A Very Grateful Leopard

Bhopal, Feb 8 : A day after a tiger was rescued from a well near Nagpur, a year-and-half old leopard was Tuesday extricated from a well in Dewas district of Madhya Pradesh after a six-hour rescue operation, officials said. “When I reached my fields in the morning around 7 a.m., I heard a sound from the well. I looked and found a leopard in the well,” said Chaganlal, a farmer. Chagan informed the forest department. But soon, a large number of villagers gathered near the well. They made many attempts to take out the leopard, but without success. “Later, we used a cage and successfully took out the leopard from the well,” said B. S. Annagiri, the forest conservator. The leopard would be released in the Dewas forest area after a medical check-up. On Monday, a full grown adult tiger had fallen into a 40-feet-deep dry well near Nagpur. He was rescued after a three-hour rescue operation.(IANS)

Death Of A Pope

When they hear the word ‘pope’ people in much of the world think of the prelate in Rome. In actual fact there are several other popes, each claiming primacy in the Christian world, although the Roman pope is the only one claiming to be infallible in theological matters. Pope Shenouda III of the Egyptian Church rarely got in into the news in the West although his recent death has been widely reported, probably because of the political situation in Egypt. He was an interesting man who had been both a monk and a desert-living hermit before being elevated to the papacy 40 years ago. There has not been a hermit Roman pope since, I think Celestine V some 800 years ago. I suspect that monks and hermits might be less efficient in running a church than theologians, diplomats and priest-bureaucrats, but that they might make up for it by their spirituality. The Coptic Church is as ancient as the Roman church although its practices, rituals, chanting, etc, have remained much less changed, some going back to the early days of Christianity. May this gentle monk/priest rest in peace. This video is a brief over summery of Pope Shenouda’s interesting life.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnBxW1ZAbNA&feature=related

Of Metta And Monkeys

Some people think that a few weeks of meditation and all their problems will be solved, that their
life will be uphill all the way from then on. This is not correct. Regular meditation will certainly brings about positive changes in you but this does not mean that you will never have problems. You will. Likewise, some people think if they practice Metta Meditation that ill-will, resentment, angry brooding, vengefulness or petty irritation will never besmirch their heart again. This is not the case either.

Back in the early 90s I spent a few months staying in a temple in Delhi. I had been given a room with an old Tibetan monk who had been living there for several years. In the beginning I was a bit adverse about sharing my space with someone else but he was a kindly old man and we got on well together. He meditated for an hour every morning and I would join him. We had interesting talks about Dhamma and although he was not deeply learned he had a lot of meditation experience. At this time I was focusing a lot on Metta Meditation and making a point of being as compliant, helpful and considerate as I could to everyone in every situation. This proved easy with Lamaji (that’s what everyone called him) and most of the others in the temple. But even out in the street,purchasing things or using transport I did so too, with a fairly high degree of success. As a result of my practice I had achieved a state of considerable serenity, with occasional periods of bliss. I was very encouraged by my practice.

One day, for reasons I can’t remember, I decided to visit the New Delhi Zoo. When you know how the poor in India live it’s not surprising that the zoos are so dreadful. The animals in this zoo were confined in tiny cement cages or squalled compounds and they looked underfed, mangy and unhappy.When I got to the chimpanzees’ cage there was already a bulky man there with his little daughter. She had a bag of bread crusts and he was carrying a long green stick. The chimp had seen the crusts and expecting to get something to eat it had come up against the bars of its cage and was staring intently at the little girl. The man took a piece of bread from his daughter, held it out, and when the chimp reached for it he whipped its hand with the stick. The chimp screamed in pain and then jumped up and down with rage. The little girl squealed with delight and then her father lashed his stick back and forth across the bars driving the chimp to the rear of its cage. I was utterly horrified, not just the man’s viciousness, but also by the appalling example he was settingfor his daughter. In a frenzy of indignation I snatched the stick from him and told him what I thought of him. He stared open-mouthed at me for a moment and then began loudly shouting back at me. This ugly altercation continued for some time, a small crowd gathering to watch, until eventually we stomped away from each other exchanging is accusations was we did. All the way home I was in a state of enraged agitation, my mind racing with angry thoughts. Back at the temple I buttonholed the first monk I saw and recounted the whole incident to him. His failure to be as indignant as I was did nothing to sooth my rage. I went to my room, sat on my bed and tried to calm myself down. As my anger receded it began to dawn on me that all my previous months’ practice had completely failed. ‘Good god! What have I done! What must those people at the zoo thought when they saw me, a monk, red-faced, shouting and waving his arms around?’ I began to feel absolutely miserable. By the time Lamaji returned I was thoroughly depressed. He sensed that something was wrong, asked me what the problem was and I told him. I finished by saying; “I should have never opened my mouth.” “No Bhantji you did the right thing” he said. “But you did it in the wrong way. It’s hardly a surprise. You’re not an arahat or a bodhisattva. You still have defilements and you will have for a long time to come. But your growing, your changing and your sincere. I have seen it even in the short time you have been here. That man at the zoo probably still doesn’t realize the wrong he has done and he’s probably proud of shouting you down. You are sitting here feeling sorry for what you did. That means the Dhamma is already changing you. In the future you’ll continue making mistakes, you’ll give in to temptations and provocations. Don’t be too hard on yourself. As long as you keep your resolve, as long as you keep your faith in the Dhamma you’ll be okay.’ He got up, patting the top of my head as he did, and made us both a cup of tea. His words did not make me feel much better but in the next few daysI thought more about them and I knew he was right.

The Buddha said. “Just as the great ocean slopes away gradually, inclines gradually, without any abrupt precipices, even so this Dhamma and discipline is a gradual doing, a gradual training, a gradual practice.” (Ud.54). It is unrealistic to think that just because we do Metta Meditation and try to act with of kindness that we will never again lose our temper, get irritated or find ourselves making harsh judgments of others. We all commence our journey on the Eightfold Path carrying different baggage, we all proceed along it at a different pace, and we all pause to rest in different places. While maintaining your commitment to the spiritual life you should also be patient with yourself and not overestimate your progress. When anger overwhelms you, as it sometimes may, be aware of the work still needed but also remind yourself that you are slowly but surely moving forward.

The Hill Of Jewels

Ratanagiri is the biggest and highest of three hills, the others being Lalitagiri and Udayagiri, situated some 50 miles from Bhubaneswar in Orissa. Each of these hills has extensive Buddhist ruins on them. Major excavations of the ruins were carried out by Debala Mitra in the late 50s and her Ratanagiri remains the definitive account of the place’s history, architecture, sculpture and inscriptions. She uncovered several large stupas, hundreds of smaller ones, one main monastery and several smaller ones as well as dozens of fine Buddha and bodhisattva images. It is thought that the Kalacakra Tantra was composed in Ratanagiri and it was likely to be the last functioning Buddhist centre in India.

I spent two days exploring the Ratanagiri/Lalitagiri/Udayagiri ruins in 1989 and was fascinated by the place. It was very remote in those days and getting there required wading across the nearby river. A nearby village family put me up for the night. The tourist boom in India has now stimulated the authorities to do further excavations, build a nearby museum and construct better access roads. But the three hills are still rarely visited. A friend of mine in Vienna, Herbert Lotz, has recently returned from Ratanagiri and sent me some photos he took while there, which I reproduce with his permission. His other photos can be seen at

https://picasaweb.google.com/108420798063933616068/OrissaJan2012?authuser=0&feat=directlink

There are more photos of Ratanagiri at

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nbg90455/sets/72157623748395202/detail/

Holy Holi

Holi is the Hindu festival marking the beginning of Spring. Have a look at these extraordinary pictures of the celebrations of Holi. And a Happy Holi to my Hindu readers.

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2012/03/lathmar_holi_festival.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/03/holi_the_festival_of_colors.html

The Gift Of Sight

The headquarters of the Sri Lanka Eye Donation Society is housed in an unpretentious three-story building in the heart of Colombo's residential Cinnamon Gardens district, where the gift of sight is flown to many parts of the world. Today, its International Eye Bank is one of the world's biggest, supplying human eyes to restore vision to people in as many as 57 countries, including Japan. "We have supplied nearly 56,000 donor corneas to 117 cities in 57 countries - over 9,000 to Japan," as of Sept. 9, said Janath Matara Arachchi, manager of the International Eye Bank. "We realized there was a vast potential to collect donor eyes in this country, over 10 times what we could use here. Owing to a worldwide shortage of donor eyes, our founder, the late Dr. Hudson Silva, mobilized that potential," he said. Sitting in his office with Siri Cassim, the doctor who directs the eye bank, Matara Arachchi explained that the Buddhist concept of dana, or giving, was the root of their success. "Buddhists believe that it is an act of great merit to gift their eyes after death to someone living who would have the gift of sight. Dr. Silva was initially inspired by the Sivi Jataka, a story in which the Bodhisattva gives his eyes to a blind man. Over 870,000 people have signed consent forms we hold asking us to take their eyes after they are dead." Both my parents were very keen that their eyes are donated when they died and the first thing I did when my mother and father passed away was to telephone the Eye Donation Society and arrange for their corneas to be taken," the son of two donors said. "A technician from the society came to our home and removed the corneas. There was no disfigurement of the bodies," he said. Cassim, a senior consultant on eye surgery, explained that corneal graft surgery today involves taking the whole eye ball, not just the cornea, as was done in earlier years. "Even if an eye is not suitable, we take it because it satisfies the families of the donors," he said. "It is not wasted. It can always be used for research." Countries that have received corneas from Sri Lanka include Japan, Thailand, Egypt and China. Japan has been very supportive of the society, with much assistance rendered by its Lions Clubs, notably those in Numazu, Shizuoka Prefecture, and Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture. The society also received support from noted eye surgeon Akira Momosa of Kiryu, Gunma Prefecture. The eyes of prime ministers have been donated, as well as those of the late Sri Lankan President J.R. Jayewardene, who had a special relationship with Japan. His corneas were successfully grafted to two Japanese recipients. The society has 450 branches throughout Sri Lanka, with trained volunteers in each of them ready to remove donor eyes whenever called. "Most of the eyes we receive are taken from hospitals, but we commonly visit homes as well," Cassim said. "We check the body for tattoos as well as injection marks to guard against possible risk of HIV infection." He said that a cell count is first conducted to ensure the cornea is suitable for grafting. A count of 2,000 cells per sq. millimetre is good, but a low cell count can mean the cornea is unsuitable for grafting. "There are six muscles around the eye and the optic nerve and once you cut them the eye can be removed," Cassim explained. "It is sterilized with an antibiotic and iodine solution and examined for suitability for grafting." He said that an eye must be removed from the body within 24 hours of death, packed in ice and received at the laboratory within four hours. There are three types of preservation fluids that allow a cornea to be preserved for five, 14 and 21 days, respectively, at a temperature of 4 degrees. The 21-day fluid is the most expensive one. "We have sent more eyes abroad than have been used locally," Matara Arachchi said. "Nothing is charged for providing corneas for grafting here, but there is a charge, for example, $250 per eye in Pakistan and $450 in Japan, to meet processing charges and other costs." The eye bank operation is slim and tight, with a paid staff of 47, including drivers, clerks and technicians. Expenses run about 1.6 million rupees ($16,000) a month.
By Manik De Sliva from Kyodo News
A painting of the Sivi Jataka from Mukirigala Maha Vihara, Sri Lanka, early 19th century

The Book Of Hungry Ghosts

The Petavatthu, the seventh book in the Khuddaka Nikaya which is the fifth collection of the Sutta Pitaka, one of the three divisions in the Tipitaka, the Buddhist scriptures. This text and its companion text, the Vimanavatthu, is easily the least interesting book in the whole Tipitaka and one can only wonder how it ever got included in it. The title means ‘Story of Ghosts’; peta = ghost + vatthu = story. It consists of about 814 verses embedded in prose stories. Only the verses are canonical. There are four chapters containing 12, 13, 10 and 16 stories each. The exact number of verses is unclear because it is sometimes hard to tell where the story ends and the verse begins. The stories tell of the mean, nasty or immoral things people did which led them to being reborn as a ghost. Without exception these stories are dull, rather puerile and even without literary merit. Winternitz commented, ‘The truly great and profound doctrine of kamma…which has found expression in…Buddhist texts in so many beautiful sayings and legends, is most clumsily explained by means of examples in little stories, whose metrical form is their only poetical attribute.’And what about ghosts? The Rg Veda, the oldest Hindu scripture, speaks of the ‘realm of the fathers’ (pitarah), a sort of shadowy world where everyone went when they died. In later centuries this term fused with the term preta, ‘departed’ and led to the creation of the word peta and the idea of a ghostly realm or existence (Pali pettivisaya, later petaloka ‘ghost world’). Brahmanism later developed the idea that making offerings to ghosts could raise the quality of their gloomy existence. The Buddha mentioned that one of the reasons people wanted a son was so he could make offerings to them after they had died (A.III,43). A brahmin mentioned to the Buddha that he made saddha offerings to the departed (A.V,269), a practice you can still being done in Gaya to this day.

The Buddha seems to have taken this belief for granted or at least saw that it might grow out of kindly motives and he encouraged some people to make offerings to the departed. Typically, he added an ethical dimension to the belief, saying that not everyone, but people who had been immoral might get reborn in the ghost world. He said, ‘By knowing his mind with mine, I have known a certain man who because of his behavior has taken such a path so that after the breaking up of the body he will be reborn as a ghost and will experience much painful feelings. It is just like a tree growing on rocky ground with sparse foliage and casting an uneven shadow. One man might see another, exhausted by the heat of the day, weary, parched and thirsty, going on a path that leads directly to that tree and later he would actually see him sitting or lying in the shade of that tree experiencing much discomfort’ (M.I,75). It seems that the early Buddhists incorporated the existing Brahminical belief in the ghost realm into their cosmology and then had to distinguish it from purgatory. They did this by saying that the committing of prolonged evil would result in rebirth in purgatory, lesser evil or evil associated with craving, longing and wanting would result in rebirth in the ghost realm.
Interestingly, the Buddha considered ‘talk about ghosts’ (petakatha) to be unedifying and unbecoming for serious Dhamma practitioners (D.I,8). The Petavatthu would by any interpretation qualify as ‘talk about ghosts.’ All scholars who have examined the Petavatthu – Rhys Davids, H. S. Gehman and Prof. Abhayanayaka – ascribe to it a late date. Winternitz wrote that it ‘probably belongs to the latest stratum of literature assembled in the Pali Canon.’