Cowboy Caleb the liberal arts, grown-up stuff & random mischief

Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don’t

Today is Wesak Day or Vesak Day or That-buddhist-thing Day depending on where you live, how much you earn and the socio-economic group you move about in. Where I come from, we call it Vesak day, although it was called Wesak day when I was a kid, and then briefly relegated to That-buddhist-thing Day as a hedonistic tertiary student. Now it’s Vesak day, ok?

I had originally been ordered by gf to turn up at her place at 7am so we could drive to some place and jog. On the way down, she calls me and tells me to turn back and go change into something formal because we now have to go attend some Vesak day thingy. So anyway despite the fact that the distance from my house to hers is roughly the distance from Orchard road to Pasir Ris, I turn back and get dressed.

So when I finally get back to her place, she hands me a crudely drawn map and tells me, “We have to go here”. So using my amazing ability to sense the magnetic north and decipher obscure treasure maps, we finally manage to find the place after getting lost only a couple of times (5 to be exact).

But before we go any further, have I mentioned before that my gf is a buddhist/taoist? Yes, I the useless Roman Catholic am dating a woman who is not of the one true faith. So how like that? I don’t really give a rats ass, really. All roads lead to Rome.

When we got there, her entire family was already present. Apparently, my (future) brother-in-law had a hand in establishing this new temple so that’s why it was so important that we be present in formal attire. I swear to you that before this day, I had never seen a ringsel before in my life, much less 15 of them in one location.

Later, some big-shot monk arrived (he had dudes with golden umbrellas to shield the sun from him) to conduct the opening ceremony. Everybody chanted some very long (to me, since I didn’t really know what was going on) sutras and finally the monk opened a cage full of birds and released all of them into the clear blue sky.

Or did he?

You see, 50 birds stuffed into one small cage for goodness knows how long in the sweltering heat at noon really does some strange shit to the birds. When they were freed, some flopped about and dropped dead on the ground (must be heat stroke). And then there was one which had a broken wing (probably from the overcrowded conditions in the cage) and couldn’t even fly at all. The cats probably got him later.

So If you ask me, they were better off being killed with one swift stroke. What do you think?

Must have been such a pathetic image..them poor birdies.

this is one of the reasons why i refuse to believe in any religion. some do funny things, some to preach funny things. (i neber mention any names ah!)

i think i’ll rather hold on to my own principles and values.

aneki > yes, I took photos! But they are in my gf’s digicam and I didnt copy them out.

fuzzarella > you do realize there is God right. But which is the right team to join is still the hardest decision to make.

I’m sure you’re right… eating loads of turkey for Christmas is better than releasing some birds into the wild.

yea, i do. but nowadays, there are so many people puttin words into god’s mouth, nothing can be totally believable..

this reminds me of one of those ceremonies i witness somewhere in march. it wasn’t a buddhist day thingy, but there was a group of buddhists or taoists, i don’t know,(2 or 3 in fact), and they were letting some animals out at this park next to chinese garden.

the monks/religious men/however you want to call them, were chanting something while releasing the animals.

i’m not being disrespectful to the grp of people, but as an outsider, it seems all very “for show” kinda thing, cuz the guys chanting didn’t seem to be very “into” the chanting, if that’s how you put it.

The monk probably never watched the news report that the act of releasing animals might be doing them more harm than good.

Oh yeah, I’m a buddhist… and I ate frog legs for dinner today.

s > no need to wait till christmas. I went to KFC for lunch after attending the ceremony.

fuzzarella > I agree with you 100%

hecate > probably cause chanting is listed as one of the most boring activites to participate in?

roxanne > you had frog legs? You go, grrlfriend!!!

Thai called Vissak…

oops it is wisakha bucha day….lol not vissak…

ohh I didnt know that, thanks!

That’s your personal opinion. In the eyes of Buddhists, those who died after the praying session are very fortunate, they will be reborn faster and with the seeds of good karma sowed in them.

You should be happy that the birds in that cage are bought by Buddhists to be released.

1) Some of them can be Free again n given 2nd chance of life
2) They do not need to suffer in that condition waiting for buyers in the bird shop.
3) those who died during the process had a quick relief rather than waiting squashed in the bird cage in the bird shop for buyers.
4) Their death is meaningful and they have prayers done for them before their death.
Indeed Lucky animals !

pinkheart > err.. rite. and whose opinions are those?

hmm… yeah maybe the birds are lucky in the eyes of one such as pinkheart, but my take on it is that maybe those birds wouldn’t have been stuck in cages at all under inhumane conditions if people didn’t buy into this particular practise with such enthusiasm. i mean, the reasons listed seem to point towards this being an excercise in mercy killing? who died and made you God? whatever one’s belief is though, death lasts a damn long time and that’s not something to be taken lightly.

If the animals die after being released (from weakness, predators, hunger etc), doesn’t that negate the whole practice? Why not just stop the whole thing and shut down the ugly trade of catching wild animals so that well-meaning but deluded people can release them only to die or be recaught again? I think some enlightened Buddhist groups area already taking this stance, but others are still trying to justify old habits using new karma. Bah!

the Birds in the Bird shop are ALL Caught for the Release of ANimals by Buddhists.

ARe you sure ? Do you know how many types and the number of birds a bird shop sells ?

Why blame everything on Buddhists ?

I doubt pinkheart knows either. There are captive bred birds (budgies, finches) which won’t survive in the wild. There are also wild-caught birds (or at least the small proportion that survive the stress of capture all the way to the shop) such as sharmas, munias and white-eyes. Either way, releasing them is simply a thoughtless act of mindless cruelty towards:
1) a captive animal unable to survive in the wild; or
2) a wild animal who wouldn’t have to be caught in the first place if people didn’t try to buy ‘merit’ by purchasing the creatures for release.
Nobody’s blaming all Buddhists. Just some who practice their beliefs without real understanding. Some Buddhist lodges are already taking a stance against fang sheng, having understood the reason why the practice is both cruel and meaningless.

The animals will still die as food on the tables or abandoned by irresponsible pet-owners or killed by the now birds flu epidermic .

However at least, they have a second chance at living FREELY again when they are released.

i don’t know why people like to twist the truth to support their arguement.

With my own eyes, i have seen many times before cages of birds being released and they are definitely not half dead or exhausted in the bird cages.

I can tell you the sort of miracle that happens when the Abbot helps them to take refuge .
The birds were chirping like a noisy market during the ceremony but all of them remain quiet and listening when the Abbot chant the sutra and repent the sins for them.

In Singapore, birds in cages do not need to travel long distances on the road.
When they reach any destination , they are still kicking and alive in the bird cages ~~~not half dead or exhausted as EXAGGERATED by those who simply want to stop the belief by all means.

Unfortunately, most people don’t believe in miracles. Not least those seen only by pinkheart’s own eyes and no other.

The simple fact: why not just STOP the practice of catching wild birds for the sake of letting them go again? If one sees captivity as an ordeal, surely the act of putting a creature through captivity for the sake of some devotee’s ‘merit’ negates the whole spirit and meaning of freedom epitomised by fang sheng?

does that go the same for fishermen, hunters n birds rearer ? Why not ask these people to stop their trades n no animals will suffer anymore ?

The wild birds maybe caught because people want to buy birds as pets.

Why blame everything on the ACT OF COMPASSION (animal release).

Do you all really believe that if there is no more Fang SHENG, no more animals will be caught ? and then wat next, blame on who ?
people who keep birds as pets ? or people who eat birds as food ?

Oh please don’t bring in other acts to justify fang sheng. Fishing, farming or hunting, though it involves death for animals, is a livelihood for some people. Unless you offer them an alternative, they can’t be blamed for plying their trade. The fang sheng practice that involves catching animals for release only to be recaught again does nothing but pander to the good feelings of devotees who unthinkingly perform a ritual without understanding of the dynamics behind the whole cycle. No one (except save a few bird catchers) need suffer for not practicing fang sheng, especially since no bird would have to endure capture for the sake of fang sheng in the first place.

There is always a purpose and meaning for Fang Sheng, not merely what u people see from the appearance or think it is just to feel good.
Can read the article below for more clues.

http://www.yogichen.org/efiles/release.html

http://userwww.sfsu.edu/~rone/Buddhism/BuddhistDict/BDL.html

liberating living beings
A Buddhist practice of rescuing animals, birds, fish and so forth that are destined for slaughter or that are permanently caged. They are released to a new physical and spiritual life. The practice exemplifies the fundamental Buddhist teaching of compassion for all living beings.

A disciple of the Buddha must maintain a mind of kindness and cultivate the practice of liberating beings. He should reflect thus: ‘All male beings have been my father and all females have been my mother. There is not a single being who has not given birth to me during my previous lives, hence all beings of the Six Destinies are my parents. Therefore, when a person kills and eats any of these beings, he thereby slaughters my parents. Furthermore, he kills a body that was once my own, for all elemental earth and water previously served as part of my body and all elemental fire and wind have served as my basic substance. Therefore, I shall always cultivate the practice of liberating beings and in every life be reborn in the eternally-abiding Dharma and teach others to liberate beings as well.’

Whenever a Bodhisattva sees a person preparing to kill an animal, he should devise a skilful method to rescue and protect it, freeing it from its suffering and difficulties… (BNS I 162)

In China this practice was made popular by the Venerable Jr-Yi (see entry) and has continued to the present day.

Developing our Compassion by Liberating Living Beings

“Once a month at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas, we liberate animals destined for slaughter. We purchase them from the wholesalers, bring them to some appropriate place, and let them go free. We recite mantras, sutras, and praises on their behalf, so that they can hear them, and so that the merit of our recitation can be transferred to them. This traditional Buddhist practice, called ‘liberating living beings’, has always been praised and honored by the sages and high masters.

“By liberating living beings, we also nurture compassion in our hearts. By not killing, we cultivate compassion. In letting living creatures go, we also cultivate compassion. The compassion in our hearts grows greater every day until it becomes as great as that of the greatly compassionate Bodhisattva Observer of the World’s Sounds (Avalokiteshvara).

“Bodhisattva Observer of the World’s Sounds did not kill living beings; she always liberated them, and so she has a greatly compassionate heart. We should imitate the great kindness and compassion of Bodhisattva Observer of the World’s Sounds and liberate living beings. The principle is very logical: if you liberate life, you increase your compassion. Liberating living beings is just liberating ourselves.. Why? Because we and all living beings are basically of one substance. We should think this way: ‘If someone put me in a cage, wouldn’t I be uncomfortable? Wouldn’t I wish that someone would let me go? If I were put in jail, I would not want to stay there. Likewise, I don’t like to see birds put in cages. This is because living beings and I are of one substance. Since I feel this way, I want to liberate living beings.

“What is more, you don’t know which living being was related to you in a past life. One might have been your father, or your brother, or your sister. You can’t know for sure. Perhaps they were your children, or your friends. Right now you haven’t gained the use of the Heavenly Eye or the Penetration of Past Lives, and so you don’t know what kinds of causes and effects belong to each animal; and yet, when you see these creatures, you feel uncomfortable and want to set them free. Setting them free isn’t a stupid thing to do by any means, as some people might think. It is an aspect of cultivation. There isn’t just one way to cultivate. There are eighty-four thousand Dharma-doors in cultivation, and every single door leads to the realization of supreme enlightenment. Liberating living beings is one of them. We must be careful not to think of it as ’stupid’. If we have that kind of attitude, we will obstruct our own cultivation.

“I just said that we wouldn’t want to be locked in jail. I will tell you the truth. This is not an analogy. Your own body is, in fact, a cage! You are stuck in your own body and you are not yet able to get out of it. Until we have gained a very high level of spiritual practice and wisdom, we will remain stuck in the cages that are our bodies. Only then will we have liberated our own lives. That’s the real liberation of the living. If we want to liberate our own lives, we must first liberate the lives of those little creatures. The one kind of liberating the living helps the other kind.

“Liberating living beings is a very important aspect of Buddhist practice. But if one hasn’t understood this yet, one might think it a very ordinary affair. If we don’t cultivate the one kind of liberating the living, we won’t be able to obtain the other kind. There are many changes and transformations, and so don’t look upon this lightly. Liberating the living brings returns on one’s own efforts.” (Venerable Master Hsuan Hua, PDS, May, 1985)

“Why do we liberate . . . [living creatures]? It is because if we ransom creatures that were destined to be slaughtered for food and then set them free, then they can live out their natural lifespans. This in turn enables the people who liberate the living to enjoy a long life.

“Why are there wars in the world? It is because our collective killing karma is so heavy. If in this life I kill you, in the next life, you’ll kill me, and in the life after that I’ll come back to kill you. This cycle of killing continues forever. People kill animals and in their next life they become animals. The animals which they once killed now return as people to claim revenge. This goes on and on. There is endless killing and bloodshed. When incidents of slaughter multiply until the resentment can no longer be contained, they explode into massive world wars, with the resultant huge massacres and horrendous destruction. On the battlefield, people are propelled by resentment and enmity that has accumulated during many lifetimes, and they go absolutely berserk, lashing out at one another like savages. ‘You kill one person? I’ll kill ten!’ They take revenge on one another like that. Wars are the painful results of killing karma created in our past lives.

“Therefore, we liberate the living to diminish our killing karma. The more people engage in liberating the living, the less killing they will do. Wars will proportionately decrease. We who cultivate these compassionate practices do not oppose war: we just don’t go to war. We don’t kill but instead we set living creatures free. This is the true and ultimate way to eliminate war. It is also a gateway to long life and health and to the eradication of disasters and illnesses. The merit and virtue that one accumulates from liberating animals is boundless. It enables you to cause living beings to live out the full extent of their natural lifespans. In addition, you benefit personally because illnesses are averted. As a result you enjoy good health and are able to peacefully cultivate the Way.

“The purpose of liberating the living is to protect the lives of creatures. It is a Dharma-door that exemplifies the Buddha’s compassion. Everyone should protect living creatures and not abuse or slaughter them.” (FAS Ch8 76-77)

“In liberating the living
You yourself will live long.
Health, riches and blessings
Will descend upon you, never-ending.”
(CL II 15)

pinkheart, I think this act should really be abolished because it’s tarnishing the image of Buddhism. Buddhism is all about compassion. The moment someone conducts these rites for show and not because he really wants animals to be released, then it defeats the purpose.

However, it feels like people are singling out Buddhism when there are grosser acts of cruelty being committed. What about pet owning? A hundred (or so) times more animals die because of the pet trade. Perhaps we should abolish that. For every cute puppy we bring home, a few die en route to Singapore. And this happens everyday, not just on one day a year.

fang sheng would really mean something if the animal is destined for the gallows, for example if you see an dog about to be slaughtered for food, and you buy it and release it or keep it. I think that is the true meaning, and not the planned purchase and release of animals.

pinkheart > I respect you and your religion and believe that you are entitled to your own opinion. Differing views are good and help us break out of our narrow world-views that imprison our minds.

But your arguments are circular in nature, and thus far you have not been able to convince me or anybody else how this act of Fang Sheng makes any sense in a rational manner.

How about you go and construct a new argument to explain to all of us how any of this makes any sense without resorting to publishing tomes and tomes of info.

Give us something we can relate to in this day and age.

Clearly, pinkheart is blinkered to the fact that fang sheng, as practiced locally, involves the purchase of animals caught for the sole purpose of sale to devotees. The species involved are usually not edible or domestic (except for the case of pets abandoned under the guise of fang sheng). Do you ever see people releasing cattle, pigs, chickens, ducks etc… in the wild?? The practice here simply creates a vicious cycle of capture, release and recapture. The only real gain is for those involved in this hideous trade.

HAHAHAHAHAH. I know how you feel. This is how I feel when I see the idiots letting the poor tortoises into the very very deep lake near my office. And then the next day when I drive VERY VERY carefully to swerve and not hit into the car (while I try not to hit the tortoises who survive the waves and get into the roads), i tell myself… om mani padme hum. blessed be the ignorant believers.

sigh.

pinkheart: posting a thousand-word-long comment to caleb to educate the rest of us lesser-read minions doesn’t quite show me how much of a realized buddhist you are.

from my point of view this looks a lot like a chicken strolling into a jungle and trying to the tell the eagle ‘look this is the way to fly, because the teachings said so.’

Regarding this issue, this is what ST reported (in my own words):
90% of birds and animals released during Vesak season die within a week.
Releasing birds and animals is bad for not only them, but the natural environment as well, as they will fight with the original inhabitants for food. The government has been discouraging such practices for a long time.
Even local buddhist groups are not in support. Angie Monksfield from the Buddhist Fellowship said the purpose of buying animals to free them on Vesak Day is not helpful to them, it will only encourage animal trade which defeats the original purpose.
Anyway, the article only referred to private releasing of animals so I’m not sure what is the case for temples and ceremonies.

imho, fang sheng is good. but overzealous people are often caught unawares of its karmic effects.

like the pigeons/birdies etc in the cage. to be kept in captivity then released at a certain hour.. why not release them as soon as you have bought them? see, now they ended up dying also because of heat stroke.

if you really want to fang sheng, go to the market at 3 am, buy all the fish that are still alive then release them back into the sea.

heck, these days not many people even stop to help an injured dog in the middle of the road, let alone want to fang sheng.

theory and practise are two very different things.

and i am a buddhist dammmmitttt!

Been wondering what happened over the other end

http://www.makansutra.com/forums/singapore/viewtopic.php?t=7660&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=315

Looks like the battle between the good and evil continued here.

Ok no theory but my personal experiences.

Last time, i used to get the sparrows to release them around my house…..cos surrounded by trees and when i see them flying off in the sky happily chirping away instead of being caged up, i felt very happy for them. Some of the birds even know how to fly back to sing songs at the window or door.

Some years back, when i went to the organised Buddhist funfair event at Kallang Stadium, they had the booth for releasing fishes saved from wet market .
i released 2 fishes back into the sea.

One of the fishes did not swim away , it kept swimming in circles on the suface n waited for me to go near the water n shouted for it to go. It then pop its head out of the water, looked at me before finally disappearing into the sea.

There are many such stories of animals expressing their gratitudes n thanks to the people who release them back to their nature homeland.

Once you experience it , you will understand the meanings of helping these animals.

Many animals are still living well in the sky , in the sea after their release.

i don’t know why people like to twist the truth to support their arguement.

With my own eyes, i have seen many times before cages of birds being released and they are definitely not half dead or exhausted in the bird cages.

I can tell you the sort of miracle that happens when the Abbot helps them to take refuge .
The birds were chirping like a noisy market during the ceremony but all of them remain quiet and listening when the Abbot chant the sutra and repent the sins for them.

In Singapore, birds in cages do not need to travel long distances on the road.
When they reach any destination , they are still kicking and alive in the bird cages ~~~not half dead or exhausted as EXAGGERATED by those who simply want to stop the belief by all means.

Faith is indeed so wondrous that it can defy facts and use subjective personal experience and unchallengeable statements to support a practice that has been shown to be cruel and meaningless. That’s the end of it, for me at least.

pinkheart you are such a ‘chicken’ crap.

no one is stopping the belief.

if anyone is giving a bad name to buddhism, i think you can look into the mirror. Smile. you’ll look pretty, even when you’re awestruck.

pinkheart > I think you mean well. But your method is all wrong. Why not start a blog and publish your views there? You can get a pretty good one at blogsome.com

Good luck!

Btw, don’t say stuff like “the fish popped its head out of the water to thank me”. You’re destroying your credibility.

Btw, don’t say stuff like “the fish popped its head out of the water to thank me”. You’re destroying your credibility.

But that’s the truth !
i gain nothing by telling the truth or lying anyway.

Just sharing my honest personal experiences.

Budak, i see nothing cruel or meaningless when i see with my own eyes the birds flying towards the trees, towards the sky and the fishes swimming back into the sea.

And an age-old turtle that was sold at a wet market as food waddled towards the water after we released it. Swam around in circles a few times before submerging into the water.

It is a wonderful sight to see the animals back to there they belong instead of ending up as dishes on someone’s table.

Pinkheart > You’re absolutely right!

I’m closing comments on this post now.