Ancient Bhutan's New I.T. Boom

The last Himalayan Buddhist kingdom, Bhutan, and its king (pictured below) are intent on modernity for this once insular shangri-la (Reuters).

Bhutan may be derived from the Sanskrit Bhu-Utthan ("highlands"). In another theory of Sanskritization, Bhoṭa-anta means "At the end of Tibet," as Bhutan is immediately to Tibet's south. Historically, the Buddhist kingdom was known by many names, such as Southern Land of Darkness, of the Tsenden cypress, of Four Approaches, and of Medicinal Herbs). See History of Bhutan.

THIMPHU, (India Times) -- With a lightning fast broadband network, a soon-to-be operational IT park, and the recent Genpact deal, Bhutan is well on its way to an IT boom.

The agreement signed between the Bhutan government and leading BPO firm Genpact on June 8, 2009 will help alleviate the unemployment situation in the country, according to Labour and Human Resources Minister Dorji Wangdi.

"It's a major breakthrough for us. We'll need a lot of people trained for the IT sector. Developing an IT-based private sector is part of government policy to make Bhutan a major IT hub," said Labour and Human Resources Ministry Secretary Sonam Tenzin.

According to the agreement, Genpact will recruit 200 Bhutanese graduates every year to be trained and employed in India. After a period of two years, they will return to Bhutan with training and experience in business processes, ranging from call centres to financial services. Dorji said the batch identified by Royal University of Bhutan (RUB) will be sent for training and employment to India. The graduates will also undergo training in communications and analytical and reasoning skills.

This will ensure they are employable not only in the IT sector but other industries as well, said Sonam. Meanwhile, construction on Bhutan's first IT park is expected to be completed in two years. The government is currently establishing a broadband network that will link all 20 districts. According to Communications Minister Nandalal Rai, Bhutan's climatic condition and location are ideal for setting up operation centres. He said that Bhutan's English speaking population would facilitate the development of IT enabled services. Source

World's Worst Water

"World's worst water"
Drips from one of the planet's most polluted sites can eat a hole in jeans. Toxic stew's recipe (sfgate.com)

• Rich nations criticized over emissions
• Miracle of water with Dr. Masaru Emoto
• Natural gas drilling might be to blame for earthquakes

Porn Actress' HIV case confirmed

Rong-Gong Lin II and Kimi Yoshino (Los Angeles Times, 6/11/09)

Jen "X," left, and Jessica Drake at a fundraiser in Las Vegas, where lunches with pornstars were auctioned to aid the Adult Industry Medical HealthCare Foundation. In California's unregulated porn film industry, an alarming number of performers are infected with HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, and nobody seems to care.

An actress who works in Southern California's pornography industry has tested positive for HIV, renewing county and state health officials' concerns that the adult entertainment industry lacks sufficient safety measures to prevent the spread of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.

The new case was confirmed to The Los Angeles Times and pornography industry websites [June 10, 2009] by the Adult Industry Medical Healthcare Foundation, a San Fernando Valley-based clinic that serves adult-film stars in Sherman Oaks and Granada Hills. Public health officials, however, said no official report had been made at the state or county level.

• From the archives: See No Evil
• At least 16 unpublicized HIV cases in porn film performers

Dr. Jonathan Fielding, health officer for Los Angeles County, said Wednesday that his office was launching an investigation.

Officials from the state Division of Occupational Safety and Health also said they will look into the circumstances of the case, which is the first publicly confirmed HIV infection in Southern California's porn industry since 2004, when an HIV outbreak shut down production for four weeks. More>>

Tibet: "Unmistaken Child" glimpse a mystery

Kenneth Turan (Los Angeles Times)

"Unmistaken Child" is a glimpse into a mysterious process
A monk searches for the childhood reincarnation of his deceased Tibetan master

"Unmistaken Child" does more than take you inside a closed culture in an almost unreachable part of the world. It bears witness to a strange and mysterious process, the search for the childhood reincarnation of a recently deceased and revered Tibetan master. Its privileged glimpse deep into unfamiliar spiritual territory has the strength of revelation.

This journey began for writer-director Nati Baratz in 2002, when he met a monk named Tenzin Zopa at the Kopan Monastery in Nepal and realized that the young man had been delegated by the Dalai Lama to find the reincarnation of the legendary Geshe Lama Konchog, who had died the year before at the age of 84.

Zopa was not chosen for his task by accident. For 21 years, since he was a boy of 7, he had on his own volition been the attendant of Geshe Lama Konchog, familiarly known as Geshe-la, a man revered for spending decades in solitary meditation in an isolated cave. More>>

• Tibetan Film Festival 2009 (freetibet.org)

Facebook's Domain Name Land Rush

How to Protect Your Trademark On Facebook's Domain

Nicholas Carlson

At 12:01 a.m. Saturday morn-ing (6/13/09), Facebook will allow user to register user names and domain names (facebook.com/username) to go with them.

One marketer tells me employees at her firm have been instructed to wait up until midnight Friday so they can quickly register user names for all of the firm's clients before squatters can claim them during the land rush.

This approach may not be necessary. On Digital Media Law, Jonathan Handel explains how a company can protect its trademark before the land rush commences: More>>

Burma: Karen unable to return

(Partners Relief and Development)

(BBC) More than 4,000 ethnic Karen in eastern Burma have fled to Thailand after renewed fighting between Burmese government forces and Karen rebels.

• In pictures: Karen refugees

Many of those who have fled over the past week were living at the Ler Per Her camp for internally displaced people in Burma -- and had already left their home villages.

Rainbow, who is the secretary of the camp and the headmaster of the school there, told the BBC News website about what is forcing the Karen to flee and the difficult circumstances they now face:

"Last week government troops attacked our camp. They were shelling every day. The fighting between the Burmese army and the Karen rebels was taking place close to the camp. It became a dangerous place. So we decided to leave." More>>

Running scared

Why Burma's generals are so afraid of Aung San Suu Kyi

• Burma tense as Suu Kyi is tried
• Profile: Aung San Suu Kyi
• Profile: The American "intruder"
• Suu Kyi: A life in pictures

Interactive map

Life in some of the areas worst-hit by last year's cyclone

• Inside Burma's Insein prison
• Photojournal: One family's struggle
• Did the cyclone change Burma's junta?
• Capturing Burma protests on film

BACKGROUND

• Burma's hardline generals
• Burma vs. Myanmar
• Profile: 88 Generation

Food, Inc. (movie)

"Food, Inc." opens today exploring agriculture, permaculture, and what Monsanto and agribusiness has done to the American food supply. A film by Robert Kenner. Opens nationwide June 12, 2009. See extended clips: Food, Inc.

The new food movement away from "factory farming" practices, which led to Mad Cow epidemics, is gaining popular appeal. Malnutrition (not calorie starvation) is the number one cause of illness in the world. The U.S. and Western countries suffer greatly because of ignorance: We are the fattest but also some of the most nutrient-deprived populations. However, our detrimental habits are being quickly exported to the rest of the world.

On one occasion Buddhist monks practicing in the forest had enough to eat. But they could not gain enlightenment. The Buddha advised a woman who provided for them to ensure that they received the "eight flavors" (astringent, sweet, sour, savory...) recommended by the ancient Indian view of a balanced diet. On account of receiving nutritious elements found in a diverse diet, the monks were able to attain when they otherwise would not have been able to. Such is the power of food. And it may suggest why the world is drifting in the opposite direction as corporations take over farming, food processing, and dietary standards.

The End of TV

Analog television ends today in the U.S. In its place, the government has mandated a conversion to digital. This may mean expanded bandwidth and more channels, tighter control, or both. Required immediately is a digital conversion box, or this can be the best time to "kill your TV." The popular slogan refers to leaving TV behind. In the Orwellian scenario depicted in Nineteen Eighty Four, telescreens were interactive and invasive. They combined spying and propaganda-news. Orwell may never have imagined how it would actually play out in terms of "infotainment," ubiquitous ads, and mind numbing 24 hour programming.

• dtv.gov
• turnoffyourtv.com

Guided Meditation to Manifestation

Manifest your heart's desires with this meditation. It is a relaxing and powerful experience. Feel energy, love, intention to manifest instantly what you long for. This meditation is quick and effective for modern and busy people.

9/11: Truth Revealed or Concealed?

• Special 9/11 Programming: (Pacifica 6/11/09 5:00-6:00 pm)
• PLAY • DOWNLOAD

LINK

• NYC nuclear terror drill: "NY, you have a problem"

"9/11: How Should Religious People Respond" (Univ. of Wisconsin at Madison)

• Iran voting extended as scores flock to polls
• Casting ballots
• Confusion expected as analog TV ends after 60 years
• Kim Jong Il's youngest son given title of "Brilliant Comrade"
• Woman defends book about friendship with Pope John Paul II

The Divine Within (film trailer)

Entheogen: Awakening the Divine Within is a feature-length documentary which invites the viewer to rediscover an enchanted cosmos in the modern world by awakening to the divine within.

The film examines the re-emergence of archaic techniques of ecstasy in the modern world by weaving a synthesis of ecological and evolutionary awareness, electronic dance culture, and the current pharmacological re-evaluation of entheogenic compounds.

Within a narrative framework that imagines consciousness itself to be evolving, Entheogen documents the emergence of techno-shamanism in the post-modern world that frames the following questions: How can a renewal of ancient initiatory rites of passage alleviate our ecological crisis? What do trance dancing and festivals celebrating unbridled artistic expression speak to in our collective psyche?

How do we re-invent ourselves in a disenchanted world from which God has long ago withdrawn? Entheogen invites the viewer to consider that the answers to these questions lie within the consciousness of each and every human being, and are accessible if only we give ourselves permission to awaken to the divine within.

Stan Grof, Marilyn Schlitz, Ralph Metzner, Alex Grey, Terrence McKenna, John Markoff, Daniel Pinchbeck, and Kat Harrison among others postulate how the disenchantment of the modern world may be remedied by summoning the courage to take the next leap in the evolution of planetary consciousness.

Tulku: Dissatisfied Reincarnation

A tulku is a "reincarnated Tibetan master" such as Lubum Tulku, age 6 (tibetanfoundation.org)

Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me… About My Last Life

shambhalasun.com

The NPR show Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me, my favorite political comedy show (plug: even better, to my mind, than Jon Stewart or Steven Colbert) has for the second time chosen a story about a tulku (reincarnate Tibetan master) as the epitome of unbelievability.

It was during the segment of the show called Bluff the Listener, in which panelists tell three unbelieveable stories, one of which is actually true. On its June 6 show (you can listen to it free on iTunes or at the Wait Wait site), one of the panelists told the story of Lama Osel, which has been covered extensively here on SunSpace. The theme was adolescent rebellion, and the listener felt the reincarnation story was not even as believable as a tale about adolescent dung beetles who drug their elders with a psychedelic fungus so they can mate at will.

This is the second time Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me has fooled a listener with a tulku story. Previously, a listener was told three “facts” about Stephen Seagal. He didn’t believe that Seagal had been recognized as the reincarnation of a famous Tibetan lama. But who can blame him?

This entry was created by Melvin McLeod, posted on June 8, 2009 at 9:22 am and tagged Buddhist concepts, Pop Culture, Tibetan. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post.

Money I forgot I had

JERUSALEM – An Israeli woman mistakenly threw out a mattress she said had almost $1 million inside, setting off a frantic search through tons of garbage at a number of landfill sites on Wednesday. The woman told The Associated Press that she bought her elderly mother a new mattress as a surprise present on Monday — and threw out the old one. The next day, she said, she remembered that she had hidden her life savings inside the old mattress. "I woke up in the morning screaming, when it hit me what happened," said the Tel Aviv woman, who asked not to be identified. More>>

Global warming has already changed oceans

PLAY VIDEO WASHINGTON — In Washington state, oysters in some areas haven't reproduced for four years, and preliminary evidence suggests that the increasing acidity of the ocean could be the cause. In the Gulf of Mexico, falling oxygen levels in the water have forced shrimp to migrate elsewhere.

Though two marine-derived drugs, one for treating cancer and the other for pain control, are on the market, and 25 others are under development, the fungus growing on seaweed, bacteria in deep sea mud, and sea fans that could produce life-saving medicines are under assault from changing the ocean conditions.

• Video: Obama's New Fuel Efficiency Standards
• Video: Pacific Ocean Shelf Tracking
• Video: BrightSource CEO on Government's Solar Push

Researchers, scientists, and Jacques Cousteau's granddaughter painted a bleak picture Tuesday of the future of oceans and the "blue economy" of the nation's coastal states. More>>

Earth from the Sky (green movie)

CLICK TO PLAY

Calling Earth from the Air: world release of Green movie (AFP)

World Environment Day on Friday sees the worldwide release of a movie billed by producers as "the greatest green event ever," a high-budget documentary to save the planet from Yann Arthus-Bertrand.

The Gods (devas) Arriving

Death By Sex

Autoerotic asphyxiation is famously in the news again as details of Kung Fu/Kill Bill star David Carradine's death are coming to light: "Actor David Carradine's death in June 2009 is believed to be the result of erotic asphyxiation [Ref]."

• Video: Thai police comment on David Carradine's death
• David Carradine's family wants FBI to investigate his death

Erotic asphyxiation refers to intentionally cutting off oxygen to the brain for sexual arousal. It is also called asphyxiophilia, autoerotic asphyxia, scarfing, kotzwarraism, or breath control play.

Colloquially, a person engaging in the activity is sometimes called a "gasper." The erotic interest in asphyxiation is classified as a paraphilia in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association. Psychiatrist Joseph Merlino stated that it meets the criteria for a disorder "because it has the potential for lethality or serious injury" [Ref].

What's the Story on Autoerotic Asphyxiation?
A Straight Dope Classic from Cecil Adam's Storehouse of Human Knowledge (10/28/88)

Dear Cecil: I heard about a strange sexual practice the other day that I hope you can tell me more about. It seems a boy was found dead with a rope around his neck, but he hadn't purposely killed himself. Apparently he was masturbating at the time of his death and hanged himself in order to heighten the sexual sensation. The radio announcer called it an autoerotic suicide and said it is not uncommon. I've never heard of it. Can you tell me more? — Desiree Blough, Santa Barbara, California

Dear Desiree: Time for a walk on the weird side, kids. Autoerotic asphyxiation -- "suicide" is a misnomer, since death is usually accidental -- is in fact fairly common. One researcher estimates there are at least 50 deaths annually nationwide. The victims are mostly young males; evidently if you live long enough to become an old male you start getting a partner to help you, although it's quite dangerous even so.

Autoerotic asphyxiation arose out of the observation that men executed by hanging often got an erection and sometimes ejaculated. It's described in detail in de Sade's Justine and is mentioned in Beckett's Waiting for Godot. Why it works is unclear. The simplest explanation is that lack of oxygen causes lightheadedness, reducing inhibitions and enhancing the sexual experience. Masochistic fantasies, castration anxiety, and other psychological factors no doubt also play a role.

The problem is that it's easy to go too far. As little as seven pounds of pressure will collapse the carotid artery, producing unconsciousness within seconds. Many victims are bondage freaks and their elaborate bindings make self-rescue difficult.

Needless to say, this is not something you should try at home. Judging from the photos...not only do you end up dead, you look real stupid when they find you. I mention this on the theory that if fear of death won't stop somebody, maybe fear of embarrassment will. More>>

Family wants the FBI to investigate death

BANGKOK (AP, 6/6/09) – The family of American actor David Carradine has asked the FBI to help investigate his death after his body was found in a hotel closet in Thailand's capital with a rope tied to his neck, wrist, and genitals.

Carradine's family does not believe he committed suicide and is troubled by conflicting accounts about the circumstances of his death, Mark Geragos, an attorney for brother Keith Carradine, told CNN's Larry King late Friday. More>>

If it must be done, it should certainly never be done in Bangkok of all places, as Murray Head warned Westerners so long ago.

UN urges war crimes probe in Sri Lanka

(AFP) UNITED NATIONS – The U.N. chief lent credence to the pos-sibility of war crimes in Sri Lanka, saying an international probe is needed to examine the military actions of the govern-ment and defeated Tamil Tiger rebels during the civil war.

Sec'y-General Ban Ki-moon...declined to elaborate on exactly how the inquiry should be done, but he urged an examination of what he said were serious allegations of violations of international humanitarian laws, according to diplomats and U.N. officials who attended.

"Any inquiry, to be meaningful, should be supported by the members of the U.N., and also should be very impartial and objective," Ban told reporters Friday at U.N. headquarters. More>>

• U.S. couple arrested for spying for Cuba for 30 years
• Valid grievances at root the of Tibet unrest
• Report: 26 people dead in China from landslide

Dr. Colin Ross on "Mind Control"

PLAY NOW

(limited time download)

Dr. Colin Ross is an internationally renowned clinician, researcher, author, and lecturer in the field of traumatic stress and trauma related disorders.

He’s the founder and president of the Colin A. Ross Institute for Psychological Trauma and is the Executive Medical Director of three trauma programs located in Dallas, Texas, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Torrance, California.

Dr. Ross has written exten-sively on the subject of dissociation and trauma. His latest books include The Trauma Model: A Solution to the Problem of Comorbidity in Psychiatry and Schizophrenia: Innovations in Diagnosis and Treatment. He is a member of the American Psychiatric Associations and the International Society for the Study of Traumatic Stress, and is currently a consultant on the hit Showtime series United States of Tara (first season).

Roseanne Barr’s creation and portrayal of Roseanne Conner on ABC's "Roseanne" has been hailed as "the most ground breaking kitchen-sink sitcom since All in the Family" (Entertainment Weekly), adding that "She's the funniest disturber of peace that we have." In 1998, she hosted her own talk show, The Roseanne Show, for two seasons.

Currently, she speaks truth to power at her website and blog RoseanneWorld.com and can be heard Wednesdays at 5:00 PM PST on Pacifica Radio's KPFK 90.7FM. She also has a Sunday radio show at KCAARadio.com and a program on Free Speech TV called "Tipping Point." She is proud to work with organizations such as ACORN and Children of the Night.

Exposing true life CIA "mind control"

Victim Cathy O'Brien and Mark Phillips who extracted her (GoodKarmaPR.com)

Government whistleblowers, trauma recovery expert, and Roseanne Barr to expose torture and mind control in Los Angeles

(Friday, June 5, 2009 7:00-10:00 PM)

Cathy O'Brien was a White House/Pentagon level MK-ULTRA mind control victim, who claims torture was used on her to fragment her personality to make her forget secrets and criminal covert operations she had been forced to participate in over a thirty year period.

"Many of the same criminals in control of the government today were in control of me," Cathy says. "And they are acutely aware that torture and trauma causes humankind to forget." Cathy was rescued in 1988 by Mark Phillips, a U.S. Intelligence insider knowledgeable on CIA mind-control techniques, who acted after he was told by a Chinese Intelligence officer that Cathy and her then eight-year-old daughter, Kelly, were mind-controlled slaves of the U.S. government.

Mark says that the super secret technology used on Cathy, Kelly, and others is an "evolved system of remote human physical and psychological manipulation that has only recently been officially recognized by accredited mental health physicians for what it is -- absolute mind control."

Cathy and Mark circumvented the news media's blackout on their case with the greatest true life love story of extraction and recovery from the CIA 's mind control project ever told.

Hear their story live along with a discussion on the issue of torture at an event called “CIA Mind Control: Out Of Darkness, Into the Light.” It will be held on Friday June 5, 2009. The event begins at 7:00 PM at Hollywood United Methodist Church located at 6817 Franklin Avenue. For more information or to order a CD of the event: (805) 653-1588 or GoodKarmaPR.com. A portion of the proceeds go to Children of the Night, a non-profit that rescues children from the ravages of prostitution.

Joining Cathy and Mark will be Dr. Colin Ross (pictured at right), a globally-recognized expert on trauma related disorders and author of The CIA Doctors: Human Rights Violations by American Psychiatrists.

Dr. Ross provides proof -- based on 15,000 pages of documents obtained from the CIA through the Freedom of Information Act (FICA) -- that there have been pervasive, systematic violations of human rights by American psychiatrists over the last 65 years.

He proves that the Manchurian Candidate "super spy" is fact, not fiction. He describes CIA documented experiments by psychiatrists to create amnesia, new identities, hypnotic access codes, and implanting new memories in the minds of experimental subjects.

Also scheduled to appear is talk radio host (Pacifica), TV actor, and comedian Roseanne Barr. In addition to being a champion for the rights of abused children everywhere, she was treated by Dr. Colin Ross for DID recovery.

• Whistleblowers expose CIA programs, such as MK-ULTRA, that involve torturing U.S. citizens, our allies' citizens, and how these atrocities were allowed to continue under the 1947 National Security Act.
• Cathy O'Brien explains, “Now that torture is finally a pre-dominant political issue, the reality of how it’s actually being used continues to be kept from the public by those in control of the government and corporate media. Those who control information control knowledge, which in turn controls the thoughts, perceptions, opinions, and actions of those they inform."
• What about the argument that torture is justified as a means of extracting information? O'Brien answers, “Considering today's technological advancements, pharmaceuticals, computerization, and classified mind manipulating weaponry, it’s clear to see that torture is not only archaic, but is actually a diversionary issue from more prevalent forms of mass mind manipulation being used on the human population.” More>>

Kung Fu: Death by Sex not Suicide

Thai police: Kung Fu death may be accidental

WQ: Kinky play "auto erotic asphyxiation"?

• Obama: Buchenwald "rebuke" to Holocaust denial

• Britain's Brown refuses to quit as prime minister

• Up to 34 reported killed in Amazon land protest

• UN chief urges war crimes probe in Sri Lanka

Alien Nagas living underground
An NBA bad boy used to be one of the famous creatures, plus other "Land of the Lost" fun facts. Lowdown
Grades for new "Land of the Lost"

"Colbert Report" to broadcast from Baghdad

• "The Colbert Report" to be broadcast from Baghdad
• At death camp, Obama says evil must be confronted
• North Korea silent about US journalists' trial
• Co-pilot of plane that dropped A-bomb on Nagasaki dies
• Brown defies calls to step down as British premier

Rebirth Fable: The Laughing Weeping Goat

Matakabhatta Jataka: Goat that Laughed & Wept
Buddhist Publication Society (Jataka 18)

One day, while the Buddha was staying in Jetavana, some Buddhist ascetics (bhikkhus) asked him if there was any benefit in sacrificing goats, sheep, and other animals as offerings for departed relatives.

"No, bhikkhus," replied the Buddha. "No good ever comes from taking life, not even when it is for the purpose of providing a Feast for the Dead." He then told this story of the past.

STORY OF THE PAST

Long, long ago, when Brahmadatta was reigning in Baranasi, a brahmin decided to offer a Feast for the Dead and bought a goat to sacrifice. "My boys," he said to his students, "take this goat down to the river, bathe it, brush it, hang a garland around its neck, give it some grain to eat, and bring it back."

"Yes, sir," they replied and led the goat to the river.

While they were grooming it, the goat started to laugh with a sound like a pot smashing. Then, just as strangely, it started to weep loudly.

The young students were amazed at this behavior. "Why did you suddenly laugh," they asked the goat, "and why do you now cry so loudly?"

"Repeat your question when we get back to your teacher," the goat answered.

The students hurriedly took the goat back to their master and told him what had happened at the river. Hearing the story, the master himself asked the goat why it had laughed and why it had wept.

"In times past, brahmin," the goat began, "I was a brahmin who taught the Vedas like you. I, too, sacrificed a goat as an offering for a Feast for the Dead. Because of killing that single goat, I have had my head cut off 499 times. [Note: In the sutras "500" means "a lot."]

"I laughed aloud when I realized that this is my last birth as an animal to be sacrificed. Today I will be freed from my misery. On the other hand, I cried when I realized that because of killing me, you, too, may be doomed to lose your head 500 times. It was out of pity for you that I cried."

"Well, goat," said the brahmin, "in that case, I am not going to kill you."

"Brahmin!" exclaimed the goat. "Whether or not you kill me, I cannot escape death today."

"Don't worry," the brahmin assured the goat. "I will guard you."

"You don't understand," the goat told him. "Your protection is weak. The force of my [unskilful karma] is very strong."

The brahmin untied the goat and said to his students, "Don't allow anyone to harm this goat." They obediently followed the animal to protect it.

After the goat was freed, it began to graze. It stretched out its neck to reach the leaves on a bush growing near the top of a large rock. At that very instant a lightning bolt hit the rock, breaking off a sharp piece of stone which flew through the air and neatly cut off the goat's head.

A crowd of people gathered around the dead goat and began to talk excitedly about the amazing accident.

A tree deva* had observed everything from the goat's purchase to its dramatic death, and drawing a lesson from the incident, admonished the crowd: "If people only knew that the penalty would be rebirth into sorrow, they would cease from taking life. A horrible doom awaits one who slays."

With this explanation of the law of karma the deva instilled in his listeners the fear of perdition (hell). The people were so frightened that they completely gave up the practice of animal sacrifices. The deva further instructed the people in the Precepts and urged them to do good.

Eventually, that deva passed away to fare according to his deserts. For several generations after that, people remained faithful to the Precepts and spent their lives in charity and meritorious works, so that many were reborn in the heavens.

The Buddha ended his lesson by identifying the birth saying, "In those days I was that deva."

NOTE
*Devas are celestial beings, ranging from the high deities to earthbound tree-spirits.

"Buddha's Birthday" in Orange County

Deepa Bharath (949) 553-2903, dbharath@ocregister.com (OC Register, 6/5/09)

Master Thich Chon Thanh inside Lien Hoa Buddhist temple in surprisingly diverse Southern California (Mindy Schauer/OC Register).

Buddhists gather to celebrate Buddha's birthday: For the first time, about 7,000 will celebrate Vesak in Anaheim.

GARDEN GROVE, California – For the first time, Buddhists from all over Southern California are congregating in Anaheim to celebrate Vesak or "Buddha Day" at the Convention Center tomorrow.

"This is Buddha's birthday," said Thich Con Thanh, abbot of the Lien Hoa Buddhist Temple in Garden Grove. "This is like Christmas for Buddhists all over the world."

Thanh is organizing the event, which he expects will be attended by at least 7,000 followers from all over Southern California -- Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Diego counties. The Buddhist population is Orange County and the rest of Southern California has grown exponentially in the last five to ten years, Thanh said. Members of 15 Buddhist temples from Southern California will participate in the festivities, he said.

Vesak is the most important festival for Buddhists, said organizer Phat Ngiem.

"It's celebrated all over the world by followers of the Buddha," he said. "It's our way of getting the Buddha's blessings and showing our gratitude for his teaching. Our prayers on that day are to remind us of his venerable teachings and what we are supposed to do in our daily lives. We listen to our masters. It's a day of reflection and prayer."

WHERE & WHEN
The Vietnamese Buddhist community of Southern California will celebrate Vesak ("Buddha's Birthday") from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Saturday, June 6, 2009 at the Anaheim Convention Center, 800 W. Katella Avenue.

FREE lunch will be provided at noon from different cultures. The ceremony and traditional rituals begin at about 1:30 p.m. An exhibition of art work, pictures, and bonsai plants will begin at 10:00 a.m. Cultural entertainment will begin at 4:00 p.m.

This year's theme for the celebration is "A Prayer for Peace and Economic Recovery." Entrance is FREE and open to everyone.

The celebration will begin at 1:30 p.m. with a traditional Buddhist ceremony when abbots from different temples will give sermons and chant Buddhist prayers. Organizers are also creating several exhibits that provide information about Buddhism, their traditions and culture.

"It's more of a cultural exhibition," said Ngiem. "We'll have paintings, pictures, bonsai, and other items that depict the culture and traditions that came from Buddhism."

Vesak is an annual holiday observed traditionally by practicing Buddhists in South Asian and South East Asian countries such as:

• Vietnam
• Nepal
• India
• Singapore
• Thailand
• Cambodia
• Malaysia
• Sri Lanka
• Burma
• Indonesia

It is informally referred to as "Buddha's birthday," but it encom-passes the birth, enlightenment, and passing of Gautama Buddha.

On Vesak Day, most followers eat vegetarian food and participate in traditional chants and rituals, he said. Follower Tom Truong said, for him, Vesak is a "happy occasion." "It's great to see all the temples getting together and coming together as well to celebrate this happy time," he said. Source

Hindu God of War (deva)

ACKnowledge (ack-india.blogspot.com)

Karttikeya -- Lord Shiva's eldest son -- is the "God of the War," the warlord of a [literal] deva army. He replaces both Indra and Agni who, in the early stages of Hinduism, were considered to be gods of battles. In his role as defender of the devas, Karttikeya is more single minded than any of his predecessors. Hindu lore states that he is inte-rested in nothing but battles and war ventures.

He was conceived by his father's sperm alone. In turn, he was nurtured by Agni, Ganga, Sharavana (forest of reeds), and the Krittikas (six celestial nymphs, the Pleiades). His vahana (vehicle) is a peacock (a vimana or spacecraft in the shape of peacock).

Other names are Dvadasaksha (twelve-eyes), Dvadasakara (twelve-hands), Gangaputra (Son of the Ganga), Guha, Kumara (the Boy), Mahasena, Murugan, Rijukaya, Sarabhu, Skanda, Subramanya, Swaminatha, Trakajit. It includes the Buddhist tale, "How the Jackal ate the Elephant."

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Millionaire Enlightened Daughters

The millionaire Buddhist Anathapindika ("one who feeds the needy") was married and had daughters. He was very devoted to the Buddha -- his chief patron -- and would often visit him to discuss the Dharma.

Before passing away, he attained stream-entry (the first of four progressive stages of enlightenment). Three of his daughters, while living at home, attained this distinction in purification earlier. Here is the astounding story of the millionaire's family.

Three Daughters
Adapted from Hellmuth Hecker (BPS, accesstoinsight.org)

Anathapindika was happily married. His wife, Puññalakkhana ("one who has the mark of merit") lived up to her name. As the good spirit of the house, she took care of the servants and of the monastics who came for alms at midday. She was devoted to the Dharma ("Teaching"). Through her brother, who had been one of the first lay disciples of the Buddha, she had become familiar with it.

Anathapindika had four children, three daughters and a son. Two of the daughters, Little Subhadda and Big Subhadda, were steeped in the Dharma like their father and had attained stream-entry. And just as they took after their father in spiritual matters, so too in worldly affairs: They were both happily married. But the youngest daughter, Sumana, surpassed the rest of her family in deep wisdom. Upon hearing the Buddha teach, she had quickly attained the second stage of enlightenment and thus was a once-returner.

She did not marry -- but not because she renounced marriage. In fact, when she saw the happiness of her two [stream-enterer] sisters, she became sad and lonely. Her spiritual strength did not suffice to overcome her depression. To the deep sorrow of her family, she wasted away, eating nothing, eventually starving to death. She was reborn in the Tusita heaven, the highest form of existence in the sensual realm. There she had to purge herself of the residue of dependence on other people, her last outwardly directed desire (Dhammapada Commentary).

The Wayward Son
The only son of Anathapindika, Kala the Dark One, was at first a strain on his father's house. He did not want to know anything of the Teaching, immersing himself completely in his business affairs.

Then one day his father urged him to observe a holy day, offering him one thousand pieces of gold if he would keep the Uposatha day. Kala consented, and soon found it relaxing to take one day of the week off from business to enjoy himself in the company of his family. Because of this, the fasting of the Uposatha day did not weigh too heavily on him. Then his father made a second request and offered him another thousand if he would come to the monastery with him one holiday afternoon in order to listen to the Dharma.

Kala gladly agreed, and it became the turning point of his life. Through the discourse of the Buddha, he attained stream-entry. His daily life became ennobled, just as in his father's case, and he also became a major benefactor of the Order (Sangha), known by the name of "Little Anathapindika" (Dhp Comy).

Kala was married to Sujata, a sister of the famous lay-devotee Visakha, mother of Migara. She was very proud of her family background and her wealth on both sides. Because her thoughts revolved around nothing but these trifles, she could not arouse noble thoughts. She was unfulfilled, dissatisfied, and peevish. And she vented her unhappiness on others. This was seen in the hostile and angry way in which she treated everyone. She beat her servants, and whenever she appeared she spread fear and terror. Nor did she follow the rules of propriety in her relationships with in-laws and husband. Thus, she increasingly made herself an object of scorn. ...

The "Prodigal" Nephew
Finally, mention is made of a nephew of Anathapindika. He had inherited a great fortune of forty million but lived a wild life, squandering, drinking, and gambling everything away. He paid thousands to various entertainers, women, and obliging friends. When he had exhausted his inheritance, he asked his wealthy uncle for support. His uncle gave him a thousand gold pieces and told him that he should use it to start a business.

He instead wasted it and appeared once more at the palace of Anathapindika, who this time gave him five times as much as before, without a single condition, but as a severance. Even the warning that this was the last of the money did not keep the nephew from his wasteful ways. For the third time he begged his uncle for money. Anathapindika gave the young man two pieces of clothing. But he wasted these as well and was shameless enough to call on his uncle for a fourth time. However, this time he was told to leave. If he had come as one of the many beggars and not as a demanding nephew, he certainly would have received sustenance from the house of Anathapindika. But this he did not do, not wanting almsfood but only money to squander.

Because he was too lazy and stubborn to earn his own living, while unwilling to beg, he died wretchedly. His body was found at the city wall and was thrown onto the refuse pile. When Anathapindika heard of this, he asked himself whether he could have prevented this sad ending. He then asked the Buddha if he should have acted differently. The Buddha resolved his misgivings, explaining how the nephew belonged to the fortunately small number of insatiable people who were like bottomless vats. He had perished because of real external needs, as had occurred in previous lives (Jataka 291).

• IMAGES: Daughters (bollyvista.com); Buddha with Anathapindika (goldenpages.com); The Return of the Prodigal Son by Edward John Poynter; The-Prodigal-Son.