Transforming The Soul Through Loving-Kindness

In my early days of Buddhism learning,

I couldn't make much progess,

due to a lot of frustration and prejudice

against a lot of imperfections in this world.

I found it very difficult

to apply what learnt from the Buddhism text

into real life,

until I attended a meditation course

with Venerable Guang Pin (广品法师)

(of Singapore Buddhist Federation).

In Venerable's meditation course for beginners,

he taught us to visualise

the light of loving kindness (Metta)

showering ourselves, our family, our neighbours,

and slowly expand the light of loving kindness to

the universe.

He also encouraged his students

to recite a short Metta phrase

"May I be in peace,

May the universe be in peace"

(愿我得安乐; 愿虚空法界一切众生皆得安乐)

ten times every morning right after waking up and

ten times every evening right before going to bed.

I did as instructed.

And, when loving kindness grows day by day,

I notice that I could realise

more dharma in day-to-day living :B

Today, I am still very thankful to Venerable Guang Pin

who laid an important foundation

in my early days of Boddhi path :)

With Metta,

Kee Yew

Nutritious Soup For The Lazy Souls :P

Tho' we may be health conscious,
it's somehow inevitable to consume
some unhealthy foods from time to time.

This is especially true,
when we are busy or exhausted,
and just want to grab anything convenient to eat.
Unhealthy foods (e.g. instant noodles, chips, McD etc)
sad to say is so ubiquitious;
if we are not mindful, it's so easy to fall into their traps...

Therefore, I was so grateful
when I learnt this brainless and quick recipe
from one of my nice friends and teacher, Oh Chong Fah.
With this recipe, at least,
I am more motivated to take good care of my diet
even during busy (lazy) times.. keke..

****************************
Miso Noodle Soup:
(preparation time: 15min)

Ingredients:
1 serving of whole-wheat noodle,
1 bowl of water,
1 tablespoon of baby wakame seaweed
1/2 cup of chilled/frozen silken tofu (diced)
2 teaspoon of white miso (live, less salty type)

Method:
1. While cooking the whole-wheat noodle on the stove,
boil 1 bowl of water in a kettle.
2. when the water is boiled, put in wakame seaweed
and wait for 3min
3. chuck in cold frozen tofu to drop the temperature,
so that it's not too hot for the good microbes from miso
4. stir in white miso to make a soup base for noodle.
5. serve immediately with noodle

Miso and Seaweed are two notably nutritious food.

Miso contains
a lot of good microbes for our healthy gut,
easily absorbable amino acids for quick nourishment
and Vitamin B complex for nervous function support.

Seaweed contains
a whole range of minerals
to ensure proper functions of hormones and enzymes,
and also
good quality collagen
to support better skin and joints.
****************************

Bon appetite ;P

Well regards,
Kee Yew

Do not take nutritional supplement until you read this!

A couple of years back,
I was in this seminar @ DBS Auditorium,
listening to a doctor-turn-nutritionist,
Dr Ray Strand
teaching some basic concepts of nutritional medicine.

All the way along,
there have been a lot of confusion
about the benefits/significance of
nutritional or dietary supplementation.

But Dr Strand pointed out in the seminar that
in order to reap significant benefits from nutritionals,
the following points need to be observed:

1) take a comprehensive blend of multiple nutrients
-- because nutrients don't work alone

2) take the right form of bodily active nutrients
(ie. take L-form instead of a mixture with toxic D-form)

3) take the optimal dosage rather than the basic RDA dosage
-- this is a dosage usually much higher than RDA level
in order to confer the effect of neutralisation of oxidative stress.

During the informative seminar,
Dr Strand also described
how his wife's life long multiple sclerosis,
that he himself as a doctor
(as well as his other specialist colleagues) couldn't even help,
got improved by just taking
a good blend of nutritional supplement.

It was his wife's 'miraculous' event
that initiated him to dive into nutritional-based medicine
in the past two decades and wrote this book
"What Your Doctor Doesn't Know
About Nutritional Medicine May Be Killing You".

In this book, Dr Strand shares his insight on
the ignorance of doctors in nutrition,
the outdated concept of one-drug-treating-one-disease,
the treatment of degenerative diseases
from the perspective of oxidative stress and self healing.

If you believe that prevention is better than cure,
Dr Strand's book and his website are not to be missed.

Happy Learning!

Best regards,
Kee Yew

Why paper currency is not money?

We have long been told

that we are actually living in illusion.

But it's usually difficult to realise this illusion,

that we ourselves being part of,

as we tend to mistake things being permanent.

However,

illusion could be easier to comprehend

if we carefully observe how

the illusive entities around us quickly degrade.

In finance,

many people invests in

shares, options, insurances, ETFs

which are volatile derivatives of

the real substances.

When financial tsunami hits,

millions of dollars worth of illusive certificates

may just degrade into thin air.

Even the paper currency that

all of us 'realistically' live by

is also an illusive derivative of the real money.

This means, paper currency

will also degrade into thin air.

Especially when more and more

USD is being printed now,

the rate of degradation will be more obvious.

Check out Michael Maloney's video on how

the paper currency is different from real money.

Holding paper currency in hand

isn't something to feel secured about.

-- because it's a soon degrading illusion.

Materialising the volatile currency into

something solid, especially those

that can generate cash flow,

add values to people's lifes and the world

is what financial gurus advise.

Good day,

Kee Yew

How expensive is an organic meal?

When I started as an vegetarian 7 years ago,
I was very mindful about
the quality of the vegetarian food I took.
It has to be of a variety, natural and
better if, organic!
-- I promised myself and mum that
I would keep well with a nutritious vegetarian diet ;)


However, the price of organic vegetarian
was a bit strenuous on my monthly expense.
The pressure was building up so much
that I had to complain to Lee Nguan,
one of my few friends who is also a fan of organic food.


We were actually dining at an organic veg cafe at Smith St,
when I vented out my frustration on Lee Nguan,
asking why good food has to be expensive,
questioning the genuineness of the organic food,
wondering how much I got ripped off by these organic cafes
...


Lee Nguan was cool despite my negativity.
In the end, he just commented:
"Kee Yew, if we stop supporting the organic industry,
do you think in future we will get any organic food
when we need them?"


His remark immediately made me feel ashame of myself
for not being grateful for the good food I had,
for not appreciating the hard work of organic farmers,
for not understanding the difficulties organic outlet faces.


That was the day, I aspired
to lend my full support for the organic industry,
to educate others on the impact of organic agriculture,
to facilitate the growth of organic business in the region.

This was also the same aspiration that eventually led to
the setting up of my organic education company,
Cielo Sereno.

There is a deep reason why
we pay such a high price for organic food.
Basically, the high price is the debt
we pay for our forefathers' mistakes
of adopting chemical farming for short-sighted benefits.


If we sulk over the extra cash
that we fork out for our organic food, today,
it's likely that it will be our land, our air, our water
that we will be paying our clean food with, tomorrow.

Go organic, for the sake of humanity.

Well wishes,
Kee Yew

Rich people do not spend their hard earned money

Dec 2008, I attended T. Harv Eker's
Millionaire Mind Intensive (MMI) workshop,
under strong recommendation
of my teacher, Glenis Lim.

I was extremely grateful to Harv and Glenis
that I was at the MMI wokrshop.

This workshop untied
a long hidden knot within my heart,
that had confused me on money matters.
Specifically, Harv resolved my on-going dilemma
between saving and spending money.

Among many important teachings
at the MMI workshop,
Harv pointed out that:
While most people survive off
their golden geese (finite hard-earned money),
rich people survive off
their golden eggs (renewable cash-flow passive income)
laid by their golden geese
(hard-earned money used as investment capital).

After hearing the precious teaching above,
then only I realised
how wrong I have been managing my wealth
and decided to learn about cash-flow passive income.

Harv will be conducting Millionaire Mind Intensive
in Singapore again this November.
Make sure you do not miss this opportunity
to learn from a big guru :)

Alternatively, you may read his book
Secrets of the Millionaire Mind
if you really have to miss MMI.

Sincerely,
Kee Yew

.

Do you truly believe in destiny?

Like many people,
I used to perceive life as more or less fated:
I thought we were somehow destined
to walk a certain path,
to meet certain people, and
to settle at certain places...

My baseless prejudice on destiny
was thoroughly challenged and renewed
when I was recommended by Venerable Chin Kung
to read this amazing book,
"Liao Fan's Four Lessons" (了凡四训).

This is the book that shakened
the very 'fundamental' of
my past excuses
for not making adequate effort
to make changes in life,
to pursue my dreams and
to treasure what I already had.

Liao Fan's Four Lessons
is an autobiography of
Mr Yuan Liao Fan, a 16th century Chinese.
He wrote this book, in the hope that,
it will serve as a legacy to his son,
by teaching him
how to change the fate of a person,
like how Liao Fan successfully changed his.

In this book, he detailed on
how his every aspect of life,
initially seemed to be accurately
predicted by a Taoist monk,
gradually got transformed
when he cultivated true kindness
and accumulated tremendous merits
from his good deeds.

I was fascinated with Liao Fan's advice
after reading.
My first impression then was:
How easy it is to reform my life
by cultivating kindness and do a lot of good deeds :D

This is how Liao Fan inspired
the path I have been endeavoring
in the past few years,
untiredly doing a lot volunteering
and contributing constructive values
to my family, relatives, friends and society.

Do read this book slowly,
line by line, word by word,
with great sincerity.
In between the lines, one will gather enough
wisdom and motivation
to reform one's life!


With metta,
Kee Yew

p/s: watch Liao Fan movie here :)
.

True Health Begins From Deep Within

4 years ago,

when I first follow through

a comprehensive Juice Detoxification exercise

under the guidance of Ms Sim,

I was advised to undergo Colonic Irrigation.

I was told that the intoxification of the body

usually starts from the colon.

It is when the colon is overwhelmed with

too much toxin (from our bad food),

that the excessive toxins

will overflow, in sequential order,

into liver, kidney, blood, skin and other organs..

However, then,

due to my personal pyschological barrier

-- I was seriously intimidated by the idea of

shafting a tube through the anus

and pumping water into the colon,

I decided to dismiss

that particular module in my Detox procedure.

I was hoping that 16 days of Juice Detox

would be sufficient to purge out all the toxins in my gut.

Altho' the Detox went ok eventually,

I only found out much later that the detox was not

quite comprehensive as I thought,

due to the missing colonic cleansing module!

Because:

A year later, under the encouragement of

another great teacher of mine (Glenis Lim),

I decided to try out Colonic Irrigation with

a reputated and professional healing centre,

Hydro Health @ Paragon Medical Centre, Orchard.

At the centre, I was told by my colonic therapist that

I had serious dirt accumulation in my colon,

despite my 4 years of organic vegetarian diet prior to that.

This reflected my mistake for not heeding Ms Sim's advice

to perform colonic irrigation during the 16-day Detox.

At Hydro Health, colonic irrigation is performed

under the care of trained therapists,

using advanced, safe and hygienic facilities.

If one is interested to revamp their health,

this could be a good way to jump start;

as colonic health plays a pivotal role in

overall bodily wellness.

Well wishes,

Kee Yew

.

A Global Positioning System for the Soul

Since young,
I have always been fascinated with philosophy.
Altho' I have never aspired to become a philospher,
I feel philosophy is essential in life management.

To me, philosophy is like a navigator device,
or Global Positioning System
that directs the course of one's life
-- if one is ever concerned where one is heading to.

Knowing my interest in philosophies,
Yuen Jian, a good friend of mine,
recommended me this book 7 years ago:
"Anthology of Yi Jing Lectures"《易经杂说》
by Nan Huai-Jin (南怀瑾).

Yi Jing (The Sutra of Change, literally)
is an ancient Chinese Philosophy,
which originated from
a "Heavenly Book without Scripture" (无字天书)
which is very hard to comprehend.
(could be a legacy of the civilisation from previous ice-age??)

In this book,
Nan Huai-Jin explained the philosophy of Yi Jing
in a simple language,
just suitable for a layman/beginner like myself.

According to Nan Huai-Jin,
the essence of Yi Jing is to depict
two fundamental universal laws:

>> everything in the universe changes
throughout all dimensions
(ie over time, over space etc)

>> everything in the universe comprises
of both tangible and intangible components.


Based on these two fundamental cores,
one just need to observe the surroundings carefully,
and would be able foresee the future trends.

Hence, by understanding Yi Jing,
one may strategise
to steer one's life into desired paths or
to navigate out of any calamity/misfortune.

This high end GPS for the Soul
is not to be missed.


Happy reading =)
Kee Yew

.

All that Glitters is not Gold (nor Silver)

In recent awareness of

the failing financial system,

people are moving into investment

of Gold and Silver (closest things to real money).

However, with little financial education,

most investors are still unknowingly

making the same mistake

by investing in GLD, SLV-Exchange Traded Funds (ETF),

again falling into the old trap of

the currently much-discredited financial system.

Watch here, the advice from Michael Maloney,

on GLD, SLV- ETF vs Physical Gold and Silver.

The logic behind is that taught by Robert Kiyosaki:

"Manage Your Own Money"

Well wishes,

Kee Yew.

Getting Started on a Healthy Veg Life

7 years ago,
I decided to adopt a vegetarian lifestyle,
due to multiple reasons, inclusive of:
soul searching
health consciousness
(alarm from my dad who died of colon cancer)
influence of a very nice friend, Vivien.

Like many others,
I was concerned about nutritional imbalance
at first.

But after much reading on
vegetarian and nutritional articles
-- with a lot of help from
the Vegetarian Society of Singapore (VSS),
I gathered some confidence and courage
to start off my vegetarian path.

My vegetarian path
has been surprisingly smooth since then.
Thanks to the resources at the VSS!

In order to help other veg beginners
to go through a smooth transition,
also as a gesture of thanking VSS,
I compiled a Vegetarian Starter Kit.

May this little kit bring big impacts in
improving your health,
saving more innocent animals and
healing mother Earth =)


With Gratitude,
Kee Yew

.

Super Vegan Foods

One common question
that many beginner vegans may ask:
"If we are not taking whole milk and eggs,
is there a vegan equivalent of all-in-one whole food?"

The answer is positve! =)

From what I learnt from one of my amazing teachers,
Ms Sim (an alternative healing therapist),
Spirulina and Sprouts are two super-duper
whole foods for vegans!

Spirulina is a kind of good bacterium
that looks like alga or plant,
comprising a comprehensive range of nutrients.
It supplies
a complete range of amino acids,
loads of vitamins, antioxidants, phytonutrients,
minerals, chlorophyll etc...

What's more this food is easy to digest,
alkaline and highly bio-available.
The quality and bio-absorption of
protein in Spirulina is equivalent to that of beef!

Organic Spirulina is available at LHW Healthy Mini Store

Sprouts which is another type of super-duper food
because it contains
a very complete nutritional profile
to sustain a new life and
a broad range of live enzymes (when taken raw)
to support an active lifestyle!

Similar to Spirulina, the nutrients in Sprouts are
very bioavailable, alkaline and easy to digest.

Fresh sprouts are available at many supermarkets,
or one may choose to do own sprouting at home.

Sprouting is easy, just follow the steps in
Easy Sprouting Protocol

Happy Experimenting!


Well wishes,
Kee Yew

.

Advice from Prof Colin Campbell

I was at Professor Colin Campbell's seminar
last Saturday.

This author of the world renowned book,
"The China Study" ,
was re-assuring that
whole-food, plant-based nutrition
is the way to control, mitigate and cure
degenerative diseases (e.g. cancer).

He emphasized that
in disease management,
there is a proven scientific track of
Nutritional Control of Genes.

This means that
despite the genetic predisposition of a disease,
nutritional administration will significantly
influence the manifestation of the disease.

In other words, if one's diet is properly managed
(at low fat, low protein, whole-food, plant-based)
it is possible to prevent/reverse
a degenerative disease like cancer.

Prof. Colin Campbell also introduced
his foundation
www.tcolincampbell.org
where more updates/info are available.

One may also sign up
correspondence courses via the website
to further understand a proper plant based diet.


Enjoy surfing =)
Kee Yew

.

Fingerprints of the Gods

Multiple years back,
a nice friend of mine, Yuen Jian,
recommended this book
"Fingerprints of the Gods"
by Graham Hancock;
and I have since
changed my view on humanity.

It's not truly a religious book
as the title may suggest.

In one perspective,
it's actually a compilation of
a spectrum of interconnected stories on
the pre-historic civilisations,
the legacy of the lost civilisations and
the great wisdom of our ancestors.

In order to prove his stand on
pre-historic civilisation,
Hancock overlapped evidences from
numerous platforms
of archaeology, geology and astrology,
tapping on
logical scientific computing and
critical ancient myths deciphering.

I was totally mesmerised in
Hancock's sophisticated visualisation
of humanity beyond time and space.

But I was even more impressed with
the wisdom and will power of mankind
when it comes to perpetuating their legacy
to the next generation (ie next civilisation)...

That subsequently triggers
a sentiment within:
In contrast to our forefathers' contribution to humanity,
what have we, the children, done to the world today?

This book broadened my perception of
my personal life, humanity, the world and the universe.
I decided to see things from then on,
in unlimited dimensions, in unmeasurable scale and beyond self.

Hope you enjoy this book as much :)


Good weekend,
Kee Yew

.

Can you handle a 3-scoop ice-cream cone?

In T. Harv Eker's seminars and

his book "Secrets of the Millionaire Mind",

often one hears this phrase --

How You Do One Thing Is How You Do Everything

He illustrated this idea with this very simple story:

A little girl was at an ice-cream bar with her daddy.

Overwhelmed by a whole lot of choices,

she greedily asked for a 3-scoop ice-cream cone.

Her daddy kindly agreed.

As they walked out from the door,

the little girl accidentally toppled her 3 scoops of ice-cream.

So, both went back to the ice-cream bar to buy another cone.

This time, instead of 3 scoops,

daddy bought her only 1 scoop, claiming that

"you are not going to have 3 scoops until

you learn how to handle 1 scoop"

Eker constantly reminded his readers and students

that if we can't get a small task properly done,

we are not going to get any other task properly done too.

This applies to the mindset in wealth management,

according to Eker:

Many people do not know

how to handle small amount of money,

and hence, even when they come across

opportunities to make big money,

they do not have the capacity to embrace the blessing.

To Eker, financial wellness is closely linked with mind wellness.

If one mind thinks that

one can be reckless with little tasks in day-to-day life,

the chance is, this very person is also reckless

in every other aspect of life, including financial wellness.

Hence, to become financially well,

first learn to be mindful with our day-to-day little tasks :)

Well wishes,

Kee Yew

How to carve a statue of glory with our teeth :B

When I first became a vegetarian 7 years ago,

it was mainly due to the desperate search for

inner peace and a better health.

Soon after that,

I gathered from my vegetarian friends

at the Vegetarian Society

that going vegetarian is more than just

a compassion and wellness affair.

It's also a glorious mission to

conserve the environment and

sustain the resources on Earth.

This is mainly because the way mankind

consumes meat in large scale is actually very inefficient

in term of energy and resource usage.

This powerpoint slide "Diet and Earth"

will give a good picture :)

So, when cutting down or refraining from meat,

we naturally fulfill our obligation as an Earthling,

reducing the wastage of

the blessings from Mother Earth.

We heard we can dig our own graves with our teeth

(if we do not eat healthily).

Now, we also know we can carve a statue of glory

with the very same set of teeth.

The much-talked-about environmental issue

actually boils down to a choice of wisdom =)

Well wishes,

Kee Yew

.

Laying A Foundation For A Quality Life

Like many people,
I went thru' a lot of confusion and frustration
when I was at younger age.

There were
a lot of things in the world
that I couldn't agree with, and
a lot problems in the society
that I couldn't find solutions for.

Fortunately,
these confusion and frustration
slowly fade off
along my soul searching path on Buddhism
in recent years.

In fact, after learning Buddhism,
my life quality improves
year by year, month by month, day by day,
be it from the perspectives of
inner peace, clarity of mind, bodily health or financial wellness.

One of my Buddhist teachers
that I am deeply grateful of
is Venerable Chin Kung (淨空法師)
who laid a strong foundation for my quality life.

During his Dharma teaching,
Venerable Chin Kung
repeatedly emphasizes on
The Three Fundamental Barriers to Awareness:
Wandering Thought, Discrimination and Attachment
(妄想 分别 执著)

With this seemingly simple but profound teaching,
I manage to weather thru' a lot of difficulties/uncertainties,
hence could live a quality life :)

More about
妄想 分别 执著
@ http://www.amtfweb.org/kaishi/fsmwt.htm

More about
Buddhism
@ http://www.amtfweb.org/english/english-index.htm


Well wishes,
Kee Yew

.

Be Responsible To The Environment, Go Organic!

One of the most common perceptions
about organic food,
when I surveyed in my past vegetarian classes,
is that
organic food is uncontaminated
and is very good for our health.

While this is a very true perception
on organic food,
I will usually try to divert my students' focus
on its positive impact on the environment
rather than just personal bodily health.

The word Organic is coined in recent decades
to contrast the concept of chemical agriculture.
Intrinsically, Organic Agriculture means
sustainable agriculture,
in opposed to the unsustainable chemical agriculture.

Chemical agriculture not only
introduces a lot of toxins in our body,
it also kills the microenvironment of the soil,
and eventually leads to permanent damage of the land.

Human beings have lived on Earth
for almost uncountable number of years, and
our ancestors have never claimed that
there is not enough land or not enough food to live on.
It's only in recent decades,
our generation faces the lack of land
due to the increasing land damage of chemical farming.

We can yell a thousand big words
on the street or in the newspaper,
in the name of environment protection;
but mother Earth will never get well
if we do not take action to exercise our due responsibililty.

Today, you may take your first baby step,
by visiting one of the organic stores listed here :D

http://cielosereno.net/healthfoodshop.htm

Well wishes,
Kee Yew

.

During Financial Storm, Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining

According to Robert Kiyosaki,
the rules of capitalism have changed since 1971.
(see video clips @ richdad.com for why)

Under this new capitalism
as Kiyosaki pointed out,
people who saves money (actually currency)
will lose.

In his teachings, he suggests
investment that generates monthly cash flow.

In situation where there isn't enough money
for cashflow investment,
he recommends turning the currency on hand
into Gold or Silver which are closest to real money.

Kiyosaki especially recommends investing in Silver now
to cushion a great financial storm ahead,
anticipated in the next 2-3 years
-- this crisis will be worsen by USD
which is being printed at a rate of in quad trillion p.a.
to "pay for debts"

Silver was once very abundant
and therefore not many people pay attention to it;
however,
today, silver is so scarce that
the circulating amount of silver on Earth
is many fold below that of gold.

Silver is deminishing because
silver has been heavily used
in modern electronic and electrical industries,
and
silver is constantly thrown away
along with the used EE devices.

It's anticipated that in the next few years,
when the economy worsens,
Silver may fetch a price 40-100x higher than current price.

To buy silver bullion coins/bars for investment,
try out these 2 reliable companies which offer decent prices:

GoldSilver.com
-- recommended by Kiyosaki
-- now ship to Malaysia and Singapore
-- may also opt to keep your silver in their vaults

PerthMint.com.au
-- my biz partners and I have already bought some from them
-- requires customers to call in to purchase bullion coins/bars
-- may purchase collector silver coins online, but more expensive

Enjoy the silver shopping spree :)


Good day,
Kee Yew

How to Interprete Messages of The Universe

A number of years back,
when I was a student at a Dharma Class
of Singapore Buddhist Federation,
I was very delighted to pick up this very
precious teaching from Sakyamuni,
called "The Four Reliances" (四依止)

The Four Reliances is a Learning Skill
that Sakyamuni taught to his disciples
just before he entered Nirvana (passed away),
in order that his disciples and many dharma students
generations to come,
do not misinterprete dharma, the truth of universe.

I apply this very powerful Learning Skill
in my day-to-day life,
not just in dharma studies; and
I have reaped a lot of benefits
in term of learning efficiency and accuracy of interpretation.

The Four Reliances are:

During the course of learning just anything,

(1) Rely on the Dharma rather than the teacher
依法不依人
.. follow the teachings of a person
rather than blindly following the person's deed

(2) Rely on the words rather than the letter of the teachings
依义不依语
.. follow to the essense of / message underlying the teachings
rather than the superficial phrases of the teachings

(3) Rely on the ultimate meaning rather than the provisional meanings
依了义不依不了义
.. follow the core and comprehensive principles of a teaching
rather than the expedient/non-comprehensive guidelines of a teaching

(4) Rely on wisdom rather than common afflictions
依智不依识
.. follow the guidances that arise from the calm awareness/consciousness
rather than mis-leading and illusive phenomena derived from our 5 senses

Basically, with this Learning Skill,
we need to constantly "read between the lines"
the messages fed to us from our surrounding at every instance.
Without a clear mind and
the skill to interprete the massive information flooding our brain everyday
we easily get misled or misguided.

May this precious method of learning
brings you clarity and the bliss of awareness.


With metta,
Kee Yew

p/s: detailed explanation of 4 Reliances here:
http://www.merit-times.cn/NewsPage.aspx?Unid=128022
http://www.merit-times.com.tw/NewsPage.aspx?Unid=132039

.

Nutrition and Cancer Update by Prof Colin Campbell

Last month, I was recommending this book called:
"The China Study"
which describes how the diet we choose
may influence cancer risk.

And now, the author of "The China Study"
Professor Colin Campbell
will be here in Singapore!
Real soon! 18-20 July 09!!

If you have always wanted the 1st hand scientific update
on nutrition and cancer research,
please do attend one these precious events
hosted by the Vegetarian Society of Singapore:

Sat. 18 July 2009, 2.00 pm to 6.00 pm - Singapore Conference Hall

Sun. 19 July 2009, 2.30 pm to 6.00 pm - Singapore Management University (Specially for medical, health and education professionals, and students in those fields)

Mon. 20 July 2009, 8.00 am to 5.45 pm - The World Nutrition, Health & Disease Conference 2009 - Singapore Biopolis

Apparently, Prof Colin Campbell is really expensive to invite over,
so there may not be a second chance to have him in Singapore again.

Bring a few friends
who would like to learn more about cancer and nutrition,
buckle up and
watch Prof Campbell revealing the inconvenient truth
behind nutrition and cancer in modern history!


Metta,
Kee Yew

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Can we handle the food of future?

A couple of years ago,
I came across this documentary
"The Future of Food"
that I always feel compelled
to share with my friends.

It's a sincere documentary that
narrates, analyses and criticises
the history of and the drive behind
the evolving forms of our food.

It describes how our food agriculture has
gone from all-natural-organic not so long ago
to pesticide-infested
to frankenstein-GMO in recent decade.

Food is not food nowadays,
it's a compound that is seen as a fuel
to drive the economy and
to fulfill the greed of
some monstrous corporates.
That's my personal perception
after watching this documentary.

Another sentiment
that was triggered by the film
was that we seriously need a lot more good will
to counterfeit the conspiracies behind
the disheartening food politics today.

If this introductory trailer on youtube
interests you,
you may want to get a copy of the DVD
to support the good cause.

Intensive public education is urgently needed.


With metta,
Kee Yew

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Simple and Nutritious Recipe to Share: Millet Quinoa Congee

This is one of a few recipes that
I usually cling onto during my busy times.
It's hassle-free, little hands-on, tasty and nutritous!

~~~~~~
小3米粥 Millet Quinoa Congee
(2人份)

小米 millet
......................................................1/4 量米杯 1/4 cup
小小米 quinoa
......................................................1/4 量米杯 1/4 cup
水 water
......................................................3 量米杯 3 cups
岩盐 rock salt
......................................................1/2 茶匙 1/2 teaspoon
葡萄子油 grapeseed oil
......................................................2 汤匙 2 tablespoon
素食三宝 3-booster
......................................................2 汤匙 2 tablespoon
猴头菇 (泡软) monkey-head mushroom (soaked)
.......................................................2 朵 2 pieces
海带芽 baby Wakame seaweed
......................................................1 汤匙 1 tablespoon
腰豆 cahsew nuts
......................................................1 汤匙 1 tablespoon


-- 把所有材料混合煮开，放入焖烧锅里焖45分钟，即可上桌。
-- mix all ingredients and bring to boil;
place into Thermo -cooker for 45min and serve hot.

** millet and quinoa are alkalic, high in proteins
and easy to digest (hence good for friends with gastric problem)
~~~~~~~

For more simple cooking ideas,
check out this humble little cookbook "Simple Vegetarian" :D


Good day,
Kee Yew

{Learning Holistic Welnness for Wisdom and Compassion}

Get to know more about Detoxification

Detoxification is becoming like a trend nowadays.

While it is good sign that
more people are getting conscious
about their heath and diet,
detoxification is truly a topic that
most people understand very little about.

A true detox goes way beyond
just taking a few pills and
rush to the toilet a few times a day.

Before going thru' detox,
it's important to understand
1. What toxins are
2. Where toxins are
3. Channels to purge toxins
4. Manual Interventions to facilitate the purging of toxins
5. Preparation prior to Detox
6. Augmentation to enhance Detox
7. Follow-up after Detox

Kampung Senang Holistic Lifestyle Centre @ Aljunied
organises Detox Workshops all year round.

One can be immensely benefited
by participating in one of their comprehensive educative Detox workshops
from the list here:
http://www.kg-senang.org.sg/Detox%20schedule%202009_23jun09.pdf

Happy Detoxing =)
Kee Yew

.

Secrets of The Millionaire Mind

"Secrets of The Millionaire Mind" by T. Harv Eker
was first recommended to me
by my cooking teacher Glenis Lim 2 years ago.

She insisted that I must read it
and also attend the Millionaire Intensive Workshop,
as they will change my mind template
that dictates my financial wellness.

And indeed, I did as told, and now I couldn't be more grateful
with Glenis and Harv for kicking start my path to financial wellness.

There is one very simple and yet important thing
in the book and the workshop,
that Harv insisted his readers/audience to practise,
that is the Jar System.

A lot of people complain that
they want to be rich,
yet with little capital to start off an investment;
they want to be financially smart,
yet have not much savings to go for financial education.

To get out our financial foundation laid,
Harv repetitively asks to implement this
humble yet effective Jar System
that will change one's financial blueprint:

Every month, sort your income and spend according to
the following Jar System:

> Necessity Account (NEC - 55%):
This account is for managing your everyday expenses and bills.
This would include things like your rent, utilities, bills, taxes, food, clothes, etc.
Basically it includes anything that you need to live, the necessities.

> Financial Freedom Account (FFA - 10%):
This is your golden goose.
This jar is your ticket to financial freedom.
The money that you put into this jar is used for investments
and building your passive income streams.
You never spend this money.
The only time you would spend this money
is once you become financially free.
Even then you would only spend the returns on your investment.
Never spend the principal or else you’ll go broke!

> Education Account (EDU - 10%):
Money in this jar is meant to further your education
and personal growth.
An investment in yourself is a great way to use your money.
You are your most valuable asset.
Never forget this.
Use education money to purchase books, CD’s, courses
or anything else that has educational value.

> Long Term Saving for Spending Account (LTSS - 10%):
The money in this jar is for the bigger nice-to-have purchases.
If you'd like to have some new 'toys' or home improvement equipment,
this is the account that you should be withdrawing from.
A small monthly contribution goes a long way.
-- You may also double the percentage of this account to pay for your debts.
(hence reducing 10% in Necessity Account)

> Play Account (PLAY - 10%):
This is everybody's favorite account.
PLAY money has to be fully spent every month or every 3 months
on purchases you wouldn’t normally make.
The purpose of this jar is to motivate yourself on the wealthy path.
You could purchase an expensive bottle of wine at dinner,
get a massage or go on a weekend getaway.
Play can be anything your heart desires.

> Give Account (GIVE - 5%):
The money in this account is for giving away.
If you don't have money, give time (ie. volunteering).
When you give your money or time,
you’re sending a sign of abundance to the Universe.
You’re telling the Universe
that you have plenty of everything, you’re abundant.
Giving signals of abundance.
This will magnetically attract more abundance to you.


Prosperous Wishes!
Kee Yew

.

The Twelve Interconnected Causes

People ask about, all the time, tiredlessly,
the causes of sorrow, misery, tragedies
or even the origin of life.

Not knowing that a few thousands years ago,
Sakyamuni had already pointed out
the twelve essential steps that lead to all sufferings.

These twelve sequential steps or
the twelve interconnected causes (十二因緣)
indicate that we ourselves
are actually the source of all problems,
because we allow the following cascade of events to occur:

1. non-brightness [ignorance] (無明);
2. action (行);
3. consciousness (識);
4. name and form (名色);
5. the six sense organs (六入);
6. touch (觸);
7. feel (受);
8. craving (愛);
9. grasping (取);
10. becoming (有);
11. birth (生);
12. aging and death (老死)

Knowing the sequence above leads to sufferings,
in order to solve the problems in our lives,
the linkage above has to be disrupted.

Usually, the enlightened gurus will encourage
disrupting the linkage by

a. eliminating ignorance (i.e. awareness) and
b. eliminating craving (i.e. curbing greed)

It may sound easier said than done,
but at least now we know where to start from :)

Making strong vows to gain awareness and to reduce personal greed
will help sustain us throughout the difficult path of soul liberation.

That is one of the most important lessons
I have learnt in Dharma classes in the past few years.
All the time time,
I feel compelled to share this with family & friends around,
with the hope that their life quality will improve
with a bit of wisdom from Sakyamuni...


With metta,
Kee Yew


.

To-Do's and Not-To-Do's The Great Depression Ahead

During the 4-Day workshop with T. Harv Eker 2 weeks ago,
another great speaker, Harry Dent,
gave an impressive seminar via the teleconferencing.

This best-selling author and economist,
touched based on the 12 evidences that lead
to the imminent Great Depression
(already started and expected to bottom around 2011)

The 12 evidences were comprehensively derived from
multiple perspectives of the economy, analysing
the tech bubble, geopolitical cycle, the housing bubble,
the oil and commodity bubble,
the weakening baby boom spending wave and etc...

(more info: http://www.hsdent.com)

Dent's seminar finally ended with two full screen of
advice to handle this serious economy downturn
that will finally lead to deflation.

Some of the notes taken from the screen:

"Cash/Cash flow is King" ... Steps for Surviving the Shake-out
- Identify the parts/lines/stores of your business that are least profitable
and that you want to keep. Sell and divest the rest to increase cash/cashflow
- sell unnecessary real estate in 2009 to create cash and lease/rent until 2012.
- cut unnecessary cost now before being forced to later
- outsource non-strategic functions for greater focus and flexibility
- defer capital expenditure until downturn bottoms up and costs fall.
Focus now on investments that increase cash flow near term
- pay off high interest loans by late 2009/early 2010
and refinance at lower rates later ... if you will be credit worthy
- structure fixed rate loans/mortgages that switch to
variable rates from late 2010 foward
- structure leases/loans to mature between mid 2011 and mid 2013
for best leverage to renegotiate or refinance
- protect your personal assests from lawsuits - trusts, variable annuities


Cash is King ... Investor Strategies for Surviving Deflation
- sell stocks/business investments on likely bounce into Apr or Jul
- sell commodities into likely bounce into late 2009/early 2010
- sell investment,noncore real estate by fall of 2009
- pay down high interest debt
- refinance mortgages now and/or mid-2011-late 2012
... fixed rates until late 2010/early 2011/early 2012
- lock in long term government bonds around mid 2010
- lock in long term corporate bonds around late 2010
- lock in municipal bonds around late 2010/mid 2011
- reinvest in Asian Stocks around Late 2010
- reinvest in health care/Australian Growth sotcks around mid 2012
- reinvest in select real estate around late 2012/early 2013
- sell stocks again around early to mid 2017
- reinvest long term between early 2020 and late 2022
- avoid East Asia after 2019 (China South Korea, Japan)



With Metta,
Kee Yew

p/s: Further recommended reading on
Harry Dent's "Great Depression Ahead"





.

Learning effectively with the right techniques

I was in Kiyosaki's workshop a month ago
and was delighted to come across this
Cone of Learning.

It depicts the types of learning method
and the corresponding retention rates of
what being learnt after 2 weeks:
























This explains why the style
of modern teachings encourages a lot of
interaction, participation and practicals.

From the Cone of Learning,
it's not hard to comprehend the importance of
putting what learnt in practice immediately;
also, why simply reading a lot of books or attending a lot seminars
does not necessarily make one much wiser and fulfilled in one's life :)


Metta,
Kee Yew

Want a stretch?

Victor, a friend of mine,
who is a Yin Yoga teacher and
also manages yoga events,
set up this very resourceful website
Yoga In Asia

If you'd like a stretch
after being tied up at work for some time
and do not know where to unwind,
check out the website's listing of
many retreats/workshops local or overseas.

I especially recommend
the Yin Yoga Retreat in Nepal 10-16 Oct
which is conducted by Victor himself.


Have a nice day!
Kee Yew

We are moving into Ice Age in 10 Years!

I was at this beach cleaning session
a couple of weeks ago, and
had a conversation with Esther, a staff from
the Singapore Environmental Council (SEC).

I expressed my concern about the ice cap at the North Pole
melting within the next year or so
and Esther added:
"...if we were to continue the current pace of pollution,
experts say we could be going into Ice Age in 10 Years!"

The melting ice cap was already bad enough and
I definitely didn't expect
an Ice Age in my life time.
I was shocked and terrified!

Understood that there is no point worrying
a predicted outcome that has not even come yet.
But we really need to take action immediately to
eliminate any chance for that kind of thing to happen.

-- talking about pollution,
I wasvery impressed when my yoga friend, Bala recommended me
this website a few years ago:
www.storyofstuff.com

There is this cartoon flash movie on this website
explaining how pollution is actually heavily driven by
CONSUMERISM.

After the flash movie,
it's not hard to agree that
the true way to help save the Earth from an accelerated Ice Age
would be a strategic cut down on consumerism globally.
Otherwise, how 'reducing' a few plastic bags per day
is going to catch up with the speed of rubbish output nowadays?

.

4 Ways to Build a Good Relationship

Along the years on my Buddhism path,
one of the most impressive teachings that I have learnt
and have reaped the most practical benefits of
is
the 4 Dharmas of Attraction (四攝法)

This teaching of Buddha
that Boddhisttvas employ to approach and save sentient beings
changes my life.
It improves my relationship with family,
friends and colleagues.
It also facilitates tremendously
my on-going endeavour of public vegetarian education.

The 4 Dharmas of Attraction are:

1. Giving (布施), giving the gift of Dharma or something that people like;
2. Using kind words (愛語);
3. Acting for the purpose of benefit to them (利行);
4. Physically working together with them (同事).

Hope this precious teaching benefits you a great deal too!


Nice day :)
Kee Yew


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