How monastery benefit the country?

In Nepal most of the monasteries are of the Himalayan vajrayana (lama) Buddhist lineage, we also have Theravada and typical vajrayana sects. The Himalayan vajrayana Buddhist monk and nuns are fully involved in social work. Since the early 1990s most of them became involved with projects to help the poor of this country. One of the main ways that monasteries benefit this country is by helping provide a better way of life for many that they would not have otherwise. This is a benefit for these individuals, their families and for the whole country.

Our country has large monastic populations and most of the monks and nuns are of Himalayan origin. They come from remote areas of Nepal, which shares a border with Tibet.

These regions have had very little access to quality education, health care or nutrition. Most of them have no schools at all. This is due to the negligence of the government. The monasteries have been instrumental in giving those people a chance for a better life.

The monasteries have taken in many thousands of young people from these remote regions and Kathmandu itself. It is quite common for the parents of the monastic's to give one or more of their children to the monasteries for a religious education. It is probably fair to say that these children have a better life in the monasteries and that it benefits them their whole life to be educated and receive health care and have better nutrition. Even if they do not remain as a monk or nun their whole life they will have benefited greatly from the monastery discipline and having religious base.

This in itself is the best example of social welfare, as Buddhist monasteries are not only contributing to the well being of Nepali people, their daily prayers contribute to the welfare of everyone in the world.

Many monasteries these days give their monastics a secular education in addition to their religious education. Many are following in the Nepal department of education curriculum even up to the school graduation certificate. They are learning computer skill, English language etc.

Mostly coming from very deprived villages, all the benefits these young people receive in monastery life seem to produce a very well rounded and useful person. If a monk or nun leaves their monastery, they are in good position to help their families and communities by teaching school or working in the now established medical clinics. Having an education enables them as well to get better jobs to provide for their families or teach more skillful ways to develop their village such as better method of agriculture.

Best Education About Buddhist And Meditation: Cause Effect

Best Education About Buddhist And Meditation: Cause Effect: 1.         If in the past we had committed robbery and created bad karma that will cause us to suffer from lungs and nose problems. But aft...

Karma and Karma's Effect

1.       Not to kill but to set lives free is to create blessing, a proactive so easy; not to eat meat is our human dignity. For we were born to live, to learn to love, be free. There is nothing great to shout about, just do not kill in your deeds, speech, thoughts. Bad karma you will then not create, only blessing you reaps and takes.

2.       Whenever the ancient people have done a good deed, they will put a red bean into a bottle as a mark. And when a bad deed has been done, they too put a black bean into a different bottle. After a year has passed, they would count the beans to check on the number of good and bad deeds that they had done.

3.       If in this life one likes to fight, enjoys killing animals and destroying their homes, and is happy when someone’s dislike has passed away in one’s next life, the life span will be short.

4.       When everyone knows of his evil deeds, or his notoriety is already well-known, we can prevent others and our friends from his evil doings by taking him as an example. By doing so, we are generation good blessings.

5.       Nobody can escape death. When a person leaves the world he takes along nothing with him, except his karmic seeds of good or bad deeds. It is said: “at death not even one of 10,000 things. We can bring; except only the karmic seeds of every deed we did.”

6.       If in this one practices compassion and Equanimity and avoid killing, and is always happy to help others in one’s next life one will have a long life-span.

7.       The sensual desires are: attachment to beauty, to sweet music, to perfumed unguents, to tasty flavors and to soothing touch. To every layperson, the 5 sensual desires are always creating karmic afflictions. And deep down is his heart, there is not a single day when he can be completely satisfied with them.

8.       When a person is thinking of doing evil, but has not started to do it, we can persuade or hinder him from doing so. Such a timely intervention already produces well.

9.       Before person begins to dog a good deed and we had encouraged him to carry it out, this is called “attaining blessings of carrying out a good deed, and we supported and helped him out this is called “attaining blessing through charitable acts”.

10.   Our six roots: Eye, ear, nose, tongue, body and mind, create and result in various good and bad karma. For e.g.: someone may be born rich but has a crooked mouth.

Cause Effect

1.       If in the past we had committed robbery and created bad karma that will cause us to suffer from lungs and nose problems. But after we had started to uphold the precept of not stealing, our lung and nose problems will gradually diminish. Such is the truth that “upholding precepts can diminish karmic debts”.

2.       If in the life on does evil’ deeds and easily gets Angry; if one often gets jealous or likes to scold people, in the next life, karmic retribution will be rebirth with an ugly and crooked mouth.

3.       If in this life on mixes with people who disbelieve in the karmic retribution of the 3 periods time, and also embraces deviant and immoral, knowledge and values, in one’s next life one will have a low and deficient mind.

4.       A person is rich but is repulsive and ugly; this is because in the past one was generous but easily lost one’s temper.

5.       All the ill-omens and bad luck that we encounter in this life is a direct result of our past evil action and thoughts.

6.       Those who ill-treat animals in the past or in this present life will meet with many sicknesses in life.

7.       Behaving proud arrogant in the past life will result in being born despicable and lowly in this life.

8.       Even as we uphold precepts in this life, sometimes we will also incur bad karma and become sick. Just because we fell sick while upholding precepts, we should not be discouraged to continue this practice. While we are upholding precepts and still fall sick, this is a sign that our past bad karma has lessened. It is an early sign that our past bad karma has lessened. It is an early sign that our karma is diminishing.

9.      Sakyamuni Buddha originally attained to the state of such ness, where sicknesses are absent, but because he wanted to liberate people from the cycle of rebirth, he has to present himself as a normal being with a conditioned body that is subjective to sicknesses. Although when they are sick, their mental states are always clear, pure and blissful.

10.   Our human karma is quite unique, just as what we perceive is also different. For e.g.: A human being sees water as water; a ghost sees water as blood; heavenly beings sees water as crystal; a fish sees water as its home, and to leave it is equal to death.

Cause of Effect

1.      The supreme sages: the lord Buddha can understand the unlimited past, future and present to say it more clearly: he completely understands the unlimited three periods of Time and Space.

2.       If in the past, one beat, tortured and caned living beings, in this life ulcers and sores will grow on one’s body.

3.       The Buddhist Text state: Sages that have cut off the streams of karmic afflictions will be able to understand the history within the past 84,000 Kalpas. (I kalpais 1343.840,000 years).

4.       When you perform virtuous deeds, you will receive good blessings; when you commit evil acts, you will receive bad endings. Good seeds bear good fruits; Bad seeds bear bad fruits; this is law of karmic retribution.

5.       The Avatamsaka Sutra states: Bodhisattvas at the third stage of spiritual attainments; are ale to understand their immediate past life, their 2^nd and 3^rd past lives, their past hundred lives, even their past thousand lives Unlimited hundred thousand past lives. For example: able to remember the formation and destruction of the world, one’s own name, family clanship, one’s span of life, one’s physical appearances, one’s happy and unhappy experiences, the paces we were born and died.

6.       We remember and celebrate each anniversary old our ancestors or late parents, and also other special festive days in the year, even our own birthdays. But if we do not cultivate “ceiling on desires”, we are as good as having lost I precious year of our life-time.

7.       If a man is born handsome and a woman beautiful, it is because in the past, they practiced hospitality and were I charitable to others.

8.       Practicing giving increases fortune.

Setting lives free begets longevity. One good thought transports us to heaven.
One evil thought delivers us into Hell. Cause and Effect is just and fair, like yin and yang complementing each other.
In our Sana world there are jails; in the neither world there is Hell. Doing good or bad all come from you, wait not when Death is near to know its true.

9.       Attachment to tastes normally results in sicknesses of the heart.

10.   Perform a good act, bad karma you subtract;
prevent a certain death. Good karma you add.
Influence a person never to kill; thousands of live are already saved by you. What if a thousand people you in still. What greatness one virtuous act can fulfill!!!!!

Reflecting Degenerations

As a result of unchecked degeneration activities, eventually, the merit of sentient beings will decrease until their lifespan dwindles down to a mere thirty, twenty and finally ten years. The body of sentient beings will eventually be no more than the size of thumb. During this period, when the life span of beings is declining, three distinctive time periods will occur. These three intermediate periods occur at the end of every declining phase within a given aeon. These are known as 1) the period of famine; 2) the period of plague; 3) the period of weapons. (During the specific time period there exist a way out.

After the period of weapons has passed, the remaining survivors will venture form the mountains and forests back towards towns and cities. Catching sight of others, for the very first time in their lives, they will experience joy and kindness. It is said that during the time after the period of weapons, an emanation of bodhisattva Maitreya will appear in this world. The surviving human beings of that time will have very small bodies, and the body of maitreya will be larger and highly charismatic. Seeing maitreya, the human beings of that time will be amazed, wondering how he could be so much taller than they are. Maitreya will answer saying I have attained such body by following and practicing Buddha's teaching. Buddha maitreya extended his compassion; guidance and wisdom to garner the people also abide in full faith and devotion. This changed behavior lead to accumulation of merit and subsequently to increase in lifespan of up to twenty years in their descendants. Hence, the emanation of maitreya in this human world will mark the beginning of another ascending phase within a given aeon. The virtuous karma gained by abandoning negative activities will result in progressive increase in life span of the human beings form 10 years to 80,000 years.

in order to prevent from these three time periods of famine, plague and war, it is recommended to make offerings such as food and medicine to sangha for avoiding famine and plague. In order to avoid war period, we have to avoid taking lives of any sentient beings.

"in this peak of samsaric world, there is hardly genuine peace and happiness. However they may seem, samsaric, affairs always end in disaster." However industrious you may be, there is no end to worldly activities, but if you practice Dharma, you will swiftly conclude everything. So recognizing the suffering of samsara, turn towards the dharma practice. As you practice the Dharma steadily, even in quite a modest way, you will gradually be able to progress further and further on the path to liberation. Eventually, you will attain a true happiness that can never diminish.  

Reflecting on five Degenerations

As expounded by the great protector Khuenkhen Pema Karpo, the protector and guardian of the teachings of past, present and future times, lord Shakyamuni appeared towards the end of the fourth era, "the era of strife" in which beings all quarrel with one another.

Each of the thousand buddhas of the fortunate Aeon will appear within these four eras. But among all these thousand Buddha's, Buddha shakyamuni appeared appear during the era of strife, at a time when the five degenerations are flourishing. It is this period in which we presently find ourselves.

The five degenerations are the:

Degeneration of lifespan;

Degeneration of Time;

Degeneration of Affliction;

Degeneration of Sentient Beings;

Degeneration of Actions

During the golden age (the age of perfection), there was no need for sunlight or moonlight for beings radiated light form their own bodies. They could move miraculously through space and they lived without needing any solid food. All creatures naturally abided by the ten virtues. But as time passed, they began to harm each other and gave way to their desires to steal lie and kill. Hence their desires to steal lie and kill. Hence their natural luminosity diminished and had to depend on sun and moon for light; they lost their ability to fly, they began to need solid nourishment. People were ill intentioned and full of deceit. They put themselves first and disregard the needs of others. Whoever flatters them they regard them as friends and whoever contradict and oppose them enemy. These attitudes gradually distorted their views, word and actions the cumulative effect of all negative activities has transpired into the current time period known as the "five degeneration". This is the period when five degeneration are flourishing like never before.

The degeneration of time refers to the era of strife like our time in which beings are tormented by famine, illness and war. The degeneration of sentient beings refers to the situation of begins born during the era of strife and also implies that the character of beings has progressively deteriorated through the course of the four eras. The degeneration of lifespan refers to the fact that during the era of strife, the lifespan of beings decline from one hundred years all the way down to ten years. Note that Buddha shkyamuni appeared at a time when the lifespan was at the limit of one hundred years. No Buddha in the fortunate anon ever appears when the lifespan of beings is less than one hundred years. The degeneration of actions means that during the era of strife all sentient beings will engage in the ten non-virtuous actions. The degeneration of afflictions indicated that in the era of strife the afflictions of ignorance, desire, anger, jealousy and pride are so strong that worldly remedies cannot overcome them. The degeneration of views means that people in the era of strife the regard to existence of triple gem. Life after death, case and effect (karma) etc will doctorate.