Buddhist-Meditation-Systematic-and-Practical

Orphanages and foundling hospitals full of unwanted or
illegitimate children are tragic comments on the
inability of many human beings to restrain themselves.
The only cure for all this is to reduce the power of
desire, and an effective way of doing this is through the
teachings of the Hinayana. When the house is on fire it
is of no use trying to save it with more fire; only water
will extinguish it. Similarly, the way out of the tangle of
desires is not to make them stronger by repeatedly
indulging in them, but to weaken them through morality
and renunciation, which are emphasized in Hinayana
instructions.
Here I should like to give you a list of practices
representing a way of life so different from that
conceived by most Westerners that a greater contrast
could hardly be found.
Ascetic Practices (dhutas)
Eating only begged food
An early morning beverage,
with only one meal taken
before noon
Modern Western Life
Meals prepared by
culinary artists, such as
experts in French and
Chinese cuisine
Three or four meals and
light refreshments in
between: food derived
from animal, vegetable,
and mineral sources with
hormones, vitamins, iron,
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