Peaceful Mind in Khao Yai (Meditation Retreat)

We were highly honored by Bhante Gunaratana or Bhante G, an internationally recognized senior monk and a head abbot of Bhavana Society in West Virginia, who have led us meditation sessions at our community in Khao Yai this past weekend.


I had a chance to join their two sessions at 6 p.m. on Saturday evening and 5 a.m. on Sunday morning. Since I haven't done any real meditation practice during the past 5 whole years, it was rather a challenge for me to try to keep my mind at peace during an hour-long session. But it was absolutely great to get back to practicing meditation again.

"Impermanence is the only permanent thing in life. But impermanence cannot stand for itself. There is always something to start with for you to understand what impermanence is. For example, the impermanence of life, the impermanence of feeling, the impermanence of something and something. Most of all, it need not be verbalized for verbalizing is only to set a conceptual statement for the real state of happening." - summarized from Bhante G's teaching

One other place we visited on Sunday was "Baan Boon (บ้านบุญ)", a meditation home of Ajahn Jayasaro (พระอาจารย์ชยสาโร / Shaun Chiverton). We did another nearly an hour meditation session before listening to Ajahn Jayasaro's Dhamma talk.


I don't know if it is because both Bhante G and Ajahn Jayasaro are foreigners or not, but the way they teach is very simple and easy to understand.

"Dhamma doesn't have levels. It doesn't mean that one teaching is for a beginner and another is for an advanced, but it's all about understanding. Even for a simple teaching like 'do good and do not do bad', if a person cannot practice it, such teaching can be called an advance and difficult one for him/her too." - summarized from Ajahn Jayasaro's teaching "

ธรรมมะไม่มีระดับขั้น ไม่ได้มีแบ่งว่าคำสอนง่ายๆเป็นคำสอนระดับประถม คำสอนยากๆเป็นระดับมัธยม ปริญญาตรี ปริญญาโทหรือสูงกว่า และความลึกซึ้งของธรรมมะก็ไม่ได้มาจากการที่ต้องศึกษาธรรมมะที่ฟังดูยากๆ แต่ความลึกซึ้งในธรรมมะมันอยู่ที่ความเข้าใจและการปฏิบัติ อย่างคำสอนพื้นๆ เช่น 'ทำดี อย่าทำชั่ว' ถ้าใครประพฤติปฎิตามไม่ได้ มันก็เรียกว่าเป็นธรรมมะที่ลึกซึ้งสำหรับคนคนนั้นได้เหมือนกัน" - เรียบเรียงจากคำสอนของพระอาจารย์ชยสาโร

Then after Dhamma Talk session, we also could Tuk Baat (ตักบาตร) Ajahn Jayasaro and the home abbots.



Below is my friend, Kim. She's one real great example of a person. I knew her 6 years ago when I was in Malaysia by an introduction of Auntie Avoranee who now serves Bhante G at Bhavana Society. Kim back then was such a healthy lady. Who knew that one day she would suffer from a stroke and being half-body paralized (left part of the body). I met her again about 3-4 years ago when she just had a stroke and still trying to realign herself into a life of less-mobility. I met here again just this past weekend and it was amazing to see how she can walk, talk and help herself to everything. She can bend down to arrange her shoes. She can walk up and down the staircases without any help. She can sit and meditate even for a long session. She can do so many things that I can hardly picture a person who could barely move can do. Her husband, Kien, is also a wonderful husband. I'm really touched.



Later on that day, Bhante G came over to Baan Boon for a visit which provided us a great chance to witness the talk among great Theravada monks.