YOUR MIND: USE IT OR LOSE IT (Preventing Dementia)

by Piya Tan

According to early Buddhism, the mind is the most important faculty we have. In fact, it is the most precious thing we have: it is the vehicle to awakening and true liberation. Buddhism has a lot to teach about the mind: Buddhism IS about our mind.

Experts say that if we really want to ward off dementia, we need to start taking care of our brain in your 30s and 40s, or even earlier. More than that, the Buddha teaches us that we need to take care of our mind. This is something no scientific machine can yet measure very accurately, if ever. (How do we really measure love or happiness?)

Various mental health experts have suggested some useful advice in living a full useful and happy life. Here are some tips in the light of Buddh­ist teachings on mental health, teaching us how to burn our candles right to the last drip of wax.

1. Eat as you need. If we really feel our body, it will tell us what kinds of food is good for us. The Buddha’s early saints ate frugally, stopping to eat just before they felt full. To prevent taking more food, they would drink some water. In other words, eat to live. Those who live to eat, generally do not live long or healthy lives.
2.  Being vegetarian is great if we are up to it. Experts tell us that the antioxidants in fruits and vegetables clear up some of the damages caused by free radicals, one of the leading killers of brain cells. The point is eat more vegetables and fruits than we do meat as far as we can. Diet alone does not make us a good or happy person.
3. Commensal eating, to the early Buddhists, is a happy and social event. This is still a common event in Buddhist communities. Try eating at least one meal a day with family and friends. This helps us slow down our eating, and to socialize. Even if we must eat alone, the rule is to really enjoy our meal. Savour the taste and feel of every mouth­ful. That’s mindful eating.
4. Join a club or organization that need volunteers. Buddhist centres often need volunteers from doing something as simple as wiping the Buddha image or ushering people during weekly puja to helping in running their activities. Start volunteering right now, and we will have friends and feel needed even after we retire.
5. Enjoy the great outdoors, especially spacious gardens, the sea-side and hills. When we find such a spot that we like, just sit for a while in complete silence, observing and absorb­ing the spaciousness and beauty all around. Close our eyes, imagine what we have seen. Repeat this until we can visualize that spaciousness. This is a medita­tion known as the perception of space.
6. Enjoy bright spacious nature, especially during the morning hours. You might like to try watching the sun rising, and the horizon brightening up, or simply watch the spacious brightness all round. Observe the brightness, then close our eyes and visualize it. Repeat this until we can visualize the light in our mind’s eye. This is a meditation known as the perception of light.
7. Walk. The Buddha walked all his life and lived to a ripe 80 years. The early saints too were regular walkers, walking for thousands of kilometres every year all over the Gangetic plain of northern central India, teaching and meeting people, or simply meditating in beautiful nature. Daily walking helps reduce the risk of dementia by making the heart pump blood to the brain. None of the saints ever had dementia.
8. Travel.  When we travel, we work our brains to navigate new and com­plex environment.  Experienced taxi drivers have been found to have larger brains because they have to store much information about locations and how to get there. The ancient wandering forest monks had no maps, and had to memorize their routes. They were regularly wandering, but never lost.
9. Read and write daily or whenever you can. Reading stimulates many different brain areas that process and store information. Likewise, creative writing, even writing letters, stimulates many areas of the brain as well. What we read and write, too, should be wholesome and have a positive outlook of life.
10. Use both hands. Using both hands works both sides of our brain. Knitting, for example, demands the dexterity of both hands. So do some computer games, but such games should not be violent or unwholesome. Practise writing with our other hand for a few minutes daily or whenever you like. This will exercise the other side of our brain and fire up those neurons before they die out like unwatered plants.
11. Have a hobby or a few. Bird-watching, for example, gives us a gentle exercise in nature, while getting to know it better. Hobbies liven up the mind because we are trying something new and complex. The Buddha was born under a tree, awakened as Buddha under another, taught under many different trees, and passed away under two of them. He was truly a man of nature.
12. Listen to classical music. Good music seems to work on both sides of the brain, linking the two. Listen with both body and mind. Sit comfortably and feel the flow of the music. Learning to play a musical instrument is even better. This might be harder as we age, but still it helps to develop a dormant part of our brain. Music also helps us in the perception of impermanence.
13. Play board games. Chess, Scrabble, Cluedo and such games not only live up your brain, but also helps us socialize.  Even playing solo games, such as soli­taire or online computer brain games can be helpful, although the social aspect is missing.
14. Learn a new language. Whether it's a foreign language or sign language, we are working our brain back and forth between one language and another. One of the easiest languages to learn (other than English) is Pali, the scriptural language of early Buddhism. It has a fixed vocabulary and a simple grammar. It is also a more direct way of learning some of the earliest Buddhist teachings.
15. Take lifelong classes. Learning apparently helps us live longer because it causes physical and chemical changes in our brain. After all, the true purpose of life is to learn and grow. The body ages, but the mind goes on, life after life, and needs to keep on learning until it is really free.
16. Silent prayer. Daily prayer with positive words and wishes empowers us. The best prayer is that of lovingkindness, which begins with wishing ourselves well and happy, and then extending this to others, until we boundlessly include everyone, even animals,  without any exception. When our joy becomes truly unconditional, or peaceful enough, we simply and silently enjoy the moment.
17. Meditate.  More people, whether religious or not, are discovering the benefits and joy of meditation. Not just any meditation, but especially the Buddha’s early mindful­ness methods. Meditation not only helps us deal with stress, but also opens our minds up to greater focus and creativity­and a long healthy, useful and peace­ful life, heading for awakening.  The Buddha declares that those who do breath medita­tion regularly will have a calm and clear mind right to the end. (Maha Rahulovada Sutta, M 62 / SD 3.11)
18. Get enough rest. Rest firstly means taking time away from what we do for money or for others. We need to regularly spend some quiet time just being our wholesome selves. Secondly, our body needs rest from its daily toil. If we respect our body, we will know when it needs a break. Our body will tell us how much uninter­rupt­ed sleep we need.

May our minds become clearer even as our bodies age.

© 2011 Piya Tan

BUILDING THE DREAM PATH

We can look at dreams in a number of ways. Firstly, dreams may be con­sidered as fantasies or imaginations of a mind that is ever seeking to escape from a cruel, mundane, lonely world. These illusory concoctions, though relieving for some, can also lead one very far away from reality.

Dreams, in psychology have often been looked upon as a language with which the deeper parts of the mind (which are beyond the reach of the normal conscious awareness) com­muni­cate with the conscious mind. In the East, they are also often regarded as the means by which man communicates with the spirit world. These aspects of communication require more study and research. Dreams, at a more conscious level, are tangible hopes from which may arise in the future what is beneficial, profitable and happy.

It is realism and effort that will determine whether the dream is a hope or a fantasy. And for realism and effort to be present, there must also be a lot of faith that the hope can be realised and mindfulness of real situations ... not to mention courage.

This book is dedicated to those who dare to make ‘the dream’ their hope — ‘the dream’ which is wholly and truly spiritual; the peace eternal, the utter liberation from suffering!!

First published on 18th October 1981 in conjunction with the Kathina celebration of the Malaysian Buddhist Meditation Centre in Penang, the author, Ven. Sujivo (now known as Sujiva), was then the resident monk at the centre. Today, he is one of the Buddhist teachers, who are responsible for developing a keen interest in vipassana (insight) meditation in many western countries.

 

After 30 years, Anne Lee Saw Ean who had rendered her assistance in the first publication, has a desire to have it reprinted with a new layout and design. She and her family have sponsored this reprint in conjunction with the 2011 Kathina Celebration of the Sri Lanka Buddhist Temple in Sentul, Kuala Lumpur (see above photo).

Anne Lee and family, being also the main sponsors for the Kathina, invite everybody to rejoice and share in the merits accruing from these wholesome deeds.

Those who are interested for a free copy can visit the temple or go to our website (for oversea order):

www.inwardpath.org

They also thank Ven. Sujiva for giving his permission for the reprint of this book.

Inward Path, the publisher for this edition, would also like to thank Anne Lee and family, Ven. Sujiva, and all concerned, for making this book available for free distribution.

May the Good Dhamma
last long for the welfare and
happiness of all beings!

About the Author

Veneable Sujiva, the founder of Santisukharama, is a Malaysian Theravadin Buddhist monk. He is a well known and respected vipassana meditation teacher who has dedicated his life to the teaching and propagation of vipassana meditation. He ordained as a Theravadin monk shortly after graduating from University of Malaya in 1975 with an honours degree in Agricultural Science. During his monastic training he learnt and practiced under many teachers in Malaysia, Thailand, and Burma (Myanmar), including, notably, Ven. Sayadaw U Panditabhivamsa at the esteemed Mahasi Meditation Centre in Rangoon, Burma.

He started teaching meditation at Santisukharama in 1982 and held countless retreats both at the centre and throughout Malaysia, inspiring, at the same time, the setting up of various meditation centres by various meditation groups throughout the country. In 1995 the Venerable started conducting vipassana retreat abroad. He had since taught in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, USA and several countries in Europe. Presently, he spend most of his time teaching particular in Eastern Europe where is based.
He is a well-respected vipassaná meditation master and is much sought after by vipassana yogis both in Malaysia and abroad, for his sharp discernment, skillful guidance and profound understanding of not only vipassana, but also samatha practices as well as Buddhist philosophy in general.

The Venerable has also authored a number of books on vipassana and metta meditation, as well as several collection of poems. The following are some of his books:
•    Essentials of Insight Meditation Practice
•    For the Stilling of Volcanoes
•    Loving Kindness Meditation
•    The Tree of Wisdom, the River of No Return
•    Wind in the Forest

WHY THIS HAPPEN TO ME? WHAT IS THE REASON?

All About Karma - Discovering Buddhism

Dhamma Video presented by Dharma Vision

KAMMA / KARMA

(from The Buddha & His Teaching 

by Venerable Narada Mahathera)

The Cause of Inequality

Perplexed by the seemingly inexplicable, apparent disparity that exists amongst humanity, a young truth-seeker named Subha approached the Buddha and questioned him regarding it.

“What is the reason, 

what is the cause, O Lord, 

that we find amongst mankind 

the short-lived (appāyukā) and 
the long-lived (dīghāyuka),

the diseased (bavhābādhā) and 
the healthy (appābādhā), 

the ugly (dubbannā) and 
the beautiful (vannavantā), 

the powerless (appesakkā) and 
the powerful (mahesakkā),

the poor (appabhogā) and 
the rich (mahābhogā), 

the low-born (nīcakulinā) and 
the high-born (uccakulinā), 

the ignorant (duppaññā) and 
the wise (paññavantā)?

The Buddha’s reply was:

“All living beings 

have actions (Kamma) 
as their own,

 their inheritance, 

their congenital cause, 

their kinsman, 

their refuge. 

It is Kamma that 

differentiates beings into 

low and high states.”

Everything is Not Due to Kamma

Although Buddhism attributes this variation to the law of Kamma, as the chief cause amongst a variety, it does not however assert that everything is due to Kamma. The law of Kamma, important as it is, is only one of the twenty-four causal conditions (paccaya), described in Buddhist Philosophy.

Refuting the erroneous view that “Whatsoever weal or woe or neutral feeling is experienced, 

is all due to some previous action (pubbekatahetu),” the Buddha states:

“So, then, owing to previous action, 

men will become murderers, thieves, 

unchaste, liars, slanderers, 

babblers, covetous, malicious, 

and perverse in view. 

Thus for those who fall back on 

the former deeds as the essential reason, 

there is neither the desire to do, 
nor effort to do, 

nor necessity to do this deed or 
abstain from that deed.”

This important text contradicts the belief that all physical circumstances and mental attitudes spring solely from past Kamma. If the present life is totally conditioned or wholly controlled by our past actions, then Kamma is certainly tantamount to fatalism or pre-determination or pre-destination. One will not be free to mould one’s present and future. If this were true, freewill would be an absurdity. Life would be purely mechanical, not much different from a machine. Whether we are created by an Almighty God who controls our destinies and fore-ordains our future, or are produced by an irresistible past Kamma that completely determines our fate and controls our life’s course, independent of any free action on our part, is essentially the same. The only difference then lies in the two words God and Kamma. One could easily be substituted for the other, because the ultimate operation of both forces would be identical. Such a fatalistic doctrine is NOT the Buddhist law of Kamma.

The Five Niyāmas

According to Buddhism there are five orders or processes (Niyāmas) which operate in the physical and mental realms. They are:

1) Utu Niyāma, physical inorganic order; e.g., seasonal phenomena of winds and rains, the unerring order of seasons, characteristic seasonal changes and events, causes of wind and rains, nature of heat, etc. belong to this group.

2) Bīja Niyāma, order of germs and seeds (physical organic order); e.g., rice produced from rice seed, sugary taste from sugar-cane or honey, and peculiar characteristics of certain fruits. The scientific theory of cells and genes and the physical similarity of twins may be ascribed to this order.

3) Kamma Niyāma, order of act and result; e.g., desirable and undesirable acts produce corresponding good and bad results.

As surely as water seeks its own level, so does Kamma, given opportunity, produce its inevitable result, — not in the form of a reward or punishment but as an innate sequence. This sequence of deed and effect is as natural and necessary as the way of the sun and the moon, and is the retributive principle of Kamma.

Inherent in Kamma is also the continuative principle.

Manifold experiences, personal characteristics, accumulated knowledge, and so forth are all indelibly recorded in the palimpsest-like mind. All these experiences and characters transmigrate from life to life. Through lapse of time they may be forgotten as in the case of our experiences of our childhood. Infant prodigies and wonderful children, who speak in different languages without receiving any instruction, are noteworthy examples of the continuative principle of Kamma.

4) Dhamma Niyāma, order of the norm; e.g., the natural phenomena occurring at the birth of a Bodhisatta in his last birth. Gravitation and other similar laws of nature, the reason for being good, etc. may be included in this group.

5) Citta Niyāma, order of mind or psychic law; e.g., processes of consciousness, constituents of consciousness, power of mind, including telepathy, telesthesia, retrocognition premonition, clair-voyance, clair-audience, thought-reading, and such other psychic phenomena, which are inexplicable to modern science.

Every mental or physical phenomenon could be explained by these all-embracing five orders or processes which are laws in themselves. Kamma as such is only one of these five orders. Like all other natural laws, they demand no lawgiver. 

Of these five, the physical inorganic order, the physical organic order and the order of the norm are more or less of the mechanical type though they can be controlled to some extent by human ingenuity and the power of mind. For example, fire normally burns, and extreme cold freezes, but man has walked unscathed over fire and meditated naked on Himalayan snows; horticulturists have worked marvels with flowers and fruits; and Yogis have performed levitation. Psychic law is equally mechanical, but Buddhist training aims at control of mind, which is possible by right understanding and skilful volition. Kamma law operates quite automatically and, when the Kamma is powerful, man cannot interfere with its inexorable result though he may desire to do so; but here also right understanding and skilful volition can accomplish much and mould the future. Good Kamma, persisted in, can thwart the reaping of bad. Kamma is certainly an intricate law whose working is fully comprehended only by a Buddha. The Buddhist aims at the final destruction of all Kamma. 

Kamma-Vipaka (fruit of action) is one of 
the four unthinkables (acinteyya), 

states the Buddha in 
the Anguttara Nikāya.

“According to the seed that’s sown,
So is the fruit ye reap therefrom
Doer of good (will gather) good.
Doer of evil, evil (reaps).
Sown is the seed, and planted well.
Thou shalt enjoy the fruit thereof.”

~ Samyutta Nikāya

“By self is evil done,
By self is one defiled,
By self is no evil done,
By self is one purified.
Both defilement and 
purity depend on oneself.
No one is purified by another.”

~ Dhammapada verse 165

佛 陀 与 佛 法

THE BUDDHA and 
HIS TEACHING

by NARADA MAHATHERA

(in Simplified Chinese)

This Gift of Dhamma is published in 
conjunction of

Kathina Celebration

on 26th October 2011 at

Buddhist Hermitage Lunas

Lot 297 Kampung Seberang Sungai

09600 Lunas, Kedah

Malaysia


This book will be distribute for FREE during
the celebration of Kathina on 26th October 2011.

Special Thanks to 
Bro. Kang Phee Ho & family and
Committee Members of BHL
for making this book available for free distribution.
 

The Launching of New Audio CD by Gee Bees, ABHAYA GATHA

In conjunction of 

Kathina Celebration 2011 

and 

Gee Bees's 30th Anniversary,

Mahindarama Buddhist Temple 

released new audio CD

ABHAYA GATHA 

for free distribution.

 

 

You can contain this Audio CD for FREE @

Mahindarama Buddhist Temple

No. 2 Kampar Road, 10460 Penang, Malaysia
Tel: 604-282 5944

or go to our website @

 www.inwardpath.org

Photo Exhibition by Ajahn Cagino

Inspiring photos of practicing Thai forest monks taken by Ajahn Cagino.

PALI CHANTING: What, Why & How

The introduction class for Pali Chanting. This evening, Bro. Yeoh Yong Cheng explained why we chant or recite Pali texts or the purpose of Pali chanting and the different style of chantings based on tradition and culture of the people i.e. the Thai Chanting, Myanmar or Sinhalese. He also demonstrated the way how these people chant and the different way they pronounced the Pali word, for example, the way the Thai pronounced the word Buddha, which will sound like Phutta. 

Next week, on 7th October 2011, we will be learning how to chant the basic Pali Chanting. On the same time, 8 o'clock in the evening at our centre here: no. 14 Phuah Hin Leong Road, off Burma Road, Georgetown. All are welcome to join us.

 

Learning Pali Chanting with 

Bro. Yeoh Yong Cheng

from Mahindarama Pali Sunday School

on this coming 

Friday

30th September 2011

 8:00 EVENING