago, during the Medicine Buddha retreat in ABC, the very patient and gentle Geshe Chonyi told us a short story. Before that, without knowing what he would be sharing, I recorded a voice recording of this particular teaching. I do not normally record teachings but only when I felt a strong need to at that very moment. It turned out to be exactly something I feel strongly about and which I would like to share with my readers.

The below I transcribed what Geshe Chonyi taught ....

"Look at the ants, how hardworking they are. They go to different places everyday to search for food. Even if the place is 100-storey high, the ants will climb up in order to find food and to collect the food to bring back home. Sometimes the 'food' is a big dead insect, bigger than the size of the ants themselves. However the ants do not mind carrying the burden, they carry more than their weight everyday, diligently, day and night, up and down, in order to bring the food they found to store in their house. They pile up food in their house enough to last them for 6 months. So when the monsoon comes, when they cannot go out, they would be able to enjoy the food and do not need to go hungry for 6 months.

Compared to them, we are sometimes similar to the ants. We are looking for comfort, for happiness, for food, working, piling up our assets, to store for a rainy day, for old age, day and night we are sometimes like the ant, working, saving, and working hard for this life.

On the other hand, the lizard is not that hard working. The lizard is a different animal, who likes to find nice places like the porch, or cool stone, so that they can rest and relax. The lizard is looking for enjoyment. He enjoys the comfort and forgets everything else. But when the rain and storm suddenly comes, then he is caught unprepared. The lizard gets wet and suffers with no place to hide. Then at that moment the lizard starts thinking of having a proper house, and running frantically here and there looking for a refuge. This is the result of not being prepared.  However when the next day arrives, when the sunrise is out, the lizard again goes back to his usual self, and goes back to relax, to enjoy its present state in comfort.

We are exactly like the lizard. When we are not sick, when we are doing well, we are like the lizard. We enjoy life and we do not think of anything else. But when the strong rain comes, or when our business is bad, or when we encounter some problems, only then we begin to think of finding the solution. We are no different from the lizard.

This is a good example of us. Working for this life is like the lizard. Working for the future life is like the ant. Here at the present, when everything seems ok, there is no Dharma. We do not think of the future life. Most of the rich people are like this, they usually suffer, there is no Dharma for them. They think that life is comfortable, they do not think that Dharma is useful for them. Then when something happens, when they become sick, they begin to search and seek for something to help themselves.

Hence, crucial practice comes to mind. When you presently have a good life, when you are still healthy, when you have happy opportunities at the moment, you need to do something to prepare for your future life.

We should seek more for that happiness now. Otherwise when the problem comes, or when we become sick, even if we want to do something, we cannot, because by then, the pain is too strong, and you would not be able to chant, to practice. When you are healthy and able, it is the best time to do practice. The problem is, we don't. It is only when the problem comes, we do something. By that time, it is too late. Sometimes the pain is too incredible, or if you are lying down as a vegetable, it is impossible to do practice. Always practice Dharma when you are still young and healthy, so that when problems arise, we are prepared and are able to handle it. Do not wait till retirement. Do it when you are young. If we do not practice, when the problem comes, we cannot handle. If we practice, when the problem comes, we are ready. And by doing practice, the other problems disappear as well. There is a huge difference when we are able to handle the problem."

Geshe Chonyi said this was the second time he related this story, the first was in 2000. That was exactly the message I like to share with and remind my loved ones and friends. The irony is, it is the strangers or readers or new friends I have befriended who usually listen to this advice. They are more receptive and more appreciative, and understand the underlying message, even considering I never even need to convince. I may not be a very good practitioner yet, but I can show them who are those practitioners whose lives have changed for the better. On the other hand, on the very very rare occasions when I mentioned to loved ones about practice, the answer would always be "I'm not ready".

By the way, today marks the Buddha's Descent From The Heavens Of The Thirty-Three. Any merits today multiply by 100 million times! Happy Lha-Bab Duchen! Be good!

If you are keen to increase your merits today, join ABC for these events.

My encounters with butterflies and moths

I am always intrigued by sightings of huge butterflies and moths. To me, they are mystical and symbolize spiritualism and death. I was told black butterflies or moths in particular, usually mean death. When you see them or when they come close to you, it means death of a loved one. I have had numerous encounters.

When I was in Secondary 4, the day when I received news that my paternal grandmother had passed away in the hospital, I found 3 huge black moths lying dead outside my house door. My grandmother was in a semi-conscious state for a few weeks before she died and she was muttering my name throughout.

Many years ago, my relative had a 8-year-old daughter who died of leukemia. I had met the pretty and intelligent girl a few times when she was alive. She was a few years younger than me, with big eyes, a fair complexion and looked like a doll. She contracted leukemia when she was 5. By the time she succumbed to the disease, she was very skinny and had  only a few strands of hair left. It was on the 7th day after the girl had passed away. Her parents and little brother were at home when suddenly they heard music coming from the girl's bedroom. Entering the room, they found the music coming from a card which was opened, on the girl's writing desk. It was the musical birthday card that her parents had given to the girl on her last birthday. Then they saw a big white butterfly, circling around the card gracefully. Her mom was certain that the card was stacked away somewhere and should not have been opened. However, they were at peace, for they knew that their little girl had come home.

Another time, 3 years ago, it was the day when I heard that Baby Andrew, my buddy's baby, had passed away at birth. When I reached home, a big black moth was fluttering near my Buddha's altar, and then it flew in fast speed towards me and over my head and quickly out of the window. When I went into my bedroom, another moth was in the room, and it quickly flew out of the window too. I was so mystified.  

Then 5-6 years ago, I was attending the funeral wake of another of my buddy's grandmother who passed away at the age of 104. At the wake, I saw a huge butterfly following the monk when he chanted the last rites.  During the last night of prayers, strangely 2 moths were seen flying around her family throughout the session and eventually landed on the palm of friend's mom, before flying off.  Her grandmother's own daughter-in-law had also passed away a few days ago. The family believed that the moths were grandmother and her daughter in law, both in the ethereal state, saying good bye to the family. Read my 2005 post about her, a simple Buddhist with a beautiful ending. 

Yet another time, I was at the funeral wake of my aunt's father-in-law and it was the day he was to be cremated. When I reached the place of the funeral wake, I saw a big black butterfly fluttering around his altar table for quite a few minutes before flying off just before the final rites.

To me, I also associate huge butterflies with the holy Divine Beings too.  

More than once, in my old house, I have seen a white moth resting on the photos of my gurus (HH Dalai Lama, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Lati Rinpoche, 101st Gaden Tripa Rinpoche, Garchen Rinpoche) which I had placed on my desk in my room. One time, the same moth was there for a few days, sometimes with a duration of many hours. On the last day, I remember I saw it resting near my gurus' photos in the afternoon, and it was still  there late at night even after I came back from a puja. Then it flew out of the window.

Another time, I was reading a chinese book about the autobiography "Diary of A Living Buddha" by a reincarnate Rinpoche called 盛噶仁波切 who is based in Taiwan. The book came with a Kalachakra card which has apparently been personally blessed by Rinpoche. A butterfly appeared out of nowhere, fluttering around my room a few times. It did not leave even though my windows were wide open and I tried shoo-ing it away. It just flew round and round. Then all of a sudden, it went near Rinpoche's book and circled a few rounds before resting on top of the book, right next to the picture of Rinpoche. I was a little amazed, but I left it as that. After a few hours it was still there. When I tried to chase it away again, it flew off. Then within one minute it came back and rested on top of the book again.

Once, in 2005 or 2006, I was at the grand public event conducted by the late HH Lati Rinpoche at a grand tentage. Rinpoche was giving the Buddha Shakyamuni empowerment. Just as Rinpoche was walking towards the statue of Shakyamuni Buddha, I saw a huge beautiful butterfly following closely behind him. I was pretty amazed. Another time, I was at the Buddhist Lodge. When I was circumambulating around the huge statue of Amitabha Buddha, there were 2 butterflies following closely behind me.

That is why I view seeing the butterfly near any holy objects as having some significance.  They say that some Holy Objects are so powerful that "even an insect that has the shadow of a holy object and touch them will be reborn in a higher realm." Meaning a butterfly that flits in and out of a shadow of a holy object will attain a human body or better in it's next incarnation.

I leave you with a story:

Once upon a time, someone found the chrysalis of a butterfly. Soon a small opening appeared. The person sat and watched the butterfly for hours as it struggled to squeeze its body through the tiny hole. Then it stopped unable to go any further.

Deciding to help the butterfly, a pair of scissors were used to snip off the end of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily, but it had a swollen body and shriveled wings.

The person continued to watch it, expecting that at any moment the wings would enlarge and expand enough to support the body in flight. It did not happen. In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around like a caterpillar. It was never able to fly.

What the person in kindness and haste did not understand: The butterfly's struggle to get through the restricting cocoon was a way of forcing the fluid from the body into the wings so that it would be ready for flight once it emerged.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. Going through life without obstacles to overcome would cripple us. We would not become as strong as we could nor fly as happily as we might. So if we struggle, rather than asking someone or something to remove everything we dislike, it will be to our benefit for a long time to come.

Ali Nachia Briyani Dam from the railway station

I have heard so much about this famous Briyani Dam at the railway station from online people. So one of the weekdays, I met up with a friend for lunch there. Technically, I went Malaysia for this.  Well, we know that the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station belongs to Malaysia. I also wanted to check out the railway station for the last time, since it is going to disappear real soon.

The Indian money changer pointed me to Ali Nachia Briyani Dam stall inside the food centre, when I asked him which stall sells the famous Briyani. It was around noon and the stall was already busy with orders. The guy before me ordered take-away of at least 9 packets of the Briyani.

Here is the boss himself, Cik Ali, who asked me in perfect English, what will I be having. This photo of the man is taken from ieatishootipost. The selection for Briyani is  Mutton or Chicken or Fish.  If you prefer fish briyani, you have to pre-order.  It seems the Mutton Briyani is the more popular one and I could imagine how tender the aromatic mutton will be. However, I am trying to cut down on intake of mutton these days, so I decided to order the Chicken Briyani instead. Read Dr Leslie's review on the Mutton Briyani.

They were quite prompt in serving, as basically the dish and sides were already cooked. The ingredients include basmati rice, chicken, yoghurt, onions, spices, lemon, and saffron. The Chicken Briyani is accompanied with Achar,  a salad and a vegetarian curry cooked with roasted eggplant. Each set costs $6.

The crunchy Achar which was tangy sour and appetising.

The salad includes onions, carrots, cucumber and lemon wedges. Another appetising side to go with the spicy chicken.

You wonder where is the chicken? Well, it is hidden underneath the hot Basmati rice. Such wonderful colours.

I could not resist taking a shot at this angle, with the railway track in the background, for memory's sake. Look at the big heap of the delicious looking rice.

The chicken unearthed!  Below the fluffy Basmati rice, was this big chunk of chicken very tender and well done. Actually the rice looked like a huge portion, but because it was fluffy, it was not as filling as our usual Thai fragrant rice grains, hence I did not feel too bloated.

I believe the chicken was marinated with plain yogurt, tumeric powder, coriander powder, red chilli powder, ginger paste, garlic paste and cumin powder. Mmmm, the chicken is the crucial item of this Briyani dish of course.

Personally Chicken Briyani has got to be accompanied by a hot cup of Teh Tarik. I could not resist taking a shot of my teh tarik with the tracks as the background again. Watch out for my upcoming post of a tour of this nostalgic railway station soon!

Slightly after 2pm, as I walked past the stall, they have already sold out.  You notice the accolades and reviews by the media pasted all around the stall. They do catering for buffets and parties as well. Give it a try if you are nearby, before they disappear.

Ali Nachia Briyani Dam

30 Keppel Road Tanjong Pagar 

The Railway Station Singapore.

Tel: +65 9389 2615

A blissful blessed evening with a singing dakini - Ani Choying Dolma

Spent a wonderful blissful evening with a pretty dakini (or angel) on Sunday. The popular Singing Nun from Nepal (as she is known worldwide as), Ani Choying Dolma was in town to give her first concert in Singapore - Mantras From The Heart and I was star-struck. If you know me, I never really did go ga-ga over any pop singer, but with Ani-la, I was swept away (literally) to another dimension (yes, I am unconventional). It was so different and I wish I could explain why. Back in 2007 when I walked into a CD shop selling Buddhist music, I heard a melodious voice singing and was very touched.  I asked who the singer was, and it turned out to be Ani Choying Dolma and the CD album was "Inner Peace". I immediately bought it. And it is still my most favourite Buddhist album.

The simple stage setup. Who needs a band or complicated musical instruments or elaborate performance when you only need to hear that voice? No photography or recording was permitted. Ani Choying started the first 2 mantra songs which I am most familiar with - Namo Ratna Trayaya (Great Compassion Mantra or 大悲咒) and Green Tara. I know her heavenly rendition of these 2 mantras had made quite a few people teared and it was such a wonderful awakening. It was this song Great Compassion Mantra that I first heard in that shop. It is this long mantra that I first learnt to chant by heart from her rendition and which I chant most often still.

Ani-la said "In Buddhist culture, before you do anything, the development of your proper attitude is very important and for that, I felt Avalokiteshvara (Kuan Yin) would be the best to start off. By reciting this mantra it would help one to cultivate one's own compassionate qualities to an extended level. Not only can one heal and liberate oneself but one would also be able to heal and liberate others as well".

After the concert, we got a face-to-face opportunity with her.  I finally met my idol. Ani Choying is such a very humble and composed nun. She said "Melodies have the ability to please the Divine, humans, animals and scientifully proven, even plants grow more beautifully when they hear music. Lord Buddha's voice was so melodious when he was teaching that even animals were attracted to him."  So was Ani-la's voice.

A large entourage of monks and members from Gaden Shartse Dro-Phen Ling turned out to support Ani Choying Dolma. Everyone looked so happy.

We requested Ani Choying for a photo with the monks. I heard the monks love her singing so much, but they may not necessarily be able to afford her CDs and they have not met Ani Choying in person before. So I thought it was an excellent applaudable gesture of Dro-Phen Ling to give these monks a treat before they return to the Monastery in India. 

Ani-la had a brief chat with the Geshes and monks of Gaden Shartse Monastery, thanking them for coming. The Sangha community (at least the many monks and nuns I have met before) is so tightly-knit, helpful, with no ill intentions and it's all very heartwarming. Through example, in their own way, they embody what the exact teachings of the Buddha should be about.

Ani-la was very obliging and autographed all our CDs and posed with us a number of times. My friends and I managed to have quite a few personal shots taken with her. My attempt of taking one photo failed, it was blur and she said, smilingly: "so you want to take a photo of me and you, and by you?"

A friend was asking Ani-la questions about the Dharma. 

The rest of the DPL members were busy taking photos. 

She gave a beautiful premiere of the Prajnaparamita, the entire Heart Sutra, singing it in Sanskrit, for the very first time to the audience last night. We were indeed very fortunate. Perhaps my personal favourite of her renditions of all the mantras last night, the one that gave me the deepest impression, was Om muni muni, the mantra of Shakyamuni Buddha, which I was hearing for the first time from her. I love it so much because it was so simple yet so powerful and touching that I was almost tearing.  I will see if I can get a clip of it up here. Last night I slept at 1am and woke up at 3am, by the tune of that mantra, still stuck in my head the whole night. Despite recovering from a cough, Ani-la's voice blown us away. May everyone in the world be able to hear her rendition of  all the mantras and be healed.

Small things that matters - the smile of a child after receiving a small gift from Ani Choying Dolma in a street of Kathmandu. Ani Choying said that simple, little things in the world can make people happy. And we all have the common desire to be happy. Nowadays to fulfill these wishes, we do so many different things in life which sometimes make sense and sometimes do not.  We have so much convenience in modern times but we do not have time to enjoy it. We are very intelligent and have high education qualifications  in the academic sense but exactly how much of this "sense" has been developed? She quoted a high master, "We humans are so intelligent, we have gone to the moon and come back, but we have so much difficulty in crossing the road to meet our neighbours. We have so much information in the computer but less communication with human to human. It is happening because we are believing in something that is not the cause for happiness. All we need is so simple, and that is to develop respect for other humans in order to be happy".  

For that, Ani Choying has set up schools and nunneries for the little girls in Nepal so that they have equal opportunity to study. The proceeds of her concerts all go into charity helping the nuns, the poor and animals.  Her parting words, "In order to be happy, there is no need to be all or nothing. It can be simple things. As for me, as I am blessed with the ability to sing, I share with others by giving concerts, and that make people happy".

My autographed CD of that very first CD I bought, Inner Peace. The volunteer told me for this album, Ani Choying usually prefers to sign on the front cover. Not only did she signed on the front cover, I also requested her to sign for me on the inside cover with her photo too, because printed on it was a beautiful dedication:

"By listening to Inner Peace, 

may your mind turn towards Dharma, 

may Dharma practice becomes the path, 

may the path clarify confusion, 

may confusion arise as wisdom."

This is the Namo Ratna Trayaya I always chant. Before she left, I told her to please come back again and she gave me a bright yet shy smile, "Ok".  I believe she will be back very soon.  Thank you for coming to Singapore, Ani Choying. May all your wishes and projects in caring for the nuns and the unfortunate ones succeed immediately.

PS. Just realised after posting the above mantra, today is the Renunciation Day of Kuan Yin (Avalokiteshvara). How apt!  May all receive the blessings of Kuan Yin.