House of Sariputta

DEGAUSSER!

2007-02-03T23:41:00.000+08:00

Hello all!
Oh! Oh! Oh! The long-waited Chinese new year is just a few days or rather a fortnight away! YOU FEELING THE GREENS YET?! heeheehee! So yeah. It's that time again. You know, spring cleaning and bidding farewell to unwanted stuffs in your room/house, getting all ready and uplifting the CNY atmosphere in the house!

Chinese new year. (I can't seem to find the 'underline word' function since I'm a noob to blogger but anyway, you get the point. So treat as if this word, 'CNY' is underlined! Thanks!)
Well, it's the time of the year where parents/relatives/siblings get together in the warm yet cosy house and chatting the day away and updating each other on your latest happenings! Like duh! That sounds good! (:

Nothing beats spending the day with your loved ones/the steady pillars of your life! Trust me. So yeah, hope you guys are all psyched up and ready for the prosperous new year. So let your hair down and PIG OUT! Gaining a few points won't hurt so let loose and enjoy! (:

Hope you peepo out there will have a more than perfect and greater than great Chinese new year!

Cheers!
GUESS WHO?

ENJOY.

2007-01-28T21:24:00.000+08:00

Dear Sariputtians!! =)

As announced before the sharing on 27/1/07, there will be a Pre-Chinese New Year Community Service on the10/2/07.

Here is a brief outline of the event.

Venue: 1-room flat
Purpose of CSP: To help elderly staying in 1-roomenjoy a nice CNY.
What are we doing to do: Spring cleaning, give outgifts(eg: rice, etc.), talk to them.
How you can benefit: Treat this as an opportunity forthose who have not seen 1-room flats nor stepped intoany 1-room flat before. Bring some happiness to theless fortunate and you enjoy some bliss in the act of giving and sharing.

So dear all... if you are interested please let the leaders know by this coming thursday? Thank you!! *muacks*

Love
Selina

Chain of Command

2007-01-21T15:15:00.000+08:00

Dear Team, Hwee here........

after the reorg, there was some understanding that was communicated to the rest of the mentors and excos that was briefed by you all.

Firstly, whenever Laura is not around, Selina is in-charge. Also, for at least the next few months, Sel, Dee, Jiayi and the rest of the leaders will have to be more pro-active until Laura recovers from her burn-out.

I TAKE FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR LAURA FOO'S BURNT OUT SITUATION. IT IS MY FAULT, AND MY FAULT ALONE, THAT CAUSED THE SUPER INSPIRED LAURA FOO TO BE BURNT-OUT. THAT WAS MY MISTAKE OF YEAR 2006 AND IT WAS A PAINFUL LESSON FOR ME AND THE HOUSE TO BEAR. I SHOULD HAVE HANDLED HER WITH MORE CARE AND CAUTION BUT I GUESS I WAS BLINDED WITH MY PAST SUCCESS, TO FORESEE IT COMING.LAURA FOO IS MERELY A NEWBIE IN BUDDHISM AND i HAVE OVERLOADED HER. I WAS OVER CONFIDANT. I WAS COMPLACENT. I WAS TOO CARELESS.

Selina's new-found enthusiasm which earns her the nickname' woman on fire' cannot be taken for granted. Any setback in her life will see her fire douse again. And if this were to happen, the house of sariputta will be in jeopardy and we will be ' Sayonara'. Moreover, her gentleness is both her strength and weakeness. We need her to be more bold and daring should she want to do an effective job.

Dee is year 1 and jiayi is year 2. Dee has to be on the ball for this year and Jia yi will come to her rescue when she is done with her A-level. However, this is not to say that Jia yi should close her eyes and be blind to all activities occured. My advise for Jia yi is to take the initiative to find out what is happening instead of waiting to be informed. Leaders dont wait for things to happen, they make things happen.

MIch is appointed EXCO this 2007 and is also my PA, as such her priority is 'temple wide' and not only restricted to the house. As a sponsorship liasion officer and my PA, her responsibility is heavy and huge. Many of you in the house are not aware of her responsisbilities but the excos and mentors are aware. I do not want MICH to head or lead anything in the house as she is already over-burdened. Just for everyone's info, she quit Young Artisit Club so that she has time for SBM and her study and family. I WILL NOT FORGIVE MYSELF, IF I BURN HER OUT LIKE I DID TO LAURA. THEREFORE, I DONT WISH TO SEE HER LEAD IN ANY HOUSE ACTIVITY, BUT I DO WISH TO SEE HER INVOLVE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.

Let us strive with diligence for a better 2007!

Hwee

The adventure.

2007-01-19T16:22:00.000+08:00

SCHOOL'S IN!

Again. The past few weeks of school has been an absolute YUCK-FACTOR. (mind my random rant!) Oh well, I hope everyone's coping and adapting well to the brand new schooling year!

For peeps in the sports and games CCAs, it's that exhausting time again! Oh yes, you know what I mean! IT'S THE ANNUAL ZONAL TOURNAMENT/CHAMPIONSHIP thingy again! The very best of luck to those out there who's competing in the zonal championships! AIM FOR NATIONALS! OH YEAH!

And as for peeps in the performing arts CCA, it's that time again! Oh yes, yes it is! It's that time of the year again! IT'S THE SYF THINGY AGAIN! heehee. The best of luck to those peepo participating in the SYF too! (:

Goodness gracious graceful gracie! Our very own Sariputta blog hasn't been lively these past few days! SO YOU, YES THATS RIGHT, YOU! PLEASE KEEP THE TAGS ROLLIN' IN! (:
Thanks!

I guess I'd better my 'park my pen here' now. That's all for this full of CAPSLOCK blog entry!

CHEERS!
Blogged by Soukuin!
(P.s HAPPY TWO YEAR ANNIVERSARY TO MY METAL MOUTH! MY BRACES! heeheehee.) I think braces are so bling-bling. heehee.
CAPSLOCK off.

qing gong yan. and a late merry xmas x))

2006-12-27T01:24:00.000+08:00

just got infomation about it.

date : 31st dec [[ sunday? m i wrong? ]]
place : at a royal hotel or sthh.
theme : retro
cost : 10bucks

- after dinner go over pks for countdownn and den stayover x))

i wont be going. i have my ownn cousins' stayover and countdownn. so have fun and enjoy yourselves..
and hope i m noto to late to wishh my sariputta stars and sbm members a merry LATE xmas x))
and happy new yearr aheadd.

[[ orhhhs. and sorry about the new blogskinn. i didnt have the time inspirationn andd effort to do it.i will try to do it as soon as i cann. and mind my spellingg. heehee ]]

- slyy.li yuann x))

Dough-do fever.

2006-12-21T20:03:00.000+08:00

HELLO ALL! Today's the 21st and that ultimately means a few more days to the good o' long awaited jelly jolly KRIIIISSSSY! heeheehee!

Oh! &&&&& that reminds me! School's re-opening (eeeeew! Sounds so nasty!) in a couple of weeks' time! Oh well, that concludes that time passes at a twinkle of an eye! yucks! eeeew! SO FAST FOR WHAT?! heehee. Sigh. As they say,
'Time and tide waits for no man, (or in my case, no girls)'
I guess I'd better start rushing through my holiday assignments! (oops! WHAT A SIN!)

It keeps on pouring and pouring and lastly, pouring these few cold, wet and Sun-less days. Do take care, people!

Has anyone ever ever ever ever ever ever wonder about the actual spelling of doughnuts/donuts?
Is it doughnuts? It kinda makes sense since it's dough-nuts. (sounds and looks sophisticated too! heehee!) Or is it the other one? Donuts? Do-nuts. If you'd actually pronounce it as do-nuts, it'd sound majorly weird. c(:
Oh what about the dearly departed Do-Do bird, or even the Do-Do fishball company (heehee)? Many pronounce it as dough-dough fishball company instead of the actual do-do.
Anyhooo, donuts/doughnuts looks like mini tyres.

I guess thats about it in this post! And before I smack the 'Publish Post' button, I'd like to wish all a

jelly jolly MARY KRIZTMERS &&&&
also a fruitful 2007!

Cheers! c(:
-Soukuin!

=)

2006-12-18T00:26:00.000+08:00

Sly!! Great elaborraation of the whole camp... It can get me imagining of the entire scene... haha.. the smiles on every camper's face!! Thanks for posting.. Thanks to Coburn too!

I missed out the great fun , and hope i can have more time to spend with you guys...

Oh yea, my dear stars, still remember that we won the reward for bringing the most number of people for the Dhamma talk @ Taipei?? That event, was a great experience...really bonded us... encouraging us to strive on for being the best house for any other events... So let's keep up the good work!!!!

I was suggesting we had a house outing.. but do not really have any ideas on where to go... Any suggestions darlings?? Do post it up yea? =)

yea... Do update more stuff on the blog yea?? Loking forward to the next blog~

camp ehipassiko SEQUEL '06

2006-12-13T13:14:00.000+08:00

since coburn wants a post on it i shall be NICE and do it x))

DAY 1 :
campers meet up at aljunied mrt station and WALK all the way to the manjusri sec skool.
after we took our attendance, we have a map to follow to go to the PAC, but ksers are along in the way. if u manage to block all the water bombs, u will get 100 points on your merit card.
[[ HAHA one of the amos hit me but didnt burst and bonce off. so ahh hao give me that 100 points HAHA ]]
anyways, PAC we had a little entertainment by zeming and shixiong while waiting for the campers to all arrive.they had their skid and introduction [[ i guess ]] after that we were summon to a place and get our grp color ribbons.after that ice breakers : buliding base. after base buliding we had STATION GAMES.. catch the flag, the soap game find the victims and.. i cant rmb.. [[ SOMEONE HELP ME PLEASE!! ]] anyways. get lunchh i think. or dinner. [[ I NEED HELP! ]] and den dhrama walk.. and dhrama [[ chanting and meditation ]] after that.. wrapping water bombs [[ i wrap until my finger's skin tear T.T ]] wrapp liaoo lehh denn ORH ORH KUN!

DAY 2 :
DHRAMA denn breakfast! after that dhrama talk. followed up by lunch and ON WITH THE QUEST!!
quest...quest-ing.. quest-ed~!
dinner!! denn song singing!! [[ soo highh liaoo. ]] den wrap water bombs againn [[ i couldnt wrap ok!! i feel so unless that night ]] while one grp by one grp go have their night game... funfufun! [[ i didnt and COULDNT wrap water bombs but i help with ... drying the floor.. with a pathetic mop. i still sound pathetic T.T ]]
sleep~

DAY 3 :
dhrama den talk den warrr game!!
the BIRD FORCES FINALLY DEFEATED NAM THONG MAI RA[[ correct spelling rights?nvm larhhs. ]]!!
YAYs. get ready for campfire. and...
CAMPFIRE'S BURNING NOW, [[ CAMPFIRE'S BURNING NOW ]] (X2)
BURNING OUT [[ BURN BURN BURN ]] (X2)
CAMPFIRE'S BURNING IN DARK DARK NIGHT AS WE GO OOO YEA YIPPE YIPPE YEA!!
[[ PAISEHH bout the spelling errors =X ]]
anyways.. a LOT of funn. plus we had encore x)) even though whenn i heard there will be encore i will already tired enoughh so i was moann.. but i didnt regret joining in the encore. x))
anyways. like that larhhs. and the last night most of us stayed up. and last day PHOTO TAKING!! [[ i was still high and kept singing the camp fire songs HAHA ]]

bout like that larhhs. sorry if i didnt do a good job x))
- sly -

A Piece of Music

2006-12-12T17:56:00.000+08:00

hello again my fellow Sariputtians although i know im supposed to post the intricate details of our camp, i just couldn't resist posting the following video. The choir singing is the Vocal Consort and they are conducted by Mr Nelson Kwei who also happens to be my choir's conductor. The song is about a possessed who cannot stop dancing. Hope u enjoy it.Anyway please do tag ur comments regardless if it is good or bad.

Enjoy!

2006-11-27T23:52:00.000+08:00

Take note my stars~

For those turning up for camp, here is the list of things to bring...

Singapore Buddhist Mission
Camp Ehi-Passiko The Sequel 2006

Packing List
Please bring:
4 t-shirts **(at least 2 black t-shirts and all dark coloured t-shirts)
4 shorts/Bermudas
4 sets of under garments
Toiletries: Soap, Toothbrush & Toothpaste, Towel, etc.
**Sleeping bag
**Medication
1 pair of long pants (sleep at night)
Jacket
Slippers/sandals
**Torchlights with batteries
Insect repellent
Rain coat
Water bottle

If not paid up or haven’t hand up form, please bring cash and form as well

Please do not bring:
Excessive money – ($10 will do)
MP3 player/ CD player
Expensive handphones – try not to bring handphone at all
Gameboys
Cameras

Invite Parents to Camp Fire on 9 December 2006 Saturday
What to inform the parents:

(i) tell parents about our campfire and details:
- when: 9 December Saturday
- what time: Meet 6pm @ Aljunied MRT
à We will have ushers to pick them up
à If they have their own transport and wish to go on their own, tell them to
be at Manjusri at 6.30pm (149, Sims Drive, Singapore 387380)
- dinner will be provided

(ii) Invite parents politely - ask if they and their other children would like to attend

Any enquiries, do approach the leaders or me okie?? =)

Love love all!!!

Sel

please remember to sign off

2006-11-20T00:56:00.000+08:00

LOLA! was that you who posted the previous entry???
Anyway, all the best for your upcoming exams. We know you have been very VERY busy.
But even no matter how busy you are, remember to do daily paractice and cultivation.

Speaking of which, I know at times it can be very tempting to skip our own meditation or puja sessions because we are "too tired" and we procrastinate, saying "aiyah, I'll do it tmr morning... blah blah blah..." I confess, I am very guilty of that. And its because of this procrastination, my sitting sessions are still inconsistent. So until now, I'm still trying very hard to sit everyday. Yes, its been a long time and still like that. What to do? Have to have more determination and SELF DISCIPLINE. I guess sometimes in life, we need that someone or something to happen to knock us real hard on the head, for us to realize the importance of daily cultivation and etc.

My personal aim is to be able to sit everyday and to do it until it comes to the point where I feel that something is missing when I don't sit down to meditate for at least 15 minutes a day. What's yours? Maybe we can all share our personal aims in our blog, then we can all help by reminding or "scolding" (i hope not) each other when we have not put in the effort to meet our aims. It all boils down to discipline. Not forgetting, alot of patience, pererverance and determination. So, for those who have not tried sitting at home daily, please DO. Esp to those having hols now, make use of the holiday time to cultivate and practice more. Nothing to do at home? Read more books! self help books and dhamma books are highly encouraged. :) Take this opportunity to cultivate the habit of meditating everyday. Don't wait anymore, because you won't know, that today could be your last. So, start sharing your personal practice goals today!!!! Post them on the blog!

For those who have missed Lawrence's sharing on his experience at Aloka Rama and at Aloka Sydney, the gist of what he was trying to put across to us was this:

To question ourselves everyday, on what we want in life and what is out purpose in joining the youth group. To ponder and to think about it everyday. Is it because of friendship? Is it beacause of wanting to know this particular boy/girl? Or is it because of the Dhamma?
Give it a thought.

For those who want more details, feel free to approach Lawrence. I'm sure he'll delighted to share with you his retreat experience. If you're shy, you can always come to me. xP Haha.

OH YAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Because we have worked hard to get our friends/parents to come for the public talk, we have won ourselves 300 dollars! YAY! So...... Lindy suggested we book a chalet and have barbeque etc, then we can invite the other houses to come too! I suggest, we go to quality hotel's vegetarian steamboat to pig out! Restaruant/cafe/kopitiam MUST BE VEGETARIAN. Eat to our heart's content! whahaha... ideas anyone?

Please post your comments/experiences/thoughts/random yammerings people!!! That's what our blog is for! so that's about all...cheers!

with abundant metta,
michellie

L.O.V.E

2006-11-19T23:55:00.000+08:00

Selina =)

2006-11-19T00:04:00.000+08:00

Dear all Sariputtians,

I was inspired by this week's attendance report to post this entry :) sariputta house had the highest attendance. and I am proud to say I m a sariputtian. I can see all of us making an effort and trying our best in all that we do, from our Chinese New Year house-hopping, inviting many of our family and friends to our first public talk, attending sharing sessions.

some of our members have also proactively msg me to ask for sharing sessions details. I am very motivated by all of you who really want to make time to come down for sharing sessions.

I would like to apologise for not being able to make it down for sharings for quite a while. Exams are coming up. I am looking forward to camp. and I look forward to seeing all our sariputtians and sbmy members.

i just want to welcome lindy back, after her o levels :) welcome back! and all our o level members e.g. alex. kudos to ken, bryan and daryl who have been calling me up. thanks to michelle, whom i know has been a quiet pillar of support. thanks to selina, who always shares responsibility with me. thanks to jiayi and coburn, who have been in contact with me over msn. thanks to hwee, for your msg-es. thanks to kaiyi, for the camp. thanks to all sariputtians, for building this house into what it is today, considering we were started probably just about a year ago. thank you everyone.

Meditation

2006-11-10T23:47:00.000+08:00

Meditation practices
Wednesday November 8, 2006
Howard Cutler: "...am I right in assuming that you would consider solitary meditation to be a productive activity? Would you consider to be productive our example of a monk who is a hermit, who has little contact with anybody else and spends his or her life just in meditation, trying to achieve liberation?"

Dalai Lama: "Not necessarily. From my viewpoint, there can be both productive meditation and unproductive meditation."

HC: "What's the difference?"

DL: "[Some] practitioners and other kinds of meditators practice different techniques, some with closed eyes, sometimes open eyes, but the very nature of that meditation is to become thoughtless, in a state free of thoughts. But in a way, this is a kind of retreat, like they are running away from trouble. When they actually face trouble, carry on their daily life and facesome real life problems, nothing has changed. Their attitudes and reactions remain the same. So that kind of meditation is just avoiding the problem, like going on a picnic, or taking a painkiller. It's not actually solving the problem.

Some people may spend many years doing these practices, but their actual progress is zero. That's not productive meditation. Genuine progress occurs when the individual not only sees some results in achieving higher levels of meditative states but also when their meditation has at least some influence on how they interact with others, some impact from that meditation in theirdaily life--more patience, less irritation, more compassion. That's productive meditation. Something that can bring benefit to others in some way."

- from "The Art of Happiness at Work" by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, M.D

The importance of keeping our passion burning

2006-11-08T22:21:00.000+08:00

Hey fellow Sariputtians,
I was seriously getting really sick with how our blog was becoming "stale" so i decided to be more pro-active and post a post, instead of the usual "lets wait for a person to post a post" behaviour i usually had. Thus, i have decided to ponder on the following subject matter which happens to be "
The importance of keeping our passion burning".
I am sure that most of our fellow sbmy-ians(without the exception of myself) may have experienced times in our lifes where we find ourselves losing interest in the "things" we do. This supposed "things" will include our CCAs, our commitments and our hobbies. This lost of interest may happen suddenly( picture a torrentious downpour on a campfire) or slowly ( picture a campfire that has not been supplied with firewood). I am unsure why i instinctivelu used fire as a direct metaphor of passion. But i believe picturing it as fire could help us/me find out how we can help ourselves to continue to have passin for the things we do. I hereby hope that our fellow SAriputtians could ponder over this matter and post a solution to this perplexing matter.

Your's sincerely
Lincoln(^.^)

2006-11-01T15:25:00.000+08:00

Aljunied MRT(on the top left of the map below) is the nearest. If u use Paya lebar, u will get there in exhaustion and have no enrgy for anything else

Hwee

bout the inter house games...

2006-11-01T13:39:00.000+08:00

hellos sariputta-ians!
came to tell u guys bout the inter house games.
sat-4 nov
3.00pm
at mountbatten cc
meeting place:paya lebar mrt.

there are the following sports:
-basketball
-soccer
-captain ball
-dodgeball
tell mi which sports u guys wan to participate in pleaseeeee.
hope u guys can join xD

This is what I wrote on the SBMY forum on punctuality

2006-11-01T08:54:00.000+08:00

With regards to Punctuality, I think there are already some improvement and I think there is now much more awareness especially amongst the older one.

On the whole, the youngers ones are much more punctual in comparison.

Some might argue that the younger ones have less commitment therefore can afford to come early.

However, intrinsically, this arguement is unsound. Because, I am sure when most of you go out to work, you will be punctual because u fear losing your job, you fear scolding from your boss.

In SBM, you may feel that you have nothing to lose by coming late. However, you risk losing your credibility and reliability

YES! Punctuality is equal to credibility and reliability.

There were many occasion that I rush like mad from my trainning in my motor bike to meet the 3 30pm sharing session. I have many close shaves.....I know I should ride slowly, but If I am like late for 5mins with 50 people waiting for me, the time that I steal from others is equal to 250mins. Imagine if I am like late for 30mins, that would constitute a time-steal of 1500mins!!! But then, on many occasion, after rushing like mad and nearly get into an accident, many of you still have not arrived.

There were one occasion that I witness Shi Xiang frentically trying to cross the big road without fearing his safety, to meet the timing. But after sprinting to the temple door, he realise the sharing has not started.....Being a nice boy that he is, he simply accepted it.

On another occasion, I couldnt remember was which event, Ernest was so worried that he would overslept and come late, that he totally could not sleep the whole night! He was so worried that he would be late!

Their adherence to timing is something we should all learn. But of course, dont die trying to come early. Sometimes is better late than NEVER.

There is another category of youth who really really really really really want to come early, but they just couldnt wake up in the morning. We must try to help these group of people because it is not that they dont want to come early, it is just that they have problems waking up early.
These group of people are people like Chu Feng, Li Wei and Zheng Lin and etc. They really really really really really want to be early but they just couldnt wake up.

Moral of the story:
Being late is inconsiderate and is stealing people's time and that time is life. By Being early, you dont violate the precept of stealing and in-directly violate the precept of killing (cos time is life)
Come early but dont die in the process.
Help those who really really really really really want to be early but they just couldnt wake up. Give them morning call.

Mentor Hwee

2006-10-30T15:04:00.000+08:00

Daryl couldnt post, so i helped.

Hello friends! As you may know, this is my first time posting on our forum. I could not do so any other times mainly because of my studies. The holidays have started and I can finally get to do this. Some time back, our great mentors have stressed on our punctuality as on many previous occasions we have not been arriving on time, causing unforeseen problems.

However, I feel that these problems still do not seem to cease and I too have been affected. During our recent retreat, I had such an experience. On the retreat’s first day, I planned to head straight to SBM after my tennis training which ends at 5.30pm. We were supposed to meet at 5.30pm and as I did not want to miss the bus taking us there. At 5.20pm, I reached SBM only to realize that I’m the 2nd person to reach there. We finally boarded the bus at 6.10pm although we were supposed to do so at 5.45pm. My father had to personally buy and bring my dinner to me at the Changi chalet. As I had to eat my dinner, it seemed that I had held everybody up and the retreat could not start earlier although I had arrived to the meeting point early at the beginning.

Also, almost all of our sharing sessions started later than the time that we said it would start. Our lack in the sense of punctuality might have a negative impact on our image to the public. Other people would think twice about joining us as a member. I would encourage all of us to be present at the meeting place 10 to 15 mins earlier than the agreed time. I really hope that we would all focus and improve on our punctuality so as to avoid further problems.

On Behalf of Daryl from Hse of Sariputta

Seize the day!

2006-10-29T00:19:00.000+08:00

Hello all! Oh yes, I'm here blogging again! (good thang or baaad?) Anyway, I think sometime ago, I was surfing the world wide web and I came across this particular website that triggered my attention and awareness greatly. And it's none other than
www.lightamillinocandles.com

As many of you know, child pornography sites are gradually mutiplying greatly lately and young innocent children are falling as victims of such inhumanity and insensible actions. Thinking of such issues does slightly anger me. Such children are aged between 3 to 5. Falling as victims of such actions meant nothing to these kids since they are still young and are unaware that they're being victimized in children pornography. Often, these kids are from rural countries and are sometimes orphans. I was eager to find out more about such ill-manner actions. As the saying goes, 'ignorance is a bliss'. Well, in this case, by uploading unsightly photos of children is definitely a bliss to the photographers who took such photographs.

Enough said, you must be thinking "What is this blog entry about? Are you seeking my generousity and urging me to donate to such charity organisations?" Well, fret not, I'm not doing so. The website that I've mentioned about is a website that encourages people like you and me to 'light a candle'. And such candles that are lit-up acts as your own personal signature. It acts like a petition. Every lighted-up candle acts as your own signature. This particular petition is then used early next year to draw the government of every affected country's attention to put a stop to such inhumanity actions.

Please do your part and save these kids.
Thank you ever so much(:

Soukuin.

singapore biennale anyone?

2006-10-26T12:40:00.000+08:00

BELIEF Exhibition4th September to 12th November 2006

BELIEF is the theme for Singapore's first visual arts biennale. If today's world has painfully called into question many certainties governing society, history and humankind, can it also be described as an era of uncertainty in which the very subject of belief is in question? In the context of this so-called crisis of values, what do we individually and collectively believe in? Do we act on our beliefs or is belief simply a mindless act? Are the religious beliefs communicated by the great faiths more relevant than the secular beliefs in science, progress, democracy and politics that succeeded them? Or has the conflict between the two spawned such states of violent and ethical extremism in the service of religious and economic power that belief in anything appears incomprehensible? Are we beyond belief or at the threshold of its revival?

hi my fellow sariputtians!
Who says the singapore arts scene is dead?
hehee...

i'll be organising a trip down to the some of the singapore biennale sites.
those interested, please let me (michellie) know when will be your free-est day next week.
so far, me, ernest, juulia and lola, have expressed their interest to go, so trying to grab more peeps. yeps yeps. will be awaiting your reply!

till then, cheerio!

with abundant metta,
michellie

here are the places where the art piesces are displayed...
think we shall visit those at city hall, SMU and the National Library?
ideas anyone?

nostalgia

2006-10-24T15:56:00.000+08:00

does this look familar?
heheeh...

Overall Champion :Sariputta House!!

2006-10-18T08:50:00.000+08:00

Hwee to All:

Good Job and love you all!

You people are really the top house of SBMY -crème de la crème

Extracted from SBMY forum.

Sariputta group catregory winner with 28 visitors, $300 awarded
Individual category cherie of anurrudha with 12 peep $100 awarded
Effort category ( >10 visitors ie achieve >50%) Ananda, anurudha awarded $100 each.

As Sariputta are the only house that match the criteria, they will be awarded $300 instead of $500. mmm this is becos... no one qualify except them.

dunno if i can make this clear or not.. will try..
eg. If got 10 peep participate competition, can have 1st , 2nd and 3rd prise..
But if only 3 participate, cannot have 1st 2nd and 3rd. so the winner only take the 3rd prise... understand? If not pls refer to http://www.pangyasea.com/info/experience.aspx. hee.. adopted from this link.

My bear bear has also expressed interest to join...

2006-10-17T09:59:00.000+08:00

bear bear mentioned to me that she will follow me wherever I go.
Her nick name is Black Beary, she maybe cute but she is fearless.

My first member to join..

2006-10-17T09:53:00.000+08:00

who else is interested?

2006-10-17T00:16:00.000+08:00

My dear Stars,

Haven't been able to make it for sharing these few weeks... Am taking up part time job with my bestie now @ Bugis ( if you are free, you can find me ).. and soon, it will be my attachment for like about...two consecutive months! Oh gosh... even lesser time to spend with you peeps..

But still, i want to let all of you know that my heart is with you.. and do, ( no matter what ever happens ), stay strong and happy cause i will be here, giving you the support... Remember to keep applying the Buddhist teachings into our lives.. I still remembered what hwee told me when i told him that I do not know how to answer those people who questioned me about my commitments to SBMY ..and he said.." Ask yourself, what could be more worthy than the cause of your happiness and the happiness of the others... " =)

Anyways, Good luck and jia you to those who are going through school examinations, those who are working hard hard... and those meditating hard hard... =p

Miss you all! May you all be well and happy

Selina

P.s: Hwee, do they have pink she hui instead of hei de?

I am recruiting, pls join!

2006-10-16T15:51:00.000+08:00

I am recruiting, pls join!

Saying goodbye this time, same old storrrryyyyyy.

2006-10-11T13:24:00.000+08:00

Hello nutcases!(:

THE YEAR END EXAMS ARE OVER! THEY'RE SO BYEBYE!
They are so over! And I suppose majority of us are feeling blissful upon hearing this!
&&&& it's time to rejoice and let your hair down! (it means to relax and stay cool. And for boys, I suppose this doesn't apply to you BUT just relax and enjoy what's that's over) To those who's been mugging a lot lately, this IS YOUR TIME TO ENJOY! Forget what's been done! It's no-no-no good to dwell in the past. JUST RELAX AND HAVE TRUCKLOADS OF FUN!
Let us have a countdown to the long-awaited holidays! (:
Dang! It feels good to be typing again and to hear that clicky-click of the deskstop mouse! It's beeeeen like 879835132894 years since I last used that great invention which improved many people's daily lives and enhanced the current techonology generation! AND THAT IS THE COMPUTER!
Yay(:

-It is now for you to ponder which nutcase who gets excited very easily posted this blog entry.
FEEL THE CURIOSITY AROUSING WITHIN YOUR SOUL.

My little corner of peace and tranquility

2006-10-10T13:27:00.000+08:00

My little corner of peace and tranquility that I want to share with u all...

Hwee

Dear ALL

2006-10-10T13:06:00.000+08:00

My dear boys and gals,

My blogs are rare cos I prefer to put my words into your heart through my lips.

I sense stress, tension and anxiety in the current atmosphere of SBM and even in this world we live in.

My dear all, should you need help, should you need support and should you need my presence to bring some peace to you, you only have to reach out.

Speak, and I shall listen.
Ask, and I shall give.
Seek, and I shall grant.
Cry, and I shall comfort.

May I be a pillar and a tower of strength to you all who are despondent.

Sincerely Yours,
Hwee

exams are over xD

2006-10-09T09:28:00.000+08:00

[dis is wad bored ppl do.. i was just plying with my photofiltreHAHA]
since today no skool n my exams are over xD i shall blog=)
well even though its late but HAPPY MID AUTUMN FESTIVAL xD
hope u guys still can enjoy the fun of plying candles and the taste of MOONCAKES even if u guys still need to study.
well for mi on friday i went to sbm
well coburn was there. but not more than 10 people was there.
but i got to know more about the FULL MOON.
not new moon not 1/2 moon the FULL MOON~!! LOL. anghwee seems to like to sae that HAHA.
anyways. full moon is special..
Buddha gain enlightement n some other stuff which my STML mind cnt rmb on a fullMOON day.
anyways.. MOON CAKES ARE NICE~!! xD.

ok ok thats about all.all the best for exams n exams results HAHA.
okBYEs.xD

sLy.liYUAN

Buddhism becomes alternative religious ticket in the USA

2006-10-05T14:09:00.000+08:00

Ekklesia, 26 Sep 2006

Fed up with both consumer-driven secular materialism and the aggressive certainties of the mainly Christian religious right, an increasing number of people in the United States are turning towards Buddhism as an alternative form of spiritual enlightenment.

London, UK -- According to a recent report in the Christian Science Monitor, an identifiably American form of Buddhism is also emerging.

Teaching centres and sanghas (communities of people who practice together) are spreading across the country as American-born faith leaders reframe ancient principles in contemporary Western terms.

Though the religion born in India has been in the United States since the 19th century, the number of adherents rose by 170 percent between 1990 and 2000, according to the American Religious Identification Survey, reports the Monitor.

An ARIS estimate puts the total in 2004 at 1. 5 million, while others have estimated twice that.
The 1. 5 million is a low reasonable number, says Richard Seager, author of the book Buddhism in America.

People feel that Buddhist figures like the Dalai Lama and Thich Nhat Hanh of Vietnam are contributing something, not trying to convert people,says Lama Surya Das, a highly trained American lama in the Tibetan tradition.

He adds: "They are not building big temples, but they are offering wisdom and ways of reconciliation and peacemaking, which are so much needed."

The Dalai Lama has cooperated frequently with leading Christian peace and justice campaigners like ex-Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa, who is also a Nobel Laureate.
The two men have recently collaborated to call for an end to dictatorship and domination in both Tibet and Burma.

Thich Nhat Hanh¡'s works have also been widely circulated among Christians. Books on forgiveness and other themes which overlap with the Gospel have been made available through Plough Publishing, an imprint of the Anabaptist Bruderhof communities.

Article here : http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=60,3247,0,0,1,0

GLORIOUS CHATTING

2006-10-03T11:37:00.000+08:00

God: Hello. Did you call me?

Me: Called you? No. Who is this?

God: This is GOD. I heard your prayers. So I thought I will Chat .

Me: I do pray. Just makes me feel good. I am actually busy now. I am in the midst of something.
God: What are you busy at? Ants are busy too.

Me: Don't know. But I can't find free time. Life has become hectic. It's rush hour all the time.

God: Sure. Activity gets you busy. But productivity gets you results. Activity consumes time. Productivity frees it.

Me: I understand. But I still can't figure out. By the way, I was not expecting YOU to buzz me on instant messaging chat.

God: Well, I wanted to resolve your fight for time, by giving you some clarity. In this net era, I wanted to reach you through the Medium you are comfortable with.

Me: Tell me, why has life become complicated now?

God: Stop analyzing life. Just live it. Analysis is what makes it complicated.

Me: Why are we then constantly unhappy?

God: Your today is the tomorrow that you worried about yesterday. You are worrying because you are analyzing. Worrying has become your habit. That's why you are not happy.

Me: But how can we not worry when there is so much uncertainty?

God: Uncertainty is inevitable, but worrying is optional.

Me: But then, there is so much pain due to uncertainty...

God: Pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional.

Me: If suffering is optional, why do good people always suffer?

God: Diamond cannot be polished without friction. Gold cannot be purified without fire. Good people go through trials, but don't suffer. With that experience their life becomes better, not bitter.

Me: You mean to say such experience is useful?

God: Yes. In every term, Experience is a hard teacher. She gives the test first and the lessons afterwards.

Me: But still, why should we go through such tests? Why can't we be free from problems?

God: Problems are Purposeful Roadblocks Offering Beneficial Lessons to Enhance Mental Strength. Inner strength comes from struggle and endurance, not when you are free from problems.

Me: Frankly in the midst of so many problems, we don't know where we are heading...

God: If you look outside you will not know where you are heading. Look inside. Looking outside, you dream. Looking inside, you awaken. Eyes provide sight. Heart provides insight.

Me: Sometimes not succeeding fast seems to hurt more than moving In the right direction. What should I do ?

God: Success is a measure as decided by others. Satisfaction is a measure as decided by you. Knowing the road ahead is more satisfying than knowing you rode ahead. You work with the compass. Let others work with the clock.

Me: In tough times, how do you stay motivated?

God: Always look at how far you have come rather than how far you have to go. Always count your blessing, not what you are missing.

Me: What surprises you about people?

God: When they suffer they ask, "why me?" When they prosper, they never ask "Why me?" Everyone wishes to have truth on their side, but few want to be on the side of the truth.

Me: Sometimes I ask, who am I, why am I here. I can't get the answer.

God: Seek not to find who you are, but to determine who you want to be. Stop looking for a purpose as to why you are here. Create it. Life is not a process of discovery, but a process of creation.

Me: How can I get the best out of life?

God: Face your past without regret. Handle your present with confidence. Prepare for the future without fear.

Me: One last question. Sometimes I feel my prayers are not answered.

God: There are no unanswered prayers. At times the answer is NO.

Me: Thank you for this wonderful chat. I am so happy to start the New Day with a new sense of inspiration.

God: Well. Keep the faith and drop the fear. Don't believe your doubts and doubt your beliefs. Life is a mystery to solve, not a problem to resolve. Trust me. Life is wonderful if you know how to live

CEP SEQUEL 2006

2006-09-28T14:10:00.000+08:00

There are times when we feel lost,
when the warmth of true companionship,
and the meaning of being,
seem so far away, so empty...

You feel you are alone,
but you don't have to be.

We can show you a place,
where joy and wisdom exist,
and it can only be real,
if you come and see...

Venue: Manjusri Secondary School
Date: 7th - 10th December 2006 (thu - sun)
Fee: $20 (for Manjusri students)
$40 (for early bird before 15 Nov)
$45 (standard)
Contacts: Kaiyi 98202447, Laura 93822570
sbm_youth@yahoo.com

harlow my dear sariputtians!

the much awaited camp is here!
so don't hesitate, start spreading the word around now!

all the best and good luck for all those having exams.

there will be exam blessings this Staurday, 30th Septemeber at SBM 3.00pm sharp.

for those who do not know what are exam blessings,

its like what we normally do for puja but we make the aspiration of doing well for our exams with a clear and focused mind. To seek refuge in the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha, to help us

go through this stressful and difficult period in our life.

study hard. meditate hard. pray hard.

may all do well and be happy!

with abundant metta,

michellie

dec camp!

2006-09-18T17:51:00.000+08:00

harlow sariputtians!

yes exams are coming for everyone. pls study hard so that u can have more reasons to come to sbm :) sometimes parents may not let us come for sbm cos they think we are supposed to be at home studying. but i feel that relaxing a bit at sbm after studying very hard is also very important. if u ever need any fun, or a listening ear, can always come down to sbm, or give any one of us a ring ya?

and yes, upcoming few months are going to be a exciting period for all of us. selina and i need the days when all of us will be free between 6 to 10 dec. pls let us know by this sat ya?
CEP this dec will be an exciting one. stay tuned for more details!

long time no post.

2006-09-17T13:23:00.000+08:00

hellos=) sly HERE.long time no post in this blog.

exams are coming n everyone,including me,must be preparing for it.
just wanna tell u guys all the best n work hard=D.
n i won't b coming for sessions until my papers are over so yar.
remember to study hard!!

may u guys...n girls...be well n happy=)

-sLy.-

well done sariputtians!

2006-09-11T18:09:00.000+08:00

Well done sariputtians! for 2 well staged public talks! everyone must have been tired from the first one on 9 sept sat. yet many of us turned up for sun's morning session with bhante. I hope all of us have been inspired or touched by him in some way. and let's continue to bring this gift of dhamma to more of us, more of our friends, more of our family, and to strangers of the public!

Sadhu Sadhu Sadhu!

-lola

9 sept 2006

2006-09-05T12:46:00.000+08:00

harlow sariputtians!

haven't blogged in a while. have been seeing some of us in sbm the last few weeks :)

so many things have happened over the last 2 weeks. plus school reopened for me. hols started for mich and sel and coburn. hope everyone is coping alrigt with tests, exams, projects, whether they have passed or are still impending.

and after months of preparations, from booking of venue to coordinating ushers for the event, our public talk is finally here!!! and if until now u still dunno the details of our public talk, below are the details:

Title: The Meaning and Purpose of Life
Day/Date: Saturday/ 9 Sept 2006
Venue: Da Bei Buddhist Centre near Lavender MRT
Speaker: Venerable Mahinda
Time: 7pm to 9pm

Title: Meditation - A Buddhist Perspective
Day/Date: Sunday/ 10 Sept 2006
Venue: SBM
Speaker: Venerable Mahinda
Time: 2pm to 4pm

We would like to invite all our parents to come join us for both talks. Please ask your parents whether they are free to attend this talk. The gift of dhamma excels all other gifts. and while we receive these gifts, why not share it with our parents? we have their support to come to sbm, to learn abt buddhism. how abt inviting them to come listen for themselves? Please help me and SBM extend a warm invitation to all your parents all right?

also, we hope you can invite as many of your friends as possible. As a youth group, we are constantly hoping to spread Buddhism to as many youths and adults, males, females... we can. all of us were introduced to SBM, either through our friends, through camp ehi-passiko. Let this talk bring more like-minded and interested individuals to sbm as well.

all of us who are attending will be, by default, ushers for the day. we are probably meeting between 2 to 230 pm at da bei buddhist centre itself. attire is white long sleeve shirt with black long pants or black skirt. remember our SBM core value - professionalism? we have to do our best, look our best, and be professional ya?

talk starts at 7. hopefully most people will start streaming in at 530 and be seated by 630. dinner will be provided. selina has gone all out to source for caterers alright? must support her :D

and mich is not in town to attend the talk, but she has played a crucial role in organizing this talk. i m sure she would hope for as many of us, as well as many of our friends, to come listen to teh talk on her behalf and be inspired :)

hopefully i will see all sariputtians at both public talks. it is rare for ven mahinda to be down to interact with us and i believe it is a great opportunity.

on friday, we will be having a full dress rehearsal at da bei, from 5pm to 9pm. if u can make it, pls do come down. we will probably be going through the program, AV, usher duties, arrange chairs... so many things to do!!!! let's all jiayou together! SBM's first public talk!

2006-08-30T23:41:00.000+08:00

Dear all~ =) ******************* Reminder ********************

This sat schedule:

11am - @ Orchard Mrt Station to give out leaflets
2 pm - Lunch together
3 pm - Back to SBM for sharing

Okies okies??

Hope all of you cn make it for the entire thing...

Love you all... and May you all be well and happy

Miss'in you all
Seliina

p.s: Guys, try to get your friends to come for the public talk ya? Jia you Sariputtians!

Public talk

2006-08-27T19:25:00.000+08:00

Hello to all my brothers and sisters,

I beseech all my follow lovely sariputtians support in getting YOUTHS to come for SBM'S FIRST DHAMMA PUBLIC TALK. We need every single one of your help/support/presence to make this talk a success!

REMEMBER:
Because we have ONE SUCCEESSFUL Camp Ehi Passiko, that is why are are able to have our coming 14TH EHI PASSIKO CAMP.

Lola, Selina, myself, jiayi, lindy, daryl, coburn, lincoln, souquin, sly
plus a whole truck load of other people who are in SBMY now joined through the camp
So without CEP, there would not be us, there would not be Sariputta, there would not SBMY that there is today.

That is why I urge all of us to give each other the fullest support we can
to make this a GOOD and IMPACTFUL one.

with our hearts in-sync
and soaring spirits,
let us all work hand in hand
towards our goal,
bringing happiness to ourselves and others, through the Dhamma
I have faith that we are able to pull through this
and make this talk a successful one.

every single Sariputtian counts.
:)

TAKE NOTE:
(9th Sep saturday)
all sariputtians who are going, meet at Lavender MRT at 2.30 pm SHARP.

That is all.
Break a leg
Enjoy, have fun
SMILE when ushering the guests in
listen to the wise words
of the Buddha

let me await for the good news (praying hard)
when i return on the 13th sep.

will be missing all the action
grumbles.

with abundant metta,
michellie

Bend and not break.

2006-08-17T22:15:00.000+08:00

Heeyy-low good o' Sariputta ber-lock!(:
YoYoYoYo S-to-the-A-to-the-R-to-the-I-to-the-P-to-the-U-to-the-double T-A!
How's everyone doing y'all? Great, great, great, I hope! haha.

I seriously hope that everyone in Sariputta who's going for the retreat event would have a FUN O' GOOD JOLLY TIME! May y'all be well and definitely jolly jolly happy happy! May this be a goody and memorable experience for everyone! Oh GOSH! Come to think about it, I'VE NEVER EVER BEEN TO ONE BEFORE! GOODNESS! This is BAD, I assume! This is what I call a tragedy! haha. I believe it may be and WILL BE a good experience for everyone! Since life's too short anyway, why not try out something new? haha(:

To those who's going, remember to fill me in with ALL that happened, okay?! *GRINS*
(you have all been demanded by me! haha. This make NO sense, I make NO sense)

Anyway, anyhow, I HOPE EVERYONE'S DOING FINE IN SCHOOL, IN LIFE, ETC. Yeaaaah! WHOOOSH!

In the meantime,
STAY CHEERY AND HEALTHY! Remember! The best-est and finest and most simplest way to keep and stay fit as a fiddle is to play BADMINTON!
Yeaaah!
I'M 14 AND I'M STILL KICKING. See! That proves how aging problems NEVER occurs when you're playing badminton!(((:

-Soukuin!(:

Alert~

2006-08-16T23:32:00.000+08:00

Hi my stars~!! Announcement to make!!

Those who are going for the retreat, here are the information:

- 5 30pm @ SBM [ Settle the dinner yourself as dinner will not be provided at the camp ]

- Things to bring :

* Sleeping bag
* Toiletries
* A pair of running shoes
* Adequate White tops and Long or 3/4 pants ( No short pants please =) )

And most importantly,

* $10 for the camp fees

- The camp will end at 3pm on Sunday

Those who are going in the noon on Sat, give Shi xiong a call yea? If you want to get there, here's a description of the route ( given by Zhen feng, If lost, blame him.. hehe )

Alight at Tampines MRT station, take bus 29 and alight at the bus stop after the commando camp. The venue : Ferry point, Chalet 1, Netheravon~

So yea... See you guys there ya!

Retreat to advance.. Love love!

Loads of hugs and kisses,
Selina

Updates

2006-08-16T14:53:00.000+08:00

To all my lovely sariputtians,

things to take note:

August retreat
18-20 August
Aloha Changi
A good time to pause and refect on life, and to learn more about the Dhamma.
To those who are attending, may you benefit spiritually, mentally and physically in this retreat.

Public Talks by Ven. Mahinda
9 Sep (sat)
7 pm - 9 pm
Tai Pei Buddhist Centre
(near Lavender MRT)
The purpose and meaning of life

10 Sep (sun)
2 pm - 4 pm
Singapore Buddhist Mission
(near Potong Pasir MRT)
Meditation- A Buddhist's perspective

For both public talks, please help to spread the word around as this is SBM's first public talk.
To your aunts, uncles, cousins, parents, and friends... please help to spread the word around now
Will greatly appreciate it!
So what are you waiting for?
Start spreading the Dhamma today!
FYI, Ven Mahinda is actually SBM religious advisor.

As for to last Sat's sharing conducted by our very own Mr. President, Ze ming, the topic was on three things but i can't seem to remember...but i know faith was one of them.
Why is faith so important?
If you do not have faith in the triple gem, than at least, have faith in the virtues of goodness.
Because good always triumph over evil. (haha)
Rememeber, hatred cannot overcome hatred, but only love.

And in times when you are all alone and need help,
just close your eyes, and clasp your pamls together,
recite in your heart or out loud,

NAMO BUDDHAYA
NAMO DHAMMAYA
NAMO SANGHAYA

Recite it a few times and I am sure you'll feel better.
Especially to those who are exam stress now, when you are in the exam hall, before doing the paper, just do this simple procedure and you will be calmer and more peaceful. :)
try it!

A very smart young boy then asked Ze Ming this question when sharing was about to end:
"Before Buddha attained enlightenment, when he was still Prince Siddhartha, then, where did he put his faith in?"

So what do you think?

I shall let you ponder on that.

With metta,
Michellie

great news for everyone!

2006-08-13T10:28:00.000+08:00

dear all sariputtians,

It is my great pleasure to announce that two of our fellow sariputtians, both LINDY ANG and EUGENE TAN has scored A1s for their O level Chinese Examinations. Let us rejoice and may they also do very well for their coming O Levels in Novemeber.

We are so happy and proud of you! :) Keep up with the good work!

lovelove.

with metta,
lola
sel
mich
jiayi

a vry vry l8 postt... sry sariputta-ians.

2006-08-06T13:20:00.000+08:00

1st presentation= rahula- the 'fetter'

presenters
2 fengs=wu feng n zhen feng

=))

2nd presentation= maha kassapa

presenters= zeyan n clorine

video

thank u kassapa=))

4th persentation=anuruddha- the daredevil?

presenters= sbm youth beatboxers chu feng n li wei

'buddha'

end. everyone hv fun n learn sth=))

-sLy.-

Hiya all~!

2006-08-02T18:02:00.000+08:00

Hi ya my dearest stars~ Its been long i hasn't blogged anything here. Really misses all of you~

Well, this week's sharing will be @ 3pm.. Please take note yea? No more 2pm le.. =)

For those who are mugging for the coming exams, please don't over-mugged.. Do not want to see my stars sick and worn out... ya? Puhlease~~~take care~

Having looked at our tag, i can see enthusiastic T-shirt "idea givers" like sou kuin, sly, etc... Really want to see more ideas pouring in to get our shirts done yea? Imagine, every sharing, all of us will be our Sariputtian shirt.. uniformly.. How cool and cute can that get? So, don't stop giving us your suggestions.. ya?

Before i end here, here's a saying :

The greatest achievement is selflessness.
The greatest worth is self-mastery.
The greatest quality is seeking to serve others.
The greatest precept is continual awareness.
The greatest medicine is the emptiness of everything.
The greatest action is not conforming with the worlds ways.
The greatest magic is transmuting the passions.
The greatest generosity is non-attachment.
The greatest goodness is a peaceful mind.
The greatest patience is humility.
The greatest effort is not concerned with results.
The greatest meditation is a mind that lets go.
The greatest wisdom is seeing through appearances.
Atisha

With loads of love and hugs,
Selina

Our Parents Wish

2006-07-30T20:09:00.000+08:00

hey all, my fellow sariputtians!

my mum sent me this website and i think the message in this web speaks for all parents. please view it with your speakers on. I hope that maybe after reading it, you guys might understand your parents slightly better. even if its an incy wincy bit. happy viewing. :)

http://parentswish.com

may all be well and happy!

with abundant metta,
meeshell

How Faith, Truth and Wisdom Are Related

2006-07-29T22:51:00.000+08:00

have you been truthful?

... "But, Master Gotama (the Buddha), in what way is there the preservation of truth? How does one preserve truth? We ask the Master Gotama about the preservation of truth.""If a person has faith, Bharadvaja, he preserves truth when he says: 'My faith is thus'; but he does not yet come to the definite conclusion: 'Only this is true, anything else is wrong.' In this way. Bharadvaja, there is preservation of truth; in this way he preserves truth; in this way we describe the preservation of truth. But as yet there is no discovery of truth."...

TDEditor : To blindly stick to faith that something is definitely true is to destroy truthfulness - even if that believed in is absolutely true. Being open-minded when unsure preserves truth and truthfulness, thus safeguarding the integrity of one's spiritual path. Having faith about something being the truth is not yet being one with truth itself, while to realise the truth is to cultivate true faith. Strong faith might be based on strong delusions. Thus, truly strong faith is strong because it is based on personal experience, based on actual knowing and seeing of the truth, of the way things truly are; it is not based on mere belief. While we might not realise the whole truth straightaway, we can cultivate wisdom to realise more and more facets of the truth.

-meeshell

High School Musical

2006-07-29T19:20:00.000+08:00

Yoz Sariputta,
hope it is not too late but my school Catholic high is having a Musical at Victoria's Concert Hall on the 12th(sat) and 13th(sun) of august.the choir is participating in it and we will be singing 4 pieces.if anyone is interested call me at 81343908 . tickets are priced at 10, 15,20 ,50 and 100 dollars.
lincoln

A Buddhist perspective on leadership and management

2006-07-24T22:40:00.000+08:00

happy reading! :)

The historical Buddha was an incomparable leader in many aspects. Without any human weaknesses, he shone as a complete embodiment of virtue, an example of what we all can be. He led the monastic community with democracy, while teaching the world the importance of interdependent harmony. With an open door policy, he welcomed anyone to challenge his thinking anytime. Being interested solely in the well-being of others, he was also an outspoken leader for human rights, animal rights and environmental rights.

The leader of a team can be likened to a “Buddha”. He or she should oversee everyone’s work and welfare. He or she should be as compassionate and wise as possible, while constantly bettering oneself in these aspects. Being supposedly the most enlightened of the team, he or she has to be well-balanced in views, to always be fair and objective. The leader’s team members are like his or her protégés – future Buddhas. They are the Bodhisattvas – the Buddha’s helping hands, through which more beings are helped, and more work gets done. And those who the Bodhisattvas help, are of course all unenlightened beings - the beneficiaries of the team's efforts. All Buddhas train all Bodhisattvas to eventually become Buddhas, just as all Bodhisattvas train all beings to become Bodhisattvas. The Buddhas eventually enter final Nirvana, just as the Bodhisattvas will attain Nirvana, which is why the unenlightened beings should learn to take over their tasks in good time.

This process of helping others and oneself to become more and more enlightened is dynamic spiritual evolution - never at a standstill. This is selfless skill development of all in terms of leadership training, the eventual enlightening of all beings. Spiritually, all Buddhas are the best leaders, capable ultimately, of leading us towards the ultimate goal of Enlightenment - which is why the Buddhas are called “Teachers of Humans and Gods”. They lead by perfect example and skilful advice, are never commandingly autocratic, but gentlemanly democratic, while being firm on crucial principles.

Just as all Buddhas are blameless leaders, for all leaders to be blameless, they too should actively work towards perfecting themselves in terms of compassion and wisdom, so as to better inspire future leaders. - Shen Shi'an

-meeshell

FOTOS!

2006-07-23T21:29:00.000+08:00

well i doing it 1/2 way coz i dunno wad to put so is there any old sariputta photos?
any pass to mi den i c i can do sth or nt.
n sry miss so much sessions. i got things on.
i miss u guys sariputta n d sharing a lot.

-sly-

Discovering the waterfront.

2006-07-18T20:26:00.000+08:00

YAY YAY YAY YAY!
My first entry on the newly improved and pretty Sariputta blog! Ooooh! Sounds so exciting!

This new layout sure is nice and a lil' bit eye-catchy too(:
First of all,
Thank you SLY! THANKS A LOT! Really appreciate your effort and hardwork! Thank yooouuu! Shall dig into my pile of cute goodies which I've bought in China over the June holidays and find something pleasant and pretty for you!
(:
This sounds so funny since I've never actually met you in person before and I assume you've got no idea who I am right? hahahaha. Fret not! I'll appear someday(:

I so miss the whole entire Sariputta house! I hope everyone's doing real good! I've got one final thing to say before ending this entry,
the weather these days is so unpredictable! SO LAVA-LY HOT!

(p.s. the title for this entry is so irrelevant! It's not even the least bit related to the content in this entry! I couldn't think of any suitable title for this entry at the moment so I used the title of my current favourite song instead!)

CHEERS!
- Soukuin(:

what is it in for me, as a buddhist youth leader?

2006-07-16T22:45:00.000+08:00

yo yo yo!
to those who are interested in being a buddhist youth leader and to coburn; who missed last sat's leadership workshop, here's a brief summary of what is it about and what we went through.

A group of youths came together one saturday to attend a talk cum disucssion session with Venerable Zhi Xing about being a buddhist youth leader in Spore. Proud to say that SBM made up the majority of the youths... :)

Main Topic :what is it in for me as Buddhist youth leader?
There is no model answer, just think of it and the first thing that comes to your mind will be it.
some answers given from us were...

Lola: Spiritual Friendship
Ang Hwee: I know I was just born for it
Michelle: Happiness

We also did a road goal for ourselves and exchanged with the other groups.
we realised that most of us have very specific plans for our career, studies etc.
things regarding the material side.
but when it came to spiritual life and family,
there was no specific goal in how to achieve it.
so, do you have yours? if you don't, then sit down for about 10 min, and start planning how to be a better buddhist. remember, take BABY steps, take things slowly. do not try to be unrealistic in your goals. ie. must meditate 1 HOUR everyday! u can if you have been practicing meditation for 10 years like hwee and if u have a discipline. at least, 10-15 min per day. that is good enough for us to start off. key point: take baby steps.

another question that i would like to voice out was the question ze ming asked shi fu.
How to attract the norminal youth buddhists (also known as the joss stick buddhists) in spore?
i felt that shi fu provided with a very good answer to this.
will try to rememeber what he said...

1. It is not just buddhists, who are declining in numbers, but in other religions as well. it is not how people percieve buddhism but how people these days (esp youths) percieve to religion as a whole. in the case of spore, most children are born with a silver spoon. therefore they grow up, without seeing a need for religion, they do feel that its important because they have what they want in their lives. instant gratification. the instant maggie theory. "i want this now, i must have it now..." so, if people are able to have what they want, (mainly all the material things and maybe relationships) then do you think they would they see a need for religion? there maybe some exceptional cases, but then it comes down to their karma and the ripening of their seeds. the right conditions must be present for them to realise something. if they have the seeds of the Dhamma implanted in them, due to their karma of precious lives, when these right conditions arise, they will be able see that "hey! life is not just about being rich, famous and good looking." they will be able to see life beyond the surface.

2. To attract people in your religion, you first have to be a good buddhist yourself. by being a good buddhist, u are also being a good son/daughter, a good brother/sister, a good friend, a good partner, a good teacher, a good student, etc... and the list goes on. in other words, by being a good buddhist, u are also being a good person as a whole. people will naturally want to be with you and want to know you because you are possess such qualities in you. this will then make them see "wow. this person is great. i have never seen him lose his temper, never seen him tired, never seen him talk bad about other people behind their backs etc..." and maybe out of curiousity, they will ask you why. "how come you are always happy? how come when you have so many problems, you still can handle them with a smile?" and then, here comes the chance for you to show them, to tell them, to "enlighten" them about the Dhamma. "The gift of the Dhamma, excels all other gifts" By propagating the Dhamma, you are doing a very meritourious deed! this brings me to my next point, in order to be able to spread the Dhamma, we then have to be grounded in the Dhamma. without knowing it, how do we expect ourselves to tell it to others? So, we frst have to take a look at ourselves. Look at our knowledge of outr faith, and to put what we learn into practice. practice, practice and practice...being able to talk about the Dhamma and praciticing it are two completely different things! Also, we have to be very observant to the people around us, for we never know when their conditions to ripen the seed of the Dhamma may arise!

of course, we did discuss about other stuff as well, but these are the two things that made an imprint on my mind. lola, sel, dee, daryl, and jiayi, if you have anything to add on, please do. pardon me if i remembered some things wrongly. please correct me if i do.

on another note, HOUSE SHIRT!
i came up with 2. will print it out and show you guys by next sharing.

just a brief idea of it.
i personally prefer it plan, simple and straight to the point.
any body with strong objections,please voice out.
colour has yet to be chosen.
orange, maroon or white?
any other preferences? please state and let me, (michellie) know.
thankies!

front
got metta?

back
(design) we do.

Front
Sariputta (star)

Back
-its just us.
Get a life
SBMY

for the second time, hwee has gone for a retreat. let us all wish him and ze ming a safe journey to malacca and hope that this retreat will benefit them greatly in their cultivation and practice, so that they will be able to come back to share more Dhamma with us and to bring more happiness to themselves, and to others.

with abundant metta,
~karuna (meeshell)

agree

2006-07-14T15:34:00.000+08:00

i agree d whole thing is a lil messy..
making d post full screen is a lil hard coz if d tags r long it will over d words n i hv to make it lower so.. any idea hw to fix dis thing?
i won't b going 4 2 weeks.. saded=(( n i got stung by a bee... great huh?!?!
actually i duno whether is bee sting or nt but it really hurts=((
anyways... i think sariputta blog is still nt really done yet...
-sly- capwomanHAHAHA

skin = t-shirt

2006-07-14T01:20:00.000+08:00

hi sariputtians!
nice skin, though it is a little messy. was thinking if we wanted the words on the skin to be on our sariputta t-shirt? the "its juzus" part. quite cool ay? haha jus random thoughts.

anyone wanna take charge of house t-shirt design? we can get shirts from our reliable supplier - mr liang jian! we have been talking abt it since last dec camp. hope to get it out by this dec camp? woah... a year....
-lola

Attention!! =)

2006-07-13T21:04:00.000+08:00

Hiya Stars of Sariputta~

A little announcement to make:

This week sharing will be on Sunday morning, 10am @ SBM. If you are unable to make it, please let your either Lola, your leaders or me know ya??

Try to make it this Sunday alrights? I misses all of you.... =)

See you guys on Sun~

Loads of love,
Selina

omg!! scare mi!!

2006-07-11T21:31:00.000+08:00

yes yes omg scare mi!!
did some1 edited d title? coz some things was missing so d blog cnt b shown...haha glad tt i found out...WOOSH!
anyways i deleted tt post bout anghwee's n lindy's bdae so i sae it now
HAPPY BIRTHDAY angHWEE anD LindY!!
hahaha wish u 2 well n happy. a year older so a year wiser=))
okok i m so glad i managed to fix dis...=))

sly or...capwoman?

new skin!

2006-07-09T11:50:00.001+08:00

woah!
i like i like!
good job sly!
keep it up!
yeah, anyway, i think the word house of sariputta needs to be shifted to the right abit.
do you mind if you could replace the picture of the cartoon with another picture?
maybe i will send you more pics when i see you online again.

anyways, a job well done!
thanks sly!
three cheers!

next Sat, (15th july) there will be a youth leadership workshop held at Kong Meng San Monastary. For leaders and above to attend, compulsary unless with valid reasons.
Sharing will therefore be postponed to Sunday instead. Puja will start at 10am sharp. Please be PUNCTUAL! i also need some suggestions as to what topics you guys might be interested to know for the Sunday's sharing. it can be anything under the sun. it can be non-buddhist related and buddhist related as well. please let me know by this tue! drop me a sms or email me ok?
thank you!

p.s. i look like i am pregnant in the pic. LOLS. maybe i am. ahahah.

with abundant metta,
mich shellie

This is my simple religion.
There is no need for temples or complicated philosophy.
Our own brain & heart are our temple; the philosophy is kindness.
~ His Holiness the Dalai Lama ~

Sariputta Stars!

2006-07-09T11:35:00.000+08:00

Hi guys~! =)

First, I wanted to say that I was impressed by the job done by Sly in changing the blog skin! It was adorable... And also thanks a zillion girl for taking (The flash made me feel like a super star) and posting the photos up for each event SBM had.. =) Great job darling~ *applause*

So ya, really glad to see those who are able to turn up yesterday cause I have been missing all of you since I am unable to make it for the orientation day.*SMILE*~ Those who are unable to turn up, I deeply misses all of you and yeap, hope you guys can come more often ya?

In addition, Congrats to my dearest Sariputta leaders... =) Well, Being a leader is not easy at all, but what is most important is to do your job with pure intentions.. ya? Jia you wor!

Alrights now, got to end off here. Three cheers for SARIPUTTA STARS! To all: Bring happiness to yourself and others through the Dhamma, remember? So smile guys~

With loads and loads of love,
Sel
=)

boutTODAY 8JULYo6=))

2006-07-08T23:49:00.000+08:00

i changed it again to meet d exceptations of mi leader shell=)) n try to fill in spaces n ta-da!!=))
anyways 2dae persentation n taje refuge.. i didn't take though...
presentation when captains vice-captains leaders are regonised=))
anyways pics!!

but lola n coburn aren't her to receive theirs=((
anyway den take refuge.. i didn't take..
den everyone went their seperate ways=))
i had pizza hut... curry baked rice=))

ok ok byes n comments r needed=D
-sly-

HELP

2006-07-07T22:26:00.000+08:00

i juz change blogskin as michelle requested=)) actually it was black background wif white words but lincoln told mi its nice but hard to read a bit so i try to change it... white background n black words.. n i found out ya it was easier to read but look plain. so i added d heading=))
d post wif fotos error i try to change it as much as possible to make it look better=) i hope it does...
woosh! i m tired!
i nid comments frm anyone... n hope tt sariputtains tt noe blogging can help mi wif d skin=))

ok posted bye=))

-sly- liyuan

2006-07-06T23:40:00.000+08:00

opps.
eh, xia lah. how come the pictures and the words don't coincide...
hmmm, sly, maybe you can change our blog template to like full screen? haha
anyways, the pics were posted by mee.!!!shell. heh. and all thanks to sly for sending me the pics and allowing me to use her cam to take these wonderful pics. :)
btw jiayi, think you forgot to sign off for the previous two entries.
ARGH. i made a FATAL mistake.
We have totally forgotten daryl.. :O!!!!
sorry daryl!!!!
we'll make it up to you!!!!

with abundant metta,
meeshell

the sun, the sand, and the seeeeeeea!

2006-07-06T22:53:00.000+08:00

hey ya all!
thank you jiayi for the very interesting and entertaining posts. :)
now, its time to feast our eyes...hehee.

our very own JED and COBURN. heh.

SARIPUTTA STAR! psst lincoln, where
are you looking at?

Pirates of SBMY (ARRRH...) haa

lindy: HAHAHA,
I cannot already! HAHAHAA, cannot cannot!
I'm gonna FALL! I'm gonna FALL! HAHAHA. lols.

It's SWING TIME! WHHEEEEE!
(sentosa's playground can be so fun. heh)

Coburn

Ian

Vicky

wu feng

Vicky, the major SPOILER. haha

now, that's more like it. :)

while everyone was having fun on top...
three helpless souls were stuck below.

the endless cycle of SAMSARA
go figure.

GG=Gungho Gang.

and finally, another picture of fun, love and joy.
:D

jiayi, lindy, sou kuin, coburn, jed, sherman, sly
and lincoln, thank you for coming!
hope you guys had lotsa fun!
selina and lola, wish you were there!
never mind,
there'll always be another time. :)

Latest Red Hot News Spill by Jia Yi n Lola

2006-07-05T00:53:00.000+08:00

I was there in that momentous decision: Coburn is officially a house leader!
To all of ya sariputtians, da criteria for becoming a house leader is flexible but includes

Being able to cope and score well in academic studies
Regular attendance for sat sharings + participation in outings/events
Good attitude and even better character =)

So treat this as a goal~ Each of u is impt n held dear in our hearts. * Sariputta Star *

Did ya'all miss moi? Si4 Jie3 Jia Yi

2006-07-04T21:43:00.001+08:00

So happy on SENTOSA SUNDAY =D (psst...i started offa bit sleepy n sianz like sly too)
I juz LURVE us sbmers, so lovable in their own special ways.

Resident comedians Zhenglin, Earnest, & Vicky thanx for brightening everyone's day

Very helpful & sincere ppl like Daryl and Cherise, and Fu Zhong! (carry heavy heavy things one... Ah! De trials n tribulations of lugging two plastic bags of durians, I didn't noe till u told me)

Zhi Xiong frm Chung Cheng High (Main) who's damn gd at volley (yeah!)

Shy cuties like Chun Jing n Michelle Chong: veh guai1 n quiet quiet de

Wei Qi, Ivan & company were craazy-in-a-good-way, playin 'water monkey' was fun(ny)

Our tall & strong Coburn! Hehe..had so much fun spinning on tat cross thingy... until I flattened my glasses and ate sand of course.

Mich was always dere to snap our memories for eternity & remind us of de true purpose of our outing: to make every single soul feel belonged, nobody is left behind/alone/doing nothin.

Darling Dee. I was Dumb to brave da aircon shop sopping wet only cuz 'I caant smile without uu..' Btw u look glam in aviator shades n juz abt anything, lol~

Silly Sou Kuin, ANY problem pls open up to any of us wor.. I will lend u a listening ear, a shoulder to cry on or even a spare kidney if u need it =) Hope to see u more often during sat sharing!

Pearly, Zeyan & Ting2..u should see em in da sand slipper game..like woah!! o.O" They remind me of de all girls football team in Shalin Soccer, rmb Zhang Bo Zhi n Karen Mok with moustaches?)

Fang Rui (aka Mao2) n Wu Feng 2 scary-looking but friendly guys. Nice knowin u =P

Last but not least...(drumroll)... Shi Hui! My great gal pal, pls convince Xin Chyr to come leh..

Oh ya..almost 4got Forrester [+_+] Jia You~ur on ur way to becum de next Game God!

Esp glad to know our sariputta nubes: Sherman, Sly & our very own... Jet Li!!!

Ahaha~u3 r vertically challenged like me but dun worry, u'll grow taller than me in due time...

Did da pum-peng on da hot sand hurt? Aww..tat was juz for discipline purposes.

Do treat us as family, we'll always shower love, care & concern on u

Juz gimme or de other leaders a call anytime anywhere [^_^]*

lastMINUTEmeeting...

2006-07-03T23:07:00.000+08:00

SUN
SAND
SEA
SENOTSA n...
SUPERMAN!!!

haha last minute meeting...
ya last minute i noe thy meeting at city hall MRT when i m at millenia walk.. so i went wif them...
i feel sian coz i tired n no 1 toking 2 mi so... like tt lor =)
nvm la.. i dun giv a dam hahaha
anyways..i go mrt station nearly breaking mi legs n now mi legs r like aching... n saw fuzhong hangqi jianyong there... n hangqi wasn't happy 2 see mi.. anyways after a while they wanna walk so we walk i walk like lamppost like tt... juz so extra standing there...ok ok wadeva la meet d rest... wanling junhao zhenfeng jowell forester shixiong xiaopang maomao i think tts all. n we all go watch superman!!
nothing much la onli 2 pics=)

forester n junhao 1 wan 2 b superman another 1 wan d crystal=))
look at d strong aura around them HAHAHA junhao's aura is a bit out?

even though i feel so sian 2dae but i did hv fun=))
coz i m wif d SBM members!!=D

nites^^

-sly-

eRRor!

2006-07-03T01:34:00.000+08:00

sths wrong! mi cam no batt!! so i cnt send d fotos 4 now until tmr nite? shld b so anyways sry...

-sly- liyuan=((

sunSANDseaSENTOSA!

2006-07-02T23:57:00.000+08:00

it was a nice sunday 4 sbm 2 go SENTOSA!!!
anyway we hv lots of fun asusual n now i m trying 2 rush d fotos to us=))
bz but wanna make every1 happy=]
anyways so l8er...

anyway... if u wan 2 get d pics ask frm anyone hu has d fotos or mi... if u noe mi email...

but there r some shots i wanna show wad is it bout=))
alvin earnest n victor.. in d bus=))
superman wanna-bes!

after d extreme flight ...

he found out he dun hv d talent=))
mayb zeming is juz popular wif d girls.. look at him being raped! HAHAHA or he did sth wrong hu noes...

i think tts some of d funny shots... d rest enjoy=))
taken by michelle n MUA=D

-sly- liyuan=))

friendship

2006-07-02T08:20:00.000+08:00

dear sariputtians,
wish i had gone for soba gathering at coburn's house. how has everyone been? i am starting to recover my sleeping pattern now. jet lag in US for a whole week. now still jet lag. :)

went for sharing yesterday. met 2 new sariputtians - sherman and jed. yesterday's theme was friendship. i liked the talk because i think i tend to take my really good frens for granted. what are the qualities of a good fren? so many suttas to describe - not a gambler, alcoholic, one who is tolerant of our harsh words to them...

during our sharing in our houses, i really enjoyed listening to everyone's stories. perhaps i m old. but the innocence with youth is priceless. little things that frens do for each other can be so easily done, yet is often neglected. the general consensus we get abt the qualities of a good fren are:

1. good listener
2. tolerant of our abusive behaviour
3. willing to help us in bad time
4. willing to take a little bit of time out of their hectic schedule to help us, listen to us, talk to us, go out with us.

think i will learn to be more generous with my time. it is often easier said than done. more often than not, we can choose to play computer games insteasd of meeting up with old/long time no see frens. these are my takeaway points for yesterday's sharing session.

and thanks to my darlings, for making my birthday a memorable one :) i really appreciate it

EDUCATION IS SO COOL! (try it!)

2006-06-27T21:44:00.000+08:00

AWWWWWWWWWWWW. Hello my dearest one and only Sariputta blog! School has started and it was plain OH-KAY, I must say. It has indeed been a great June vacation, excluding the fact that I did not turned up for any of the sharing sessions in June! And I sincerely apologise for that!

So in June, I've missed out tons of sharing sessions and also the certificate ceremony thingy! I was in CHINA! And also, I went for the Aviva opening! PETER GADE EMERGED CHAMPION IN MEN'S SINGLES! Okay, so let's not get carried away and that was SO IRRELEVANT! So yeah.

I am extremely thankful and is speechless upon the sincere gratitude and would say that it was definitely a narrow escape! I almost died whilst using the latrines (a much pleasant term) in China. To be precise, I was out of breath. Literally, out of breath. The China cum Macau trip was a blast and I went on a bizarre shopping spree and bought something silly for every one of the Sariputta peeps! (:

Heard from Laura that she is doing real good in San Franciso now! Anyway, see you guys in August or so! I do not even have time to make it for any of the sessions in July due to my badminton trainings which takes up both my weekends! And I've got a lot of studying to do since my common tests are nearing soon. (sounds so hideous! yucks!)

So yeah, seeyou!

- Soukuin(:

SKOOL REOPEN!!

2006-06-26T22:57:00.000+08:00

yesh skool juz reopen. saded tt all our hols mood hv 2 b place in our sheelves again so back 2 studying!!! saded but nvm at least we got 2 study wif our classmates skoolmates and frens again. i was so hyper went i got to class coz 2dae NO LESSON!!! ok dis is supoose 2 b in mi blog but i juz wan 2 rite it here alright rite? ok anyway even though after a tiring week of work every sat we still c each other to enjoy n learn again ya?

nt much to sae coz i m pretty tired frm 2dae's activities. haiz. anyway i juz wanted to post something here=))...

bout renovating dis blog.. i will go figure out even though i m nt tt good but i will try n c wad i can do=D

haiz haiz 11pm i nid 2 rush mi homework so nites n takecare. n as i said i won't b coming dis coming sat as its my nephew's bdae so yup tts all...

NITES
sly- blueCRAZYhuman=))

:)

2006-06-25T18:02:00.000+08:00

hello my peeps!

sly! thanks for uploading the pictures and updating our blog! since you like to blog right, i am giving you the honour of 'renovating' our blog. as you can see, our current one is not...very *ahem* attractive and colourful enough. and it was done by, none other than your IT-idiot jie jie, me. haha. :P so maybe if you have the time, after having done all your homework, help me to add a new skin and maybe add in some music as well? or maybe can add a slide show like the one in moggollana's... i like their blog alot and i think wanling did a great job of it. but not to copy them, just use your own creativity! something simple yet attractive? something funky yet buddhistic. haha. no pressure...don't worry. :)

to all who turned up for our house gathering, thank you! to those who were unable to turn up due to other committments, not to worry! we'll have another outing ya? and to those who came for shaing too, appreciated your presence and thanks to our two clowns who turned up that day as well...haha, ernest and zheng lin. :D you guys brought fun and laughter.

and of cos, to coburn, his mum and maid. for his kind hospitality and his humble home. not forgetting, his cute furry companions and PS2. haha. thanks coburn! the soba was good! hee.

as we all know, school is starting again. to those who have done well for their mid years, good job and keep it up. however, continue striving hard and not to turn complacent. to those who have not done so well in the mid years, don't fret, don't give up. with perserverance, endurance, patience and of cos, faith in the triple gem as well, i am sure you will do better. if any of you ever need any academic help, please do not hesitate to let your leaders know. we'll all help one another, because we are one big family!

once again, another joy to add to my weekend.
my spiritual friends, my love, my life.

to sariputta house
with truckloads of love and metta,
meeshellie

sry sry sry!!

2006-06-24T23:01:00.000+08:00

sry sry sry!!
i m sry! got some more pics i 4got bout them... hehe sry actually is a bit of shots... erm 2?
i took it.. mi ugly face n michelle's pretty face

ernest took dis... nt bad huh?

ok sry 4 dis extra post...^^

-sly-

sariputta meeting= meal time!!!

2006-06-24T22:44:00.000+08:00

meal time... coburn's handmade noodles... thanks a lot coburn!!

den ernest happen 2 like root beer so much he decide 2 add it in his noodle... look at his expression

n lots of stuff ernest n zheng lin did n some more stuff....
lindy serving ernest root beer

zheng lin b a good fren giv fats 2 his buddy ernest...

after tt we ply 4 a whie n headed down 2 sbm!! i had a lot of fun 2dae so did d sariputtains rite?? yea!!^^

-sly-

sariputta house meeting!!!

2006-06-24T21:59:00.000+08:00

we went 2 coburn's hse 4 d hse meeting or gathering...

our arival...

n d lil doggy twinkle.. she is cute but she h8s mi n u cnt blame miT-T... n she is attracted 2 zheng lin as u can c...

wanna watch movie den they started wan 2 ply gundam seed ps2 game. so start plying....

n dis 2 extra 1 plying in there own lil world... haha

after tt we watch d movie 1/2 way we gave up on it n ply ps2 again... ply ps2 again den ernest n coburn fighted in a game of star wars!!!n in d end ernest lost!!!

n every1 ply ply ply...

some1 looked sian here...

ok dis post can no longer put anymore pics... so next post shld b our funny meal time!!!

-sly-

mindfulness

2006-06-14T17:32:00.000+08:00

Taken from the daily enlightenment:

There is a nagging feeling that this just isn't enough. Something is missing. There is a vague cloud of yearning - for equally vague goals unactualised, the accomplishing of which is imagined to be the sure solution to end all existential dissatisfactions. But, to flip this around, there is only one certain "something" that is missing - and that is contentment. But no! With much irony, I'm not content with such an answer. Even in moments of great contentment, there is doubt of whether I should get off my bum to more actively do something to make the world a better place. And if I'm already off my bum, I wonder if I should put in more efforts in the moment. So many wrongs need standing up for - for the sake of animal rights, human rights, environmental rights... In the midst of engaging in the world, so much seems to require betterment that I feel discontent with the limited effects of my meagre efforts... of mainly writing for online readers and occasional sharing of the Dharma in real life.

But things needn't be this way. I need to realise that I should simply do my best mindfully. Only with mindfulness, can I truly do my best to better the world. Only so can I know I am doing a job good enough or not. Only with mindfulness can I better myself by increasing compassion and wisdom to do even better. Just do what should be done, best you can. Being constantly bugged by discontentment messes things up instead - it makes me impatient and unrealistic. The moment I am mindful of being discontent, I should transform this negative energy into a positive motivating energy. Only so can discontentment drive me on, instead of impeding me. Only so can I be content in the moment, by being true to myself and the world in every thought, word and deed. The Buddha taught that "Contentment is the greatest wealth." Though this great wealth is savoured in its fullest glory at the end of the spiritual path, the Bodhisattva path should entail the tasting of the fruit of contentment with increasing sweetness as it is walked.

Doing our best in each moment is what truly matters; not attempting to save the whole world from suffering in one single moment - which is impossible. Just as the Buddha often taught and transformed the individuals he encountered on a one-to-one basis, I believe in the power of changing the world one thought at a time. Just as the Buddha taught to crowds too, when the situation allows it, try to use skilful means to share positive messages with the masses too. It is from doing our best that contentment arises from; not necessarily from the actual fulfilment of all our worldly or spiritual aspirations alone. Contentment is the Middle Path between the extremes of apathy and over-zealousness. It is a dynamic empowering attitude; not static. It is a state of mind to walk the Middle Path with. Though it is likely there will be karmic trials and tribulations, the path to liberation should more or less be one of increasing bliss and contentment. After all, Buddhism is the path to True Happiness! - Shen Shi'an

i hope i am not plagairising... ;P

metta,
michellie

Sariputta's House gathering~

2006-06-12T15:38:00.000+08:00

hello my dear sariputtians!

Lola is in staying in a motel in Shanghai now. she says the weather is pretty cool there but it'll get warmer. She misses us already! heehee.

Jiyia! Welcome back!! We missed you! Hope the trip to Italy was good! :D

FINALLY!
the much awaited house gathering is coming!

date: 24th JUNE (sat)
Venue: meet at Potong Pasir MRT station (we're going to Couburn's house!)
Meeting time: 10.00a.m (reason being there is probably sharing on that day as well, so we shall all troop down to Coburn's house earlier our activities...movie marathon anyone?)
Highlight: Coburn's gonna make SOBA (the japanese cold noodles) for lunch! yumms. :'p

Eveyone is welcome from Sariputta house even the newbies ya? so please come down if you are free! Please RSVP to me, your vice-cap by this Sat, 17th June. That's about it... Hope to see you guys there! :) Love love.

with truckloads of metta,
meeshellie

2006-06-04T13:56:00.000+08:00

dear sariputtians, brothers and sisters,

i will be away from 7 june to 1 july. no worries, i will definitely miss all of you :) cannot see u all for 3 sharing sessions. plus cannot attend house outing. plus cannot be here for a new and reorganized house.

lincoln, no need kancheong over the house matters. all will unravel when the time has come. meanwhile, enjoy every moment we have with every member alright? whichever house some of us may be in, we will still all be at sbm, seeing each other. mb when organising vents a bit different only lor. anyway, mich did fight hard to have minimum changes so no worries :)

while i m gone, michelle will be in charge. so any grievances, do not hesitate to cal her up haha. alternatively, u can still msg or call me at teh same hp no. you will still be paying the normal rates, so no worries. do support michelle alright? :)

house outing has been initiated by our da-ge coburn. coburn! pls let our members know okie? especially lincoln haha. will be there morally with u guys. remember that i will support you guys all the way, whatever decisions u may make. remember to stay united. stay strong and i hope to see everyone having fun when i come back :)

-lola

camp ehi-passiko 2006 prequel

2006-06-02T11:55:00.000+08:00

and camp ehi-passiko 2006 perquel has just ended! our valient knights from laotian B.I.R.D has returned from Laos, victorious with the tooth relic.

hope u guys had a good time at the camp. the ice-breakers, around the world (to the goat's farm hehe), the night mission, the ultimate showdown and the camp fire! Whee! and lincoln's grp, upali, really got me as their shiny card hero haha. thanks lincoln for really protecting me haha.

do take a good rest, a good sleep and post ur feelings after the camp ya? lincoln, hope u had fun. sou kuin, hope u r feeling better. thanks for ur enthusiasm, although u were sick, u participated in our games fully. cherie, eugene, daryl, hope u had fun at teh campfire. hope all of us had fun at the camp fire. i don't remember dancing for so long at previous campfires. coburn, met ur cousin. looks like u sia. haha. jus a bit smaller size.

ang hwee, hope u r feeling better :) and mich and dee, enjoyed ur company too. sel and jiayi, hopeu r doing well for tests and enjoying ur italy trip respectively
and let's look forward to Camp Ehi-Passiko 2006 Sequel: JAPAN!

ang hwee is back!

2006-05-26T12:57:00.000+08:00

our dear mentor Ang Hwee is back! round of appluause pls! realy missed u. hope to see ya soon. pls take care of urself.

and tmr, sat, we will start camp preparation at 12pm at sbm. pls be punctual as our camp is on monday already! whee!

and a very big thank you to all our young sariputtians! for inviting ur frens and family down to the camp. for helping out with making the armour. for chopping the firewood. all our efforts are truly appreciated. and we work towards yet another successful camp ehi-passiko 2006 - the prequel!

-lola

three cheers for lemykens!

2006-05-22T17:53:00.000+08:00

yo yo pro-yo sariputta lovies!

just to share a lil secret...

while we were all handling to our own personal affairs last sunday (21st may, BUT DEFINATLEY NOT SLACKING AND SLEEPING AWAY LIKE PIGS AS SOMEONE HAS MENTIONED *ahem*) one small, brave soul was slogging away, in the hot sunday afternoon sun, cutting the wood ALL BY HIMSELF behind SBM for our campfire. now...let me see, who could this person be...?

who else but.......
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?

Well, that's for me to know and for you to find out!

WHAHAHAHA... *evil laughter* (ne ne ni poo poo)

to that person : you know who you are and i must say, SADHU SADHU SADHU! well done! the house of sariputta all rejoice! keep it up boy boy! see see see! i drop hints already ah. don't say i never drop hints. teehee, way to go! we don't SLACK ok, we SHAGG.

as a vice-cap, i am so proud of my fellow sariputtians. haha, i think i share the same sentiments as lola too, rite lola? ;) proud to be part of this group, proud to be part of this family and proud to have you all as my brothers and sisters.

SOU KUIN! HOW CAN THAT BE RUBBISH! OMG!!! if that was rubbish you were saying just to kill your boredom...then OMG!.... you are so reflective that I am so ASHAMED of myself. keep it up gal! i like that alot. :) SADHU three times to you too!

to lindy: gal, don't worry! chinese o's, you CAN DO IT! i did it, lola did it, sel did it, jiayi did it, u can too! have tuition everyday, wah lau, you better do well man. haha. KIDDIN LAH. no pressure ok? go do your best, and beat mara! (i'm abit ding dong today la. dunno why leh) must be becuase i miss you too much already... awwwwwww *shy shy* don't worry, don't fret, don't stress. sariputta house will be behind you ya? si xiao qian jin too! scared what scared? hor lola?

to jiayi: xiao mei! will miss u and think of us when u are in ITALY enjoying your sphagetti! we will catch a qian-jin movie together when you're back ok? cheong for the 15 art paintings. JIAYI, JIAYOU!

to sel: dear! all the best for ur exams too. rem, cannot cope then don't continue tution ok? good that you tired. u never know until u try, we all must learn from you, er jie! hehee.

to lola: DA JIE miss moral. ALl the best, beat the rest! first time game mistress, HWEE WHEET! you're the woman! go kick some guys butt! HAHA. whoops.

to all the rest: come out of your coccoon and shine like a butterfly! let us use our 'voice' and be heard! i AM a BUDDHIST, here me ROAR! *RAHHHSSS*

with
truckloads of metta,
loves her 'babies' dearly,
meeshiell

monday

2006-05-21T15:52:00.000+08:00

hi sariputtians! for monday 29 may, details for camp ehi-passiko are as follows:

8am
Lavender MRT

please come on time. for members who have not yet handed up the forms or paid to xiong, pls do so so that he can do all the admin work. a lot of admin work u know? like all the delicious food we gonna get, the nice t-shirts he needs to order etc...
thanks!
-lola

I did this beacuse I was bored.

2006-05-19T21:48:00.000+08:00

Hello fellow earthlings! Just read through some previous entry posts by Laura.
Laura, thanks for the compliment and praise ((((((: I just think that sometimes, I talk too much.
I shall hereby answer one of the most highly anticipated question of all time and is frequently being asked by people.
question: What do you think are the best qualities of the protagonist in 'S' for Sariputta?

The alphabet, 'S' in the word Sariputta represents tons and tons of things. For instance, S can stand for superbly jovial bunch of people. Members of the house, Sariputta are definitely and absolutely amiable and very cool. Life is never too down nor low when you're having the company of these people. Though, the number of girls in the house outnumbered the number of guys, nevertheless, the bond of friendship is close, I must say. Needless to say, this is something pleasant and nice to hear about.

Strengths.
Everyone has their own flaws and weaknesses. It would be seriously amusing to hear of someone flawless. I guess the main reason why each of every one of us bonds so well is because of the several strengths in us that we have to cope with life. So yes, crap happens sometimes. And there they are, these wonderful Sariputtians would always be there to help you get over it.
Caring as it is, these people never fail to ask you how your week had been and so on. This is definitely one of the several strengths that they all have in them to make Sariputta such an enjoyable house to be in. This trait is somewhat amirable.

In conclusion, each one of the members of the house Sariputta are definitely filled with strengths. My time, days and seconds have been joyous and fruitful.
-end-

So yes, boredom filled me and I am very bored. I tend to talk rubbish when I'm bored.

- sou kuin!

CEP for sec 4 students

2006-05-17T00:59:00.000+08:00

attention to all sec 4 students.

given that chinese o levels is on 29 may 2006, which is our first day of camp, camp master has arranged a pick up time for all sec 4 organisors and participants. tentative details are as follows:

day: 29 may
time: 4pm
place:Lavender MRT

you will not miss a lot of the camp. so for sec 4 students who previously could not make it for the camp due to the exams but can make it now if transport is provided, PLS CALL os SMS ME OR ANY LEADERS OR EXCO OR CAMPMASTER LIEW SHI XIONG. thank you. come for some fun and relaxation after much cramming for the exams okie? dear darling lindy is GL for this camp. and she is sec 4. and she is having her o levels chinese paper too. let's support her! yay!

alright. forgot to sign off the previous post as well.

from darling lola

2006-05-17T00:39:00.000+08:00

wad sariputta sayonara? it is sariputta STAR! haha and yes we are recruiting more stars into our house! haha

and mich, thanks for that not-very-lil note. i think what is good is that we are not afraid to show our appreciation for each other. we shd not be shy. same thing applies to our friends and family outside sbm. do look on the bright side of everyone, reflect how that person harson has brought out the better person in us, and thank him or her for it.

must say that michelle has been helping me tonnes and gallons this whole period. when i was having exams, she really took over the reins and all i had to do was drop her a call and she will get everything settled. and i believe u are my most qualified partner (in-crime haha)

and to jiayi, know u r caught up with sch, dance, wushu, sbm, ITALY trip (where u will get to meet the hot guys!) and of cos sbm. pls do take care of urself and try to pack as much activities in. if not, then sometimes we have to face trade off i guess. opportunity costs? pls do take care of urself and sariputta gals will always be here to listen to u and help u out :)

to sel, welcome back! -muackz- enough said? haha u and i the eldest (not the oldest) among sariputta gals. cannot let all those funny funny ppl come disturb our gals haha. and thanks for always putting in ur best effort for sariputta. don't think i dunno. all our gals put in 102%. guys 101% haha

to dee, haha study hard ah. i know u always miss me. and always lourve me. so always find reason come find me and bring us sultanas from delifrance, custard puffs from hans. haha. jiayou jiayou

to all sec 4s, study hard okie? o levels chinese must gambate.

to all poly kids, enjoy ur time in 1st year haha. haven't heard much abt poly life yet. mb u all can come tell me stories hehe

to all jc students, enjoy jc leh. so much fun. sbm kinda makes me feel like jc all over again. the having fun part haha.

to all sec sch students, enjoy sec sch life. enjoy sbm too.if sch gets too overbearing, take sbm as a weekly relief from sch. haha i m not very good with words. sou kuin, the lit student, shd edit this post for me haha.

k taht s all for now. jus wanna let all of u know that all ur efforts into sbm and into sariputta house are very much appreciated. really. i cannot manage a house without all ur dedication, hard work, phone calls, tears, sweat and blood (k a bit exaggerated) now, let's work hard together for camp ehipassiko!

Count down to CEP Prequel 06

2006-05-16T22:09:00.000+08:00

The countdown to CEP Prequel 06 and the welcoming back of our beloved mentor, Ang Hwee.

I still remember the first time when Hwee told us that he will be leavinf for Aussie for 2 months, I was so afraid of what would happen to our house. He was the one that brought the 5 of us together, he was the one who brought the house together. without him, there will not be sariputta as it is now. Now, to think back, 2 months has just gone like that. And to think of what we have been doing for the past 2 months...I can say out loud, "what an achievement!"

Lola, with your pillar of strength,support, burning enthusiasm, and leadership skills, you have really led the house well. together with the 4 of us. :) i'm really proud of you and i am sure Hwee will be too.

Selina, you have the qian jins, house of sariputta behind you always. come out of your facade. it causes pain to yourself and also to those who care for you. talk to us ok?

Lindy, though you had a rough time preparing for exams and all, you never failed to squeeze out that tiny ounce of chance whenever you could meet us. am appreciative of that. stay sweet as ever.

Jiayi, don't think that you are not doing well and that you are not up to standards. Have more confidence, believe in yourself! You are good at whatever you do and don't ever doubt that. me, lola, sel and dee will always be here for you.

to coburn, lincoln, daryl, sou kuin, hui min, bryan, cherie, yin hong, wei jie, alex, jie lun, and eugene: what is a house without a family? though each and every one of you have your own differences, you guys have been a wonderful family. lets stick together, like UHO glue! :D

now, its time for us to help our dear vice president, to recuit more campers! please! everyone, please do your part ya? don't you want more people to be part of this family? Start asking around, emailing, smsing, calling etc... even to friends whom you have never spoken to in years! you never know until you try!

"The gift of Dharma excels all other gifts"

let them sing sariputta sayonara... we'll prove them wrong!

with abundant metta,
meeshell.

Jiaaaaaaayouuuuuuuuuu!

2006-05-15T22:53:00.000+08:00

It's okay Lincoln! At least you did your part to sell the camp alright! I understand that sometimes such things like this are quite unpredictable. I mean you might not know if there's a rejection or so. I will have to say GOOD JOB! BRAVO! BRAVO! SPLENDID!

At least you did your part to promote the camp, unlike me I did not! )):

- sou kuin!
((((((((((((((:

Sellin the camp

2006-05-15T21:34:00.000+08:00

Hey All!
2day iz really a sad day.Tried to promote and sell Camp ehi-passiko. Sadly all the people i tried tob sell the camp to turned me down. One of them decide that he would prfer spending his hloidayz in front of the computer. tried my best to talk him into spending 4 of his holiday days trying out sumthin cool and benefitable like Camp Ehi-passiko. But no. His answer was still no. Anyway even if i had convinced him, His mother also did not like the idea of him staying overnite in camp.
the next person i tried to sell the camp to, had a positive attitude. she even when to the extent ofn asking her parents 4 permission. Sadly , her parents were conservative and wad i would like to call
traditional chinese. The both of them didnt like the idea of theirn daughter goin 4 Camp. At least the girl , said that she would help me ask her frens. 4 that i am eternally grateful to her.
the next 2 people i asked was goin overseasd due to some project organised by their school.
anyway i probably would not giv up. Neither shud u. Let us all start callin every single person in our telefone book and make this camp ehi-passiko 2006 the prequel a success like it truly is!
Sariputta Star!
lemykens.

Vesak day!

2006-05-14T22:07:00.000+08:00

Hello loyal fans of the great Sariputta blog!
Vesak day at sbm on both Friday and Saturday was awesome! It was splendid!
It was a wonderful and very very memorable experience! Although lady luck didn't really shine on us since both days HAD SUPERBLY LAVA-LY HOT WEATHER, still the fun was there! So yes, I'm going to start telling grandmama stories.

Glad to say that the carnival went really well and very smooth on Friday. The amount raised was really unexpected?! haha, thats in my opinion. Being able to raise a total earning of 1K is really WOW! The games displayed were much fun and the creativity was really there! Although most of the games required players to get wet but what can you say when Grandpa Sun is out? So yes, it's a great feeling to see players leaving the game booth stalls with a huge grin on their faces ((((: At night, we had this candle light possession thingy/event where we walked around sbm with little pretty lotus handmade candles! We were kind of like 'lighting up' the surroundings. Light represents hope?! It was nice! VERY!

It was really really nice to have Mummies (IS THERE EVEN SUCH A WORD? Whats the plural form for mummy by the way?!) joining our sharing session for Saturday. The parents who were there were pretty much entertained by some of the house captains' antics! So they were like 'HAHAHAHAHA-ING' most of the time! YAY(:

All in all, it was a wondeful experience and the time spent were indeed, magnificent. Every second of the day were filled with fun, joy and laughter.
Carpe diem! Seize the day! Both days were very very meaningful. THANK YOU(:

- sou kuin!
I guess I will be failing Chinese again.

Camp ehi-passiko

2006-05-11T01:02:00.000+08:00

hi dear sariputtians,

1. i jus posted some photos as u can see. for more exciting photos, as well as the photo of sbm with president mathan, pls visit xiong's blog at http://www.pipalatree.blogspot.com/

2. believe we have been caught up with vesak@ orchard and vesak @ sbm that we have neglected camp ehi-passiko prequel 2006! all members who have yet to hand in your forms and money, pls hand them to me or xiong. please. somehow, the sense of urgency is not there and the longer we hold on to our forms and money, the higher camp fees we have to pay. our dear huggable and respectable vp has been putting off raising the camp fees. so we need to help him out here and don't stress him okie? don't stress me too, cos i see him stress i also stress haha. no la jus kidding. if don't have form, look for me or xiong, we have whole stack. if any other concerns, pls come speak to me. i will be more than happy to speak to u. serious. raise ur concerns so that we can work sth out okie? only weijie, mich, dee and i have handed up our forms. how abt the rest of u? daryl, bryan, coburn, cherie, amanda, huimin, eugene, jielun, alex, lincoln, sou kuin, jiaqi? kenn, sel and jiayi have told me they can't come

*to all sbmyians, if u happen to be reading this entry, this applies to u too! so ya pls hand up ur forms and money. anything, can come talk to any of us okie? like u don't like the food, or don't like me in the camp (i hope not), pls come tell us :)

3. sou kuin, thanks for ur entry. hope to see u more in sbm now that exams are over. remember, studies always come first! we have to fulfill our duties as students and children before we can contribute more to sbm. okie?

cya guys tmr at 3 at sbm. vesak@sbm is coming and will be fun! anyone wants a manicure? andanyone has extra balloons, pls tag!
-lola

2006-05-10T17:52:00.000+08:00

2006-05-10T17:51:00.000+08:00

2006-05-10T17:50:00.000+08:00

hello! and hello! and once again, HELLO!

2006-05-10T14:45:00.000+08:00

A warm and a very very big 'HELLO' to everyone!
I must say that I am somehow a little confused about the blog posts on Vesak Day @ Orchard. So so so so sorry that I couldn't be there to witness the magnificent event and also to join in the fun as well! I haven't been able to go for sharing sessions on weekends too. So sorry! The mid years exams kept getting in the way. ARGH.
From the looks of it, the Vesak Day at Orchard event did turn out very vey well. Everything ran smoothly! YAY(:

So yes, the mid years examinations are FINALLY OVEEEEEER! And yes, all the very best to those whose exams are still on. Now, other than rejoicing, this is also the time to be scared till you wet your pants because the 'knowing-your-results' part is nearing soon! I'd be more happy to skip that!

[note that the tone used in this post is happy.]
As a literature student myself, I shall now elaborate intellectually on the tone used in this entry.
As many viewers and loyal readers of the great Sariputta blog, it is known that BLAHBLAHBLAHBLAH. BORING!

Now, end this with a huge grin.
:))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

- sou kuin!

2006-05-08T01:04:00.000+08:00

hello sariputtians! vesak @ orchard is over! definitely had fun over these past 2 days! was very proud of mich and sbmyians onstage dancing and performing the harmony cheer. also very proud of our sariputtians who came down for vesak@orchardm braved the hot sun, the rain, carrying placards. thanks for coming down and immersing ourselves in the activities. as lawrence mentioned, carrying the placards must have caught the attention of at least one person about buddhism.

special thanks to many ppl for making this vesak a success, you know who u r. if u dunno, can come ask me :)

posted some pictures, which u can see if u scroll down...

and now, it is time for vesak @ sbm! here are teh days and times we are meeting:

thurs: 3pm to 10pm
fri: 7am
sat 9am

for thurs, pls come at 3pm, or come straight after ur lessons. attendance is compulsory for all leaders and members of sariputta house. we will need every manpower we can get to help set up everything. plus we have our own sariputta games booth!

SBM Youths! Oh Yeah!
-lola

2006-05-08T00:57:00.000+08:00

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