พระอาจารย์นำนั่งสมาธิด้วยการอธิบายว่าใจเป็น “ทาสสำเร็จ” กำหนดสิ่งใดก็ปรากฏสิ่งนั้น จากนั้นสอนเรื่องบุญ กฎแห่งกรรม และธรรมชาติสามฝ่ายที่ควบคุมชีวิต ก่อนพาเข้าสู่การปฏิบัติภายใน อธิบายปรากฏการณ์ “ม่านหมอก” ที่กั้นไม่ให้เข้าสู่มิติภายใน จนกว่าแรงดึงดูดสู่ศูนย์กลางอันมหาศาลจะดูดเข้าไป ซึ่งเป็นเหตุของอาการตกใจกลัวที่ผู้ปฏิบัติมักเจอในช่วงแรกๆ ปิดท้ายด้วยการเจริญเมตตาธรรมและอุทิศส่วนบุญPhra Ajahn opens this guided sit by explaining that the mind is an “obedient servant” — whatever we set our attention on, appears. He then teaches on merit, the law of kamma, and the three natures governing life, before guiding practitioners inward. He describes an invisible “mist” that blocks entry to the inner dimension until an immense pull toward the center draws the practitioner in — which is why many feel a startled fright the first few times it happens. He closes with loving-kindness practice and merit dedication.
Let's practice together. Close your eyes gently, comfortably. Relax , the mind — loosen, open, spacious, light and at ease, clear, cool, clean, pure, and radiant. Whatever we set the mind on, that is what appears, because the mind is an obedient servant: it fulfills whatever we direct it toward. Set it on relaxation, and relaxation appears in the mind. Set it on openness, and the mind expands, open and spacious, light and at ease. Set it on clarity and coolness, and that state of clear coolness appears. Set it on brightness, and the mind grows bright. Set it on clarity, and the mind grows clear. Every single word we set the mind on has an effect on it — it can be directed toward good or toward harm.
What Merit Is, and Why Life Depends on It
Good arises because flows in. Within every sphere of merit is a sacred -element, powerful and potent, able to dissolve the defilements that create life's problems and obstacles. The of this merit-element can dissolve impurity until it vanishes. Beyond that, within the sphere of merit runs a current of well-being — physical ease and of mind — that supports a happy life: whatever we eat, drink, do for leisure, say to others, or work at, all carries a sense of ease. Yet in daily life we often find that ease hard to come by — that's because our merit isn't sufficient to sustain it. And if merit runs even lower, insufficient to dissolve demerit, the results of past unwholesome deeds surface as unease, worry, and a stifled, troubled heart. Merit is therefore essential.
Within the sphere of merit, too, lies every kind of treasure — physical beauty, wealth, , retinue, honor, praise, happiness, and the fruits of the path up to Nibbāna, all complete within it. These s are what draw the coarser treasures of the world into our lives. To have merit, we must learn to let it flow through us — and it flows only when we abide in wholesome states. When we do, wholesomeness guides us to build good causes and resist evil: giving, keeping precepts, and meditating. Sustain that steadily and merit flows continuously. And if we aspire further — purifying the mind into right view — we develop wholesomeness to another level, toward the and the .
The Three Natures, the Law of Kamma, and the Three Characteristics
Our lives are governed by three natures: wholesome, unwholesome, and neutral (, , and dhammas). These three use and to govern all beings. The law of kamma is the result of these three natures guiding us to act — for good, for ill, or neither — and when that result ripens in each present moment, the law of the three characteristics takes it up again, turning it into a fresh trigger: what is pleasant stirs craving; what is unpleasant stirs aversion and blame. If we believe these impulses, we create more unwholesome kamma, drawing more demerit in. All beings are governed by these two laws ceaselessly, cycling without end from past to present, present to future.
We can only be freed by abiding with nature — nothing else can save us. The Triple Gem is the guardian of the wholesome system, with Nibbāna standing behind it, and the Triple Gem resides within every being, each their own.
The Inner Triple Gem and Nibbāna, Refuge of All Beings
When we abide in wholesomeness, in that moment we appear radiant within the Triple Gem, and radiant within Nibbāna — the abode of every Sammāsambuddha, every Paccekabuddha, and all the Arahants. Though they passed into final Nibbāna long ago, they did not go anywhere; they still help all beings just as before, holding beings within themselves so that Māra cannot seize them at will. Any being who stands in universal goodness — regardless of religion, or none at all — appears radiant within Nibbāna, as the merit-element flows from the subtle essence within Nibbāna into the heart, together with the radiance of the Triple Gem, refining our own dhamma-element to be bright, clear, cool, clean, pure, and free.
Every dimension we inhabit carries some defilement, as long as we have not attained arahantship. These defilements can only be purified by the pure power of the merit-element — like fire and water, whichever has the greater force prevails. The longer we abide steadily in wholesomeness, the more the merit-element purifies unwholesome defilement until it is gone. The proportion of wholesomeness grows, unwholesomeness and neutrality recede, and our life becomes lighter, more open, more vibrant.
The Inward Path: From Mindfulness to Clear Comprehension
Before we were born human, we existed in other realms. Beings in states of suffering long to be free of that suffering; the devas of the Tāvatiṃsa, Yāma, Tusita, Nimmānarati, and Paranimmitavasavatti heavens, in particular, invite a Bodhisatta to teach them the truth and purpose of life. Before descending to be reborn, such beings resolve to build good causes — giving, keeping precepts, meditating. Life within saṃsāra always requires a “cost of living”: to remain in a fortunate realm one needs merit as one's sustenance; to remain in a woeful realm one needs demerit to sustain it. When that store runs out, one begins building good causes anew in the human realm — the crossroads of all beings. A human life today averages about 75 years, so the time we have to build merit is precious indeed.
The Buddha taught, in the discourse on : “Monks, you should clearly discern the body, feelings, mind, and mental phenomena, in order to remove craving and aversion toward the world.” “Discerning” means pinpointing or fixing our attention — wherever we place it, the mind settles there; this is called attending. Once we attend, a sphere of arises at the center of the mind, right where our attention rests, drawing pure energy — merit — to flow in continuously within its brightness, driving the wholesome system to clear away hindrances and whatever obscures.
Entering the inner dimension is like entering a room: beforehand we seem to stand outside it, but once inside, we know we have entered, even if it still feels dim and hazy. From there, mindfulness turns into , aware throughout the space within. As we keep discerning steadily, without lapsing, merit is drawn in to purify every particle of that inner atmosphere, and brightness gradually appears — sometimes flickering at first, vanishing the moment we feel excited. Simply discern again, staying neutral, neither pleased nor displeased, and the brightness steadies until it shines continuously. As the obscuring elements are purified further, a clear, luminous sphere appears alongside the brightness.
The Mist That Veils the Heart, and the Pull Toward the Center
As we continue, we reach a point where this luminous sphere cannot yet be directed forward, backward, left, right — because a residue of defilement still locks it in place. Stay still, keep discerning steadily without lapsing, and the sphere of mindfulness will draw in merit to purify that locking defilement. Once it dissolves, we can direct the bright sphere in any direction, and gradually move it to — the gateway that leads straight to the path of Nibbāna.
Right at this point lies an invisible “mist” that blocks entry into the interior — no matter how hard we try, we cannot force our way through it. Only an immense gravitational pull toward the center can draw us in, and that pull requires refinement of the mind — like needing to be fine enough to slip through the tiny mesh of a sieve. As we keep the mind still, it grows steadily more refined; merit draws further into the center of the heart to refine it, and then the pull toward the center draws us in — like being yanked inward with great force.
This is exactly what startles many practitioners into a sudden fright the first few times it happens — they “drop into the center” and are shaken, simply because they are unused to a state with no defilement left to soften it. In the earliest attempts, when defilement is still heavy, the pull feels violent and frightening. But as we keep discerning, session after session, the defilement thins out and eventually disappears; the mind grows subtler and smoother. After being pulled inward many times, the senon gradually softens, until the mind becomes fine and settled, and one is no longer startled by it.
The Middle Way Within: From the Sphere of Dhamma to the Dhamma Body
Once past the mist, we find the primary inward path leading straight to Nibbāna, its brightness resting at the center of the inner sphere of . From we settle further into the sphere of morality, then , then wisdom, then , and finally the sphere of -and-vision-of-liberation. This last sphere refines the mind further, carrying us into the refined human body, then through six spheres into the coarse and refined heavenly bodies, then the coarse and refined form-Brahmā bodies, then the coarse and refined formless-Brahmā bodies, and finally, through six more spheres, into the inner Dhamma body itself.
This entire process runs automatically, entirely governed by the wholesome system. Our only task is to keep discerning — letting the sphere of mindfulness settle, staying neutral, relaxed, open, and at ease. It is much like how the body sustains itself: our internal organs work automatically; our only job is to supply good food, and the body stays strong. The mind works the same way — feed it good thoughts, ease, openness, , and joy, and it stays at peace. But feed it negativity, boredom, discouragement, despair, restlessness, and resentment, and it grows dull and troubled, drawing in demerit, and life becomes confused and turbulent.
Loving-Kindness, Radiating Through the Universe
While Nibbāna is supporting us in this way, we in turn should support others by cultivating () — a noble virtue of wholesomeness meant for those with merit to share with others. We live within saṃsāra, a life that depends on mutual support; none of us can live entirely alone. We need society, family — parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles — who watch over us with goodwill, all the fruit of good causes we've built. To remain in a good society, we must also cultivate loving-kindness.
Simply set the mind on sincere, pure love and goodwill, and a bright, round sphere of loving-kindness arises, drawing in pure energy — merit — continuously. Loving-kindness has the special quality of dissolving resentment and irritation in the hearts of all beings and in the surrounding atmosphere. As we set this loving-kindness in place, it refines our own heart into clarity and purity, then radiates outward — first through our home, then our neighborhood, our district, province, country, and every nation, until it envelops the whole world, turning it into a crystal world, bright, cool, clean, and pure. May all beings everywhere be free from suffering and find happiness — may those with much suffering find relief, those with little suffering be freed of it entirely, those with little happiness find more, and those with much happiness continue to flourish. From there, let it radiate further still, through the cosmos, covering countless stars, extending across ten thousand world systems and countless galaxies, so that our loving-kindness shines and refines every particle of every being, bright, cool, clean, and pure, together.
Dedication of Merit and Closing Aspiration
May this merit be dedicated to all beings; may all beings everywhere be free from suffering and share in the merit we have sincerely and rightly built. May our parents, siblings, grandparents, teachers, and all who have helped us share in it, along with the devas who watch over and support us, and our karmic counterparts — any we may have wronged — may we forgive one another and share equally in this merit.
Having dedicated this merit, let us gather our hearts and settle still at the center of the Buddha-jewel, the Dhamma-jewel, and the Saṅgha-jewel, and settle still at the center of our great teachers — the refined Dhamma body of Luang Pu, then of Luang Phor, then of Khun Yai. The mind is an obedient servant: whatever we set it on, appears. As we gather our hearts into one, we appear radiant within them, radiant through every subtle body along our own stream of elements and dhamma, one with the inner Triple Gem, radiant at the very center of Nibbāna.
Let us use this auspicious moment to pay respect and set our intention, to remain fixed within this bright sphere of merit throughout our journey of building perfections, filled with wisdom, happiness, and purity, and success in all that is right and true. May all the merit and perfections we have sincerely built, from our very first life until now, become sacred, powerful, and potent — may it keep us bright, clear, cool, clean, and pure, free from misfortune, from the results of past wrongdoing, and from all obstacles; may , hatred, delusion, lust, , wrong view, craving, and clinging come to an end; may we gain the eye that sees the Dhamma, and penetrate fully into the knowledge of the ; may we enjoy strong health and long life, building merit and perfections throughout our lives, with unfailing spirit, moving steadily toward Nibbāna. Wherever we go, may we meet only good fortune and safety, be loved by humans and devas alike, and may whatever work or business we undertake prosper and flourish. When it comes time to leave this world, may we be born in a high heavenly realm, and when we return to build perfections in the human world again, may we be born into a warm, complete family of right view, endowed with a sacred sphere of merit, able to recall our past lives from birth, and study the Dhamma teaching correctly and authentically. May any unwholesome deed we have carelessly committed in the past be forgiven and bear no further fruit. May all these good aspirations come to be, for us all, in every life, until we reach the very end of the Dhamma.
By the power of all the Buddhas, by the power of all the Dhamma, by the power of all the Saṅgha, may well-being and blessings be yours.