Austhaied

After that long and drawn out pallarver of "falang pretend police" I thought I'd just let it be known that i don't really care what peole do in thier free time. May find it odd like ballroom dancing or ladyboys, or ballroom dancing ladyboy, but each to thier own, hense the title. Hope i didn't cause too much offence, just a bit of bordum banter.

I like to mix music, ride motor bikes and play poker. What do you do?

Try meditation or Tai Chi http://www.taichithailand.com/

Available all over Chiang Mai.

Do it before The Mayan Calender runs out..

3.5 years and counting...

Tick tock...

TP.

The Seventh Seal has been opened mate. No need to worry about any evil spirits from now on, they're all going on a holiday soon.

G'day TP. Tell the missus not to worry. The only spirit that exists is the "spirit of loving kindness and compassion". The only demons that exist in the higher dimensions are the illusions of those who have made their own demons by performing bad karmic deeds due to selfishness.

Any "so called" religion that needs any rights and rituals is under the spell of the illusion of the ego.. Just like some stupid kids story book, nothing more.

A true Buddhist would show love and support for the deceased and all in attendance.

If the funeral puts fear into anyone, how can they be called loving and compassionate.

She is always welcome at our place mate, you know that.

Anytime at all.

Regards.

Just remember that we are "spiritual beings having a human experience".

Dying is not the end... but a new beginning.

Hope that 5 postings rule isnt too stringent . Otherwise it should be cracker

Oh my Buddha.

Look forward to seeing you all there.

I get ear infections as a secondary reaction to my earwax build-up and go thru the same agony. Had the dr at ram1 irrigate it on a few occasions when it became unbarable and it's like heaven when it's clean again.

What agrivates mine is when i dive into a swimming pool and water pressure of head being just a foot under water drives the plug up deeper into the canal.

Tried many over the counter ear wax softeners and some work a little, some not.

does anyone know of an ear wax softner that does work and available here???

Yes. The same 'pet' ear cleaner I recommended above.

I used to have probs with earwax myself and resorted to digging it out with q-tips and trying wax softeners which were lame indeed. The oils in this cleaner not only protect the ear canal and drum, they soften the wax which is then able to come out of the ear naturally.

It is not good to remove too much of the wax as it serves not only to protect but to clean the ear canal and repel insects (yes, earwax contains a natural insect repellent). These oils accomplish all three simultaneously.

I can vouch for the drops the Dusty one recommends. Vesoph eye and ear drops.

We use them in our hyperbaric chambers as treatment drops for ear infections, clears the problem very fast indeed.

http://www.mims.com/Page.aspx?menuid=mng&a...esoph+ear+drops

The point here should not be the history of tobacco http://www.tobacco.org/History/Tobacco_History.html ,but the fact that the OP is looking at someone else's issues without looking at his own..

Judgement of others would be the first thing to look "into".

Surely the fact that he is taking the time to ask somebody for advice indicates that he is in fact trying to look at his own issues.

Good point.

You don't say!

Someone will soon come up with a clever explanation how addiction to drugs is not an obstacle on the path of a 'real" Buddhist.

Tobacco wasn't "discovered" until 2000 years after Buddha, that might explain why it's not mentioned in Vinaya. That actually opens up a lot of opportunities, like wasting all your free time on social websites or watching football in the middle of the night.

On the other hand one can find a valuable lesson practically in any situation. Like, for example, the importance of daily practice is not lost even on a chain smoker.

The point here should not be the history of tobacco http://www.tobacco.org/History/Tobacco_History.html ,but the fact that the OP is looking at someone else's issues without looking at his own..

Judgement of others would be the first thing to look "into".

Nothing in the Vinaya (the 227 precepts followed in the Sangha) regarding cigarettes. Even roll your owns.

http://www.dhammadana.org/en/samgha/vinaya/227.htm

So what if he is all that you say.

I thought it was meant to be about you.

You have to look within yourself, not others.

Good luck on your path.

Sounds like just another case of "the seven year itch" to me.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_...icle2500361.ece

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sping

Another case of "krieng jai" gone wrong.

Lets not ask any farang how to spell it correctly as we don't want to look like morons.

Too funny.

They must be related to folk who wrote these little beauties.

Can you find a way for the religions to mesh? I could not. Buddhism does not buy into the concept of Deism.

A glimpse of the future perhaps.

http://www.lotus.org/docs/yantra.htm

I hope so.

Don't see the point of this post. You must be very bored today.

Well you are obviously bored - if you have replied to a post you don't see the point in.

This is something that actually interests me. If people in one country are happier than in another country then it would be interesting, at least for me, to know the reason for this. Lots of research has been conducted which shows differences in people's perception of their happiness when compared to people from different countries. Of course, it is all very subjective.

The things that bug some people so much, about Thailand, might in fact be the things that make its citizens feel happier or seem happier.

Well, your first line is a bit of a childish emotional reply, trying to point out someone else's fault and there by negating your own. That appears often in these pages and seems to be an accepted tactic.

I have noticed that we often see things from a different perspective and I guess this time is no different. I don't find the topic interesting but do find the fact that the subject actually interests you, to be of some interest. I thought your religious leanings would give you a different perspective on this subject.

You see, I don't agree that there are things that can "make" you happy. Some individuals are on a never ending quest for things that will "make" them happy. Others possess a view that allows them to appreciate the complexities of life and not be controlled or buffeted about by their environment.

Reading through the responses so far, I doubt you have been overly enlightened or had your interest and curiosity satiated. That said I am sure people will be able to go on and on about this for several pages.

I don't see anything childish or emotional about stating a simple fact. If somebody doesn't see the point in a thread why would they waste their time replying to it? I can only think of a few reasons, and the most charitable one is boredom. I don't know what you mean about tactics? I thought that this was a forum where I could chat and learn about Thai related issues. I didn't realise that it was somewhere that required tactics.

I haven't actually stated my perspective on this subject. I don't think that you can buy happiness, and I don't think that it is something that we should always expect to experience, but I do believe that that we can create conditions which increase the likelihood of it occurring. I think that there might be aspects within Thai culture which can create these conditions and, I'm interested in what others think.

I thought I was pretty clear and you obviously didn't "get it" so I'll just leave it at that. Hope you find the answers you are looking for.

I must be thick too because i haven't a clue what it is you're "getting at".

I suspect that part of the answer might exist in the copied posts above. A couple of farangs bickering backwards and forwards publicly about why they even bothered to post in the first place! Lesser educated, inquisitive and bored Thai's would I guess just look at it all and say, mai pen rai and move on - that kind of approach to the problems in life has got to make them happier.

Well spotted.

You got it in a nutshell.

If you want to make a small fortune in Thailand.

Come here with a big fortune.

Don't expect too much. But expect it to be tough. At the beginning you'll sit before a mountain and fear the impossibility of lifting it. Then when you've lifted it and are holding it over your heard, you'll fear not being able to put it down. Then when the mountain is back sitting before you, your fear will be gone. Till next time that is.

Whew! That sounds pretty daunting, and I appreciate the forewarning. Thanks to everyone who has posted.

Not as daunting as remaining in the realm of ignorance due to desire.

Vippassana is not something worth doing, it's the only thing worth doing.

Looking within is the only way out.

Good luck.

Croston House childrens home in Lamphun.

Nice people doing a fantastic job.

They have just taken in five more kids recently, that now makes it around twenty-five children and they are very busy at the moment.

They could always do with a helping hand.

Give Glenn Croston a call on 086 385 7118.

Perhaps we have a case of "Buddhist persecution by a heretic" on this forum.

Not sure . . . that speculation overwhelms all the hermeneutic skills I can muster.

Whatever.

Have a nice day.

And I can still run around the block, too....

Yes but with the aid of a zimmer frame.

. . .

Tao is just another word for The Dhamma. The I-Ching being their vehicle instead of the Eightfold path..

Again, same destination, different maps. Both through careful observations of nature and consciousness.

...and the relevance to the question at hand is?

With the same goal at hand, why would they want to persecute one another.

I get the impression you are something of an idealist, who finds it difficult to think and speak in terms of how the world actually works, rather than how it should ideally work.

Perhaps we have a case of "Buddhist persecution by a heretic" on this forum.

"Read yourself, not books. Truth isn't outside, that's only memory, not wisdom. Memory without wisdom is like an empty thermos bottle - if you don't fill it, it's useless."

Hi "Austhaied",

Thank you, will post more if this forum had a section on "Images of Chiang Mai" should it ever be pinned up as had been ask in the past by "JuniorExPat" and me as well.

Now that Chiang Mai has another sub-forum in here (Chiang Mai FAQ's and Events), maybe one kind moderator could pin this one for as a starter as I found it on Page 18

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=167934

I do travel Thailand since I live here and many of me photos are where they should be in their own section on this "ThaiVisaDotCom" forum.

I am only here to help folks "Thailand as I see it".

Yours as always

The Colonel and me side kick Kan Win

Cool , Thanks colonel.

See you on the dark side of the moon.

Rasseru, if you want to keep on searching I believe that you (and other interested people) should focus on what happened after the Han Dynasty ended (3rd century). For a few centuries, the country was divided into small kingdoms fighting for supremacy (some were Buddhist, some remained loyal to Taoism).

If it is as you say that some kingdoms were Taoist and some were Buddhist and they fought each other for supremacy, was the supremacy they fought for political or religious?

I would expect that most likely it was political, as long as church and state are seperate then the state is the one with the armies and their aims are political and economic, of course religion is sometimes used as an excuse.

Are your findings so far along these lines?

Tao is just another word for The Dhamma. The I-Ching being their vehicle instead of the Eightfold path..

Again, same destination, different maps. Both through careful observations of nature and consciousness.

...and the relevance to the question at hand is?

With the same goal at hand, why would they want to persecute one another.

Rasseru, if you want to keep on searching I believe that you (and other interested people) should focus on what happened after the Han Dynasty ended (3rd century). For a few centuries, the country was divided into small kingdoms fighting for supremacy (some were Buddhist, some remained loyal to Taoism).

If it is as you say that some kingdoms were Taoist and some were Buddhist and they fought each other for supremacy, was the supremacy they fought for political or religious?

I would expect that most likely it was political, as long as church and state are seperate then the state is the one with the armies and their aims are political and economic, of course religion is sometimes used as an excuse.

Are your findings so far along these lines?

Tao is just another word for The Dhamma. The I-Ching being their vehicle instead of the Eightfold path..

Again, same destination, different maps. Both through careful observations of nature and consciousness.

I am not well versed with buddhist script, but from my understanding theraveda has more of the hindu caste flavour to it, whereby there is only so far one can progress in a lifespan. Which also carries over to how people of different statures are viewed.

Theraveda seems to aid rationalization and accept of class and caste, while Mahayana is somewhat more egalitarian.

Clearly you are not well versed with buddhist script as you say. So the question is where did you get such ideas about Theravada?

While I know from the outside looking in the mendicant monkhood as we know it today can look like some sort of spiritual elitism I don't think the Buddha would debunk the caste system of the time just to replace it with another of his own. The ideal of Theravadin is that it is possible for anybody to be free of suffering in this lifetime.

They are all just different maps to the same destination...The Void / Nirvana / Enlightenment / Buddhahood, whatever tag you want to pin on it..

Nice shot Colonel. Feel free to post some more Chiang Mai pics.

So how do you know that its a fact.

The internet ??

Television ??

Get real.

Go and look for yourself, I'll even buy you the ticket so as your "not supporting the lying monks".

Internet - Television... Um, we're debating on the internet aren't we? Tell me that you don't base some of your beliefs on TV shows or the internet. If you tell me that you don't, I'll simply stop chatting with you because I'd think you were either lying or just dumb... but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt.

No, that is sufficient for me. I am real, I've been here long enough to tell fluff from reality. You're not 'real' because you're falling for this scam. That is, if you actually care about the tigers... or is it the fact that you 'like' this place justification enough for you to not do further research?

I didn't just decide after reading one article that this place was a fake. I studied and read all I could about it. There has been ample info online and there's a YouTube video or two showing tigers being struck... from behind of course. That video seems to have been taken off of YouTube... I wonder why. The monk did nothing to prevent the tiger from being struck. His look was that of indifference.

OK, I'll waste my precious time sending you some info.

here

Here

Here

Evidence/theories that will prevent me from even considering visiting this zoo:

1. Tigers shouldn't be chained

2. I don't trust anyone when a large amount of money involved, especially if that person claims to be spiritual. Monks are just as human as other Thais and the chance to make a massive amount of money 'could' override their ethical pledges.

3. A tiger in the wild would rip your head off if you petted it while it was trying to get some sleep. Don't you see something strange about tigers (one of the most ferocious animals on the planet) allowing tourist after tourist pester them, hug them, pull on them, etc? Doesn't this make you think something's up?

4. Many witnesses have seen the tigers being drugged. No "I" didn't see it, but other have and there are enough to give it some credibility.

5. The 'temple' has done nothing to help the tigers, but they've made an enormous amount of money from this business. No tigers have been returned to the wild.

6. No tiger gets to have the amount of territory that tigers need to remain healthy in mind and body.

The people who state emphatically that these tigers are not drugged are not experts, they are likely very gullible... probably thinking that these guys are monks so they have kind hearts. That's what hundreds of alter boys thought.

There is enough evidence to support my position and I put the welfare of the tigers ahead of temple profits.

Try going there and not paying for anything. Better yet, get a bunch of your buddies to go there together and not pay. You might get one of the sober tigers from the back room to put you back in your place.

Blah blah blah.

Whatever.