From the Autobiography

　　I make it a practice to wander about during the dry season every year. I do this because I feel that a monk who stays put in one monastery is like a train sitting still at HuaLampong station — and everyone knows the worth of a train sitting still. So there”s no way I could stay in one place. I”ll have to keep on the move all of my life, as long as I”m still ordained.

　　Some of my companions have criticized me for being this way, and others have praised me, but I myself feel that it brings nothing but good. I”ve learned about the land, events, customs and religious practices in different areas. In some places it may be that I”m more ignorant than the people there; in other places and with other groups, it might be that I know more than they, so there”s no way I can lose by traveling about. Even if I just sit still in the forest, I gain by it. Wherever I find the people know less than I do, I can be their teacher. In whatever groups I find that I know less than they do, I”m willing to be their student. Either way I profit.

　　At the same time, living in the forest as I like to do has given me a lot to think about. 1) It was a custom of the Buddha. He was born in the forest, attained Awakening in the forest, and totally entered nibbana in the forest — and yet how was he at the same time able to bring his virtues right into the middle of great cities, as when he spread his religious work to include King Bimbisara of Rajagaha.

　　2) As I see it, it”s better to evade than to fight. As long as I”m not superhuman, as long as my skin can”t ward off knives, bullets and spears, I”d better not live in the centers of human society. This is why I feel it”s better to evade than to fight.

　　People who know how to evade have a saying: ”To evade is wings; to avoid is a tail.” This means: A tiny chick, fresh out of the egg, if it knows how to evade, won”t die. It will have a chance to grow feathers and wings and be able to survive on its own in the future. ”To avoid is a tail”: This refers to the tail (rudder) of a boat. If the person holding the rudder knows how to steer, he”ll be able to avoid stumps and sand bars. For the boat to avoid running aground depends on the rudder. Since this is the way I see things, I prefer living in the forest.

　　3) I”ve come to consider the principles of nature: It”s a quiet place, where you can observe the influences of the environment. Wild animals, for example, sleep differently from domesticated animals. This can be a good lesson. Or take the wild rooster: Its eyes are quick, its tail feathers sparse, its wings strong and its call short. It can run fast and fly far. What do these characteristics come from

　　 I”ve made this a lesson for myself. Domesticated roosters and wild roosters come from the same species, but the domesticated rooster”s wings are weak, its call long, its tail feathers lush and ungainly, its behavior different from that of the wild rooster. The wild rooster is the way it is because it can”t afford to let down its guard. It always has to be on the alert, because danger is ever-present in the forest. If the wild rooster went around acting like a domestic rooster, the cobras and mongooses would make a meal of it in no time. So when it eats, sleeps, opens and closes its eyes, the wild rooster has to be strong and resilient in order to stay alive.

　　So it is with us. If we spend all our time wallowing around in companionship, we”re like a knife or a hoe stuck down into the dirt: It”ll rust easily. But if it”s constantly sharpened on a stone or a file, rust won”t have a chance to take hold. Thus we should learn to be always on the alert. This is why I like to stay in the forest. I benefit from it, and learn many lessons.

　　4) I”ve learned to reflect on the teachings that the Buddha ta…

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