The Rope of Lust

The Rope of Lust

The rope of lust is like a line
Attached to thoughts which seem divine.
It strangles Logic’s Golden Rule
And makes of man a beast most cruel.

I long to hold love’s crimson rose
But grasp the thorn with which it grows.
A fevered passion burns my heart
For I’m struck down by Cupid’s dart.

How many lives this game I’ve played
As many deaths can ne’er be stayed.
The very thing I crave the most
Is what turned the king into a ghost.

So now I’ll bid the world adieu –

This passion play that turns the screw
Which crucifies the best of men
And brings them back to play again.

From Wisdom’s chalice I will drink
With faith in Causal Chain’s each link.
I’ll fight delusion’s rising tide
Whose siren song is passion’s bride

And set my course by freedom’s star
Knowing well the path leads far
Into the night where tempests reign
But inch by inch I’ll make my gain.

And if a moment’s thoughtless glance
Inclines my flesh toward sweet romance
I’ll summon forth with clear recall
The ditch awaiting mankind’s fall.

This thought alone will set me free
From bondage to eternity
And when the inner battle’s won
I’ll hear the gods proclaim, “Well done! Well done!”

Ven. Moneyya 1989
A poem shared with me by Ven. Moneyya.

Pictures From My Lay Days

Here are some pictures from my lay days. This was an outing with friends to Lunar Park in Sydney. The others in the pictures are my friends.

Click here to see more pictures

I Bow Down to You...

The Hoot of the owl and the faint sound of the cars in the distance.
these are the sounds I hear in the night.

My mind is blank yet calm,
My longing has lessened, my heart now has some peace.
You hit me with your club of compassion,
At first I was stunned, now I have awoken from my daze.

for a teacher like you is rare in the world, you have brought me to the places that are scary to see, like a graveyard in the night.

I lay down with my outer robe as a blanket,
It's thickness keeps me warm, while my meditation warms my heart.

How can one truly repay for what one is greatful for?
Because the gift you have given me is worth more then a thousand gems.
The only way I can repay you is practising what you have taught so that you would be proud of me.

To my wonderful teacher, who has brought me from dark to light, who had led me to a secure place. when I have overcome all my attachments, I will bow down to you, my teacher.


Written with reference to friend of mine who helped me through a difficult time.

When sickness hits you like a Mac truck

Sickness... Sickness was ment to be one of the four signs the Buddha saw that lead up to his going forth, I wonder what type of sickness he saw? Well if it was the kind I have at the moment it wouldn't of been to bad, maybe he saw some kind of plague.

I have taken over the office and accommodation position here at Santi FM. A Demanding job that can take a lot of time and can also lead to distractions which is partly my own fault. I must learn to be a bit more disciplined...

Bhante Sujato and Ayya Samacitta have gone to Singapore and fly out of Singapore tonight to Taiwan.


Picture of Ayya Sama posing for the camera

It marks a page in the story of my life I guess with Ayya Samacitta leaving Santi FM. We were good friends, someone I connected with on some level (in anon-sexual way). It was about two years ago when I met her when I was 17... I am now 20, time passes doesn't it? where to go from here, how much more time to waste away and proliferate? Ayya Sama and I called each other Sister. In Chinese if you say sister it has to be either older or younger, I called her older sister and she called me younger.

What direction is my monastic life going in? I feel I have a lot on and a lot of things to do and not enough time, I waste some of it of course.

In about two and a half weeks I think I might be giving my first talk... How scary! I am not even ten vassa yet! the reason being is that Bhante is overseas and the monk who could fill in for him could only cover two weeks so that leaves one week open. Thus the Santi monks and nuns will do the empty slot. What will i say if i have to give a talk? Eva our lovely anagarika suggests i give a talk on vinaya like I gave to the novices, but do lay people want to hear about the sekiya rules? hmm. After some talk it seems something on monastic life and daily life. Maybe that might be good because many lay people hear about Dhamma but not much about monastic life, but i will see what happens.

Last night I read the Sutta about the Picture of Ayya Sama posing for the camera. It is a good Sutta about how to deal with bodily pain, easier talked about then to do. Here is a link to Ajahn Geoff's translation if you would like to read it. click here.

Well I will sign off here, no poem this time.

The 2007 Vassa has ended, my first Vassa.

The Vassa has ended, this marks my first Vassa a a Bhikkhu, a fully ordained Buddhist Monk. so what is it that i have learnt from this retreat period? I must admit that my meditation has not gone so well, however i have learnt many valuable lessons.

I have wrote a little poem for the ending of the Vassa. It is playful and thus should be read in that manner, many who read it may not be able to understand some of the things in it due to the fact that there are in-house jokes contained within it.

Bhante Sujato, also called the sublime one, he has established metta in us, the one who points out the true way and has established us in the right view of the establishments of mindfulness, he is known as the Sublime one by the mother to us all, she has spread her waves of motherly love over us and has blessed us with her many gifts of chocolate, Eva the one who had a little “turn”, is now to be found again in her little chair.

jagariya, the one who known for her chanting, her face always to be seen with the joy of laughter. It is always a delight to be her in presence, she has revived the look of the noble bhikkhunis of ages long ago

Tapassi has burnt up all worrys of others with regard to the chaos of accommodation, he always has some useful inputs to the sutta classes, he robe always neat, he is always willing to share.

Life is never dull when good old Jag is around, he always has wit, and some good jokes too, he seems strict, but deep down he cares. The lord of the world

Quite never without his cap, Peter outshines us all with his never ceasing kind generosity, with out a compliant or thought for himself, he is always willing to give you a hand.

Dr Darryl the strict dietitian, we must all love the beautifully drawn door-knob and your mountains of garlic and molasses

With Amaravati the shrine is clean and the Bodhi tree well watered, the stores clean and, she is quietly withdrawn.

Mahesi, the lord of the hand bags, he has a cheeky smile but has touched the hearts of many with his silence that is unremitting.

Adhering to right speech, Arinna is a lover of the dhamma, a true fighter for non-discrimination.

Although she munches on coffee beans, Mel can bring about many good things from what she has learnt, a fast typer and, she bring a good perspective like a lamp into the places of darkness.

We have completed the Vassa,

Now things will get faster,

but we will try to remain true,

because we don't want to hit the blues,

with each other many things can be done,

which will be a lot of fun.

Remembering the goodness in others will bring us closer,

one community with a goal, the goal of which has no soul,

this love of the dhamma in this hot summer,

Will hopefully bring us to Nibbana.

Alms Round...

Today is Sunday, the day that the monks and nuns at SantiFM go on alms round, the traditional way that we make our livelihood in a blameless way. It is very interesting going on alms round, all kinds of things can arise internally and exturnerly.

I have had many different reposes while collecting alms, i have been called names, people have knelt down on the ground, some people give funny looks and also yelled at.

This morning while out on alms round i was a little late leaving as was my teacher so the walk got my heart going. On the way up the road that leads to the main road into town we walk past a few houses that are on our street, as it is mostly farms there are not so many. When we walked past one house a lady yelled out while watering her garden "JESUS IS THE LORD!". I was prepared for this as i knew this lady had done things like this before such as asking her children to give Bhante Sujato a bible. I thought how i would talk and address her saying in my mind " But today is Sunday, shouldn't you be at Church?" Although i thought such thoughts i wouldn't say such a thing, but there was a moment when i thought of turning around and saying this, at that point, my heart started to pump faster, i guess that this may have caused more conflict and was better that i didn't say a word to her.

Just a little further down the road my teacher turns around and asks me
"Were you converted?"
I answer "no"
"Thats good, just to make sure" he says jokingly
I then said something like this" But Bhante Today is Sunday, shouldn't she be at Church?"

Walking further down the road i started to remember and reflect over one of the verses from the Dhammapada.

"As a bee gathers honey from the flower without injuring its colour or fragrance, even so the sage goes on his alms-round in the village"

I then came to recollect the way in which i should walks amongst the village, harming no one, acting in a mindful and restrained manner, accepting what ever may be offered to me.

I would now like to go into some of the funny times i have had while on alms round.

If you have seen monks and nuns go on alms round they go bear foot wearing no shoes, this can be quiet painful at times, walking on the rough tar road is the worst!
One would never think that one could ever delight in the gutter (curb), however to walk in the gutter brings ease to the mind, ohh that smooth concrete, such a relief from the rough road.

(Alms-round in Cabramatta)

(Theres a point in this video if you watch closely of what may look like money being put into a monks bowl, but however i think it is a packet with money in it that someone had want to offer being handed to someone else)

I have been called names before on alms round. iv'e been called freak, told to "disrobe" and "get a job!" however i remember the funniest one of all. We were standing outside the entrance to a mall waiting to recive alms from whoever may do so. Then this lady comes walking up and she yells out "OHH! NO! THE PARACITES ARE HERE!". What a funny thing to yell out, i don't recall to affecting me to much. To some 'anuttaram punnakkehttam lokassati' the unsurpassed field of merit for the world, to others we are bluggers and parasites.