Buddhist Spectrum

Multicultural harmony through Buddhism

Priyanka Kurugala in Zurich

Ven Walpola Kalyana Tissa Thera

The calm and silent environs are a unique feature in this spiritual centre built primarily for Sri Lankans settled in Switzerland. The Zurich Buddhist temple is situated in Lenzburg.

Anyone, upon a very first visit, will realize this place’s value for practising the Buddha’s teachings. Swiss Buddhists are quite interested in meditation and other disciplines taught in Buddhism. They are trained in such a way, that their lifestyle also reflects the Buddhist influence. Switzerland will be the first European country to establish Buddhism in the near future, states Zurich Buddhist temple’s Chief Incumbent Ven Walpola Kalyana Tissa Thera.

Presently two Buddhist monks, Ven Walpola Kalyana Tissa Thera himself and Ven Karuwalagaswewa Anuruddha Thera, reside in this temple. The temple has a large following. Anybody interested in meditation programme has sufficient facilities in the temple. They have ample freedom to carry out their religious observations and activities.

According to Ven Kalyana Tissa Thera, Switzerland is a good example of a multi-religious country. The country has four national languages: German, French, Italian and English, which is the official language. This environment influences the natives to live in harmony with each other. They honour each other. That is the best and the easiest way to develop a country in a spiritual manner, the venerable monks opine. Swiss Hindu Buddhist Association President T Logeswaran also participats in the temple’s religious activities. Many Sri Lankans, regardless of their religious disciplines, take part in the temple’s activities. The temple has been a centre for multi-cultural gatherings as well.

Most followers, who come to the temple, are locals. Zurich Buddhist temple also has a Sunday Dhamma school, which encourages any Buddhist parent to send their children to learn and practise the Dhamma. There are other Buddhist centres, in addition to Zurich Buddhist Temple, with a large following of Buddhists both Swiss and Sri Lankan.

The main functions of the Zurich temple are meditation classes, Dhamma talks, dialogues on meditation and Buddhist counselling.

Meditation on the spot

Ven. Dickwelle Mahinda Thera

According to the Dhammapada and its commentary, in the final existence human beings who attain to the final stage of sainthood (Arahattamagga and Phala) by the helped of a simple subject of meditation nature of the things as they really are. They can comprehend the three characteristics of all existing things, impermanence, suffering, and non-self. (Anicca, Dukkha, and Anatta), eradicating the cause of suffering, which is craving. There were many Bhikkhus, nuns, and laymen who faced the various subjects of meditation on the spot. Some of them are as follows,

A certain monk obtained a subject of meditation from the supreme Buddha and went to the forest for the purpose of practicing meditation. But he could not produce the slightest sign of progression in the Jhaana exercise. He decided to return to his preceptor. On his way to the supreme Buddha, he saw a mirage. He thought to himself. “Even as this mirage. seen in the hot season appears substantial to these that are far off but vanishes on nearer approach, so also in this existence in substantial by reason of birth and decay.” Thus he exercised himself in meditation the mirage. After bathing in the river, he seated himself in the shade of a tree on the bank near a water-fall. He- saw the great bubbles of foam rising and bursting. He thought to himself, “Just so is this existence also produce and just sees it burst And this he took for his subject of meditation. Later, the supreme Buddha pronounced the following stanza:

Phenupama.m kaayamima.m viditvaa
Mariicidhamma.m abhisambudhaano
Chetvaana maarassa papupphakaani
Adassana.m maccuraajassa gacche
The meaning of the stanza is as follows:

He who knows that this body is like foam, he who clearly comprehends that it is of the nature of a mirage, he should destroy the flower-shafts of sensual passions and pass beyond the sight of the king of death.

At the conclusion of the stanza the monk attained Arahatship. (Dhammapada Puspha Vagga).

A goldsmith's son became a monk under Venerable Saariputta Maha Thera. The preceptor gave him a subject of meditation to meditate on the impurity of the body. He meditated on impurity of the body for a long time., but could not develop even a slight trace (Jhaana), Later, Venerable Sariputta accompanied him to the supreme Buddha. The supreme Buddha surveyed his previous states of existence and perceived that in five hundred successive states of existence this monk had been reborn in the family of that same goldsmith. The supreme Buddha understood that meditation on the impurity of body was entirely unsuitable for him and created a lotus of gold and gave him to meditate on it. Repeating the words “Blood-Red, Blood-Red (“Lohitakan” Lohitakan”). When he was meditating on the gold lotus flower, the supreme Buddha caused it to wither. The young monk thought, “If things which have no attachment for the world thus decay and die, how will much more living beings who are attached to the world, decay and die.” Thus he came to realize the characteristics of all things, namely, impermanence, suffering and non-self (Anicca, Dukkha and Anatta). and attained to Arahathship. ~,Vagga 9)

Arahat Maha Panthaka Thera expelled his brother monk from the temple because he could not recite a stanza by heart. The supreme Buddha appeared before him and gave him clean cloth to meditate upon, repeating the words “removal of impurity” (Rajoharanam). When he was rubbing the cloth facing the East it became soiled from the sweat of his brow.

The supreme Buddha appeared before him in a vision and said “Impurity is Just, hatred, delusion, remove this.” Cullaphanthaka attained Arahatship immediately. (Appamada Vagga 3)

The story goes that five hundred monks obtained a subject of meditation from the supreme Buddha, retired to the forest, and applied themselves to meditation. while these monks were engaged in meditation, they saw the jasmine flowers dropping from their stems. They took it as subject of meditation and thought to themselves,: “So also will we obtain release from greed, hatred, and delusion,” At last, they attained Arahatship. (Bhikkhu Vagga 8).

Kisa ‘Gotami became a nun. Ono day she observed’ the flickering of a lamp and reflected on the impermanence of life. The supreme Buddha cause his image to appear before her and uttered a stanza that led to attainment. (Sahassa Vagga 13)

A certain woman. died from being afflicted by disease. Her kinsfolk and friends

brought her body and handed it over to the keeper of the charnel-ground to bum. He thought the corpse was suitable for a subject of meditation and wished to show it to Venerable Mahaa Kaala. The Maha Thera came and surveyed the body. When it was burning, the colour of the body was like that of a mottled cow. The feet stuck out and hung down. The hands were curled back. The forehead was without skin. The Maha Thera contemplated on decay and death and attained Arahatship together with the supernatural. faculties. (Yamaka Vagga 6)

A certain monk went to the forest to meditate but he failed in the practice of meditation. He decided to meet the supreme Buddha to obtain a suitable subject of meditation.

He set out to return to the supreme Buddha. On the way he saw a forest-fire. He climbed a bare mountain and watched the fire, concentrating his mind on the following thought: “Even as this fire advances, consuming all obstacles both great and small, so also ought 1 to advance, consuming all obstacles both great and small by the fire of Knowledge of the Noble Path.” He immediately attained Arahatship. (Appamada Vagga 8)

Patacara was the daughter of a wealthy merchant of Savatthi. She, eloped with her own page.

They lodged in a certain village. After facing five great deaths of her two sons, her husband, and parents, she became mad. After bearing the Stanza delivered by the supreme Buddha she obtained the fruit of Sotapanna. Later on, she became a nun.

One day she was bathing her feet with water. As she poured out the water, she spilled some on the ground. The water ran a little way and disappeared. The second time it went a little further. The third time a little further still. So she took this very incident for a subject of meditation, and fixing accurately in her mind the three occurrences, she meditated thus:

“Even as the water I spilled the first time ran a little way and disappeared, so also living beings here in the world are dying in youth. Even as the water I spilled the second time ran a little further, so also living beings here in the world are dying -in the prime of life. Even as the water spilled the third time ran a little further yet, so also living beings here in the world are dying in old age.”

The supreme Buddha sent forth an apparition of himself and standing as it were face to face with her, spoke thus, ‘It is better to live a single moment, of a single day, see the rising and bursting of the life, than to live a hundred years and not see.”

At the conclusion of the discourse Patacara attained Arahatship together with the supernatural faculties. (Sahassa Vagga12)

Invaluable treatise on mind, matter and meditation

K S Sivakumaran

I was full of happiness to read a book in English titled ‘Mind, Matter and Meditation’. It was comforting me to a great extent. The author is a Lankan born German citizen Charles S Perera. It is a 344-page book published by Sampath Publishers at 284/10, Kurunduwattha, Madapatha Road, Piliyandala. Published in 2011 it is priced at Rs 375/-

The book is divided into two sections. There are five chapters in the first and another in the next.

If I just mention the subjects mentioned in the last chapter it would be suffice to indicate what the book speaks about:

An invitation to Buddhist Meditation
How to Meditate
Preliminaries
Preparation

The contemplation on the parts of the body (kaayagatasati)
Contemplation on loving kindness
A word for non- Buddhist Mediators
Meditation instructions for both Buddhist and non-Buddhist Meditators
Walking Meditation

How to attain Jhana Absorptions
Insight Meditation (Vipasanaa Bhavanaa)
Seeing: mentality (Naama) mentality (roopa)
Seeing: Cause (Heetu) and Effect (phala)
Meditation for lay followers
Meditating in a Home Environment
Making Meditation a living experience
Meditation inn different Buddhist Traditions, and different methods
The Last Days of the Buddha (Mahaa Parinirbbaana Sutta)

As far as I am concerned this is a complete book on the subject written in simple and understandable English covering a wide range of topics relating to Buddhism as understood by the writer.

Says Charles S Perera: “I was born a Buddhist but that by itself did not make me a Buddhist.”

This is the kernel of understanding the pristine and noble thoughts in any religion when the writer says “ I understood the rituals and ceremonies, the temples and the serene statues were only the outer-coating of a more profound philosophy that was not limited to offering flowers lighting lamps, giving alms to monks, and making prayers. The search of the philosophy opened me to the core of my religion the Buddhist Meditation”

The author is married to a German lady and is thus able to see things in a different perspective while rooted in his own soil and nourished by the local environment since his early childhood. His mother had been a strong influence on him in understanding the essence of Buddhist philosophy. He has dedicated this book to his mother.

We also learn from this book the first discourse of the Buddha, The Middle Path, The Noble Eightfold Path, The four Noble Truths, The three aspects of suffering, the end of the cycle of birth and death and many more details concerning the Buddha and the philosophy he taught.

As a Hindu, I was benefitted immensely from the book. We must also remember that the Buddha was born a Hindu prince in Kaspilavasthu in North India and the broke away from certain aspects of Brahmanic Hinduism. Charles S Perera from Matalae served at the Sri Lanka Embassy in France.

He is a Barrater of Lincoln’s Inn in England and lives in France since 1972. His earlier book on the same subject was in Sinhala published in 2008.

[email protected]

A way to offer daily alms

Venerable Nawalapitiye Ariyawansa Thera

We can accumulate a lot of merit by offering alms. As some are unaware of how to offer alms, they are deprived of the opportunity to accumulate merits. Most of them think “We have no opportunity to offer alms or we have no way of offering alms or else we have no wealth to offer alms”. Most of the people think like this.

As they are thinking so, they are depriving the opportunity to offer alms. When they are deprived of the opportunity to offer alms, they lose the chance to accumulate merit by offering alms.

If we learn the Dhamma shown by the Buddha thoroughly we can comprehend that we have the opportunity more than required to offer alms. The Buddha further shows that if someone disposes, the desecrated water (water containing morsels of food after washing), with the intention that “may this water be food to some creatures”, it also will be a way to merit gained by way of an alms-giving.

See, how many ample opportunities are there to accumulate merit by way of alms-giving. If we believe and bear in mind the Dhamma preached by the Buddha, what a lot of merit can we accumulate in a day?

One day when Arahath Moggallana was going on a tour to the heaven, he saw a certain goddess.

The goddess enjoyed immense heavenly comfort and led a very comfortable life. At that moment, Arahath Moggallana inquired from the Goddess that what sort of a merit she accomplished to enjoy such heavenly comfort. The Goddess replied, “Venerable Sir, I didn’t get an opportunity to engage in a very important meritorious deed. I offered some water to a monk who came to our village in the noon tide heat.

I was very pleased with the opportunity that I could offer some water. I enjoyed that pleasure very much. It was the meritorious act that I committed. As a result of that merit, I have been bestowed with all these heavenly comfort. ”

When we listen to the stories of certain gods and goddesses who enjoy heavenly comfort, we can realize that they haven’t done a great deal by way of meritorious acts. They have done only a minor thing. But the intention they had at the time of doing the act has become very valuable.

The goddess of whom we talked offered only some water to a monk. You can see that is a minor thing by action but her action resulted in a very powerful consequence.

Her intention initiated to develop her minor deed into a powerful merit.

So even a small thing is offered with devotion and honor, there is the tendency to accrue a great deal of merit. If we educate ourselves of the merit and the way to accumulate merit, we will find unlimited opportunities in our lives to accrue merit by way of offering alms.

If we develop opportunities to accumulate merit by way of offering alms, we will be able to accumulate merit throughout this life. The person who accumulates merit this way spends this life amidst a lot of comfort.

He will have the chance to get heavenly comfort in the next life too. In this way, one who is born in heaven in next life will be happy if he has accrued merit.

So try to accumulate merit by way of offering alms. Learn Dhamma shown by the Buddha and understand the ways and means to accumulate merit.

May all have the fortune to accrue merit that bears powerful results.

(Translated by M A Samarsinghe)