Merry Christmas

2011 has been quite a tumultuous year.

There had been earthquakes, tsunami, hurricanes, drought and famine.

People everywhere has awaken to their right to freedom to pursue their own happiness, leading to the fall of dictators in many countries. There has been a lot of atrocities committed in the name of "righteousness".

The USA has pulled out of Iraq, bringing an unpopular war to an end. But what of the people of Iraq - they are left with a country that is still not fully functional, with a lot of tribal strife and power struggle.

Europe is suffering from its excesses with their economies in the dumps and deteriorating each day.

In the midst of all these, it is some times difficult to feel the joy of the holidays.

Nonetheless, we still must give thanks to all that we have, be grateful for all the blessings that we have received and the abundance that we had enjoyed through out the year.

So, let the above be a guide to living well and compassionately.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Here is wishing 2012 will be a year of healing, a year of blessings and a year of abundance.

Do Not Stand at My Grave

Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there, I do not sleep,
I am the thousand winds that blow,
I am the diamond glint on snow.

I am the sunlight on ripened grain,
I am the gentle autumn rain,
I am the shining star at night,
When you awake to the morning light.

My time has come, I am at rest,
I am the sunset in the west,
I am the clouds that race above,
Where I watch over those I love.

Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there, I do not die,
So hear these words that here I say,
I am the love that guides your way.

- Author unknown


It is normal to grieve when a loved one dies.

In the cycle of life, birth and death is as natural as the breath that we draw in.

Without darkness, we would not delight in the sunlight.

Without the exquisite pain, we would not be uplifted by joy.

Without loss, we would not be able to treasure love.

Only when there is duality, can we appreciate the infinite beauty of our lives.

So, when someone departs from our lives, the beautiful memories remain to guide us through our remaining lives.

From a Buddhist point of view, there is no death. We just discard this body that we possess and go to another plane of existence.

So, awaken and live in the present... for that is all we have.

A Few Good Men

I slept and dreamed that life was joy;

I awoke and saw that life was duty;

I acted, and behold, duty was joy.

It only requires a few good men to make a nation great.

Will you be among them?

- by Rabindranath Tagore, poet

I found this on Facebook and really like how the author had transformed negative sentence structures into positive wishes : -

“A Wish for You in 2010

May peace break into your home and may thieves come to steal your debts. May the pockets of your jeans become a magnet for $100 bills. May love stick to your face like Vaseline and may laughter assault your lips. May happiness slap you across the face and may your tears be that of joy. May the problems you had forget your home address!

Happy New Year!!”