Living Half A Life

I kept coming to Toa Payoh at at least 10pm... to take bus 105 home after work. You can understand how wonderfully fresh the view from the same bus-stop seemed when I came went there one early afternoon. For the first time, I see the neighbourhood painted in colours, instead of mere shadowy shades and streetlamp yellow. Upon boarding the bus, due to the seats being mostly occupied, I had to sit on the right side instead of the left, where I usually do. The fleeting window-seat view was a brand new live film show to me. Only after more than a year am I seeing this side of the "story"!

It hit me that I had been somewhat living half a life- at least this is so when it came to Toa Payoh. I had been missing it in colour. And I had been missing its "right" view. Intriguing discovery! Makes me wonder what other halves, or quarters, of fifths... of my life am I missing.

Am I living the essential aspects of my life fully enough? Is my Dharma practice missing any crucial aspect? Am I applying the Buddha's teachings in all aspects of my life? Friendship, family, work and play... Dharma practice is a lifetime 24/7 "job"- not a weekend hobby at the temple; definitely not for mere recreation after office hours! The first anniversary of 9-11 is coming... Do you find yourself praying for world peace, when there is war at home? How can we save the world with the Dharma if there is a heated war with Dad, and a cold war with Mum? How complete our Dharma life is not how much Dharma you know, but how much you put it into practice. reply