Chap goh meh

Chap goh meh eating "bho bho cha cha", yammee, but why? Anybody know why?

Journey to the West

My father was brought home in an ambulance on 12/20/08 at ~ 2pm from Lam Wah Ee hospital. He was later pass away at home @ 2:28pm.

He was admitted to hostipal on 12/16/08 due to tireness and was discharged on 12/18/08 to allow him to meet with his sister from KL at home. However, he was re-admitted to hostipal on 12/19/08 in the morning due to semi-conscious condition after meeting his sister. His condition recovered, but later deteriorated. He was later admitted to intensive care due to difficulty in breathing. His lung was seriously affected. He's semi-conscious thereafter - the only question he always asked was "what's the time now?". He's in critical condition since morning on 12/20/08.

We chanted for 8 hrs before relocated him into the coffin.

Telegraphic Transfer

Local bank charges is RM30, and the foreign remittances charges is USD15. The process only takes 1 day...fast

Probate applying journey

To be cost effective, especially if your asset size is small , u can visit Amanah Raya Bhd (ARB), which is located at Jln Green House (PG), to apply for probate. Compared to normal lawyer firm's fee of ~ RM3000, ARB charge 4% for the asset ranging from RM5k - RM25k, and 3% for asset of more than RM25k. They close at 5:30pm, and break time for Friday is from 12:30pm to 2:45pm. So, avoid these time if u plan to visit them during your lunch time on Fri.

The main document needed to apply for probate is Will and death cert-original copy, application form and related document. So, you hv to submit your original Will and it'll be kept by High court :-( (no more original Will). As for death cert, it's advicable to keep the original copy. So, what you can do is to apply for death cert extract @ JPN (Anson road, PG) - the cost is RM5.

The application form also need to be certified by Commisioner for Oaths (The nearest is at Church St.) - the cost is RM4.

Oops, almost forgot to mention that u need to purchase stamp duty of RM10 & deposit of RM50 for ARB.

I was told that the application for probate will take ~ 3 to 6 mths.

Caveat : this process is provided that you hv a Will & Testament, otherwise, a lot more document needed : birth cert of siblings, photocopy of IC for deceased parents, spouse & siblings. If the deceased parents' death cert are not available, u hv to find 2 person (fren) to certify in front of commissioner for oath for certification purposes. wow.......

chao

Rental contract stamping journey

Rental contract can be done in LEMBAGA HASIL DALAM NEGERI MALAYSIA, Cawangan Pulau Pinang Tingkat 3 @ Lebuh Pantai. Usually you need to prepare for 2 copies (one for the landlord and the other one for the tenant). The office open at 8am, but the rental contract stamp counter only open at 8:30am. So, the best known method is go there earlier, fill up the form and by then, it'll be about 8:30am. The timing is just rite. In order to speed up the process, you got to have enough change, otherwise, the officers will ask you to wait until they've change :(. Cool..................

Transference of Merit

(copied fr http://web.singnet.com.sg/~alankhoo/Merit.htm)

There is a concept in Buddhism of merit. Merits could be said to positive karmic influences. As the adept of Buddhist meditation practises there naturally arises merit, which can be dedicated to others. This is an expression of the Bodhisattva Vow to strive for perfection and enlightenment but to forego it to help all beings.

The Significance of Transference of Merits to the Departed

If you really want to honour and help your departed ones, then do some meritorious deeds in their name and transfer the merits to them. According to Buddhism, good deeds or ‘acts of merit’ bring happiness to the doer both in this world and in the hereafter. Acts of merit are also believed to lead towards the final goal of everlasting happiness. The acts of merit can be performed through body, speech or mind. Every good deed produces ‘merit’ which accumulates to the ‘credit’ of the doer. Buddhism also teaches that the acquired merit can be transferred to others, it can be shared vicariously with others. In other words, the merit is ‘reversible’ and so can be shared with other persons. The persons who receive the merit can be either living or departed ones. The method for transferring merits is quite simple. First some good deeds are performed. The doer of the good deeds has merely to wish that the merit he has gained accrues to someone in particular, or to all beings. This wish can be purely mental or it can accompanied by an expression of words. This wish could be made with the beneficiary being aware of it. When the beneficiary is aware of the act or wish, then a mutual ‘rejoicing in’ merit takes place. Here the beneficiary becomes a participant of the original deed by associating himself with the deed done. If the beneficiary identifies himself with both the deed and the doer, he can sometimes acquire even greater merit than the original doer, either because his elation is greater or because his appreciation of the value of the deed is based on his understanding of Dhamma and, hence, more meritorious, Buddhist texts contain several stories of such instances. The ‘joy of transference of merits’ can also take place with or without the knowledge of the doer of the meritorious act. All that is necessary is for the beneficiary to feel gladness in his heart when he becomes aware of the good deed. If he wishes, he can express his joy by saying ‘sadhu’ which means ‘well done’. What he is doing is creating a kind of mental or verbal applause. In order to share the good deed done by another, what is important is that there must be actual approval of the deed and joy arising in the beneficiary’s heart. Even if he so desires, the doer of a good deed cannot prevent another’s ‘rejoicing in the merit’ because he has no power over another’s thoughts. According to the Buddha, in all actions, thought is what really matters. Transference is primarily an act of the mind. To transfer merit does not mean that a person is deprived of the merit had originally acquired by his good deed. On the contrary, the very act of ‘transference’ is a good deed in itself and hence enhances the merit already earned.

Highest Gift to the Departed

The Buddha says that the greatest gift one can confer on one’s dead ancestors is to perform ‘acts of merit’ and to transfer these merits so acquired. He also says that those who give also receive the fruits of their deeds. The Buddha encouraged those who did good deeds such as offering alms to holy men, to transfer the merits which they received to their departed ones. Alms should be given in the name of the departed by recalling to mind such things as, ‘When he was alive, he gave me this wealth; he did this for me; he was my relative, my companion, etc. (Tirokuddha Sutta T Khuddakapatha). There is no use weeping, feeling sorry, lamenting and bewailing; such attitudes are of no consequence to the departed ones. Transferring merits to the departed is based on the popular belief that on a person’s death, his ‘merits’ and ‘demerits’ are weighed against one another and his destiny determined, his actions determined whether he is to be reborn in a sphere of happiness or a realm of woe. The belief is that the departed one might have gone to the world of the departed spirits. The beings in these lower forms of existence cannot generate fresh merits, and have to live on with the merits which are earned from this world. Those who did not harm others and who performed many good deeds during their life time, will certainly have the chance to be reborn in a happy place. Such persons do not required the help of living relatives. However, those who have no chance to be reborn in a happy abode are always waiting to receive merits from their living relatives to offset their deficiency and to enable them to be born in a happy abode. Those who are reborn in an unfortunate spirit form could be released from their suffering condition through the transferring of merits to them by friends and relatives who do some meritorious deeds. The origin and the significance of transference of merit is open to scholarly debate. Although this ancient custom still exists today in many Buddhists countries, very few Buddhists who follow this ancient custom have understood the meaning of transference of merits and the proper way to do that. Some people are simply wasting time and money on meaningless ceremonies and performances in memory of departed ones. These people do not realise that it is impossible to help the departed ones simply by building big graveyards, tombs, paper-houses and other paraphernalia. Neither is it possible to help the departed by burning joss-sticks, joss-paper, etc.; nor is it possible to help the departed by slaughtering animals and offering them along with other kinds of food. Also one should not waste by burning things used by the departed ones on the assumption that the deceased persons would somehow benefit by the act, when such articles can in fact be distributed among the needy. The only way to help the departed ones is to do some meritorious deeds in a religious way in memory of them. The meritorious deeds include such acts as giving alms to others, building schools, temples, orphanages, libraries, hospitals, printing religious books for free distribution and similar charitable deeds. The followers of the Buddha should act wisely and should not follow anything blindly. While others pray to god for the departed ones, Buddhists radiate their loving-kindness directly to them. By doing meritorious deeds, they can transfer the merits to their beloved ones for their well-being. This is the best way of remembering and giving real honour to and perpetuating the names of the departed ones. In their state of happiness, the departed ones will reciprocate their blessings on their living relatives. It is, therefore, the duty of relatives to remember their departed ones by transferring merits and by radiating loving-kindness directly

to them.

House Dana

Have you ever organized a House Dana? If you wish to do so, you can visit the Mahindrama Buddhist temple at Kampar road (PG) for further arrangement. Preparation needed is to prepare food to be served to the reverend monk. Normally besides food, dry food such as rice and not limited to robe also can be offerred. In fact, no boundary of what can be offerred.
House Dana usually is held at about 11am and last for about an hour.

Well, why Dana?

Dana is the practice of developing the qualities of generosity, kindness, and letting go. We develop these qualities because they make fertile ground for liberating wisdom to grow deep in our hearts. Often our practice of generosity and kindness comes from our routine habitual tendencies, because it is the custom, through a feeling of guilt, or simply because it's the 'nice' thing to do. Taking the opportunity to make 'dana' a practice of awareness, brings it out of the realm of unconscious habit, and into the realm of wise attention. In this awareness practice of generosity, we begin to see how our lives can be elevated when we bring a conscious awareness around opportunities to be generous, to be kind, and to let go.