Pain is inevitable; suffering is optional / Sunday, November 23, 2008
Anyone signed up for the Youth Camp organised by SBM Youth? Below are some good stuff to share with you. Do check our blog regularly to get update of our activities and sharing of thoughts. :)
From The Daily Enlightment email (To subscribe to it, email thedailyenlightenme
Quote of the day:
Pain is inevitable; suffering is optional.
Having a heavy sickness might mean you are running out of time. Practise the Dharma diligently!
Having a light sickness might mean it will get more serious. Practise the Dharma diligently!
Having no sickness might mean you might get sick soon. Practise the Dharma diligently! - stonepeace
Realisation: The Spiritual Obstacles of Extreme Suffering & Complacency
Unsettlingly, one of the most startling experiences I had was not an enlightening one - but a thoroughly "unenlightened" one. Some years ago, I was down with a bad case of drug allergy. My body's condition became so wretched that I laid on a hospital bed all day. With no excuse not to be diligent in some spiritual practice, I decided to be mindful of Amitabha Buddha by silently chanting his name (Amituofo). As I felt too sick and weak, it was too tough to muster strength to chant aloud. To my utmost shock, in the course of a whole week, I could not discipline or focus myself to chant the very short name properly - not even once! This might seem like an exaggeration, but it's not. Most of my waking hours were spent fretting in physical dis-ease, which distracted me tremendously.
That was but the first-parter, of greater horror to come. In the following week, I was transferred to a better hospital, which swiftly diagnosed the cause of the illness. Almost immediately after being warded, the healing began. As the symptoms faded, I became increasingly relaxed. I would even have the morale to play board games and have frivolous chats with visiting friends. When there was no one, I would occupy myself with the TV, surfing its channels randomly, over and over. Now, where's the horror of it all? The horror is that in the switch from grave illness towards health, my spiritual desperation morphed to become great complacency! It was as if it was perfectly alright to while my time and life away.
Was I too hard on myself? There's nothing wrong with taking some time off to recuperate, but what's scary was that I experienced great suffering and complacency back to back, which manifested as equally powerful obstacles against spiritual progress. What's more terrible was that while being caught up in the opposite experiences, I was not truly aware of being overrun by them. Tossed and turned like a leaf in the wind, I simply "went with the flow" of things. I was out of control, though I could gain control. Every moment is a test of our spirituality. Both extremes of good and bad times can lead us astray - but they can be wake-up calls too. Will you master life, or let its trials and tribulations overwhelm you? - Shen Shi'an
If you are not suffering like some hell being,
or complacent like some heavenly being,
why are you not practising the Dharma well? - stonepeace
Response Article: Okay,,, So What's Next?
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I painted my dreams at
3:24 PM