Lent, Buddhism and Non-attachment

Hello All
It's been a while since I last posted. I'm doing the best I can. It seems it is all I can do to keep most of the things I've committed to this Lent...hanging on!

I have lost 13 lbs. just by not eating meat, avoiding sweets and drinking mostly water. I still have not done much(any) exercise. I keep telling myself to at least walk around my neighborhood, but I don't do it. I have tried to move around a bit more, up and down the stairs a lot, parking a good distance away in parking lots and lifting small weights while watching TV. Aaron's coming home for spring break and I'm going to get him to help me jump start my exercise program. Thanks in advance Aaron. I have only missed one day of meditation. I simply forgot one day. Strange! And now my BIG failure---the Internet. I did not realize how hooked I am to this damn thing; mindless, useless searches for information and wasted time.

I have thought a lot about Lent and the Buddhist concept of attachment. In Buddhism attachment is at the root of all suffering. As a Buddhist, Lent is a time to try and be liberated from a few of my attachments if only for a while. Today I read the following: "If it leads to compassion, you know it's knowledge. Otherwise, it's just more information." (by Gerald Grow,c.1996-rev.2008) (I'll post more about my thoughts on attachment and lent later)


In the Theravada tradition of Buddhism (practiced in Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Laos, Burma Thailand, parts of Vietnam, Bangladesh and a few other places) there is a Buddhist Lent, called Vassa. This year it is from July 7 to Oct. 4. This is the rainy season in most of Asia and the monks and nuns stay in the temples and lay followers try to spend this time abstaining from things like meat, alcohol and other luxuries.

Although Mahayana Buddhist(practiced in China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam ) don't usually have any formal recognition for Vassa, I am going to find a way to observe this time, again working on my attachment to my laptop.

More on Vassa:

http://sunsite.au.ac.th/thailand/special_event/khaopunsa/index.html