Buddha Quote of the Day

I have added a daily quote from the Buddha near the bottom of this page.

I am a little bit annoyed that the daily quote comes with an advertisement, but I have taken the liberty of adjusting the height of the box containing the quote so that it is narrow enough to require the viewer to manually scroll down to see the ad. I will look around to see if I can find a daily Buddha quote that does not come with an ad.

My Lama Is Better Than Your Lama

The Chinese government is delusional if it thinks that the Tibetan Buddhist community will ever accept its handpicked Panchen Lama, who arrived at the Labrang Monastery in Xiahe to a forced show of feigned enthusiasm by the thousand monks in residence.

The real Panchen Lama, who is the second ranking reincarnate Lama in Tibetan Buddhism, disappeared shortly after being named by the Dalai Lama in 1995, having likely disposed of by the Chinese government. Whether he was relocated, killed, or still languishes in a prison somewhere is unknown.

The installation of the Chinese designated Panchen Lama at Labrang Monastery is likely a "dress rehearsal" for the death of the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, when China will likely override the wishes of the Tibetan people and their government in exile, and cynically claim its own authority to select the next Dalai Lama, who they intend to control as a puppet of Beijing.

China has for years gone through the motions of allowing the practice of Buddhism by the Tibetan people, while in truth maintaining strict authority of the operation of temples and monasteries, closing and destroying most while allowing the continued existence of only a few which they force to pledge loyalty to Beijing, and which are run more for display to tourists and international observers than to function for the spiritual and cultural benefit of the Tibetan people.

Maybe Government is Targeting the Vulnerable Because the Vulnerable Are the Easiest Targets

This editorial, from a local newspaper in upstate New York, says it all in the first sentence:

If you are young, old, disabled, mentally ill, unemployed, poor or retired, you better rethink your lifestyle because government at almost every level is sending a clear message that there's not much of a future.

The second half of the editorial deals with New York state and local specifics, but the issues apply to pretty much anywhere in the US right now. Whatever happens in the debt ceiling debate, whatever kind of deal is reached, the resulting cuts are going to be massive, and the cost is going to be borne by those least able to bear it. In the words of Bob Baird, the author of the article linked above, it's obscene.

Veering to a more personal note... this whole debt ceiling fiasco, the meanness and cynicism of our "leaders" who are involved in the debate, combined with the summer heat and my own eleven months plus of unemployment, have got me in a lower mood than I have felt in quite a while. I just hope that after Tuesday, however this plays out, I can refocus, look forward to cooler weather and new opportunities, and concentrate on the many good things in life... family, nature (especially squirrels, of course!), life itself. I have been interested in Buddhism for some time, and may try to focus more on that interest. And I plan to get some more photos of Beebz, if she'll just stop trying to eat the camera every time I try to take her picture.