Zan - My Blog

World Issues

2009-10-21T19:53:00.006+08:00

Call them funny if you will, but the Flight of the Conchords, which is a New Zealand comedy duo composed of Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement, bring our attention to real world issues through parody singing. Below is a snippet of what I mean:

What is wrong with the world today and what will become of it tomorrow? Youth taking drugs and taking each others' lives, humans contracting diseases like AIDS, honest people getting jailed, children being involved in human trafficking, the harm to the environment from all the pollution -- all affect the world we live and probably for generations to come if we don't address them soon. Yet what are we doing to address these issues? Sadly, there are many people including world leaders who choose to sit on these issues, coming out to downplay the seriousness of the consequences, adopting a sweep-under-the-carpet kind of attitude.

We all know that issues don't just disappear on their own and there will come a day when they will all come back and haunt us.

Filial Piety

2009-10-17T21:02:00.002+08:00

An American friend of mine was wondering about what filial piety means in a modern Asian society. Simply defined, filial piety means to be good to one's parents, to show love, respect and courtesy, and to take up the duty of taking care of one's parents till death. However, looking at modern Asian society like Singapore, the picture of filial piety may not be so simply defined.

I like this commercial by Petronas showing a scene out of Chinese New Year reunion dinner where some old ladies are proudly discussing about the so-called successes of their children:

It is filial piety duty to do our parents proud but what good would it do if we cannot even spare time to show them our love?

Tears in heaven

2009-10-11T21:04:00.007+08:00

A kid asked my teacher friend an innocent, simple question, "Would my pet dog go to heaven, teacher?" My friend pondered for a while and answered, "Well, I think not." The next thing that happened, the kid broke into tears.

Do animals go to heaven? If I were asked the very same question, I would really be stumped. No kidding! I decided to google for an answer but after much research, there just wasn't any conclusive answer. It could be that human souls and animal souls are different after all, and only good human souls make their way to heaven.

The truth is, I really don't know. If the day ever comes when a kid who has lost his/her animal friend comes and asks me that very same question, I might just reply, "I don't know for sure, but all I know is that all good souls go to heaven."

It may sound diplomatic and fearing to see a child in tears but what good is there in boggling a child's mind with classification of souls, the definition of heaven and the cosmos, when all the kid wants is to be consoled that a friend has gone to a good resting place?

Garbage Patch Kids

2009-10-10T09:38:00.005+08:00

There is good reason to support local artistes and one upcoming starlet is Kewei. Below is a song composed by her about all the plastic trash that accumulates in this planet, on land and in the oceans. Please click on this link to read more and hope you enjoy her heartfelt song, Plastic Mannequin Love by Tay Kewei.

I remember watching the movie Wall-E on a flight as I missed it in the theatres. The movie postulated a scenario where Earth is so-filled with rubbish that humans decided to take the easy way out and blast off into space and abandon the planet. Who knows, this could be our future at this rate we are going.

Here is another video about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch to make you realise this future could happen sooner than we think.

Issues regarding the environment is everyone's responsibility. We all need to do our part.

Friends

2009-09-22T22:09:00.003+08:00

Here are some nice quotations about friendship:

Friends are those rare people who ask how we are and then wait to hear the answer.

A friend is someone who thinks you're a good egg even though you're slightly cracked.

Remember friends as you pass by,
As you are now so once was I.
As low as I you once must be,
Prepare yourself and follow me.
-On a gravestone

Love all, trust a few; Do wrong to none.-William Shakespeare

Hold On

2009-09-16T22:57:00.003+08:00

Couldn't resist but share this magical song by Carlos Santana... enjoy!

Santana - Hold On

Don't rush me just this once
I want to make this moment last
Slow down the pace, there's no hurry
I can't let another pass by me again
Let me be the one to say when I've had enough

Just let me close my eyes, memorize
The way things are this minute
So when you're gone I can go on
If memory can hold within it what I'm feeling
Should time try fading or stealing something away

CHORUS:
Hold on, nothing's the same
Tell me why I feel this way
Life wouldn't be worth living without you
All along I've been the pretender
But now that's gone forever
Nobody's ever loved me like you do
Nobody's broken through

Got to concentrate, file away
Every last detail
Don't want to lose what's going down
I want to remember everything I'm feeling
Should time try fading or stealing something away

Do clothes make a man?

2009-09-13T15:14:00.002+08:00

In a Jewish story, the prophet Elijah once dressed in the rags of a beggar and knocked at the door of a home where a wedding celebration was being held. The father of the bride opened the door, and Elijah asked if there was room in the party for one like him. The man slammed the door in Elijah’s face. Elijah returned again to the wedding celebration, this time dressed in the garb of a fine gentleman. This time he was welcomed with great respect. Elijah entered the house, went over to the table, and stuffed food into his vest and shirt pockets and poured wine over his clothes. When the host came rushing over, demanding an explanation, Elijah replied:

“When I, Elijah, came to your house in the rags of a beggar, I was refused entry. When I, the same Elijah, came to your house in the clothes of a gentleman, I was admitted. I could only conclude that you invited my clothes to the feast. So, I have proceeded to feed them.”

In another story, a villager who recently struck it rich decided to go to a city shop to buy a television. However the shopkeeper refused to sell it to him. Thinking that perhaps it was because he was dressed too shabbily, the villager went home, changed into fine clothes and went to the shop again saying, "I want to buy that television." Again, the shopkeeper refused.

Being quite mad, the villager exclaimed, "Sir, I have money and I want to buy that television!" The shopkeeper calmly replied, "This is a microwave oven and I cannot sell it to someone so silly as you."

The Nature of Angst

2009-09-12T16:01:00.002+08:00

I still remember my younger angsty days,
Living my life as I think it to be.
Always having a cause to strive for,
Always ready for a fight,
Never afraid to right a wrong,
Defending my brand of justice.

What I normally excelled in tests,
Deliberately I did badly in the exams.
All to prove a point,
All in the name of protest and detest.
This is what angst can drive you to do.
Could it be that adolescence fueled this engine of angst?
So much pent-up energy unleashed upon this world.

Gone are those younger angsty days,
Relinquished is this power of raw anger.
For there's nothing to prove at the end of it all.
What angst begets is more angst.
The flames of anger spread easily like wild fire.
Some times it's just better to sow the seeds of discretion.

Life After Death

2009-09-09T23:58:00.006+08:00

I was rummaging through my stuff and found an old metallic watch that belonged to my late grandfather. I was told that the watch had stopped working shortly after his passing, pretty much like the popular song, My Grandfather's Clock. It was the only physical inheritance I was given after his death and that made me wonder about all the material possessions we accumulate in life -- it all gets left behind when we die. All of the clothes I own, bags, books and even the laptop I'm using will eventually be left behind when I depart from this world.

The teachings from the Bible (Luke 12:33-34) say: Sell what you have and give alms; provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Even the Buddhist teachings tell of not being unduly attached to the material possessions that we accumulate as they bring about worries and other disturbances.

Indeed how wise the teachings are... and so goes back the watch that carries with it no more than a keepsake memory with my collection of other stuff.

Charity should begin at home

2009-09-07T22:27:00.001+08:00

A friend was almost in disbelief to find out that there are very poor people in Singapore as well. I guess it is easier to identify the poor from less privileged countries because they are visible. However, it is harder to notice the poor among us at home in affluent Singapore. They may be the lonely, the old, the sick and the ones needing love right in our own backyard.

Aging Population

2009-08-31T21:36:00.000+08:00

The issue about aging population not only affects Singapore but in many other parts of the world. It's not something new and is something that was foreseen. It is an issue that we need to tackle soon as the situation becomes more and more real with each passing day.

So what exactly is aging population? It is simply a shift in the distribution of a country's population towards the older ages; an increase in the population's mean or median age, a decline in the proportion of the population composed of children, or a rise in the proportion of the population that is elderly. An increase in longevity due to better health care and medical technology raises the average age of the population thereby raising the number of years that each person is old relative to number of years in which he is young. A decline in fertility also increases the average age of the population by changing the balance of people born recently (the young) to people born further in the past (the old). Of these two forces, it is declining fertility that is the dominant contributor to aging population in the world today.

The economic effects of an aging population are considerable. One large area of government expenditure in many countries is health care, whose cost is likely to increase dramatically as the population ages. However there are many other social impacts as well.

So how equipped or ready is Singapore to handle a larger elderly population? It is good that many of the housing estates in Singapore already have the necessary facilities for the elderly like wheelchair ramps and even nice community spaces. The elderly are encouraged to stay active and healthy. However, one thing that probably needs improvement is the MRT (Mass Rapid Transit). With more elderly taking the trains, shouldn't more seats be provided? Wouldn't increasing the frequency and allowing trains be less crowded make more sense?

Wait awhile

2009-08-29T08:40:00.000+08:00

It may not have been very noticeable but much has been going on in terms of sorting out some technical issues with Blogger. Eventually the mystery of the missing shoutbox and profile picture has been solved. Do wait awhile more as the blog entries flow in and do expect some backdating. As I was looking at all the past articles, the amazing reality that this blog is about to celebrate its 5th anniversary struck me! Wow, 5 great years. Thanks for all the support!

Janet Jackson - Let's wait awhile

There's something I want to tell you
There's something I think that you should know
It's not that I shouldn't really love you
Let's take it slow
When we get to know each other
And we're both feeling much stronger
Then let's try to talk it over
Let's wait awhile longer

*Let's wait awhile
Before it's too late
Let's wait awhile
Before we go too far

Remember that special night
When all of the stars were shining bright
We made our first endeavor to stay together
We made our very first promise
To love, to share, and be real honest
But on that very first night
It wasn't quite right

*Let's wait awhile
Before it's too late
Let's wait awhile
Our love will be great
Let's wait awhile
Before we go too far

I didn't really know not to let all my feelings show
To save some for later so our love can be greater
You said you would always love me
Remember I said the same thing to you
You don't have to be frightened with my love
Because, I'll never give up on you
Let's wait awhile
Ah well before it's too late
You know you can't rush love, love

*chorus

I promise, I'll be worth the wait

The Devil is in the Details

2009-08-17T21:55:00.001+08:00

A non-religious colleague of mine was explaining the facts of life to another colleague, "... we shouldn't just conveniently blame everything evil in this world on the devil, as the devil himself is a God-believer. We should probably worry about those mortal beings who seem to carry out the devil's work, for it's likely they are disillusioned ones who think they are above everything and everyone. They are the ones who carry out senseless acts that will end up destroying themselves and others..."

Sure sets your mind thinking...

Rise Again

2009-08-15T11:02:00.001+08:00

The journey of life is not smooth, and all of us will encounter ups and downs. The important lesson in life is to pick yourself up whenever you fall down. Of course, it will hurt whenever we fall but it is said that time is a healer and the pain that we feel will eventually subside.

Gabrielle - Rise

I know that it's over
But I can't believe we're through
They say that time is a healer
And I'm better without you
It's gonna take time I know
But I'll get over over you

*Chorus
Look at my life
Look at my heart
I have seen them fall apart
Now I'm ready to rise again
Look at my hopes
Look at my dreams
I'm building bridges from these scenes
Now I'm ready to rise again

Caught up in my thinking
Yeah
Like a prisoner in my mind
You pose so many questions
But the truth was hard to find
I better think twice I know
That I'll get over you

*Chorus

Much time has passed between us
Do you still think of me at all
My world of broken promises
Now you won't catch me when I fall

*Chorus

Friendship is love without wings

2009-08-12T22:14:00.000+08:00

Here is poem by George Gordon Lord Byron

L’Amitié, Est L’Amour Sans Ailes

Why should my anxious breast repine,
Because my youth is fled?
Days of delight may still be mine;
Affection is not dead.
In tracing back the years of youth,
One firm record, one lasting truth
Celestial consolation brings;
Bear it, ye breezes, to the seat,
Where first my heart responsive beat,—
“Friendship is Love without his wings!”

Through few, but deeply chequer’d years,
What moments have been mine!
Now half obscured by clouds of tears,
Now bright in rays divine;
Howe’er my future doom be cast,
My soul, enraptured with the past,
To one idea fondly clings;
Friendship! that thought is all thine own,
Worth worlds of bliss, that thought alone—
“Friendship is Love without his wings!”

Where yonder yew-trees lightly wave
Their branches on the gale,
Unheeded heaves a simple grave,
Which tells the common tale;
Round this unconscious schoolboys stray,
Till the dull knell of childish play
From yonder studious mansion rings;
But here, whene’er my footsteps move,
My silent tears too plainly prove,
“Friendship is Love without his wings!”

Oh, Love! before thy glowing shrine,
My early vows were paid;
My hopes, my dreams, my heart was thine,
But these are now decay’d;
For thine are pinions like the wind,
No trace of thee remains behind,
Except, alas! thy jealous stings.
Away, away! delusive power,
Thou shall not haunt my coming hour;
Unless, indeed, without thy wings.

Seat of my youth! thy distant spire
Recalls each scene of joy;
My bosom glows with former fire,—
In mind again a boy.
Thy grove of elms, thy verdant hill,
Thy every path delights me still,
Each flower a double fragrance flings;
Again, as once, in converse gay,
Each dear associate seems to say,
“Friendship is Love without his wings!’

My Lycus! wherefore dost thou weep?
Thy falling tears restrain;
Affection for a time may sleep,
But, oh, ’twill wake again.
Think, think, my friend, when next we meet,
Our long-wished interview, how sweet!
From this my hope of rapture springs;
While youthful hearts thus fondly swell,
Absence my friend, can only tell,
“Friendship is Love without his wings!”

In one, and one alone deceiv’d,
Did I my error mourn?
No—from oppressive bonds reliev’d,
I left the wretch to scorn.
I turn’d to those my childhood knew,
With feelings warm, with bosoms true,
Twin’d with my heart’s according strings;
And till those vital chords shall break,
For none but these my breast shall wake
Friendship, the power deprived of wings!

Ye few! my soul, my life is yours,
My memory and my hope;
Your worth a lasting love insures,
Unfetter’d in its scope;
From smooth deceit and terror sprung,
With aspect fair and honey’d tongue,
Let Adulation wait on kings;
With joy elate, by snares beset,
We, we, my friends, can ne’er forget,
“Friendship is Love without his wings!”

Fictions and dreams inspire the bard,
Who rolls the epic song;
Friendship and truth be my reward—
To me no bays belong;
If laurell’d Fame but dwells with lies,
Me the enchantress ever flies,
Whose heart and not whose fancy sings;
Simple and young, I dare not feign;
Mine be the rude yet heartfelt strain,
“Friendship is Love without his wings!”

Happy Birthday, Singapore!

2009-08-09T22:09:00.001+08:00

The National Day Parade 2009 theme song by homegrown band, Electrico - What do you see?

There’s a jewel on the ocean,
a gem upon the sea
Where the future is an open book
A land of destiny
We could set our sights into the wind and sail the seven seas
or climb the highest mountain top as long as we believe
What do you see? What do you see?

Chorus: See the moon and the stars, look how far we have come
Look around at our faces, they shine brightly in the sun
With our hopes and dreams, imagine what tomorrow it may bring
What do you see? What do you see?

Now the time has come to reach out,
To open up to see
That we stand together in this land
Cos we are family
As thoughts of reaching to the sky are carried on a dream
With hearts and minds united, our dreams we will achieve
What do you see? What do you see?

Chorus

Bridge: What do you see when life makes you take on a mountain
You’ll see that nothing’s gonna stand in your way
Together we can share
The strength of a million
and the courage of a million more

Chorus End

Poetry in Motion

2009-08-01T13:20:00.005+08:00

I believe the tattoo on Megan Fox's (actress in the recent Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen movie) right shoulder got a lot people thinking. What does "We will all laugh at gilded butterflies" mean? It is actually taken from Shakespeare's King Lear (Act 5, Scene III):

Come, let's away to prison;
We two alone will sing like birds in the cage:
When thou dost ask me blessing, I'll kneel down,
And ask of thee forgiveness: so we'll live,
And pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh
At gilded butterflies, and hear poor rogues
Talk of court news; and we'll talk with them too,
Who loses and who wins; who's in, who's out; —
And take upon's the mystery of things,
As if we were God's spies: and we'll wear out,
In a wall'd prison, packs and sects of great ones
That ebb and flow by the moon.
-- King Lear to his one true daughter, Cordelia

Gilded butterflies in this context refer to people who put on false fronts, just like King Lear's other 2 daughters (Cordelia's sisters) who have betrayed him. And thus, we shall laugh at these people who make a mockery of themselves and others.

On an added note, Megan has another poetic tattoo, "There once was a little girl who never knew love until a boy broke her heart." Self-explanatory. Love hurts.

Blow out

2009-07-13T16:28:00.001+08:00

When it comes to birthdays, many of friends have several superstitions about what to do and what not to do. Some would go to the extent to make their birthday a secret. Others go through great lengths to have a super celebration. There are many ways to celebrate the anniversary of one's birth, though most people these days would have a birthday cake with candles. Yet have you ever wondered where did the tradition of making a wish and blowing the candles come from? Apparently, it evolved from an ancient Greek custom where a cake topped with litted candles, that looked like the moon, was used to celebrate the Goddess Artemis's birthday. By the blowing out of each candle, the smoke from the extinguished flame carried each wish up to the Goddess to be granted.

If you are celebrating your birthday today or soon, Happy Birthday!

Hopeless Nerd?

2009-06-27T09:30:00.008+08:00

A guy friend was telling me how he was on the verge of giving up on dating girls forever over coffee at Starbucks recently. He was explaining that girls seem too much of a mystery to him and was beginning to suspect that he was just a hopeless nerd. He is not the first guy (or girl for that matter) to confess that to me. I am certainly no love guru and have never claimed to be one, but being a friend, I tried to offer a few suggestions:

You don't have to be celebrity kind of good looking but pleasant grooming helps. Simple grooming like clothes and shoes you wear, as well as your haircut matters. Being neat and clean (clean shaven too) is generally most accepted. If you're unsure about fashion, go with a friend to pick clothes.

Watch what you say. Stick with some general topics of interest, especially when meeting someone new, like for example, food in Singapore. Avoid making negative comments or being over critical about any topic.

Lastly, go find a girl. Picking up a love interest from a bar or pub doesn't quite cut it. There are many places to meet someone and even events organised by SDU (Social Development Unit) should be considered. Make friends for you would never know who you might end up with.

OR you can watch this entertaining video here.

Good Luck!

King of Pop

2009-06-25T12:58:00.001+08:00

Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009), dubbed the "King of Pop" passed away at the age of 50 on June 25, 2009, in Los Angeles, California after suffering from cardiac arrest.

He started his solo singing career in 1971, having made his debut in 1964 as a member of The Jackson 5. His 1982 album Thriller remains the best-selling album of all time, with four others — Off the Wall (1979), Bad (1987), Dangerous (1991), and HIStory (1995).

He holds multiple Guinness World Records — including the "Most Successful Entertainer of All Time" — 13 Grammy Awards, 17 number one singles (including the four number ones with Jackson 5), and estimated sales of over 750 million records. He was also a notable philanthropist and humanitarian who donated millions of dollars to several charities, and also raised money through his own Heal the World Foundation.

So tell me, who hasn't heard of the pop icon, Michael Jackson? The world, including myself, will miss him.

Summer Solstice

2009-06-20T13:13:00.001+08:00

It started out as idle chatting about the current world economy (how predictable) and soon my middle-aged friends were discussing about the future. Having seen much of the world around them, and how several of their peers have fared in these bad economic times, they felt it was probably better to lead a simple life. By that they meant, it was pointless to pursue the high life; it's better just living comfortably within your own means without having a need for a lavish lifestyle. After all, happiness can come from living life simply.

Perhaps an easier way is to explain is through this song or story by Lobo - Stoney

One minute of fame

2009-05-30T09:47:00.005+08:00

Okto, Singapore's latest free-to-air channel is holding the auditions for their programme "One Minute of Fame". The programme provides a platform for kids (either as individuals or in groups) to discover their talents by having one minute to perform and impress the judges and viewers.

It made me recall an almost prophetic quote from late American Pop Art painter, Andy Warhol - "Everyone will be famous for 15 minutes."

With the way the society is headed, it seems everyone wants to be famous, even for a while. And who knows it's possible, that everyone gets to be a celebrity in their own rights and be remembered for something special or unique that they've done (be it good or bad). There might come a day when everyone would get their one minute of fame on the mass media (be it the television, print or even the Internet).

What is fame? The advantage of being known by people of whom you yourself know nothing, and for whom you care as little. - Leszczynski Stanislaus

Indeed fame is something like an honour that is bestowed upon you by others. Fame itself is not your achievement, and neither is it an intrinsic quality but rather a external perception or image formed by others over what you have done or accomplished. In some ways it is beyond your control, a by-product of doing something exceptionally well (or in some cases, exceptionally bad) or possibly arising from an excellent self-marketing effort.

If that's the case, why have so many people become so lost and caught up in the pursuit of fame, when they really should be focusing on doing better what brought them the fame in the first place? Perhaps it's just all the perks and glamour that their fame brings them.

Just as I am

2009-05-25T21:53:00.008+08:00

I had attended a seminar recently and the topic of human relationships was being discussed. A question was raised about what does it mean when someone says the 3 magic words, "I love you"? Is it possible to fall in love with someone you've met only for the first time or probably just for a few times?

Yes, it is possible and the love experienced at that moment in time is most likely a psycho-physiological response or to put it simply, a rush of emotions. Usually, it would lead you to want to get to know that someone better and in due course, after knowing that someone better, a long term relationship could be possibly formed (or possibly not as well). That would be the time when the rational-spiritual part takes over; it is the time of accepting that someone for who he/she is, all the good and all the imperfections; it is being able to care for that someone without the need for reward.

The so-called love that most people are searching for is usually the long term kind described above. If that is the case, the only way to really love someone is to know that someone first. So what do you mean when you say, "I love you"? Here is a song while you think about it:

Air Supply - Just as I am

I've had a lot of big dreams
I've made a lot of bad moves
I know you could walk away
But you never do
I've met a lot of cold hearts
I've learned to smile and deceive
I know I'm hard to be around
But you never leave
I'm not easy to understand
But you hold out your hand

*Chorus
And you say you love me
Just as I am
You always treat me
The best that you can
You say you want me, need me
Love me, baby
Just as I am, just as I am

I've made a lot of heartaches
I've found a lot of closed doors
When all the others turn away
You love me more, you love me more
I'm not easy to understand
But you hold out your hand

*Chorus

I want to love forever
To keep our world together
And be the best that I can be
Baby, every time the world caves in on me

*Chorus

Allegory

2009-05-23T22:42:00.003+08:00

I came across this story about charity and justice:

One summer in the village, the people gathered for a picnic. As they shared food and conversation, someone noticed a baby in the river, struggling and crying. The baby was going to drown!

Someone rushed to save the baby. Then, they noticed another screaming baby in the river, and they pulled that baby out. Soon, more babies were seen drowning in the river, and the townspeople were pulling them out as fast as they could. It took great effort, and they began to organise their activities in order to save the babies as they came down the river. As everyone else was busy in the rescue efforts to save the babies, two of the townspeople started to run away along the shore of the river.

“Where are you going?” shouted one of the rescuers. “We need you here to help us save these babies!”

“We are going upstream to stop whoever is throwing them in!”

What would you have done if you were picnicking nearby? Would you have helped to rescue the babies out of the water, or helped by going upstream to stop babies from being thrown in? Or possibly be a bystander and do nothing at all?

"The world is not dangerous because of those who do harm but because of those who look at it without doing anything" - Albert Einstein

Happy Vesak Day!

2009-05-09T23:02:00.002+08:00

Vesak Day is an annual holiday which is being celebrated in Singapore today. The word Vesak itself is the Sinhalese language word as in Mahayana Buddhist traditions, it is known by its Sanskrit name, Vaiśākha.

At the first Conference of the World Fellowship of Buddhists held in Sri Lanka in 1950, it was formalised to celebrate Vesak as the Buddha’s birthday. The Resolution that was adopted is as follows:

“That this Conference of the World Fellowship of Buddhists, while recording its appreciation of the gracious act of His Majesty, the Maharaja of Nepal in making the full-moon day of Vesak a Public Holiday in Nepal, earnestly requests the Heads of Governments of all countries in which large or small number of Buddhists are to be found, to take steps to make the full-moon day in the month of May a Public Holiday in honour of the Buddha, who is universally acclaimed as one of the greatest benefactors of Humanity.”

On Vesak Day, Buddhists all over the world commemorate events of significance to Buddhists of all traditions: The birth, enlightenment and the passing away of Gautama Buddha. Devout Buddhists and followers alike are expected and requested to assemble in their various temples before dawn for the ceremonial, and honorable, hoisting of the Buddhist flag and the singing of hymns in praise of the holy triple gem: The Buddha, The Dharma (his teachings), and The Sangha (his disciples). Devotees may bring simple offerings of flowers, candles and joss-sticks to lay at the feet of their teacher. These symbolic offerings are to remind followers that just as the beautiful flowers would wither away after a short while and the candles and joss-sticks would soon burn out, so too is life subject to decay and destruction. Devotees are enjoined to make a special effort to refrain from killing of any kind and thus are encouraged to partake of vegetarian food for the day.