My daily activities of the past three days have been interspersed with brief periods of quiet reflection.
You see, on Thursday, a good friend of the family had dropped by to my house just to inform my wife and I that the Buddhist Chief High Priest of Malaysia and Singapore had passed away earlier in the day.
I have never met the Venerable Dr Rev K Sri Dhammananda Nayaka Maha Thera. My own, humble path had never crossed his but I have definitely heard about this towering Dharma teacher.
I feel strangely affected — in awe of his achievements, actually — and in my own quiet way yesterday and today, I have been trying to glean from the Internet as much news as possible about his life and his passing, my main source of information being The Buddhist Channel.
He is such a significant figure in the Buddhist sangha in Malaysia and also so committed to building inter-faith harmony among the communities in the country.
Penang Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon was quoted in the New Straits Times as saying that in his 54 years of missionary work in Malaysia, Rev Dhammananda built Buddhism in the English-speaking community, cultivated many young Buddhist leaders and initiated the Inter-religious Consultative Council which contributed to the harmony among the major races.
Yesterday, I saw at the Ti-Ratana Buddhist Society website a dedication to the late Reverend. This dedication has also appeared full-page in some newspapers, notably The Star.
In this dedication, Rev Dhammananda was asked about what Buddhists do, and he replied: “Well, first they study, then they practise and finally they experience.”
Wonderful words indeed. Isn’t it all about cause and effect, action and reaction? I’m sure it doesn’t take a person of any religious affiliation to understand this simple philosophy.
It all comes down to reaping what you sow, taking responsibility for whatever you do with your lives, facing the consequences of your actions.
Come to think of it, the Reverend’s words do remind me of chess and an old Persian poet who lived some 900 years ago…