𝗕𝘂𝗱𝗱𝗵𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗛𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 & 𝗔𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆

Namo-kāra-aṭṭhakaṁ (The Homage Octet) Homage to the Great Seer, the Worthy One, Rightly Self-awakened. Homage to the highest Dhamma, well-taught by him here. And homage to the Great Saṅgha, pure in virtue & view. Homage to the Triple Gem beginning auspiciously with AUM. And homage to those three objects that have left base things behind. By the potency of this homage, may misfortunes disappear. By the potency of this homage, may there always be well-being. https://www.dhammatalks.org/books/ChantingGuide/Section0050.html

The root of all suffering and attachments is within ourselves. The unwise mistakenly believe that suffering and attachments come from the outside. Our attempts to find happiness and freedom by visiting various places and meeting different people are to no avail because happiness and freedom can never be found outside of our minds. No matter what kinds of problems we may have, if we reflect deeply, we realize that the root of our afflictions is within us and that the mind itself is empty. With this realization, all of our suffering and attachments disappear right away. - Ven. Pomnyun Sunim

In Person & Online Meditation Retreat with Ajahn Anan Online: 28 Oct – 04 Nov 2023 “With each mindful moment, you move one step closer to nibbāna.” You are invited to join in-person for the Oct-Nov 2023 meditation retreat with Ajahn Anan at Wat Marp Jan, Rayong OR join us from where you are ONLINE via Zoom app. During this retreat, Ajahn Anan and the monastic sangha will guide us on the Buddha’s path of developing a heart of goodness & peace, clarity & wisdom that leads us to shedding suffering and realising true happiness. About Ajahn Anan (Phra Rajvajiranyan) Venerable Ajahn Anan Akiñcano took ordination under Venerable Ajahn Chah in 1975 at the age of 22. He spent his early years as a monk living with his teacher, attending on him and receiving his wise guidance. He was soon encouraged by Ajahn Chah to search out more secluded places to further his efforts in meditation. Register here: https://watmarpjan.org/en/live/retreat-oct-2023/

He is the Buddha, and I am his disciple | Upāli Sutta (MN 56) The householder Upāli got up from his seat, arranged his robe over one shoulder, raised his joined palms in the direction of the Buddha, and said to the Jain Ñātika, “Well then, sir, hear whose disciple I am": The wise one, free of delusion, rid of barrenness, victor in battle; he’s untroubled and so even-minded, with the virtue of an elder and the wisdom of a saint, immaculate in the midst of it all: he is the Buddha, and I am his disciple. He has no indecision, he’s content, joyful, he has spat out the world’s bait; he has completed the ascetic’s task as a human, a man who bears his final body; he’s beyond compare, he’s stainless: he is the Buddha, and I am his disciple. He’s free of doubt, he’s skillful, he’s a trainer, an excellent charioteer; supreme, with brilliant qualities, confident, his light shines forth; he has cut off conceit, he’s a hero: he is the Buddha, and I am his disciple. The chief bull, immeasurable, profound, sagacious; he is the maker of sanctuary, knowledgeable, firm in principle and restrained; he has slipped his chains and is liberated: he is the Buddha, and I am his disciple. He’s a giant, living remotely, he’s ended the fetters and is liberated; he’s skilled in dialogue and cleansed, with banner put down, desireless; he’s tamed, and doesn’t proliferate: he is the Buddha, and I am his disciple. He is the seventh sage, free of deceit, with three knowledges, he has attained to holiness, he has bathed, he knows philology, he’s tranquil, he understands what is known; he crushes resistance, he is the lord: he is the Buddha, and I am his disciple. The noble one, evolved, he has attained the goal and explains it; he is mindful, discerning, neither leaning forward nor pulling back, he’s unstirred, attained to mastery: he is the Buddha, and I am his disciple. Rightly comported, he practices absorption, not following inner thoughts, he is pure, independent, and fearless; secluded, he has reached the peak, crossed over, he helps others across: he is the Buddha, and I am his disciple. He’s peaceful, his wisdom is vast, with great wisdom, he’s free of greed; he is the Realized One, the Holy One, unrivaled, unequaled, assured, and subtle: he is the Buddha, and I am his disciple. He has cut off craving and is awakened, free of fuming, unsullied; a mighty spirit worthy of offerings, best of men, inestimable, grand, he has reached the peak of glory: he is the Buddha, and I am his disciple.” https://suttacentral.net/mn56/en/sujato?lang=en&layout=plain&reference=none&notes=asterisk&highlight=false&script=latin

Ven. Arahant Mahā Moggallāna tells a Brahmin to pay respect to Arahant Kassapa, otherwise his head may explode! (Thag 20.1) There, in a mountain cave, that monk meditates. He is a son of the incomparable Buddha, the one with an unshaken mind. He is calm and well restrained. He lives in faraway forests. He is a sage. He is the heir of the Great Buddha. He is even worshiped by Brahma. Brāhmin, pay homage to the heir of the Buddha, the Arahant Kassapa who is calm, well restrained, and a sage who lives in faraway forests. Even if one is born as a Brāhmin among humans one hundred times in the clan of Brāhmins and studies Veda scriptures, if one worships such a Brāhmin who is well versed in the three Vedas and has reached the climax of his studying, that worshiping is not worth even a sixteenth part of the homage paid to the Arahant Kassapa. Every morning that monk attains the Eight Liberations forwards and backwards. After that he goes on his alms round. Brāhmin, don’t trouble such a monk. Do not destroy yourself. Have confidence in the enlightened sage, the one with an unshaken mind. Quickly join your palms and pay homage. May your head not split open! https://suttafriends.org/sutta/thag20-1/

Clean House, Clean Mind | Shoukei Matsumoto Below are very simple exercises which one can apply into their daily lives to cultivate mindfulness and harmony within and without. Do not make your practice complicate, boil it down to simple steps. This is the essence of Zen approach. 1. Do your cleaning in the morning or another time when silence surrounds you. 2. Cleaning and tidying up are daily tasks, and what matters most is consistency and perseverance. 3. Before cleaning, open the windows to allow fresh air to enter your home space; rejoice in this chance to connect with the natural world. 4. Avoid killing or harming insects or other living beings in your home while you are cleaning. 5. Use household chores as a means of deepening family bonds: change around cleaning duties. 6. Be mindful of the weather. 7. Don't put off or postpone chores for meaningless diversions or escapes from cleaning and polishing your soul and mind and body. 8. Take good care of the tools of cleaning such as brooms, dustpans, buckets, and baking soda. 9. Keep the sources of light in your home free of grime. 10. Mark the changing of the seasons with a change of clothes and care-taking for last season's outfits. 11. Use the energy from the sun to dry your clothes and laundry. 12. Use newspapers to clean windows. 13. Look up and take away cobwebs when no one is home. 14. Pay attention to your most prized possessions and they will tell you where they want to be kept. 15. Vary your special cleaning times: try a spring cleaning or an end of the year one. By carefully cleaning and looking after your home, you are performing sacred chores and enriching both your outer and inner lives!

The Fire Sermon (Samyutta Nikāya 35.28) The Fire Sermon is the third discourse delivered by the Buddha (after the Dhammacakkapavattana Sutta and the Anattalakkhana Sutta), several months after his enlightenment, on top of the Gayasisa Hill, near Gaya, India. He delivered it to a thousand newly converted ascetics who formerly practiced a sacred fire ritual. Bhikkhus, all is burning. Burning with what? Burning with the fire of lust, with the fire of hatred, with the fire of delusion; burning with birth, aging, and death; with sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair, I say. Seeing this, a learned noble disciple grows disenchanted. Being disenchanted, desire fades away. When desire fades away, he is liberated. When liberated, the knowledge arises that rebirth is ended, the spiritual life has been completed. https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/sn/sn35/sn35.028.nymo.html

Overcoming Lust "With sensual lust I burn. My mind is on fire. Please, Gotama, from compassion, tell me how to put it out." - Ananda Sutta (SN 8.4) The ‘meditations on a corpse’ is one of several subjects found in the category of ‘right mindfulness’ in the Noble Eightfold Path. The body is the first of four subjects for the practice of mindfulness, the others being feelings, mental states and Dhamma. One practice recommended to cool the fire of lust is the practice of "Asubha Mediation". "There is the case where a monk remains focused on unattractiveness with regard to the body, percipient of loathsomeness with regard to food, percipient of non-delight with regard to the entire world, (and) focused on inconstancy with regard to all fabrications." Here is a PDF by Ajahn Maha Boowa on Asubha, with graphic photos showing 32 parts of the body. https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ep2LAdeRgPGM1H7CHVvBXVcSXUY1vDED

Buddhist Temple in Beijing (China) - Baipu Temple Beijing is home to a wealth of ancient temples and historical sites. Baipu Temple, or White Waterfall Temple, so named because of two waterfalls at the site, was first built during the Liao Dynasty and is located deep in the mountains in Beijing's Mentougou district. It is an ancient temple in the Liao Dynasty with a history of more than 900 years. The tower is 10 meters high and has a solid hexagon. The tower shape is a rare and precious type of tower in China and a masterpiece among the dense eaves towers of the Jin Dynasty.

Since it’s World Rhino Day, let us recollect some powerful verses from Khaggavisana Sutta to cultivate and strive for solitude, dispassion and detachment. One whose mind is enmeshed in sympathy for friends & companions, neglects the true goal. Seeing this danger in intimacy, wander alone like a rhinoceros. We praise companionship — yes! Those on a par, or better, should be chosen as friends. If they're not to be found, living faultlessly, wander alone like a rhinoceros. Because sensual pleasures, elegant, honeyed, & charming, bewitch the mind with their manifold forms — seeing this drawback in sensual strands, wander alone like a rhinoceros. Consort with one who is learned, who maintains the Dhamma, a great & quick-witted friend. Knowing the meanings, subdue your perplexity, [then] wander alone like a rhinoceros… https://accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/snp/snp.1.03.than.html

Standing to one side, a devata addressed the Blessed One with a verse: Living in the wilderness, staying peaceful, remaining chaste, eating just one meal a day: why are their faces so bright & serene? [The Buddha:] They don't sorrow over the past, don't long for the future. They survive on the present. That's why their faces are bright & serene. From longing for the future, from sorrowing over the past, fools wither away like a green reed cut down. - Buddha, SN 1.10

Having seen Craving, Discontent, and Lust, I had no desire for the pleasures of love. What is this body, filled with urine and dung? I should not be willing to touch it, even with my foot. - Buddha, Snp 4.9

Tilaurakot in Kapilvastu District (Lumbini Province of southern Nepal) may be the location of the ancient Shakyan city of Kapilavastu, where Gautama Buddha spent the first 29 years of his life. Some archaeologists have identified the Tilaurakot archeological site as the location for the historical site of Kapilavastu. Tilaurakot was discovered by PC Mukherji in 1899 tracing the journey of those two Chinese monks following the history, they were visited Tilaurakot in the 3rd and 6th centuries AD. Experts have discovered the palaces, temples, monuments, sculptures, ponds, roads and some believe that the place was the capital of Shakya Kingdom and home town of Buddha. Archaeological excavation is still going on as of now at Tilaurakot and it is believed by some to be the ancient palace of King Suddhodhana, father of Buddha. Three palaces believed to be that of King Suddhodama are being explored by excavation. It was listed as a UNESCO tentative site in 1996 by the Nepalese government.

SuttaCentral website offers translation of Pali Canon in multiple languages. In case you didn’t know about this feature in suttacentral.net website, you have the option to select from multiple languages, and the website will provide you all the suttas in the language you selected. 1) Go to suttacentral.net 2) Click on 3 dots on upper right corner. 3) Select your language and navigate the site.

Kshitigarbha Bodhisattava / Jizo in Japanese— descends to hell on a lotus throne to help those suffering in hells. He is beloved all over Asia as the protector of children. He also taught “demons” in his compassion, transforming them with the Dharma. Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva was mostly known for his vow to take the responsibility to guide all living beings existed in the six realms between the departure of Lord Buddha and the rise of future Buddha, Maitreya.

The Names of the Hells - Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva Fundamental Vow Sutra In Chapter 5 of this sutra, Bodhisattava Ksitigarbha gives a detail of different types, levels of Hells. Humane One, in eastern Jambudvipa there is a mountain range called Iron Ring. That mountain range is pitch black because the light of the sun and moon does not shine on it. A great hell named Ultimately Relentless is located there. Another hell is called Great Avici. There is also a hell called Four Horns, a hell called Flying Knives, a hell called Fiery Arrows, a hell called Squeezing Mountains, a hell called Piercing Spears, a hell called Iron Carts, a hell called Iron Beds, a hell called Iron Oxen, a hell called Iron Clothing, a hell called Thousand Blades, a hell called Iron Asses, a hell called Molten Copper, a hell called Embracing Pillar, a hell called Flowing Fire, a hell called Plowing Tongues, a hell called Hacking Heads, a hell called Burning Feet, a hell called Pecking Eyes, a hell called Iron Pellets, a hell called Quarreling, a hell called Iron Ax, and a hell called Massive Hatred. Within the Iron Ring are endless hells like that. There is also the Hell of Crying Out, the Hell of Pulling Tongues, the Hell of Dung and Urine, the Hell of Copper Locks, the Hell of Fire Elephants, the Hell of Fire Dogs, the Hell of Fire Horses, the Hell of Fire Oxen, the Hell of Fire Mountains, the Hell of Fire Rocks, the Hell of Fire Beds, the Hell of Fire Beams, the Hell of Fire Eagles, the Hell of Sawing Teeth, the Hell of Flaying Skin, the Hell of Drinking Blood, the Hell of Burning Hands, the Hell of Burning Feet, the Hell of Hanging Hooks, the Hell of Fire Rooms, the Hell of Iron Cells, and the Hell of Fire Wolves. Each of those hells contains lesser hells numbering from one, two, three, four, to hundreds of thousands. Each of those lesser hells has its own name. Humane One, such are the karmic responses of beings in Jambudvipa who commit evil deeds. The power of karma is extremely great. It rivals Mount Sumeru in its heights. It surpasses the great oceans in its depths. It obstructs the path leading to sagehood. For that reason, beings should never think that minor bad deeds are unimportant or assume that they do not count as offenses. After death, there will be retributions to undergo that reflect all those details. You can read the full chapter here: http://www.cttbusa.org/ess/earthstore5.htm

#Chandrayaan3 From Cycle to the Moon - India makes history as it becomes the first nation to land on the moon's south pole. Congratulations to whole India and ISRO team for the hard work and making this happen to inspire generations to come. May India reaches new heights, and strive in harmony. 🇮🇳