Friday, August 2, 2013

Uposatha Observance Day - 20 & 21 august 2013



Come and join us for a day of reflection and wholesome activities. All are welcome but please RSVP us before 21 August to ensure we cater enough food for all retreatants. Further details will be sent to you via email upon registration.
20 August 
8pm -9:30pm Dhamma talk by Bhante Visuddhi
  topic: Come & Discover the Spiritual Tree
  * Potential retreatants are strongly encouraged to attend this talk
21 August 
7:30am Centre is open.
7:35-7:45am Short briefing on the rules & regulations and short tour  of facilities.
7:45am Breakfast for the hungry
            - Meditation crash course for beginners.
            - Retreat starts for experienced retreatants.
11:30am         Lunch is served
1:00pm           Finish eating and wash up
1:30pm           Self-practice continues
5:30pm           Retreat ends. Clean up
One should not kill a being or take what is not given;
should not tell a lie
or be a drinker of strong drink;
should abstain from uncelibacy, the sexual act;
should not eat at night, the wrong time of day;
should not wear a garland or use a scent;
should sleep on a pallet, a mat spread on the ground —
for this eight-factored Uposatha
has been proclaimed by the Awakened One
to lead to the end
of suffering and stress.

The moon and sun, both fair to see,
shedding radiance wherever they go,
& scattering darkness as they move through space,
brighten the sky, illumining the quarters.
Within their range is found wealth:
pearl, crystal, beryl,
lucky-gem, platinum, nugget-gold,
and the refined gold called 'Hataka.'
Yet they —
like the light of all stars
when compared with the moon —
aren't worth one sixteenth
of the eight-factor! ed Uposatha.

So whoever — man or woman —
is endowed with the virtues
of the eight-factored Uposatha,
having done meritorious deeds,
productive of bliss,
beyond reproach, goes
to the heavenly state.

(Poem extracted from Muluposatha Sutta: The Roots of the Uposatha-AN3.70)
 •      Uposatha Sutta (AN 8.41) — Discourse on the Uposatha Observance
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an08/an08.041.vaka.html

 •      Visakhuposatha Sutta (AN 8.43) — Discourse to Visakha on the Uposatha
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an08/an08.043.khan.html
 •     Sakka Sutta: To the Sakyans (on the Uposatha) (AN 10.46),
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an10/an10.046.than.html

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