capturing Insights

A very close friend of mine had once told me his mind was especially sharp and active during his daily toilet sitting. He asked me in a bit of smiling and embarrassing look if I had similar experience. I said, "oh! yes. Absolutely."

Then he said that almost every time when he used toilet he would expect insight emerge, and he felt sort of being enlightened about the subject his mind was processing. However, before he had got a moment to review it or to pin iota down on a more secured place in the memory for future reference, it faded away rapidly, and once it disappeared, it seemed to resemble trying to capture an eel you certainly will lose in the game,  the eel will escape easily from your catch. And this happened without exception every time. So he placed a pencil and paper nearby the toilet seat within the reach of his hand to jot down the idea insight as soon as it surfaced.

Though I had experience about idea formation or sudden insight emerge during the toilet time, I didn't get handy fixture near the toilet seat and within the reach of my hand is one reason, I found similar effect occurred during my dawn meditation too. I use a timer function available in my iPhone which plays a few notes of soft music to signal me the end of the one hour session. When an insight turns up from nowhere and my mind responded with a "ah ha!', then I wake up from my meditation, pick up the iPhone, turn to note app and jot down some points of my caught insight a moment ago. Even so, about half of those had played in my mind would have faded, but it Is better than nothing. A few of the problems I had in the daytime were solved by the insights captured this way.

While I am writing this post, my mind is searching for an example to share with blog readers.

A friend of our family knew from my wife that although I am retired, I am interested in repairing household appliances such as coffee maker, kettle, DVD player, radio/cassette, rice cooker, etc. She told my wife that she got a so called easy oven which she only used for 2 years, and recently it would not work. She asked if I'd like to have a try. I told her that it was my hobby and was not a business I did to make a living so it was free unless I was sure the problem was caused by a particular parts, then I would only expect to be repaid the amount spent on that parts and the device was fixed successfully. She agreed with the term of my service.

I checked the plug with my voltage meter. There was no short. I plug the machine to the power point, and pressed the power button. The control panel displayed some numbers, the buzzer beeped less than one second, and at the same time, the motor that drove the fan roar to work, but within a fraction of a send, it shut down. So this is the symptom. I opened the bottom cover of the machine. carefully inspected the main circuit board.  All I could see were a very clean circuit compartment. The components on the circuit board looked in good condition. Not only that there was not any smoke mark to be found, the surface of the entire chamber was dustless and could not see a trace of greasy dirt came from the food fat in the long term daily usage of it. I could not make a conclusion about what had caused the problem.

I assembled it back up, telling myself I could not help with this one. How can I know which electronic part was the culprit? It could be a faulty capacitor, it could be a transistor which would not retain a constant flow of current to maintain the circuit close. What stopped me from making a trial was because the circuit was applied on both sides with a protective coating to prevent the harsh condition from harming the parts. The coating layer disabled me to make any test with my multi-meter, so it is not repairable by my reasoning.

In my dawn meditation the next day, Though I meant to still the thoughts as deeply as possible, it naturally strayed away. Frame after frame of them displaying like a slide show on my mind screen. Suddenly there was one relating to the Easy Oven I had explored on the day before. The picture surfaced, and my thought vaguely lead me to a component which will behave like the problem of the oven. That triggered a "ah! ha!" in me, and I opened my eyes in the mid of meditation, noted "check the relay". in the Reminder tab of the iPhone menu.

As soon as I completed my meditation, I reopened the circuit compartment, and located the relay before long. I took the model code of that relay, and googled it. The search result lead me to Alibaba which gave me an identically same relay available offered by quite a few suppliers, and its price was affordable to me. So I placed order, made payment, and the parcel arrived in two wee
ks time.

Soon I replaced the old one with the new parts. When I energized the machine, "Bingo!" the motor roared, and remained on, and very soon I sensed the heat coming out of the element..

This is one of the examples I have experienced being benefited from an insight captured.

--to be continued

In remembrance of a fellow Buddhist

A fellow Buddhist, Guan shixiong, had concluded his journey on this planet at 8pm on 22/11/2913 at his late 40's of age. (Guan shixiong is on the first one from left of the row in black robe in their walking chant practice)

The night prior to his death, I was made possible to go to Takapuna Hospice where he was referred to take a rest after his final assessment in the headquarter Auckland Hospital. Doctors believed his liver cancer had totally destroyed him and there was no possibility at all to get his health back.

Two other fellow Buddhists escorted me to come to the charitable Hospice located by a small creek flowing into the serene Lake Pupuke nearby. It was a calm and crystal evening with comfortable breeze. Stars twinkling in the night sky. These added some atmosphere of condolence to the courtyard and the building within the fence. Indeed, Hospice has offered its loving kindness and comfort to many many souls over the years since its establishment.

My Parkinson's Disease trembling involuntarily came up despite the medicine which I had just taken before leaving for this visit should be at its peak of effect. Over the 8 year since I was diagnosed of this disease, I have realized that mood fluctuation plays a big part on the symptoms. Whenever I experience nervousness, exciting, anxiety and etc I suffer extra mobility problems.

Having entered Guan shixiong's room, my eyesight immediately drawn to him. There lain on the bed was him, no longer the handsome and righteous look I had been familiar with. The cancerous cells had mercilessly eaten away his flesh, making him totally emaciated and deformed. I could not recognize him if I came in to search for him by myself.

I walked toward him, and before I arrived his bedside, he already reached his left hand to hold mine. Both of us made no voice as the conventional exchange of messages was not necessary now. He knew we all wished him to be able to concentrate his thought in awaiting Amituofo's presence and follow Him decisively to the Pure Land of Western Blissful World. No emotional messages should be allowed among Buddhists of Pure Land tradition especially under the situation like that night.

They pulled a chair for me to sit by the bed. I closed my eyes and naturally began to join other fellow Buddhists in chanting Amitofuo to assist Guan to focus his thought on this supreme mantra that master Chin Kong has patiently assured us the power of it. We chanted for some time till nurses came in to attend Guan's medical needs.

We left there without saying goodbye to him. It is a commonly followed realization among Buddhists that death is the final renounce of our most treasured object  Even this most cherished item will have to return to its original form of the four elements: earth, water, heat and air, what else can we hold onto permanently? So the visitors of a dying patient resting in his own home or in the hospital know they don't show emotional expression by means of speech, letter, facial looks in order not to stir up and trigger the patient's mind and thus distract him from focusing his thoughts on the teachings and let go the broken body decisively.

His funeral was scheduled to be held at the auditorium of the grave yard of North Shore region. I accepted the offer of a lift from Zhuang shijie and her husband to attend Guan's funeral. From the eulogy presented by his son, who is studying his master degree of Optometry in Melbourne, his former career was for first time being unveiled, a Pediatrician in Canton before he immigrated to New Zealand in 1995. What a humble man. He never said anything about his doctor identity in the past to anyone.

Guan has finished his life journey. May his soul resolutely followed Amituofo's guidance without any hesitation and hindrance from his Karma.