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Toddler Destroys Monks' Sand Display
Vastmind
Memphis, TN Veteran
A Buddhist sand display used to convey the fleeting nature of life really brought the point home when it was destroyed prematurely by a toddler looking to play.
Monk Lobsang Chodak said he and his fellow monks didn't want to disappoint anybody, but took solace in seeing the lesson the mandala was supposed to impart anyway -- even if it was a bit earlier than expected.
"It's so beautiful and then, next thing, it's gone," Chodak said.
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... I wonder what went through the monks minds as it happened... lol ... :om: ... :eek: ... :rarr: ... :-/ ...
... :bowdown: ...
The boy thought "They're going to destroy it anyway, so let me give these guys a good lesson on what impermanence really means..."
Why let them have all the fun?
"Why, you - little - piece - of....mani padme houng...!"
heh heh, funny how these little lessons pop out unexpectedly
DEPORT THE TODDDLER!!!
Parents can stay.
Why would that be important?
Your own mind is what's important.
On a much bigger scale, nature is giving lessons in impermanence this week.
http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/04/28/it-turned-pitch-black-all-hell-broke-loose-huge-tornado-kills-at-least-16-in-arkansas/
^^^ Yep. Went right through my area....(mid south)...We were without power for a couple of hours yesterday, and on the way to work, I had to pull over twice, bec I just couldn't see. Tupelo, MS is not too far from where I work....so we were issued "shelter in place" once the warning siren's started.. I'll be doing clean up yard work this week-end, fortunetly everyone is ok at my house. My oldest will be volunteering at the shelters...it's so sad to see/watch how pin point the damage can be. One house is fine, and the one across the street isn't there anymore....it's something to witness...
http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-central/mississippi-tornado-20140428
authorities have been contacted . . .
monks sent on beach holiday (not Sri Lanka)
This has been on the news in my state(nj) . The first time i heard this my thought was that this kid was the best dhamma teacher ever.
I wouldn't of even tried to fix it.. Putting it into the hudson messed up is perfect, reminds me of Ajahn Brahms simile of the crooked trees vs perfect trees.
Yes!....what a fantastic baby buddha! ..
..
That's what it takes for anyone...even monks. To be caught off their guard...not ready....no expectations of the next moment. It's hard to do/make happen.
My body can get used to the mindfullness bell when I go to the monastery... every 15 mins...or I know it's going to happen at the start of the Temple service...but when I'm at home in the laundry room...or loading the dishwasher and one of the kids goes to strike the bell all of a sudden....it stops me in a whole other manner. I have no expectations of it happening.....And the 'be' is on a whole other level...
Kids/toddlers are good for making that happen, hahaha
But that is what went 'through my mind' - I had come to the conclusion that you of all people on this site would have understood that - but I regard you as my friend now - so 'lol'ly pop'
Metta
Sorry - I still think this site needs a laugh at your self' badge
Ok but you don't share every little thing that goes though your mind, so why this. To be witty?
Sadly, the Buddha never taught us to laugh at self. I'd say that's just clinging. Clinging work for you?
That's nice.
OK
Down again - no not me, NO I'm just a selfish ignorant fool!
@Chaz - I really do respect what you have to say because you have something to say that resonates with me, but enough of my kissing and cuddling... and I'm not trying to be funny.. Just human...
Mettha lol
Remember as previously proffered I'm laughing at me not you, and I'm really really tired of being serious.
There's a difference between being serious, taking something too seriously.
Have you given your cushion a name yet?
No - but henceforth I will name it Chaz.
And may my singing bowel sing something sublime and unconnected, like a fart or something...
May my butt be interconnected with your moniker forever. May my humour never be forgotten.
Seriously? I apologise for this but it was worth it... Just to not be taken seriously.
I used to be a somewhat famous fly tyer - trout flies and stuff like that. I would occaisionally find myself in a situation where someone I know was singing my praises to someone else when I was a part of the the conversaion. This would make me very uncomfortable, but I had no problem showing off at a fly tying bench. A bit of a double standard.
I found the best way to solve the dilemma was to simply retire from fly tying - quit Noone embarasses me and I don't feel compelled to be a show-off.
Thanks @anatman - I was having THE shittiest day and this made me ROFL at my desk. Of course my colleagues think I'm a weirdo already.......
In metta
No @ Chaz, I am me, with every failure held up in revelation so all can see that failure is not to be seen as necessarily a failure. Of course I want to be taken seriously. Of course I want to be seen as humorous; of course I want to be this and that and..., and that is the point, I'm just a ridiculous person, in an ocean of ridiculous people, all who seem to be so much more important than me, and they are not...
I see you as a dharma friend and I see your human frailty as you reveal it. This is mine.
My frailty, is my inability to be anything that I find acceptable, in that I am human and make stoopid mistakes. But here it is, for anyone to see, analyse and make judgement on.
I thought my reference to the singing bowel was an acknowledgement of that frailty to you. A connection lost it seems - so I remain in ridicule and judgement forever. I respect that my comment in the above post was unacceptable, but funny none-the less which was the intention, and no reflection on how I view you or how you should be viewed.
I don't want to continue reflecting on how much of a prat I am, because I know it. Here is my hand, you can shake it or let it hang in the air... either way, well you know how to view it.
btw I have tied flies and fly-fished; something of a shared experience if you want it to be.
sincerely in metta
Why is sharing thoughts on a topic like this any less important than any other topic? Did I miss something? Is Mercury retrograde? LOL
So, it was mentioned "I wonder what the monks thought!" as a fun (so I thought) comment and the response is "Why say what you think the monks thought?" Because we don't often wonder what Buddha would think/say about the world we live in and how things he said might change?
I'm a bit perplexed on some of the moodiness the entire forum seems to have lately? Are we all low on vitamin D after a long winter?
Don't worry @karasti - it will pass.
Remember one thing:
If something or someone rubs you up the wrong way, there is no compelling force that says you MUST either respond, OR react.
Folks.....
We haz awesome plan!
I'm afraid I have started my cluster headaches (it makes me really irritable and depressed!), but I try and get through them the best I can, but sometimes I don't notice how irritable I actually am being, until I reflect on how I respond to people, even when they may be being nice, or offering guidance. Short-tempered! Afraid of going to sleep (thats when they come on)!
When you have gone 45 minutes with a hot poker in your left eye for the third time in a night, and you want to rip the painful flesh from the left side of your face and scalp and realise that the physical suffering ain't going away soon - the perspective and outlook is well just bleak.
Fortunately, they do go off for a while... And the injections and oxygen therapy help sometimes (but I can only have 2 injections in 24 hours - and the drugs cause chest pain anxiety and palpitations - but it's a good trade off when it works), but when they start up I am not looking forward to tonight or the next 4 weeks, but it's going to happen... :banghead: ... and I have absolutely no control over it. Bleak - sometimes words do describe how you feel.
But this is my problem, fortunately I have a support who tries to comfort me as I'm retching in the toilet bowel.
Sounds awful
Will keep you in my thoughts and prayers :wave:
I like the word awful - full of awe (a feeling of reverential respect mixed with fear or wonder)
Thanks @lobster
Hope you get better soon @anataman! :thumbsup:
If the kid grows up to be a dharma teacher, its a prophecy foretold.
@anataman....hope the headaches pass soon.....I feel ya.
Hang in there ...
...
@anatman - I too wish you a speedy recovery. I can sympathise with migraines
I wish I could say that I did. TBT, I haven't the fainest idea what CHs or migraines are like. If I can sypathize with anyone, it's with the person living with someone prone to such things. My wife has migraines - every 6-8 weeks or so. Nasty. Debilitating. Frustrating in that there's nothing I can do about it. Heartbreaking.
What's it really like? I don't even want to know. I may not know what what it's like, but I do know what it's like to live with someone who does.
Open Practice: How Vipassana Meditation Relieves My Migraine Headaches
http://www.c4chaos.com/2009/07/open-practice-how-vipassana-meditation-relieves-my-migraine-headaches/
http://blog.advancedmigraine.com/3-relaxation-tools-for-migraine-attack-fears
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18551362
I've tried this. Cluster headaches are caused by the release of a hormone in the brain that cause blood vessels to dilate in the region of a facial nerve called the trigeminal ganglion. That puts pressure on the ganglion. There really is nothing I can do as it is a physical process within the body; it's a bit like a cancer - you can't mentally make it go away (although there are people who will claim they have)... But thanks for the links @pegembara, it shows compassion.
They are not attached to the sand display, are they?
While it seems that, in theory, if the monks have all attained their buddha nature and had absolutely no attachment to the sand display, then they would not have batted an eyelash at it being destroyed prematurely. @anataman's progression of human emotions in response to the destruction of the sand display seem very possible, even for a monk. Seems odd to me that people would act as if it would be impossible for monks to experience this progression of human emotions, or that it is an insult to suggest that maybe they had such an experience. Maybe they did. Maybe they didn't. It's all speculation.
My point was a bit of fun, and satirising the monastics, and their follies and wisdom, (they are not more or less than me or you), but in their hearts, a monk or nun is still a human, and they "MUST" go through the same thoughts and emotions, if they are not they are trying to exert too much self-control, and then... Stop thinking that monks are better than us, they have just chosen to focus on the spiritual aspect of life. And we as 'laymen' have chosen the material aspects. However both can meet in the middle, and experience the same things, and share the same knowledge and wisdom. They are dependent on us as much as we are dependent on them.
Thank you monks and nuns. I bow my head to you, as I know you bow yours to us all.
Think about it!