The boredom and loneliness piles on me after I am done away with my breakfast swiftly slipping into my stomach. What is my next agenda for the day is the haunting, ghostly question, which I have to find solution immediately. The self- motivation to study is already dead and gone from my mind and heart, but thinking how to kill my free time alone in the room. The immediate solution for my free time is to fly away to temple and earn some merits and dedicate to all the mankind for peace and prosperity on this earth. This motivation is generated from the deepest of my heart with zeal and trust to Lord Buddha where no one did push me to go unwillingly. The natural willingness is always invoked in my heart and mind to visit temple for countless times. Hanging on my small bag containing my pocket and mobile phone, I would ride on the scooter to reach me nearby the fly-over bridge.
My eyes could capture what people are doing in the morning street life during my walk towards the temple. I can see meat, fish, chicken vendors cutting their products with loud noise to attract the customers to their shops. The street cooking business is another beautiful scene I can enjoy with varieties of foods and curry packed in the plastics. The display of fruits, clothes and books along the way is normal busy market day. The beggar with one leg is lying flat on the road holding a plate so that kind people could donate him some food and coins. Women with her small kid on her lap too sits nearby the road with plates on her hand, symbolizing begging time for meals. My eyes could scan some beautiful ladies along the street too as another amazing events to remember.
Having entered the shop where I could buy small bottle of cooking oil for butter lamp to be offered in the temple, whereby, the shopper could immediately pick up two bottles of oil and rush off after making payment and continue next shop to buy garland and incense sticks where an old lady with Indian musics played on her tape makes me feel as if I am at Bodh Gaya street to visit Lord Buddha. With those items I moved towards the temple to make my sincere payers and lay man wishes. It is normal thing to see my old friends in the temple and say "Swadi Khap" folding my hands as Thai culture.
My little offerings are made to Lord Buddha and merits that I could earn is dedicated to all sentient beings without expectations in my mind. The sun oust side the temple is beating so hard on my head and hunt to shed rest. Luckily, the big temple's ground floor door is open today for some death ritual purpose. I have an golden opportunity to enter inside and saw many name plates with photos of those death people pasted on the walls. The flowers are hung on the frame as an offer to their beloved ones who left them sadly. Gazing at different photos of old man, women, lady, men and kids send back chilling effect on my backbones. Indeed, I have no connection with these death people personally but I felt as if all are my parents and friends who are looking at me with their sad heart and gloomy eyes who need merits to pull from sinking under the mud" Hellish realms".
I was counting the numbers of name plates pasted on the temple wall and it ends with 987 after making one round. This indicates, 987 people died and were burnt in this small temple and their ashes and names are inscribed on the cement plates as the last memory of human life live in Thailand. I could see even Chinese faces among the death people. Death indeed has occurred to all across the ages. Since the images are all mixed of old, young and pretty girls indicating death has no partiality but differ on schedules. I realized that I was looking at the dead-end of human life where we work hard to earn money, fame, power, position, love and sex forgetting that we are here on this earth for the great mission to get enlightenment as human being.
I was wandering, what did these 987 souls could have taken with them after hoarding lots of money in the banks and shares in the stock markets for whole life. Now they are gone and bidden farewell with just small name plate and garland on it. How pathetic is our human life that we all applaud as success and achievement as Scientists, Engineers, Doctors, Executives, Managers and Educationist that all goes naked from this world and wander in the intermediate state "Bardo" without direction and guidance for billions of years. Tears roll down my checks feeling very sad while I see their faces printed out just in "black and white" color only. It means, you are gone and no more human being. You, 987 have lost your brightness, life, beauty and power on this earth but back to poor state of lonely journey that you travel with terror and fears.
Nevertheless, you, 987 taught me very good lesson on the impermanence and death as truth that we all should accept with happy face. I know one day or other will follow your foot step and may not even have my own name plate inside the temple for sure I can predict my predicament. It would also serve as great teaching to other fellow beings who clings so much to their bodies and power. Just a glimpse of you 987 souls can change the mind of the deadly non-believer on Buddha Dharma could convert and follow the right path. I as lay man, would like to dedicate all my tiny merits to 987 souls and may you all attain the land of pureness and shower me with your love, compassion and blessings to achieve my dreams and wishes to spread Buddha Dharma on this earth. May I become great human being who can dispel the sufferings of the sentient beings.
Mindu Wangdi
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