EDITORIAL
With Gratitude and Hope for the New Year The United Nations has declared 2015 as the Time for Global Action, especially to end poverty, promote prosperity and well-being for all, protect the environment, and address climate change. In trying to achieve these goals, the UN is working with governments, civil society and other partners, including religious groups, throughout the world. Yet the past year has witnessed more wars and suffering of millions of people in different parts of the world. Natural disasters, many of which can be attributed to man’s own greed, continue to wreak havoc on many countries causing untold suffering to thousands of people. To a large extent, we can consider ourselves fortunate to be in Malaysia, and be grateful for the peace and harmony that we continue to enjoy. This brings us to a very important teaching in Buddhism. To be born human is itself something for which we should be immensely grateful, as it is one of the traits that enables us to seek enlightenment. Along with being human, we are fortunate to have been born in a country where the Buddha dharma is known, with faculties to study and practice the dharma, and to be able to meet Dharma masters from all three Buddhist traditions living in this country, or coming to guide us along the path from time to time. So it is indeed a great privilege to have a life in which we are able to focus on spiritual seeking, and to be in contact with true spiritual masters. In the grand scheme of existence, this is considered extremely rare, and extremely valuable. So we should be thankful. As Oprah Winfrey once said,”be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. But if you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.” In one of his most important piece of advice, HH the 14th Dalai Lama has said, “Everyday, as you wake up, think - today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others; to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others. I am going to benefit others as much as I can.” So as we start another year in the new millennium, let us all remember this wonderful message from His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama for as long as we are alive.
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