..續本文上一頁lly he took ordination. After staying with Luang Pu for a while, he came to take his leave so that he could wander off in search of solitude.
Luang Pu advised him,
"In the area of the Vinaya, you should study the texts until you correctly understand each and every rule to the point where you can put them into practice without error. As for the Dhamma, if you read a lot you”ll speculate a lot, so you don”t have to read that at all. Be intent solely on the practice, and that will be enough."
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30. What to watch
Luang Taa Naen ordained well after middle age. Illiterate and unable to speak a word of Central Thai, he had his strong point in that he was well-intentioned, tractable, and diligent in his duties, to the point where you couldn”t fault him. When he saw other monks taking their leave to go wandering or to study with other ajaans, he decided that he wanted to go, too. So he came to ask permission to leave, which Luang Pu granted. But then he felt worried: "I can”t read, I don”t know their language. How will I be able to practice with them
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Luang Pu advised him,
"The practice isn”t a matter of the letters of the alphabet or of spoken words. The fact that you know you don”t know is a good place to start. The way to practice is this: In the area of the Vinaya, watch their example, the example set by the ajaan. Don”t deviate in any way from what he does. In the area of the Dhamma, keep watch right at your own mind. Practice right at the mind. When you understand your own mind, that, in and of itself, will make you understand everything else."
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31. Problems & responsibilities
One of the problems in administering the Sangha, in addition to having to deal with all the other major and minor issues that come up, is the lack of monks who will be abbots. We sometimes hear news of monks competing to become abbot of a monastery, but Luang Pu”s students had to be cajoled or forced into taking on the abbotship in other monasteries. Every year without exception, groups of lay people would come to Luang Pu, asking him to send one of his students to become the abbot at their monastery. If Luang Pu saw that a particular monk should go, he would plead with him to go, but for the most part the monk wouldn”t want to go. The usual excuse was, "I don”t know how to do construction work, I don”t know how to train other monks, I don”t know how to give sermons, I”m no good at public relations or receiving guests. That”s why I don”t want to go."
Luang Pu would respond,
"Those things aren”t really necessary. Your only responsibility is to follow your daily duties: going for alms, eating your meal, sitting in meditation, doing walking meditation, cleaning the monastery grounds, being strict in observing the Vinaya. That”s enough right there. As for construction work, that depends on the lay supporters. Whether or not they do it is up to them."
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32. The poorer, the happier
To the end of his life, Luang Pu would have his daily warm-water bath at 5:00 every evening, assisted by a monk or novice. After he had dried off and was feeling refreshed, he would often speak a few words of Dhamma that occurred to him at the time. For instance, once he said,
"We monks, if we establish in ourselves a sense of satisfaction with our status as monks, will find nothing but happiness and peace. But if we have the status of a monk and yet hanker after any other status, we”ll be engulfed in suffering all the time. When you can stop thirsting, stop searching, that”s the true state of being a monk. When you”re truly a monk,…
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