Wise Awareness (​Kumāra Bhikkhu's Blog)

When we are overwhelmed by emotion, crying is normal and human. However, some people make the matter complicated. Some force themselves not to cry. They may succeed, but only the crying stops; the emotion remains. It is merely suppressed. After some time, they may forget about it, and might think that they’re done with the matter. However, when they are relaxed and their mind quietens, the emotion arises again. This may happen only after a long time, which explains why some people find themselves crying for no apparent reason. Some, on the other hand, don’t have any issue of suppressing crying; they have an issue of overdoing it. They love to cry. By this, I don’t mean those who cry easily. By this, I mean those who really enjoy crying. You may have met some of them. When they cry, they don’t want to stop. They may even deliberately think of something sad so that they can cry. Both of these are unhealthy responses to crying. What then would be the healthy response? What would be the...

Part 2:  Getting Closer I Got Into University Somehow and… With my poor grades, I applied to enter university with little faith, but still I got in. That’s because I chose a degree course in education, majoring in teaching English as a second language, and I had a qualification they valued: GCE O-Level English 1119. Soon after getting in, I got involved with the Buddhist society there, and regularly attended the weekly Dhamma talks. In my second year, invited by some senior members, I went for my first ever meditation retreat, which turned out to be a turning point in my life. I practised very hard in the beginning; too hard actually. My mind wouldn’t settle. On the fifth day, I began to relax a little, and that’s when I experienced a calmness I had never felt before. Later, when I thought about the experience, it occurred to me that I had found something that I didn’t even know I was looking for. I had found something that filled up a vacuum in my life. Nagging Thoughts Leading to...