Finger and Moon

Recently in a dinner party, I met a new friend and to my delight, he has been reading Thay’s books since his university days in the UK.  “I like to read Thich Nhat Hanh’s books”, he said, “but I do not like his way of practice and his followers.”  I was curious because Thay emphasizes the importance of practice in all his books.  I wonder how one could like Thay’s book but not the practice!  “I met some of his followers in the UK.”, my friend continued, “They are so into the different rituals such as stopping at the sound of the bell, touching the earth and reading gathas before a meal, etc, etc.  Aren’t all these distractions from mindfulness? How can one be truly present when there are so many rituals to follow?”

He made a good point.  If we fall into the trap of believing that all the rituals and rules of the Plum Village are the experience of mindfulness, than we are in the wrong path.  I told my new friend the famous analogy of the finger and the moon by the Buddha.  The intention of the finger pointing to the moon is for us to see the true moon.  If we keep looking at the finger and think it is the moon, we will never see the moon. If we can see the moon, then we may not need the finger until we lose track of it. If we develop a way to notice the moon all the time, then we no longer need the pointing finger.  All the rituals on the practice of mindfulness are forms, tools and maps that help us to reach the state of mindfulness.  They are not mindfulness itself.  When we practice, we must remember this.

In the common areas of the Plum Village, the clock chimes every 15 minutes, and we are told to stop whatever we are doing and take a few deep breaths to return to the present moment.  I find it a useful practice because we tend to slip out of our state of mindfulness so easily.  But I notice that Thay do not stop at the sound of the chimes.  He continues to drink his tea or to walk.  I believe it is not because of his privilege of being a venerable zen master.  He is already in mindfulness all the time.  I am not making a wild guess because I can really feel the energy of mindfulness Thay radiates wherever he is.  For many of us who are still learning to live the present moment, stop and breathe at the sound of the bell remains a good practice.

You can give more to this world 你可以为这世界付出更多

I would like to share another of my favourite song with you. It is a Chinese pop song.  Written originally for a fund raising event after the Sichuan earthquakes this year, this is a song of contemplation on what we can give, without expectations for returns or merits.  The song and lyrics were written by Ivy Koo, and sang by Jacky Cheung, one of the most popular mail singer in Asia. With the lovely melody and the rich voice of Jacky, this song is wonderfully touching.

You can give more to this world is the title of the song.  It is in chorus with Peace Pilgrim's message: "I began to live to give what I could, instead of to get what I could, and I entered a new and wonderful world."

Watch the MTV here with background of the deadly Sichuan Earthquake and a short interview with Jacky.

Here is the lyrics and the English translation for my western friends :)

你可以为这世界付出更多        You can give more to this world

曲、詞：古羽 唱：張學友      Song & Lyrics: Ivy Koo  Singer: Jacky Cheung

尝过绝望 你才知道              Being through hopelessness, you will know

什么叫做希望                    what is hope.
熬过黑夜                         Surviving the dark night,
你会更欣赏太阳                you will treasure the sun even more.
学会幸福不是必然             Learning that happiness can not be taken for granted
睁开眼睛看                    Opening your eyes and see
若听到苦痛的呼唤             If you hear the calls of pain and suffering
哪可袖手旁观                    How can you remain an onlooker?

Chorus
你可以为这世界付出更多       You can give more to this world
能够帮助别人你会更快乐       Helping others will make you happier
非求福 和赞美   It’s not for merits, nor for glory
你会有更美好的收获             You will have more wonderful returns
想想你可为这世界做些什么     Think about what you can do for this world
能够温暖别人的心最快乐       The heart that can warm others is the happiest
所给的 非施舍                   What’s given is not charity
圆满别人才算是真正的活着   In fulfilling others we are truly alive

跌倒之后 再站起来 After falling and standing up again
你会更加硬朗 You will become stronger and tougher
病过痛过 After falling sick and enduring pain
更懂得珍惜健康 You will learn to treasure healthiness
明白幸福不是偶然 Understanding that happiness does not come by chance
掏出心来看 Looking into your heart
有许多哀伤的哭声 There are so many cries of despair
怎能袖手旁观 How can we remain an observer?

Repeat Chorus

Please call me by my true names 請以真實名字呼喚我

In our group meditation today, we sang the song adapted from Thay's poem "Please call me by my true name."  Thay wrote this poem back in 1978 when he was helping the boat people from Vietnam and heard the news that a 12-year-old girl drowned herself in the ocean after being raped by a pirate.  This is one of Thay's famous poems and my favourite. It is a beautiful expression of understanding, love, inter-being.  

Watch a beautiful video here.

Listen to the song here.

I translated it into Chinese some of my friends:

Please call Me By My True Names 請以真實名字呼喚我 

Thich Nhat Hanh                                           一行禪師

Do not say that I will depart tomorrow -      不要說我將在明天離去 － 

even today I still arrive. 即使今天我仍在到達。

Look deeply: every second I am arriving 深入觀看：我每秒鐘都在到達

to be a bud on a spring branch, 成為春枝上的蓓蕾,

to be a tiny bird, with wings still fragile, 成為一只小小鳥，翅膀依然脆弱，

learning to sing in my new nest, 在我的新巢學習歌唱，

to be a caterpillar in the heart of a flower, 成為花蕊中的小毛蟲，

to be a jewel hiding itself in a stone. 成為藏於石頭中的寶鑽。

I still arrive, in order to laugh and to cry, 我仍然在到達，才可以歡笑與哭泣，

to fear and to hope. 體會恐懼與希望。

The rhythm of my heart is the birth and  我心裡的節奏是所有生命的生與死。

death of all that are alive.

I am a mayfly metamorphosing on the 我是一只在河面睿變的蜉蝣，

surface of the river,

And I am the bird                             我也是那只小鳥

that swoops down to swallow the mayfly. 從半空俯衝下把蜉蝣吞掉。

I am a frog swimming happily in the 我是一只在清池裡快樂地游泳的青蛙，

clear water of a pond.

And I am the grass-snake 我也是那條草蛇，

that silently feeds itself on the frog. 沈默地獵食這只青蛙。

I am the child in Uganda, all skin and bones, 我是烏干達的孩童，只剩皮和骨，

my legs as thin as bamboo sticks. 雙腿瘦如竹杆，

And I am the arms merchant, 我也是那軍火商人，

selling deadly weapons to Uganda. 販賣殺人武器到烏干達。

I am the twelve-year-old girl, 我是那十二歲女孩，

refugee on a small boat, 小船上的難民，

who throws herself into the ocean 遭遇海盜的糟蹋，

after being raped by a sea pirate. 躍身投進海裡。

And I am the pirate, my heart not yet 我也是那個海盜，

capable of seeing and loving. 我的心還不懂了解和愛。

I am a member of the politburo, 我是政治局成員，

with plenty of power in my hands. 手裡擁有巨大權利，

And I am the man who has to pay his 我也是那個需要給人民“償還血債”的人

"debt of blood" to my people 在集中營裡慢慢地死去。

dying slowly in a forced labor camp.

My joy is like spring, so warm it makes 我的喜悅如春天，

flowers bloom in all over the earth. 溫暖讓百花綻放大地。

My pain is like a river of tears, 我的痛楚如淚之河川，

so vast it fills the four oceans. 延綿充滿四海。

Please call me by my true names, 請以真實名字呼喚我，

so I can hear all my cries and laughs at once, 讓我同時聽見自己的哭泣和歡笑，

so I can see that my joy and pain are one. 讓我看見自己的歡樂和痛苦是一體。

Please call me by my true names, 請以真實名字呼喚我，

so I can wake up, 讓我醒覺，

and the door of my heart can be left open, 讓我心裡之門打開，

the door of compassion. 那扇慈悲之門。

Time for reflection

There is no public holidays for Christmas in China but I manage to take a few days off on Christmas day until the New Year. No exotic holiday plans.  Instead I am spending quiet time at home for reading, meditating, resting and reflecting.  I find it valuable to spend time in reflecting on the key events that happened to me in the past year and what I have learnt from these experiences.  In the external environment, 2008 has been a year full of both celebrations and tragedies: e.g. the success of the Beijing Olympics, China accomplishing the first space walk, Obama elected as the US president, etc. vs the floods in Southern China, the Sichuan earthquakes, the Mumbai terrorists attack, the global financial crisis, etc.  My own personal journey has been as colourful.  I encountered successes and failures, happiness and sorrow, inspiration and disappointment, peace and frustration, clarity and confusion.

On quiet reflection, these are all valuable learning experiences for me.  Through difficulties, I grow to be stronger and tougher.  Through the goodness I received, I learn to be grateful for all that I have.  Through the practice of mindfulness, I expand my awareness and discover more about my true self, my potentials and connections to the world around me.

As I dwell in my reflection, I am aware that the present moment is made of my past.  This awareness helps me to realise what is the best thing for me to do at this moment, which is the only moment I can act on, and a new space for creation.  It is wonderful to be aware, to live fully and to just be.

Clean up the clutter!

Documents, files, books, magazines, cables, gifts, photos, CDs, food, etc, etc...

I take a good look at the 4 storage cabinets filled with stuff that I accumulated over 6 years of my stay in the Beijing office.  There is something called "store and forget".  I rarely touch many of those things.

Taking a deep breathe, I plan my action. Cleaning up clutter can be very exhausting, and I have to make sure I do not strain my injured back further.  Divide and conquer is my strategy.  I decide to complete the project in 3 days.  Each day, I would spend less than 1 hour, but I would do a really good job in relinquishing things that I do not use anymore.

I stick on to the principle: any thing I have not used for the past 6 months, I would recycle, give or throw away. I do have hesitation on several gift items from old friends and colleagues.  After some inner struggle, I convince myself that I treasure the friendship regardless of these gifts.  So I also give them away.  After 3 days, I complete my project on schedule. Now my belongings occupy less than 1 storage cabinet!

Yuhoo!  I feel so free! :)

The effectiveness of being S-L-O-W

We are so used to rushing around.  In our busy daily schedule, we have so many tasks to fulfill and so many deadlines to meet.  The habit is formed and we would even feel guilty and worthless if we do not rush.

But in rushing, we missed out many things.  For example, we missed the points: why are we rushing? Do our life really have to be so busy and overcrowded? Are we rushing in the right direction? What are we really rushing for?  Have we missed life while we rush?

"You must be SLOW!  You cannot learn and experience the true essence of the movements unless you SLOW DOWN!", said my Taichi teacher Master Feng over and over during our lessons. 

When practising Taichi, the slower the movement, the more effective the practice becomes. Because we can experience each subtle movement and changes of our bodies and we can also feel the energy flow within our bodies.

"Be mindful and walk slowly around here", said the sister on my first arrival to the Plum Village early this year, "there is no need to hurry."

Indeed, slowing down helps me to heighten my awareness.  I feel so alive with this awareness and mindfulness.  In the Plum Village, I was doing everything slowly, aware of each movement, each breathe and each step I made. I could also touched deeply the blue sky, the sunshine, the plum tress, the starry nights, the lovely people, and much more. I could got so much things done in a day and felt effortless!  When I returned to work after the visit, I was able to keep this energy of mindfulness within the first week.  I could handle my work and huge backlog of emails without rushing but I completed all my tasks with so much ease!  It was amazing.  No need to rush and hurry, and yet so efficient!

But we all have strong habit energy.  After a week, I was back to the rushing mode again.  Fortunately, we have the Sangha practice where a few friends gather weekly to practice mindful sitting and walking meditations, and share our learnings.  Consistent practices are important for us to water our seeds of awareness, concentration and mindfulness continuously so that our habit of rushing can be transformed.

If you find that you are rushing all the time and feel overcrowded, try to slow down.  You may be surprised how slowing down can eventually let you move faster, in the right direction!

Problems are opportunities in disguise

Three weeks ago, I was on a holiday trip to Hong Kong. I was planning to catch up with my family and some good old friends, and to go shopping.  The highlight of the trip was to go to Disneyland with my parents and sister.  It’d be such a fun family event!  I was really looking forward to it. 

Within 3 hours of arrival, I hurt my back.  It was not very serious but I could move around only in slow motion, I couldn’t walk or even sit for a long time, and I couldn’t carry anything more than half a kilogram. You could imagine my disappointment at that moment. My mind was flushed with all the negative thoughts: “This is going to ruin my holidays!”  “Oh dear, why do I always get sick or injured during my holidays?”  “How am I supposed to go to the Disneyland now?” “I’m going to miss out all the discounts in the shops!”...

I tried to calm myself with mindful breathing and I remembered the quotes from Peace Pilgrim: “All difficulties in your life have a purpose. Problems are opportunities in disguise.” So I meditated on the questions “What is the purpose of this seemingly unfortunate incident?” “What can I learn from it?”

Soon I found the answers.  With restrictions in my mobility,  I could not go shopping. So I would not waste money in buying unnecessary items just because they were on sales.  My mind would also be free from thinking about “what else I should buy”.  I could focus all my time and attention in catching up with my family and friends!

The rest of my holiday was very pleasant and I found myself surrounded with love.  My sister had already took a day off for our Disneyland trip but my parents suggested that we should go next time. We still went to the Disneyland station and had a short walk around the gardens outside. It was a fine day and we had a great time strolling around.  Then we had lunch in the Disneyland hotel and took pictures with Snow White in the lobby! It doesn’t matter whether we entered Disneyland or not.  I enjoyed the times with my mum, my dad and my sister.  They are very caring to me and made me feel loved and protected. I stayed at my parents home most of the time and mum would make the most delicious vegetarian dishes for me.  I also enjoyed the moments with my friends. 

Happiness is here and now!