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'THE
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Hillside
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The Buddhist Hour Radio Broadcast for Sunday 21 January 2001 Please
note: This show will be broadcasted from 11am to 12pm
We do not wish to be inspired to go nowhere. The risks of holiday mentality are sometimes great. At our Centre, we are about to observe two types of holidays. The first holiday is observed from the 24 January or 25 January this year by more persons throughout the world than any other holiday. This is the Chinese New Year, called this year, the year of the snake. The second holiday is more parochial - the one we talked about in last week’s broadcast - Australia Day, 26 January, 2001, which is today. We can structure the leisure time of holidays to assist us with our practice or not. Perhaps we might wish for the transformation from being a child looking for play on a holiday. Perhaps we ourselves are seeking that which brings us to an adult role that will encourage us to join other non-church related groups that wish for persons to be grounded in the basics of community life. In other programs we developed the notion of stewardship through the development of strong committees and being well organised. We must remind Members to support our organisation financially so we can continue to pass on the Teachings at no charge. Thus, we emphasize service opportunities to pass on information about the various traditions that we have preserved in our library and texts. For some of our Members, if they are inclined to help the poor and needy in practical ways we show them how this can be done in a low risk manner that is sustainable. However, to be cost effective, it makes sense to support other Buddhist organisations who have many persons in need of basic living means, such as, for example, orphans. Occasionally, as a condition for long life of the organisation, we desire to meet in large numbers as recommended by Lord Buddha. For twenty years, we have cared for thousands of visitors on the holiday of the Chinese New Year. There have never been any serious complaints about the rights of thousands of fellow religionists to visit our Temple in the Chinese new year tradition. This is in keeping with a long tradition of healing practice. We have existing use rights as a Hall of assembly. Because of the politics of protest in this Dhamma ending age, the ill-will of one Australian neighbour who lives opposite our Centre is causing a barrier to the freedom of assembly for religious practice. We do not take it personally because persons who attack religions and are supported by fire-worshipping demons who are under the guidance of Jataveda, naturally would oppose Buddha Dhamma followers. The Quail’s Protection, that is one of the parittas that protects against fire, specifically mentions Jataveda. We have used the Quail’s Protection here for decades, and it has prevented our Centre being consumed by forest fires, or bushfires, as they are called in Australia. The neighbour has bluffed some of our other neighbours to sign a petition to the local Council complaining about our supposed traffic. In fact, there is no measurement of what percentage of traffic is to our Temple as opposed to the dozens of other places in the street. Some neighbours park semi-trailers in the street. Over the years, we have less traffic on an annualised basis than at least three other places within the street. For the first time ever, we have notified 48 Buddhist groups that we will not be able to invite them to visit en masse this year for the Chinese New Year ceremony. We have suggested each group sends five persons (one car) to visit us. There is one of the largest Buddhist Temples in Australia under construction at Kinglake in Victoria under the guidance of our good friend Master Lin. In the future, we will help arrange the largest gathering in Victoria for the future Chinese New Years. When built, it can hold thousands of visitors at once. Our friends have been visiting us for two decades. Our garden is a refuge at the height of Summer after they come in buses. The news that we are unable to invite them to our Temple has caused great disappointment in the Buddhist community. One letter we received this week from a Vietnamese Temple said in part: ‘According to the Vietnamese Buddhist tradition, on the occasion of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year, the Buddhist followers come to 10 Temples to pray and prostrate to the Buddhas and Boddhisattvas. This year we would like our tour group of around 100 people to visit your Centre. However, I have received your letter and know that your neighbourhood community have expressed discomfort about the amount of traffic that is generated from your Centre on the occasion of the Lunar New Year. We are extremely disappointed about this information and so will not visit your Centre this year. We look forward to visiting your Centre next year in 2002, we do hope we get good news from you. Be mindful of the Lord Buddha!’ Many Organisations are very disappointed that we are unable to invite them to receive Buddha’s Teachings at this particular Chinese New Year. As is well known, it has been a bad year for many persons... Our Members work for the well being of the aged Chinese and Vietnamese. During the new year, we will be explaining to the Government the situation. The Victorian government has produced a Racial and Religious Tolerance Discussion Paper and Model Bill, on which it is currently seeking submissions and comments. We will prepare a submission on our views on the issues raised in the Discussion Paper and Model Bill. This legislation is being prepared to deal with situations such as ours. If our neighbour does not reverse his unfair position, we are likely to take action under the Bill when it becomes legislation as a warning to others. We have no ill-will towards the deluded neighbour in our street who believes he can act in a wild narrow manner with low tolerance for the rights of others. This year brings hardship to some but it is through programs such as this published for the next year that persons move towards an enlightened perspective, and when this happens, lives are changed and the course of history altered. Our erratic neighbour is to be pitied because he is heading for a low rebirth next life because of his actions. So out of compassion for our neighbour, our Members we will spend some of the Chinese New Year 2001 preparing our submission. for the Premier of Victoria explaining how timely his legislation is in our case. We will keep the local Shire council who are quite supportive of our needs informed of what we intend to do. We are natural change artists in our Community. Correct thinking precedes all relevant action. In the medium term, our Members will purchase homes in the street to be near the Centre. But, first, we intend to set up a dragon king Temple at Phillip Island off the coast of Victoria. and two hours drive from our Centre. Our Teacher has been visiting there for over 30 years. We will announce details on our two e-publications prepared in which we intend to make frequent additions to our written propagation of Buddha Dhamma to help others. We will arrange for the celebration on Australia Day as the official launch day of our on-line journals. Members are invited to learn on Australia Day of the Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd. Confidentiality Policy. There is no guaranteed right to privacy in Australia. The Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd. ACN 005 701 806 ABN 42 611 496 488 has always safeguarded the privacy of Members and Friends of our Centre over the decades. The Buddha Dhyana Dana Review and The Brooking Street Bugle are now online publications. Just as we would not disclose telephone numbers, addresses, fax numbers, email addresses or any other personal information including job suitability of Members over the telephone, we would not disclose such personal information over the Internet. In cases where such requests are made, we obtain the details of the person and pass the message along. Our Membership list is confidential. We do not keep case studies on Members. This precaution becomes increasingly important with the globalisation of our information and communication. The Confidentiality Policy has to be put in writing in front of each Buddha Dhyana Dana Review on line and in front of the on line Brooking Street Bugle. Originally, the Buddha made no provision for his Monks and Nuns to have special holy days. Over time, he stated that the full, first quarter, half, last quarter and new moon days could be observed as special days to practice with more vigour. How did the invention of the notion of holidays come about? Is the notion of holidays now out of date when longer hours of work in holiday times means higher wages for each worker? If we go back to the second millennium B.C. to the Late Bronze Age we find Europe was producing fine and individual work; but it still lagged far behind the Near East both in artistry and in technique. It needed the stimulus of the Iron Age from the North and West to make its full contribution to progress. Specialisation in industry began very early and almost inevitably. Certain trades, as we have seen in the case of miners and metal-smelters, were by their nature whole-time jobs, leaving a worker no leisure time for anything else. The furnace fires must be tended non-stop till the metal is poured. To protect the skilled worker against undue competition, the number of craftsmen must be kept in reasonable limits and the secrets of the trade jealously guarded. The natural result of this jealousy was the organisation of craft guilds. In Mesopotamia the craft guild was not a social organisation independent of Government control; it was recognised and utilised by the Government. Each trade occupied its own quarter of the city, as has long been the custom in the Near East, and its practice was passed down from father to son, although outsiders, including slaves, might be admitted to apprenticeship. According to Sumerian tradition, all the arts had been introduced by the Divine creature Oannes, “since whose time no invention had been made”. Every craft was inspired by and under the protection of a God. This was obviously true of the metallurgist whose work was a daily repeated miracle, and therefore he was a person to be feared and respected. In early days of summer, the tradesmen seemed to have enjoyed a form of Priesthood. Just as medicine was half magic, so in the instructions for performing what we shall call a straight forward technical operation we find that some ritual act is interpolated or some verbal charm has to been repeated to ensure success. In Egypt the craftsman was not his own Master, but like the agricultural labourers, he was a serf; later, there were slaves likewise engaged. In Egypt the trades were hereditary, by law as well as by custom, but because the workers were not free, no guilds could really protect them, so the artisan was chained to his bench, to all intents and purposes a slave. (2) While it is true that there are limitations to records of the Bronze Age and we admit its history is partial, disjointed and inadequate; it says a lot about our own culture that we want thorough analysis of what we do before we can come to the opinion of how our manner of life compares with those of our ancestors. There is no doubt that the invention of metallurgy altered the structure of society within a structure of recognised national states. International trade became common as a ‘union of states’ came together to make up a civilised world. These ‘union of states’ were simply the mutual tolerance of autocrats anxious not to be involved in war. The citizen who profited by his or her country’s foreign policy has nothing to do with the framing of it. His or her ‘freedom’ did not involve the culture of short working hours or holidays and it was quite clear that the gods had designed the world so persons were not equal. There was one law for the rich and another for the poor, one law for the noble man and another for the man of the middle class. The institution of slavery was traditional, universal and essential to social life and progress. Even when the slave was a foreigner, bought or sold as merchandise, he or she was a valuable possession whose worth might be increased by decent treatment. The gulf between the free man and the slave was strengthened by the fact that the private citizen could possess slaves. The state required blind obedience of its citizens, but as far as can be gathered from documents of that Age, when philosophic thought found no expression, the burden of state authority sat very lightly upon persons’ minds. They believed they enjoyed freedom which in fact did not exist, but the illusion satisfied them. Somehow the individualism of the citizen was symbolised by his or her right to hold private property, especially in land. The Temples still possessed enormous estates and the good things of life were indeed manifest. Material advances outstripped the growth of thought. With the success of the Bronze Age, it took till the end of the 13th century to exhaust all the possibilities of this material working within the limitations of society at the time. All the great centres of Bronze Age civilisation perished from foreign attack or fell behind through internal decadence, except for China. About 1200 B.C., in the Western World dramatic happenings were to mark to end of one Age and the beginning of a new Age. Education became a means of climbing the social ladder. But holidays were still not known in the sense we have them today. The cultural shift of the Great Depression of the 1930’s saw Union leaders fighting for shorter hours as a solution to unemployment. The Depression enforced unwanted leisure on many persons who had no money to spend and whose ‘free’ time was spent at home, hidden away from social stigma. Some persons came to dread free time. Bertrand Russell, in his 1932 essay In Praise of Idleness claimed that the choice not to go for shorter working hours had ensured that the unavoidable leisure shall cause misery all round instead of being a universal source of happiness. For business, a recovery from the depression meant business as usual, with long working hours and increased consumption. According to Dr. Sharon Beder (2000), after the Second World War the idea of solving unemployment by reducing working hours disappeared from mainstream thinking. (1) The Buddha taught his students thoroughly on Right View in all areas - how to be a good citizen, employer, employee, son/daughter, father/mother and so on. Meditation is not intended to create relaxation only but to let us know how we can do these good things every day and how to use under-the-surface knowledge that is self-deception as a stepping stone to get beyond laziness at the same time. Our Members are taught to develop Right View of the Five Styles of our Centre: - Friendliness, - Practicality, - Professionalism, - Cultural Adaptability and - Scholarship. Likewise, we can derive from the Constitution of Australia that our ancestors knew what ought to be put in place to protect and encourage Australians. Many modern theories such as the Deconstructionist’s theory, which has some vogue in Australian Universities today, posit that only subjective statements about truth are possible, and therefore discount the possibility of arriving at the truth free of personality bias (in Pali, yathabutam). This is a type of thinking is of too low an order because it ignores causes and effects and prevents the allocation of absolute value to anything, including patriotism. Contrary to this, Buddha Dhamma teaches through correct mind cultivation within the context of the Buddhist Eightfold Path, that it is possible to arrive at a view of reality based on thorough understanding of cause and effect. ‘Ignorance is the absence of knowledge’ is a first order statement. First order statements prevent an individual from having a correct view of reality. We want persons, young and old, to see what is important for well being. Since first order statements prevent him or her from realizing the ultimate truth, we caution persons about them.Ignorance makes an individual see happiness in suffering, good in evil, and vice-versa. Moreover, it makes an individual regard the five aggregates to be permanent and the Four Noble Truths to be unreal. It means attachment to notions of eternalism or nihilism and misunderstanding the conditioned nature of phenomena. ‘The 26th of January is Australia’s National Day’ looks like a first order statement. We wish it to be more than that. It is not strange to wish that one’s own country be well thought about in the world community. But that wish does not say that the notion will become factual as even third order knowledge. In spite of vast sums of “wish” money employed over many years on promoting national sentiment, some sections of our community within our society hold ancient memories of lesser love of the established order. Alex Robson of Highgate Hill, QLD had this to say; “Lowitja O’Donoghue wants ‘inclusion’, but not ‘assimilation’; she wants to hear the word ‘sorry’, because somehow ‘sincere regret’ isn’t good enough; she talks about ‘a common identity’, but in the same breath says that we are a nation of ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’; she paternalistically insults Aboriginal people by referring to them as being ‘collectively impoverished’, when in fact most are not.” From a Buddha Dhamma view, until higher orders of knowledge become clearer, debate that will bring regret is unwholesome, and should not be practiced. The Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd. practices Right View in being a good citizen by obeying the Australian Laws. The degree of legislation in this country has developed into third order knowledge at three levels and hence is extremely complex. These are the types of mental conditions under which the management of our Centre operating at third order knowledge stays legal in the state of Victoria. This is not the place to argue whether we are over- or under-regulated by law but we merely note that we must obey the law that exists because that is what has been agreed to by our democratic or other processes. Adequate methods exist for lobbying the Government if we wish to change the law. In fact, unless something is vital we do not bother. We have found that some apparently well-educated persons who come to help us as volunteers are not aware of some laws. The primary object of attention in the running of the organisation, must be to ensure that it complies with the law. We estimate thirty percent of our efforts are directed to the study and compliance with local, State, Federal or international laws. In some countries where Buddha Dhamma is strong there is no need for a specific law dealing with the preservation of trees, because the Buddha in one case rebuked a monk who chopped down a large tree to get a ridge pole for his Temple. The Deva who dwelled in the tree came to the Buddha and complained he had not been relocated to a suitable new tree before this happened. Trees themselves are inanimate objects - they have no mind. This is why no harm is done when a tree is cut down. But the inhabitant of the tree - the tree Deva - is very greedily attached to the tree and may even attempt to kill persons who attempt to cut it down. These tree Devas do not have the precept of no killing. You can imagine how persons who have performed many meritorious actions in a human life may be born next life to protect their favorite tree. These beings are extremely territorial of forests and are not a blessing to persons who enter a forest that they claim to be their own. They are not adverse to causing harm to human beings and in fact, disturbed some of Buddha’s monks by creating very loud noises when the monks sat under their trees in the forest to practise. The method of dealing with them prescribed by the Buddha is to send them loving - kindness (in Pali - metta). In every turning point in history some win and some lose. Some develop Right View, some lose Right View. From our viewpoint, every day is suitable for becoming non-racist, non-ageist, non-sexist and tolerant of diversity, so we do not create new orders of tension in our society. Every day, several Members must care for our Centre. It is not easy to keep it clean and tidy. Among the many things that need addressing at present is the question of the work ethic of more cleaning and more care of the garden and the need to change the technology of workplace cleaning culture. The change of culture we talk about is not designed for some utopia where persons do not work and are paid not to work. At our Centre, we heed the simple fact of causes and effects that states that if all Members keep taking from our society without putting back value, then society is not likely to survive. All over Asia, new Temples are being built. Young and not so young persons know this act of dana and the message that was taught by the Buddha that such acts help their nation develop towards wealth. If you aspire to be a patriot and look after your country, this is all you need to know for the rest of your life. Help your Temple. Until Australians get back to the basics of what we can afford to give each other, we had better have a hard look at the causes of wealth creation. Fortunately, this has been explained in fine detail by the Lord Buddha. The Lord Buddha taught in The Discourse on Right View - The Sammaditthi Sutta and its Commentary how to develop the Right View for self and others on nutrition for human beings. This nutrition is made up of four essential components which are detailed in the following verse from the Sutta: “”Good, friend”, the bhikkhus delighted and rejoiced in the Venerable Sariputta’s words. Then they asked him a further question: “But, friend, might there be another way in which a noble disciple is one of Right View...and he has arrived at this true Dhamma?” - “There might be, friends.” When, friends, a noble disciple understands nutriment, the origin of nutriment, the cessation of nutriment, and the way leading to the cessation of nutriment, in that way he is one of the Right View... and has arrived at this true Dhamma. And what is nutriment, what is the origin of nutriment, what is the cessation of nutriment, what is the way leading to the cessation of nutriment? There are four kinds of nutriment for the maintenance of beings that have already come to be, and for the support of those seeking a new existence. What are the four? They are physical food as nutriment, gross or subtle; contact as the second; mental volition as the third; and consciousness as the fourth. With the arising of craving of holidays there is the arising of nutriment. With the cessation of craving, there is the cessation of nutriment. The way leading to the cessation of nutriment is just this Noble Eightfold Path; that is, right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness and right concentration. When a noble disciple has thus understood nutriment, the origin of nutriment, the cessation of nutriment, and the way leading to the cessation to nutriment, he or she entirely abandons the underlying tendency to greed for holidays; he or she abolishes the underlying tendency to aversion to holidays, he or she extirpates the underlying tendency to the view and conceit ‘I am’ and by abandoning ignorance and arousing true knowledge he or she here and now makes an end of suffering. In that way too a noble disciple is one of right view, whose view is straight, who has perfect confidence in the Dhamma and has arrived at this true Dhamma.” Many of our trading partners have followed Buddha Dhamma well before Australia was occupied by Western cultural ideas. We hope you understand how and why we celebrate Buddha Dhamma on Australia Day. Buddha Dhamma has come to the Western Countries and we should ensure that we have the will for it to continue to flourish in Australia. Australia is blessed by an immigration program which enables many Asian Monks and Nuns to become resident in Australia, and there is no doubt that the notion of a Multicultural Australia is in the Australian tradition of giving migrants "a fair go". "A fair go" implies freedom to practice your religion without government or fellow citizens interference. The Buddhist scriptures traditionally refer to the eighty-four thousand illusions (misunderstandings), or causes of sufferings, that plague all living beings, and also to the eighty-four thousand Teachings of the Lord Buddha designed to combat these illusions through understanding things as they really are. The Buddha warned against the extreme wrong views of nihilism and eternalism. So, when partaking in learning, it is wise to look for more than the literacy that just reflects the knowledge base of society and develop the cognitive skills that lead to wisdom. May you be well and happy this holiday. This script was written and edited by: John D. Hughes, Pam Adkins, Julian Bamford, Tim Browning, Leanne Eames, Lenore Hamilton, Lisa Nelson, Nick Prescott and Pennie White. Disclaimer:
As we, the Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd., do not control the actions of our service providers from time to time, make no warranty as to the continuous operation of our website(s). Also, we make no assertion as to the veracity of any of the information included in any of the links with our websites, or an other source accessed through our website(s).
Accordingly, we accept no liability to any user or subsequent third party, either expressed or implied, whether or not caused by error or omission on either our part, or a member, employee or other person associated with the Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd.
References: 1. Beder, S (2000), Selling the Work Ethic, Australia: Scribe Publications, pp.152 to 155 2. Oswald, R. and Kroeger, O. (1988) Personality Type and Religious Leadership, U.S.A.: Alban Institute. 3. UNESCO (1963) UNESCO History of Mankind, Volume One, Part Two, London: Allen and Unwin Ltd., pp573-579. 4. Quang Duc Temple (2001) Letter to Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd. from Ven. Tang, dated 16 January, 2001. For more information, contact the Centre or better still, come and visit us. |
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