"Breath...Breath in the Air...Don't be afraid to care..." Pink Floyd



Low Tide

 There are those who have carved the mountain sides to build their homes those have build their homes out into the sea, all in the name of 'Progress'. Note in the far back ground is the largest dumpsite on the island and it sits right on the water and wonder why our seas are depleting in fish and other marine lives. For so long as there are potential buyers there will be builders, developers, those who benefit from the industry and this includes the politicians and the rest of the machinery of development. But life has to go on and so on we go even for those sidelined by progress and development
I spent the most bautiful day with my brother Lee's fmily and a friend driving around Georgetown and looking at art exhibitions We spent sometime at the E&O Hotel by the Esplanade, one of the oldest colonial era hotel which still preserves the air of dignity and pride in the Hotel Motel Industry. It was the most clearest and sun shiny day with a cool breeze blowing in from the sea where far in the horizon you can see small islands off the land mass.
Later we spent sometime at the China House on Beach Street and had Cheese cake and Chocolate something which my friend the Pastery Chef Carl hade made for the day. We visited the exhibition upstairs and saw some great works by a few Malay Artists. I must admit I felt pleasantly relieved to be able to see the works of young Malay artists and not just Chinese artist like I see everywhere I go to in this town. It is not so much as prejudice sentiment but more of a gladness that the Malay Artist are out there just being as creative as their fellow Chinese artists. Sometimes they just do not get the exposure that they deserves here. Art is not a matter of competition, it has to rise above politics and social prejudices; it is the natural litmus test of meritocracy in creativity. One either does it or one don't and everyone is capable of being an artist but not too many finds the time nor the concern to develop their inner talents even if their sanity depends on it; they usually end up paying the psychiatrist to evaluate their minds or end up in the rehab center wondering what was lacking in their lives.. What is even more sad is that there are those who not only discaurage their young from taking up a form of artistic endeavor, they put a stop to it in favor of what they feel is more important in their academic growth of the young. You do not need art to become a doctor or an engineer, don't need no Picasso to teach you Math, or History or Geography or become a rocket scientist. No sir, art is for those who cannot find anything worth doing  with their lives; It is a waste of time.
And so my mind can go on and on on the subject of 'Art Decadence' in our society but what is the use, we all already are aware of it but are too involved ourselves to do much about it except ramble on..keep knocking and piecing together all the pieces of the puzzle for our own self developmental industry. You cannot change the world without changing who you are and who you are is not who you think you are but what is...occupying space and time while breathing and out putting thoughts on paper... and accepting this too will pass everything is transcient in nature, change occurs with or without you.
On the 5th. last Friday my son flew in from Dubai his first flight to Kuala Lumpur and so Karim and Marrissa decided to surprise him by having all three of us turn up at where he stayed along with Azri, Marissa's friend who did the driving. It all worked out fine with dinner at Bukit Bintng in the company of the Captain of the Emerates plane who flew alongside my son. A  fine gentleman from Malta, Italy and I found out that he is also a very good artist when he showed me his on going painting on the hand phone. My first Son seemed very happy but has lost allot of weight, I hope it is not because of being married..ha! , wife is a physio-therapist and all. I had a great time and only wished that Timo was with us, then I would have had a full deck.. perhaps in Dubai next time...Insha'Allah!
All went well with the very short visit except in the spirit of "and this too will pass." my son Karim and I missed the flight back to Penang due to traffic jams along the highway from KL to KLIA. We missed the gate being closed in no less than two minutes and there was no one there we could approach for help belonging to Air Asia! If I can sit and wait for your delayed flight from Penang to KL why is it that your company cannot afford a few minutes extra to make sure that there no stragglers! Could have been your parents Mr. Tony Fernandez!  Thank God for small favors that we were able to catch the Express bus heade for Penang in Putrajaya and so my son and I spent the next six hours twisitng and turning in the cold all the way back to Penang.
I am just rambling on over things that had past and things that could have been or might have been otherwise, nothing new in this concept of life as we live it day to day while at the same making an all out effort to practice Satipathana or the Hinayan Buddhist concept of Being in the Here and Now Right Understanding of Mindfulness Attention leading on to Right Intuition (Vaipsana). Yes I am just as trapped in the dual thinking mind as everyone else seeking my way towards Right Understanding of who I am. So bear with my lengthy and tedious reflections over what is transpirng in my personal life much that I can share with you those who care enough to visit my Bloggin mind. As they say, this is my story, or they sing as they get older..."I did it my...Wayyy..!" I feel that it would be waste not to enjoy sharing my journey with others, children, my friends, my relatives and the guy sitting in the bush in Kenya or Kathmandu, Green Bay, Wisc. or Japan...I hope they too will enjoy following me on my trip towards knowing who I am.
my mantra has always been: I am Whole, Perfect, Strong and Powerful,
                                            I am Loving, Compassionate, Harmonious and Happy,
                                            I can do What I Will to do,
                                            Insha'Allah, With the Grace of God.
This short mantra came to me through a book called "The Master Key" by Frank Haarnel (?) Ever since I got the book which I took with me from Malaysia to America in 1974 I memorized this short Mantra every time I wake up or before I go to sleep or while I am meditating or when my mind is lost in a limbo or when I forget who I am...created in the Image of My Lord and inspired by His 99 attributes contained in the Hasma' Husna Allah. Ya Karim! (the Bountiful) Ya Ghafur ( The Forgiving) and so on.
Allah's beautiful names, of the 99 the last is Ya Sabur (The Patience). You can chant them (Zikrullah) or you can manifest them as in yourself. The Merciful, The Loving, The Compassionate, The Forgiving... I am this..I am. The Manifestation of God on Earth can save the Planet and that manifestation can only happen if and when we have all been able to manifest Him Collectively in our spirit if not in our Mindfulness of Being.
Just sitting and breathing, Being mindful of sitting and breathing... you too can embark upon the same journey and it is never too late to start.. Be conscious of every breath...in and ... out, let the train start rolling down the tracks with you Mindfully on board...every mile is a journey of your self discovery, right understanding of who you are; effortlessly...sit and breath, stand and breath, walk and breath, you will enjoy the rhythm of life as soon as you get the hang of it.; it is free! Breath is a Miracle of life, it is like a swinging door, as the old Zen Roshi once is said to have said, you breath in, it swings in, you breath out, it swings out and you stop breathing , you are dead. How can we not develop the 'Art of Breathing', that which connects us all, breath is the element of air, it is within and without all around our physical form, it sustains life just like water does and through the breath of air we share a common element that the whole Universe shares without which existence itself is not possible.
Air has the element of spaciousness and light- ness of being and with every breath we take in we can feel our body float into the heavens and with every breath we let out we can feel our form sinking into the inner being, the center where it all manifest from... with constant awareness we can stay in touch with that which is the center of our being, that from which it all emanates as who we are. With earnestness we may stay in this state for a little bit longer as we move along in our allotted time and space on this planet. At the very least just before you close you eyes and take last breath you might catch a glimpse of who you truly are, if they stick all the needles and drugs into you to keep you breathing that would be less fortunate way to go as your mind will be in a dead zone already, drugged out. It is my sincere and genuine wish that i too like the masters of old can close my eys and say farewell to my loved ones and take my one step beyond when the right time comes; I would like to die with full consciousness and Right Understanding of who I am.              
This will be my 1000th entry of this blog known as Ramblings of the Cheeseburger Buddha.