Time With No Water Supply –
Written by His Holiness, Living Buddha Lian-sheng, Sheng-yen Lu
Translated by Tina
Edited by Dance Smith
Proofread by Mimosa
The Padmakumara Translation Team
www.padmakumara.org
In this retreat area, it is very common for the water and electricity to go off. It is very inconvenient when there is no water.
When I have an advance notice of a water supply problem, I use the bathtub and a water bucket to store water. For drinking water, I bike (using the bicycle that I bought here) over to the nearby grocery store to buy some bottled water. The poor quality of tap water in this area makes it inadvisable to drink directly from the tap. It is safer to get bottled water for this old man who lives on his own because if he gets sick, he'll be in deep trouble.
If I don't get any advance notice of the water going out, I have a hard time, so I recite:
“One monk carries his own water.
Two monks carry their water by sharing the work.
Three monks have no water.”
Since I am only one monk, I get all the hard labor of carrying water, but I also get enough water to use and drink.
This situation makes me think about how things were when I was a young survey officer. When I was surveying in mountains and forests and staying in shelters, there was often no water for bathing. Surveying in the sun is sweaty work. My clothes had white salty spots caused by sweat drying and becoming wet again. At the end of the day, I was ecstatic if I could take a shower.
Every night, the greatest comfort was taking a shower or bath. I remembered a place called "Ma Li Po" where there was no water for a shower. I brought a change of clothes to a creek in the mountain to take a bath. At that time, the creek was very cool and clean. It was a great pleasure to take a bath and do laundry there.
While working in "Ma Li Po", I bathed in the creek every day. After taking a bath, I followed the moonlit path back down the hill, singing and whistling along the way. It was a real pleasure that I’ll never forget.
Thirty years later....
Today, I am a man living on my own. When there's no water supply, I go to the nearby lake for a bath.
Bathing and swimming both give me the same enjoyment. Every time I bathe or swim, it makes me think about "Ma Li Po".
When there is no water supply, I think about how essential water is, and I also think about the "Eightfold Merit Waters" of the Western Paradise:
"Pure" water is completely pure without a trace of filth.
"Cool" water is delightfully cool, free of headaches and trouble.
"Sweet" " water tastes sweet and good, the delicious taste of water.
“Soft” water is soft and light
“Refreshing” water refreshes our minds and moisturizes our bodies
"Calm and Peaceful" water is peaceful and comfortable.
"Remove Suffering" water relieves thirst and hunger.
"Increase Wisdom" water increases wisdom.
There's a verse about the "Eightfold Merit Waters" in the Western Paradise:
Thousands of varied precious flowers
float and cover the entire pond.
A breeze softly moves their leaves,
While brilliant lights radiate magnificence.
I am waiting. Sooner or later,
The sweet scent of my enlightened body will join the fragrant water lotus
Paying homage to the Immortals of the Merit Ponds.
Written by His Holiness, Living Buddha Lian-sheng, Sheng-yen Lu
Translated by Tina
Edited by Dance Smith
Proofread by Mimosa
The Padmakumara Translation Team
www.padmakumara.org
In this retreat area, it is very common for the water and electricity to go off. It is very inconvenient when there is no water.
When I have an advance notice of a water supply problem, I use the bathtub and a water bucket to store water. For drinking water, I bike (using the bicycle that I bought here) over to the nearby grocery store to buy some bottled water. The poor quality of tap water in this area makes it inadvisable to drink directly from the tap. It is safer to get bottled water for this old man who lives on his own because if he gets sick, he'll be in deep trouble.
If I don't get any advance notice of the water going out, I have a hard time, so I recite:
“One monk carries his own water.
Two monks carry their water by sharing the work.
Three monks have no water.”
Since I am only one monk, I get all the hard labor of carrying water, but I also get enough water to use and drink.
This situation makes me think about how things were when I was a young survey officer. When I was surveying in mountains and forests and staying in shelters, there was often no water for bathing. Surveying in the sun is sweaty work. My clothes had white salty spots caused by sweat drying and becoming wet again. At the end of the day, I was ecstatic if I could take a shower.
Every night, the greatest comfort was taking a shower or bath. I remembered a place called "Ma Li Po" where there was no water for a shower. I brought a change of clothes to a creek in the mountain to take a bath. At that time, the creek was very cool and clean. It was a great pleasure to take a bath and do laundry there.
While working in "Ma Li Po", I bathed in the creek every day. After taking a bath, I followed the moonlit path back down the hill, singing and whistling along the way. It was a real pleasure that I’ll never forget.
Thirty years later....
Today, I am a man living on my own. When there's no water supply, I go to the nearby lake for a bath.
Bathing and swimming both give me the same enjoyment. Every time I bathe or swim, it makes me think about "Ma Li Po".
When there is no water supply, I think about how essential water is, and I also think about the "Eightfold Merit Waters" of the Western Paradise:
"Pure" water is completely pure without a trace of filth.
"Cool" water is delightfully cool, free of headaches and trouble.
"Sweet" " water tastes sweet and good, the delicious taste of water.
“Soft” water is soft and light
“Refreshing” water refreshes our minds and moisturizes our bodies
"Calm and Peaceful" water is peaceful and comfortable.
"Remove Suffering" water relieves thirst and hunger.
"Increase Wisdom" water increases wisdom.
There's a verse about the "Eightfold Merit Waters" in the Western Paradise:
Thousands of varied precious flowers
float and cover the entire pond.
A breeze softly moves their leaves,
While brilliant lights radiate magnificence.
I am waiting. Sooner or later,
The sweet scent of my enlightened body will join the fragrant water lotus
Paying homage to the Immortals of the Merit Ponds.