” The lotus has its roots in the mud,
Grows up through the deep water,
And rises to the surface.
It blooms into perfect beauty and purity in the sunlight.
It is like the mind unfolding to perfect joy and wisdom “
For a Buddhist … attaining Nibbana – Enlightenment … is discontinuation of suffering.
This poem speaks of a Lotus … and that’s our MIND. If you have seen the flower Lotus … you’d agree it’s such a beautiful creation of Mother Nature. Here, The Lotus symbolizes MIND … and it says, the Lotus grows deep rooted … in mud. Which means … even though we were born in to chaos and surrounded by evil (represented by mud) … we’ve had a MIND … which’s pure and beautiful … at Birth.
Then we grow up … its similar to the Lotus grow up through deep water … our pure MIND get exposed to forces such as malice, distress, aversion, indulgence … etc etc… until we get maturity in thoughts. And it’s been compared to the Lotus rising up to the surface. But you see … it’s still not in full bloom as yet. This lotus … requires Sun light, just as our mind requires Wisdom … for fulfillment, to have purity … once again.
And as per teaching of Lord Buddha … we’ve been given guidelines (NOT RULES) … on how to purify our thoughts … as thoughts leads / turns … in to actions. I’d say, as his follower, Buddha for us, is our SUN and his teaching is the Sun light for our MINDs.
So we learnt;
1. Right View – The right way to think about life is to see the world through the eyes of the Buddha–with wisdom and compassion.
2. Right Thought. – We are what we think. Clear and kind thoughts build good, strong characters.
3. Right Speech. – By speaking kind and helpful words, we are respected and trusted by everyone.
4. Right Conduct. – No matter what we say, others know us from the way we behave. Before we criticize others, we should first see what we do ourselves.
5. Right Livelihood. – This means choosing a job that does not hurt others. The Buddha said, “Do not earn your living by harming others. Do not seek happiness by making others unhappy.”
6. Right Effort. – A worthwhile life means doing our best at all times and having good will toward others. This also means not wasting effort on things that harm ourselves and others.
7. Right Mindfulness. – This means being aware of our thoughts, words, and deeds.
8. Right Concentration. – Focus on one thought or object at a time. By doing this, we can be quiet and attain true peace of mind.
Buddhists … do not need to be judgmental of others … as we were taught that;
” The kind of seed sown
will produce that kind of fruit.
Those who do good will reap good results.
Those who do evil will reap evil results.
If you carefully plant a good seed,
You will joyfully gather good fruit ” ~~ Dhammapada ~~
Although I’m not perfect … I’m still a Buddhist … therefore I’m sure I’d never be the first … or the last … to “throw a stone” at someone … for being a SINNER. We have no rights (being SINNERS ourselves) … to judge and punish someone else s’ acts … no matter how sinister or heinous their deeds are, most of all decide their fate?? I don’t believe it’s correct.
Apart from the LAW OF THE COUNTRY we live in, Buddhism doesn’t speak of any ‘LAW’ … any ” Buddhists LAW ” for Buddhists to abide by …. or allows or approves ONE SINNER judging ANOTHER SINNER s’ acts … and ONE SINNER punishing ANOTHER SINNER in such a way … where we’d accumulate MORE SINS in our lives … according to Buddhism our actions have its’ own results so it sounds stupid and hypocritical to me anyway.
Five Precepts;
1. No killing ~ Respect for life
2. No stealing ~ Respect for others’ property
3. No sexual misconduct ~ Respect for our pure nature
4. No lying ~ Respect for honesty
5. No intoxicants ~ Respect for a clear mind
These are our daily promises, to live by, although most Buddhists (including me) at times fail to keep up with (oh but … we’re still laymen … we have a good excuse), still … we won’t be JUDGED or PUNISHED … by another mere mortal … another IMPERFECT human … who’s full of sins … errors … and misjudgments … never … IN THE NAME OF BUDDHISM. There won’t be beheading, chopping off arm / legs or stoning to death … because … we were taught, our OWN SINS … will bring the best suited punishment upon us … in due course and we were taught … KILLING or HARMING another living being … is a SIN.
Rizana … I’m heart broken, yes … you were born poor … I feel terrible, yes … you had to start looking after your family at such a young age … but the God you worshipped … his teaching and his followers … glorify killing and punishing the sinner … and you were beheaded, for an accidental death of an infant … how I should be feeling, the rest of us be feeling … I sincerely wish, you were born in to a different faith … where your religion would shine upon you … like THE SUN … shining on the LOTUS.
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