พระอาจารย์สุรพงค์เปรียบประสบการณ์ต่างๆ ที่ผ่านเข้ามาระหว่างนั่งสมาธิ กับวิวทิวทัศน์สองข้างทางขณะนั่งรถจากกรุงเทพฯ ไปเชียงใหม่ ที่เพียงผ่านไปเป็นประสบการณ์ ไม่ต้องยึดติดชอบหรือชัง สอนให้แก้ปัญหาที่ต้นเหตุคือมลทิน พร้อมนำเข้าสู่การอุทิศบุญ แผ่เมตตา และอธิษฐานจิตแบบเต็มรูปแบบPhra Ajarn Suraphong compares the experiences that arise during a sit to the scenery passing by on a car ride from Bangkok to Chiang Mai — simply passing experiences, not to be clung to or resisted. He teaches solving problems at their root cause, the stains, before leading into merit dedication, loving-kindness, and a closing aspiration.
Training Right Mindfulness All Day, Eyes Open or Closed
Phra Ajarn Suraphong teaches that must be trained both with eyes open and eyes closed — trained continuously, every moment. From the instant we wake, through washing our face, brushing our teeth, bathing, dressing, cooking, eating, talking, sitting, lying down, standing, walking — we must keep knowing without lapsing, in cooperation with system. In that state we appear shining at the center of the Triple Gem, and the Triple Gem appears shining at the center of our being; both we and the noble ones appear shining at the center of the countless realms of nibbāna. Let our life become a channel for the stream of merit and its treasures in every moment we succeed in this.
Solving Problems at Their Root, Not Their Symptoms
He poses a question: in the life we lead, earning our living, do problems and obstacles arise? What is their root cause? What we usually try to fix is the symptom at the far end, but fixing only the symptom never truly resolves anything — sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. He has us recognize that we must resolve the root cause of the problem. If we resolve the root, the middle and the end of the chain never arise in the first place. But while we cannot yet resolve the root completely, we must, for the time being, also address the middle and the end.
The true root cause of every problem and obstacle is the stain. Continuously knowing, in order to draw in pure energy that lightens the stains, is exactly what resolving the root cause means. As the stains lighten, problems and obstacles lighten with them, and suffering and hardship gradually diminish until they finally disappear.
Subtle Stains Are Hard to Notice, But Must Still Be Cleansed
He explains that stains exist at several levels. Coarse stains bring heavy suffering; medium stains bring irritation; but even subtle stains, though they cause no obvious irritation, still function to obscure and conceal, preventing us from perceiving the content of wholesome states. The feeling of "not exactly happy, but not exactly suffering either — not exactly easy, but not exactly hard — not exactly comfortable, but not exactly difficult" is entirely the result of these lingering subtle stains. We must keep cleansing until appears clearly, and ease and comfort follow after it.
The Sphere of Liberation Works Even Before We See It — Like a Blind Person Using Appliances
He teaches that we must know what we wish to be freed from, so the sphere of liberation (duang wimutti) can work to free us. This sphere already exists within us; whether or not we can see it, it can still work on our behalf. It is like a blind person living in the world: with money, they can still use money; with a house, they can still live in it; with a refrigerator, a fan, an air conditioner, they can still use all of these, blind though they are. Living in the inner world, even in darkness like a blind person, does not mean we cannot use the tools of that inner world — we can use them just the same. Even without seeing the sphere of liberation, it can still work for us — we need only determine what we wish to be freed from: , fearfulness, anger, irritability, envy, boredom, gloom, laziness, sluggishness. We must first see the danger and harm in each of these stains before we can genuinely wish to be free of them.
The Scenery on the Road to Chiang Mai: Equanimity Toward What Passes By
This is the standout image of today's talk. He teaches that once we've begun moving inward, simple awareness is enough — whether the movement is slow or fast, whatever details arise along the way need not concern us; they are merely experience. He compares it to riding in a car from Bangkok to Chiang Mai: we see the scenery along the roadside pass by continuously — it's just experience, nothing to fuss over. Experience passes and is gone; new experiences keep arising, some pleasant, some not, and we simply set them down with equanimity, staying continuously aware without lapsing.
He continues: stay with whatever meditative state appears right before the eyes and mind. Reciting Sammā Arahaṃ, stay with the very last syllable of each repetition, not dwelling on syllables already passed, abiding always with the syllable that is present, always fresh. When we fix the name of a state in mind, the form of that state naturally appears, because name and form are a paired thing. When we utter the name Sammā Arahaṃ — the designated name for , the Triple Gem within — that presence naturally appears.
Once Settled, Clear Comprehension Carries Us Into the Inner Dimension
He explains that once has settled firmly, takes over, reaching into the detailed content of that dimension. As we remain settled, aware without lapsing, until merit arrives to draw in pure energy that cleanses the stains, the things that disturb us grow lighter and lighter, and we settle more and more firmly, until at some point clear comprehension arises and carries us into the inner dimension. As we utter the name Sammā Arahaṃ, the Triple Gem appears, one presence after another, each arriving together with wisdom, , and great compassion, together with morality, concentration, wisdom, liberation, and the and vision of liberation.
The Triple Gem Shines at Our Center, Connecting Our Stream of Merit and Fortune
As we sustain this knowing, a continuous stream of merit pours through the center of our body and mind. The noble ones take our elements — seeing, remembering, thinking, knowing, earth, water, fire, wind, space, and consciousness — and cleanse them clear and pure, dispelling the stains that bring sorrow, illness, and misfortune, freeing us from suffering, and connecting our stream of merit and fortune to us. We do not practice alone — we remain always at the center of the boundless knowing, empowered ones.
Dedicating Merit and Radiating Loving-Kindness
He has us dedicate this pouring stream of merit to our ancestors — recalling our parents, siblings, grandparents, and teachers who have shown us kindness, along with the guardian spirits who protect and support us, and all beings — including our karmic counterparties — whom we may have wronged, asking for mutual forgiveness.
Having dedicated merit, he leads practice for the benefit of the world and all beings, that all may be free from suffering and share happiness equally, then has us expand this loving-kindness-filled heart — covering our home, spreading across village, district, province, country, and finally the whole world, until it becomes a radiant crystal sphere, clean and pure, through loving-kindness's special power to dissolve resentment from the heart — and expanding further, across the countless stars and galaxies of the boundless cosmos.
Closing Aspiration
In closing, Phra Ajarn leads an aspiration for success to be established in us now and in all lives to come. May the merit and blessings of our teachers and our own accumulated goodness since beginningless time combine into sacred, potent merit. May we be freed from misfortune, karmic results, demonic obstruction, and obstacles of every kind; may greed, hatred, delusion, lust, , wrong view, craving, and clinging come to an end; may we gain the eye that sees the and penetrate the knowledge of the Dhamma body; may we be strong in health and steadfast in spirit as we build perfections toward nibbāna. He closes by asking that old wrongdoing be forgiven, and that new merit bear fruit successfully for us all.