พระอาจารย์สอนต่อเนื่องจากภาคเช้าเรื่องกุศล อกุศล และอัพยากตะ ธรรมชาติ 3 ฝ่ายที่คอยชักจูงทุกความคิดของเรา พร้อมอธิบายกฎแห่งกรรมและกฎไตรลักษณ์ ความสำคัญของจักรพรรดิรัตนะ 7 ผู้คอยดูแลชีวิต และแนวทางแบ่งเวลา 24 ชั่วโมง ให้กุศลครองใจได้วันละ 8 ชั่วโมง ปิดท้ายด้วยเรื่องจริงที่แสดงให้เห็นว่า ความกตัญญูกตเวทีเพียงอย่างเดียว ก็สามารถดึงดูดบุญและความช่วยเหลืออันน่าอัศจรรย์เข้ามาในชีวิตได้Continuing the morning session, Phra Ajarn unpacks the wholesome, unwholesome, and neutral natures that drive every thought, the law of karma and the law of the three characteristics, and the guardian Chakkaphat Ratana that watches over our lives, along with practical guidance for letting merit fill eight hours of every day. The talk closes with true stories showing how gratitude alone can draw astonishing merit and help into a life.
This session continues a question left over from the morning class on the Three Natures. Phra Ajarn explained that when an outside influence “possesses” our mind, its thoughts appear in us with a clear purpose: to draw in energy from its own side. Because the energy of , demerit, and the neutral nature all flow through us constantly, each influence that enters has a distinct agenda.
We can test which nature a thought belongs to simply by questioning it back — asking what good or harm would come from doing what it suggests. An unwholesome influence gets moody and irritated when questioned. A neutral influence answers in circles, just recycling old memories. A wholesome influence, however, reasons plainly, lays out both the benefits and the drawbacks, and — most importantly — leaves the choice entirely up to us, unlike nature, which tries to force our hand.
Once we understand this mechanism, we start noticing and guarding every thought that arises, and we see that every success or failure in our life has come from these “inner voices.” The unwholesome nature has one goal only: to destroy living beings utterly. That is simply its nature, so there is no reason to be angry or resentful toward it — doing so only invites more demerit in. Instead, we should stay neutral and keep living according to what is right and good. Phra Ajarn explained that “right and good” means letting merit flow fully through us — carrying , physical and mental ease, and refined blessings — while “not good” means letting demerit flow through us instead, a state steeped in suffering that is hard to bear, and one that actively works to destroy our wealth, our s, our followers, and even our path to Nibbana.
The Law of Karma and the Law of the Three Characteristics
The Lord Buddha's differs from ordinary knowledge because it reveals the actual mechanism behind life — how the Three Natures act upon every being. Heavenly beings dwell in their celestial mansions as the result of the merit they made; beings in hell exist because of their own demerit. Our life is no different: every present moment is entirely the result of the merit or demerit we have made before.
Whenever our merit grows strong, the sphere of merit outgrows the sphere of demerit and shields it from exerting any power, then radiates outward to draw in good people, good opportunities, good words, and good thoughts — and the outcome is simply joy. When it is demerit's turn, it draws in the opposite — bad people, bad opportunities, bad situations — and the outcome is simply sorrow. A neutral moment, neither joyful nor sorrowful, is the result of the neutral nature. This is the law of karma, governing us from the past into the present.
The law of the three characteristics — three utterly distinct qualities known as wholesome s, unwholesome dhammas, and neutral dhammas — governs us from the present into the future. Each of the Three Natures seizes on that joy or sorrow as leverage to push us toward creating new causes. The unwholesome nature loves to strike right when we are elated and wanting more, tempting us to take reckless risks — it has never been honest with anyone, only luring us the way bait lures a small fish onto a hook, ending in suffering.
Our only hope of escape is to take refuge in the system of wholesome dhamma, watched over by the Triple Gem, with Nibbana standing behind it all. Any being who abides in universal goodness — whether or not they know Buddhism, whether or not they follow any religion at all — will still have merit flow through them, and the Triple Gem will shine within them.
Two Halves of a Life: Our True Nature and the Guardian Chakkaphat Ratana
Phra Ajarn explained that our life has two parts. The essential part is our own stream of being, which — once born into the world — has one clear aim: to become one with our true self, the Triple Gem, while gathering pure energy in the form of merit and perfections (barami). The supporting part, running in the background, is the Chakkaphat Ratana — the “Seven Treasures” guardian — which forms out of the merit and virtue we accumulated in the past. This guardian is both a provider, giving us what we need to live, and a protector, keeping us safe from disasters that arise from karmic retribution.
Where the Chakkaphat Ratana Comes From
A student asked more about the Chakkaphat, and Phra Ajarn explained that humans, brahmas, formless brahmas, and even Nibbana itself each have their own Chakkaphat. Even the Buddha has a guardian, called the “Buddha Chakkaphat,” caring for him. Once a practitioner reaches the kaya, teachers will bring their students up to the Brahma realm to request a Chakkaphat Ratana — something manufactured in the Brahma realm, much as computers are manufactured on earth, and obtained only in exchange for merit. A person with an especially deep well of merit, upon being born, often carries several Chakkaphat accumulated across many past lives, not just one.
Someone also asked whether any Buddha Chakkaphat exists on earth today. Phra Ajarn answered yes — they belong to the monks and novices of great teachers who have thrown themselves wholly into building perfections, staking their very lives on it: leaving home, giving up everything. There must be at least one lifetime in which a person did this so completely that their own subtle stream of being petitioned a Buddha Chakkaphat to come and watch over them. The Buddhas then enter ceson-attainment to examine whether that person's store of merit and perfection is truly sufficient before inviting the Buddha Chakkaphat down to protect them — not just for that one life, but from then onward.
Phra Ajarn added that when a great Brahma, who has reached a very refined level of being, is close to running out of merit and knows he must be reborn as a human — a state in which all his knowledge and memory will vanish — he must find a refuge. If the power of his existing Chakkaphat is insufficient, he must turn to the highly refined “knowers” of the Brahma realm, whose technology far surpasses that of humans, much as our era manufactures robots and AI, to construct a new Chakkaphat. Powering it, however, still requires merit as fuel. Once built, word spreads throughout the realm, and anyone coming down to be born must request to use it — again, in exchange for merit. Even in the Brahma realm, Phra Ajarn noted, every piece of technology must be paid for with merit, which only underscores how precious merit truly is.
Why Bad Things Seem to Happen Right When We Try to Do Good
Phra Ajarn recalled that a week earlier, while visiting a workplace, someone asked why misfortune always seems to strike right when we try to do something good — a point the unwholesome nature loves to raise to discourage us. He explained that our guardian Chakkaphat knows our life's timeline and exactly when a piece of karmic retribution is due, like a ticking time bomb counting down. So it inspires us to go and do a great act of merit in advance, so that merit can be used to defuse the coming trouble. It only looks like misfortune strikes every time we do a big act of merit — in truth, the trouble was already coming, and the Chakkaphat simply rushed us into merit-making ahead of it.
Someone gave the example of setting out to fund a big merit ceremony only to be cheated or taken advantage of right before, so that the money disappears. Phra Ajarn called this a “race” between and unwholesome natures: if the unwholesome side is quicker, it cuts in first and arranges for the money or opportunity to slip away before the merit can be made. But if we act immediately the moment we resolve to do good, the merit happens first, and the Chakkaphat is then able to use it to avert the coming misfortune in time.
How Entertainment Quietly Lets the Unwholesome In
The conversation turned to how modern media and our surroundings constantly pull our attention toward entertainment. Phra Ajarn explained that while we're absorbed in it, the unwholesome nature slips in to claim a share of whatever pleasure or displeasure arises. Worldly happiness always comes with an element that keeps the mind excited and on edge — never , always swinging between good and bad to keep the mind scattered. Songs, films, and dramas all stir up jealousy toward a “villain” character, craving for a feeling we're attached to, and irritation — all without our even noticing.
One easy way to observe this: right after finishing a show, sitting in meditation becomes noticeably harder, because the mind has gone “dark” from what it absorbed. It can take days of practice to work through the resulting restlessness and mental wandering before the mind returns to normal. This stands in stark contrast to the happiness of the wholesome nature, which is ful, tranquil, secluded, ate, liberated, and pure — inclining toward Nibbana, the complete opposite of a mind kept scattered by worldly pleasure. By nature, the wholesome path only gets easier and more comfortable the more we walk it, while the unwholesome path makes everything progressively more difficult and troublesome.
The Eight-Hour Goal: Letting Merit Claim Its Share of the Day
Phra Ajarn advised that if we set our sights on only one or two hours of meditation a day, that is usually all we will ever get, for our whole life. But those who set a target of eight hours a day come back and report that all their affairs seem to arrange themselves in advance, leaving them simply to walk forward and reap the results — and the happiness they receive grows more refined and better with each passing day. Anyone content with less has every right to be, but should not expect to encounter that same wonder. Phra Ajarn stressed that everyone has a choice, but if we are not putting in the effort now, there is no reasonable hope for a different outcome in the future.
Since a day holds twenty-four hours, he suggested dividing it into eight hours for the wholesome nature, eight hours for the unwholesome nature (sleep), and eight hours for the neutral nature (other daily duties) — leaving us at no disadvantage at all. This need not be formal sitting alone; other activities, such as washing dishes, can count too, as long as stays anchored in what is wholesome throughout, letting that wholesome strength keep growing.
One student added that, in a dharma interview with another Phra Ajarn the day before, she had asked how best to divide the eight hours. The advice was to split it into three blocks — for example 3-2-2 or 3-3-2 hours — with no single block ideally shorter than two hours. But when work or daily responsibilities make an unbroken two-hour sit impossible every time, that is fine; simply do what is possible. What matters most is understanding how the s () work: they are what draws energy in, so all we need is for a wholesome mental factor to arise — whether that is , or simply resting in the equanimous mental factor of even-mindedness, quietly aware without judgment.
The Mind's Anchor Point: Telling the Three Natures Apart
Phra Ajarn explained that keeping mindfulness on the wholesome side is no different from walking meditation — a deliberate practice of establishing mindfulness in order to draw in merit, which requires the mind to have a clear place to rest. When the unwholesome nature arises, it pushes us toward causing trouble for ourselves and others; the moment we feel that hard-to-bear suffering, we know demerit has entered. When the neutral nature arises, the mind simply scatters with no anchor at all — we cannot even say where our own mind is. But when the wholesome nature arises, it quietly points us to a clear place to rest the mind: at , on the breath, or — while walking — on lifting, stepping, and placing the foot.
Once the mind has a clear resting place, mindfulness itself takes root and continuously draws merit inward. A steady stream of merit and refined blessings flows in and gathers within us; the purity of that merit dissolves impurities, and the happiness within it supports a life of genuine ease. The guardian Chakkaphat then compounds that refined wealth to draw in more tangible good fortune. Even if today's fresh merit does not turn us into instant millionaires, it brings a life of continuous good fortune, color, flavor, and heart.
Once It Becomes Automatic: Living With a “Personal Secretary”
Once this practice becomes second nature, merit flows continuously, and the Triple Gem shines within us at all times. One clear sign of change: whenever someone approaches us, it feels as if we have a “personal secretary” quietly warning us in advance — this person doesn't seem trustworthy, that statement contradicts what they said earlier, or it's time to go take care of something. Without that clear inner alertness, we tend to forget things constantly.
Phra Ajarn distinguished the effects of the Three Natures clearly: the neutral nature only causes forgetfulness, unfinished tasks, and laziness — nothing as severe as real harm. The unwholesome nature, however, is far more dangerous — it can drive us to rage at ourselves, hurt ourselves, and even lash out at people around us until our whole life spins out of control. By contrast, someone abiding in the wholesome nature enjoys a remarkably smooth, complete life, with circumstances drawn together to support them with very little effort of their own.
The Power of Gratitude: The Story of a Girl Who Cared for Her Mother
Phra Ajarn shared a true story connected to divine beings, once featured on a television program some years ago. It concerned a nine-year-old girl living with her mother, who was blind and paralyzed on one side. After the father's gambling addiction tore the family apart, both older sisters left for work in another province and never returned, leaving the girl to care for her mother entirely alone. Every day she cooked rice, asked neighbors for extra dishes to feed her mother, helped her mother to the bathroom and to bed, then ran to school — hurrying home during every break to check on her. Even though illness sometimes kept her home for days at a stretch, leaving her barely any time to study, she scored first in her class with perfect marks every single time, astonishing her teachers and school inspectors alike. She also won every competition she was ever sent to represent her school in.
Phra Ajarn explained the spiritual reason behind this: the girl lived so fully in gratitude — both recognizing a debt owed and actively repaying it — that the spheres of these two virtues, luminous and round, arose at her heart and continuously drew merit inward, brightening her spheres of seeing, memory, thought, and knowing along with them. That is why she could read something once and remember it, think with the maturity of an adult, and find exam questions effortless. The brightness of her merit even drew the attention of local guardian spirits dwelling in trees along her path and around the school, who rejoiced and paid respect every time she passed. When the school held a competition, those same guardian spirits would whisper into the teacher's mind to send her — and she would win every time, guided by an inner knowing.
As her merit kept growing fuller, word eventually reached a wealthy benefactor, who grew curious, reached out, and — upon meeting her — was moved with such affection that he took her on as his own, supporting her education all the way through a doctorate, arranging hospital treatment for her mother, and buying land to build them a home. Phra Ajarn concluded that a child with no special knowledge or skill of any kind, possessing only these two virtues of gratitude, was able to lift both herself and the person she loved out of suffering and danger — a genuine wonder born purely of virtue.
More Stories of Gratitude: A Grandchild Who Never Talks Back, and a Mother Dog's Thank-You
After Phra Ajarn finished the story, a student added one of their own: their family was a large one, and most of the grandchildren struggled in school, usually finishing near the bottom of the class — except for one grandchild who, oddly, always came in first. Watching this child's behavior, the family noticed that whenever they went anywhere, they always brought back a small gift for their parents, and whenever scolded, never talked back — just listened quietly until the scolding was over, then went to comfort the parents so they wouldn't worry. Phra Ajarn noted that this kind of gratitude has to have been cultivated across past lives to show up so naturally in this one.
Another student then shared a story about a neighbor's mother dog with four puppies. One day, while the owner was away, the mother dog carried her puppies one by one through a gap in the fence into the storyteller's yard, then pushed her nose against the door as if asking for help. Assuming the dog was simply hungry, the storyteller mixed some rice for her, intending to return the puppies to their own home later. But the mother dog, overjoyed, circled the food bowl excitedly before suddenly slipping back through the fence and running home — only to reappear moments later leading all four puppies back to share the meal together. Seeing this, the storyteller burst into tears, feeling something hardened inside instantly soften, and immediately went to serve the rice she had set aside for her own family's dinner to the dog and her puppies first — and has cared for the whole family of dogs ever since. Phra Ajarn observed that even an animal, when it acts out of genuine goodness, can inspire deep joy and admiration in anyone who witnesses it.
Closing
Phra Ajarn closed by reminding everyone that our lives are always lived in full view of the people around us. If we make a habit of doing good in our everyday life, merit will naturally arise for us. And once we are living within this wholesome system, good things will simply come to us on their own.