พระอาจารย์นำนั่งสมาธิด้วยคำสอนว่า สมถะและวิปัสสนาใช้หลักการเดียวกันคือการยกจิตขึ้นวิตกวิจารณ์ ต่างกันเพียงเป้าหมาย แต่มุ่งสู่ผลเดียวกันคือการขจัดอภิชฌาและโทมนัส จากนั้นท่านนำผู้ปฏิบัติกำหนดกรรมฐาน องค์พระแก้วใสกลางกาย หลอมรวมใจหยุดนิ่งสู่เส้นทางพระนิพพาน แผ่เมตตาสู่สรรพสัตว์ทั่วจักรวาล และปิดท้ายด้วยการอุทิศส่วนบุญพร้อมอธิษฐานจิตIn this guided sit, Phra Ajarn teaches that samatha and vipassana share the same method — raising thought to contemplate — differing only in their objective, yet converging on the same goal of removing covetousness and grief. He then leads practitioners through the meditation anchor of the crystal Buddha image at the center of the body, stilling the mind toward the path to Nibbana, radiating loving-kindness across the universe, and closing with the dedication of merit and a heartfelt aspiration.
Let us gently close our eyes — softly, comfortably, just enough for light to pass through — and relax the mind. Let it be open, spacious, empty, light and easy, clear, cool, clean, pure, and radiant. As we relax, the breath settles, and every muscle in releases.
The Power of Intention: Every Thought Bears Fruit
Everything we set our intention on has an effect. Each thought gives rise to a state within the heart, and at the same time draws a pure energy — — flowing in. Because the quality of mind we set is a wholesome one, a part of wholesome , which has the character of a bright, clear sphere. Whatever we set our intention on appears in the heart along with its qualities. Set on something good, and good appears; set on something not good, and that too appears.
Within each sphere of merit is a pure, sacred substance with power and potency able to dissolve the defilements that create problems and hardship in life. Within the sphere of merit is also happiness — happiness of body and of mind — and this happiness is what allows our life to remain at ease, whether standing, walking, sitting, lying down, speaking, or working.
But when merit is scarce, happiness does not appear in our life — even eating delicious food or being in a place we love brings only indifference. If demerit is heavy, we suffer through every posture: eating, outings, even converon carry suffering. Whether our life brings hardship or good fortune depends on the store of merit or demerit within this field of energy. This is why we must learn to set our intention on good things for our life.
All goodness is the fruit of moral . When we create the cause of goodness, goodness arises; when we keep , refraining from wrongdoing, beauty of character arises, and merit flows in to cleanse the defilements, so the mind becomes bright. As we set our attention, what appears are images, sounds, and feelings — these three appear at the heart. But if the heart is dark, without light, images are unclear, and only inner voices and feelings that seem to direct us remain.
The Three Natural Forces and the Laws That Govern Life
The Buddha spoke of three natural forces standing behind and directing the life of every being: wholesome dhamma, unwholesome dhamma, and neutral dhamma. These three forces direct us through inner voices and feelings, governed by two laws: the law of karma and .
The law of karma is the result of our accepting the direction of these three forces and acting well, badly, or neither, storing causes that continuously yield results moment by moment. A wholesome result is pleasant and satisfying; an unwholesome result, the ripening of demerit, yields grief. A neutral result is simply indifferent — neither good nor bad. It is the same for the heavenly beings in the deva realms, the Brahma realms, and the formless Brahma realms, who are experiencing the fruit of merit they created; and likewise for beings in the realm of hungry ghosts, hell beings, asuras, and animals, who are experiencing the fruit of demerit moment by moment.
The three characteristics refers to three ways these forces differ completely from one another — in aim and in behavior. In each present moment, whichever force takes the lead becomes the “house lord,” overlaying its own body, feeling, mind, and mental object onto our body, feeling, mind, and mental object.
As the Buddha taught in cultivating : “Monks, you should clearly know the body, feelings, mind, and mental objects, in order to remove and grief in the world.” At first he taught us to practice knowing the body, feelings, mind, and mental objects. Once we understand this, he taught further in the Mahasatipatthana Sutta: “Monks, you should contemplate body in body, feeling in feeling, mind in mind, dhamma in dhamma,” in order to see the mechanism by which the three forces overlay their own body-feeling-mind-object onto ours and direct us through their own thoughts and feelings. Whichever is the house lord enters and possesses. If is the house lord, the voice appearing in our heart is the voice of the wholesome side; if is the house lord, the voice appearing is that of the unwholesome side, directing us through , hatred, delusion, and lust to drive its own system.
Samatha and Vipassana: One Method, Different Aims
The practice of has two parts. Samatha is setting the mind and raising thought to contemplate wholesome mental objects. Vipassana likewise sets the mind and raises thought to contemplate — but directs it toward and understanding of the nature that governs all beings, to see and know the truth that these three forces are governing beings through body, feeling, mind, and mental objects.
In other words, and use the very same method, differing only in the objective of the contemplation — and the result they aim for is the same: removing covetousness and grief.
Covetousness is greed — a delight that gives rise to greed. Not every delight gives rise to greed; only certain kinds of delight in an object do. Grief, meanwhile, is the sorrow that is the fruit of the law of karma — the ripening of demerit. When it ripens, dissatisfaction and sorrow arise. The unwholesome side seizes on this sorrow and turns it into blame — blaming this, blaming that, until, finding no one else to blame, we blame ourselves and harm our own life; or if someone else can be blamed, we turn to resentment and vengeance. All of this is the fruit of demerit.
We can only see through these things by knowing the body, feelings, mind, and mental objects. Whether that knowing is called samatha or vipassana depends only on its objective — the method is the same, only the purpose differs — and the aim is the same: to remove the delight that breeds greed and the aversion that breeds anger and vengeance. This is why the practice of Dhamma is so necessary and so important.
Sensing the Stream of Merit: Create the Cause, Observe the Result
During practice, the important thing that appears is the stream of merit flowing continuously. Each sphere of merit that arises is filled with happiness and — something we can perceive and sense directly, simply by having the to notice it.
Phra Ajarn's teacher taught that in practice, what we should be able to perceive in each present moment are three components: knowing, together with purity and happiness. Simply by setting our attention so that the sphere of knowing — the sphere of mindfulness — arises, we can perceive the state of the heart. Merit flows continuously; within the sphere of merit is a transformation of happiness and purity.
What keeps us from sensing it is the impurity in the heart. As happiness and purity flow in, the impurity — the uncleanness — and purity are enemies to each other, like washing a house: when we apply cleaner to a dirty floor, the grime dissolves and flakes away; but as long as we have not washed, the dirt remains. Refining the heart is a matter of separating elements — separating purity from impurity. As impurity is separated out, some of it evaporates away and some settles as latent tendencies. As we keep setting our attention, the heart grows cleaner and purer, and we come to perceive happiness and purity ever more clearly.
Phra Ajarn's teacher taught us to create the cause and then observe the result. When we create the cause by setting our attention on what is good, we can perceive the result appearing in each present moment. He repeated this three times, three occasions: “Create the cause, observe the result — attend to this, for it is truly excellent.” Let us set our attention at ease, with nothing but ease in the heart, because physical and mental ease is the essential foundation of life.
Guiding the Meditation Anchor: The Crystal Buddha Image at the Center of the Body
Let us set our attention on purity. Purity begins to form as a small, clear point at , and is drawn in continuously, expanding that small clear point larger and larger until it appears as a bright, clear sphere. This clear sphere is what makes the mind luminous. Stay continuously aware, never distracted — aware of our , or aware of whatever appears before us in each moment. Wherever we set our attention, there we know; whatever we set our attention on, that we know. Set your attention at ease, with nothing but ease in the heart.
The starting point of wholesome dhamma begins at the heart, so we must keep asking the heart: where is it now, how does it feel, how should we care for it, how should we place it, how should we nurture it so that it stays correct and good. Abiding in the system of wholesome dhamma requires a clear resting place for the heart, so as to draw merit in continuously. Practicing Dhamma is learning and training to abide within this system of wholesome dhamma — practicing repeatedly, setting our attention first on the heart's resting place. Wherever we set our attention, there the heart is placed — this is called “placing the heart” — so that the sphere of knowing, the sphere of mindfulness, arises at the center of the heart, drawing in pure energy continuously. This pure energy drives the wholesome system, refining the elements within us to be clean and pure, and we come to perceive that purity more and more clearly.
Once we can clearly perceive the clean, pure clarity of the heart, let us bring this good and beautiful heart to abide with the highest refuge — the Triple Gem — by repeating his name: Sammā-arahaṃ, Sammā-arahaṃ, Sammā-arahaṃ. This is a designation-name, called according to his qualities: one who has practiced rightly and well, whose practice leads far from all defilements, endowed with the virtue of wisdom, the virtue of purity, and , complete with higher virtue, higher mind, and higher wisdom.
As we repeat his name, form and name are paired — wherever there is name, form appears; wherever there is form, name appears there too. His form-nature then appears as a crystal Buddha image, clear and pure, at the center of our heart. He does not appear empty-handed but appears together with his boundless compassion, intent on our benefit — refining our elements of seeing, remembering, thinking, and knowing, and our earth, water, wind, fire, space, and consciousness elements, to be clear, clean, and pure, dissolving the results of past kamma, demerit, and misfortune until they vanish.
Not only that — he expands and merges as one with our human body. His lap merges as one with our lap, his torso overlays our torso, his head, face, cheeks, shoulders, and arms all merge into one. His wish is that he and we become a single unity, so that he can benefit us to the fullest effect. With this, let us merge ourselves with him into one unity, feeling that we are the Buddha image and the Buddha image is us — from head, face, cheeks, shoulders, arms, and torso, all becoming the crystal Dhammakaya, brilliant, sparkling, and radiant. Our face becomes the countenance of the crystal Dhammakaya, eyes gently closed, with a serene, faintly smiling expression. Both our arms become the crystal Dhammakaya, brilliant and radiant; our chest, abdomen, and back all become the crystal Dhammakaya, radiant, clear, cool, clean, and pure — the whole body, from head to the soles of the feet, becoming the crystal Dhammakaya, radiant, clear, cool, clean, and pure.
Stilling the Mind Toward the Path to Nibbana
Having merged our body with his body into one unity, let us now merge our mind with his mind as well. His Dhammakaya dwells at the center of our body; he abides in the cessation-attainment, stopping and stilling the mind — as he does, so do we. He stops and stills, softly, releasing into ease — stopping, stilling, soft, at ease, clear, cool, clean, pure, radiant — at the center of the Buddha image, the center of our body, the center of our heart.
Stop and still, going to the center of the center — of the Buddha image, our body, our heart — not going left, not right, not forward, not back, not up, not down, but going into the very center of center, knowing the center, stopping at the center, stilling at the center, continuously, along this inner middle path. The end of this inner middle path is Nibbana. Stop and still, soft and at ease, at the center of the Buddha image, our body, our heart, heading straight toward the path of Nibbana along this inner middle path, until brightness and beauty appear at the very center of Nibbana.
Nibbana is every Buddha, every Paccekabuddha, and every Arahant — only these three kinds of beings have escaped the cycle of birth and death. Having escaped, they truly abide in the sphere of Nibbana, yet they still continue helping and benefiting people and all beings, bringing happiness and progress, freedom from suffering, sorrow, the world, and danger. When we appear clear and bright at the center of them — for they naturally draw all beings into their center — any being established in universal goodness likewise becomes bright within the center of Nibbana, the center of the all-knowing, boundlessly powerful ones. The merit from the deep radiance of Nibbana pours continuously into the center of the body and heart of those established in goodness. This stream of merit flowing through Nibbana carries merit into his Dhammakaya knowledge, refining and helping, bringing about purity and in our life, so that our life holds nothing but goodness.
Radiating Loving-Kindness Across the Universe
As he creates the good cause to benefit us, let us likewise create the good cause to benefit people and all beings, by cultivating . This quality is a tool of the wholesome, meant for those with abundant merit to benefit those with little. Living as we do within the cycle of birth and death, we must benefit one another, for every life depends on others — we have family, relatives, lineage, society, community. Whatever society we wish to live in, we must create its cause. If we wish to live in a society filled with loving-kindness, we must create the cause of loving-kindness ourselves. Genuine goodwill toward one another must be love and goodwill that is sincere and pure of heart.
So let us set our intention on loving-kindness — love and goodwill, wishing that all people and beings be free from suffering and find happiness. Loving-kindness has the character of a bright, clear sphere. As we set our intention on it, it appears, and we sustain that state of sincere love and goodwill. Loving-kindness then reveals its own special quality — the power to dissolve resentment and irritation until they vanish. Then let the heart, filled with this love and goodwill, expand outward, covering our home and dwelling; loving-kindness shines, refining every particle of every person, being, and thing to become clear and bright. Let it expand further to cover the whole village, the district, the province, the country, other nations, until it covers the entire world, making this world a radiant crystal sphere — clear, cool, clean, and pure.
May the people of the world and all beings be free from suffering and find happiness, every one. May those with much suffering have less; may those with little suffering be free of it entirely. May those with little happiness have more; and may those who already have much happiness have ever more. May the earth-bound devas, the sky devas, the heavenly beings of every realm, the Brahma and formless Brahma beings, and even hell beings, asuras, and animals, all be free from suffering and find happiness. Then let the heart expand further still, out into the vastness of the cosmos, covering countless stars — tens, hundreds, thousands, millions, billions — and extending on into the infinite universes of the ten thousand world-systems, so that our loving-kindness shines, refining every particle of every person, being, and thing to be clear, bright, clean, and pure. Our heart expands, joyful, open, spacious, light and easy, clear and cool, and the element of merit continues pouring in at the center of this brightness of loving-kindness.
Dedicating Merit and Making the Aspiration
Let us now dedicate this merit to arise for the people of the world and all beings — may the people of the world and all beings be free from suffering and find happiness, and may they share in this merit that we have wholeheartedly created. May our forebears, our parents, siblings, grandparents, teachers, and all who have shown us kindness share in it too, along with the devas who help and support us, the guardians of all beings, and all our karmic counterparties whom we may have wronged — may we forgive one another, and may all receive a share of this merit equally.
Having made this wholehearted wish and completed this , let us now merge ourselves with the Triple Gem and the great masters into one unity, for we can never afford to be distant from them — their kindness toward our life is beyond measure; every single moment, without pause, they work to benefit us and bring purity and liberation into our life. So let us stop and still the mind at their center — stopping and stilling at the center of the Buddha Jewel, the center of the Dhamma Jewel, and the center of the Sangha Jewel; stopping and stilling at the center of the great masters — the center of the radiant Dhamma body of the senior masters who guided this lineage. As the heart is a ful servant, taking the shape of whatever we set it on, as we merge ourselves with them into one unity, we appear clear and bright at their center, and they appear radiant at ours — at the center of our coarse and refined human bodies, our celestial bodies, our form-Brahma and formless-Brahma bodies, coarse and refined, throughout every layer of our being — refined and unified as one. We appear clear and bright at the center of Nibbana, and the stream of merit from its deep radiance pours continuously into the center of our body and heart.
Let us use this auspicious moment to pay respect and make our aspiration, setting our intention firmly within this radiant sphere of merit: may our entire path of building perfections be filled with knowing, happiness, and purity, and may we succeed in every right and good aspiration. May all the merit and perfections we have wholeheartedly accumulated since our very first life, through countless lifetimes up to the present, converge into a sacred merit of great power and potency, purifying our body, speech, and mind — our elements of seeing, remembering, thinking, and knowing, our earth, water, wind, fire, space, and consciousness elements — to be radiant, clear, cool, clean, and pure. May we be freed from the results of demerit, obstacles, and hardship of every kind in our lives; may greed, hatred, delusion, lust, , wrong view, craving, and clinging be extinguished without remainder. May we gain the eye that sees the Dhamma, penetrating fully into the knowledge of the Dhammakaya, complete with all its attainments.
May we also have strong, complete health and long life, able to build merit and perfections throughout our lives, with unceasing high spirit to build perfections, heading straight along the path to Nibbana, to the very end of the Dhamma. Wherever we travel, may we meet only good fortune and safety, be loved by humans and devas alike, have radiant wisdom, and understand fully the Dhamma of the Buddha and the knowledge of the Dhammakaya. Whatever business or work we undertake, may it flourish and prosper with results beyond expectation, granting us great wealth to use in building the perfection of giving without ever running short, generous and never stingy, using it fully to build the perfection of giving.
And when the time comes to close our eyes on this world, may we be born in the Dusita heaven, in the special realm of the Bodhisattvas, and when we return to build perfections in the human world, may we be born into a family of right view, a family of the Dhammakaya, an exemplary and warm family for the world, complete with the finest of physical assets, wealth, and virtues — wealth, status, praise, happiness, and the path and fruit of Nibbana. May we have vast and sacred merit, able to recall our past lives from the moment of birth, together with a clear inner Dhammakaya, and study the knowledge of the Dhammakaya correctly and truthfully alongside our teachers from youth until the end of our lifespan. May whatever demerit we have committed through past mistakes never have the chance to bear fruit, becoming forgiven forever; may we commit no new wrongdoing in body, speech, or mind. May all the merit we have wholeheartedly accumulated converge into a sacred merit of wondrous power, its effect continuing without interruption from this moment until the very end of the Dhamma. May all these good wishes be fulfilled — fulfilled, truly fulfilled — for us all, from this moment onward, in every life, until the very end of the Dhamma, by the boundless power of every Buddha.
The sit closes with a Pali chant invoking the protective power of the Buddhas, the Paccekabuddhas, and the Arahants, for the well-being of every practitioner.