Seeds of Paddy

Dear friends,

I am so small and tiny

But when you look closely

You can see my green sprouting leaves

You can enjoy my yellow branches full of grains

Dancing with the wind in the field

And you can also smell the fragrant rice

Served in your dinning room

But my dear friends,

Without a good soil

Without the sun and cloud

Without the loving work of all beings

I will stay a tiny seed

A future paddy field, and a fragrant rice to-be

As all seeds need other elements to grow

So does the garden of the beautiful seeds in us

Seeds of joy & hapiness

Seeds of love and compassion

Seeds of understanding and mindfulness

We need friends and community as our soil

We need the whole universe to support us

And as a paddy seed that needs to grow together

Not as a single grain,

To offer their serene field,

To offer their fragrant rice,

Let’s gather our wholesome seeds and grow together

to offer the beauty to our family, our society, and to the world

Sangha: Friends on the Path

“We cannot go to the ocean as a drop of water, we would evaporate before reaching our destination. But if we become a river, if we go as a sangha, we are sure to arrive at the ocean. Taking refuge in a Sangha will allow the Sangha to carry us, to transport us, and we will suffer less”.

Buddha, Dharma & Sangha are the precious jewels in Buddhism, and the most important of these is Sangha. The Sangha contains the Buddha and the Dharma. A good teacher is important, but sisters and brothers in the practice are the main ingredient for success. You cannot achieve enlightenment by locking yourself in your room. Transformation is possible only when you are in touch.

What is a Sangha?

A Sangha is a community of friends practicing the Dharma together in order to bring about and to maintain awareness. The essence of a Sangha is awareness, understanding, acceptance, harmony, and love.

In Buddhist scriptures it is said that there are four communities : monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen.

The Sangha is a community of people who agree with each other that if we do not practice right mindfulness, we will lose all the beautiful things in our soul an all around us. People in the Sangha standing near us, practicing with us, support us so that we are not pulled away from the present moment. Whenever we find ourselves in a difficult situation, two or three friends in the Sangha who are there for us , understanding and helping us, will get us through it. Even in our silent practice we help each other.