Monday, March 28, 2011

Guest Post: Earth Hour

This post is by my wife who writes her own blog at Living In Iowa.

 I firmly believe that we all have a spiritual connection to the earth. When the Buddha sat under the bodi tree battling Mara to reach enlightenment, Mara asked him, “Who will be your witness?” The Buddha pointed to the earth and touched it and the earth shook. “The earth will be my witness,” he replied.
The earth is an integral and foundation part of our lives—without it, we are literally, nothing. A while back I was thinking about the impact I want to have on the earth. We have an almost automatic give and take relationship with the earth. Plants give oxygen that we take and breathe in. We breath out and give carbon dioxide that plants take and breathe in. Unfortunately, this original balance of give and take has been thrown out of kilter by or current industrialized society. While thinking about my impact on the earth during my lifetime, I realized that if I continue to live in the way I am, I will mostly certainly take far more from the earth than I give.

So, I decided it was time to make an attempt to restore the balance. There are sooooooo many things we can to do restore and rehabilitated the earth. What is most important is to start with your corner. How are you consuming products and energy? How can you reduce your consumption of goods and energy? How can you give back? 
I’ve figured out ways that I can give back in my neighborhood include gardening, composting, recycling, buying local foods, and utilizing bike trails. I also participated in earth hour this year. Earth Hour calls on individuals, businesses, communities and governments to commit to developing a habit that is a positive action for the planet. To celebrate that commitment with the people of the world, Earth Hour asks participants to switch off their lights and anything else plugged into an outlet (within reason) for one designated hour ever year.

This year Earth Hour was planned for March 26th at 8:30pm. My Earth Hour habit that I am committing myself to is "Killing my TV" or yanking out the cable and only using my TV set to watch DVD's. As of March 26th, my cable can take a hike, and so will I...OUTSIDE.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Lent for Rent

I'm not going to be contrasting or bashing other religions here, but the Catholic tradition of Lent is in progress right about this time. Giving up something for forty days.

So, giving up something which is not good for us, as well as spending time on "quiet reflection and contemplation".... don't we as Buddhists try to practice these same things everyday?  Well, nobody is perfect, we all have our vices, and if you were to be perfect,'d be a Buddha.

Now, I respect the observation of Lent if you're going to give up something to totally rid your life of it (i.e. smoking, drinking, sexual misconduct, etc).  But many people I speak to often say, "I'm giving up chocolate" or "I'm giving up shopping" for forty days.  This kind of boggles me. Why only forty days?  Why wouldn't you want to give up a negative aspect of your life or character to get rid of it permanently?

Or better yet, practice "giving up" all year round from year to year?

 From Wiki:
"Jesus retreated into the wilderness, where he fasted for forty days, and was tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1-2, Mark 1:12-13, Luke 4:1-2). He overcame all three of Satan's temptations by citing scripture to the devil, at which point the devil left him, angels ministered to Jesus, and he began his ministry. Jesus further said that his disciples should fast "when the bridegroom shall be taken from them" (Matthew 9:15), a reference to his Passion. Since, presumably, the Apostles fasted as they mourned the death of Jesus, Christians have traditionally fasted during the annual commemoration of his burial."

This passage reminds me very much of when Siddhartha  (The Buddha) was meditating under the Bodhi tree and being tempted by Mara.  And this biblical passage, I believe, is to teach those who faithfully follow Christ, to resist all things worldly, day to day, year to year.  As the passage from James 4:4 reads, "A friend of the world is an enemy to God."  (Speaking of all worldly things and desires).
So am I celebrating "Lent"?  Well, I try to everyday, resisting temptations and being mindful that the things I want may have consequences, and that everything is impermanent, so I don't really need anything at all.

In the end, why not use the time to better yourself, or better the world?

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

The Many Manifestations of Kung Fu

I'm currently reading The Art of Shaolin Kung Fu, which I am enjoying throughly.  It gives a great background the the many forms of Kung Fu, or more respectively known as, quanfa, (q=ch, as in chanfa, art of the fist).  The book reminds me of a philosophy I once learned before.

Many people associate Kung Fu with high kicks, forms imitating animal behavior and two-finger handstands, though that's not at all what Kung Fu is about.  In fact, Kung Fu is almost a double standard.  When you tell people you "know Kung Fu" they will either ridicule you or think you can break bricks with your hands, though it's usually the former.

Many also associate Kung Fu with games like Mortal Kombat or Jackie Chan movies.  Though Jackie Chan is a master of Northern styles, there are over 1,000 styles of the art originating in China, differing from family traditions to regional traditions.  All of the forms of Quanfa have their origins from the Shaolin Monastery.

So, what really is Kung Fu?  Directly translated from Chinese, it means "perfection." Perfection of what? Perfection of you!  Kung Fu is more of a philosophy which derived from a martial art.

From your thoughts, your actions, to your relationships, Kung Fu is not just about punches, kicks, and back-flips.  It's a way of life, no different from the Japanese Bushido (Way of the Samurai).  Its philosophies derive from Buddhist and Taoist scriptures, and are in fact, very intertwined.

(And please don't assume all Buddhists or Taoists are martial artists and vise versa)

But why would a Buddhist or Taoist want to harm another through martial arts?  We don't want to.  Does a thorn from a rose not protect itself from those who want its blossom?  One of the laws of Shaolin monks is to NEVER kill.  We as humans can defend ourselves, but should never kill.  Martial arts are to be used to cease or subdue conflict, to bring peace.  The other reason of practicing the art is one of self preservation and self discipline.  Kung Fu is beneficial to health, longevity, cultivating Chi, and moral behavior.

Technically, you don't even have to be a martial artist to practice literal "Kung Fu."  Kung Fu can be in the writer, the painter, or the car mechanic.  It's ultimately about perfecting what you do and how you do it.  The martial artist, then, technically practices Quanfa, while utilizing the philosophy of Kung Fu.

So now you know the true meaning of Kung Fu/Gung Fu.  Below is a great interview with legendary Bruce Lee discussing some of these points: