Happy Wesak Day 2012

Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared - The Buddha

Tomorrow is Wesak Day
Happy Wesak Day to all my Buddhist friends and those who celebrate this occasion.

May all beings be happy and be free from sufferings

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There is no dignity in being poor. Poverty has no grace and absolutely doesn't do any thing to make people better. It is just a gaping hole in the soul…
 
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Learning a lesson on the universal law of impermenance from extension socket malfunction.

"Mom, I can't switch on my note book pc!" my daughter exclaimed as she fiddled with the switch.

There is nothing wrong with her note book pc.

The fault is that her machine did not receive power from the electricity supply. One of the sockets in the 6 module electrical extension has malfunctioned, probably burnt out due to long use. Another one has been abandoned for a long time since it is no longer functioning. The other 4 sockets are all plugged to the pc, printer, modem and another additional extension.

As usual on hearing the news my wife started to react, complain loudly about how modern stuffs don't last as long as they used to.

Nothing in life last forever. As everything has a limited life span it is of the nature to expire and there is no way to escape death. When the time comes to say good bye it goes and there is nothing you can do about it. Recognising the universal law of impermanence makes you more equanimous and composed in the face of sudden adversity. Instead of reacting with great agitation and emotional outburst you then serenely take charge of the process of rectifying the situation.

"We'll buy a new extension socket module from the store tomorrow." I said simply and calmly to no one in particular in the household.

Waiting in the shade

Tropicana Grande Condo project site. 4.00pm. I was scheduled to attend the technical meeting at 4.30pm. With 30 minutes to spare I decided to park my car under a shady spot by a side road off the traffic choked main road.

Not wanting to waste fuel I switched off the air conditioning system and the engine, rolled up the window and sat in the car watching the vehicles passing by in front of me. In the beginning the heat and stuffiness inside the car was overwhelming but as I sat there absorbing the tranquility and quietness and reflecting about what I was supposed to present at the meeting, my body gradually got accustomed to the heat.

At 4.20pm. I told myself that it was time to leave. After ensuring that the doors and the steering wheel were locked I then walked calmly and unhurriedly in the direction of the meeting room. The timing was almost perfect. By the time I entered the room the earlier scheduled site meeting was just coming to an end.

Wesak Day in Kajang

The main shrine in what
used to be the hall of
the former Sun cinema

Today 28/5/10 is Wesak Day, traditionally the major Buddhist festival of the year to celebrate the birth, enlightenment and death of the Buddha on the one day, the first full moon day of May. In the morning after finishing the house work I and the missus visited the local Buddhist Vihara in Kajang to offer our annual prayers to Buddhism. The Kajang Buddhist Vihara is a branch of the Buddhist Missionary Society Malaysia headquartered in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur.

In years past we used to go down to the main temple in Brickfields for the annual Wesak Day prayers. However for the past three years due to traffic congestion, parking problem and the huge crowds we had stopped going to the KL temple for the annual Wesak day prayers. Instead we opted to pray at the local temple located in the heart of Kajang town area and also much nearer to the taman where we live.

The Kajang branch occupies an old building lot that used to be the defunct Sun Cinema of the 80s. Thus in the main hall the floor slopes towards the stage at the back of the building. The former stage is now used as the main shrine with the white Buddha statue in the centre. Even some of the old cinema seating were retained for members' use.

Compared to its parent in KL, the celebration here is on a much smaller and simpler scale. There are no joss sticks and candles to lit and pollute the air, only simple offering of flowers. The loud music, vagrants, traders, and big crowds of devotees that you see in the main temple in KL are no where to be seen. With small crowds of visitors who are Kajang residents the atmosphere here is rather subdued and quite pleasant and conducive to devotional activities.

Two Sinhalese monks came to conduct a short session of prayers and tied yellow threads on the wrists of the devotees. After the offering of donations and prayers we sat down on the table in the adjourning community hall for a serving of vegetarian lunch. In true community style we washed our plates and cutleries after consuming the food.