𝗕𝘂𝗱𝗱𝗵𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗛𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 & 𝗔𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆

Kim Kyeong-Ho, Korean expert reproduces Buddhist sutras by hand. Kim not only replicates the written characters of each manuscript, but also the images of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. In Buddhism, the art of sutra copying, or sagyeong, is a pious practice for spiritual discipline. Along with painting, it formed a major genre of Buddhist art during the Goryeo Dynasty (918–1392), when Buddhism was the state religion. In his youth, he took a night train three times to leave home and become a Buddhist monk, but each time, his father managed to find him in some corner of the country and returned him to his place in the secular world. The recollection gave rise to still another question: As sutra copying in Buddhism is regarded as an act of accumulating merit through pious deeds, does he have special religious experiences while practicing it? https://www.koreana.or.kr/koreana/na/ntt/selectNttInfo.do?mi=1069&nttSn=51097&bbsId=1115&langTy=KOR

Holy relics from 🇮🇳 depart from Ubon Ratchathani for Krabi. Over 800,000 devotees paid obeisance to the holy relics at Wat Wanaram in Ubon Ratchathani over the last 4 days. Nearly 300,000 pilgrims visited relics yesterday, as exposition remained open till late evening. https://twitter.com/IndiainThailand/status/1768090286700527862

“I had a strange dream last night, I saw Amitabha Buddha radiating rays of golden light into the world. When I awoke and the baby was born, a wonderful fragrance filled the air. Our son must be special.” - Master Hsuan Hua's Mother

Ānāpānassati Sutta - Mindfulness of Breathing Why Practice?

Bhikkhus, when mindfulness of breathing is developed and cultivated, it is of great fruit and great benefit. When mindfulness of breathing is developed and cultivated, it fulfils the four foundations of mindfulness. When the four foundations of mindfulness are developed and cultivated, they fulfil the seven enlightenment factors. When the seven enlightenment factors are developed and cultivated, they fulfil true knowledge and deliverance.

How to Practice?

Here a bhikkhu, gone to the forest or to the root of a tree or to an empty hut, sits down; having folded his legs crosswise, set his body erect, and established mindfulness in front of him, ever mindful he breathes in, mindful he breathes out.

Full Sutta Instructions

Amida Buddha, Ushiku - Japan 🇯🇵

Indian Rhino with a single horn, walking the streets in Nepal. Rhinoceros is used as a metaphor for solitary practice by the Buddha in Khaggavisana Sutta. For the Indian rhinoceros, unlike the African, has only one horn. For this reason due to it’s unique one horn, Buddha gave the reference of a Rhino.

Abandoning offspring, spouse, father, mother, riches, grain, relatives, & sensual pleasures altogether, wander alone like a rhinoceros.

Tokyo Daibutsu at Jorenji Temple in Tokyo - Japan. It is the 3rd largest bronze Buddha statue in Japan. The Buddha was enshrined here at Jorenji temple in 1977 to commemorate those who lost their lives in the World War II, and also the Great Kanto Earthquake. Namu Amida Butsu🇯🇵☸️

Son Wukong (Monkey King) fights The Buddha. He was imprisoned under a mountain by the Buddha for 500 years. Later he goes to the West (India) in search for Buddhist texts along with Tang Sanzang. The novel “Journey to the West” was inspired from Xuanzang’s Journey To The West (India).

Goku and Guanyin Bodhisattva both ride Dragon Shenron it seems. Goku is actually Son Wukong from the Novel, the monkey king who was imprisoned under a mountain by the Buddha. Son Wukong goes on a journey to obtain Buddhist sutras from the West (India), where Buddha and his followers dwell. Bulma's search for the legendary Dragon Balls is, at its core, taken from Tang Sanzang's retrieval of the sacred Buddhist texts. May Akira Toriyama attain rebirth in the Western land of bliss. Namu Amida Butsu 🙏🏽☸️🐉

Japanese creator, Akira Toriyama behind wildly popular Dragon Ball series has died aged 68. Dragon Ball creator, Akira Toriyama, based a significant portion of his story, character designs, and thematic elements on the classic Chinese novel, Journey to the West. Journey to the West is based on the pilgrimage of a Buddhist monk named Xuanzang who travelled to the West (India) the land to retrieve sacred Buddhist texts, after much trial and tribulation. The novelization of this journey follows a monk called Tang Sanzang, likewise in search for sacred Buddhist texts, but contains fantastic and mythical elements that made the adventure an enduring literary piece. On their quest, the heroes must overcome fearful monsters and traverse dangerous landscapes as they search for the sacred texts.

China 🇨🇳 Chinese Buddhism is the largest institutionalized religion in mainland China. Chinese Buddhism also developed various unique traditions of Buddhist thought and practice, including Tiantai, Huayan, Chan Buddhism, and Pure Land Buddhism. Currently, there are an estimated 185 to 250 million Chinese Buddhists.

Fukuoka, Japan 🇯🇵

Engaged Buddhism: Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation Breaks Ground on “Great Love Village” in India Tzu Chi has supported India for many years through a range of humanitarian initiatives, including disaster relief, healthcare, and education. “Tzu Chi is excited to announce the groundbreaking of Great Love Village in Silaunja. This project will provide 36 safe and secure homes for underprivileged families. The groundbreaking ceremony on 25 February celebrated unity and compassion, as volunteers joined hands with local officials and community members.” Tzu Chi explained. “As Master Cheng Yen said: ‘Repaying the Buddha’s homeland has always been a deeply personal aspiration of mine. May these 36 Great Love homes not only provide shelter from the wind and rain, but also foster a vibrant, model community with improved living conditions and enduring peace.’” Read Full Report: https://www.buddhistdoor.net/news/engaged-buddhism-buddhist-tzu-chi-foundation-breaks-ground-on-great-love-village-in-india/

Online Retreat with Ajahn Anan, 20 – 27 Mar 2024 8-day online meditation retreat with Ajahn Anan where together we will walk on the Buddha’s path of mindfulness, peace, clarity and wisdom that leads us to the ending of suffering. The schedule includes periods of chanting and meditation, Dhamma talks and Q&A sessions. 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. This online retreat is suitable for those who are able to commit to the entire schedule as it is a full and comprehensive retreat. Ajahn Anan has also kindly made the retreat open to those who can only join in for parts due to other commitments such as work or family, or time-zone differences, so that all who have the faith and energy to join may still benefit. Registration: https://watmarpjan.org/en/live/retreat-mar2024/

Hawai‘i Buddhist Monastery Celebrates Milestone with 75,000 Meals Donated Honoka‘a Hongwanji Buddhist Temple, affiliated with the Jodo Shinshu school of Buddhism, celebrated giving out its 75,000th meal on 16 February. The temple’s Peace Committee has been offering weekly free meals to the community for five years, coordinated and run entirely by volunteers in the small town of Honoka‘a on the island of Hawai‘i. The program is called “Feeding Our Keiki and Kupuna” (Feeding Our Children and Ancestors). https://www.buddhistdoor.net/news/hawaii-buddhist-monastery-celebrates-milestone-with-75000-meals-donated/

Q&A with Ven. Ajahn Anan Q: My mind feels contained within a calm boundary, but the mind still thinks and moves sometimes. Sometimes the mind is more still and peaceful. Luang Por Anan: If you think, then contemplate thinking as changing, unstable, and uncertain. This is wisdom. Q: Miss Universe had plastic surgery. She is 70 and looks 40. Does this go against the law of old age, sickness, and death? Luang Por Anan: Luang Pu Chah said about plastic surgery that you can push and pull the flesh and skin to make the body look better, but, eventually, you just can’t push or pull it anymore. Also, even if you look young, does one still feel as strong and healthy as before? Q: When the mind is very peaceful, should I let it stay peaceful or should I contemplate? In this peacefulness, there is clear knowing and the breath can disappear. Luang Por Anan: Stay peaceful as long as you can. This gives strength and power to the mind. The more power the better, because when the mind leaves that state of peacefulness then the contemplation will be deeper. Q: I’m taking time off the meditate in India, Burma and Malaysia. I reflect on the closeness of my death and want to practice strongly. I try to be mindful all day. Should mindfulness be more relaxed or more precise like with noting all the movements in an activity? Luang Por Anan: Posture and movement are outer things. The point of mindfulness at all times is to make the heart light and radiant in all postures and activities, whether standing, walking, sitting, or lying down. Then the mind can be calm and still. Q: How do the 4 divine abidings of lovingkindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity relate to gratitude? And also to the 5 precepts? Which comes first? Luang Por Anan: The precepts, or our morality, comes first. We need lovingkindness and compassion to keep the precepts, since we need a kind heart to refrain from harmful action. We need the 4 divine abidings and samadhi to see the Dhamma. We can see the Dhamma through contemplating lovingkindness. Q: The mind is a lotus – the top of the lotus is radiant, and the root has dirty water around it. We need mindfulness and wisdom to keep the dirty water out. The lotus has not yet bloomed. Luang Por Anan: For a person wishing to build parami, a lotus underwater is good for animals to eat and will not grow. A lotus on top of water has more parami. A lotus above water but not yet bloomed gets the nourishing light of the sun and waits to bloom, or see the Dhamma. Sometimes it is not yet time for the lotus to bloom. In this case look after the mind with mindfulness and wisdom, keep out the dirty water, and wait until the causes are right to see the Dhamma.

Ven. Tep Vong, Cambodian Buddhism’s Supreme Patriarch, Dies at 93 He played a significant role in Cambodia’s religious landscape, overseeing both the Mahanikay and Dhammayut orders of Theravada Buddhism. With approximately 97 per cent of Cambodia’s population adhering to Buddhism, his influence was widespread. He played a crucial role in revitalizing Buddhism in Cambodia following the devastating impact of the Khmer Rouge regime from 1975–79, which saw the attempted eradication of organized religion and resulted in the deaths of an estimated 1.7 million people, including an estimated five out of every eight Buddhist monks in the country. Read Here: https://www.buddhistdoor.net/news/ven-tep-vong-cambodian-buddhisms-supreme-patriarch-dies-at-93/