Most Venerable Mun often assembled the monks in the evenings,
Most Venerable Mun often assembled the monks in the
evenings, around dusk, to give a discourse on Dhamma. He emphasised
the constant use of mindfulness as a remedy for ignorance and for
correcting mistakes. He said that a monk should remember that the Lord
Buddha made mistakes, but realised where he had gone wrong and strove
to correct his errors as soon as he became aware of them. Anyone can
make a mistake—the value lies in recognising our mistakes. It is with the
use of mindfulness at all times that one can watch out for oneself.
Monks wandering in such areas during the dry season usually slept out in the forest on small bamboo platforms.
Monks wandering in such areas during the dry season usually
slept out in the forest on small bamboo platforms. They were
made by splitting sections of bamboo lengthwise, spreading
them out flat, then securing them to a bamboo frame with legs,
making a raised sleeping surface of about six feet long, three or
four feet wide, and about one and a half feet above the ground.
One platform was constructed for each monk and was spaced as
far apart from another as the living area of the forest would
allow. A large tract of forest allowed spacing of at least 120 feet
with the thick foliage in between each platform acting as a
natural screen. If the area was relatively small, or a large group
of monks lived together in an area, then the spacing might be
reduced to 90 feet intervals, though the minimum distance was
Upon arriving in a new location, a dhuta ga monk had first to sleep on the ground,
Upon arriving in a new location, a dhuta ga monk had first to
sleep on the ground, collecting various kinds of leaves or, in some places,
straw, to make a crude mattress. The months of December and January
were especially difficult due to the prevailing seasonal weather patterns,
as the approaching cold weather met and mixed with the outgoing rainy
weather. When it did rain during the winter months, a monk inevitably
got drenched, as the umbrellatent
he used as shelter was no match for the
driving rain and high winds. A downpour during the daylight hours was
not quite so bad. Essential items like his outer robe and his matches had
to be kept in his alms bowl with the lid tightly secured. Folding his upper
robe in half, he draped it around himself to keep out the cold and damp.
of his teacher will teach numerous students.
of his teacher will teach numerous students.” 72 He took a special interest
in those students experiencing various insights during their meditation,
and would call them in for a personal interview. Some meditators are
inclined to know only things existing exclusively within their own mind.
Others tend to know things of a more external nature, such as visions of
ghosts or devas, or visions of people and animals dying right in front of
them. Practitioners who are not inclined to analyse their experiences
carefully may come to a wrong understanding, believing what they see to
be genuine. This could increase the likelihood of psychological damage
in the future. It is crucial that they receive advice from a meditationmaster
with expertise in these matters.
The biography of the Most Venerable Mun
The biography of the Most Venerable Mun contains the
following description of the way he would radiate loving kindness
(mettā):
Most Venerable Mun said that he set aside three times each day
to extend loving kindness to all living beings. He would do this
while sitting in meditation at midday, before retiring in the
evening, and after rising in the morning. In addition to that, there
were many times during the day when he sent loving kindness
out to specific individuals. When radiating allencompassing
loving kindness, he did so by focusing his citta exclusively
inward and then directing the flow of his citta to permeate
throughout all the worlds, both above and below, in all directions
n the Northeast
i
in 1851 A.D. 74 It was within this nikai that the dhuta ga
kammatthāna way was first practised. In 1919 A.D., the Most Venerable
Mun’s habit of travelling for dhuta ga began to influence monks of the
Mahanikai, and many joined the Dhammayuttikanikai in order to follow
the dhuta ga kamma hāna way of life. 75 In 1925, a big change took
place at Wat Srichan, in Khon Kaen province, when it left the Mahanikai
to become a Dhammayuttika temple, since all its monks had opted to
become Dhammayuttika monks. These days, however, the dhuta ga
kamma hāna is not inimical to either nikai, and the practice is to be
found amongst monks of both orders.
(2) Helping laypeople in general :
that thereafter no further people died
that thereafter no further people died, and that the infection miraculously
disappeared as the sick people started to recover speedily.
(3) An incident involving two disguised tigers
An interesting incident occurred when the Most Venerable Mun
was wandering with another bhikkhu amongst the hilltribes people. At
one point, they stayed about two kilometers from a village, yet the
villagers showed them no respect, save for giving him and his companion
some cooked rice. The village headman spoke of them as “two disguised
tigers” and told the villagers, during a meeting, to be on their guard since
they were dangerous. They would go in groups of three or four each
afternoon to observe the pair, without speaking a word to one another.
One night, during his meditation, the Most Venerable heard, or