Teaching Meditation And Psychic Power

Table of Contents Page The length of time needed to treat AIDS, cancer, and diseases with no known cure Method of teaching the use of mind power for good, fast results 1 The 3-stage teaching sequence 3 The 3 kinds of benefit that this power can be put to use for 5 The capability limits of beginning-level mind power 7 The capability limits of intermediate-level mind power 7 The capability limits of advanced-level mind power 9 The greatest merit is saving the lives of the many dying worldwide 10 The Buddha taught that there are 5 methods of treating illness 11 Causes that give rise to samadhi, and causes that keep samadhi practice from progressing 11 Chapter 1: The sequence for teaching the use of mind power by the method of veneration and recitation of chants, having the student actually perform and test it Stage 1: The invulnerability discipline (khong kraphan) 13 Stage 2: The discipline of scooping and drinking boiling water 34 Stage 3: Gathering red-hot chains, walking through fire 39 Stage 4: Inserting mercury for treating illness; inviting the teacher [spirit] 40 After insertion, the student is made to receive the mercury through the palm of the hand and to call the mercury back out

Page Chapter 2: Dispelling burning poison, and examining and treating illness with mind power 57 Chapter 3: Lecture given at Wat Khema, 8 December 2539 [1996] 81 Chapter 4: Method of practicing samadhi-vipassana for good, fast results 95 When samadhi first becomes good, follow the mind; the mind will arrange for samadhi to improve further 98 Ears going silent, and radiant light 101 7 essential principles for training the mind 102 The 4 protective meditation subjects (ārakkha-kammaṭṭhāna) 106 The 5-point curriculum for practicing samadhi in the forest 109 Timetable for practice 112 Chapter 5: The essence of the teaching of a teacher of high samadhi 115 4 causes that make samadhi rise to a high level quickly 117 Chapter 6: A brief lecture on the faults of practicing samadhi incorrectly, and how to correct them 126 Wrong view, right view, the benefits of right view 131 The blessings of mindfulness of the body 139 Chapter 7: The benefits of walking meditation, the benefits of practicing samadhi 143 The capabilities of the three levels of samadhi 152 The supreme philosophy: the Middle Way 159 Which method of practicing samadhi-vipassana is best 162 The causes that give rise to wrong view (micchā-diṭṭhi) 165

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How to Teach Mind Power Use for Good, Fast Results

Anyone interested in using the power of their mind, or mind power, to bring about various benefits quickly — that is, using only a single day of study to be able to use mind power for various benefits — can do so. For example, using mind power to gain a good memory and study well; using mind power to help one's work turn out well; using mind power to treat various illnesses for which Westerners still have no effective medicine, such as AIDS, cancer, certain kinds of tuberculosis, sinusitis, diabetes, asthma, tonsillitis, certain viruses, dry-type ringworm/eczema, enlarged prostate, kidney stones and gallstones, shingles, herpes, and rabies once symptoms have appeared — all of these can be cured quickly by using herbal medicine or medicine combined with mind power and the power of the Buddha's virtue. The detailed method of treatment is set out in "Modern Traditional Medicine" (แพทย์สามแผนนำสมัย), which has all the essential headings complete: name of illness, symptoms, treatment method, dietary restrictions, self-conduct, and the method of using samadhi to treat oneself and to treat others. Having read it, if you still have doubts you may ask; and if you wish to study further in order to obtain good results in treatment, I am glad to teach — without charging any fee. I have been teaching students for 40 years now, from B.E. 2500 [1957] onward, up to the present, B.E. 2540 [1997]. In this period some teachers have taken foreign-style methods of treating various illnesses

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to teach in Thailand — but how good the results really are can easily be judged by comparing their results in treatment with the Thai method obtained from the teaching of forest-dwelling teachers (phra ajarn nai dong), together with the skill from research and experimentation which the writer (Colonel Chom) has carried out in treatment for over 40 years. I affirm truthfully that everything written here discusses and compares Western modern medicine and Thai traditional medicine only — nothing is said about Thai modern medicine, since that is already clearly known to everyone, if one considers it carefully and thoughtfully. If Thai modern-medicine doctors feel that anything here touches on or damages Thai modern medicine, or contains anything that causes harm, please inform the writer (Colonel Chom) so that it can be corrected promptly. If everyone helps bring modern medicine and traditional medicine to cooperate sincerely, both Thai and foreign, then more and more lives can be saved among the many now dying from diseases that Western doctors cannot treat successfully or for which no medicine has yet been devised — because changing environmental conditions cause new diseases to arise, and old diseases to change into strange new forms, so that their symptoms appear differently from before and examination and treatment fail to work, for reasons to be discussed further. What is said here about Western medicine is not guesswork — the writer has gone to study worldly subjects in America twice, observing work

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once, and has also gone to various other countries, reading foreign news and texts and considering them with samadhi, along with learning from the forest-dwelling teacher, a man of psychic power who had also once been a Thai modern-medicine doctor. And the writer has treated various illnesses for a long time, over 40 years. "Cooperation is better than foolish conflict."

The teaching and study method of the forest-dwelling teachers is this: it is a complete teaching following the Buddha's teaching as it appears in the Tipitaka.

The method for teaching the use of mind power so that it truly produces various benefits, and produces them quickly, has the following sequence:

1. First teach the student to practice samadhi correctly, because as samadhi rises, mind power arises correspondingly higher in sequence. Even without intending power to arise, it will arise by itself, naturally. Therefore one must teach samadhi to be done correctly, teaching the student to examine the results of their own samadhi — to know for themselves at what level their samadhi stands, and how to train it to improve further.

2. Teach the student to project mind power outward, proceeding from easy to difficult — that is, teach the student to project mind power onto lime paste (ปูน, chewing-lime) held at the fingertips, releasing power into the lime paste so as to change its taste. Test this until it becomes

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possible to become invulnerable (khong kraphan) as well. Next, the student is taught to project mind power onto water or oil that is boiling, at about 110 degrees, so as to remove its harm entirely — so that anyone can plunge a hand into the boiling water and scoop it up and drink it with no danger. The next stage is to project mind power onto an iron chain heated in fire until red-hot, so the hand can touch that red-hot chain, and can even gather up the red-hot chain in the hand. Before every stage of testing, the student must be taught to check first that all harm has been removed and there is no danger, and to dare to test it, everyone.

3. Once one is certain that one truly has mind power and can truly project that mind power outward, one is then taught to project mind power to treat illness by various methods, with real results. The first stage teaches the use of mind power to direct harmless mercury in through the palm of the hand so that it will travel through and treat illness within a person's body. But on this occasion it must be demonstrated that the power of the Buddha's virtue, the power of one's teachers, and the power of one's parents can be invoked to help make the mercury enter the patient's body without the need to use one's own mind power at all, without reciting any incantation — the mercury runs into the person's body by the power of the Buddha's virtue alone. This produces a power of belief that can be proven and tested. And for this reason, the power of the Buddha's virtue is used as belief, in combination with the use of the power of samadhi, as the essential foundation to help treat various illnesses with good results, and with fast results, by explaining the method of projecting mind power to treat illness

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one by one; or the use of medicine combined with mind power — however it is done, it is explained and demonstrated openly, hiding no knowledge. Those who believe that some other power can help should try it out to see whether it truly helps or not, and how much or little it helps, and how much time is needed to learn it, so as to inform one's own judgment.

In summary, the mind power to be used for producing benefit is of 2 kinds: the power of belief, and the power of samadhi.

1. Power arising from belief — this is the method used by Westerners and taught in many schools; it requires more time spent learning before belief is achieved.

2. Power arising from samadhi — this has great effects, from the beginning level up to the highest level, able to display various psychic powers, and able to reach nibbana.

3. Using the power of samadhi as the foundation, combined with belief — this is the method that gives the best results and can be tested and shown to be true; it can be learned and proven with full clarity.

Teaching to treat illness in the Western manner teaches the student to go straight to treating illness, while the learner still does not know for certain whether they have power that can be sent to treat illness or not — and if they do have it, they do not know how much or how little. This is doubt and hesitation, which is the fifth and final hindrance (nivarana)

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that blocks the arising of success. If someone believes wholeheartedly, they may indeed treat illness with moderate or even good results. Afterward, having observed and considered the use of the Thai method of treatment, which gets good results because it uses samadhi to help, Western training curricula at their most advanced levels have accordingly begun teaching the use of samadhi as an aid too. But the time needed for study to get good results is still many days or many years, so the results obtained are only fair.

But being taught in the manner of the forest-dwelling teachers, which brings together and summarizes other sections of Dhamma in the Tipitaka to jointly explain and elaborate matters clearly, with a practical sequence proceeding step by step from easy to difficult, makes learning fast. A person who has never practiced samadhi at all, or who has practiced only to the beginning level, can learn to do samadhi correctly, and can learn to measure for themselves what level of samadhi they have, and how to train further to progress — and can learn to project the power of the Buddha's virtue and the power of samadhi to treat various illnesses with good, fast results. As already stated, it takes only a single day to complete the study and obtain results, even to the point of actually treating various illnesses.

The forest-dwelling teacher teaches with emphasis on the use of the power of the Buddha's virtue and mind power as a subject one must pass through without clinging to it — it is a "child's-play" subject; what is correct is to hasten to train samadhi to progress ever further.

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When one applies real effort and truly practices according to the Buddha's teaching, it takes only about 3 months to reach intermediate-level samadhi. Intermediate samadhi has far greater power than the beginning level.

The Capability Limits of Beginning-Level Mind Power

Beginning-level mind power helps improve one's ability in both body and mind beyond the ordinary, increasing strength, endurance, and diligence; it helps give a good memory and good health; it increases knowledge and understanding of various subjects; morale and confidence improve. In special circumstances, or when testing this level of power, one can test being cut or stabbed by a person's own force without the blade penetrating, with no harm; one can dip a hand into boiling oil, scoop it up and eat it with no harm; one can walk through burning coals without wearing shoes; one can grasp a large chain heated in fire until red-hot, or gather it up in the hand. It can be used to treat illness, or to help support other treatments so illness heals faster. It can be used for hypnosis/mind-suppression. It helps one see images of objects or events in the present and near future, but these are only shadowy images, not yet as clear as with intermediate samadhi, so there is a mix of right and wrong in them.

The Capability Limits of Intermediate-Level Mind Power

Intermediate-level mind power can further increase strength, endurance, and

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diligence, help create morale and confidence, and help give better memory and comprehension than beginning-level mind power. In other respects too its capability exceeds that of beginning-level power. For example, in testing being cut or stabbed hard, beginning-level power still shows swelling and redness and bruising afterward, and sometimes a little blood seeps out; but with intermediate-level power there is no pain, no bruising, no swelling. One can see objects hidden at a distance, or see present events and near-future events clearly and correctly, with very little error. As for memory, one can memorize a great deal in a short time; one can send and receive messages by mental current (asking and answering mentally); one can pick locks open by mind alone; one can treat illness with better results than beginning-level power; one can transform one element or object into another, and even make it into a living creature with a spirit — for example turning a leaf into a bee or a bird, or turning uncooked rice grains into shrimp. Teachers in Thailand have demonstrated these abilities before assembled audiences many times already; at present there are several people who can do this.

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The Capability Limits of Advanced-Level Mind Power

Advanced-level mind power can be used for all the same benefits as beginning- and intermediate-level power, but has a higher capability — it produces results better, faster, and with greater accuracy — and beyond that it has capabilities entirely beyond those of the beginning and intermediate levels, many more besides. Examples of the display of mind power, together with the principles and methods for using advanced-level mind power, appear in many places in the Tipitaka; only a few will be cited here. Directing the mind toward the various modes of psychic power (iddhi-vidhā): a single person can become many persons; one can make oneself disappear (vanish), or make other objects disappear; one can walk through walls or mountains; one can direct the mind to produce the divine ear (dibba-sota), hearing both divine sounds and human sounds near and far; cetopariya-ñāṇa, knowing the minds of others; pubbenivāsānussati-ñāṇa, recalling a great many past lives; one can rise up and sink down even through solid ground as though through water; one can walk on water as on solid ground; one can fly through the air like a bird; one can direct the mind to turn a mass of earth into water, or into wind; one can cause things to appear — that is, see anything far or near even when something conceals it; and with advanced-level mind power, even if burned alive there is no harm; robbers cannot cut one down with a blade; fierce animals dare not harm one. At the very highest level of mind, one may attain the 3 vijjā, the 6 abhiññā, or the 8 vijjā.

Great Merit That Will Bring Prosperity to Oneself

I invite students who have in the past studied the use of psychic power and the power of the Buddha's virtues, in great numbers, from the author (Col. Chom), to help treat illnesses for which Westerners still have no medicine that works well, causing more and more deaths every time. Illnesses that used to be curable now resist treatment and cannot be cured; the character of illness has changed from before, with new illnesses arising in addition. This is because the environment has changed due to radiation arising from the testing of terrible weapons — many countries going on to use atomic weapons openly on the ground in warfare, that is exactly it — the harm can be seen clearly. Westerners still cannot think of a way to cleanse radiation; they treat with radiation but do not know how to eliminate the radiation that has entered a person's body. According to what the author has tested extensively, only mercury radiation [รังสีปรอท] free of toxicity can eliminate radiation by scientific means. Teaching students to treat various illnesses using the power of the Buddha's virtues and the power of samadhi is therefore a good way of propagating Buddhism. The law allows lectures propagating religion to be given openly; [one may treat] AIDS, cancer, and other illnesses without a medical practitioner's license. After treatment [of this kind] was banned, [authorities] in Rayong relented and allowed treatment to proceed without a medical practitioner's license, following a large number of AIDS patients marching in protest.

The Buddha taught that there are 5 ways of treating illness. There is evidence for this in the Tipitaka, volume 47, page 632, which speaks of 5 ways of treating illness, saying: the 5 kinds of treatment are: "treatment by incantation and blowing (เสกเป่า), by surgery, by medicine, by spirits, and treatment for children (กุมาร)." This can be seen in the Thai-language edition of the Tipitaka published by the Department of Religious Affairs (the 40-volume set). Western doctors do not use the method of incantation and blowing (which uses the power of the Buddha's virtues and the power of samadhi), nor the method of spirits (that is, the skill of removing black-magic curses and spirit possession). Practitioners of the three schools of medicine, keeping up with modern times, who use all 5 of these methods get very good results by using incantation and blowing combined with medicine."

The practice of samadhi-vipassana meditation is important, for it is what gives rise to the psychic power used in treating illness. Where such practice fails to bear results, it is for many reasons — namely, not following the Buddha's teachings. For example, not knowing what is the cause that gives rise to samadhi. The Lord Buddha taught that:

1. Comfort and ease are a cause that gives rise to samadhi; the causes must be created for it to arise,

2. Not knowing whether the way one is practicing samadhi is correct or incorrect, so that one does it right sometimes and wrong sometimes,

3. Practicing goes round and round at the beginning, not progressing further. At the start it is comparable to Primary One, reciting [the meditation word] along with it; when samadhi progresses and rises higher one forgets the recitation word because the mind becomes calm and settles into samadhi — this is comparable to reaching Primary Two. Some teachers instruct that when one forgets to recite, one should begin reciting again, so one just goes round and round between Primary One and Primary Two. For some people, when they forget to recite, the breath becomes so fine and light that they no longer feel they are breathing, which counts as Primary Three; fear then arises that they will die because they are not breathing, and out of fear they dare not practice further. At this level Ajahn Buddhadasa taught that the breathing is still there, it simply does not manifest. When one misunderstands at this third stage one becomes afraid, thinking it is wrong. Going round and round like this causes the practice not to progress further.

4. Not teaching, not practicing from easy to difficult — practicing by skipping stages. Mostly people skip as much as 2 stages, so the practice is done incorrectly and does not progress. For details, see the method of practicing samadhi-vipassana to get quick results, further on.

Chapter 1

The Order of Teaching for Using Psychic Power

Stage 1

Teaching the Skill of Invulnerability (Kong Kraphan)

The result that will arise from this is that one can change the nature/taste of a natural thing; testing it by cutting with a knife or stabbing causes no harm — though one need not test it if one does not wish to. Please proceed in the following order:

1. Prepare flowers, incense, and candles, and place them on a tray. If there is no tray, they may be placed on a clean plate, or in the lid of a monk's alms bowl. Any kind of flower will do, about 3 blooms; 3 or 5 sticks of incense are fine. For candles, use beeswax candles weighing about 1 baht [weight], 2 of them. Find a small amount of the lime paste eaten with betel nut; use lime paste that has no cutch dye added. Place 6 baht of money as an offering to the teacher in the tray with the flowers, incense, and candles. When the ceremony is finished, take this 6 baht and use it to make merit and give alms as seen fit.

2. Light incense and candles to venerate the Buddha. After lighting them, prostrate to the Buddha image 5 times. The 1st time, with the intention of paying respect to the Buddha, then prostrate. The 2nd time, with the intention of paying respect to the Dhamma. The 3rd time, with the intention of paying respect to the Sangha. The 4th time, with the intention of paying respect to one's own father and mother, and prostrate. Then, with the intention of paying respect to one's teachers, prostrate the 5th time. [Lineage note:] grandfather-teacher's teachings [passed to] Ajahn Fuen; Col. Chom studied from Ajahn Fuen and Khun Mae Lamyai (Ajahn Fuen's wife).

3. Smear lime paste on the tip of the index finger of the right hand, or touch the tip of the index finger to the lime paste so it sticks to the side near the tip. Then sit with the hands pressed together in the polite side-sitting posture or the cross-legged meditation posture. Raise the joined hands close to the mouth, so that the tip of the index finger with the lime paste on it comes to rest about 1 khuep (a hand-span) from the mouth. Try blowing air from the mouth gently and in a long stream toward the lime paste. If the breath blown does not land directly on the paste at the fingertip, shift the hand so the breath lands exactly on the paste. Next, close the eyes, sit still without moving the hand, without moving the face, without opening the eyes. Set the intention in the mind as follows:

"I hereby invite the virtue of the Buddha, the Dhamma, the Sangha, my father and mother, and my teachers, to please come and help enchant this lime paste, that it may become invulnerability-paste, I beg of you."

"Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa" [Homage to the Blessed One, the Worthy One, the Perfectly Self-Enlightened One — recited three times]

4. Draw the breath in until the lungs are full, then hold the breath — neither breathing in nor out — while the mind pictures the lime paste on the index finger the whole time. Recite Chant No. 1 (see the back of the book), which has 3 words (recited silently in the mind), continuously. When one has recited up to the end of the breath, that is, about 20 repetitions, blow the breath out gently and in a long stream through the mouth, toward the lime paste. The recitation should keep an even pace, not sometimes fast and sometimes slow. While blowing, continue reciting the chant and picturing the lime paste the whole time. For the outward breath, reciting 3 or 4 repetitions is enough. Next, draw the breath in again through the nose and hold it, continuing to recite the chant and picture the lime paste. Recite for as long as possible, up to the end of the breath, that is, until one almost feels tired, then blow the breath toward the lime paste while still reciting the chant. Then draw breath in, recite, and blow out again repeatedly like this, for 7 times — that is, blow toward the lime paste 7 times; it may be more than 7 times. There is no need to worry or to keep track of whether it has reached exactly 7 times yet; it is enough to estimate about 7 times, whether that turns out to be 6 times

or as many as 10 times is fine too. As for the recitation, there is no need to worry about reciting a full 20 repetitions — it is enough to estimate about 20, or when one feels about to grow tired, blow out. In later repetitions one might recite only 10 times while holding the breath in; and while blowing out one might recite only 2 times — just estimate a suitable amount so as not to become tired. If one becomes tired, the flow of psychic power will go out only weakly.

When one has blown toward the lime paste about 7 times, press the tip of the index finger with the paste on it down onto the tip of the tongue, while breathing in and holding the breath, continuing to recite the chant, letting the paste touch the tongue and pressing it there. After a fairly long moment, remove the finger from the tongue. Observe and consider carefully how the area of tongue touched by the paste feels. If it feels neutral, tasteless, salty, sweet, or bitter — feeling any one of these — this shows the power of the mind has been sent into the paste sufficiently, causing its taste to change. If it were ordinary, unenchanted paste, touching it to the tongue would bite the tongue with a stinging sensation, feeling like something sharp cutting it. Paste that has been well enchanted, when touched to the tongue, will have its taste change to something strange, or feel neutral, or feel cool; sometimes there may be a slight sting, which is still acceptable. If the paste still bites the tongue and stings a lot, it must be enchanted again — repeat the process as before until it can be used without biting the tongue.

Next, breathe in and hold the breath, and touch the index finger with the lime paste on it to the side of the neck. Recite the chant once, saying "unuyang" (a chant-word, recited as printed), while dragging the finger across the neck to the other side — this is called "putting a band of paste around the neck." Drag the finger a length of about 1 or 2 inches, crossing the midpoint of the neck to the other side. Having done this, it is considered that the invulnerability is complete; one may now test it by cutting or stabbing. However, because the skill of invulnerability only toughens the skin, it cannot yet prevent pain and bruising — for that one needs the "chatri" skill, so as to feel no pain and no bruising. Once one's samadhi is good, that is, has reached the intermediate stage, one can then learn the chatri skill. Therefore, when testing, pull the skin of the left arm between the elbow and the wrist outward, so the skin of the arm stretches out; then press the sharp point of a knife down onto the prepared skin to test stabbing — that is, let the tip of the knife touch the skin, and prepare to press the handle of the knife down hard.

Before pressing the tip of the knife down, draw the breath in until the lungs are full, hold the breath, and recite Chant No. 1, which has three words, for about 7 repetitions; then one may begin pressing the knife down. While beginning to press the knife down, continue reciting the chant steadily; reciting it faster will help reduce the pain. Continue reciting for about 9 more repetitions, then stop pressing the knife down and lift it up. As for pulling the skin of the arm, one may have someone else help pull it.

Pressing the knife down while the breath is held and the mind is made still, together with reciting for about 7 repetitions, helps increase the power of the mind, helping to resist harm. Even if one presses the knife down hard, with full force, there will be no harm; the skin around it will not redden, will not swell, and there will be no bleeding — one will feel only slight pain, about as much as an injection, or perhaps no pain at all. If one presses the knife down without holding the breath and without reciting the chant, but with the mind firmly set, there will still be no harm, but the skin around it will redden for a somewhat longer time, there will be swelling, and a small amount of blood will seep out, and one will feel more pain than when the breath is held.

Point to be careful of: use a knife of medium size, handle and blade together about 1 foot long, or slightly shorter. Let the tip be sharp, but only moderately so. If the tip is too sharp and tapers too long, or the knife is too small, the mind will become anxious, worrying the knife will break or turn aside. Such worry causes the samadhi to be poor and the psychic power weak. Another point, regarding the later part of the breath: when one begins holding the breath and reciting for 7 repetitions, letting the mind become still and firm, then presses and continues reciting for another 9 repetitions, totaling 16 repetitions — this is the middle stage of the breath. After that comes the final stage of the breath, since we hold the breath and continue reciting to the very end

the held breath will reach about 25 or 30 repetitions. As for the final stage of the breath, that is, from repetition 16 onward, the power of the mind will be weaker, because a new practitioner cannot keep the mind still for very long. Once samadhi becomes higher, one will be able to keep the mind still and firm for a long time. Therefore a new practitioner should first strictly follow what is recommended; do not rush to vary or deviate from the method — for example, stabbing for a long time, trying a razor, or trying to stab with a needle — these are not yet advisable, because samadhi is not yet good enough. We should test carefully, setting the mind firmly every time before testing, or following what has been explained.

Important secrets in using the power of the mind: aside from the secrets mentioned in the books Mind Science, the World-Opening Edition and the World-Illuminating Edition, there is yet another secret, namely: in using the power of the mind for combat or for facing danger — such as with the skill of invulnerability — before setting to work one should calm the mind and make it determined and serious, like a fighter, thinking of it as one's moment of truth, one's real moment; one must be truly serious and determined, which creates a bold, fearless mood. Only then does one set to work enchanting the lime paste, until one can truly test it. If the enchantment is instead meant to bring loving-kindness and popularity/charm, one should create a smiling mood

With a bright, cheerful expression, calm the mind and smile inwardly, make the mind loving toward every person who is a fellow human being, and only then set to work enchanting the object.

Testing the lime paste to see how it bites the tongue should not be done in immediate succession with enchanting the paste — it will give rise to doubt, since the mind's confidence in the enchanting, and the paste's residual presence on the tongue, may become mixed up with each other. It should be tested either before or afterward. It is better to test the use of the power of the mind after about 1 day or more.

Another skill within invulnerability is the enchanting of a leaf to eat. To begin learning, enchant a betel leaf first, using one leaf. The order of testing and of arranging the offering items, the teacher's fee, and so on, is done the same as for enchanting lime paste, except that betel leaf is used in place of the paste, and Chant No. 2 is used. Place the betel leaf in the palm of the hand held in the wai gesture; raise that hand so it is about 1 khuep away from the mouth — that is, so the betel leaf is about 1 khuep from the mouth. The betel leaf lies flat along the palm; it is fine if part of it protrudes from the palm. Keep picturing the betel leaf the whole time, and recite the chant continuously, both while the breath is held in and while it is blown out through the mouth, blowing about 3 times as before. When finished, fold the betel leaf, chew it, and swallow it all down; one may drink water afterward as well. While chewing and eating the betel leaf,

breathe in and hold the breath, reciting the chant while also chewing the betel leaf. Once it has all been swallowed, after a short moment one may test by stabbing, done the same way as the stab-test in the case of enchanting lime paste. For the chant used in enchanting the betel leaf, use Chant No. 2. When testing by stabbing, this too is done in rhythm with holding the breath and reciting Chant No. 2, reciting it faster and more rapidly.

In summary: set the intention to do this seriously and in earnest, feel like a person who is truly determined and courageous, have confidence in oneself and in the teachings stated. Incline the mind to pay respect to the five [objects of reverence] and prostrate; light incense and candles in offering; make a vow, that is, invite the virtues of the Buddha to come and help in enchanting the betel leaf — the words of invitation may be spoken somewhat differently from what is written here. Continue by saying "Namo..." three times, then breathe in comfortably and hold the breath, reciting the chant, and picturing the object to be enchanted the whole time. At the end of the breath, blow it out gently and in a long stream through the mouth toward the object being enchanted, that is, the betel leaf. While blowing the breath out, also recite the chant; recite it the whole time, keep picturing the image the whole time — whether or not one actually sees the image in the mind's eye does not matter. When one has blown about 7 times, or more, test the taste of the betel leaf by chewing and eating it. One wants to know what the taste of an unenchanted betel leaf is like, in contrast with

As for however it was consecrated, have the test done either before or after the actual day of consecration, no less than 1 day apart, so that no confused doubt arises about the test. Have the piercing done by pulling the skin of the arm outward and pressing the knife in at the mid-breath count — that is, press the knife in while the breath is held, after having chanted the formula 3 times through; then chant the formula rapidly, so the mind stays still and unafraid. When you have chanted about 9 more times through, stop pressing the knife, because toward the tail end of the held breath the power of mind is not as strong as in the middle of it. Once you can do this, once you have tested it and have full understanding and confidence, you no longer need lime paste on the neck or betel leaf to chew — merely holding the breath and chanting is enough to test pressing the knife in during the middle of the held breath.

Please consider carefully: with this kind of piercing, if you pierce someone who has not set his mind on it and does not understand the invulnerability craft, blood will certainly flow in and out. When we apply the technique described and press the knife in hard, it will not go in — there will only be a dimple on both sides of the skin, sunk inward on both sides. If he is not invulnerable, the dimple on the opposite side will bulge outward and the knife will pierce through the skin. This shows that the power of mind, the power of the Buddha's virtue, truly exists. That the taste of the lime paste and betel leaf can be made to change is proof enough — one should not experiment with strange variations, because one's concentration or steadiness may not be sufficient and a slip could happen. Anyone who wants to try variations —

— to do it any other way, go directly to the teacher and do it in front of the teacher, so there will be safety. Once you understand it well, you may then experiment with variations on your own. This warning against experimenting with variations is meant well — to let you go on practicing the use of mental power, the power of the Buddha's virtue, at ever higher levels with ease. Training concentration to a higher level lets you do stranger things, and use it to greater and more elaborate benefit both in worldly and in Dhamma matters. Anyone who still feels very afraid and does not dare test it should not test it that day.

Prohibitions

This invulnerability craft being taught here, and the other crafts that I teach, are crafts of the Buddha's virtue; for the most part they carry no prohibitions. But some crafts do have prohibitions, and even so they are easy prohibitions. Breaking a prohibition carries no penalty — it does not cause illness the way old-time black magic does. When one breaks a prohibition of a craft of the Buddha's virtue through carelessness, no penalty of illness results, but one should still show respect toward the teacher and the Buddha's virtue — that is, when a lapse occurs, light incense and candles in homage, state what happened, and ask permission to go on using that craft for now. When there is time, go and tell the teacher and ask to hold the teacher-raising ceremony anew.

This invulnerability craft has 3 prohibitions, namely:

1. It is forbidden to pass the formula on to another person. If one has studied it a full 5 years, one may then become a teacher and teach it, or pass it on to another. If it is not yet a full 5 years, one must first go through the teacher-raising ceremony and learn the method of being a teacher before teaching others.

2. It is forbidden to take paper bearing Thai script or Khom (Khmer) script and use it to wipe oneself when defecating.

3. It is forbidden to curse someone's mother during a fight. Let me add something further to the original text here: during a fight, or when using this craft, our duty is to hold the breath and chant the formula. When the held breath reaches its limit and can no longer be held, breathe out quickly and forcefully, then quickly draw the breath back in and hold it again — that is, breathe out through the nose in a sharp, forceful, rapid burst, then breathe in, hold, and chant rapidly again.

Making others invulnerable: this craft of making others invulnerable, taught here, has been handed down through many generations and is called the craft of "arraying an army" — that is, making other people invulnerable. To make another person invulnerable, one prays or invokes the Buddha's virtue to protect that person individually — for example, if his name is Mr. Daeng, one asks protection for Mr. Daeng.

Or, to make elephants and horses used in war invulnerable, one consecrates lime paste and smears it on the neck of the elephant and horse. To make another person invulnerable, one must first believe in oneself, testing until confident, 3 or 4 times beforehand — for instance, testing it today, then testing again after 7 or 10 days. Once fully confident, one may then test it on someone else. When testing on him, have him hold his breath in rhythm and chant "Buddho" rapidly; we chant the formula in his place, so that he will not be hurt, bruised, or swollen. A person with good self-confidence and adequately trained concentration may consecrate the lime paste once and smear the necks of 7 people with it, or consecrate 7 betel leaves at a time and have 7 people each eat one leaf. A person of high concentration can do it for many people. After testing the piercing, there will be a dimple where the piercing was made on both sides — that is, an indentation pressed inward on both sides. It is forbidden to take one's hand and pry it open to look, because the flesh inside will tear and blood will seep out. Left alone like that, the dimple will fill in by itself. One should not test cutting or slicing back and forth on it, and should not test using a razor blade or a ritual knife, because at the beginner level of concentration there is not yet enough power, and the invulnerability holds only for the outer skin — the flesh or bone is not tough enough to withstand sharpness and force. At the very least it may bruise internally and later turn into a bruised abscess. I once treated someone who had been run over by an ox-cart at Wat Phra Kaeo,

in Phetchabun Province, about 5 years after having been run over by an ox-cart; it had become a bruised abscess. After it was cut open and the rotten flesh scraped out, it still would not heal for more than a month, so he came to be treated using mercury; in just 3 days his condition improved greatly, his spirits were good, and he could eat. This patient was the father of the abbot of Wat Phra Kaeo, and the wound healed completely — this treatment was given in B.E. 2516 [1973], and took 10 days before the wound healed back to normal. The knife used for the test was a jungle-trekking knife whose point is not very sharp. If one uses a knife with a slender, tapering point, it is not suitable, because part of the mind will be afraid it might snap. The best way is to hasten one's training until reaching the intermediate level of concentration. Once one has completed intermediate concentration, being struck with a sword blade, or having iron struck against the shin, causes no pain and no harm — one feels no pain, because of the power of concentration, which pushes the iron or sword blade away before it reaches the shin. As an example of this, the forest-dwelling teacher told me that once, when he was digging up yams in Nakhon Pathom Province, back when he was a novice, the senior teacher had him test it by taking a steel hoe-blade and striking the senior teacher's shin — he struck until he was exhausted, and there was not the slightest harm.

For one whose concentration is still only at the beginning level, if the mind still feels afraid at the moment of piercing, a dimple will be pressed inward on both sides. If he is not invulnerable, if he is not committed, then the point of the knife will —

pierce in — that is, the skin will tear through and bulge outward, and blood will flow. When one has trained concentration frequently but is still only at the beginning level, there will be a dimple pressed in on one side only, with no dimple on the underside. When concentration improves, and one presses the knife in and rocks it back and forth against the skin, there will be only a tiny little hole. When one has trained up to a high level of concentration, one may use a sharp, pointed knife and rock it back and forth — the skin remains completely normal, without pain, without any hole at all, just as when the senior teacher had a hoe struck against his shin. In more than 35 years of teaching, this writer has met only a single monk who came to study who, when tested with a full-force thrust, showed no dimple at all. That monk asked to thrust it himself two more times with full force, and still there was no hole; but when he wished to thrust yet again, and asked his teacher for permission to thrust once more merely for the sake of skill, he was refused — for that would show a careless, unbelieving mind.

On the use of the formula: if you use formula (Chapter 1) to consecrate the lime paste, use only that one; if you use formula (Chapter 2) to consecrate the betel leaf, use only that one alone — do not use both at the same time, for that shows a mind that lacks confidence. When necessity demands it, one may consecrate saliva in place of the lime paste; or if there is no time to consecrate, no time to tie something around the neck, simply drawing the breath in, holding it, and chanting the formula will also work and will protect without danger — but choose only one chapter (Chapter 1 or Chapter 2, given at the end of this volume). As for the betel leaf, if it is a small leaf, take 2, or

3 leaves; a large leaf, take just one. If necessary, other kinds of leaves may also be used — if they are small leaves, such as tamarind leaves, use a handful, consecrated and eaten. Whether one consecrates the lime paste worn at the neck, or consecrates the betel leaf and eats it — doing either one once a day, every day, for a full 5 years, will produce invulnerability of the lasting, self-sustaining kind, meaning one is invulnerable even without further consecration; even while sound asleep, a blade will not cut in, and an injection needle will not go in either.

The teacher who taught me is named Ajarn Fuen, and Ajarn Fuen learned this invulnerability craft from Ajarn Kham. Ajarn Kham's students usually called him Grandfather Kham; he lived at Bang Lamphu, in the capital. Grandfather Kham made himself invulnerable in the lasting, self-sustaining way — that is, by consecrating it daily for a full 5 years. As for Ajarn Fuen, his students usually called him Father Fuen. Ajarn Fuen has since passed away; his wife, called Mother Lamyai, became the teacher in his place — Mother Lamyai is the one who holds the teacher-lineage, meaning she is the one who conferred and empowered me to become a teacher myself.

The next stage to be taught is how to send the mind out of the body — that is, sending it into boiling oil, or into boiling water, so as to make it cool.

So that the course of study takes only a short time, we will therefore begin Stage 2 with training in dousing the heat-poison of boiling water first.

Stage 2

Dousing the heat-poison of boiling water so that it can then be ladled out and drunk

Colonel Chom, learned from the forest-dwelling teacher

(1). Arrange flowers, incense, and candles on a tray together with 6 baht as the fee for honoring the teacher, then prostrate before the Buddha image and light the incense and candles in homage to the teacher, chanting silently in the mind: "I wish to pay homage and reverence to the virtue of the Buddha, the Dhamma, the Sangha, the virtue of my father and mother, and the virtue of my teachers — including Luang Ta Dam and Ajarn Chan Narong. May you come and help make this water into medicine, and douse away all the heat-poison of the boiling water, so that when the water touches the mouth or the hand, may it not be hot, may it cause no harm."

(2). Pour the water into the pan or vessel in which it is to be boiled.

(3). Say "Namo" three times through, then say: "Buddhaṃ saraṇaṃ gacchāmi, Dhammaṃ saraṇaṃ gacchāmi, Saṅghaṃ saraṇaṃ gacchāmi" [I go for refuge to the Buddha, I go for refuge to the Dhamma, I go for refuge to the Sangha].

(4). Chant: "Sagge kāme ca rūpe, girisikharataṭe cantalikkhe vimāne, dīpe raṭṭhe ca gāme, taruvanagahane gehavatthumhi khette bhummā ca yantu deva—" [gloss: may the devas dwelling in the heavens of the senses and of form, on mountain ridges, in sky-palaces, on islands, in lands, in villages, in dense groves and forests, in houses, and in fields and grounds, come — devas of water and —] (verse continues on the next page)

— on land, in rough and dangerous places, may the yakkhas, gandhabbas, and nagas standing nearby listen well to these words of the sage; the time for hearing the Dhamma has come, good venerable sirs." The final phrase, "ayambhadantā," is said once (whereas ordinarily it would be said 3 times).

(5). Invoke as follows: "I invite the virtue of the Buddha, the virtue of the Dhamma, the virtue of the Sangha, the virtue of my father and mother, and the virtue of my teachers, to come and help turn this water into medicine, and help douse away all its heat-poison completely. I invite the water element and the wind element to come and help extinguish all this heat-poison until it is utterly gone."

(6). Lift the pan of water and set it on the stove (a charcoal brazier, or an electric stove, or a gas stove), then consecrate the water in the pan to make it medicine. Breathe in and hold the breath, then place the palms together and lower the head to about 1 foot above the water, and say: "Samuha gambhīraṃ acora bhayaṃ asesato sobhagavā, Buddho stop, Dhammo stop, Saṅgho stop, may all sickness and danger stop — stop, by the power of Namo Buddhāya," said about 2 times through, then blow onto the water. While blowing, say it once more (silently, in the mind). Next, draw the breath in, hold it, and chant the verse for turning oil into medicine as well, namely: "Samuha gambhīraṃ acora bhayaṃ asesato sobhagavā, Buddho stop, Dhammo stop, Saṅgho stop, may all sickness and danger stop,

— stop, by Namo Buddhāya." The most essential point is that in consecrating, the recitation and blowing exactly as above must be done a full 3 times, with the mind picturing the water and deliberately sending a stream of mental force down into it. Once the water has grown quite hot, begin chanting what is called the "chapter for dousing heat-poison," by drawing the breath in, holding it, and chanting silently in the mind:

"Ma a u, na ma pha tha, sa ka pha ja" — said about 5 times through, then blow it down onto the water; while blowing, chant it once more. Next, draw the breath in again, chant, and blow as before, over and over, until the water begins to boil, with the mind continually picturing the water and deliberately sending a stream of mental force down into it the whole time. If you begin to grow tired, chant in the manner of concentration-meditation instead — that is, without holding the breath — and once the tiredness has passed, resume chanting with the breath-holding method several more times.

Once the water begins to boil, try dipping a finger in at some spot; fix the mind on that spot, draw the breath in, hold it, close the eyes, and chant the heat-poison-dousing formula 3 times through, then blow onto the spot where the finger is to be dipped, together with the heat-poison-dousing verse once more. Next, draw the breath in and hold it; bring the index finger close to the water, almost touching it, chanting "Namo Buddhāya," then touch the index finger down into the water while chanting "patirūpaṃ" ["that which is fitting"]. Lift the finger and look — if it is still hot, douse the heat-poison again.

If it feels only lukewarm when the finger touches the water, and the heat and warmth are gone once the finger is lifted, then the dousing of the heat-poison has succeeded. Next, breathe in, hold the breath, and prepare the finger to dip again, chanting "Namo Buddhāya"; while dipping, chant "patirūpaṃ," dipping down to about the middle of the finger. If, on lifting it out, it is not hot, then it may be used.

As for ladling up the boiling water to sip: do it the same way as the first finger-dipping — that is, wherever you are going to ladle from, say the heat-poison-dousing verse and blow onto it. The spoon used for ladling should be a ceramic spoon; if none is available, use a galvanized tin spoon, washed clean. When about to ladle, draw the breath in, hold it, and say "Namo Buddhāya," then ladle up a small amount of water. While pouring it into the mouth, chant "patirūpaṃ," then spit the water back out. Once it is no longer hot, only lukewarm, the next time ladle up more water, again drawing the breath in and holding it while chanting "Namo Buddhāya," then ladle the hot water into the mouth saying "patirūpaṃ," hold it in the mouth first, and only then swallow it.

The first time one does this, being unskilled, once the water begins to boil, reduce the fire to a low flame; if using charcoal, remove most of the charcoal so only a little remains, so as to have enough time to douse the heat-poison properly. If, when testing by dipping the hand in, it feels very hot, and on lifting the finger it still burns and throbs with heat, that means the heat-poison has not yet been doused — one must chant to douse the heat-poison anew

several more times, until the heat-poison is entirely gone. The first time it is done, a little heat will still be felt, because one is still afraid; the important point is that before swallowing the hot water, one must hold it in the mouth first.

As for water that is actually boiling: if it is ladled into the mouth and sprayed onto a spot that is in pain, or onto an abscess, the result is usually better than rubbing on oil to relieve the pain. The consecrating is done by holding the breath and chanting the formula many times through, then blowing onto it while also chanting the formula. Do not forget to picture the water in the mind, keeping the mind or thought fixed on the water, letting the breath that is blown and the stream of mental force plunge continuously down into the water.

As for releasing the stream of mental force: if one is tired, the stream of mental force will be released with little effect. Therefore, while the water sits on the fire, once one has consecrated or chanted and blown several times and begins to grow tired, one should chant while breathing in and out lightly and comfortably, in the manner of sitting meditation, without holding the breath — merely picturing the water and fixing the mind, letting it plunge down into the water. Doing it this way is not tiring, because the breath is not held; it serves as a rest that relieves tiredness on its own, while the stream of mind still flows downward. This method is called "chanting as concentration-meditation." Once the tiredness has passed, one begins again using the method of holding the breath, chanting, and blowing, because that method releases the stream of mind most effectively; and so one alternates between the breath-holding method and chanting-as-concentration, back and forth.

This method described above, of dousing the heat-poison of boiling water so that it can then be ladled out and drunk, is a method for which permission was requested, through prayer, from the forest-dwelling teacher — asking to use

Formulas and methods for making medicinal oil to cure disease and quench burning poison — these are used for quenching the poison of boiling water. As for making the medicinal oil itself, that will be discussed later, because it takes a long time.

Stage 3

Teaching the abbreviated method of chain fire-walking (rood-so lui-fai)

The technique of "rood-so lui-fai" (dragging the chain, wading through fire) means heating an iron chain in a charcoal brazier until it glows red hot. Then, using both palms, test-stroke the chain while it is still glowing hot. If it is still too hot, chant again to extinguish the heat/poison, repeating several times, then test-stroke the red-hot chain again. If it is only slightly hot, scoop up the glowing red chain with both palms without harm. This technique can also be used for fire-walking, that is, walking on charcoal burned red-hot. A practitioner who has trained only to the beginning level of samadhi can walk on the burning coals, but cannot stand there long. One who has trained samadhi to the middle level can stand on the glowing red coals for a long time. The higher the level of samadhi attained, the longer one can stand on the glowing coals, or even sit down in a large pan of boiling oil, to consecrate it into medicine, for as long as the samadhi remains at a high level.

Level-2 training — extinguishing the burning poison of boiling water so as to be able to reach a hand in, or scoop it up and eat — is merely a preliminary exercise for which permission was requested from the teacher in the forest, brought forward to teach those whose samadhi is not yet stable enough. Later the student is taught the full ceremony for turning boiling oil into medicine, which will be described afterward, following the sequence of the old-time method. The chain fire-walking to be described next is likewise something done with permission requested from Ajarn Charnarong, by the power of aspiration/vow, used together with the technique of Ajarn Pai Lae, in order to request a simplified version, suitable for teaching beginners. As for the complete chain fire-walking as practiced since ancient times, that will be described later on.

Next will be described the abbreviated chain fire-walking method, combining the detailed method of making the medicinal oil — teacher's fee 6 baht — together with the complete chain fire-walking technique — teacher's fee 6 baht — taught together in this simple, abbreviated way, so the combined teacher's fee totals 12 baht. Beginning as follows:

Arranging the offering tray for the teacher

Tray 1: contains flowers, incense and candles, and money for the teacher's fee of 12 baht. The candles should be white candles weighing 1 baht each, 3 of them.

(The original chain fire-walking, 6 baht, combined with the oil technique for another 6 baht)

Tray 2: place in it 3 betel leaves, 1 handful of rice, and red lime paste about the size of a thumb — this lime paste should be the kind not yet mixed with catechu dye. Take one more betel leaf, put the red lime paste on it, then place it in the tray. One more bottle of white liquor is placed outside the tray.

The bowl of holy water

Put water into the bowl, filling it about half-full, in order to turn it into holy water (nam mon).

Beginning the ceremony: take an iron chain about 4 hun [in thickness] and about 3 sok 1 sen long (traditional Thai length units). Fill the charcoal brazier and light it until the charcoal is burning well. Then coil one end of the chain onto the fire so that the tip of the chain rests on top. Next, light a candle to pay respect to the Buddha, prostrate, and say:

"Namo…." three times, then say: "Buddhaṃ saraṇaṃ gacchāmi, Dhammaṃ saraṇaṃ gacchāmi, Saṅghaṃ saraṇaṃ gacchāmi" (I go to the Buddha/Dhamma/Sangha for refuge)

"Sagge kāme ca rūpe giri-sikhare taḷe c'antalikkhe vimāne, dīpe raṭṭhe ca gāme taru-vana-gahane geha-vatthumhi khette, bhummā cāyantu devā jala-thala-visame yakkha-" (Pali invocation verse, continuing onto the next page — an invitation to devas dwelling in the heavens, in the sky, in celestial palaces, on islands, in countries, in villages, in trees and forests, on house-sites, in fields, on land and water and rough terrain, yakkhas—)

— gandhabbas, nāgas, standing nearby; may the good ones listen to this word of the excellent Sage that I now recite. This, venerable sirs, is the time for hearing the Dhamma." ("ayaṃ bhadantā" is said only once)

Invite the deities by saying: "I invite the virtue of the Buddha, the virtue of the Dhamma, the virtue of the Sangha, the virtue of father and mother, the virtue of the teacher-masters. Please come and help extinguish the burning poison completely. I invite the water element and the wind element to come and help extinguish all burning poison so that it is utterly destroyed."

Next, to make the holy water: take a candle from Tray 1 and light it. Hold the candle pinched between the right thumb and index finger. With both hands, hold the bowl of holy water. Fix the mind at the center of the circle of water in the bowl. Let the candle wax drip down roughly at the center of the circle of water, saying "Namo…" three times, then hold the breath and say:

"Samuha gambhīraṃ acora bhayaṃ asesato sobhagavā — Buddho stop, Dhammo stop, Saṅgho stop, may all diseases and dangers stop, stop by the power of Namo Buddhāya" — say this about 2 times, then blow onto the water. When blowing, say it once more (silently, in the mind). Next, breathe in, hold the breath, chant it 2 more times, then blow while chanting once, and repeat once more, for a total of 3 times. Next, chant the verse for extinguishing burning poison, holding the breath while chanting, saying:

"Ma-a-u na-ma pha-tha sa-ka pha-ja" (mantra syllables) 3 times, then blow while saying it once more, so as to complete 3 times, the same as with the previous verse.

Next, consecrate the items in Tray 2 by touching all 5 fingers down onto the betel leaf, rice, and red lime paste, chanting with both verses as when making the holy water.

Next, chant to extinguish the burning poison of the chain on the fire brazier: bow the head down close to the brazier, about a hand-span and a bit. Fix the mind at the center of the coiled chain. Chant by holding the breath and reciting silently in the mind, "Ma-a-u na-ma pha-tha sa-ka pha-ja," about 3 to 5 times, then blow down while chanting once more. Next, breathe in, hold the breath, chant, and blow as before, many times. When one begins to feel tired, chant while settling into samadhi — that is, make the mind into samadhi while chanting, without holding the breath — focusing the mind on the chain in the brazier. Once the tiredness passes, chant again by holding the breath and blowing as before; when tiredness begins again, chant in samadhi, alternating like this for a good while. Then test whether the burning poison has been fully extinguished: take one betel leaf from Tray 2, dip it in the holy water, and place it on the chain in the brazier. If the new betel leaf develops a large hole, it shows the burning poison is not yet fully extinguished; chant to extinguish the burning poison as before, repeating many times, then try again with

— a betel leaf dipped in holy water, and place it on the chain in the brazier again. If the betel leaf wilts but does not burn into a large hole — there may be a few small holes — it shows the burning poison is now gone; then lift the iron chain off the brazier and hang it up, in order to grasp it with the hands while it is still glowing red hot, testing as follows:

Bring the face close to the chain, about one hand-span away. Fix the mind on the red-hot chain. Breathe in, hold the breath, and chant the verse for extinguishing burning poison:

"Ma-a-u…." then blow down while chanting the verse for extinguishing burning poison, and touch the palm to the chain, stroking it to test. When it is not too hot, scoop up the chain with both palms, then quickly release it. The first time, since samadhi is not yet very good, one feels slightly hot because one is still afraid and the power of mind is not yet strong enough. But once the hand is released it is not hot, and there is no harm. While scooping up the chain, do it in rhythm with holding the breath and chanting — this means one is able to release mental power outside the body well. This is enough to give confidence that one can release power to treat various illnesses, according to the various methods that will be taught next.

Stage 4

Using only the power of the Buddha's virtue, or one's own power,

to help drive mercury in to treat various illnesses

Arrange the offering tray for the teacher: with flowers, 3 sticks of incense, 2 white candles weighing 1 baht each (if there is no white candle, a yellow candle may be used), and money for the teacher's fee of 12 baht.

The teacher who used mercury to treat various illnesses with good results for over 30 years, and who taught many disciples to do so, was the venerable Luang Phor Rot, also called "Luang Phor Rot Suea" (Rot the Tiger). According to the history, in the reign of Rama I, or the early Bangkok period following the Thonburi period, Luang Phor Rot was the one who built the new "Wat Pradu Rong Tham," replacing the old temple of that name, and was its first abbot; it was later called "Wat Pradu Songtham." This Luang Phor Rot was renowned as being outstanding in the field of magical knowledge (wicha akhom), and famous for using mercury to treat various illnesses. He taught many disciples. Ajarn Sap was a direct disciple of Luang Phor Rot, and taught the technique of using mercury to treat illness to Ajarn Sa-ngiam Chittanon, of Thammakaset Road, Soi 4,

Muang District, Nakhon Sawan. Ajarn Sa-ngiam taught the technique of treating illness with mercury to the author (Colonel Chom) in B.E. 2503 (1960). The author has used non-toxic mercury to treat various illnesses with good results from B.E. 2503 up to the present, that is, B.E. 2540 (1997). He learned the method of applying mercury and the method of neutralizing mercury's toxicity from the teacher in the forest. Once confident that the mercury's toxicity had been fully neutralized, he then tested eating the detoxified mercury many times — eating it in doses weighing 1 baht, 2 baht, 3 baht, and 4 baht — with no toxicity, and instead it helped treat various stomach and intestinal illnesses, making them heal faster. Since Luang Phor Rot used mercury to treat with fast results for a period of 30 years, and the author has also used mercury to treat illness for over 30 years more, treating more than 200 patients, with good results, no harm, no toxicity — he has taught more than 300 disciples to use mercury to treat illness. At present he still uses mercury to treat illness and teaches anyone interested in mercury treatment, without charging any teaching fee. Following up results for over 30 years, no toxic harm from mercury has been found. As tested in treating AIDS and cancer, good results were obtained within no more than 5 days; symptoms would improve greatly — that is, within 5 days the results were: being able to sleep longer, less fatigue, eating more food, and pain disappearing. The most effective method is to treat using mercury together with medicine, combined with the use of mental power.

He made efforts to research and test treatments for illnesses for which Western medicine still had no cure, and obtained good results with many more diseases. There are detailed accounts of treatment methods, methods of using medicine, and the use of the power of the Buddha's virtue and mental power in conjunction with medicine, along with the average length of treatment time derived from treating various illnesses over a long period — so he can confidently state which illness can be cured within what length of time, this average being fairly close/consistent, based on the results of treatment by traditional-medicine teachers who genuinely achieved good results, as appears in "Three Modernized Traditional Medicine Systems" (Phaet Sam Phaen Nam Samai), volume 1 and volume 2, which explain methods of treating AIDS, cancer, diabetes, asthma, sinusitis, rabies poisoning, kidney and gall stones, enlarged prostate, viruses, drug-resistant dry-type fungal infection, tonsillitis, hemorrhoids and intestinal ailments, broken bones, and many other conditions — giving the treatment method for every form, together with the full list of foods to avoid, methods of conduct, exercise appropriate to the illness, hypnosis, methods of using mental power to heal oneself, exorcising spirits, counter-treating things done through black magic (saiyasat), etc. If in doubt, one may ask; anyone wishing to learn will be taught.

Arranging the simplified offering tray for the mercury-treatment teacher

In the tray: flowers, 3 sticks of incense, 2 candles weighing 1 baht each, money for the teacher's fee of 12 baht, and mercury weighing about 2 baht.

Light candles and incense to pay respect to the Buddha, then invoke the deities in the same way as in the abbreviated chain fire-walking technique. Then apply holy water to the patient's palm, and pour mercury onto the palm — normally the mercury is poured onto the patient's left palm. Gaze fixedly at the mercury, chanting the "Awakening Verse" once, while rubbing the mercury with the right thumb, with the healer's left palm supporting the patient's left palm from beneath.

The Awakening Verse goes as follows: "Om phetcha khong khong, Phra Phutthang khong nang, Phra Thammang khong neua, Phra Sanghang khong kraduk, Phra Phutho wae, Phra Thammo wae, Phra Sangho wae" (invoking the mercury to become as enduring as diamond-hardness, skin, flesh and bone, calling on the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha)

Next, invoke the virtue of the Buddha and of the teacher-masters to come and enter the mercury. This is so that the disciple may see that the virtue of the Buddha and of the teacher-masters can truly come and help cure illness. Settle the mind into samadhi, then chant as follows:

"I invite the virtue of the Buddha, the virtue of the Dhamma, the virtue of the Sangha, the virtue of father and mother, the virtue of the teacher-masters — including Luangta Dam, Ajarn Charnarong, Luang Phor Rot, and others — please come and help put mercury in to treat the patient now." While saying this, rub the mercury on the patient's palm continuously with the thumb, without needing to chant any further verse or to blow. One may simply keep rubbing the mercury with the hand continuously, or

This is to explain and make it understood that the virtue of the Buddha and of the teacher-masters can indeed come and help — for example, the mercury will enter into the patient's body as mercury imbued with power that travels to seek out the disease, treating it according to the intention that has been set. What remains on the patient's palm is called "kee prot" (mercury residue), which is still useful in several ways. Once the disciple sees clearly that the virtue of the Buddha can truly help apply the mercury, thereafter the disciple applies the mercury into the patient's body relying mainly on his or her own mental power and power of samadhi, with the power of the Buddha's virtue joining in as well.

Treating illness by invoking the virtue of the Buddha to help, as described above, is done only in order to teach the disciple to see and know that the power of the Buddha's virtue can help, in the normal course of treating a patient — that is, using both the power of the Buddha's virtue and one's own power of samadhi together. Once the mercury has been poured onto the patient's hand, rub the mercury with the right thumb while chanting the "Awakening Verse," that is: "Om phetcha khong khong…………. Phra Sangho wae"

Next, chant the verse for treating illness:

"Samuha gambhīraṃ acora bhayaṃ asesato sobhagavā — Buddho stop, Dhammo stop, Saṅgho stop, may all diseases and dangers stop, stop by the power of Namo Buddhāya"

While chanting the verse to treat the illness and holding the breath, use the thumb to rub the mercury so it enters the patient's body, and it travels to treat the area that is diseased or shows symptoms of illness. Then blow onto the mercury while chanting the calling-in verse: "Nakha loma tacho" (nails, body-hair, skin), about 3 or 4 times. Next, breathe in and hold the breath, chanting another verse for treating illness, namely: "Samijja sangho sittang samoha naiya, Buddhang lalai, Thammang lalai, Sanghang sunhai, may all illnesses be cured too, Nama-Phatha" — the thumb then rubs the mercury and blows down while chanting the calling-in verse, "Nakha loma tacho," 3 or 4 times.

If another verse is to be used instead, do the same; whatever verse is used, it must always include the passage 'Samuha gambhīraṃ……………' as well — this is held to be the core verse of the teacher in the forest.

When the sanctified mercury has entered the patient's body, there will be fine mercury residue like powder on the patient's palm. One must keep using a finger to wipe this mercury residue off into the bowl of holy water continuously, so that the residue does not block the pores through which the next round of mercury will enter the patient's body. Once the mercury first poured onto the palm has fully entered the body, pour in more mercury, and repeat the same process until all the mercury intended for the patient has been administered.

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The amount given to a patient at one time is a weight of mercury according to the patient's strength. On the first day, insert a weight of 2 salueng; for a child, insert a weight of 1 salueng. On the 2nd day, insert a weight of 2 baht or 3 baht. On following days insert a weight of 6 baht. Consider the patient's symptoms and the severity of the disease. The best time to insert mercury is during the daytime when the weather is hot, since mercury can escape easily then. One may divide the dose, inserting 3 baht in the morning and 3 baht in the evening; for a child the amount may be increased to 2 salueng or 1 baht. Once the mercury has been fully inserted into the body, one may test recalling it back out: wipe the patient's left hand — the hand into which the mercury was inserted — until well dried, then use one's own index finger to tap repeatedly on the palm where the mercury was inserted, reciting the recall spell: "Tanta, Tanta." While tapping, the mercury will emerge as small beads; sweeping them together produces more mercury. If one uses middle-level samadhi while tapping or touching together with the recall, the mercury will come out in quantity within an instant.

The subject of mercury and the method of using it is considered a necessary matter and can save many lives — all the more so in this era, since in the year 2540 [1997 CE] there were atomic tests, so [radiation] has spread throughout the world. In the stone inscription of the Buddha's prophecy found in India, it is said that: from the year 2540 to 2541 [1997-1998 CE] every country will receive danger without exception, but the danger in the Buddhist land...

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...the religion of the land of Thailand will suffer only mild harm. The danger from atomic radiation, or from radiation used to treat disease, is severe. Westerners have no method to cure radiation poisoning, but the harmless mercury used to treat disease can wash away or destroy radiation poison. An easy method of proof: skin that has been irradiated for treatment turns black in colour, with a burning heat inside; the flesh and tendons of that area become stiff. If water splashes onto it, the skin will blister — even as much as 2 months later, if water splashes onto it, it still blisters. But if mercury consecrated together with holy water is applied instead, it will not blister, and the black colour of the skin will fade back to normal within about 10 days. There remain many other ways to prove that mercury together with mental power can destroy radiation poison.

The reason for bringing up the subject of mercury is that mercury has a great deal to do with mental power. When mental power is used to insert mercury in through the palm of the hand, it goes on to help treat disease: AIDS, cancer, sinusitis, tonsillitis, Hepatitis B, drug-resistant tuberculosis (resistant because treatment was done on-and-off), people allergic to medicine, and spore-type tuberculosis (which has a fibrous covering that Western medicine cannot penetrate), among others. In truth mercury can treat many kinds of disease, but Western textbooks state that it treats only 7 kinds. This appears in the medical textbook "Nithesa" (a work on modern medicine) by Khun Nithesa Sukkit...

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...the former Secretary-General, Registrar, and Head of the Division of Control of the Practice of the Healing Arts, Ministry of Public Health, 3rd printing, B.E. 2501 [1958 CE], pages 76, 93, 100, 121, 138, 154, and page 159, namely:

Page 76　　Mercury is a purgative medicine Page 93　　Mercury is a bile-expelling medicine Page 100　Mercury is a tonic medicine Page 121　Mercury is a pain-relieving medicine Page 138　Mercury is a diuretic medicine Page 154　Mercury is a health-improving medicine Page 159　Mercury is a germ-killing medicine

Westerners do not know the method of neutralizing mercury's poison, and so they hold firmly to the belief that mercury has very severe poisonous harm. But the teacher-masters deep in the forest, and the ascetic sages (ruesi) possessed of occult power, know the method of neutralizing mercury's poison and know how to bring mercury to treat various diseases of many kinds with good results — as there is evidence in the stone inscription at Wat Pho, Bangkok, printed in B.E. 2505 [1962 CE], page 164 (obtainable from the National Library), whose substance states: "There is a ruesi named Bharata, a person of persevering diligence and thoroughly versed in the mercury formulary."

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Between B.E. 2490 and 2500 [1947-1957 CE], Luang Pho Rod of Wat Pradu Songtham, near the railway station, Ayutthaya province, was one who used mercury to treat various diseases by the method of bringing mercury in through the palm of the hand, achieving such good results that he became very famous, and had many disciples who studied further under him. The author himself also learned the method of Luang Pho Rod, and of the teacher-master in the forest, and has used mercury to treat various diseases with good results since B.E. 2503 [1960 CE] until now, a span of 37 years. One should not fall into the belief that Westerners must be superior to Thai people in every respect. Seeing that Westerners know how to neutralize snake venom and turn it into medicine, neutralize disease germs and turn them into medicine in many ways, but cannot neutralize the poison of mercury, one then foolishly comes to believe that no other nation can neutralize mercury's poison. As for the method of neutralizing mercury's poison in order to bring it to treat various diseases with good results, the author has explained this in detail in the medical book "Sam Phaen" [The Three Traditions of Medicine], and has taught others to use mercury to treat various diseases for more than 30 years (thirty years), using mental power and the power of the Buddha's virtue together with the mercury. The teacher-master in the forest taught the method of neutralizing mercury and of treating disease. In the Thai-language edition of the Tipitaka of the Department of Religious Affairs (the 80-volume set), Volume 47...

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The treatment of disease has 5 methods, namely: "treatment by way of incantation/blowing (using mental power), by way of surgery, by way of medicine, by way of spirits, and treatment by way of paediatrics." Treatment by way of spirits means using mental power to drive out a spirit that has entered a person, or to remove the effects of something done through black magic. Westerners do not use the method of incantation/blowing (the method of using the power of the Buddha's virtue and mental power), nor the branch of knowledge concerning spirits, and so they fail to cure many kinds of disease.

"Do not use before you seek; do not speak before you see."

Westerners can take poisonous things and make them into medicine, can neutralize poison — people believe and praise this, such as taking snake venom, taking disease germs, which carry poison and danger, and neutralizing them into many kinds of medicine, turning them into good medicine; people believe and praise this. When they take things carrying poison and danger to use in treatment, such as radiation, chemotherapy drugs, and other medicines that carry poison and danger, people believe the Westerners. But the teacher-masters in the forest, the ruesi possessed of occult power, who can neutralize the poison of mercury, who can neutralize the poison of other medicines to make them into good medicine — people instead do not believe, do not test it. As for how much or how little mercury to insert, one must consider what the disease is and the strength of the patient able to receive it, and the effects that result from inserting the mercury.

The effects that arise can be observed after the mercury has been inserted for 1 or 2 days: the result is that the patient can sleep soundly and for a long time, symptoms of illness decrease, appetite improves, one feels more strength, and fatigue lessens.

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Using mental power to treat various diseases is done in the same way as sending power to make the body invulnerable, to enable plunging a hand into boiling water and ladling it out to drink, and sending mental power, the power of the Buddha's virtue, to grasp an iron chain heated in fire until red-hot. Inserting mercury has the same essential principle, namely: invoking the virtue of the Buddha, the Dhamma, the Sangha, the virtue of father and mother, and the virtue of one's teachers and masters to come and assist... Making the mind into samadhi, focusing the mind, and sending mental power to the place needed so as to produce the desired result. As for the incantation verses used, these vary according to what result is to be produced, as stated in a later section.

As for the statement that in a single day one can be taught to practice samadhi-vipassana and to use mental power to produce various benefits, this means: teaching the disciple to practice samadhi-vipassana correctly, and letting the disciple know how to check for himself at what level his samadhi currently stands, and how he should practice to progress further from there. Once the disciple has been made to practice samadhi-vipassana correctly and knows the method of training onward, he is then taught to use mental power, proceeding from easy to difficult in the order already described. By this method one teaches samadhi-vipassana and teaches the use of mental power to treat diseases for which Westerners have no effective medicine — that is, to truly know how to treat AIDS, cancer, and other diseases as well...

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...many diseases. And the author, having taught as described above and achieved results with everyone, over a period of more than 35 years, now dares to state and dares to set it down in writing as a firm record, so that this good body of knowledge will not be lost — as a way of helping fellow human beings and promoting the Buddhist religion, so that people may see and believe that the Buddha's virtue truly exists and truly can help.

Thailand was not colonized, did not become communist, and did not suffer severe harm as other countries clearly did, because the Buddha's virtue truly helped. The Westerners' domino theory holds that if the surrounding countries become communist, the country in the middle must also become communist; if the surrounding countries become colonies, the one in the middle must also become a colony. They would take a country as a colony by having its leader board their warship and then sign a treaty consenting to become a colony. Burma did not consent, so it fought the Westerners for 3 hours; once many had died, it consented to become a colony. As for Thailand, in the reign of Rama V, as soon as [the king] boarded the Westerners' ship, the warship listed; the Westerners were alarmed and did not yet dare have him sign, waiting to consider further. But that night, in the cabin of the Western commanding general — which was guarded thoroughly on every side — there appeared a teacher-master from the forest, one who had not been ordained, who made himself invisible, entered, took a sword, held it to the general's throat and threatened him to withdraw, or else he could be killed at any moment. At dawn the Western warship did not dare come to take [the country] as a colony, and hurried back to its own country. In history there is also mention of Kosa Pan going to France, where he was made to undergo a test-firing ceremony...

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...[at Kosa Pan], and Kosa Pan came to no harm. As for the matter of the Western warship consenting to withdraw, the author heard this directly from the teacher-master in the forest himself, and learned the details of many such accounts. In Thailand there are monks and laypeople who have completed the study of jhana [meditative absorption] in great number, and teacher-masters in the forest possessed of occult power are also numerous. Their important duty is to carry on the Buddhist religion. The final part of the curriculum, before one may study to fly through the air, has a rule requiring that one teach at least one generation of disciples to complete jhana. And in order for the religion to be able to endure, the nation must also be preserved, because Thailand is a place of stability closer to the era of the Buddha than other countries. When great calamity comes upon Thailand, those possessed of jhana and occult power, both within the country and in the forest, help to make it lighter or make it disappear entirely. Observe that in B.E. 2540 [1997 CE], various countries suffered great calamity and great death, with much repeated disaster, but Thailand suffered less calamity and less death than other countries — and the teacher-masters of the forest came out temporarily and stayed for long periods in many provinces in order to help the nation. There was flying through the air and becoming invisible, letting those who have faith in the religion witness it, and believe in the Tipitaka with even greater faith, because they saw the marvel that flying through the air is truly possible, that devas, ghosts, hell and heaven are real, according to the Tipitaka. As for those who remain deluded and stubbornly disbelieve, that is a matter of their own karma, just as it was in the time of the Buddha.

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During the period around the mid-point of the Buddhist era, both Westerners and Thais have made predictions of events, some wrong and some right, with predictions changing repeatedly over time, because these are worldly-style predictions. As for the prediction that is accurate and does not change, this is because it is inscribed in the stone inscription at Bodh Gaya, which was translated into Thai and printed for free distribution 50 years ago — accurate in every point, reasonable, and constituting a Buddha-prophecy that can be relied upon and proven true by observing actual events. In the year 2540 to early 2541 [1997-1998 CE], this was written about in the book "Modern Three-Tradition Medicine," page 202, under the heading "Severe danger is now arising, and how to save oneself," printed in B.E. 2539 [1996 CE], priced 90 baht per volume. It explains methods for treating AIDS, cancer, diabetes, asthma, sinusitis, rabies, kidney stones and gallstones, inflamed enlarged prostate, hemorrhoids, and other diseases for which Westerners still have no medicine to treat.

"Modern Three-Tradition Medicine" consists of 2 volumes, explaining every form of treatment, complete and comprehensive — meaning that if, after reading, one has doubts, one may ask; and if one wishes to study it, it will be taught free of any tuition charge. It has been taught and offered for proof over a period of 40 years, counting from B.E. 2500 [1957 CE]. It teaches the complete set of 5 methods of treatment as stated in the Tipitaka of the Department of Religious Affairs, Volume 47, page 623, which discusses methods of treating disease...

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...5 methods, namely: "treatment by way of incantation/blowing, by way of surgery, by way of medicine, by way of spirits, and treatment by way of paediatrics." Treatment by way of incantation/blowing means using the power of the Buddha's virtue and mental power. Treatment by way of spirits means driving out a spirit that has possessed [someone], removing the effects of something done through black magic. Western medicine does not use, and does not teach, the method of incantation/blowing, nor the branch of knowledge concerning spirits, and so it cannot successfully cure many diseases. As for "Modern Three-Tradition Medicine," it teaches all 5 methods in full, together with the method of incantation/blowing over medicine, and the method by which a patient can use mental power to treat himself, etc.

The device for teaching the use of mental power, the practice of samadhi, and the treatment of various diseases so that a disciple can accomplish it within a single day is this: teach him to practice samadhi correctly, and the method by which he can measure for himself what level of samadhi he has reached, and how to train further from there. Next, teach him to project mental power outward — such as the art of invulnerability, the art of neutralizing the hot poison of boiling water so that it may be scooped up and drunk, teaching how to neutralize the heat of an iron chain heated red-hot in fire so that it may be grasped and gathered up. Once one is certain and confident that mental power can be projected outward, then teach him to invite the Buddha's virtue to come and treat disease without using his own power. Then teach him to treat various diseases by himself. What is essential is that he must put his hand to the task; if he does it wrong, let it be corrected until right. This is the device by which the teaching can be completed within a single day, through all 4 stages.

"Do not use before you seek; do not speak before you see."

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The Khom Script Letters

[Image: 13 hand-drawn ancient Khom-script characters, arranged in 4 rows, each with its phonetic Thai reading given below it in parentheses]

Row 1: (na) (mo) (phut) Row 2: (tha) (ya) Row 3: (na) (ma) (pha) (tha) Row 4: (pa) (ti) (ru) [small decorative end-mark ๚] (pang)

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Chapter 2 Extinguishing Hot Poison, and Diagnosing and Treating Disease with Mental Power

Stage 5 Full-method teaching, as taught by the teacher-master in the forest — teaching how to make medicinal oil to treat disease, and to extinguish hot poison (the method of Luang Ta Dam — Achan Chan Narong)

Extinguishing hot poison: while the oil is still boiling, one may plunge a hand into it, or scoop it up with a spoon, hold it in the mouth, and spray it out to treat disease with it — one feels only a mild warmth, nothing more; there is no danger. A person may either plunge a hand in or scoop some up and hold it in the mouth; it may even be swallowed, with no danger.

Preparation of materials: 1 large bottle of pure coconut oil (a large beer bottle or a Mekhong [whisky] bottle used as a measure), phlai [cassumunar ginger] peeled and sliced into 5 rounds, wild turmeric (khamin oi) peeled and sliced into 4 rounds, 3 betel leaves, a small pan for simmering the oil, and a stove using charcoal or a kerosene stove.

Phlai [cassumunar ginger] slice 1: inscribe the Khom letter "na". Breathe in, hold the breath, and begin writing the letter "na" while reciting mentally: "na kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen na" [na — may the moment come to be; let it arise as "na"]. When the recitation finishes, the writing must finish exactly together with it. If the writing is not completed exactly together with the end of the recitation, this is called an "akkhara wibat" (a flawed/spoiled syllable); one must write it again, or write over the old "na" character, reciting again so that the recitation finishes exactly together with the writing being complete. (Turn back to see the Khom letters on page 56.)

Phlai slice 2 inscribe the Khom syllable Mo Phlai slice 3 inscribe the Khom syllable Phut Phlai slice 4 inscribe the Khom syllable Thā Phlai slice 5 inscribe the Khom syllable Ya Turmeric-root slice 1 inscribe the Khom syllable Na Turmeric-root slice 2 inscribe the Khom syllable Ma Turmeric-root slice 3 inscribe the Khom syllable Pha Turmeric-root slice 4 inscribe the Khom syllable Tha Betel leaf 1 inscribe the Khom word Paṭirūpaṃ Betel leaves 2 and 3 inscribe the Khom word Paṭirūpaṃ, the same as leaf 1.

Writing the Khom letters is done while reciting a formula word by word, as follows:

Inscribing the Phlai

Phlai slice 1: recite "na kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen na" [na — may the moment come to be; let it arise as "na"] Phlai slice 2: recite "mo kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen mo" [...let it arise as "mo"] Phlai slice 3: recite "phut kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen phut" [...let it arise as "phut"] Phlai slice 4: recite "thā kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen thā" [...let it arise as "thā"] Phlai slice 5: recite "ya kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen ya" [...let it arise as "ya"] Turmeric-root slice 1: recite "na kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen na" [...let it arise as "na"] Turmeric-root slice 2: recite "na kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen ma" [...let it arise as "ma"] Turmeric-root slice 3: recite "na kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen pha" [...let it arise as "pha"]

Turmeric-root slice 4: recite "na kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen tha" [...let it arise as "tha"]

Betel leaf 1: write "Paṭirūpaṃ", reciting one syllable at a time as follows:

"na kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen pa" [...let it arise as "pa"] "na kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen ti" [...let it arise as "ti"] "na kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen rū" [...let it arise as "rū"] "na kālo hoti sambhavo, jong mā bangkoet pen pang" [...let it arise as "pang"]

Betel leaves 2 and 3: write and recite the same as leaf 1.

On the inside bottom of the pan where the oil will be poured, write the Khom letters in 3 lines: line 1 writes the words "Namo Buddhāya", written while reciting one word at a time, the same as writing on the phlai.

On the bottom of the pan, line 2, write the Khom words "Na Ma Pha Tha", written while reciting one word at a time, the same as writing on the turmeric-root.

On the bottom of the pan, line 3, write the Khom word "Paṭirūpaṃ", written while reciting one word at a time, the same as writing on the betel leaf.

For how the Khom letters "Namo Buddhāya", "Na Ma Pha Tha", and "Paṭirūpaṃ" are written, see the insert page facing the front of Chapter 2, which explains the writing method in enough detail to be understood and carried out. Should anyone want to be more certain still, they should go and ask a monk, or another teacher who has previously inscribed Khom letters on objects or on yantra cloths. If preparing this in a large pan or a lotus-leaf-shaped pan, increase the oil and the herbal ingredients in proportion: one bottle of oil to 5 slices of phlai, 4 slices of turmeric-root, and 3 betel leaves.

Sequence for making the oil into medicine and quenching hot poison [fever/burns]

1. Arrange flowers, incense, and candles on a tray, together with the teacher's-fee money, 6 baht, then pay homage to the Buddha image and light the incense and candles in homage to the teachers. Recite mentally: "I offer worship and reverence to the virtue of the Buddha, the Dhamma, the Sangha, the virtue of my father and mother, the virtue of my teachers, including Luang Ta Dam and Ajarn Charnnarong. Please come and help me make this oil into medicine, and quench all the hot poison of the oil until it is gone. When the oil falls onto the mouth or hand, let it not be hot, let it cause no harm."

2. Inscribe the Khom letters onto the phlai, the turmeric-root, the betel leaves, and onto the bottom of the pan, as described above.

3. Put the phlai, the turmeric-root, and the betel leaves into the pan, then pour coconut oil into the pan.

4. Recite "Namo…" three times, then recite: "Buddhaṃ saraṇaṃ gacchāmi, Dhammaṃ saraṇaṃ gacchāmi, Saṅghaṃ saraṇaṃ gacchāmi" [I go to the Buddha for refuge, I go to the Dhamma for refuge, I go to the Sangha for refuge]

5. Recite: "Sagge kāme ca rūpe, giri-sikhara-taṭe cantalikkhe vimāne, dīpe raṭṭhe ca gāme, taruvana-gahane gehavatthumhi khette, bhummā cāyantu devā, jalathala-visame yakkha-gandhabba-nāgā tiṭṭhantā santike yaṃ, munivara-vacanaṃ sādhavo me suṇantu, dhammassavana-kālo ayaṃ bhadantā" [roughly: in the heavens of sense-desire, the realms of form, on mountain peaks, in sky-palaces, in islands, kingdoms and villages, in thickets, groves, and homesteads, in fields — may the earthbound devas gather, and the spirits of water and land however uneven, the yakkhas, gandhabbas, and nāgas dwelling nearby — may these good ones listen to the excellent word of the Sage; this, good sirs, is the time to hear the Dhamma] (Monks always chant this verse before reciting blessings in various ceremonies.)

6. Invite [the powers] thus: "I invite the virtue of the Buddha, the virtue of the Dhamma, the virtue of the Sangha, the virtue of my father and mother, the virtue of my teachers, to please come and help make this oil into medicine, and help quench all its hot poison until it is gone. I invite the water element and the wind element to come and help extinguish all hot poison until it is utterly destroyed."

7. Lift the pan of oil onto the fire; use only a low flame — if using charcoal, use a small brazier with only a little charcoal. Then consecrate the oil in the pan to become medicine: breathe in, hold the breath, press the palms together, lower the face to about 1 foot from the oil, and recite: "Samuha gambhiram acorabhayam asesato sobhagava — Buddho, stop! Dhammo, stop! Sangho, stop! Let all sickness and danger stop, stop by the power of Namo Buddhāya" [a formula invoking the depth and majesty of the Buddha's virtue to command all danger and sickness to cease]. Recite this about 2 times, then blow onto the oil once, and while blowing recite once more (silently, in the mind). Next, breathe in and recite again, and blow as before, for a total of 3 times. The mind visualizes the oil and fixes itself at the centre of the oil, releasing the stream of mind's power down into it. Once the oil has grown quite hot, begin reciting the verse for quenching hot poison, breathing in, holding the breath, and reciting mentally:

"Ma-a-u na-ma-pha-tha sa-ka-pha-ja" [a mantra of sacred syllables], recited about 5 or 7 times, then blow onto it; while blowing, recite once more, then breathe in again, recite, and blow as before, repeatedly, until the oil begins to boil. The mind visualizes the oil and intentionally releases the stream of mind continuously into it. If one begins to grow tired, recite while resting in samādhi — that is, without holding the breath — until the tiredness has passed; then resume reciting with the breath-holding method again, several times.

Once the oil begins to boil, try dipping a finger in at a chosen spot, first fixing the mind on that spot. Breathe in, hold the breath, close the eyes, and recite the verse for quenching hot poison 3 times, then blow toward the spot where the finger will be dipped, reciting the verse for quenching hot poison once more. Next, breathe in and hold the breath, bring the index finger close to the oil, almost touching it, and recite "Namo Buddhāya"; then touch the index finger down into the oil while reciting "Paṭirūpaṃ". Lift the finger and check — if it felt only warm when touching the oil, and once lifted the heat and warmth disappear, then the quenching of the hot poison has succeeded well. Next, breathe in, hold the breath, prepare the finger to dip again reciting "Namo Buddhāya"; when dipping recite "Paṭirūpaṃ", dipping to about the middle of the finger; if, on lifting it out, it is not hot, it may be used.

Scooping the oil up to hold in the mouth

This is done the same as dipping the finger the first time: recite the verse for quenching hot poison and blow onto the spot to be scooped from. The spoon used for scooping should be a porcelain spoon; if none is available, use a coated tin spoon, washed clean. When about to scoop, breathe in and hold the breath while reciting "Namo Buddhāya", then scoop up a little oil; while pouring it into the mouth, recite "Paṭirūpaṃ", then spray the oil out. When it is not hot, only warm, scoop more oil the next time.

When first learning, one is not yet skilled; once the oil begins to boil, reduce the fire to very low — if using charcoal, remove charcoal until only a little remains, so there will be enough time to quench the hot poison properly. If, when testing by dipping the hand, it feels very hot, and on lifting the finger it burns throbbingly and the hot poison still will not be quenched, one must recite the verse for quenching hot poison again, several more times.

Points to be careful of

When the herbal ingredients in the pan begin to turn deep yellow, they will dry out and heat will build up inside the pan, with some smoke rising in the pan. At this point, stop testing by dipping the hand or scooping to hold in the mouth, because quenching the hot poison at this stage is difficult for a new practitioner. It is the nature of the oil that if the fire is too hot, intense heat will build up in the pan, and flames may flare up in the pan, like what one sees at restaurants stir-frying morning-glory over high flame. Those newly training to quench hot poison, as soon as the oil begins to boil, should lower the fire to only a little heat beforehand; when the ingredients begin to turn yellow, lift the pan off the fire.

Oil that is actively boiling, if scooped into the mouth and sprayed onto a painful spot or an abscess, often works better than oil that has already cooled. Applying the cooled oil, it should be consecrated as medicine again several times, or over several days — the more, the better. The consecration is done by holding the breath and reciting the verse many times,

then blowing onto it while reciting the verse as well. Never forget to visualize the oil, keeping the mind sinking steadily down into the oil at all times.

As for releasing the stream of mind, if one is tired, the stream of mind released will be weak. So, while the oil is on the fire, or when the oil has already cooled, if one has consecrated or recited and blown many times and begins to tire, one should recite while breathing in and out gently, easily, in the manner of practicing samādhi meditation. There is no need to hold the breath — simply visualize the oil and keep the mind sinking down into it. Done this way it is not tiring, because one is not holding the breath; it serves as a rest that relieves tiredness on its own, while still consecrating or releasing the stream of mind. This method is called "reciting as samādhi." Once the tiredness has passed, resume the breath-holding method, reciting and then blowing, because this method releases the stream of mind well. Then alternate between the two methods of reciting.

Blowing to treat illness

Blowing to quench hot poison for someone scalded by hot water or burned by fire also relies on blowing while visualizing and releasing the stream of mind, similar to consecrating the oil. The oil prepared this way is used to rub on bruises, swelling, and pain, and on itchy sores that are wounds weeping lymph fluid or pus. The oil should be kept together with the herbal ingredients soaking in the pan; the longer it is left, the more the oil takes on a greenish colour. If using oil

pressed by hand from real coconut, the effect will be good if consecrated many times. Most coconut oil sold [commercially] is mixed with palm oil or other oils, using spoiled coconut, so bringing it to use rarely gives good results.

To make it more effective for use on ordinary wounds or long-standing chronic wounds, and to treat people scalded by hot water or burned by fire as well, take phlai weighing 5 baht [a traditional Thai unit of weight, ~15g], turmeric-root weighing 5 baht, and the whole vine of boraphet [Tinospora crispa] together with its leaves weighing 10 baht; pound all three roughly, or slice them thin if preferred. Take camphor weighing 2 salueng [a traditional Thai unit of weight], mix it in with the above, then take about 3 large bottles of the already-consecrated oil that already contains phlai, turmeric-root, and betel leaf, and pour it all into the pan. Set it on the fire and simmer until the herbal matter turns yellow, then take it down and store it for use; consecrating it repeatedly again is even better. Other effective herbal ingredients may also be mixed into the already-consecrated oil to achieve even better results as desired — for instance, genuine goral [serow] oil, or roots/tubers with strong healing power, and so on.

Stage 6

Teaching the complete traditional technique of pulling a chain through fire

I will now teach the technique of pulling a chain through fire, as learned from Ajarn Pluem [and] Ajarn Plai, which uses only a single short recitation, but

quenches hot poison just as effectively, as already described in Stage 3. Before performing the chain-pulling fire-walk, prepare offering trays as follows:

Tray 1: place flowers, incense, and candles, and 6 baht as the teacher's fee, using 3 candles. Pay homage to the teachers by lighting incense; hold the lit incense in the right hand together with both hands lifting the tray of teacher's-fee money, and recite the words of homage and invitation, done the same way for every subject. See the example homage text in the book "Doctor of the Three Traditions" (แพทย์สามแผน), page 97, and in the other subjects as well.

Tray 2: place 3 betel leaves, a handful of uncooked rice, and red slaked lime about the size of a thumb or larger — this lime should be lime not yet mixed with dye — and this lime may also be placed on one more betel leaf, plus 1 bottle of white liquor, set outside the tray. When consecrating, touch the hand to the betel leaves; for the rice and lime, use the recitation of verse 7, found at the back of the book. While reciting, visualize the objects being consecrated in the tray.

Take a bowl of water, 1, for making holy water, by touching both hands to both sides of the bowl to sense the surface of the water where the power of the mind will be sent down into it. With the right hand, use the index finger and thumb to hold a candle of pure beeswax weighing 1 baht, already lit, so that the wax drippings fall into the water in the bowl, turning it into holy water. The objects [to be consecrated]

in the tray may be consecrated either before or after making the holy water. For making the holy water, take the candle from Tray 1.

The method for reciting to consecrate the objects in the tray, or to make holy water, is to recite while releasing the power of the mind, closing the eyes and visualizing the object to be consecrated, then reciting verse 7 by the combined method alternating with breath-holding. As soon as one begins to tire, recite in samādhi instead, alternating as already described in the section on making the medicinal oil and quenching hot poison, at the end of the passage on making the oil into medicine and quenching hot poison.

Once the objects in the tray have been consecrated and the holy water made, take an iron chain of 6-hun or 4-hun gauge [a traditional Thai unit of thickness, ~4.7mm per hun], about 1 metre long. Coil one end, about half its length — that is, half a metre — onto a brazier already burning well with charcoal. The remaining half metre of chain hangs outside the brazier, with a ring threaded at its end for grasping and lifting the chain up off the brazier.

Those learning this for the first time should use only a little charcoal fire, and the chain should also be of a small gauge at first. Begin by invoking the virtue of the Buddha and of one's teachers to come and help quench all the hot poison of the iron chain until it is gone. Then begin the process of quenching the hot poison of the iron chain by

Press the palms together, recite Namo three times, then chant the recollection verse to invoke the mantra, 3 times, as follows:

“Vutthi jutti vaiya-patta appamana sampathetha”

Next, recite the protective incantation as follows:

“Buddho surrounds [me], Dhammo shields [me], Sangho protects [me]. Thao Wessuwan (guardian king of the yakshas), Buddho together, pi-at-tha-kho, suwanno, the great king, of Suwannabhumi, with loving-kindness — yakkha-sedtha-man-hi-ke — Buddhang-kan-iti-chat-kan-savaha, Dhammang-kan-iti-chat-kan-savaha, Sanghang-kan-iti-chat-kan-savaha.” (a protective chant; some phrases are given here transliterated as printed, their exact sense not glossed on the page)

(This can be used to guard against anything at all; it may also be recited before sleep. It protects against everything — black magic (khun sai) cannot touch it at all, very excellent indeed..)

(Note: ภูมิ is pronounced “phum”; ชาติ is pronounced “cha-t”)

Before reciting the protective verse, first enter samadhi, gathering the mind and drawing it to the corner of the room ahead on the left. When that recitation is finished, fix the mind and draw it — as though it were a consecrated thread (sai sin) — to come to rest at the corner of the room on the right. Recite once more. Then gather the mind and draw it as a thread to the back-right corner of the room. Recite once. Then fix the mind and draw it as a thread to come to rest at the back-left corner of the room. Recite once more, then fix the mind and draw...

...to be a consecrated thread (using the flow of the mind in place of an actual thread), to converge at the front-left corner. If this is not done inside an actual room, then mark out a boundary in the shape of a square, resembling a room.

When the protective verse is finished, begin to quench the burning heat of the chain in the fire-brazier. Do this by gathering the mind onto the coiled chain sitting in the brazier, fixing right at the middle of the coil, eyes closed, holding continuously in mind the image of the coiled chain. Recite one verse at a time: recite verse 6 many times through, then recite verse 7 many more times, then verse 8, verse 9, and verse 10, each one many times over (3 or 7 times through). For the recitation, use the method of holding the breath (recite for one held breath at a time). Recite about 1 or 2 times through, then blow the breath toward the chain in the brazier while reciting once more, then breathe in and hold the breath again. Recite, then blow the breath out again the same way, repeating like this. If you begin to feel tired, simply recite while remaining in samadhi, without needing to alternate the held-breath method, as described in the teaching on turning oil into medicine. Once verse 10 is finished, if it is still uncertain whether the burning heat has been fully quenched, begin reciting verse 6 through verse 10 again. Check whether the charcoal in the brazier, which was black, has now caught fire until it has all turned glowing red. Then test whether the burning heat is gone by taking one betel leaf from the tray, dipping it in the consecrated water, and placing it on the chain in the fire-brazier. If the betel leaf...

...withers and burns into a large hole, this shows the burning heat is not yet fully gone; send psychic power again by reciting verse 6 through 10 as before. Then take a betel leaf from the tray, dip it in consecrated water, and place it on the chain in the brazier again. If the betel leaf merely withers without burning into a large hole, or burns into only a tiny hole, this shows the burning heat is now fully quenched. Lift the end of the chain lying outside the brazier and take the chain out of the brazier, holding it so it hangs down or is suspended. Then recite verse 9, breathing in and holding the breath while reciting once through, then blowing out toward the glowing red chain, reciting once more (this is called reciting for one held breath). Keep reciting this verse 9 continuously, with the mind gathered on that burning chain. Bring a finger or the palm close to the burning chain; if it does not feel very hot, then touch the hot chain with a finger or palm and quickly withdraw the hand. If touching it feels only slightly hot, and on withdrawing the hand there is no sensation of heat left on the finger, then next stroke the chain with the palm, an open-palm stroking motion downward — this the teacher calls “rud so” (chain-stroking). Try stroking it 2 or 3 times. Next, bring both palms together and scoop up the chain from its end to a height of about one khuep (a hand-span), then quickly release it downward. Do not keep the hand touching the chain for long, and do not grip the chain in a fist. When scooping the chain up, release it quickly, because during the first attempts at practice the samadhi is not yet good enough to bear contact with the hot chain for long. To be able to bear contact for longer, or to scoop it...

...being able to keep the chain glowing hot in contact for a long time requires first training samadhi until reaching the middle stage of samadhi.

When the glowing-red chain has been lifted out of the brazier, bring the face close to the chain, about one khuep away. Recite verse 9 for one held breath, blowing continuously toward the chain the whole time; during the interval before touching or scooping it up, keep reciting continuously. Others who have not studied this discipline may also come and touch or scoop the chain to try it — there is no danger. The one who has studied this discipline should keep blowing to quench the burning heat using verse 9 throughout the trial.

Next comes what is called “withdrawing the discipline” (sup wicha): take a little liquor from a bottle and hold it in the mouth. Recite verse 11 once through, then spray it as a fine mist onto the part of the chain that was in the fire, then draw breath in through the mouth with a whooshing sound. As soon as the liquor is sprayed out, continue drawing breath in right after. Do this 3 times. The chain will then feel hot again, carrying burning heat — if a finger is touched to it, it can raise a blister.

When first attempting to stroke the chain or scoop it up, if one still feels afraid, one may first apply consecrated lime paste and holy water to the palms before stroking or scooping the chain. Once one is able to do it and understands it well, there is no further need to apply the lime paste or holy water.

For fire-walking (kan lui fai), preparing the offerings, the tray, and the consecration is done the same as for chain-stroking. Next, build a raised frame from earth so the coals will not scatter, about 1 sok wide and about 1 wa long. Take charcoal that has been burned in the large brazier until well alight, and pour it into the frame — about 1 sok wide and 1 wa long — until the frame is full. Then tamp it flat with a piece of wood, and quench the burning heat using verses 6 through 10, the same as for quenching the heat of the chain. Testing whether the heat is fully quenched is done the same way as for the iron chain. Before walking on the fire for the first time, if one still feels some fear, apply lime paste and holy water to both feet, applying it from the heel up along the sole to the toes. Then walk onto the coals, stepping quickly; do not keep a foot pressed down for long. If treading in place somewhat, lift the foot quickly. Recite verse 8 while one is not yet accustomed to it and the samadhi is not yet good enough.

When about to run through the burning fire, spit saliva into the hand and consecrate it with verse 8; if pressed for time, consecrate it for a single held breath. Then take the consecrated saliva and rub it on the head, and rub it on the soles of both feet from heel to toes. Then walk through the fire, breathing in deeply and holding the breath while reciting verse 8. If there is no time to consecrate and one must run out at once, there is no need to perform the consecration at all — simply hold the breath and recite rapidly while running through the fire.

Prohibition: in this discipline of chain-stroking and fire-walking taught by Ajarn Pleum [and] Ajarn Pai, it is forbidden to eat cold [leftover] rice mixed together with freshly cooked hot rice (rice left overnight — do not mix it with rice that has just been freshly cooked to eat).

One who has studied for 3 years may then be entrusted [by the teacher] to become a teacher to others.

Examination and Treatment of Illness Using Psychic Power

Treatment of illness by the power of the mind sometimes involves the use of medicine combined with mental power; sometimes it uses massage and the taking hold of blood vessels and nerve lines combined with mental power; and sometimes it uses the power of the mind directly. There should therefore be no doubt that this is impossible, because I myself am ready to prove and demonstrate it to be seen as true. Please listen carefully to what I say and do not misunderstand, or spread the rumor, that I have declared myself a healer of diseases, or have announced that I am ready to treat illnesses. Should such rumors spread, it could bring great harm upon me, on account of jealousy and the fear that others might be thought better. Please understand only this much: if it is for the benefit of the public, for the sake of research and experimentation, I am glad to offer myself to be tested and to answer questions so as to show plainly which illnesses can truly be treated...

...as for illnesses that are not [easily] cured, there are many kinds that can be treated with little investment yet cured quickly.

Method of Diagnosing Illness Using the Power of the Mind

1. Using the elementary level of mental power combined with the power of sacred Buddhist objects (khun phra).

2. Using the higher and middle levels of mental power.

Using the Elementary Level of Mental Power to Diagnose Illness

This relies on grasping, touching, and the use of other diagnostic instruments, combined with stilling and calming the mind, in order to judge the various symptoms and determine conclusively what illness they add up to — or, once it is known for certain what it is, to obtain further details, such as by what method it should be treated, and so on.

Using the Middle and Higher Levels of Mental Power

This method is carried out by creating an image, called a “mano-phap” (mental image). When the mind enters the middle level of samadhi, the mental image becomes clearer. Once the higher level of samadhi is reached, the image obtained becomes even clearer and more accurate, corresponding truly to reality. There are several ways of proceeding to create this image, such as:

1. Bring the mind into samadhi, then move the mind to the area of the illness while the eyes remain closed. Then create a new image in place of that part [of the body] — for instance, if the illness is in the arm, create an image of the arm, or picture that arm so that the mental image is seen superimposed on the real arm, or positioned at roughly the location of the real arm. Then examine the symptoms.

2. Once the shape of the sick person has been seen, and both the shape and the site of the illness have been memorized, one returns home and carries out the examination by sitting in samadhi. This is mostly done late at night in quiet solitude, so as to obtain a reliable result. There are several ways of doing this, such as:

a. Make holy water and gaze at the holy water, so that an image arises on its own; or do it without using water at all — this is sometimes called “sitting the candle” (nang thian) or “raising the cloud” (yok mek). Whatever the method, the same principle is used: still and calm the mind, then create a mental image.

b. Hold a small mirror in the hand and make a vow (athithan) for the image of the ailing part of that person to appear; then close the eyes and recite so that the image appears, and examine the interior and the area of the illness.

3. Use the method of making a vow (athithan) combined with the power of the mind — for instance, pressing the burnt end of a candle to the skin, or pressing with a finger; if there is illness at a particular spot, this is used to make it feel hot or to make it tingle, and so on. Or use the method of calling for the symptom to manifest, persuading or compelling the illness to appear clearly.

4. Try treating with the power of the mind and see, or try gazing with the mind and see — for instance, try sprinkling holy water and observing; with some illnesses a symptom will then appear, such as an illness caused by black magic (thuk khong) or one where a spirit has intruded.

Even so, when there is overlap and it is uncertain what the illness is, decide upon whichever possibility seems closest to the truth, and then try treating it with the power of the mind, because some illnesses show good results within as little as 15 or 20 minutes, while others show clear results only after a period of 3 or 7 days.

To make this easy to understand, I will give examples of diagnosis and treatment, together with a critique of the strengths and weaknesses, comparing treatment by the present-day [medical] system with treatment by the power of the mind, case by case.

Method of Treating Illness Using the Power of the Mind

There are various ways of proceeding, depending on the teacher who discovered the method and transmitted the discipline; but there is generally the same essential principle — still the mind, then move the mind to the area of the illness, or, if one has become skilled, fix the mind directly upon the site of the illness at once, then transmit the power of the mind down into it continuously. The procedure generally follows these principles:

1. Diagnose the cause and type of illness, and examine the course of the illness's symptoms. This matter requires care and depends on knowledge, skill, and other kinds of knowledge as described above.

2. Treat directly with the power of the mind — that is, send the power of the mind directly to the site of the illness, or induce the patient to use their own mental power to heal themselves.

3. Transmit the power of the mind into another object or into medicine, then use that to treat the illness.

4. Treat by creating a form or image in its place — for instance, by creating a mental image as described above in the method of diagnosis.

...with the power of the mind, then carry out the treatment toward the area affected by the illness; or model an effigy to stand in for the person, marking on it the area where the illness occurs, and then treat the effigy in place of treating the patient's own body. This method is used to treat from a distance, without needing to treat the patient's body directly; or one may treat while physically near the patient but without sending the power of the mind directly to the patient's body.

5. Using the power of the mind combined with other methods.

For the sake of clarity, I will give examples of practical methods and lines of reasoning for consideration, case by case. The examples given below are illnesses that have been treated with good results, and which a number of practitioners still use today — they are not the kind of example that cannot be verified. And I vow that I will compare the results of treatment, and the strengths and weaknesses, between the present-day Western medical system and the ancient one, according to the truth as I have studied and verified it.

Chapter 3

Lecture Given at Wat Khema

Reasons Why Practicing Samadhi-Vipassana Yields Little Result

1. Understanding on the Subject of Precepts (sila). There is a teaching that one must keep the Five Precepts purely before samadhi practice can be effective. Many people understand it this way, and as a result lose interest in practicing, lose interest in going to the temple, because they remain still very attached to worldly happiness. In truth, whether one keeps all five precepts purely, or keeps only some of them, one can still practice samadhi-vipassana with results — it is only a matter of at what level the results occur, because the Dhamma is not bound by time. That is: not bound by time — at the moment one is practicing samadhi, the precepts, all 227 of them, are in effect complete, because one is not committing any wrongdoing, not doing evil by body or speech, and one will therefore naturally obtain results at a certain level, because the Dhamma is not bound by time — whenever good is done, good results follow in due proportion. Once a person practices samadhi and obtains some result, seeing the benefit of samadhi, they then become willing to keep the precepts more fully, improving of their own accord.

2. Teaching samadhi-vipassana. Most [teachers] teach by skipping stages, which is a violation of the Buddha's own teaching on how to give a Dhamma talk: the teaching says that the Dhamma-speaker (the one expounding the Dhamma) should expound in sequence, from easy to difficult, not skipping stages; should teach without disparaging or belittling others; should teach without praising himself; should teach without hoping for gain or reward, and so on. In teaching samadhi-vipassana, [correct practice] emphasizes and aims at practising according to the Four Foundations of Mindfulness (Mahasatipatthana), which involve contemplating body, feeling, mind, and mental objects (dhamma). Or, in summary, contemplating body and mind. But [some] teach contemplation of the body without finishing it, and then move on to contemplation of the mind — this is teaching out of proper order. In the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, the body is to be contemplated in three stages: 1. Know when breathing in long, know when breathing out long; know when breathing in short, know when breathing out short. 2. Calm the bodily formation — that is, make the breath subtle and progressively lighter, until one need not breathe through the nose, which corresponds to the level of the fourth jhana. 3. See the arising and the passing away (decay) in the body, both internally and externally, of one's own body.

Most [teachers] skip the sequence — they do not teach stages 2 and 3, but jump straight to teaching about the mind, that is, feeling and so on. In truth [continued on next page]...

Stage 3, calming the breath, and stage 4, seeing arising and passing away in the body both internally and externally, are very important — through them one can eliminate sensual desire (kamachanda) and eliminate, in sequence, the five hindrances (nivarana), until, once all five hindrances are exhausted, one attains samadhi at a high level, that is, the level of jhana, exactly in accordance with the Tipitaka. Eliminating the five hindrances even for a period yields jhana for that period, because it is caused by seeing the body as it truly is. On the matter of wisdom (panna), the teaching emphasizes only that one should contemplate in this way, and wisdom seeing impermanence (anicca), suffering (dukkha), and non-self (anatta) will then arise.

3. [Many] teach repetitively, staying only at the basic level, and do not teach at the higher level. For example, contemplation of the body is very important, carrying as many as 10 benefits, the last of which is attaining liberation through wisdom (panna-vimutti) and liberation of mind (ceto-vimutti). In the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, one is to contemplate the body so as to see it as unbeautiful, filthy, disgusting, and repulsive. But what is mostly taught is to contemplate the 32 parts — hair, body hair, etc. — and to contemplate a corpse and then apply it to oneself, thinking that one will eventually become like this — which concerns a future time yet to come. But what must be taught at the next stage, which is the present-moment phenomenon (present dhamma), is not taught, or is taught only a little.

Luang Pu Waen taught contemplation of present-moment phenomena, in accordance with what is emphasized in the Abhidhamma. That is, Luang Pu Waen taught: "The past is a dhamma of delusion, the future is a dhamma of delusion; the present is [true] Dhamma."

4. Wrong View (miccha-ditthi). Wrong view is a sin (bap) and a most significant obstacle in training in samadhi-vipassana. The gravest sin is teaching that contradicts the Buddha's own teaching — criticizing samatha training, that is, samadhi and the use of mental power, as something bad, incorrect, slow to bear fruit, not a direct path to nibbana, an unnecessary detour — while urging people heavily toward vipassana practice, repeatedly stressing seeing impermanence (anicca), suffering (dukkha), and non-self (anatta), which are the aim of vipassana. Modern people, in this age of advanced science, find this quite easy to understand, especially the matter of "anatta" — not a self, having no self, not a being, not a person; being impermanent and without real substance, merely the four elements combined temporarily — that is anicca. But to understand this clearly and distinctly is very difficult; direct personal experience is necessary in order to understand it deeply. The teacher-monk in the forest, when training students in samadhi, upon reaching the intermediate stage of samadhi, taught them to turn a leaf into a living creature. The easy way to begin is...

[He] taught them to turn a tamarind leaf into a hornet. Take a tamarind leaf and place it in the alms bowl. Use mental power and the power of meditative concentration, continuously visualizing the image of the hornet the whole time. The tamarind leaf will begin to circle and spin, and then turn into a hornet, resembling a real hornet in every respect — but it lives no more than 7 days, after which it turns back into a leaf as before. Through this one comes to know and see impermanence (anicca) and non-self (anatta) clearly, deeply, and with confidence. When one reaches a high level of samadhi, the teacher-monk will have [the student] walk back and forth through a mountain, which makes one see anatta clearly — that everything, both people and animals, is not a [fixed] self. This is very difficult to explain or put into words so that it can be understood; hence there is a saying that teaches: "The real thing lies silent as if mute; what can be spoken is not the real thing." A person who has never tasted salt — however we explain what salty is like, he still cannot understand it clearly.

The teacher-monks in the forest would strongly emphasize that the use of mental power, the power of the Buddha's virtue, is merely a passing subject, a subject for children to play with — one should not become attached to it.

The benefits of using mental power, stated briefly, are:

1. It is a way to accurately measure the level of samadhi attained — it lets both student and teacher know clearly. If the teacher alone examines it, only the teacher knows.

2. It is a way of coming to understand the higher Dhamma, namely impermanence (anicca), suffering (dukkha), and non-self (anatta), clearly, as already stated.

3. It helps one learn how to use mental power, the power of the Buddha's virtue, for various benefits — for example, using mental power to treat various illnesses in oneself and others; using mental power to aid memory and help one study well; using this power to help one's work in one's profession succeed well, or to become wealthy, through the power of mental power and samadhi — of which there are many examples at present. This accords with the teaching: "One whose mind is in samadhi can accomplish every benefit," or "One whose mind is in samadhi can accomplish every task," both of which require use of the mental power that arises from samadhi itself.

Training in samadhi correctly, to the point of attaining jhana [and] seeing people as skeletons — for example, the monk mentioned in the Visuddhimagga, who saw people as skeletons and thereby extinguished sensual desire — one might think that such a degree of happiness is enough and there is no need to go further to reach nibbana. The Buddha criticized this as wrong practice, because there is a teaching that one should not be complacent with [merely] wholesome states (kusaladhamma). Once it is a wholesome state, one must continue training all the way to the end, not clinging and remaining attached at that level. The use of mental power has, in brief, the three benefits already stated.

If one clings to it, that is wrong and produces harm; but if one does not cling to it, there is only great benefit.

4. On the matter of wisdom (panna), which must be present at every stage — there is teaching, at the stage of training in samadhi-vipassana, that one must use wisdom, yet [teachers] do not bring in the section of Dhamma on the method for generating wisdom to go along with it, which has 3 stages. On some occasions when it is brought up, it is explained correctly only halfway. For example, the generation of the first level of wisdom arises from listening — [teachers] tend to emphasize only the matter of listening, such as listening attentively, listening respectfully — but do not speak of the content of the teaching itself. The written teaching given must be correct and in accordance with the truth.

Let me give an example of contemplation to show things as they truly are. If we take a container about 2 cubits tall, put excrement in it to a depth of 1 span, then put good, favorite, delicious food on top of the excrement, filling the container, and have people scoop it out and eat — a person who does not know there is excrement underneath will find it delicious to eat. But a person who knows there is excrement underneath will not dare eat it; he will be disgusted. As for a person we are infatuated with and attached to — if we contemplate seeing both the outside and the inside together, we will see several piles of excrement in the stomach. Try taking a laxative and see — one will excrete many times over. Besides a person's excrement, there is also the waste of the living cells present everywhere throughout the body...

There are also enormous numbers of dead life-units present everywhere in the body — all of it is a corpse, a rotting, stinking thing. Once, when I went to train at sea with my teacher-monk, all the way to Japan, staying in Korea, a Korean doctor would come along the seashore to examine [everyone]; whoever had no disease was issued a card allowing him to go ashore. Those with disease were not allowed ashore. They were made to bend over, and a stainless-steel [probe] was inserted into the anal opening to a depth of about 1 inch, turned, and then examined through a scope. If there was no infection, a card was issued allowing one ashore. This showed that even shallow inside the anal opening there was already a thick layer of fecal residue, together with disease germs. As for women, when menstrual blood flows without stopping for up to 3 days, the vaginal passage develops a thick layer of clotted, rotten blood. Consider tap water that looks clear and clean — a 4-fen tap-water pipe becomes blocked within 10 years, because sediment in the tap water accumulates as limescale until full. The blood [and] sexual fluid of men and women, which is not clear like tap water, likewise accumulates as residue in the sexual organs. The anal passages of men and women are thick, rough, and foul-smelling — but intoxication in sensual pleasure keeps one from noticing the roughness. If one sees it with the mind, or sees it through a magnifying scope, it would be extremely disgusting and repulsive. If one sees and likes things only in isolated parts, one should contemplate seeing both the outside and the inside together. When one sees the outside, the inside, the top, and the bottom all at the same moment — that is seeing according to reality.

Seeing in the worldly (lokiya) manner means seeing only in isolated parts, only the exterior — hence one delights, wants to see, wants to have; for example, seeing the skin as beautiful, seeing the face, the buttocks, the breasts, looking firm and shapely and beautiful — because it has been embellished, made to depart from the truth.

Seeing in the transcendent-Dhamma (lokuttara-dhamma) manner means seeing according to reality — seeing the whole body all together: seeing the outside, seeing the inside, seeing the top, seeing the bottom, seeing all of it together — outside, inside, top, bottom — together with its process [of change] as well; seeing arising and passing away, both internally and externally. At first, contemplate seeing certain parts, and then see it as a whole. Know the body as it truly is: the body is composed of life-units, called in the Tipitaka "jivitarupa" [life-matter]; in medical language these are called life-units, or cells — living things. Being alive, they eat, move, excrete, reproduce, and continually die and decay. Those that have not yet managed to leave the body are also present in great numbers. The body is thus like a mass grave for these life-units, full of the waste of these life-units. The dead ones and their waste pass out through the pores; those not yet through the pores still fill the pores. Hence it is said [in scripture] that the body is full of rotting sores; the pores are thus tiny rotting sores present all over the body, since there are as many as 90,000 pores, as it appears...

...as it appears in the Visuddhimagga. But Westerners have calculated there are as many as 99,000 pores. One looks at a face and sees it as beautiful, but in truth it is full of rotting sore-holes, and there are also large openings for draining filth and dead life-units — namely the 7 apertures: two eyes, two nostrils, two ears, and one mouth. The skin of the face is itself dead life-units that have been expelled, called the epidermis. Everywhere on the body or skin that one is infatuated with is in fact dead life-units expelled by the wind element — that is, the corpses of cells, or life-units, being expelled, coming out little by little, and being blown away into the air continuously. There are as many as 50,000 million life-units in the body, so deaths occur numbering in the hundreds of thousands every minute. Compared with a large mosquito, visible to the naked eye, which lives only 7 days before dying — [these] life-units are extremely tiny, requiring a good magnifying scope to see them; they are born and die in less than a single day. The Tipitaka gives extensive detail on this, for instance: the body is full of life-units (jivitarupa), which move, are born and die, and are continually separated and blown away out of the body. Therefore the skin that one is infatuated with, fond of, and thinks of as beautiful — that is [merely] the epidermis, or the corpses of life-units, which, the instant one sees them, have already been blown away into the air entirely — because the dead life-units in the deeper layers keep pushing outward continually...

...continuously. Applying a thin layer of cosmetics deceives one into still greater delusion. Consider, from the head downward: the hair that emerges from the scalp — cutting it does not hurt, because it is dead hair. Body hair is likewise: the part that emerges and is visible is the corpse of the body hair (loma). The nails that emerge are the corpse of the nails (nakha). The outer surface of the teeth is likewise a dead part — when a tooth is first drilled there is no pain or sensitivity, because it is a dead part; only once the drilling goes a bit deeper does it hurt and become sensitive, because the tooth and its nerve are not entirely dead there. One can thus see why the Buddha taught contemplation of "kesa, loma, nakha, danta, taco" (hair, body hair, nails, teeth, skin) — these are the externally visible parts of the body that one is infatuated with, thinking them beautiful, when in truth one is infatuated with corpses. Compare with a dead person, who is a corpse: however one might apply powder and adorn them to enhance their beauty, we would not like or love them, and would still be disgusted, unwilling to go near, unwilling to touch, embrace, or kiss them. Yet the hair, body hair, nails, teeth, and skin that we [ordinarily] see are, in truth, likewise all corpses — yet instead we see them as beautiful, lovely, and pleasing to look at. That is not seeing according to reality; it is "wrong view" (miccha-ditthi), which carries great and heavy fault, according to the Buddha's teaching, as it appears in the Tipitaka, saying:

"Monks, I see nothing that gives greater, more severe harm than wrong view (miccha-ditthi)" — this is because it is the root cause that leads one to commit wrongdoing and sin, bearing consequences and fault without end, recurring over and over across many lifetimes, until one attains right view (samma-ditthi). [As for] anantariya-kamma, the "heavy karma" — such as killing one's parents, killing an arahant, and so on — once its retribution has been given, it is finished, and does not recur.

Most people lack mindfulness in the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, which lead to seeing according to reality — seeing the physical form as unbeautiful, filthy, disgusting, and repulsive. Even a picture of a person on a sheet of paper, which is merely flat with a thin layer of colour, can be seen as having breadth, length, and curved fullness, and can give rise to fondness — wanting to look at it, wanting to have it; this too is wrong seeing, clinging firmly to physical form. All the more so with an actual living person, whose mannerisms further invite infatuation and love, as already described. Even monks in the time of the Buddha, having trained until they saw people as mere skeletons and thereby ceased to feel liking or attachment, found in this enough mental happiness that they became content and did not train further to a higher level — and for this they were reproached by the Buddha. If we diligently contemplate an actual skeleton, or an image of a skeleton, until we see it clearly in the mind, we will indeed come to see that a person adorned to look beautiful has, throughout their body, a skeleton — frightening, ugly — with no wish to love, no wish to like, no desire arising...

...or one can suppress sensual desire (kamachanda), one of the five hindrances (nivarana), an important obstruction to success. One can cut off delusion, infatuation, and love regarding the physical form. Even when seeing form, seeing the body, it is seen merely as seeing, with no [attached] meaning arising. This causes one to see according to reality — not liking, not loving, not being infatuated. The mind then becomes neutral and firmly established, possessing only cool, calm, and subtle loving-kindness (metta), which helps samadhi progress to ever-higher levels in due order.

May all of you experience only happiness and prosperity.

Chapter 4

The method of training in samadhi-vipassana to get good results quickly

Training the mind according to the teaching of the tradition of the Teacher in the deep forest can be tested or proven according to modern scientific principles, and it fully accords with the Tipitaka. By bringing together related teachings that reinforce one another to practice jointly - because the teachings that give good results in sequence, from lowest to the very highest of truly reaching Nibbana, number 37 factors, called the "Bodhipakkhiya-dhamma," which have 7 groups, such as the Four Iddhipada (virtues that help accomplish four kinds of purpose), the Five Bala (five qualities that are powers), and the Seven Bojjhanga (factors of enlightenment) - all are brought together to reach Nibbana. I will explain them so they are easy to understand and can be practiced with quick results, as follows.

Samadhi is "the fixing of the mind steadily on a single object." One must therefore find the point where the mind can be fixed, by breathing hard several times and observing where the breath strikes most quickly and most strongly

the nearby area. If a person's nose curves downward, the breath strikes the tip of the nose first - that is, it strikes there most quickly and soonest, striking more strongly than elsewhere - then fix the mind to keep noticing at the tip of the nose; take that as the mind's point of fixation. If a person's upper lip is raised, when breathing hard the breath will strike quickly and strongly at the upper lip, so fix the mind to keep noticing at the upper lip. Ordinary Thai people generally do not have a curved nose or a raised upper lip. The Teacher in the forest has [the practitioner] fix the mind at the point where the two nostrils join into a single opening at the bridge of the nose, where one can observe that the incoming breath strikes the opening at the bridge of the nose, which is a single airway. If one breathes hard, it will strike at the opening at the bridge of the nose; observe whether it strikes quickly and strongly at the upper part, on the left or right, or in the middle of the upper part. Wherever at the bridge of the nose it feels strong or quick, fix the mind firmly there - just like a post driven into the ground. Visions of people, animals, or trees may arise, but do not take the mind out to look at those images. If seeing arises, pay it no attention; keep the mind fixed in its original place, and that image will disappear by itself. It is not our duty to go and look. If the mind moves to look or becomes interested, the samadhi will regress. Once the fixation point of the mind is obtained, next look for a comfortable breath, by breathing sometimes longer, sometimes shorter, sometimes harder, sometimes lighter - adjust and observe that

whichever kind of breathing is most comfortable, breathe with that comfortable breath, which is the breath that gives rise to samadhi. Remember this comfortable breath; the next time you practice samadhi, use this comfortable breath.

The Buddha taught that "comfort and ease is the cause that gives rise to samadhi" - that is, samadhi arises from comfort. It is comparable to our walking to look at beautiful flowers with fragrant scent and lovely colors that please us, in a garden of many acres entirely full of flowers that are beautiful and pleasing, which brings delight - that is comfort or happiness. One then becomes pleased and forgets to think of home, people, or other things; no distraction arises, no love or hatred toward anyone arises, because one is absorbed and happy. There is no ill will, no drowsiness or sleepiness, no wavering doubt. That is the Five Hindrances (nivarana), which are the things that block the mind from attaining goodness; they become lighter, which then causes good samadhi to arise. Because according to the Tipitaka, when the hindrances are exhausted, one attains samadhi (firm steadiness) at a high level, that is, reaching the level of jhana. If samadhi progresses correctly, comfort and ease will increase more and more until, at the fourth jhana, one has the highest happiness.

The delight, comfort, or happiness that arises because one manages to make the breath comfortable will give rise to craving or

greed. Wanting to become even more comfortable, one tries to arrange the breath to become even more comfortable, which then causes samadhi to regress or fail to become samadhi at all, because greed has arisen. Greed wants to get good results quickly. The correct method is that one must not intentionally arrange for it to become better; it is the duty of the mind itself to arrange for the breath to become comfortable - samadhi improves by itself.

Please listen to the reasoning for how the mind is able to arrange for samadhi to improve. We have a body, which is form (rupa), and a mind, which is mentality (nama). Our body must work in an orderly way in order for the body to continue to exist - for example, the heart must beat approximately 72 times per minute; if it beats too much, such as 110 times per minute, that is a fever; if it beats fewer than 40 times, that is fainting. The lungs help breathing occur about 20 times per minute. The liver has the function of making digestive fluid to send to digest food. The functioning of the various organs, from eating food, digesting and converting it into blood to nourish the body, and excreting waste from the body - that is the mind's control over the workings within the body. The mind wishes the body well; the mind has no self but is the nature that knows, and so it knows how to control the body to keep it in normal well-being. But the body itself needs adornment, needs food, shelter, clothing, radio, television, cars, and so on; the mind performs the function of helping to think and helping to seek. Even the seeking of happiness in worldly and Dhamma ways

the mind performs the function of helping to think and to seek. In training samadhi for the sake of happiness in the Dhamma, [the mind] also helps to bring about the desired result, by helping to make the breathing lighter yet more comfortable - breathing fewer times but with more comfort, or in other words having more happiness in the Dhamma. We must go along with the mind, act according to the mind, or accord with the mind - not arrange things ourselves, because that would become craving, desire, or greed. When one goes along with the mind, breathing will become lighter and fewer in number, yet with more comfort. It is compared to a kite that has caught the wind - that is, the mind at peace and ease. When the wind blows harder, one lets out the kite string following the wind, going along with the wind, and the kite rises higher - similar to samadhi, or comfort and happiness improving according to the management and help of the mind. Please consider the profundity of the workings of the mind, which is truly wondrous, namely:

Our body is made up of living cells, which the Buddha called "jivitarupa" (life-form), that is, the bodily form that is alive. Bones, flesh, skin, liver, kidneys, and the various organs are also made up of cells that are extremely small - invisible to the eye, requiring a large magnifying instrument [microscope] to be seen. Since cells are alive, they must eat, grow, reproduce, excrete, and die. The cells throughout the body number approximately

fifty billion cells. Try considering piglets and puppies: they may have as many as 10 offspring, and some are very large while others are very small, because they get to eat little food or milk, being unable to compete for it against the others. If the mind did not control the cells to eat equal amounts, one arm would grow to a different size than the other, one eye would be small while the other was large. The fact that growth occurs in due proportion is because the mind is the controller - of all fifty billion cells. The mind therefore wishes the body well and helps it in an astonishing way. When we practice samadhi, the mind helps to adjust the breath to become progressively lighter and more comfortable, and we simply follow along with the breathing, going along with the mind - comparable to a kite that has caught the wind: as the wind grows stronger, one lets it out following the wind so it rises even higher. Once we have arranged the breath to be comfortable, we must then go along with what the mind arranges, not arrange it ourselves; arranging it ourselves turns into desire or craving, and samadhi is then spoiled. This is a very important principle that must be carefully considered. As samadhi becomes higher, the breath becomes lighter and longer, yet comfort and happiness increase. That means the number of breaths per minute decreases. An ordinary person breathes in about 20 times per minute. Try counting the breathing of a person who is asleep - even one sleeping deeply and snoring breathes in about 20 times per minute, the same as a person who is awake and sitting. But as soon as one sets the mind to practice samadhi, the

the inhalation will decrease. Almost everyone breathes in 12 times per minute, yet feels comfortable because the mind is in samadhi. As samadhi is made to improve further, the breathing becomes lighter and longer, but more comfortable. Keep counting how many times one breathes in by watching the movement of the chest, but when samadhi progresses and improves further, inhalation is reduced to only 5 times per minute; we will observe and not see any movement - one must bring a small piece of cotton wool close to the nose, and will see the cotton wool sway when breathing in. When samadhi progresses and improves still further, the inhalation decreases further, until only 2 breaths in per minute remain - this is reckoned as having reached the middle level of samadhi, or upacara-samadhi (access concentration). The mind separates from the body, causing one to feel as though there is no body, only a mind that is aware with mindfulness present; the ears no longer hear sounds around oneself - this is called "the ears going silent." The middle level of samadhi becomes ever more refined and subtle, until, as one is about to enter jhana (the higher level of samadhi), one encounters a light called "obhasa" (radiance) - an extremely vast light that covers over the entire world. Even one's own body is entirely covered over, but one still clearly knows that there is only the mind, still, resting in the midst of this radiant light, with great happiness, because the Five Hindrances have almost entirely vanished. The mind becomes very doubtful, because it does not see that there is a body, and thinks: this must surely be a noble one (ariya), at the level of a Stream-enterer or an Arahant. Many people, having reached this level,

will go astray and misunderstand, and end up practicing incorrectly, departing from the original way - for example eating alone and refusing to let others eat with them. At this stage one must be very careful. I once asked the Teacher in the forest, and he answered that this is the obhasa light; when samadhi improves further still, one leaves the obhasa light behind and then enters "jhana." The obhasa light is unlike any light in the world. In this jhana that is attained, the Five Hindrances are gone, but it is still a mundane (lokiya) jhana; if not maintained well, it can degenerate. More details than this can be read in the books "Science of the Mind: The World-Opening Edition," "The World-Viewing Edition," and "The Universe-Viewing Edition."

The middle level of samadhi already has the capability of being put to use in many beneficial ways. One who is determined to train earnestly in accordance with the teachings of the Buddha will succeed in reaching the middle level of samadhi within 3 months, by following the "Important Principles for Training the Mind," which are compiled from the teachings of the Teacher in the deep forest, and number 7 points.

The 7 Important Principles for Training the Mind

1. Breathe with a comfortable breath. Keep the breath flowing evenly and continuously. This is an important principle that helps samadhi progress and improve. If

samadhi does not progress and improve, and there is still thinking of this and that - that is, much distraction interposing itself - then contemplate death and foulness (asubha); that is contemplation through vipassana. Once contemplation through vipassana has been done sufficiently, the mind will then calm down, and one should then resume samadhi practice, alternating in this way as follows:

2. Sitting in samadhi in that manner: if the mind is calm at times and distracted at other times, and the mind can only remain steady, feeling comfortable and clear, for a short while - that is, one can control the mind to remain peacefully happy for only a short time, alternating with thoughts wandering off to various other matters - in that case, train the mind for no more than 1 hour, then rest. Persisting in training beyond 1 hour will yield little benefit and bring much harm mixed in. If the mind can remain well and continuously at peace for a long time, then one may train beyond 1 hour. And one should not stop training until one understands and becomes skilled in entering and leaving that good samadhi.

3. Once a session of sitting in samadhi is finished, one must rest no less than 3 hours before beginning the second session. And in one day, or within a 24-hour period, one should not train more than 3 times. If there is free time, or during the period of resting from sitting in samadhi, one should set aside time and contemplate through vipassana, that is, contemplate death and foulness (asubha).

4. In training samadhi, one should sit in samadhi continuously every day. Even if one trains only once a day, for 20 or 30 minutes, training every day will give better results than training several times a day or training for one long session but continuing intermittently, stopping training on some days or for several days - because doing it and then stopping is itself heedlessness, and is also a lack of true, earnest, resolute commitment.

5. Train in a suitable place and at a suitable time - this will give faster results than training in an unsuitable place or time. A suitable place is one that has calm, with no worry about people or anything else coming to disturb one. A suitable time is when the mind is clear and the body is fresh, not tired or weary. Many teachers have obtained good, quick results by practicing samadhi at 3 a.m. every day without fail, because this is a time when the stomach is empty, with no digestion of food taking place, the body has already rested sufficiently, and there is quiet and calm - this is considered good, and so causes training to progress and yield results quickly. And if the mental connection/pathway of the Teacher in the forest passes nearby at that time, it will send power [to the practitioner] to help attain good samadhi.

6. When the mind passes through peaceful happiness and becomes so absorbed that it forgets the body, and one comes to feel that there is only the mind floating, still, in solitude - no body, hearing nothing, nothing at all existing in the world - this is the level of the middle stage of samadhi (upacara-samadhi). At this stage, try to maintain the samadhi for as long as possible. When samadhi recedes, bring it back into samadhi again, repeating over and over until skilled at entering and leaving. Sometimes one must do this continuously through the whole night, or for two full days; one must not stop to rest before becoming skilled at entering and leaving. If one hurries to rest beforehand, it will make it difficult to sit and reach the middle level of samadhi again. As far as has been observed, those who stopped to rest before gaining that skill found that their samadhi regressed and they could not reach that level again - for periods of 10 years, 30 years - there have been many such cases.

7. Setting or contemplating through vipassana: in truth, the practice of samadhi and vipassana are trained together at the same time. To put it simply: fixing the mind closely and firmly on the breath is samadhi (samatha). Perceiving or considering whether the breath is light or heavy, cool or warm, whether the breath is short or long, whether the breath is comfortable or uncomfortable, is a beginning level of vipassana. As for true vipassana, it is the contemplation of the Five Aggregates (khandha), such as the contemplation of death and foulness (asubha) - this is a very important vipassana. One must contemplate it throughout the entire time the mind

is not calm, then, apart from sitting in samadhi, do "walking meditation" (jongkrom), alternating with sitting samadhi. Walking meditation is a way of training the mind while also getting exercise at the same time. Walking meditation has 5 benefits (anisamsa); the most important benefit is that the samadhi that arises from walking meditation will last longer.

In continuous training to get quick results, some teachers of certain traditions have [students] recite "Buddho" silently in the mind at all times, whether working, speaking, conversing, or while standing, walking, sitting, or lying down - one can keep reciting continuously. Once skilled and able to do it well with mindfulness present, one will come to be mindfully aware of "Buddho" by itself, without intentionally reciting, and will also be aware of the breath going in and out at the same time - this is itself the mind being in samadhi. One who has mindful awareness that is samadhi in this way will achieve far better results in whatever one does than with an ordinary mind. While reciting "Buddho," one also recollects the virtues of the Buddha (Buddhanussati).

Loving-kindness (metta) is an important dhamma that cannot be omitted; one should radiate loving-kindness before sitting in samadhi and after sitting in samadhi, and on other free occasions.

There is a basis for this in the Tipitaka, namely the "Four Protective Meditation Subjects" (arakkha-kammatthana 4), which are dhammas that help protect the mind so that it remains in a meditation subject - that is, to

Samādhi-vipassanā that stands firm is said: it ought to be developed constantly, and there are 4 kinds, namely:

1. Buddhānussati — recollecting the virtues of the Buddha 2. Mettā — spreading loving-kindness, wishing that people and animals everywhere be happy 3. Asubha — contemplating the body to see it as unattractive, repulsive 4. Maraṇassati — thinking of death, which is certain to come

These 4 kammaṭṭhāna (meditation subjects) should be developed constantly.

Method of practice: when paying respect to the Buddha image, when chanting, and when fear arises, one should recollect the virtues of the Buddha.

The spreading of loving-kindness should be done before sitting in meditation, after sitting in meditation, and on other occasions.

Thinking of death naturally includes seeing asubha (unattractiveness) within it. Contemplating death is thus a dhamma that must be contemplated at all times, with every in-breath and out-breath, as appears as evidence in the Abhidhamma Saṅgiṇī Mātikā, one part of which has the meaning that...

Contemplating death (maraṇa-dhamma) reduces excessive emotion and keeps the mind from becoming distracted. The mind becomes distracted because of seeing forms, hearing sounds, and so on. When maraṇa-dhamma is established as an object within one's mental continuum, that person has little attachment to pleasure and is reckoned a person who is not heedless. On the subject of heedlessness, the Buddha once asked the monks: "How many times a day do you think of death?" One monk replied that he thought of death when going for alms round. The Buddha rebuked him, saying he was still heedless. Another monk said: "I think of death while eating my meal — that I might die before I have even swallowed the food down my throat." The Buddha rebuked him too, saying he was still very heedless. Another monk said he thought of death with every in-breath and every out-breath. The Buddha then praised him, saying: "Monks who see the danger in existence, if you wish to lessen your attachment to pleasure and not be distracted, let a sense of spiritual urgency (saṃvega) arise in you. Faith and confidence in the virtues of the Triple Gem, the three things that protect against all manner of danger that may arise for you, both within and...

...without. When one contemplates death and unattractiveness (asubha) with every in- and out-breath until it becomes habitual and fixed, one's awareness becomes firmly attached. Even while speaking or doing anything, mindfulness that sees death and the unattractiveness of the body remains present at all times; this is called being a person who is not heedless.

In summary, to advance samādhi to the intermediate level within 3 months, one must practice strictly according to the 5-point course of samādhi training in the forest, namely:

1. Take medicine to repair the body and treat bodily illness; maintain health so the body is strong; exercise regularly; keep precepts as far as possible; practice generosity, that is, make merit according to one's means.

2. Train by staying in cemeteries, progressing from less frightening cemeteries to more frightening ones, and train samādhi in a cemetery from which one cannot flee, such as at Ko Phi near Ko Sichang.

3. Train samādhi in dense forest, far from villages, in forest that has dangerous animals such as tigers, elephants and other fierce beasts, by going on forest wandering (dhutanga) with several people, then reducing to 2 people, then going on dhutanga to train alone, with an experienced forest-dwelling teacher supervising and advising, coaxing one to...

...gain samādhi, but avoiding reliance on the "mental way" alone would let one become habituated to it [i.e., one should not depend on psychic means only].

4. Feed the ghosts (feed the spirits) — make use of a spirit's service, then release it. Staying in a cemetery in order to encounter the spirits of the dead, who come to beg for a share of merit, and feeding the ghosts as well, lets one see and know clearly that death is not annihilation; one must bear the karma one has made. This produces fear of wrongdoing through practice that makes it seen as true. Both ghosts and devas in the forest are subjects that should be spoken of first — it is proper to speak of them before teaching the higher-level dhamma called the "anupubbikathā" (gradual discourse), the meaning of which is: teach from easy to difficult — that is, teach about giving (dāna), morality (sīla), the subject of devas, the faults and the baseness and defilement of sensual pleasures, and the benefit of renouncing sensual pleasure. Once the mind is seen to be well calmed, then proclaim: "The Four Noble Truths are: suffering, the cause of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and the path." Omitting the teaching about devas is thus skipping an important step, because it is what gives confidence that death is not annihilation.

5. Teach the use of the power of the Buddha's virtue and the power of mind according to the level of samādhi, so as to inspire faith and confidence in the Buddha's virtues, and for the most important benefit — to understand and clearly see the highest level of dhamma, namely impermanence (anicca), suffering (dukkha), and non-self (anattā), which is a profound dhamma, difficult...

...be understood by explanation alone; one must practice it oneself. That is, once one begins to attain intermediate-level samādhi, one should turn a leaf into a creature — beginning with something easy: turn a tamarind leaf into a wasp. Once it becomes a wasp, it will remain so for no more than 7 days before reverting from wasp back to leaf. Once one has finished the intermediate level, one should be able to walk through a mountain and back. This produces clear knowledge of impermanence, suffering and non-self — like a person who has never eaten salt: however much you explain what "salty" means, he will not understand; he must eat the salt himself before he understands. The method of using mental power to turn a leaf into a creature, the method of recalling past lives, and the methods of using mental power to bring about various benefits are explained in detail, from the taking of a teacher through to completion, and are already set out in the volume "Peering Through the Universe" (Chabap Song Chakkrawan). Please intend to practice according to these 5 points of the training course described here. In addition to the 5-point training course, please also follow the 7 essential principles for training the mind mentioned earlier above, together with contemplating death and unattractiveness at all times, recollecting the virtues of the Buddha, and spreading loving-kindness — dhammas which help maintain the mind so as to have a meditation-subject on certain occasions. But the most important thing is to have a fixed schedule of what to do at what time; only then is there hope of reaching intermediate-level samādhi within 3 months. An example schedule, following the biographies of Phra Ajahn Mun and Phra Ajahn Fan, is as follows:

Biography of Phra Ajahn Mun Bhūridatta Thera

Compiled by Phra Ajahn Mahā Bua, Wat Pa Ban Tat, Udon Thani province (published and distributed as a Dhamma gift, a thick volume, printed many times). One passage reads:

His daily observances in his final years

1. After the meal (eating once a day), he enters the walking-meditation path and paces until nearly noon, then rests.

2. After resting, he enters [his dwelling] to sit in samādhi, for a total of an hour and a half.

3. He goes down to walk in meditation at 4 p.m.; sweeps the temple grounds or his dwelling, then bathes.

4. He enters the walking-meditation path.

5. From 7 to 8 p.m., he enters [his dwelling] to sit in samādhi.

6. He normally retires to sleep around 11 p.m., and wakes at 3 a.m. to sit in samādhi.

Biography of Phra Ajahn Fan, senior teacher (Ajahn Thera), printed

and distributed at the royal cremation ceremony, January 2521 [1978 CE]. One passage reads as follows:

Daily activities

3:00 a.m. — Rise, wash the face, pay respects to the Buddha, chant, and sit in samādhi until 5:00 a.m.; go down to walk in meditation until it grows light, then sweep and clean the temple grounds. 6:30 a.m. — Go out on almsround through the village. 9:00 a.m. — After the morning meal (eating only once a day), go down to walk in meditation until 11:00 a.m., then he retires to rest. Past 1:00 p.m. — Receive visitors; if there are no visitors he goes down to walk in meditation until 3:00 p.m., then takes hot water and medicine together with the monks and novices, then sweeps and cleans the temple grounds and bathes. After bathing he goes down to walk in meditation until it grows dark, then performs the evening chanting service. 7:30 p.m. or 8:00 p.m. — The Ajahn comes out of his room to instruct the monks and novices and resolve their doubts and questions, until the time...

...around 10:00 p.m. (on some days until midnight). After that the monks and novices come in to massage his legs as an offering of service. He tells them to stop, then enters his room to sit in samādhi. (3:00 a.m. is the time he regularly rises to wash his face and sit in samādhi.)

The biography of teachers of high samādhi attainment, in the lineage of the forest teachers and in other lineages as well, all show that they truly trained in samādhi-vipassanā seriously, bravely, unafraid of death. An example of a disciple from outside the forest tradition who practiced with true, uncompromising seriousness is the venerable Luang Phor Charan Cittadhammo, abbot of Wat Amphawan, Sing Buri province, who trained in the outside-the-forest disciple's course to complete jhāna with a forest-dwelling teacher — a course which generally takes 3 years, but which Luang Phor Charan completed in only 3 months. Therefore, training to attain intermediate-level samādhi within 3 months is indeed possible, if one is truly serious, as taught by the Buddha, as described above.

Chapter 5

The essence of the teachings of teachers of high samādhi

The Dhamma in the Buddhist religion is extremely subtle and profound. Ordinary people can understand it clearly, or see and know it plainly, only when they train the mind to have sufficient wisdom. However much wisdom one has depends on how good one's samādhi is — this accords with the Dhamma teaching that samādhi is the proximate cause for the arising of wisdom. Little wisdom means little understanding of the Dhamma, only something merely memorized; only when samādhi improves does understanding become clearer, progressively. Phra Ajahn Mun taught that human beings possess bodily wealth (kāya-sampatti), verbal wealth (vacī-sampatti), and mental wealth (mano-sampatti). One may build external wealth, that is, property and money, or one may build internal wealth, that is, the path, fruit and Nibbāna, the sublime Dhamma. One should not feel discouraged, thinking oneself to be of little destiny/merit. When doing wholesome deeds — giving alms, keeping precepts, developing meditation — some who do little go to heaven; some who are diligent and act with true sincerity, combined with accumulated pāramī (perfections) from past lives, are able to enter Nibbāna without doubt...... The body is the instrument that gives rise to causes (the eye seeing form causes the mind to become agitated), therefore one must contemplate this body first.

...it becomes the instrument that extinguishes the hindrances (nīvaraṇa) and calms the mind. One should do this a great deal, contemplating without ever retreating. Whenever the uggaha-nimitta (learning sign) appears in whatever part of the body, one should take hold of that part of the body one has seen and contemplate it as one's fixed basis, without shifting to contemplate elsewhere......... The method (upāya) of vipassanā is: enter into calm of mind (develop samatha), then withdraw from samādhi to contemplate the body. Do not contemplate the body alone, nor calm the mind alone......... One should have mindfulness contemplating in every place, at every time, always — whether standing, walking, sitting, lying down, acting or speaking, one should always maintain thorough mindfulness of the body; then contemplate, dividing it into parts, or dispersing it into the elements earth, water, wind and fire, so as to truly see it as it is......... If anyone fears dying because of the resolve and effort this requires, that person will have to come back to die again through many more existences and births, returning again to suffering. He himself (Ajahn Mun) exerted effort to the point of fainting as many as 3 times, because his effort was so intense that the pain overwhelmed him, yet he still did not see death. This shows that exerting effort to the point of merely fainting is not yet enough — so why then are people so very afraid of dying?......... One who used to fear ghosts lost that fear by forcing himself to go visit cemeteries; one who used to fear dangerous animals such as tigers and the like lost that fear by forcing himself to go and stay in a lonely, deserted place that was frightening. One who is attached to the stomach, indulging carelessly in food as a requisite...

...can be lessened or cured by moderating or reducing food intake (as far as one's capacity allows). Some kinds of food are beneficial to the body but instead become a danger to the mind, so one should try to cut off the root cause...... A stubborn person needs something hard pressing against him a little, so that he will soften — for example, a tiger. It makes a fitting pair to train against each other. A person who fears tigers should take the tiger as his teacher — better than a teacher he does not fear. One who fears ghosts should likewise take the ghost as a teacher, a partner in ordeal. Hard/harsh things that help one attain high-level samādhi quickly — the writer knows of and has seen many such cases, of which there are 4, namely:

Firstly, encountering a tiger in the forest: one knows well that fleeing surely means death, whereas if one sits in samādhi and lets go of everything completely, one will survive. Mostly, when one encounters a tiger, one sits down in samādhi and refuses to open one's eyes; if the samādhi weakens, one re-enters it again and again. For example, having encountered a tiger, one sits in samādhi from around 10 p.m. and continues sitting in samādhi until about 9 a.m. the next morning before coming out of samādhi. This is what is called making it a vasī (mastery), and thereby attaining high-level samādhi.

Secondly, dying and then reviving — becoming so ill as to nearly die also gives rise to letting go, attaining intermediate-to-high level samādhi. There are examples of many such teachers.

Thirdly, dying or fainting and then reviving — during the faint, a spirit or a deva comes to teach knowledge that gives one good samādhi. When one revives, one becomes a fortune-teller or masseur, one who has gone to see hell and heaven; having gained good samādhi, one's character and disposition change greatly from before.

Fourthly, this refers to those who become lost deep in a cave, unable to find the way out; by sitting in samādhi to the point of near-death, they regain light and are able to get out of the cave. Some, by fasting, likewise attain good samādhi.

Phra Ajahn Mun said: Why do practitioners fear death so much, even more than laypeople who have never received any training? Why do they let their minds be trampled and haunted by defilements (kilesa), until they become at their wits' end, failing to bring mindfulness and wisdom to bear in order to drive out the defilements that smolder and accumulate in the heart...... Dhutanga (ascetic wandering practice) is a virtue that is profoundly high and mysterious, difficult for us to know the truth of, item by item (one can only know and see it through serious, resolute practice).

Phra Ajahn Mahā Bua of Wat Pa Ban Tat, Udon Thani, taught that for beginning-level samādhi one should first contemplate the body; as for feeling (vedanā) and mind (citta), one should contemplate them using intermediate or advanced-level samādhi in combination. As for himself (Phra Mahā Bua), when his samādhi became stuck and could not progress further, he used the method of reducing his food intake, which he found to give good results every time.

The Dharma teachings of the Fully Enlightened Buddha are entirely good and correct in every respect. The forty methods of samatha meditation that he taught are likewise all good and correct. As for which method will yield good results, one must consider and choose what is suited to one's own temperament. Phra Ajahn Luang Pu La, of Phu Kor Jor, Amphoe Kham Cha-i, Mukdahan province, taught: "Each and every meditation subject (kammatthana) can lead all the way to Nibbana. It depends on being conjoined with wisdom, because it is wrong to claim that this or that meditation subject is 'low' or 'high' — low or high depends on wisdom acting as the broker ......... Seeing the Three Characteristics (tilakkhana) is seeing them blended together in a single instant, like a three-strand rope; it is not the case that they occur in separate moments. Some mistakenly believe that samatha cannot reach Nibbana — that belief belongs to yogic-style samadhi clinging to a self, not samatha in the Buddhist manner."

The teacher deep in the forest trains disciples not to fear death. Once one no longer fears death alone, then all other fears likewise cease.

Phra Ajahn Fan Ajaro taught: We are ones who cling and who have lost to Mara — that is, mental formations have governed us for a long time, drifting away from merit, namely giving, morality, and mental development. When the time comes

...to gather the full strength of the knowing mind, rousing oneself to fight, rousing oneself to break free at last from all things one is entangled and burdened by. Who indeed knows that tomorrow may be the day of death? ...... The method for extinguishing sin and kamma, extinguishing all evils, extinguishing danger and enmity, for washing away sin, kamma, and all danger and enmity, is none other than for us to sit in samadhi. When one sits in samadhi until the mind becomes one, becomes a single mind, then sin and kamma no longer exist; dangers and enmities no longer exist; all evils no longer exist. There remains only happiness, indeed ...... Why is there happiness? Because the heart is at peace. Why is there suffering? Because the heart is not at peace. It goes on creating kamma and enmity without end — old kamma is never exhausted, and new kamma keeps being added on. When will it ever end?

Ajahn Kor of Suan Luang, Ratchaburi, taught: We indulge according to pleasant feeling, infatuated with the delicious taste of that pleasant feeling — already excessive at the mere level of contact. At the level of flesh and skin, of physical and mental phenomena arising as feeling, one is still further deluded. It is deluded in many layers, folded over and entangled tightly ...... Perception/memory secretly builds up matters, and then goes on fabricating further ...... We must study inwardly — not study texts or words, but study the mind itself alone, at the moment it holds itself in its ordinary state

...or dwelling in emptiness — an emptiness not entangled with anything ...... How does the mind become not entangled, not amusing itself with objects and fabrications, not indulging in idle, useless thinking? There must be something for the mind to fix its attention on. As a beginning practice, fix attention on the body, or on the breath — take the breath as the basis. Catching the 'monkey,' that is, binding the mind, with mindfulness on the breath ......... This attending to the breath must be done continuously, with every in- and out-breath, in every posture; if one forgets, one returns to awareness again, no matter what one is doing ......... However one comes to know or see, even if it is a correct view, it is still dangerous if one clings to it — clinging to these correct or incorrect views arises from clinging to a self ...... Changing posture appropriately and suitably helps the mind stay normal or at peace; physical exercise is also necessary ...... If stillness becomes too excessive, drawing long, forceful breaths serves to rouse the heart back to alertness ...... The mind's instrument of wakefulness may be awake through mindfulness, awake through knowledge at a high level, awake through jhana and clear insight ...... Evil has its own charm, making one infatuated — wanting this, thinking that, utterly confused and disordered ......... One should constantly contemplate death and the decay and dissolution [of the body] with every in- and out-breath (in accordance with the Abhidhamma

...mentioned already on page 108) — [the mind] will then withdraw and not reach out to grasp at anything ......... Contemplate the body so as to see it as [mere] elements, not a self; know it truly with the mind. There must be fear, weariness, and a sense of dread — only then is it called true knowledge. The more one truly knows, the more restrained, modest, and humble one becomes — that indeed is the Dhamma.

Let us turn back to look at the practice of the lineage of Phra Ajahn Man. Their daily practice schedule resembles the teaching of the forest-dwelling teacher: sitting in samadhi no more than three times a day, each session spaced more than three hours apart. In the beginning stage of samadhi one must contemplate the body through every stage completely first. Contemplation of the mind — that is, of feeling and so on — is undertaken only after attaining the middle level of samadhi; one then uses only the middle level, or both the middle and higher levels combined, to contemplate feeling and mind (see the teachings of Phra Ajahn Man and the teachings of Phra Ajahn Maha Bua). The lineage of Phra Ajahn Man traveled widely on ascetic wandering (dhutanga); their practice appears similar to that of the teacher deep in the forest, so it seems likely they encountered the forest-dwelling teacher and were his disciples, according to the reports received.

As for walking meditation, the forest-dwelling teacher had few designated walking paths; he would usually lead [disciples] to walk in the forest according to

...nature; and the training that leans heavily toward vipassana was also taught in the forest. For example, Luang Por Charan of Wat Amphawan, Singburi — originally he trained in the anapanasati method (samatha). When he was 45 years old he went to study with Luang Pu Lok Udorn at Khao Yai, and changed from anapanasati to training in the "Yub-nor Pong-nor" method, completing the jhana training within three months. He then kept this hidden and went off to study elsewhere with other teachers under practice. But after 20 years had passed, he finally revealed where he had studied. One can see that the forest-dwelling teacher taught both the samatha approach (leaning heavily toward samadhi up to jhana, and only then toward vipassana) and the vipassana approach — that is, a moderate level of samadhi, leaning heavily toward vipassana. Consider carefully: training a moderate level of samadhi means, at the very least, completing access concentration (upacara samadhi, the middle level of samadhi) first, before beginning to train heavily toward vipassana. This was Ajahn Buddhadasa's answer when the author asked to what level one should train samadhi before beginning to train vipassana (training heavily toward vipassana) correctly, without error (so as not to become mere intellectual pseudo-vipassana).

In summary: to enable training to complete the middle level of samadhi within three months, one must train according to the "Important Principles for Training the Mind" of the forest-dwelling teacher — seven principles — and the curriculum

The forest training program in five points, which forms an abbreviated curriculum, requires that one contemplate death and unattractiveness (asubha) with every in- and out-breath — that is, constantly. As for recollecting the virtues of the Buddha and radiating loving-kindness at certain times, this was mentioned earlier above. A very important matter that helps control one's practice is having a schedule setting out the daily practice, called the "daily observances" or "daily duties," stating what to do at what time within the course of one day, following the example of the daily routines of Phra Ajahn Man and Phra Ajahn Fan already mentioned. The reason [I] dare to say that following this practice will result in completing the middle level of samadhi is that the author himself has practiced and truly achieved these results — even though the practice was carried out with some lapses and shortcomings. But the important point is that the place of training must be forest and mountain, quiet and secluded, far from villages. Another example is Luang Por Charan, who trained for only three months and completed the jhanas — a level that normally takes a three-year curriculum. Merit and accumulated perfections that led to being born human already confer an initial level of samadhi by birth, and one is able to learn to practice samadhi correctly and to gauge one's own samadhi for oneself — knowing what level and stage one has attained, and how to proceed to train further to improve it. As for the use of the power of the Buddha's virtue and the power of mind, one can likewise learn

...sending mental power out to neutralize the sting of boiling water or boiling oil so that people can plunge their hands in or scoop and eat it while it is still boiling, or grasp a chain heated red-hot in fire. Once one can send out power in this way, one then learns and is able to cure diseases that Western [medicine] cannot cure, for which there is no medicine — many such conditions can be treated with good, fast results. For example, one can treat AIDS, cancer, drug-resistant tuberculosis of certain kinds, diabetes, asthma, sinusitis, rabies once symptoms have appeared, tonsillitis, hepatitis B, dry-type ringworm of the nails and legs, enlarged prostate, kidney stones, and so on. From correctly training in samadhi and being able to gauge one's own samadhi, all the way through to treating various diseases with good, fast results as described above — all of this is taught to be genuinely achievable within one day (a single day). I dare affirm this because I have been teaching continuously for more than 35 years, and the result has consistently been that people can learn and do it within one day. As for the treatment of various diseases, this has genuinely been practiced and genuinely cured for more than 40 years. Almost all of this knowledge was taught by the teacher-monks who are disciples in the forest (disciples in the forest meaning those with sufficient merit to train to the point of being able to fly through the air, and to become invisible and vanish).

Chapter 6

Summary Lecture The Harm of Wrong Practice: Wrong View and Right View

The reasons why practitioners of samadhi-vipassana develop nervous disorders or lose their sanity are because: 1. Training with the wrong method, while trying to achieve good results. 2. Training too frequently, or training for too long a duration. 3. Experiencing great fear or shock at the moment the mind begins to grow calm. 4. The practitioner already had a nervous disorder or mental illness before starting to practice.

Methods of Remedy 1. Training with the wrong method while trying to achieve good results — one should choose a method suited to one's own mind and disposition. The method suited to people in general is the method of attending to the breath. One should have a good teacher supervising closely until one understands and practices correctly, and only then go to practice on one's own. Training with the wrong method — for example, setting the mind on an object unsuited to oneself — the proceeding

Training without following the proper stages — skipping steps causes errors here and there — yet trying to force quick results out of an unreasonable greed to possess and attain, creates mental stress, and so can lead to nervous disorder or loss of sanity.

2. Training too frequently. Ordinarily, in strict practice, one should train no more than three times a day, with each session spaced more than three hours apart. If one trains too much, stress will result. As for relaxed-style training — that is, arranging the breath comfortably, being mindfully aware of the breath without needing to recite a meditation word — this can be done continuously, whether during free time or while working. Even while listening to the radio it can be done without strain; if one loses attention, one simply begins again, over and over. Some teachers have one recite "Bud-dho" continuously at all times, or reflect on the death that will come to oneself; some reflect on the impurity and unloveliness of the body — these too are considered good. Try it: whichever method keeps the mind calm and not restless, use that method; or whichever method affects the heart, use that method.

Training too strictly for too long in a single session is also harmful. In the early stages of practice, once the mind settles somewhat, one should not go on thinking of other things; one must keep correcting, letting the mind settle again and again in alternation. This is a matter

...ordinary. But one should not practice longer than one hour. If practiced too long, it will do more harm than good — unless the mind is continuously in samadhi, calm and pleasantly absorbed, in which case one may practice longer than one hour.

Do not force oneself to practice samadhi-vipassana beyond the limit one can endure. If very drowsy or very exhausted and unable to push further, it is better to rest, or to lie down comfortably first. Try to gather mindfulness on the comfortable breath, without thinking about what comes next. Be firmly convinced that practicing samadhi-vipassana is doing good and is meritorious; the result obtained is certain to be good. Think of practicing in order to bring about ease, without rushing to get results quickly, and keep practicing without giving up. Training the mind requires letting go of both knowledge and other matters — paying attention to nothing else, attending only to the breath, being mindfully aware of the breath, and watching the breath with the mind at all times.

3. Fear and shock. One should constantly reflect that all things are impermanent, are constantly changing, are constantly arising and ceasing, without pause even for a single instant. Fear or shock may arise because of a person or a sound, or a mental image may arise (that is, a nimitta) while the mind is calm. Those things are merely Mara, or deceptive appearances, obstructing our goodness; they cannot harm us in any way — once arisen, they cease and do not last. Keep the mind under control so that

...remain normal. It is best to know how to use the power of the mind and the power of the Buddha's virtue to guard against danger, before every session of sitting in samadhi — this will serve as good protection. For how to deal with a nimitta (meditative vision), or for resolving problems with a nimitta, see Wittayasat Thang Jai [Science of the Mind], the "Illuminating the World" edition, page 253.

4. The practitioner of samadhi-vipassana already had a nervous disorder or mental illness beforehand, or developed one after training with the wrong method. The remedy is to stop training for a period, find some other pleasant pursuit instead, until fully recovered from the nervous disorder, and only then train again. And if there is treatment with medicine along with the aid of mental power, this will produce good results. If that nervous disorder arose because of grief, then treat the grief (see the principles for resolving grief in the "Opening the World" edition, page 410).

What has been related here has been gathered from the Tipitaka, from learned persons, from the forest-dwelling teacher, and from the author's own experience training disciples for more than 25 years. Details of samadhi-vipassana training and the use of mental power for various benefits are found in Wittayasat Thang Jai [Science of the Mind]: the "Champion of Men" edition, the "Opening the World" edition, and the "Illuminating the World" edition. As for the various treatments using mental power and medicine, these are found in Modern Three-Tradition Medicine (90 baht). [The author is] glad to answer

...questions, whether from those who own the book or not. For those who want to learn to do it themselves, I am glad to teach at the temple by appointment, without charging any fee for teaching.

Regarding contemplating the body as impure, as not being a self — there are many methods of contemplation, stated in many places throughout the Tipitaka. They should be brought together and summarized so as to be seen as truly so from every angle, in whatever way is suited to make oneself feel disgust and revulsion, and to see it as empty — until the mind can let go and pass beyond the physical body entirely. Only then does the mind become free, with sharp and keen wisdom, abandoning wrong views concerning sensual desire; only then can the mind truly let go. For example: contemplating the thirty-two parts of the body, contemplating the four elements, contemplating so as to see it as foul (asubha), scrutinizing it as element, as sense-base, and as dependent origination. Contemplating thoroughly so as to see that: the body is constantly rotting; it is constantly moving and stirring; the body is constantly arising and ceasing; the body is full of pits of feces and urine; the body has rotten fluid and waste constantly flowing out of it; the body is impermanent, is suffering, is not-self. (There is a description of ten characteristics of impermanence, twenty-five characteristics of suffering, and five characteristics of not-self, totaling forty characteristics — in some places called 'the forty falls.')

The Tipitaka, volume 11, page 253, tells of the Venerable Ananda applying diligent effort throughout the night, spending most of the time contemplating the body, which freed his mind from defilements; without clinging, he became an Arahant, and went to the assembly for the [Council] recitation in the morning.

There is a saying of the Buddha: "Monks, I see nothing that gives graver harm than wrong view (miccha-ditthi)."

Wrong view is a mistaken view that yields results on the side of evil and demerit, causing one to fall low. In Tipitaka volume 26, page 280, there is a passage: "Because of clinging to form, wrong view arises." One should therefore diligently contemplate so as to see the physical form as it truly is, seeing it clearly through samadhi and through wisdom-knowledge, so that it may be achieved. The absence of form means transcending form — form can be uprooted by two means: contemplation, and by developing the four formless jhanas.

From Tipitaka volume 24, the fourth Ananda Sutta, there is a passage: the Venerable Vangisa, newly ordained, had arisen in him a longing, a disturbing lustful delight, because he had seen many beautifully dressed women walking about viewing the monks' huts the day before. He asked the Venerable Ananda to tell him a way to extinguish passion. The Venerable Ananda said, "Your mind...

is inflamed because of distorted perception. Abandon the beautiful sign that is the basis of passion. See all conditioned things as subject to change, as suffering, and do not see them as self...... Cultivate the meditation on foulness so that the mind becomes single-pointed and well established. Maintain mindfulness of the body; be one full of disenchantment...... Not clinging to sensual pleasures removes restlessness of mind." Not long after, the Venerable Vangisa attained Arahantship.

Venerable Ajahn Wan of Sawang Daen Din district, Sakon Nakhon province, gave a short method for training the mind, saying: "When training does not produce results, then console the mind; when consoling produces no result either, then use the method of admonishing/frightening it."

Sensual pleasures (kamaguna): The Tipitaka, volume 17, the Mahadukkhakkhandha Sutta, states...... "The five sensual pleasures are form, taste, smell, sound, and touch, which are desirable, pleasing, likeable, connected with sensuality, being the basis of delight and desire...... The happiness and joy that arise dependent on such beauty and radiance — this is the gratification of form."

To see gratification in form as described above is a mistaken view, contrary to reality — it is "wrong view," in accordance with the Tipitaka, volume 26, page 280, which states: "Because of clinging to form, wrong view arises." One should therefore diligently contemplate so as to see form as it truly is — as something filthy, repugnant, and disgusting.

The Tipitaka, volume 17, the Alagaddupama Sutta, says: "The danger of sensual pleasure is comparable to a venomous snake."

The Tipitaka, volume 17, the Nivapa Sutta, says: "Sensual pleasures are the bait that makes beings intoxicated."

Wrong view carries grave and long-lasting consequences, extending across many lifetimes until right view is attained. The Blessed One therefore said to the monks: "Monks, I see nothing that gives graver harm than wrong view."

The five grave offenses (anantariya-kamma), or the five heavy kammas, include killing an Arahant, killing one's mother or father, and so on — all of which yield results of falling into hell in the next existence; once the penalty is served in full, it is finished. But wrong view yields abundant results, long-lasting results, and results affecting

an enormous number of people. Only the Noble Ones, from the Stream-enterer up to the Arahant, abandon clinging to form, as appears in the Tipitaka, volume 26, page 280, which states: "Because of clinging to form, wrong view arises" — as for the hair, body hair, nails, and teeth that one is infatuated with and attached to, these are, in fact, all corpse-matter, according to what has been explained on contemplation of the body. As for what people are most deeply infatuated with, many teachers of high samadhi teach that "skin" is the thing people find most attractive and most cling to, even though skin itself is corpse-matter continuously shed into the air, pushed out by the living cells that are constantly dying. The skin one sees is present only for a moment before it flies off into the air. Seeing it and being pleased, finding it beautiful — that very perception is wrong view. One should contemplate carefully and thoroughly, so as to recognize that one's view is mistaken, not in accordance with reality. The details of contemplating the body so as to see it as it truly is — as unbeautiful, full of corpse-matter — have been explained in detail in the book Wonders and Ascetic Practice (Dhutanga). As one trains in samadhi more and contemplates more, one reaches the stage of "merely seeing what is seen" — seeing without attaching meaning, seeing neutrally, not seeing as beautiful, not seeing as attractive, not seeing as filthy

repulsive. If one sees it as beautiful, delight arises — that is greed or passion. If one sees it as filthy and repulsive and feels aversion, that is hatred. Greed and hatred arise because of delusion, which is ignorance (avijja) — not knowing the truth, or simply foolishness. Thus one clings to form, and wrong view arises. The Tipitaka, volume 26, page 280, therefore states: "Because of clinging to form, wrong view arises." Wrong view causes grave harm, hence it was said: "Monks, I see nothing that gives graver harm than wrong view."

Examine yourself: when you still feel attraction upon seeing a person's body, seeing it as beautiful and lovable, [or] see a flat image of a person on paper and yet form an impression of it in the mind, seeing it as having a fine, attractive shape — that is failing the test, that is wrong view.

In the teachings and translated chants there is a passage: "This physical body of ours is merely the four elements come together; it is not a being, a person, a self — not 'me,' not 'them.'" [The aim is] to transcend the physical body, not to cling to or grasp at form, to become disenchanted with form, to see form as it truly is — that is, to give rise to right view (samma-ditthi), which produces results in accordance with the Dhamma set out as question and answer in the Tipitaka, volume 26, page 291, with the following content:

"What is the benefit of right view (samma-ditthi)? It has the benefit of producing disenchantment.

What is the benefit of disenchantment? It has the benefit of producing dispassion (an inclining of the mind toward the cessation of suffering, that is, Nibbana).

What is the benefit of dispassion? It has the benefit of producing liberation (liberation from all suffering, called 'vimutti').

What is the benefit of liberation? It has the benefit of leading toward Nibbana.

And what is the benefit of Nibbana itself? You cannot grasp the ultimate answer to that question [in ordinary terms] (this refers to the fact that Nibbana is extremely subtle, knowable only by oneself, fathomable only by one possessing excellent meditative attainment)."

Regarding not clinging or grasping, one must consider carefully exactly what it is one should not cling to or grasp. In the Four Noble Truths there is a passage stating that, in brief, all suffering arises from clinging to the five aggregates (upadanakkhandha) — that is, clinging to and grasping at the five aggregates, namely: form, feeling

perception, mental formations, and consciousness). In the Tipitaka, volume 6, page 24, it is stated: "The five aggregates of clinging are suffering." In the Tipitaka, and in the translated chanting texts, there is a passage in the Dhajagga Sutta: "Monks, when you dwell in the forest, at the foot of a tree, or in an empty dwelling, you should recollect the Buddha — then fear will not arise in you ......... Monks, when you dwell in the forest, at the foot of a tree, or in an empty dwelling, you should recollect the Buddha — then fear will not arise in you ......... Monks, when you recollect the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha in this way, dread and terror, and the standing on end of body-hair, will not occur." This means one should place firm trust in the virtues of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha, believing with confidence, so as to obtain good results; without firm trust, no results follow. As for sacred objects, amulets, mantras, and incantations — if one does not hold firm faith in them, no good result arises either. When it is necessary to hold firm faith, one must hold it firmly, but without clinging or being infatuated. The Dhamma is subtle and profound; one must contemplate it with a mind in samadhi. He taught not to cling to the five aggregates; even at the level of a Stream-enterer, one can already refrain from clinging to the five aggregates absolutely.

Certainly, failure to hold firm to the Buddha's Dhamma-teaching also makes the teaching less effective. For example, the gradual discourse (anupubbikatha), if taught in order from easy to difficult, proceeds: generosity, morality, the subject of the heavenly realms, the danger and baseness of sensual pleasure, the benefit of renouncing sensuality — and only then the Four Noble Truths. The Blessed One himself taught in this manner. But in modern times people cannot be made to believe in the heavenly realms and the dangers of sensual pleasure, and so they become infatuated and unafraid of committing sin. Vipassana is taught without following the stages set out in the Mahasatipatthana Sutta, with steps skipped — mostly two points are skipped: the breath (calming the bodily formation), and seeing the arising and ceasing of form before contemplating mental phenomena (nama).

It has already been said that contemplating death also entails seeing foulness — that is, seeing filth and impurity as well. In some places this is together called "contemplation of the body," or "the cultivation of mindfulness of the body" (kayagatasati), which is the cause for abandoning satisfaction in form, and is also the cause for the arising of samadhi and vipassana up to the stage of liberation of mind and liberation by wisdom — that is, reaching Nibbana. As evidenced in the Tipitaka, volume 21, the Kayagatasati Sutta, it states: "Mindfulness of the body, when developed abundantly and continually through diligence, causes restless, scattered thinking to be abandoned." It has ten benefits, namely:

1. Mindfulness of the body enables one to endure — to bear both delight and displeasure. 2. To endure and bear danger and fear. 3. To endure cold and heat, hunger, and to endure horseflies and mosquitoes, etc. 4. To attain the four jhanas without difficulty, without hardship. 5. Mindfulness of the body enables one to display manifold psychic powers. 6. To possess the divine ear. 7. To know the minds of other beings or persons. 8. To recollect past lives. 9. To see beings passing away and being reborn. 10. Mindfulness of the body brings understanding of liberation of mind and liberation by wisdom (that is, reaching Nibbana).

Contemplation of the body, or contemplation of death and foulness, is one and the same matter; it is therefore a Dhamma that must be contemplated constantly, with every in-breath and out-breath.

The Buddha once affirmed to the Venerable Sariputta: "The Tathagata spends his time abiding in emptiness (sunnata-vihara)," which means keeping the mind dwelling in emptiness (empty of self)

at all times — this is a teaching emphasizing that one must have the Dhamma constantly present in the mind at all times.

Once the Venerable Moggallana asked the Venerable Sariputta: "Friend, today your complexion is remarkably clear and bright — what Dhamma-dwelling are you abiding in?" The Venerable Sariputta replied: "Friend, I am abiding in the dwelling of mindfulness of the body." "Listening well gives rise to wisdom" — besides being interested and attentive in listening, listening with respect, listening with faith, what one reads or hears must also be correct and complete, in accordance with the truth, for wisdom at the initial level ("truly knowing") to arise. If one contemplates it as well, one attains the level of wisdom of "truly seeing." If one listens, contemplates, and also practices samadhi, one then attains the level of wisdom of "clearly seeing," according to the stage of samadhi — for example, the arising and passing away of the physical body must also be known according to truth: that the living cells within the body are dying at every mind-moment; this is then said to accord with reality, to be "truly known." Then one contemplates further so as to "truly see," and practices samadhi in contemplation so as to "clearly see."

The Blessed One said: "Monks, a person receives suffering and distress because of form as the cause; do not be heedless — abandon satisfaction in form."

For contemplation of the body to be effective, to yield results quickly, one must also bring in other points of Dhamma to support the contemplation — for instance, bringing in the topics of Dhamma the Blessed One taught concerning the body, as already mentioned: that our body is decaying at every moment; our body is full of burial pits; the body is full of urine and excrement; the body is full of filthy things; every point in the body is constantly moving and shifting; the body is full of festering wounds; the body arises and ceases at all times both internally and externally; the body is disintegrating, being carried away and scattered at all times — which has already been explained in detail point by point — as well as how the body is impermanent, suffering, and not-self. Contemplating the body yields benefit — it has as many as ten benefits — and it is also the Dhamma that must be contemplated first in sequence, so as to progressively truly know, truly see, and clearly see. Many teachers of high samadhi therefore repeatedly emphasize contemplating the body first, as in the teaching of Venerable Ajahn Mun: "...The body is the instigator of trouble; the eye sees form, and this makes the mind become agitated. One must therefore contemplate this body first, so that it may serve to quell the hindrances and calm the mind. One should do this a great deal, and never retreat from the contemplation......"

The Four Unthinkables (Things One Should Not Ponder)

1. The domain of the Buddha 2. The domain of jhana, or the domain of one who has entered jhana 3. The results of kamma 4. The speculations of the world 4. [as printed] One should not ponder such matters, because if one broods on them obsessively, one is bound to go mad.

(From Saratthadipani, Part 1, page 150)

Things One Should Ponder

1. One has suffering oneself — one has old age, sickness, and death — and yet still seeks out [a partner] who also has old age, sickness, and death; who has suffering, and greed, hatred, and delusion added on top; when the opportunity arises, one will be exposed to the display of that greed, hatred, and delusion, making one's suffering even heavier.

2. [Consider] the porous skin, with filthy matter constantly oozing out — the times one falls in love and becomes infatuated are because our eyes, ears, and nose are not good enough, and so we do not see as divine eyes, ears, and nose would see. [Our senses] cannot compete with a magnifying lens, or with a vulture's eyes or an ant's nose — hence we perceive things wrongly, mistakenly.

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Chapter 7 The Benefits of Walking Meditation, the Benefits of Practicing Samadhi, the Capacities of Samadhi

What good effects does walking meditation have?

Jongkrom (walking meditation) means the posture used in cultivating a meditation subject (kammatthana). One walks more or less as one wishes, since the mind is sometimes calm and sometimes not; one should not walk for more than 1 hour. When walking meditation is done well and correctly, it certainly brings benefit — that is, 5 good results (from the Tipitaka, volume 33), namely:

1. One gains endurance in walking. This is true; a practitioner will see for himself that he does not fear travelling far. This is probably because he is constantly practicing walking — that is, it is a training in walking done without his even realizing it.

2. One is able to work a great deal. There was a certain teacher, head of a vipassana meditation center, who was able to work a great deal and in such a way

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...never grew tired. Every single day he would review the meditation experiences of his students in the evening, teach Dhamma students during the day, and also oversee the restoration and repair work of the monastery. When people showed concern for his health, he would answer modestly that he simply did as much as his strength allowed. This fits the principle that a meditator eats little, sleeps little, speaks little, and works much.

3. One can cure certain illnesses. The Pali term used is "appābādho," meaning "seldom ill" — that is, the body becomes strong, and certain illnesses can also disappear.

4. Food digests easily. In Pali, "pariṇatabhojī." Walking meditation also acts as a medicine that helps digestion, so one should walk in meditation after eating, if there is an opportunity.

5. The samadhi gained from walking meditation lasts a long time. Walking meditation cultivates mindfulness and samadhi; when walking meditation is done well, mindfulness and samadhi likewise go well. For this reason, one should walk in meditation before sitting in samadhi.

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The Benefits of Practicing Samadhi from the Standpoint of Science and Psychology

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There is an article in the American magazine Reader's Digest, May 1965 (B.E. 2508) issue, page 85, which states in summary: "Each of us human beings has within a power for wholeness — namely, the power of a bright, clear emotion." Mr. William James and colleagues stated: "There are two kinds of emotion: good emotion and bad emotion." When a person has a bad emotion, certain parts of the body — such as muscles or various glands — are stimulated by nerve impulses from the brain far more strongly than normal, causing the body to change for the worse, giving rise to many kinds of suffering and various illnesses. Bad emotions include anger, disappointment, vindictiveness, anxiety, fear, discouragement, and grief/sorrow, among others. When one is angry, the muscles at the far end of the stomach contract so tightly that food cannot pass through

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[...cannot pass through] — the intestines go into spasm, and blood clots more quickly during intense anger. Blood pressure rises very rapidly, as can be verified by testing: it can rise from 130 up to 230 or even higher. Such a rise is extremely harmful to the body. Some people become ill purely from their own anger, and it has often been found that when a person's anger reaches its peak, the heart is deprived of the blood that nourishes it because the blood vessels narrow; in some cases a person even collapses and dies from it.

Good emotion is a mind that is bright and fresh, the emotion directly opposite to bad emotion. A person who is constantly in good emotion possesses a supreme medicine that gives the body health and completeness equal to that of antibiotics, or of hormone and cortisone drugs. The way to make the body produce hormones in just the right amount, so as to keep the body in normal, healthy balance, is precisely to be constantly in good emotion."

Good emotion is certain to arise from the practice of samadhi, as has already been described.

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The Benefits of Practicing Samadhi in the View of Scientists Who Practice Samadhi

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Let me give as an example the view of a Mr. Heisseler (เฮิสเอลเลอร์ in the Thai text), a German who wrote an article on the topic "What Does Buddhism Give Us?" It states in part:

"After we take up the practice of samadhi and vipassana, before long the practitioner will obtain the following results:

1. One can control and govern one's various emotions — such as craving and desire (tanha), wanting, hatred, fear, sorrow, and irritability, among others.

2. One can bring about peaceful happiness, producing balance within the body.

3. One can see or intuitively know one's feelings and the course of one's past and future.

4. It brings about improved health; the brain too becomes normal, or well balanced.

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He concludes by saying: "Having gained benefits as great as this — is this not indeed a practice well worth it?"

The word "balance" means that functions or duties are carried out in proportion, in harmony with one another, without conflict.

Speaking in terms of connected cause and effect: the practice of samadhi gives rise to ease; ease gives rise to rapture (piti); rapture gives rise to calm; calm gives rise to samadhi. Samadhi that has been well trained and trained extensively becomes sammasamadhi — that is, right samadhi. Right samadhi helps generate higher wisdom, stills the body into calm, and stills the mind into steady equanimity.

To summarize briefly, the benefits of practicing samadhi are:

1. It makes one a person possessing morality-samadhi-wisdom (sila-samadhi-panna), from the beginning level up to the highest level, attaining the Three Knowledges (vijja 3), the Eight Knowledges (vijja 8), and the Six Higher Powers (abhinna 6) (such as: recalling past lives, displaying supernormal powers, the divine ear, the divine eye, and knowing how to eliminate defilements entirely, etc.)

2. It brings about happiness complete in both body and mind — one becomes a person of happiness and ease, with a bright, clear mind, and

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[...one becomes a person] always in good emotion. Even when suffering pain and illness, or nearing death, one can use samadhi to draw the mind out of the body and withdraw from the body, thereby escaping suffering and death.

3. It makes one steadfast, patient, and strong and thorough in mind. When right samadhi (sammasamadhi) is combined together with wisdom as well, this causes one to be diligent and persevering in undertaking good, blameless work, producing benefit for oneself and others, both materially and mentally — yielding especially good results according to the level of one's samadhi.

4. One can control and govern one's various emotions well. On encountering, seeing, or hearing anything that would give rise to bad emotion — such as anger, sorrow, fear, or greed — one is able to keep the mind at ease and normal, or to experience bad emotion only slightly and briefly. As for good emotion, one is able to maintain and preserve it.

5. The practice of samadhi gives rise to "mind power" (palang chit) — that is, mental power that increases progressively with the level of samadhi, arising of itself naturally, without needing to be deliberately willed. This mind power that arises

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[This mind power] enables one to control the various organs within the body so that they function better and function in coordination with one another. Mind power greatly helps increase completeness of happiness in both body and mind. Besides this, mind power can also be used to bring about benefit in many other ways, both in worldly and in Dhamma matters. In worldly matters, for example, it can help one study well, prevent illness, improve wisdom, dispel bad emotion, and guard against various dangers, among other things. In Dhamma matters, it improves mental health, reduces greed, anger, and delusion, increases diligence and perseverance, and increases wisdom so as to know and see everything as it truly is, among other things.

In B.E. 2488 (1945), the year the Second World War ended, seeing no doubt the terrible danger of atomic warfare, a group of Americans came to a shared conclusion: in order to avoid the outbreak of another new war, it was necessary to revive the practice of chanting and prayer, and to establish the practice of samadhi among people of every class and every profession. This line of thinking led to the setting of rules and regulations for the proceedings of the United Nations organization, requiring that the mind be stilled for prayer, invocation, and meditation. To this end, a meditation room was set up within the United Nations headquarters from the very founding of the organization.

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Chit (mind), jai (heart), winyan (consciousness), and mano (mind-faculty) all refer to the same thing, though they are conventionally used on somewhat different occasions — for example, the mind of a person who has died is conventionally called "winyan," among other usages. Mind is a special form of energy and is by nature a knowing thing.

When the mind is in samadhi it possesses power or strength within itself, but this exists in a state of calm — both the mind and the power of the mind. As samadhi rises higher, the power or strength of the mind increases correspondingly. The stages of samadhi and mind-power can be divided in many different ways and categories, but the simple division most commonly known is: samadhi at the beginning, middle, and high level. Correspondingly, mind-power is also called beginning-level, middle-level, and high-level mind-power.

Mind-power, or the mind that abides in samadhi — when controlled to remain calm and still for a long time, samadhi can rise higher, and mind-power gradually rises correspondingly. When samadhi or mind-power is used, various strange results appear. At present, developed countries devote national-level budgets to research into the mind in order to apply mind-power for scientific purposes — for example, using clairvoyant sight to foresee events in advance in order to locate deposits of minerals and oil; using mind-power to control various mechanisms; using mental contact for long-distance communication; and making contact to gain knowledge from other, more advanced worlds.

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Common Fruits — Which Are Plainly Evident

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The capacity of beginning-level samadhi: beginning-level mind-power helps one's abilities, both physical and mental, become better than normal — increasing strength, endurance, and diligence; helping memory and health become good; increasing knowledge and understanding of various subjects; improving morale and confidence. In special cases, or as a test of this level of mind-power, one can attempt to be cut or stabbed with the full force of a person's strength and not be pierced, without harm; one can dip the hand into boiling oil and even scoop it up and eat it without harm; one can walk over burning coals without wearing shoes; one can take hold with the bare hand of a large chain heated red-hot in fire, or even scoop it up with the hand. It can be used to cure illness, or to assist other treatments so that illness heals faster. It can be used for hypnosis. It helps one see images of things or events in the present and the very near future, though these are only shadowy images, not yet as clear as with middle-level samadhi, so there is a mixture of error and accuracy. All these various uses of mind-power described above can be learned

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[...can be learned] and one can do several such things oneself in a single day. This can be learned by both men and women, without needing to change one's religion. As for capacity in the Dhamma sphere: beginning-level samadhi helps one abandon defilements at the beginning level, or attain moral precepts (sila).

The Capacity of Middle-Level Samadhi

Middle-level mind-power can further increase strength, endurance, and diligence; it helps produce morale and vigor; it helps memory, knowledge, and understanding become better than with beginning-level mind-power. In other respects too its capacity is higher than beginning-level mind-power. For example, in the test of being cut or stabbed hard, beginning-level mind-power still shows swelling and redness, and bruising can occur, sometimes even with some bleeding; but middle-level mind-power shows no pain, no bruising, no swelling. One can see objects hidden at a distance, or see present and near-future events clearly and accurately, with very little error. As for memory, one can memorize a great deal in a short time. One can send and receive messages by mental current (asking and answering by mind). One can spring a lock open [by mental power]. One can heal illness more effectively than with beginning-level mind-power. One can transform one substance or object into another, and can

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[...can] turn into a living creature endowed with life and consciousness — for example, turning a leaf into a bee or a bird, or turning grains of rice into shrimp. Teachers/masters in Thailand have already demonstrated the above-described ability before assembled audiences on several occasions; at present there are also several who can do it. In the Dhamma sphere, middle-level samadhi helps one abandon the middle-level defilements (the Five Hindrances, nivarana 5) temporarily.

The Capacity of High-Level Samadhi

High-level mind-power can naturally be used for the same purposes as beginning- and middle-level power, but with greater capability — for example, doing things well, doing them quickly, with greater accuracy and precision — and beyond that it also has many further capabilities beyond those of beginning- and middle-level mind-power. Examples of the display of mind-power, together with the principles and methods for using high-level mind-power, are found in many places in the Tipitaka; only a few will be cited here, such as from the Tipitaka, volumes 1, 14, and 19: directing the mind toward several kinds of supernormal powers (iddhividha) — namely, becoming one person as many persons, or making oneself disappear (invisibility), or making other objects disappear; walking through walls or mountains unobstructed; directing the mind to produce the divine ear (dibba-sota), hearing both divine sounds and human sounds near and far; the knowledge of others' minds (cetopariyañāṇa) [text continues, cut off at page bottom]

[continued from previous page] ...can discern the minds of others. Pubbenivāsānussati-ñāṇa: recollecting very many past lives. Rising up and diving down into the earth as if into water; walking on water as if walking on land; flying through the air like a bird; inclining the mind to turn a pile of wood into earth, or into water, or into wind; making things appear, that is, seeing what is far or near even if something is blocking it. And with high-level mind-power, even if burned alive one comes to no harm; thieves chasing to strike cannot hit; fierce animals dare not cause harm. At the very highest level of mind, one may attain the 3 vijjā, the 6 abhiññā, or the 8 vijjā (see the Royal Institute Dictionary and the Tipiṭaka). Teacher-lineages deep in the forest all train and teach the path of cetovimutti (liberation of mind) because it helps one gain mind-power that can be used well both for worldly and for Dhamma purposes, helping people recover from illness, from suffering, from grief, helping them become prosperous and happy, etc. On the Dhamma side it helps one abandon the middle-level defilements, that is the 5 hindrances (nīvaraṇa), for long stretches of time, and abandoning the subtle-level defilements requires vipassanā as well.

On the matter of using mind-power, the power of mind, the power of merit/virtue, at the beginner or intermediate level of samādhi, or the display of iddhi (psychic power), the display of miracles, which is the use of mind-power at the level of jhāna—

There are many learned men, well versed in the scriptural (pariyatti) side, who do not believe such things can really exist. Some say it is not the Buddha's teaching but something appended and embellished afterward. Some say it is a low-level branch of knowledge that should not be studied. Some go so far as to fall into wrong view (micchādiṭṭhi) themselves over it. This fits the proverb, "Even a four-legged animal still stumbles; even a wise man still errs." But the writer who has compiled this has encountered many real cases and has also taught samādhi-vipassanā. Even so, most learned people still believe it is real, or that it has value. In the Tipiṭaka there are also many passages that speak of the use of mind-power and the display of iddhi, together with teachings on the method in many places. The Buddha taught and had monks display iddhi in many passages of the Tipiṭaka. In the Bāhung chant (verses of victory/blessing) it speaks of eight instances of displaying iddhi. The Buddha taught a stratagem or method for fighting the nāga king to Phra Mahā Moggallāna, then had Moggallāna display iddhi to fight the nāga king. As for the other seven instances of displaying iddhi, the Buddha performed them himself. So one may say that the use of mind-power and the display of iddhi truly exist, but that it is not good, not proper, and is not something befitting the station of the Buddha and the Arahants to do. If one thinks that the use—

—mind-power, the display of iddhi, did not exist, that too would be impossible, because there are many examples of it being done. In the Tipiṭaka there are cases of both monks and laypeople doing it; even at present there are many people who can do it. To say it was simply invented afterward does not seem plausible; that would become a wrong view, which is unwholesome, a sin, and in itself a form of disrespect toward the Triple Gem.

As for how much one can know, hold a view, or have ability, how much one can use mind-power and use iddhi, that all depends on the level of the mind, the level of samādhi. The great teachers deep in the forest divide the levels of samādhi, from the beginning stage up to the very end of the formless jhānas, into 17 levels of samādhi. Whatever level can accomplish what, the teacher instructs and has the student try it. Once that level is reached, one tries it, examines it so as to see the Dhamma clearly at every level. Having done so, one passes on from it, not clinging to it, not grasping and holding onto it, because even something correct, good, and proper, if one clings to it, becomes harmful, becomes an error, and cuts off one's progress. Using mind-power serves to spur and drive the arising of better samādhi. For example: scooping up and drinking boiling oil, or grasping red-hot burning iron in one's hands — knowing it is dangerous, one resolves wholeheartedly, making it samādhi, so that no harm occurs. The teacher has the student turn a leaf into a living animal to look at, this too is so as to—

—understand clearly the matter of ignorance (avijjā) as a causal condition, which gives rise to volitional formations (saṅkhāra); saṅkhāra gives rise to consciousness (viññāṇa); and viññāṇa gives rise to name-and-form (nāmarūpa). Teaching one to fly, to become invisible, to walk on water, to dive into the earth, to pass straight through a mountain or a wall, is only so as to make one know and see the highest level of Dhamma, which is anattā, the absence of self in every single thing. The Dhamma is a subtle and profound matter, so one must rely on penetrating knowledge, thorough knowledge, knowledge that links and connects things together, in order to understand it. For example, the benefits or advantages of loving-kindness (mettā) number as many as 11, including the point that mettā helps so that fire does not burn one and poison cannot harm one. To understand this one must read and consider several volumes of the Tipiṭaka, that is, look at the 40 methods of samādhi practice; mettā is one method of practicing samādhi or samatha. In the next volume, look at the benefits of mettā: cultivating mettā to its highest degree will reach the 4th jhāna. Looking in yet another volume, in the Abhidhamma Piṭaka, one will find the passage: "…when one enters jhāna, the appanā-javana-citta helps support and maintain one steady in one's posture as normal, not letting it be disturbed. When various dangers arise, such as fire, or an elephant, tiger, robber, or venomous snake coming to cause harm, the appanā-javana-citta prevents the danger, not letting it reach the yogāvacara (meditator)…" Put simply, this means that when one enters the 4th jhāna, one will have the power or—

—the very highest power of mind within oneself, with force enough to destroy or to guard against various dangers. But to have it understood even more clearly, that comes only once one has seen it demonstrated, seen an experiment proving it true, or has done it oneself. Strange matters of this kind have examples and methods in many places in the Tipiṭaka; I, the writer, have personally encountered many such things, so I have no doubt.

The supreme philosophy, that is, the highest truth in the Buddhist religion, is written with the sense: "What is said to be true is true; what is said to be not true is also true. But that which is truly certain has no change, admits no contradiction — only that is called the real truth. The real truth is the Four Noble Truths (namely dukkha, samudaya, nirodha, and magga). As for saying that 'not true' is also true, that is because everything, both form and mind (rūpa and nāma), is impermanent, is anicca, always subject to change. One may call it right or wrong, true or not true, beneficial and of merit or harmful and of no benefit, and both sides can be correct; it is only that one side is more right, more true. For example: shooting at a bird and hitting the bird — but if one only hits the tip of a feather, that is more wrong than right; or one could say the shot missed. Right and wrong, good and bad, true and not true, all lie in the same place. Being anicca, it is also dukkha, is also anattā, in the very same place at the very same moment. Put in another way, one could say that everything has its exceptions."

The Noble Eightfold Path is the Middle Way, leading to Nibbāna, and can carry meanings at several levels. The first level of the Middle Way is a manner of practice that neither indulges in sensual pleasure nor tortures oneself in the manner of a yogi — these being called the two extremes, or the two sides — one abstains from practicing on either side. At the second, better level, one abstains from indulging in sensual pleasure in the sexual sense, and abstains from becoming infatuated and lost in material sense-objects, by keeping precepts, training in samādhi, and vipassanā. At the third, even better level, one keeps precepts even better, more refined, and trains in samādhi-vipassanā strictly, with genuine, resolute earnestness, having sacca-dhamma (truth/sincerity of intent in 5 respects: true to duty, true to one's work, true in speech, true to persons, true to goodness), and the Buddhist manner of self-mortification, namely the observance of "dhutaṅga (ascetic practices)."

Believe firmly that, even now though you have never yet put your hand to training in samādhi, you already possess mind-power within yourself, and you may put it to use for many benefits, once you know the method and the right timing for doing it, which you can learn clearly from the writer or from other knowledgeable people.

Causes of Prosperity

1. Having diligence and perseverance 2. Knowing how to preserve what one has earned 3. Having good people as friends, not associating with bad people 4. Living one's life in a manner suited to the wealth one has earned

If you wish to become prosperous, still the mind, and consider and understand each point. To be diligent and persevering continuously over a long period of time requires the support of willpower or mind-power to help maintain it. As for preserving one's possessions, preserving the money one has earned, see the teaching on the preservation and use of wealth. As for good people and bad people, judge by the traits of a good friend versus a bad friend, and consider friendship — the way to maintain a bond of friendship for a long time.

In truth, practicing samādhi or vipassanā is a matter of training both together at the same time, not separately, as can be seen from the Four Foundations of Mindfulness. At the outset, one trains in noting the breath. Phra Ajahn Lee taught that: taking the mind (mindfulness, sati) to fix and cling closely, watching the breath — that is samādhi (samatha). The awareness or consideration of knowing whether the breath is short or long, heavy or light, cool or warm — that is vipassanā. As for saying they are not trained separately, there is evidence for this in the Tipiṭaka, volume 51, page 472 (see the 80-volume set), which states: "A monk cultivates samatha and vipassanā together, paired, by means of 16 aspects…" Phra Ajahn Buddhadāsa said: "The method of ānāpānasati has both samatha and vipassanā within it."

Methods of Samādhi-Vipassanā — Which Method Is Best

Choosing a method of training in samādhi-vipassanā to suit one's temperament or character counts as the first important matter before beginning to train in samādhi-vipassanā. The choice of training method must take the teachings in the Tipiṭaka as its foundation. The edition of the Tipiṭaka referred to here is taken as the edition of the Department of Religious Affairs, the 80-volume set, printed B.E. 2500.

From the Tipiṭaka, volume 63, page 264, it speaks of the three most excellent things:

Among paths, the Noble Eightfold Path is the most excellent Among truths, the Four Noble Truths are the most excellent Among dhammas, the dhamma of dispassion (virāga-dhamma) is the most excellent

Training in samādhi-vipassanā should therefore hold to the Noble Eightfold Path as the best method, because it is the most excellent path. Among the components of the Eightfold Path, there are important factors that must be considered clearly before undertaking the training, namely: Right Mindfulness (sammā-sati) and Right Concentration (sammā-samādhi). Sammā-sati lies within the Four Foundations of Mindfulness (having mindfulness aware in body, feelings, mind, and dhammas), that is, the practice of vipassanā itself. As for sammā-samādhi, that is making the mind calm and firmly established, namely the practice of samatha, or samādhi, itself.

Nibbāna: one who is not yet an Arahant, or has not yet reached Nibbāna, cannot come to a full and clear understanding of it no matter how one questions, thinks about, or tries to explain it.

In the Tipiṭaka it is said that the Noble Eightfold Path is the most excellent path, and is the sole path, the ekamagga (one path), or—

—is called magga-samaṅgī: it must be practiced so that all eight factors blend harmoniously together. One who is beginning to train in samādhi should first consider and understand two important factors among the Eightfold Path, namely: Right View (sammā-diṭṭhi) and Right Concentration (sammā-samādhi).

In the Tipiṭaka, volume 63, page 265, it is stated: "Right Speech and Right Livelihood are not [themselves] the Path, but are factors of the Path; Right View, Right Concentration, are the Path." The Eightfold Path is the most excellent path leading to Nibbāna.

The Tipiṭaka, volume 21, the Mahācattārīsaka Sutta, states: "Right Concentration is composed together with the preceding seven factors of the Path; Right View is the leader of the other factors of the Path." One can see that the correct samādhi (or samatha) is the samādhi that gathers together the remaining seven factors so that they come together as one; that is correct samādhi (sammā-samādhi), which has already incorporated sammā-sati, that is, vipassanā, within itself. Samādhi, or what is called samatha-kammaṭṭhāna, when practiced correctly to its ultimate conclusion, leads to Nibbāna.

The method of practice, or the method of creating the cause for right view (sammā-diṭṭhi) to arise, has 2 aspects. In the Tipiṭaka, volume 18, page 612, it is stated: "The conditions giving rise to sammā-diṭṭhi—

—how many are there?' There are 2 factors: hearing [teaching] from another person, and applying wise attention (yoniso-manasikāra) in the mind. As for 'hearing,' that means having listened to or read the words of one who sees rightly, who holds right view (one with sammā-diṭṭhi), combined with wise consideration — checking the evidence in the Tipiṭaka, or investigating and asking other knowledgeable people as well; this brings thoroughness and confidence in a correct view. Missing this may lead to mistaken understanding, and to mistaken practice right from the start of training. That is to say, the Tipiṭaka states in many places that practicing according to the Eightfold Path should be practiced as magga-samaṅgī — practiced so as to blend into a single whole across all 8 factors. Therefore, to train in samādhi separately, that is, samatha alone, or to train in vipassanā alone without training in samatha together with it, is not correct according to the Tipiṭaka. I will quote a passage from another volume as follows:

The Tipiṭaka, volume 51, page 472, states: "…a monk cultivates samatha and vipassanā paired together by means of 16 aspects…" This paired training may be accomplished by several methods.

The cause giving rise to wrong view (micchā-diṭṭhi) is stated in the Tipiṭaka, volume 26, page 280: "When form exists, because one relies on form, because one clings to form, wrong view arises, namely—

—wrong view…' In another wording, the Tipiṭaka states that the causes giving rise to wrong view are 2: being led by rumor from other people (hearing what others say, tell, or teach that is mistaken, and believing it) — that is one cause; the other cause is not using wise, careful thought — clinging to form, that is, holding that this form or body belongs to oneself or is one's self, holding firmly that this body is self. It is difficult to explain so as to make one understand that it is not self, not one's self — comparable to a person who has never tasted salt: explaining to make him understand what salty is like will not succeed; he must be given salt to eat, and then he will know what salty is like. To make one understand that it is not self, not one's self, one must be made to actually try it out. The first step is to turn a tamarind leaf into a wasp, as already described; within no more than 7 days the wasp reverts back into a leaf, not a self. When training is completed at the intermediate level of samādhi, nearing the entry into jhāna, one is taught to meditate and walk back and forth straight through a mountain, so that one clearly sees that the body is merely a body, not a self, not 'us' or 'them.' What sees the physical body as a self, as one's own, that is called clinging to form (rūpa) — that is wrong view (micchā-diṭṭhi), a view that departs from reality. The reality is that the physical body is made up of very tiny units of life packed together, forming bone, forming flesh and skin, hair and nails, etc.

Summary of the Most Important Dhamma

(1) For ordinary people, going on tudong (forest-wandering practice) to stay in cremation grounds and in deep forests where dangerous animals live, training step by step from easy to difficult as described above, makes it easy to attain a high level of samadhi. But one must not enter carelessly, skipping stages, because regarding staying in deep forest the Lord Buddha said: "......When we come to dwell relying on the dense forest, mindfulness not yet arisen arises; the mind not yet steady becomes steady; the outflows (asava) not yet ended come to their ending......" It was said earlier that the tiger is a good teacher, enabling one to attain a high level of samadhi-vipassana, because one must resolve to train in earnest — with such fierce resolve there is no aching, no fatigue, or drowsiness throughout the night.

(2) One who has accumulated great merit and perfections through giving (dana), morality (sila), meditation (bhavana), etc. (the ten courses of wholesome action) abundantly, both in this life and in past lives, will attain the path, fruit, and Nibbana quickly.

(3) I wish to clarify a teaching that is often spoken and written, namely: "The practice of samadhi-vipassana can be done anywhere." It is true that one can practice anywhere, but the results will be meager — still better than not practicing — because [treating this as a general rule] conflicts with the Tipitaka, which is the teaching of the Lord Buddha.

...many categories. To give an example, the category of "sappaya" (favorable conditions) for effective training has 4 factors: One — the training place: quiet, good air, little worry. Two — food suited to training: easily digestible food, chewed thoroughly, not food that stimulates sensual desire; eating only enough — about 3 mouthfuls to be full is sufficient. Three — a good, highly capable teacher and good companions. Four — a training method suited to oneself. An example of training at a temple that nevertheless got good results is the Venerable Chao Khun Narrat Bhikkhu of Wat Thep Sirinthrawat, who trained with great success precisely because he followed all 4 sappaya factors. First factor — a quiet place: Chao Khun Narn stayed alone in his kuti, did not accept invitations to go anywhere, did not receive visitors at his kuti, and had no telephone, radio, television, or other distracting devices. Second factor — food: he ate a vegetarian diet, one meal a day, and not much. Third factor — a good, capable teacher and good companions: his teacher was a forest-dwelling ajarn who had attained the higher powers (abhiñña), who came to instruct him regularly. Fourth factor — a method suited to himself: he practiced anapanasati (mindfulness of breathing), together with contemplation of the foul (asubha) and the development of loving-kindness (metta), which suits people of all temperaments in general, as mentioned above. At his kuti he kept a human skeleton for contemplating asubha, and he cultivated metta many times each day. In addition he stretched/exercised his body regularly every day, and he wrote down...

...a record of his training method for the benefit of others as well. His training followed a strict fixed schedule, possible only because he did not receive visitors. On some occasions he went to train in the forest.

To train to attain high levels of samadhi or jhana, one must follow a graduated course under the great forest-dwelling ajarns, which everyone completes — the jhana training taking no more than 5 years — as stated earlier. As for training to reach the level of being able to fly, become invisible, and disappear, drawing close to Nibbana, that too is possible; this refers to the curriculum used by the forest-dwelling ajarns, in which everyone who trains succeeds. In some cases a person of exceptionally strong diligence gets the opportunity to study with a forest ajarn — for example, the Venerable Luang Phor Charan of Wat Amphawan, Singburi Province, who at age 45 studied with and did tudong together with a forest ajarn for only 3 months and thereby attained a high level of samadhi. He did not reveal this for more than 20 years, and only recounted this truth in front of the compiler [of this book] and the public in early B.E. 2537 [1994 CE]. Luang Pu Ngoen of Wat Khao Ruak, Khruba Lum of Amphoe Lom Sak, and Pu Thon of Amphoe Ta Khli — all three were also disciples of the same forest ajarn as Luang Phor Charan (as shown in the cover photo). There has been much recent disclosure about these forest ajarns, because this is the proper time — a period when many forest ajarns are beginning to come out, reveal themselves, and teach for the sake of the survival of the faithful.

(4) Reciting Chants. Many people still believe this has little benefit, wastes a lot of time, or is unintelligible. In truth it has great benefit, because chanting is a recitation of Dhamma — a recitation of sacred verses (mantra-katha) — speaking of the virtues of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha, which makes fear disappear and cures illness, drives away spirits and demons, and protects against various dangers. As for chanting in order to make holy water, its effectiveness depends on confidence, on a mind concentrated in samadhi, and on chanting at a suitable speed and suitable length. The greatest benefit of chanting is that it can lead all the way to the attainment of Arahantship, as there is evidence for this stated in the Dhamma, as follows:

There Are 5 Occasions on Which One May Attain Arahantship, Namely:

→ When listening to the Dhamma — there are many examples of this in the Tipitaka. → When teaching/expounding the Dhamma. → When reciting the Dhamma — that is, chanting, i.e. reciting sacred verses (bhavana-katha). → When reflecting on or contemplating the Dhamma. → When developing samadhi-vipassana.

An example of attaining Arahantship while teaching the Dhamma is Phra Nagasena, who preached to an elderly lay follower. That lay follower attained the eye of Dhamma — that is, became a Stream-enterer (Sotapanna) — while listening, even before Phra Nagasena himself did. Then, by reflecting on the very words he himself had preached, Phra Nagasena also attained Stream-entry during that same discourse.

As for attaining Arahantship while reflecting on or contemplating the Dhamma — such as contemplating mindfulness of the body (kayagatasati) or the foul (asubha) — this too can lead to Arahantship. For example, the benefits of kayagatasati number up to 10, the last of which is attaining Arahantship, as mentioned above.

(5) Translating the Dhamma. In explaining the Dhamma and in practicing it, one must consider the many categories of teaching that expand upon, support, or [appear to] contradict one another. For example, "contentment" (santosa): [the Buddha] taught contentment with the four requisites, but another set of teachings teaches non-contentment — in wholesome qualities, that is, in the good aspects [of practice], one should not be content, but must keep improving continuously until reaching Nibbana. To be content with a level of Dhamma not yet reaching Nibbana is negligence. The Dhamma of the Buddha, in every category and every point, never truly contradicts itself; if there seems to be a contradiction, one side must be mistaken. For example, the word "sambhavesi" in the Tipitaka and in translated chanting books has been translated...

...as "one who is seeking a realm of rebirth (bhava)," which then contradicts the Abhidhamma's teaching that after death, rebirth occurs immediately, with no interval and no lingering. But the great forest ajarns translate sambhavesi as "the consciousness attached to the body" — that which occupies the inner body, or the subtle/divine body. When a person dies, this body-attached consciousness, together with the inner body, simply separates from the coarse body that has died — that is, rebirth occurs immediately, which does not conflict with the Abhidhamma, and the two accounts can be reconciled, as explained above. The Venerable Ajarn Payutto, a scholar of religion, also responded on the matter of sambhavesi, saying that Pali is not our language, and some words carry several meanings; sometimes an incorrect meaning has been chosen and written down, as mentioned above.

In explaining the Dhamma and teaching the practice of the Mahasatipatthana Sutta, the first stage teaches one to focus on the breath in order to see the body in the body. There are 4 key points; the latter two are: calming the breath so that it becomes gentler (calming the bodily formations, kaya-sankhara), and seeing the arising and ceasing of the body both internally and externally. These [latter two] are not taught or explained; it is mostly said that one should simply practice and will see for oneself. Practitioners are then made to skip ahead to contemplating feeling (vedana), mind (citta), and mental phenomena (dhamma) — which is skipping from the easy stage to the difficult one. That is to say, the body is coarse and can be seen [clearly], but the mind is...

...a very subtle, delicate mental phenomenon (nama). One should therefore contemplate the body until it is seen clearly first, because contemplation of the body is the path to reaching Nibbana, as stated in the Tipitaka, Volume 28, page 575: "........this mindfulness of the body (kayagatasati) is called the path to the Unconditioned (asankhata)" (that is, to Nibbana). Some sections also say that one who has not contemplated mindfulness of the body will not reach Nibbana, stating: "Monks who have not cultivated mindfulness of the body do not reach the Deathless." Phra Ajarn Mun taught: "The body is what gives rise to the cause — the eye seeing forms — which makes the mind become agitated; one must therefore contemplate this body first, so that it becomes a means of extinguishing the hindrances (nivarana) and calming the mind. One should do this a great deal, contemplating without ever retreating........" Phra Ajarn Maha Bua of Wat Pa Ban Tat, Udon Province, taught: "In the beginning stage of samadhi, contemplate the body first; feeling and mind are to be contemplated using the middle or higher levels of samadhi together with it."

Contemplating the body so as to reach Nibbana is stated in the Asava Sutta, which teaches one to contemplate the body as unbeautiful — that is, as something unclean, disgusting, revolting, and repulsive. This was taught in many different phrasings, in many places, such as: the body is constantly rotting and decaying; the body is constantly, perpetually moving; the body is full of buried graves; the body constantly arises and ceases; the body is full of feces and urine (excrement); the body constantly leaks putrid matter; the body is entirely full of...

...rotting sores; the body is constantly disintegrating and shedding. The body is impermanent (anicca), suffering (dukkha), and not-self (anatta). All that has been said, if considered according to reality, is [explained by the fact that] the body is composed of living units — that is, cells, which are alive and therefore must eat, excrete, move, arise and die, reproduce, and breathe. Dying cells are carried away out through the skin by the wind element; the fire element burns them dry; wind carries the dead living matter out through the nine bodily orifices. Living cells are, in general, in constant shrinking and shifting motion — but our eyes see the body as still, which does not match reality. This has been explained in detail above; in summary, what we fall in love with and cherish is [really] the corpse of these living cells — the skin, which is dry and constantly flaking off and shedding.

To practice samadhi-vipassana effectively, one must do so earnestly and without fail, according to a fixed schedule: sitting in samadhi about 3 times a day, walking meditation about 3 times a day, and using the remaining time to contemplate the foul (asubha) and cultivate loving-kindness (metta). Most important of all is keeping the body strong and free of illness, with medicine to help repair what has deteriorated. Training in a cremation ground and in a quiet, secluded place, training on a path where tigers walk — this is considered a great aid in attaining a high level of samadhi in a short time, because it spurs one to resolve with fierce determination to practice samadhi continuously and in earnest. But one must still train in stages, from easy to difficult...

...as mentioned above. When there is no tiger to serve as a teacher forcing the mind, one instead uses the power of the Buddha's virtue and the power of mind — the potency (iddhi) of samadhi itself — to compel oneself to train with fierce, resolute determination until one forgets aches and fatigue, feels no drowsiness, and the mind stays awake all day and all night. The goal is the complete elimination of defilements (kilesa).

One who has attained the middle level of samadhi (upacara-samadhi), at the time of death, will be reborn in one of the 6 lower heavens, according to the degree of that middle-level samadhi. One who has attained the high level of samadhi (appana-samadhi), after death, will be reborn in one of the 20 higher heavens (the Brahma realms), in whichever realm corresponds to the level of samadhi or jhana attained.

Regarding the results of giving (dana), according to the evidence in the Tipitaka's Sangiti Sutta, Dana Sutta, etc.: giving done while hoping for a result leads to rebirth in the first heaven, the realm of the Four Great Kings (Catumaharajika). Giving done without hoping for a result, but thinking of it as good and excellent, leads to rebirth in the second heaven, Tavatimsa. Giving done not thinking of it as good or excellent, but simply following what one's grandparents and parents have done, so as not to break with tradition, leads to rebirth in the third heaven, [given here as] the Maya heaven. Giving done not thinking of it as following tradition, but thinking that ascetics and brahmins do not cook for themselves as we do [and so should be supported], leads to rebirth in the fourth heaven, Tusita. The act of...

...giving done not thinking that one ought to give simply because ascetics do not cook as we do, but thinking of giving in the manner of the ancient sages (rishis) of times past, leads to rebirth in the fifth heaven, Nimmanarati. Giving done not thinking of following the ancient sages, but done out of genuine faith and confidence, done for the sake of joy and gladness, leads to rebirth in the sixth heaven, Paranimmitavasavatti. Giving done not thinking of following the ancient sages, but done in order to refine and purify the mind, leads to rebirth in the Brahma world. It has already been said that in contemplating the Dhamma, one should consider other related categories together, so as to know the details fully, to know what is right or wrong, and to understand completely and thoroughly. For example, for giving to yield its fullest results, it must be accompanied by: beginning with a mind of faith, the willingness behind the act of giving being good in itself; the recipient being one of good, pure moral conduct; after giving, not boasting, not regretting it, and frequently recalling the merit one has made, and so on. Even one who has already become an Arahant still continues to give, though not with any wish to accumulate further merit, since that is already complete — rather, giving is done to help others, to live happily in this life, and to serve as an example; done out of loving-kindness and compassion; done for the sake of mindfulness and clear comprehension (sati-sampajañña).

The Benefits of the Gift of Dhamma (Dhammadana)

1. Past wrongdoings — minor offenses will be alleviated immediately; heavy offenses will become light. 2. One will constantly receive the protection of the devas, safe from illness, robbery, accidents, fire, and floods. 3. One's karmic creditors [those to whom one owes karmic debt] will also receive the benefit of the merit; karmic debts will thereby be released, freeing one from mutual vengeance forever. 4. Spirits and demons will be unable to trouble one; one will be safe from dangerous animals. 5. The mind will be constantly cheerful; by day one will be free of danger, by night free of bad dreams; the face will be radiant with dignity, one's strength will be full, and one's affairs will flourish. 6. The family will be harmonious and united; food and clothing will be abundant; one will live a long life. 7. Wherever one is, one will receive love, faith, respect, and reverence from the people. 8. The foolish will become wise; the sick will become strong; hardship will turn into ease and comfort; a woman [who has done this] will, in a future life, be reborn as a man. 9. One will be reborn in a fortunate realm, forever freed from unfortunate realms. 10. Wherever one is born, one will encounter the Buddha and the Dhamma, until one develops the threefold wisdom (tevijja) and the sixfold higher knowledge (chalabhiñña), and swiftly attains Buddhahood.

The gift of Dhamma conquers all [other] gifts.

(From ........ "The Devas Answer Questions")

The Greatest Wonder That Can Be Verified

Regarding the use of the power of the Buddha's virtue and the power of mind to turn a white cotton cloth (pha khao ma) into a tiger, as mentioned earlier — that is a stage requiring the use of mental power at a very high level of samadhi. In order to verify and see this for oneself, one should begin from something easier — namely, transmuting elements into a living creature. The forest-dwelling ajarns have students begin by turning a tamarind leaf into a wasp first, then progress upward to more difficult tasks. The detailed method has already been given in the volume "Science of the Mind: The Universe-Viewing Edition." This method requires only the middle level of samadhi. The benefit gained from it is to see, at a high level, the truth of impermanence (anicca) — both from the tamarind leaf transforming into a wasp, and from the fact that after about 3 days or more it reverts back into a leaf. In addition, this brings about the understanding that the power of the Buddha's virtue and the power of mind can rearrange the atoms of matter anew, and can also transfer that power to reside within objects — including into the Buddha's relics (sarīrikadhātu). This is scientific knowledge that connects to, and helps one understand, matters such as making oneself disappear, flying, and walking on air, as stated in the Tipitaka and in various religious scriptures. It frees one from wrong view (miccha-ditthi), which carries great harm.