20080629

I have a few things which I'd like to write on...

(1320)
Ravenna Michalsen
On 24 Jun, I went to BGF for a performance cum talk by Ravenna Michalsen. My first impression of her, she looks quite mature. When she started her "small concert", I thought her music is different, it sounds like chanting, like what CO had said on her music earlier. I can't even catch most of the lyrics - the way she's singing, perhaps too much concentration on vowels and holding a syllable over a few notes.

She asked the audience a few questions, like below:
- When you go into meditation, what do you think of? - Thoughts
- What are the 3 gifts? Generosity, Fearlessness, Gift of Dhamma
- What are the 4 hindrances of meditation (or... I didn't even catch the question here) ? Ego, attachment to pleasure, (can't remember what's the other 2)
- What's a dakini? I've forgotten the answer to this as well, something on beings who fly...

Makes me realise how little I know - I can't answer any of the questions above - it was total blank to me when she asked all these questions.

When she told stories of her songs, the people she wrote about, I know none of them. Other than Guru Rinpoche, whom I have only heard of the name but don't exactly know who he is.

Anyway, I bought her 2 CDs because I like the way her music sounds, very pure with simple percussions and guitar playing. And I'm very happy I did, I've even been playing them in my car for the past few days. I can understand some of them - while the rest of it - need to research on the mantras or people she's singing about...


Accident
This morning, at the main road junction outside my house, there has been an accident. A Kancil ramped to the side of the road, knocking the tree and tearing off the tree bark, then knocking off the metal railing of the big drain. I didn't go out to witness the scene, but my dad said the driver died.

It's a Sunday morning, and a life is lost. Kind of disturbing, you never know when death is coming... Suddenly someone lost a son, someone lost a friend/ colleague... And the one who's dead never had the chance to say any last words...


Hardy Boys' books
I read 2 books from the Hardy Boys series, which took me maybe 3 hours for each book. The Clue of the Screeching Owl and The Mystery of the Hidden Gold. They were book prizes from Form 3. I wonder why I never read those books, until now. They're quite simple and nice, very fun and adventurous. Same for some Buddhist books which I took but never read, Buddhist talks CDs which I took but never listened to. I don't know what point I want to make here, but I've been trying to stop accumulating new things, and make use of what I already have instead.


Fairy Tales by Hans Andersen
Another book which I bought quite some time ago, and have only read maybe one tenth of the whole book. Reading it now and nearly done. There are some fairy tales with wisdom, while some fairy tales - I think they are quite cruel and senseless. For example, in "The Tinderbox" - the soldier cut off the head of the witch, for no apparent reason. To avoid being hanged, he summoned the 3 dogs from his tinderbox, and had them sent soldiers and the king and the queen flying into the air and literally "fell down and broke in pieces". Then the princess who was grounded was released, and she was "happy" to be made the new queen with this soldier - after her parents died?? I wonder what message is to be brought out from such a story. Is the soldier wise? Maybe, but I'd rather call him cunning and cold-blooded.

(1351)


ttg