Apr 09

Hakuin and the baby – just the way it is

By Drawing and artwork, Wisdom
Hakuin and the baby - by CJ

Hakuin and the baby - by CJ

There was a monk named Hakuin (白隠 慧鶴) who was well respected for his work among the people.

In the village, there lived a young woman, the daughter of the food sellers. The young woman became pregnant by her boy friend who worked nearby in the fish market. When the parents found out about this, they were very angry and pressured her to reveal the name of the father. She wanted to protect the young man and blurted out the name of Hakuin as the father.

After the baby was born, the parents took the baby to Hakuin. They told Hakuin that he was responsible for the baby and left the infant with him. He responded: “Is that so?” And he simply accepted the responsibility for the child without further reaction.

The monk had no experience with babies. But he began to care for its needs, finding food, clothing, and warm shelter. The other villagers became very angry with Hakuin for his offense and his reputation was trashed. In addition, his disciples left him. These comments did not affect Hakuin, who continued to put his effort and attention into the care of the baby.

After several years, the young woman was filled with remorse. She confessed to her parents the name of the true father –  the real father was not Hakuin but rather a young man who worked at the local fish market. They immediately went to see Hakuin, apologized, and took the baby back with them. Hakuin watched as they returned to there home with the child he had cared for since birth and replied “Is that so?”

Comments:

“Is that so?” reflects the acceptance of what the moment brings. Acceptance in the sense that one responds appropriately to the situation with a calm mind and spirit. There are no calls of fairness or unfairness, of being experienced in the task or not, of complaining about a lost reputation, of wishing that it were different. The needs of present are simply addressed.

More than the physical situation, it is the spirit of the monk’s mind at the initial instant that the situation arises that makes his actions so compelling. It is not passive acceptance; there is direct action here. The calm mind allows effort to be fully directed to the situation without dispersal of energy.

The same tasks of caring for the baby could also be done with resentment or a turbulent mind. Then, there is room for fairness and unfairness, complaining and wishing it were different. Same tasks, but the energy is completely different.

All of these stories are about the reader, not a fiction story about the monk. The situation may be one at work, home, or with a friend that brings the same apparent unfairness and inconvenience to an individual at the moment. Responding with a calm or turbulent mind makes all the difference.

The calm spirit is within the potential of all humans.

[source: http://workingwithinsight.wordpress.com/2007/04/12/the-monk-hakuin-and-the-baby%e2%80%94just-the-way-it-is/]
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Apr 09

芙蓉沉香的蜈蚣山天师宫

By My journey, Photography
12尺全身赤红的“百足灵物”巨型蜈蚣像

12尺全身赤红的“百足灵物”巨型蜈蚣像

去年到好友Kelly在芙蓉的婚礼晚宴时，她介绍过我蜈蚣山的天师宫，这个芙蓉其中出名的旅游景点。蜈蚣山是在森美兰州的芙蓉的沉香，天师宫则是倚蜈蚣山而建，已经有140多年的历史了的庙，但依然风光明媚。从芙蓉镇到那里只需要5-10分钟。当时我赶着去晚宴，所以没法到蜈蚣山。

上个星期，Ah-Too邀请我一同从马六甲到芙蓉去接Wee-Peng回马六甲。Dylan与我和Ah-Too便三人同行。因为早到芙蓉的关系，我建议他们到蜈蚣山去看看。到了芙蓉，已经天不作美了，下起细细小雨。

经过了芙蓉镇，我们便依来自芙蓉的朋友Wendy的指示，到达了蜈蚣山山脚下，然后要的走一段小路是斜岭，汽车驾驶上去，便到了天师宫。那里风景真的很优美，能俯视整个芙蓉，把芙蓉景色尽收眼帘。尤其在这个下着细雨的天里，蜈蚣山的风景更是犹如世外桃源。

说到蜈蚣山的特色，莫过于它的长达12尺全身赤红的“百足灵物”巨型蜈蚣像。除此之外，还有招财蟾蜍、观音娘娘、齐天大圣、青云台及八仙园游等景点。传说山上常有蜈蚣出没，那里流传着有人因为见过白蜈蚣而鸿运当头，因此每年吸引无数来自远方的香客或游客到来碰运气，但求一睹白蜈蚣的异彩。

我在网上找到了这个蜈蚣山的传奇：

很久很久以前，一个为求发达的孩子，离乡背井寻找财路。终于有一天，这个孩子衣锦还乡，但却变成一个不孝之徒，他把含辛茹苦将其养育成人的母亲弃之不顾。最后，孩子受到应有的惩罚，他被化为一艘永不启航的「石船」，被安置在芙蓉沉香………。

长长的斜坡，伸延到丛林处，高高的山头，有艘石船；半山腰际有只大蜈蚣，长年累月的藏身蜈蚣树，它与石船相伴相随，没有人知道蜈蚣和石船的关系，也有人怀疑蜈蚣是被爱儿抛弃的母亲所变，但是蜈蚣圣山（又名百足山）之名不尽而走。

再来是天师宫的传奇：

天师宫设在高山「石船」中央，冥冥之中早已有安排。话说百多年前，蜈蚣山原是一片荒芜，毒蛇猛兽横行，当地居民深受其害，经常遭侵袭而蒙受死伤威胁。

为了保佑出入平安，当地居民便在山林中安置张天师神位，日夜供奉和膜拜。因为相传张天师是古代一名道士，专门扑妖抓鬼，法力无边，于是这个有欠安宁的山林，自然请到天师前来坐镇。

不过，在经过一段日子后，山脚下居民请来乩童向天师请安问事，却反遭天师要将其神位改迁山顶上。

当时的山顶更是一片荒芜，除了怪石嶙峋和老树野草外，空无一物。但是这些对张天师意旨感到为难的居民，在前往山顶为寻求神位时，却意外发现毫无人迹的山上的空旷地上早已插有一扎香，似乎在冥冥中已对天师的神位有所安排。

由于时间紧迫及天气的关系，我们只逗留了大约半小时。上了香后，我们也无法观赏一一的景点，更不用说能拍很多的照片了。

天师宫

天师宫

凉亭里的太极与弥勒菩萨像

凉亭里的太极与弥勒菩萨像

非常感激Ah-Too与Dylan的同行陪伴。也要谢谢Kelly介绍这个地方与Wendy的指路，我们三人才有机会到蜈蚣山。除此之外，也谢谢Wee-Peng请我们吃美味的芙蓉烧包。由于我们都认识一些来自芙蓉的朋友，我相信我们还有机会到芙蓉去参观，更能到这个蜈蚣山，去补上这次无法欣赏到的景点的遗憾。

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Apr 07

我生命中最重要的男人。

By Compassion, Life Journal

我生命中最重要的男人~ 爸爸

“自立更生” – 这句话是他送给我出来社会工作的礼物。

这份礼物让我受用至今。有点大男人的他，近日对我做了些微小的事，虽然是小事，却让我感到窝心。爸爸的这份心意，我永寄予心中。

身为父亲的他或许没有给到全家很好的生活环境，不过却让我们学会珍惜得来不易的一切。在他人生字典里全家人和和气气，一家平安快乐，最为重要。所以，我们家兄弟姐妹感情都好好。小时候，爸爸说的话，就像圣旨，没人敢反。现在，他却乐得我们为他做主。

他的生命乐谱，一路都是脚踏实地的工作，放工喝茶，回家与家人吃饭。而住家饭是他的最爱，因为妈妈烹饪的厨艺好好。爸爸不挑食，什么都吃。至于水果，他最爱吃芒果，常常会切了要我陪他一同享用。 年少时，爸爸脾气特别坏。不过，到了中年的时候他的火山就渐渐的灭火了，火山再也活跃不起，哈。之前的他，忙碌了大半辈子。现在退休了，难得享清福，与子孙乐，到处逍遥去。

我知道，在家中得到他关注最多的人是我。在我成长的过程，一路都带给他最多的烦恼，令他感到头疼。不过，他却对我又爱又疼。虽然我已将近三步，不过，他还是放心不下我，他还在为我操心。（虽然他嘴里不说）或许，因为我是家中的小霸王吧！ 或许是妈妈不在身边的关系，他特别的疼爱我。载我放工，下班，准备早餐，午餐，帮我排队缴交电话费，担心我外出……

有时候，粗心的我没注意的小事，都是他在旁提醒我。我做错事，他都是往往很生气，嘴里一直念，却不对我说什么。只是要我自己面壁思过，还怪哥哥姐姐们太宠我，其实，最宠我的人是他。哈，他有时侯也很可爱，会做些小动作哄我们开心。记得与他闲谈时，往往他都会有说一两句笑话，让大家开心。

试问，有谁能抗拒一个父亲对子女的付出？所以，我们都好珍惜他为家人的付出。 从他渐渐变白的头发，使我察觉到他已年老。而我不能想象，没他在我们身边的日子。所以在没让自己留下遗憾时，我们决定要好好与他共处接下来的时光，让回忆里塞满与他的欢乐。

我久都没对他说 ：我爱他。

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Apr 07

The life of a Mexican fisherman

By Photography, Wisdom
The life of a Mexican fisherman

The life of a Mexican fisherman

A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his catch. “How long did it take you to get those?” he asked.

“Not so long,” said the Mexican.

“Then why didn’t you stay out longer and catch more?” asked the American.

The Mexican explained that his small catch was quite enough to meet his needs and feed his family.

“So what do you do with the rest of your time?” asked the American.

“I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evening, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar and sing a few songs. I have a full life.”

The American interrupted. “I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat.”

“And after that?” asked the Mexican.

“With the extra money the bigger boat will bring, you can buy a second boat and then a third boat, and then more until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants. Pretty soon you could open your own plant. You could leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York! From there you could direct your whole enterprise.”

“How long would that take?” asked the Mexican.

“Twenty — perhaps twenty-five years,” replied the American.

“And after that?”

“Afterwards? Well, my friend,” laughed the American, “that’s when it gets really interesting. When your business gets really big, you can start selling stocks and make millions!”

“Millions? Really? And after that?” said the Mexican.

“After that you’ll be able to retire, live in a beautiful place near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take siestas with your wife and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends.”

[source: http://www.trackthetime.com/fun/story-of-the-mexican-fisherman]
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Apr 06

当我老了 When I Turn Old

By Compassion, Photography, Wisdom
当我老了 When I turn old

当我老了 When I turn old

当我老了，不再是原來的我。请理解我，对我有一点耐心。
When I turn old, when I am not the original me, please understand me and have patience with me.

当我把菜汤洒到自己的衣服上时，当我忘记怎样系鞋带时，请想一想当初我是如何手把手地教你。
When I drip gravy all over my clothes, when I forget to tie my shoelaces, please remember how I taught you what to do, and how to do many things.

当我一遍又一遍地重復你早己听膩的话语,请耐心地听我说,不要打断我。你小的时候，我不得不重復那个讲过千百遍的故事，直到你进入梦乡。
When I repeatedly tell you the things that you’re tired of hearing, please be patient and listen to me. Please do not interrupt me. When you were young, I told you the same story over and over again until you were sound asleep.

当我需要你帮我洗澡时，请不要责备我。还記得小时候我千方百计哄你洗澡的情形吗？
When I need you to help me bathe, please do not scold me. Do you still remember how when you were young I had to coax you to bath?

当我对新科技和新事物不知所措时，请不要嘲笑我。想一想當初我怎样耐心地回答你的每一个 “为什么”。
When I do not understand new technology, please do not laugh at me or mock me. Please think how I used to be so patient with you to answer your every “Why”.

当我由于双腿疲勞而无法行走时，请伸出你年轻有力的手攙扶我。就像你小时候学習走路时，我扶你那样。
When my both legs are tired and I cannot walk anymore, please stretch out your strong arms to help me, just like when you were a baby learning to walk I held both your hands.

当我突然忘記我们谈话的主题，请给我一些时間让我回想。其实对我來说，谈论什么并不重要， 只要你能在一旁听我说，我就很满足。
When I suddenly forget what subject we are discussing, please give me a little time to recollect. Actually, it does not matter what we are talking about; as long as you are by my side, I am so contended and happy.

当你看着老去的我，请不要悲伤。理解我，支持我，就像你刚开始学习 如何生活时我对你那样。
When you see the old me, please do not be sad. Please understand me and support me, just like how I was with you when you were young and were just learning to face life.

当初我引導你走上人生的路，如今请陪伴我走完最后的路。给我你的爱和耐心，我会报以感激的微笑，这微笑中凝结着我对你无限的爱。
At the beginning, I guided you to the path of life . Now I ask you to keep me company to finish this last leg of my life. Give me your love and patience, I will give you a grateful smile, and crystallized in this smile is my endless love for you.

[source: http://blog.foyuan.net/space.php?uid=77349&do=blog&id=15753]
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