Peace is not found through material accumulation, but through spiritual accumulation.

Karmapa Trinley Thaye Dorje

Cherry blossom time

In 1912, the people of Japan gave a gift or 3,000 cherry trees to the people of the United States. These trees are planted in Washington, B.C. Late March is "cherry blossom time." Many people go to Washington then to see the cherry trees in bloom. The 2015 National Cherry Blossom Festival is March 20 - April 12. There are many events, shows, music performances, and fireworks. There is a parade on April 11.

A sign of Spring!

The vernal equinox is at 6:45 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, March 20. There are 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. March 21 is the first full day of spring.

Spring is a time of new beginnings. Buds come out on trees. Grass and flowers begin to grow. Animals come out of hibernation. Insets hatch. Birds fly north to build their nests. People think about planting gardens. The baseball season begins.

Some people do spring cleaning of their homes. Many schools have a spring break around this time.

Reader's Oath, by Debra Angstead, Missouri-NEA

Let this oath inspire your students to become lifelong readers!

I promise to read
Each day and each night.
I know it's the key
To growing up right.

I'll read to myself,
I'll read to a crowd.
It makes no difference
If silent or loud.

I'll read at my desk,
At home and at school,
On my bean bag or bed,
By the fire or pool.

Each book that I read
Puts smarts in my head,
'Cause brains grow more thoughts
The more they are fed.

So I take this oath
To make reading my way
Of feeding my brain
What it needs every day.

The Boy and the Leprechaun

The Irish say that if you are very quiet and careful, you can catch a leprechaun. Then if you ask him, he must tell you where he has put his gold. Leprechauns must always tell the truth. But they are very smart, so watch out.

One Irish story tells about a boy who went into the woods to look for a leprechaun. Finally, he caught a little old leprechaun. He held him tightly in his hand. The leprechaun angrily shouted, "Let me go!"

"First, tell me where you hide your gold," said the boy.

The leprechaun had to tell. He took the boy deep into the woods. He touched one of the trees. "My gold is hidden under this tree," said the leprechaun.

The boy was very, very excited. He wanted to hurry home to get a shovel to dig for the gold. But he thought, how will I remember which tree it is?

The boy had a yellow scarf around his neck. He took it off and tied it around the tree. That way, he would be sure to find the tree again.

"Now let me go!" said the leprechaun.

"First, promise that you won't take this yellow scarf off the tree," said the boy.

The leprechaun said, "I promise." The boy let the leprechaun go.

The boy was so happy! He was sure that he would be rich very soon. He ran home as fast as he could. He found a shovel and ran back into the woods. He was sure he could find the tree with the yellow scarf around it.

What a surprise he got! Deep in the woods, every tree had a yellow scarf around it. They all looked the same. He would never be able to find the tree with the leprechaun's gold.

'Here again we are repeating our motivation to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. The Bodhisattva vow, our commitment, is the seed of enlightenment. It is formulated in front of the Buddhas, the perfect witnesses.'

'Just as the Buddhas of the past developed enlightened mind and progressively trained as Bodhisattvas, I too will develop enlightened mind, and train progressively in order to help beings.'

from: "Wisdom, Merit, and Purification through the Blessing of the 35 Buddhas; A Text for Daily Practice," pg 53, compiled by Shamar Rinpoche.

Nyungne (八關齋戒) Retreat at Menlo Park, CA (02/28 to 03/01/2015)

A Nyungne Retreat allows its participants to purify negative karma and accumulate merit and wisdom in a short and intensive setting. This one was a profound eight-and-a-half-day practice long-term retreat. Translated as "abiding in the fast," Nyungne is said to be effective in the healing of illness, the nurturing of compassion, and the purification of negative karma.

During this retreat, we were given only Vegetarian or Vegan meals every other day. No meals were given after 2 pm. We may only drink non-alcoholic beverages and not drink anything after 10 pm. In addition, during non-meal days, we were expected to fast with no food and no water; also we were refrained from conversation during these days for complete silence and fasting. It involves the keeping of strict vows; The meditation centers on the recitations, mantras, and guided visualizations of the Thousand-Armed Chenrezig, the embodiment of all the buddhas' loving-kindness and compassion.

Lama Jamba provided a detailed explanation of the various elements of Nyungne and the explanations on visualization. The sadana book is a wonderful resource with abbreviated and long mantras required in Nyungne retreat. This practice gave me a lot to work with and I found the Dharma friends an inspiration when I was going through difficult days or needed a bit of an enthusiasm boost at the beginning.

At the end, I have to say that the practice purifies me both physically and spiritually. Hopefully, I'd stay at this level as long as possible once I returned to my leisure world.

Participants: Lama Jamba, Anila, Christine (from San Louis Obispo), Wendy (from Calgary, Canada), Wendy Chuang (Tina's niece, Chiropractor), Eugina Chang (任安堂主持人), Shuen Chiou, Pien Chiou, Ming Cam, Anita Chen, Sandy Yen, Tina (Sandy's sister), Shu-Ting (臺積電), Scott & Christina (local), 鈴麗 (local), Pat Ou, Mali & husband (from Mexico City)

Coordinator: Athena (Tina's niece)