Buddhism and quantum physics
Op-Ed: Christian Thomas Kohl
Freiburg, Germany, March 11 — What is reality? The mindsets of the modern world provide four answers to the question and oscillate between these answers:
1. The traditional Jewish, Islamic and Christian religions speak about a creator that holds the world together. He represents the fundamental reality. If He were separated only for one moment from the world, the world would disappear immediately. The world can only exist because He is maintaining and guarding it. This mindset is so fundamental that even many modern scientists cannot deviate from it. The laws of nature and elementary particles now supersede the role of the creator.
2. René Descartes takes into consideration a second mindset where the subject or the subjective model of thought is fundamental. Everything else is nothing but derived from it.
3. According to a third holistic mindset, the fundamental reality should consist of both, subject and object. Everything should be one. Everything should be connected with everything.
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September 2nd, 2010 | Tags: Buddhism, Christian Thomas, Quantum Physics | Category: Culture, Education, Social | Leave a comment
July 27, 2010
The New York Times
Editorial
It is disturbing that the Cambodian prime minister, Hun Sen, has said the court will not prosecute more suspects than the ones in custody. One has to ask, whom is he trying to protect?
Thirty years later, Cambodia’s “killing fields” are still haunting. A Buddhist memorial displays 5,000 haphazardly arranged human skulls — a tiny fraction of the 1.7 million Cambodians butchered by the Khmer Rouge.
While the world must never forget what happened, there is at least the beginning of justice. On Monday, a United Nations-backed tribunal convicted Kaing Guek Eav, known as Duch, of war crimes and crimes against humanity — the first major Khmer Rouge figure to be tried since the regime was overthrown. He has already spent 16 years in prison, and the tribunal sentenced him to another 19 years.
Duch oversaw a notorious prison where more than 14,000 people were tortured and killed. During an eight-month trial, he admitted to many of the charges against him. His defense — he was a “cog in a machine” — is no defense at all.
We understand why many of the victims of the Khmer Rouge and their families were disappointed that he was not given life in prison. He should never taste freedom, but at least he was held to account and he will be 86 years old when his sentence is served.
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July 28th, 2010 | Tags: justice, Kaing Kec Eav alas Duch, trial, war crime and humaniyt | Category: Education, Politics, Researches | Leave a comment
While my mother, four siblings and I escaped Pol Pot’s Cambodia in 1976, my father died of dysentery and malnutrition after a brief stay at a mite-infested Khmer Rouge “hospital.” Although I have harbored grave doubts about the ability of the Khmer Rouge Tribunal underway in Phnom Penh to punish the guilty, I hoped for the best and even filed a civil complaint with the Tribunal’s victims unit last year.
But I can no longer in good conscience sit back in silence and watch this theater of the absurd. As with so many other donor-financed projects, the Tribunal—set up in 2006 to bring justice to millions of Khmer Rouge victims—has been mired in an endless stream of corruption and mismanagement allegations.
The latest news came on August 11, when Uth Chhorn was named to the court as an independent counselor. Mr. Chhorn is Cambodia’s auditor-general and heads the seven-year-old National Audit Authority, which is supposed to audit the government’s activities. It has yet to make a single report public. His appointment was sanctioned by the United Nations, which manages the court alongside the Cambodian government.
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July 18th, 2010 | Tags: Cambodian Justice, Khmer Rouge, Victims | Category: Culture, Education, Politics, Social | Comments (2)
Independence Monument; Vann Molyvann, architect (All photos: Luke Duggleby for The Wall Street Journal)
A lone figure walks the stands of Vann Molyvann’s Olympic Stadium.
The Chaktomuk Conference Hall, one of Mr. Molyvann’s earliest designs, was built in 1961.
The library at the Institute for Foreign Languages, now part of the Royal University of Phnom Penh
More of Mr. Molyvann’s work at the Institute for Foreign Languages
Yet more of the institute
Modern Masterpieces
MAY 28, 2010
By TOM VATER
The Wall Street Journal
Vann Molyvann, Cambodia’s greatest living architect, recalls that the night his Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh was completed, in 1964, “I took my wife to see the work.” Sitting in the top tier of the stands, they listened to Dvorák’s “New World Symphony” over the stadium’s speaker system. “It was one of the great moments of my life.”
In the years after Cambodia won independence from France in 1953, Mr. Molyvann—then scarcely in his 30s—set out under the tutelage of King Norodom Sihanouk to transform Phnom Penh from a colonial backwater into a modern city. But in the late 1960s the country was drawn into decades of war and terror, including years under the murderous Khmer Rouge regime, and Mr. Molyvann’s vision was virtually forgotten. The architect himself had to flee the country.
And while he returned in triumph after more than 20 years abroad, it was to find that grand titles didn’t translate into influence in today’s Cambodia. His legacy—structures in a style dubbed New Khmer Architecture—lives on, contributing significantly to the flair of the city, but even that is in danger as Phnom Penh, like other Asian capitals, clears historic buildings to make room for skyscrapers.
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May 28th, 2010 | Tags: Khmer archetect, Vann Molyvan | Category: Culture, Education, Social | Comments (2)
Monk, Hoeurn Somnieng receives a degree in business management from St. Ambrose University in Iowa, USA. (Photo: Courtesy of Life and Hope Association)
Nuch Sarita, VOA Khmer
Washington, D.C Tuesday, 18 May 2010
“It was a very profound experience for me. In a period of great suffering, I was kind of not knowing what to do, and I just sat and closed my eyes and focused on my breathing.”
One determined monk says he wants to use his education and experience from the US to help fund a number of projects, including a network that helps combat child trafficking.
Hoeurn Somnieng is the deputy head of Wat Damnak pagoda in Siem Reap. He studied at St. Ambrose University in Iowa in 2008. He says now he plans to return to Cambodia with a degree in business management and ideas to help his home country.
“I want to use my education to represent people in need and to represent the poor and powerless,” Hoeurn Somnieng told VOA Khmer in a recent interview. “This education gives me a louder voice.”
Hoeurn Somnieng is the founder and executive director of a junior high school, a boarding house for girls, a vocational training program, an orphanage and the Life and Hope Association.
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May 19th, 2010 | Tags: Venerable Houn Somnieng | Category: Culture, Education, Politics, Social | Comments (4)
Wednesday, 05 May 2010 15:00 Tharum Bun
Respected for their religious adherence and intellectual curiousity, Buddhist monks have long been the backbone of Cambodian society. Regardless of how religious Cambodian citizens are, the men walking around in colorful yellow-orange saffron are an integral part of everyday life and one of the main forces revitalising the Kingdom’s spirit.
When he was younger, Hou Chhivneath was difficult to deal with and his parents decided to send him to a Buddhist pagoda for a short spell, where most elders believe that the monks and serene surroundings can provide a basic foundation for young boys and adults to develop into mature and peaceful men.
“My father wanted me to be a monk for a while to learn how to deal with life and to be a good man for my family and other people,” Hou Chhivneath said of his initial entrance into monkhood in 1989.
“Dedicated monks usually work hard on their own, so that they can play a significant part in awakening citizens to the importance of culture and tradition, social morality, Khmer civilisation and Buddhism in particular,” explained the 30-year-old monk who hails from Takeo province.
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May 5th, 2010 | Tags: Life of a Monk, Ven. Chhivneath | Category: Culture, Education, Social | Comments (5)
Letters from abroad
Wednesday, 28 April 2010 15:00 Sophan Seng
The health-care system in Canada provides almost free medication and health services for all tax-paying Canadians. The local government of Alberta has recently reformed its health-care policy to provide free-of-charge health services for all Albertans, regardless of their income or social status. While many other sectors have been effectively privatised, the health-care System is still operated by the government. Having guaranteed health-care from the government has attracted more people to settle down and make their living in Alberta.
People in all countries agree that the health of citizens is a priority, and in Canada, citizens have agreed that subsidising healthcare is a great way of making it more accessible for everyone. Canada is a fully democratic country and politicians, representing ordinary citizens, have agreed that supporting healthcare is a good use of tax money. Canadians not only spend tax money on healthcare; they also pay for other public goods such as playgrounds, public parks, roads and schools. According to a news release on February 9, 2010, the government of Alberta will focus on healthcare as the priority in its 2010 budget. The report says that “despite current fiscal challenges, the Alberta government will increase funding for health, basic education and support for seniors and vulnerable Albertans, while maintaining the lowest taxes in Canada”.
As a result, Albertans won’t have to worry about the high price of healthcare like people do in the United States. Since they needn’t worry about the cost, a growing number of families have family doctors for personal health checks. Many people visit their family doctor regularly or sometimes on a monthly basis. Sopheap Ros, who migrated to Alberta with his parents when he was 3-years-old from a refugee camp on the Thai-Cambodian border, now holds an Alberta Health Card that enables him to visit doctors freely, get blood tests, X-rays and medical consultations. “I am free of frustration regarding health problems. I have regularly visited my family doctor to ensure that I am healthy,” Sopheap Ros said.
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April 28th, 2010 | Tags: health, health care | Category: Economics, Education, Researches, Social | Comments (4)
Letters from abroad
Wednesday, 21 April 2010 15:00 Sophan Seng
There is a popular saying that “to live is to work”, and while life is not all about work, the saying seems to hold true in Canada, Cambodia and around the world. Most people cannot live without a job, but the approach from the governments in various countries to the problem of unemployment differs greatly. It might be interesting for you to hear about the ways in which Canada’s government and private sector have intervened in order to help more citizens get jobs and keep the ones they have.
First, there is a growing number of job search agencies who help both new and experienced workers find jobs suitable to their educational background and experiences. Enrolled students learn about networking strategies, curriculum vitae, cover letters and interviewing skills. These agencies also partner with private groups and the government to launch job fairs, which exist in Cambodia on a smaller scale, in order to bring together employers and employees. In fact, I was employed as a result of my participation in a job fair.
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April 21st, 2010 | Tags: job, job fairs, job hunters | Category: Economics, Education, Social | Comments (4)
Wednesday, 07 April 2010 15:00 Sophan Seng
April is a busy month for Cambodians all over the Khmer diaspora since Khmer New Year is fast approaching. Since the holiday is not recognised by governments in foreign countries, Cambodians living abroad must wait for the weekend to celebrate the holiday. Some communities celebrate the holiday at Buddhist temples, but more often than not, people celebrate the new year in public halls or other rented spaces.
While the location of the celebration may not be familiar to many Cambodians, the events themselves have changed little among Cambodians living abroad. Go to a Khmer New Year celebration in Canada and you are likely to see authentic food, religious ceremonies, popular games, and traditional arts and entertainment.
The thing that always impresses me most is the beauty of the women wearing traditional Khmer outfits. The graceful appearance of Khmer women and their styles of dress have remained intact. “I have always worn traditional Khmer outfits to attend Khmer festivals, wedding ceremonies and traditional gatherings,” said Kimleine, who has been living away from Cambodia since she was a toddler.
I would say that every Khmer family I know has plenty of traditional clothes for such events. Peddlers display different styles of Khmer cloths every time a cultural event is upcoming.
“I like the style a lot, especially Khmer traditional outfits for weddings,” said Kimleine.
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April 7th, 2010 | Category: Culture, Education, Social, Tourism | Comments (3)
Letters from abroad
Wednesday, 31 March 2010 15:00 Sophan Seng
Just few weeks ago, Canadians were proudly cheering on their team as they celebrated Canada’s gold-medal hockey win over America in the 2010 Olympic winter games held in Vancouver. Days afterwards, the National Hockey League (NHL) resumed its regular season, and in April the league will begin its own championship tournament. There are 32 hockey teams in the NHL who represent 32 cities with their hockey-playing prowess.
The league is divided into 16 teams on the West Coast and 16 teams on the East Coast. Canada has six teams in the East Coast league, with the other 26 teams coming from America. The playoffs are the grand finale of the season, where eight teams from each side of the continent play each other for the Stanley Cup, a trophy that is given to the league’s best team each year.
“I am cheering for the Calgary Flames to reach the playoffs,” said Kevin Troung, who is an 18-year-old fan of the Canadian hockey team. “They are currently battling with the Red Wings of Detroit to get a chance to enter the Stanley Cup finals.”
While football is the most popular sport in Cambodia, hockey is without a doubt the most popular sport in Canada, and the two games have many differences. In football, the players run around on the green grass wearing nothing but shin pads to protect themselves from injury. Hockey players, on the other hand, are equipped with helmets, padding and a stick that they use to move the puck (like a flattened ball) around the ice while they move around on their skates like hurricanes. Each side is composed of six players: three forwards who attempt to hit the puck into the opponent’s small goal, and two defenders and a goalie who try to stop the other team from scoring. Like soccer, the winner is the team that scores the most goals.
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March 31st, 2010 | Category: Economics, Internet, Social, Tourism | Comments (3)
