"對不起, 請原諒, 謝謝你, 我愛你: Sorry, please forgive, thank you, i love you. True words to your body when your body is ill," said Lao He Shang Chin Kung
"One enlightened thought made you a Buddha in the space of that thought"
"What is the most beautiful word? Mother"
"A lie is a debt to the true, sooner or later the debt's paid"
"Miners work in the dark, they see everything"
"Walk backward, it keeps your mind sharp"
"As long as you tried you won"
"Scratch when you itch, smile when you're dismal"
"A best thing a person can be is of some use"
"Grief brings you low, prayer and faith will lift you high"
"Not what you can get out of life but what you put into it"
"Adversity can be a blessing"
"A wondering mind is an unhappy mind"
"If it's not to your liking, change your liking"
"Risky choice has consequence. Think consequence before taking risk"
"Perfectly imperfect"
"Impossible's I'm possible"
"There are seven days in a week but someday isn't one of them"
"They don't practice until they get it right. They practice until they can't get it wrong"
"Other people's negativity is not your concern"
"It's important to conclude things properly only then can you let go"
"When you have a rough day think what a capybara would do"
"It's hard to get back on your feet after a bad fall, but you get used to it if your life is just one bad fall after another"
"Loneliness exists so does happiness"
"One enlightened thought made you a Buddha in the space of that thought"
"What is the most beautiful word? Mother"
"A lie is a debt to the true, sooner or later the debt's paid"
"Miners work in the dark, they see everything"
"Walk backward, it keeps your mind sharp"
"As long as you tried you won"
"Scratch when you itch, smile when you're dismal"
"A best thing a person can be is of some use"
"Grief brings you low, prayer and faith will lift you high"
"Not what you can get out of life but what you put into it"
"Adversity can be a blessing"
"A wondering mind is an unhappy mind"
"If it's not to your liking, change your liking"
"Risky choice has consequence. Think consequence before taking risk"
"Perfectly imperfect"
"Impossible's I'm possible"
"There are seven days in a week but someday isn't one of them"
"They don't practice until they get it right. They practice until they can't get it wrong"
"Other people's negativity is not your concern"
"It's important to conclude things properly only then can you let go"
"When you have a rough day think what a capybara would do"
"It's hard to get back on your feet after a bad fall, but you get used to it if your life is just one bad fall after another"
"Loneliness exists so does happiness"
"Lao He Sang Chin Kung was in Thailand to attend a peace conference. Lao He Sang met a government official who was a high ranking general and Lao He Sang was invited to his residence for lunch. The general and his wife spoke with Lao He Sang about building a hospital to treat monk and nun but the funding was short two million. Lao He Sang said He would donate the fund. An aide mentioned it was American dollar and not Thai baht. Lao He Sang told the aide to go find the fund. Four days later someone donated the fund to Lao He Sang and Lao He Sang donated the fund to the general. Four years later the hospital was completed and located near Laos border to treat their monk and nun also. Lao He Sang was invited to the ribbon cutting ceremony but not dinner. That was fine since Lao He Sang did not eat dinner but the aides were starving and joking two million and no dinner. The hospital was named Chin Kung Hospital but Lao He Sang told the aide to have the name changed to Three Jewels Hospital," said He Sang Wu Shin.
"Lao He Sang Chin Kung was in Thailand to attend a peace conference. Lao He Sang met a government official who was a high ranking general and Lao He Sang was invited to his residence for lunch. The general and his wife spoke with Lao He Sang about building a hospital to treat monk and nun but the funding was short two million. Lao He Sang said He would donate the fund. An aide mentioned it was American dollar and not Thai baht. Lao He Sang told the aide to go find the fund. Four days later someone donated the fund to Lao He Sang and Lao He Sang donated the fund to the general. Four years later the hospital was completed and located near Laos border to treat their monk and nun also. Lao He Sang was invited to the ribbon cutting ceremony but not dinner. That was fine since Lao He Sang did not eat dinner but the aides were starving and joking two million and no dinner. The hospital was named Chin Kung Hospital but Lao He Sang told the aide to have the name changed to Three Jewels Hospital," said He Sang Wu Shin.
"The Many Ways to Sweep, A Story by Gil Fronsdal. When I was 13, my family would send me up to the mountains around the monastery to collect edible plants for our evening meal. These foraging trips were the only work I enjoyed doing. Otherwise, I tried every trick I could to avoid work on my family’s farm. I was still in school but it held no interest for me; my anger was a welcome barrier to learning anything the teacher was teaching. “Occasionally, during my foraging trips, I would pass by the monastery while the monks were out sweeping the leaves from the many pathways. The first time I saw the monks working, I was mesmerized in watching them going about their work. For many months after, I would often stop awhile to watch them sweep. They went about their work silently and with an efficiency that seemed effortless. “Then one day, a monk walked up to me and asked what I was doing in the mountains. I became defensive. I resented anyone who tried to get to know me. So, instead of answering the question, I countered by asking what was he doing. The monk smiled and answered that he had been told to sweep and that he was just killing time until he could return to his room for a nap. “As I walked home later that day, I thought about his answer and was glad that he did not seem any different than me. When I was required to do anything my heart was never in it and my attitude was that I was passing time until I could be excused. Taking a nap was certainly preferable. “The next time I passed the monastery on one of my foraging trips, another monk stopped his sweeping and also asked what I was doing. Again I resented the question; it felt like an intrusion. However, this time I did not feel as defensive. But again I deflected the question by asking what he was doing. He answered that he was doing extra work in hopes of being assigned to the kitchen which was warm in the winter and always seemed to have one or two extra sweet rice cakes in the cupboard for the cooks to nibble on. “Without saying anything, I nodded and left to continue my foraging. The monks answer resonated with me since I too liked to be warm and eating sweet cakes was one of my favorite activities, second only to sleeping. “The next time I passed the monastery, a third monk asked me the same question. This time I was surprised I wasn’t defensive or resentful of being asked. However, again I deflected the question back to him. He explained that he was sweeping as a spiritual discipline to help him overcome his anger. “Later, as I walked the mountain trail with my bag of plants, I felt a kinship with this monk. Like me, he had anger. But I was perplexed that he would want to overcome it, because I felt my anger protected me. “A week later, I was again outside the monastery watching the monks sweep. Yet another monk came up to me. When he asked me what I was doing, I mumbled something about collecting plants. I doubt he could hear me, for my voice was so faint. But I did muster up some strength to ask him what he was doing. He replied he was beautifying the monastery so that others might be inspired in their work of spiritual transformation. I glanced down the well-swept paths and realized that one reason I was compelled to watch the monks sweep was that they seemed to be transforming the paths into something that made me feel calm and safe. “The next time I stood outside the monastery watching the monks, I was drawn to walk over to a fifth monk, and before he could ask me what I was doing, I asked him. He looked at me with kind eyes. After what seemed like a long but soft silence, he explained that he was sweeping to be of service to all who used the monastery. Practicing in this way, he hoped to find ultimate peace. “As I left the monastery that day, I thought his answer strange. I didn’t understand what he meant by service and by peace, and I certainly couldn’t see how these had any value for me. “The next time I visited the monastery was the last time. I had an unfamiliar feeling as I walked up into the mountains. Just before I reached the monastery, I realized that I was looking forward to seeing the monks again. I felt a warm glow of gladness in anticipation of what I would find. When I arrived at the monastery, I walked right up to an old monk who seemed absorbed in his sweeping, and I inquired what he was doing. “His words washed over me like cleansing water: “Me? I am not doing anything. My self-consciousness was swept away long ago. There is no ‘I’ that does anything. Now the awakened life moves through my body, my heart, my mind, and my mouth. No one sweeps, there are no paths to sweep, and there is no dirt to brush away.” I was stunned by his answer and before I could respond, he handed me the broom and walked away. I have been here at the monastery ever since”
"Once upon a time, there was a temple to which many people went to pray to the Buddha. A spider made a net on the beams. As time went by, the spider was edified and received wisdom. All of a sudden, one day, the Buddha came to the temple. Inadvertently he saw the spider. He asked her:" You have lived here and thought for one thousand years, I want to ask you a question." The spider was glad that the Buddha would speak to her, so she promised to reply. The Buddha said: "What do you think is the most precious thing?" The spider answered:"I think the most precious thing is what I can't get and what I have lost." The Buddha left without a word. After a thousand years, the Buddha came and asked the spider the same question. The spider gave the same answer also. The Buddha said: "You can have a profound think, and I will come back to you some day." One day after a millennium, a sudden gale rolled a drop of dew up to the net. The dew was glistening and translucent, spider liked it very much and she was happy looking at the drop of dew everyday. But after a few days, the wind rolled the dew away from her. The spider felt lost. Then the Buddha came again. He asked:" Have you had a profound think about that question?" The spider thought of the dew, so she said :"What I can't get and have lost is the most precious thing in the world for me." Buddha said: "That being the case, I will let you become a person." So the spider become a beautiful girl of a rich family in the capital city. One day, the emperor rewarded the champion of the country who was named Dew. All of the girls in the capital were attracted to Dew. But Spider believed that Dew will fall in love with her because of the Buddha. But Dew had no impression of Spider, and didn't like Spider. Spider was sad. A few months later, the emperor announced that Dew would marry the Princess Wind and Spider would marry Prince Grass. She knew this and was extremely disappointed. She didn't have anything to eat for several days and was going to die. Then Prince Grass came hurriedly, and talked about his feeling of love for Spider. He said:" If you die, I will go with you!" He was ready to die. Just then, the Buddha came. He said to Spider:" Have you ever thought about who brings Dew to you? The Wind does this. And at last, the Wind will take it back. Dew belongs to Wind, not to you. But have you thought of Grass? He was the grass living in front of the temple. He was looking at you for three thousand years and loving you for three thousand years, but you never took any notice of him. Now, Spider, what do you think is the most precious in the world?" Spider understood the Buddha's meaning at once. She woke up, stopped Grass and gave Grass a deep hug. She said to the Buddha:" Now I know the most precious thing is the happiness I can have right now"
"A door man prayed to Gwan Yin Bodhisattva that his job is frustrating because he opens door for people all day and sees a lot of things but he isn't allowed to say anything. Gwan Yin Bodhisattva appeared and said His job is similar that He sits in the Buddha hall everyday and people are praying for a lot of things but He says nothing. Gwan Yin Bodhisattva asked "would you like to do my job for awhile with one condition you are not allowed to say anything?" The door man was delighted and replied yes. Gwan Yin Bodhisattva made him a Bodhisattva and he sits in the Buddha hall everyday. One day he saw an old lady prayed for health but left behind a purse. Next he saw a poor man prayed for wealth and the man saw the purse full of money and left with it and said wow his wish was granted quickly. The door man Bodhisattva couldn't say anything. Next he saw a young man prayed for a safe return from a fishing boat trip. At this moment the lady returned and accused him of theft and wanted to bring him to authority and that he would miss his boat. The door man Bodhisattva couldn't remain silent and appeared and told the old lady what had happened. The lady let the young man go to catch his boat. Later Gwan Yin Bodhisattva appeared and said "you have failed at this job because the stolen money meant nothing to the old lady since she has a lot more but it meant a lot to the thief to feed his family and this has costed the young man his life as the boat has sunk in a storm. Gwan Yin Bodhisattva told the door man to go back to his job and enjoy saying nothing"
"Virginia wrote to the editor Francis Church of The Sun newspaper on September 21, 1897: Dear editor, I'm 8 year old, some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, "if you see it in The Sun it's so." Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus? Yes Virginia there is a Santa Claus, the editor replied. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! How dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginia. There would be no child like faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. No Santa Claus! Thanks God he lives and he lives forever. A thousand years from now Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood."
"Area Profile: Ben Lomond, Brookdale & Boulder Creek by Amber Turpin of Look Out Santa Cruz Dec 15, 2021. Neighborhood Insider is an in-depth look at some of the cities and communities that make Santa Cruz County the unique and special place that it is. Writers for this series were chosen due to their personal knowledge and experiences to get to the heart of what it means live in a specific place. If Felton is the gateway into the San Lorenzo Valley, then Ben Lomond, Brookdale and Boulder Creek, are the main stopping points along the way. While at times it feels like I’ve seen way more Trump signs and American flags up in these parts, the data shows that SLV as a whole is only a tad bit more conservative than Santa Cruz County as a whole. There are certainly a bunch of hippies and artists and musicians and tree huggers and everything in between — if you’re into throwing labels around. I was a longtime Westsider, living a stone’s throw from the ocean for a bunch of years, but when we had the opportunity to purchase a little tiny house on some property in Ben Lomond, we decided to take the leap, all of a sudden becoming SLV residents. My morning jog, which used to be along the flat stretch of West Cliff Drive, turned into an obstacle course through undulating, steep mountain paths behind my house. I quickly realized I was no longer a jogger, and decided to get a gym membership instead, saving my backroad crosstreking to hikes and mushroom hunting. The further along Highway 9 you get, the deeper the woods, with each little town center expressive of who resides hidden up among the trees. Maps are kind of a joke here, with mountain roads splitting off in all directions, often taking you to a cliff edge or a dead end or someone else’s property that you should not be on. While everyone up here may not see eye to eye on certain things, like if Bigfoot actually exists or if the COVID-19 vaccine is implanting a microchip in us, no one living here in the valley can argue about the power of the redwood trees or how hard it was to see a fire blaze through them a year ago. Those trees are what brought many people here, when the logging industry was booming after the San Francisco earthquake in 1906. But long before that, the indiginous Achista, Chaloctac, and Sayanta people, all part of the larger Ohlone tribe, were here for millennia. Today, most people who call one of these three towns home would refer to themselves as “mountain folk”, likely owning at least one chainsaw and a few chickens. We had chickens for years, but the constant battle against predatory wild animals hunting our birds, despite layers of protective, double-dug coop construction, wore us down. Now we beg for eggs from friends who have better coops, plus dogs, to keep their chickens safe. During the CZU fire, when we all had to abandon our gardens and animals and everything else, it was assumed by many that the chickens left behind wouldn’t make it. Miraculously, our good friends up the road had their flock of hens survive, who took the absence of humans to sit on their eggs. Upon return many months later, our friends discovered a new set of baby chickens…who are now full grown, but still known as the “Fire Chicks.” These kinds of stories are a dime a dozen up here. Property owners and renters have loads of tales to tell, almost like how parents never stop talking to each other about their kids. It’s a whole conversation genre that you wouldn’t even know about unless you happen to find yourself living up here, and then you are smack in the thick of it with a lot to share. Who else can understand what it’s like to have a mountain lion using your yard like a highway? Doesn’t everyone set up infrared cameras to capture wild cat traffic? How many times did you hear the neighbor on his shooting range this weekend? When do you think our road is going to get fixed from that big storm five years ago? Can someone please take all of this zucchini off my hands? To live here, you need a bit of grit, to deal with inconvenient occurrences on a day to day basis like downed trees, power outages — before power outages were such a common thing — and closed roads. Also debris flow zones, flooding, evacuation orders and wildfires. Some folks have chosen this life for a reason, to feel less on a grid, less dependent on others, less plugged in. Other folks just love nature, and rural quiet, the magic of living in an actual rainforest. It might not be the most exciting life, unless you count all those mountain lion sightings as excitement. And you might tend to stay home most nights, since it takes at least 30 minutes to get anywhere at all. But here in this temperate state, where East Coasters complain there are no seasons, these mountain towns offer just a little bit more of that seasonal shift. Once you pull off those soggy boots after chopping more firewood before the rain comes, there is nothing quite like the cozy feeling you get, tucked near the fireplace as you watch the drops descend from the giants above."
"Rescued by Ruby the movie is based on a true story of a shelter dog Ruby, a Rhode Island state trooper with attention deficit disorder, an animal shelter woman, a K9 unit commander, and a facility maintenance old man. Ruby had been adopted seven times but each time she was returned due to bad behavior. The woman's supervisor told her Ruby would be put down that evening. The woman begged to keep Ruby but the boss said she had one day. The woman called everybody in the book but weren't successful. Meanwhile the trooper was applying for a K9 job for the 8th time in 8 years because it was his dream job and this time the trooper was 29 years old and the K9 unit commander would not admit any trooper into the K9 unit who was 30 or older. The commander also told him it would cost ten thousands to acquire and train a K9 dog and that wasn't in the budget. That afternoon the trooper sat at a bench and watched the K9 dogs in training and chatted with the old wise man. The man told him he didn't need a fancy dog but just a dog that could do the job. The trooper was excited and visited the animal shelter and met the woman and looked over dog pictures but wasn't interested. The woman said "why don't we go see those dogs and who know you may be interested in one." The trooper followed her and saw Ruby and adopted her. The woman was very fond of Ruby and told her "i knew you have some good in you so show it." Ruby went home with the trooper but again behaved badly and days later the trooper drove Ruby back to the shelter but stopped at the K9 training facility to show Ruby she could have become one of those K9. The man approached and asked where was he going. He said he was on his way to the shelter. The man said "you give up on her." The trooper said "she is impossible she destroys everything." The man said "you'd made trooper, implying trooper got the job despite of his attention deficit disorder." The trooper said "i was lucky." The man said, "maybe you should give Ruby some of your luck." The trooper drove Ruby home instead. When the time came he and Ruby showed up at the annual K9 recruitment for a six weeks training. The commander evaluated Ruby but rejected her. The trooper had accepted his dream would never be realized. His wise wife advised him to train Ruby in the back yard for six weeks and then compete in the final because the rule did not say one had to train under K9 commander but just to past the final exam. The trooper was beyond himself and trained Ruby and showed up at the final exam. The commander said "Ruby must locate a cell phone, a key, and a human remain in 30 minutes." Ruby located the phone and key in 2 minutes. Commander then told trooper and Ruby to go inside the building to locate the human remain. Ruby searched everywhere but came back and sat at the trooper's feet. The trooper told commander there was no human remain. Commander said "are you sure?" Trooper said "if Ruby said there was no human remain then there was no human remain." Commander said "there will be someone not passing the final today but you and Ruby did, sometime a negative search is required." Commander offered Ruby and trooper a K9 job provisionally. One day a boy was missing during a mountain trip and Ruby was on duty and located the boy who was hurt falling down a cliff. Trooper called in but he was out of ranch but Ruby kept barking and was heard by the search team and the boy was rescued. At the ambulance commander wanted trooper and Ruby to meet the boy's mother because she wanted to say thank you. The mother turned out to be the shelter woman who had tried so hard to save Ruby. Commander said "you know each other." The mother said Ruby was purposed to be put down that evening but the trooper showed up and saved a life." Commander said "and now Ruby saved your boy's life." The wise man said "there must be a wink from above." Commander gave Ruby and trooper a permanent K9 job."
"Rescued by Ruby the movie is based on a true story of a shelter dog Ruby, a Rhode Island state trooper with attention deficit disorder, an animal shelter woman, a K9 unit commander, and a facility maintenance old man. Ruby had been adopted seven times but each time she was returned due to bad behavior. The woman's supervisor told her Ruby would be put down that evening. The woman begged to keep Ruby but the boss said she had one day. The woman called everybody in the book but weren't successful. Meanwhile the trooper was applying for a K9 job for the 8th time in 8 years because it was his dream job and this time the trooper was 29 years old and the K9 unit commander would not admit any trooper into the K9 unit who was 30 or older. The commander also told him it would cost ten thousands to acquire and train a K9 dog and that wasn't in the budget. That afternoon the trooper sat at a bench and watched the K9 dogs in training and chatted with the old wise man. The man told him he didn't need a fancy dog but just a dog that could do the job. The trooper was excited and visited the animal shelter and met the woman and looked over dog pictures but wasn't interested. The woman said "why don't we go see those dogs and who know you may be interested in one." The trooper followed her and saw Ruby and adopted her. The woman was very fond of Ruby and told her "i knew you have some good in you so show it." Ruby went home with the trooper but again behaved badly and days later the trooper drove Ruby back to the shelter but stopped at the K9 training facility to show Ruby she could have become one of those K9. The man approached and asked where was he going. He said he was on his way to the shelter. The man said "you give up on her." The trooper said "she is impossible she destroys everything." The man said "you'd made trooper, implying trooper got the job despite of his attention deficit disorder." The trooper said "i was lucky." The man said, "maybe you should give Ruby some of your luck." The trooper drove Ruby home instead. When the time came he and Ruby showed up at the annual K9 recruitment for a six weeks training. The commander evaluated Ruby but rejected her. The trooper had accepted his dream would never be realized. His wise wife advised him to train Ruby in the back yard for six weeks and then compete in the final because the rule did not say one had to train under K9 commander but just to past the final exam. The trooper was beyond himself and trained Ruby and showed up at the final exam. The commander said "Ruby must locate a cell phone, a key, and a human remain in 30 minutes." Ruby located the phone and key in 2 minutes. Commander then told trooper and Ruby to go inside the building to locate the human remain. Ruby searched everywhere but came back and sat at the trooper's feet. The trooper told commander there was no human remain. Commander said "are you sure?" Trooper said "if Ruby said there was no human remain then there was no human remain." Commander said "there will be someone not passing the final today but you and Ruby did, sometime a negative search is required." Commander offered Ruby and trooper a K9 job provisionally. One day a boy was missing during a mountain trip and Ruby was on duty and located the boy who was hurt falling down a cliff. Trooper called in but he was out of ranch but Ruby kept barking and was heard by the search team and the boy was rescued. At the ambulance commander wanted trooper and Ruby to meet the boy's mother because she wanted to say thank you. The mother turned out to be the shelter woman who had tried so hard to save Ruby. Commander said "you know each other." The mother said Ruby was purposed to be put down that evening but the trooper showed up and saved a life." Commander said "and now Ruby saved your boy's life." The wise man said "there must be a wink from above." Commander gave Ruby and trooper a permanent K9 job."
願以此功德 莊嚴佛淨土 上報四重恩 下濟三途苦 若有見聞者 悉發菩提心 盡此一報身 同生極樂國
May the merit and virtue accrued from this work adorn the Buddha Pure Land, repay the four kindnesses above [country, parent, teacher, benefactor], and aid the three sufferings below [greed, anger, ignorance]. May those who see and hear bring forth the Bodhi hearts, spend their lives devoted to the Dharma, and be born together in the Land of Ultimate Bliss
是日已過 命亦隨減 如少水魚 斯有何樂? 大眾 當勤精進 如救頭然 但念無常 慎勿放逸
This day is already gone. Our lives are that much less. We're like fishes in a shrinking pond. What joy is there in this? We shall be diligent and vigorous as if our own heads were at stake, only mindful of the impermanence, and not lax
自皈依佛當願眾生紹隆佛種發無上心 自皈依法當願眾生深入經藏智慧如海 自皈依僧當願眾生統理大眾一切無礙和南聖眾
i take refuge in Buddha wishing all sentient beings understand the Great Doctrine and make the superlative resolve. i take refuge the Dharma wishing all sentient beings understand the Sutra Pitaka with wisdom as unfathomable as the sea. i take refuge the Sangha wishing all sentient beings harmonize multitudes in general without any obstruction and respect the sacred Sangha
願以此功德 普及於一切 我等與眾生 皆共成佛道