..续本文上一页g done them I felt pleased with myself, I had inspiration and a lot of energy in my practice.

　　Whenever I could do something in the monastery, whether in my own kuti or others," if it was dirty, I”d clean up. I didn”t do it for anyone in particular, I didn”t do it to impress anyone, I simply did it to maintain a good practice. Cleaning a kuti or dwelling place is just like cleaning rubbish out of your own mind.

　　Now this is something all of you should bear in mind. You don”t have to worry about harmony, it will automatically be there. Live together with Dhamma, with peace and restraint, train your mind to be like this and no problems will arise. If there is heavy work to be done everybody helps out and in no long time the work is done, it gets taken care of quite easily. That”s the best way.

　　I have come across some other types, though... although I used it as an opportunity to grow. For instance, living in a big monastery, the monks and novices may agree among themselves to wash robes on a certain day. I”d go and boil up the jackfruit wood. [53] Now there”d be some monks who”d wait for someone else to boil up the jackfruit wood and then come along and wash their robes, take them back to their kutis, hang them out and then take a nap. They didn”t have to set up the fire, didn”t have to clean up afterwards... they thought they were on a good thing, that they were being clever. This is the height of stupidity. These people are just increasing their own stupidity because they don”t do anything, they leave all the work up to others. They wait till everything is ready then come along and make use of it, it”s easy for them. This is just adding to one”s foolishness. Those actions serve no useful purpose whatsoever to them.

　　Some people think foolishly like this. They shirk the required duties and think that this is being clever, but it is actually very foolish. If we have that sort of attitude we won”t last.

　　Therefore, whether speaking, eating or doing anything whatsoever, reflect on yourself. You may want to live comfortably, eat comfortably, sleep comfortably and so on, but you can”t. What have we come here for

　　 If we regularly reflect on this we will be heedful, we won”t forget, we will be constantly alert. Being alert like this you will put forth effort in all postures. If you don”t put forth effort things go quite differently... Sitting, you sit like you”re in the town, walking, you walk like you”re in the town... you just want to go and play around in the town with the laypeople.

　　If there is no effort in the practice the mind will tend in that direction. You don”t oppose and resist your mind, you just allow it to waft along the wind of your moods. This is called following one”s moods. Like a child, if we indulge all its wants will it be a good child

　　 If the parents indulge all their child”s wishes is that good

　　 Even if they do indulge it somewhat at first, by the time it can speak they may start to occasionally spank it because they”re afraid it”ll end up stupid. The training of our mind must be like this. You have to know yourself and how to train yourself. If you don”t know how to train your own mind, waiting around expecting someone else to train it for you, you”ll end up in trouble.

　　So don”t think that you can”t practice in this place. Practice has no limits. Whether standing, walking, sitting or lying down, you can always practice. Even while sweeping the monastery grounds or seeing a beam of sunlight, you can realize the Dhamma. But you must have sati at hand. Why so

　　 Because you can realize the Dhamma at any time at all, in any place, if you ardently meditate.

　　Don”t be heedless. Be watchful, be alert. While walking on almsround there are all sorts of feelings arising, and it”s all good Dhamma. When you get back t…

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