Peace Through Buddhism

The Buddha taught the most deeply rooted, most perfectly developed ethical idealism there has ever been. Beneath the serenity of the Buddha image, underlying the Buddha’s calm reasoning with his followers and inspiring the simple and gentle ceremonies of practicing Buddhists there is a heart-stirring message of universal love. The sublime grandeur of the Buddha’s teaching may be gathered by such utterances as,

“Hatred never ends hatred – only love ends hatred.”

“Victory breeds hatred, for the conquered are unhappy.”

“One may conquer a thousand in battle, but the greatest victor is he who conquers himself.”

Each one of us has Buddha-nature, that is, the potentiality to enter Nirvana, and although we may not do so during our present lives, each of us can, if we choose, take a step towards it by first understanding, and then practicing the teachings of the Buddha. In doing so, we first find peace in ourselves, and then we spread it in ever-widening circles. Here, then is something we can do to make a positive contribution to peace.

Buddhists believe that the consequences of our actions are entirely our own responsibility. If our minds are pure, our thoughts will be pure. If our thoughts are pure our actions will be pure. A peaceful mind brings peaceful actions – and peaceful actions spread peace.

The Peaceful heart of Buddhism

Buddhism teaches that peace must begin in the mind of each and every man and woman. No amount of social and economic development will automatically bring about peace unless each and every one of us, purposefully and consciously directs his or her attitude of mind towards seeking the peaceful heart of Buddhism.

The attitudes of mind that can enable each one of us to make our own personal contributions to peace were taught by the Buddha and are known as the Four Sublimes States. They are:

Loving kindness

Compassion

Sympathetic Joy

Equanimity

They are know as Sublime States, because they are the right, or ideal way of conduct towards living beings. They provide, in fact the answer to all situations arising from social contact. They are the great removers of tension, the great peacemakers in social conflict, builders of harmonious communities and revivers of joy and hope.

If they are developed, by conduct and by meditation, they become the dominating influence in one’s mind. It is stressed that they are not only objects for meditation, but should also be the foundation for our conduct.

If our conduct is guided and inspired by the Four Sublime States, we will not only develop ourselves but will also make our contributions to peace, both by our own actions and by extending the virtues and spirit of the Four Sublime Truth.

- Author Unknown 

Vinegar May Be A Fat Buster

The latest fat-busting weapon may be found right in your kitchen.

According to health website WebMd, Japanese researchers said that ordinary household vinegar appears to turn on genes that help the body break down fats. This helps prevent fat buildup in the body, thwarting weight gain.

Vinegar has been used in folk remedies since ancient times. In recent years, research has suggested that acetic acid, the organic chemical in vinegar which gives it is sour taste, can help control blood pressure and blood sugar.

The Japanese researchers, led by Dt Tomoo Kondo from the Central Research Institute of the Mizkan Group Corporation, found that vinegar could influence genes lined to fatty acid oxidation and hear-generating (energy-burning) proteins.

They fed mice a high-fat diet. One group of mice was given vinegar through a stomach tube. Another group was given a lower dose – vinegar diluted with water – and a third group was not given vinegar.

The experiment showed that all the vinegar-fed mice developed a lot less body fat (up to 10 per cent less) than mice which did not receive the vinegar compound. The amount of food eaten by the mice was not affected.

The research suggests that vinegar might help a person lose weight or fight obesity.

The findings were published in the Journal Of Agricultural And Food Chemistry.

A Joke Carried Too Far

              A man was accused of stealing a tool kit from someone else’s garage. “But I just took it as a joke,” he protested before the judge.

              “How far did you carry the tool kit?” the judge wanted to know.

              “Just three blocks,” replied the defendant.

              “Thirty days, then,” proclaimed the judge, “for carrying the joke too far.”

What Is The Purpose Of Life?

To know the purpose of life, you will first have to study the subject through your experience and insight.

First, you must understand the nature of man and the nature of life. Next, you keep your mind calm and peaceful. 

When these conditions are met, the answer you seek will come like the gentle rain from the sky.

Understanding the nature of man

As yet, man is still wrapped in ignorance. He does not know who he really is or what is expected of him. Man must make an effort to overcome ignorance to arrive at realization and Enlightenment.

Man must realize that what he is today is the result of an untold number of repetitions in thoughts and actions. He is continually in the process of becoming, always changing. And it is in this characteristic of change that his future lies, because it means that it is possible for him to mould his character and destiny through the choice of his actions, speech and thoughts. Indeed, he becomes the thoughts and actions that he chooses to perform.

Understanding the nature of life

Most people fail to realize that life is uncertain, but that death is certain. One way of understanding life is to face and understand death which is nothing more than a temporary end to a temporary existence. Recollections on death with the right mental attitude can give a person courage and calmness as well as an insight into the nature of existence.

Besides understanding death, we need a better understanding of our life. We are living a life that does not always proceed as smoothly as we would like it to. Very often, we face problems and difficulties. We should not be afraid of them because the penetration into the very nature of these problems and difficulties can provide us with a deeper insight into life. The worldly happiness in wealth, luxury, respectable positions in life which most people seek is an illusion.

The need for a religion 

To understand the real purpose of life, it is advisable for a person to choose and follow an ethical-moral system that restrains a person from evil deeds, encourages him to do good and enables him to purify his mind. For simplicity, awe shall call this system 'religion'. 

Practicing a religion is nothing more than the development of one's inner awareness, goodwill and understanding. It teaches a person how to calm down the senses, make the heart, and mind peaceful. The secret of claming down the senses is to eliminate desire which is the root of our disturbances. 

It is very important for us to have contentment. The poorest men who have learnt to have contentment may enjoy their lives far more than the richest people do. Everyone aims for happiness in life, yet experience shows time and again that its attainment is so elusive.

- Author Unknown 

Can We Find True Security In The World?

In the desperate search for happiness, a person places his hopes and dreams on his family, friends, success in business, acquiring wealth and property, pleasure and beauty. Yet, does he get happiness from any of them?

Family and friends? While loving family and good friends can be a constant source of happiness, he cannot depend on them forever, someone he loves may pass away or leave him. If his love is centred on one person, the separation will cause him great sorrow.

Business? His business can go bankrupt. Someone he trusts may abscond with the money. A sudden change in the international political scene may destroy his factories and property overseas.

Money? The only reason people want money is because they think it can get them what they want. While money can ensure a comfortable life, it cannot guarantee happiness. Have you seen how some rich people live? They surround their homes with huge walls and gates. The doors are padlocked and all windows barred. They live in constant fear – fear of being robbed, of having their children kidnapped, of losing the wealth they have so painfully gathered, of relatives and friends who might take advantage, of being cheated when responsibilities are give to others.

Pleasure? For the moment he is lost in a good show, fine music or a game, he thinks that is all he wants. The entertainment has to be better and more vigorous each time to maintain interest. After it is over, he cannot escape the feeling of boredom and the fruitlessness of these pleasures.

Beauty and Youth? While still young, he spends hours maintaining his looks to draw attention from everyone. But no one can remain young forever. Time will be his greatest enemy. The skin that is smooth and delicate will later be furrowed with wrinkles. Muscles that are agile will become weak. The body that responds to any whims of the mind becomes the home of sickness and pain.

There is no security in family, friends, money, position, youth and beauty. The short-lived pleasures are only brief interludes to pain and drudgery. There is no guarantee against failure and disappointments. There is no guarantee to perfect health. Not even the richest and most influential can buy true joy. In this, the man who owns an empire is equal to a pauper who lives in a lean-to shed. Both have their share of sorrow and disappointments. Both will fall sick, grow old and die.

- Author Unknown 

The Cause Of Human Problems And How To Overcome Them

Ignorance which arises from the lack of proper understanding of the nature of life and the mere imaginations regarding the nature of inherent cosmic laws – this is the main cause of all human problems.

As long as man’s mind is clouded by ignorance of the truth of human existence and of the laws that govern its existence, man’s life will involve suffering of various nature – problems and difficulties, worries and miseries, conflicts and disappointments.

Out of ignorance you create your own suffering which you then share with your fellowmen. The miseries and worries that come to you are due to worldly conditions, your unbalanced and undeveloped mind, and the reactions of evil practices done by you. Whilst the unbalanced mind is easily swayed and troubled by worldly conditions such as profit and loss, praised and blamed, fame and ill-fame, sorrow and happiness, the undeveloped mind prolongs the sway and increased the trouble by its very adamant attitude – blaming yourself or other people and external sources for all your troubles and disturbances.

If you avoid blaming yourself as well as others, you will understand that you are responsible for everything that happens in this world and that there is no world without you. In the highest level of thinking, you should see things as they really are, not as you are. Then you will know that you are responsible for everything.

It is one thing to realize that you are also responsible for all the troubles and problems that come to you. It is another thing to know what you must do to overcome the disturbances that come to you through other people and external sources.

When somebody does something wrong to you owing to his ignorance, misunderstandings and human emotions, then it is time for you to reveal and to utilize your wisdom, your education, your sympathy and your religious background.

It is when others do wrong to you that you must take these actions as opportunities for you to get rid of your defilements and to practise and develop the noble virtues of patience, tolerance and understanding. If you know how to make good use of these noble humane qualities, then you will be able to realise how they can be of great help to relieve you from many of the enormous miseries and sufferings that burden your life.

To take revenge on your troublemaker is to invite more problems and difficulties. Negative feelings and negative actions only bring hatred and suffering to you and your troublemaker. In order to take revenge you have to create hatred and anger in your own minds thus polluting it. This hatred and anger is like a poisonous substance which is secreted, by the glands in your own body. Please remember that when you are going to throw cow dung or mud at another person, you will first have to dirty your own hands. By hating and getting angry with others, you only give them power over you, but you do not solve your problems. Such behaviour make you no better than your enemies.

The Buddha says, “Ah, happily do we live without hate amongst the hateful. Amidst the hateful men, we live without hate.”

Perhaps you may not be strong enough or good enough to love your enemies, but for the sake of your own health and happiness, you must learn at least to forgive and forget.

Many people do evil because of their ignorance and you should not curse them or condemn them into eternal suffering. Instead you should try to correct them, without showing your emotions, that they are wrong and point out where they have gone wrong. With this understanding, you can treat the evildoer as a patient who is suffering from a sickness. If you can help to remove the cause of the sickness then the patient can be cured and can be well and happy.

Try to follow the good example set by the Buddha who always returned food for evil. The Buddha said, “The more evil that comes to me, the more good will radiate from me.” Some people think that it is not practical to return good for evil. Try and see for yourself. If you find that it is too difficult to return good for evil, then you can still do a great service to yourself and to others by not returning evil for evil.

Remember that whatever happens you cannot feel hurt if you know how to keep a balanced mind. You are hurt only by the mental attitude that you adopt towards others. No one can hurt you unless you allow him to hurt you. If another person blames or scolds you and if you are following the Dharma, the Dharma will protect you from the unjust attacks. The Buddha says. “Whoever harms a harmless person, one pure and guiltless, upon that very fool the evil recoils like find dust thrown against the wind.” If you allow others to be successful in hurting you, you are responsible.

To protect whatever inner peace and calm you have managed to create within your mind, you must know when to surrender yourself; you must know when to throw away your pride; when to subdue your false ego and when to change your adamant attitude or false conviction.

To guard yourself from unjust criticism and how to make use of constructive criticism, you must look objectively at whatever criticism that others give to you. If the criticism that comes to you is just, well founded and given with good intention, then accept that criticism and put it to use. 

However if the criticism that comes to you is unjust and ill founded and given with bad intention, you are under no obligation to accept this kind of criticism. If you know that your attitude is correct and appreciated by wise and cultured people then do not worry about the ill-founded criticism. Your attitude towards both constructive and destructive criticism is important.

Unnecessary worry and troubles can be avoided by not comparing yourself with others. So long as you regard others as your ‘superior’, ‘equal’ or as your ‘inferior’, you will continue to have problems to worry about. If you think you are better than others, you may become proud; if you think you are equal to others you may stagnate; if you think you are inferior to others you may become useless to yourself and to others. 

Comparing yourself with others can be a source of unnecessary worry. Try to realize that superiority, equality and inferiority are all changing, relative states; at one time you may be a beggar, at another time you may be a rich person. In the endless rounds within the oceans of life and death, we are all equal, inferior and superior to each other at different times. So why worry.

If at all you have to make any comparison, then you should compare the degree of your problems and difficulties with that experienced by others. Whenever problems and difficulties arise you must realize that you are not the only ones in the world with such problems. Many others are worse off than you and yet they do not worry unduly. You should also realize how you have gone through many problems and difficulties, under similar or worse situations and, somehow or other you have managed to overcome your difficulties to ‘drown you’. You have to develop your self-confidence and face the worst of situations in this manner.

There are various ways and means for you to reduce your mental agony and happiness. First and foremost, you must try to understand the nature of the world where you live. You must never expect everything in this world to be perfect and to run smoothly all the time. You must be prepared to face difficulties. The more you crave for worldly pleasures the more you have to be prepared to pay the price in terms of physical and mental agony. There is nothing free in this world.

Human nature being what it is, all of us are incline to put the blame on others for our own shortcomings or misfortunes. The sooner we realize that our shortcomings are due to our own ignorance of the real nature of life and the laws which govern it, the sooner we will be able to realize that bliss incomparable and peace eternal. Our sorrows are not caused by a family curse that is handed down from one generation to the next nor are they caused by the original sin of some ancestor who has returned from beyond the graves to haunt us. Nor are our sorrows and miseries created by God or by Devil. Our sorrows and miseries are our own making. We are our own jailer; we are our own liberator.

- Author Unknown 

Buddhism To Combat Social Problems

Buddhism is more of a way of life as it offers a course of simple, pure and harmonious living. The Teachings of Buddha emphasize on self-reliance, self-responsibility and more – on the cultivating of both social and spiritual values which help to mould a person into a typical Buddhist character.

In His teachings, Lord Buddha stressed on the importance of cultivating good social values in life like generosity, perseverance, determination, patience, truth fullness and loving kindness and not forgetting the spiritual values of morality, renunciation and equanimity.

We are fully aware that nobody is born with good values. Good personalities and qualities are to be cultivated in life’s long journey.

Perseverance and determination are two transcendental virtues which Buddha advised His disciples to cultivate and practise.

As we cultivate perseverance, we may eventually find ourselves not only having the physical strength of doing moral actions, but also developing the mental vigour and strength of character.

Life is not always a bed of roses; there is always life’s harder moments to encounter. Ours is a rat race world where the impact of changes and challenges in every corner of the world is so immediate and pressing. With perseverance, mental vigour and strength of character, we may be able to survive the pace. With this value of perseverance, we are in a position of setting goals and accomplishing them and thus making ourselves complete, total persons in life.

Determination is another very salient feature taught by Lord Buddha. It is this value that keeps a man driving towards hard and distant goals. With sufficient will power, a person will never turn away from his goal. A very concrete example is none other than the Buddha in His six long years of superhuman struggle for Enlightenment in the face of innumerable problems, particularly so when His five favourite disciples deserted Him at a crucial moment when He most needed their help.

The Buddha often emphasized on self-reliance and not to rely on others for salvation. He exhorted His disciples saying, “Be ye islands unto yourselves, be ye a refuge unto yourselves, seek no refuge in others.” He revealed how vital is self-exertion to accomplish one’s objective. This portion of His teachings is exceptionally realistic and practical to this society of ours – highly competitive one where everybody wants to be better off than others and hence they do not have time for others but ‘self’.

The first step towards self-reliance is to assume responsibility for ourselves and the decisions that affect our lives. We have to indulge in periodical self-evaluation, tell ourselves after each evaluation where we went wrong and improve on them with self effort. No amount of external worship and prayer can make a person progress in insight and righteousness – it is self-restraint, self-effort.

The Buddha, in the course of His ministry pointed out to His disciples the real nature of the world and advised them not to be ‘surface seers’ seeing and acknowledging only the beautiful things in life and pushing aside the ugly side of it. In the hustle and bustle of modern life, we have got to compete against tensions, distractions, stress and strains and none of us would be spared these realities.

Another salient feature of Buddhism is the Buddhist concept that nothing in this world is permanent. Everything in this world is so very uncertain and short-lived nowadays. At any point of time, we may be faced with an involuntary separation, either death of a loved one or the breaking up of a relationship. With a clear perception of the impermanency on life, we will find ourselves being more capable to handle our problems calmly. We will be more ready to face problems in life. Although we are not robots and are still vulnerable to feelings and pains, we will be in a better position to confront and deal with such feelings and pain with realistic approach and be able to survive through the agony.

Very much connected with this Buddhist concept of impermanency is the question of aging which has become a social problem to many people. If we cultivate right understanding (the keynote of Buddhism) we will not be tormented by the thought of old age and will accept it as part of life.

Cultivating right understanding and putting it into practice is essential to solve the day-to-day problems.

- Author Unknown 

A Fish A Day Keeps Dementia Away

A new study of 15,000 people aged 65 and older in China, India, Cuba, Venezuela, Mexico, Peru and Dominican Republic found that those who ate fish nearly everyday were almost 20 per cent less likely to get dementia than those who ate fish just a few days a week.

Furthermore, adults who ate fish a few days a week were almost 20 per cent less likely to develop dementia than those who are no fish at all.

The findings appeared in the August issue of The American Journal Of Clinical Nutrition.

Participants’ dietary habits were assessed through face-to-face interviews and dementia was diagnosed by using culturally validated criteria.

“There is a gradient – the more fish you eat, the less likely you are to get dementia,” sad Dr Emiliano Albanese, a clinical epidemiologist at King’s College London and the study’s senior author.

Meat had the opposite effect. “The more meat you eat, the more likely you are to have dementia,” he said.

Fish, especially oily fish, may be protective against dementia because it is rich in omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, which studies suggest may have numerous health benefits including anti-inflammatory properties.

In animal studies, omega-3 fatty acids were found to reduce the build-up of atherosclerotic plague and may also prevent amyloid plaque accumulating in the brain, a characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease, Dr Albanese said

- The New York Times

Preventing Alzheimer’s

Elderly folk who are physically active appear to be at lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, as are those who eat a heart-healthy diet, rich n fruits and vegetables and low in red meat. A new study has found that the effects of the two types of lifestyle behaviour are independent – and the benefits add up.

The Columbia University study followed a diverse group of 1,880 New Yorkers in their 70s, assessing their diets and levels of physical activity, and screening them periodically for Alzheimer’s disease. After an average of five years, 282 cases of Alzheimer’s were diagnosed.

Those who followed the healthiest diets were 40 per cent less likely to develop Alzheimer’s than those with the worst diets, and those who got the most exercise were 37 per cent less likely to develop the disease than those who got none. However, the greatest benefits occurred in those who both ate healthy and remained active.

Participants who scored in the top one-third for both diet and exercise were 59 per cent less likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s then those who scored in the lowest one-third.

While one in five participants with the lowest scores developed Alzheimer’s fewer than one in ten of the top scorers developed the disease.

Diet may be protective because it can improve metabolic factors and reduce cardiovascular risks, inflammation and oxidative stress, suggested Dr Nikolaos Scarmeas, an associate professor of neurology at Columbia University Medical Centre and the main author of the paper published in The Journal Of The American Medical Association.

He added that the amount of activity needed to make a difference was not very substantial; the most active elderly were getting only about four hours of moderate activity or 1.3 hours of vigorous activity each week.

- The Hew York Times 

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