คำสอน · พระอาจารย์สุรพงค์Teaching · Pra Ajarn Suraphong
นำนั่งสมาธิ 1 กันยายน 2569 (ค่ำ): กำหนดซ้ำ ๆ เมื่อใจยังมีมลทินGuided Meditation, Evening of September 1: Setting the Mind Again and Again Through Impurity
การนำนั่งสมาธิค่ำวันที่ 1 กันยายน 2569 เริ่มต้นด้วยคำสอนว่าทำไมการ “กำหนด” บางครั้งจึงไม่ปรากฏผล เพราะเมื่อใจยังมีมลทิน สิ่งที่กำหนดไว้ก็จะถูกมลทินสลายไป จึงต้องกำหนดซ้ำ ๆ อยู่เสมอ พระอาจารย์อธิบายต่อไปถึงพลังงานบุญ บาป และอัพยากตะที่ไหลผ่านใจตลอดเวลา แล้วนำเข้าสู่การนั่งสมาธิแบบเต็มรูปแบบ ตั้งแต่การกำหนดกรรมฐาน หลอมรวมใจกับองค์พระ แผ่เมตตา จนถึงบทอุทิศส่วนบุญและอธิษฐานจิตปิดท้ายThis evening sit from September 1, 2026 opens with a teaching on why “setting the mind” (กำหนด) sometimes seems not to take hold — when the mind still carries impurity, whatever is set dissolves again, so we must keep setting it, again and again. Phra Ajarn then guides the full sit: the constant flow of wholesome, unwholesome, and neutral energy through the mind, settling into the meditation anchor, merging with the inner Buddha image, spreading loving-kindness outward, and closing with the dedication of merit and a final aspiration.
The practice of is necessary and important to every life. Let the eyelids close gently, comfortably, and let the mind relax — open, spacious, empty, and light — through setting the mind (กำหนด).
Why Setting the Mind Sometimes Does Not Seem to Work — Impurity, and Why We Set It Again
Sometimes it simply does not work — we set it, and nothing appears. That is fine; keep using the practice of setting the mind regardless of whether something appears or not. If the mind still carries im (มลทิน), what we set does appear at first, but the impurity then dissolves it — dissolving the very thing we set. That is why we must set the mind again and again, over and over.
Ordinarily, when impurity is little or absent, the mind is clean, and whatever we set appears in the mind and shows its result. But when the mind carries impurity, whatever we set, the impurity dissolves it all away. Impurity itself breeds worry and gloom — the mind grows sad, clouded, dim.
So set the mind on good things: relaxed, open, spacious, empty, light, clear, cool, clean and pure, luminous. Establish these wholesome qualities, and flows in — each quality we set appears in the mind and shows its effect. Whatever we set, that appears in the mind, because the mind is an element of accomplishment (ธาตุสำเร็จ) — this phrase matters — whatever we set, that will appear in our mind. So do it again and again.
The foundation of life is ease of body and ease of mind — this is life's essential foundation. Set the mind on ease of both body and mind, and rest there, enjoying that ease continuously. Let there be nothing but ease of mind, dwelling comfortably in it.
The Energy Flowing Through the Mind at Every Moment — Merit, Demerit, and the Neutral
Every moment we are a channel through which energy passes constantly — never once without it. Only the type of energy passing through changes: it may be wholesome merit, unwholesome demerit, or neutral (อัพยากตะ). Energy never stops flowing through our mind, day and night, whether we are asleep, awake, standing, walking, sitting, or lying down. The question is which type of energy we allow to pass through — because once it enters, it shapes our life.
If it is the energy of merit — pure energy — it is normally a clear, bright sphere at the center of the mind. As it flows in, it drives system, refining the mind free of impurity, of the grime that clings and binds us to coarse dimensions. Obstacles dissolve, the subtle dimension draws us in, the mind grows more noble, and the happiness within that merit brings ease of body and mind, while its subtler qualities draw success and fulfillment into our life.
But if it is the energy of demerit — a dark sphere flowing in and driving system — it clouds the mind, presses our inner nature down, and its grime breeds trouble and difficulty; its suffering dissolves happiness and stirs stress and worry; its ruin destroys what we have built.
Neutral energy (อัพยากตะ) is neither good nor bad — it does not harm, but neither does it lift the mind. It does not press us down, but it does not raise the mind to anything noble either.
The Three Natures, the Law of Kamma, and the Law of the Three Characteristics
We live under the governance of three natures — the wholesome (กุศลาธรรมา), the unwholesome (อกุศลาธัมมา), and the neutral (อัพยากตาธรรมา). These three use and (ไตรลักษณ์) as their instruments to govern and command every life.
The law of kamma is the result of the causes we created in the past, good and bad, ripening in each present moment automatically, according to a set pattern. The law of the three characteristics describes how the three natures differ in character and aim. All three compete, moment by moment, to become the ruling force of our mind. Whichever succeeds takes over , feeling, mind, and mental objects under its influence, directing us to create fresh kamma whose results then stretch on into the future. This cycle has governed us since the distant past and, from every present moment, stretches on toward what is to come — binding all beings to spin, endlessly, within it. We cannot escape these natures.
Our mistakes arise from not knowing, not understanding, the rules of this natural system we live within — which is why our past lives have gone on rightly and wrongly by turns, carrying heavy burdens, falling again and again under the unwholesome. The more we carry, the more we suffer; the more we carry, the heavier the debt owed to the true purpose of having been born — a purpose that is vast and noble, while our human time is limited.
The One Way Out: Living Within the Wholesome System
To step beyond these limits and free our life from this cycle, the one way out is to rely on the wholesome system (ระบบกุศลธรรม) alone. It is a system of goodness, overseen by the Triple Gem, with Nibbāna behind it — a system that moves through love, understanding, and sincerity, always supporting all beings, guiding them toward what is right and good, so that happiness, success, and fulfillment come easily.
We must therefore learn, understand, and develop our practice in line with this wholesome system. Once we abide within it, it works automatically to cleanse the impurity from our mind, keeping it pure. Knowing this, we should abide within it — so that from here on, our life becomes an ideal life, right and good, made beautiful by wholesome qualities, by Dhamma, by moral precepts. Our life then becomes a life of right view (สัมมาทิฏฐิ) — a life of purity and in every moment.
This wholesome life begins at the mind. We must ask the mind often: where is it now, how does it feel, how should we care for it, where should we place it, how should we hold it rightly and well. To abide in the wholesome system, the mind needs a clear resting point through which to draw merit in — as the Buddha taught in the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta: monks, you should clearly discern the body, feelings, mind, and mental objects, in order to remove and grief (อภิชฌาและโทมนัส) toward the world. This is a crucial sentence to remember and understand, for it is the sentence that can turn an ordinary person into a noble one.
Training in Ease of Mind Until It Becomes Second Nature
We must train, again and again, in setting the mind on ease — ease of mind in every activity. Whatever we think, think it at ease; whatever we say, say what brings ease — ease for ourselves and ease for others; whatever we do, do it with an easeful mind, at ease before, during, and after. Let our life hold nothing but ease — for ourselves and for others. This is what we must practice until it becomes familiar.
Whether we can do this in the future depends on the present. If, right now, we train and build this good cause, then as we succeed, we do it more, more often, again and again, until it becomes fluent. When we are fluent in good things, good things come to us easily; if we are fluent in bad things, bad things come just as easily. Dhamma practice is learning and training to live within the wholesome system — training again and again until it becomes effortless, automatic.
Beginning the Sit: Setting the Meditation Anchor, and What to Do When Drowsy
Begin by bringing the mind to unite with the body, relaxed and at ease, and rest in that ease. The Buddha taught us to set the mind — to set is to specify, to point to, to mark. Wherever we point, the mind is placed there; this is called paying attention. As we come to know within, the sphere of awareness — (สติ) — arises right there, and merit flows into the center of that mindfulness, refining and cleansing that point. As (นิวรณ์) grow lighter, we can enter subtler and subtler dimensions.
If, while our eyes are closed and we turn inward, a dazed, drowsy, drifting feeling arises — the effect of unwholesome impurity trying to intrude and pull us into sleep — the remedy is to open the eyes very slightly, closing the lids only enough for the lashes to touch lightly, letting a little light through. In this half-open state we sit between the inner and outer worlds, and we set our awareness on the we are familiar with, simply and at ease — body at ease, mind at ease, relaxed, open, spacious, empty, light, clear, cool, clean and pure. Ease and simplicity are the ground of the wholesome; difficulty and strain are the ground of the unwholesome.
Keep this awareness constant, never forgetting, always knowing, resting with our meditation anchor simply and lightly. Let there be nothing but ease of mind, with a relaxed, light heart. Sit as though we have come to relax, to rest happily — if sitting in meditation feels heavy, think instead that we have come to sit and rest at ease. This is learning to rest the right way, different from how we have rested before — a rest that requires a clear resting point for the mind. Wherever we set it, the mind is placed there, and we simply stay aware of that point, without forgetting. In every moment of that awareness, a wholesome mind arises together with mindfulness, and we appear luminous at the center of the Triple Gem, which shines through, luminous, at the center of our being.
Sammā Arahaṃ and Merging With the Buddha Image
As we appear luminous at the center of Nibbāna — the center of the One who Knows, of boundless power beyond counting — the stream of merit (กระแสธารแห่งบุญ) from the deepest, subtlest part of Nibbāna flows continuously into the brightness at the center of our mind. That merit drives the wholesome system, refining our inner elements to be clear, clean, and pure, freeing us from the coarse dimension into ever subtler ones. Every dimension of ours still carries impurity, as long as we have not attained arahantship — so we must keep building this cause, letting the sphere of mindfulness arise, drawing the stream of merit in to drive the wholesome system toward purity and liberation.
Once the mind is truly at ease, we bring that ease to rest on what is highest and most noble — the Triple Gem — by reciting the name: Sammā Arahaṃ, Sammā Arahaṃ. This is the figurative name of the Body of Dhamma, the Arahant — the One who has practiced rightly, practiced well, practiced the way that leads far from the defilements that cloud the mind. As we recite Sammā Arahaṃ, Sammā Arahaṃ, His qualities appear: the of wisdom, the virtue of purity, and , together with the fullness of higher virtue, higher mind, higher wisdom, liberation, and the of liberation — all appearing luminous at the center of our being, the center of our mind.
As we recite His name, since form and name always go together — wherever the name is, the form is there too — His form appears at the center of our mind: a crystal-clear, radiant Dhamma image, delicate, soft, gentle, clear and cool. When He appears within us, He does not appear for nothing — He appears bringing great benefit to our life, taking our seeing, remembering, thinking, and knowing, our earth, water, fire, wind, space, and consciousness elements, and refining them clear, clean, and pure, clearing away every defilement that causes ill kamma, misfortune, and calamity, until they vanish. Not only that — He expands to merge as one with us: His lap merges as one with our lap, His body merges and abides as one with our body. His wish is that we and He become one, for only then can He support us with full effectiveness and the greatest result — because He is our true self.
Stay still, soft, relaxed and at ease, and let us merge with Him as one — or take on the feeling that we are the Buddha image, and the Buddha image is us. Sammā Arahaṃ, Sammā Arahaṃ — merging us with Him as one; we are the Buddha image, the Buddha image is us — until our whole body becomes the radiant crystal Dhamma image, clear, cool, clean and pure. Merge our body with His body as one, part by part — from the head, the face, the cheeks, the shoulders, the arms, the torso, down to the tips of the feet. Once our body and His body are merged as one, merge our mind with His mind as one as well.
Stop Within Stop, Still Within Still, at the Center of the Center
Merging, stopping, stilling — soft, relaxed, at ease, clear, cool, clean and pure. Stop within stop, still within still, soft and at ease, clear, cool, clean and pure, at the center of the Buddha image, the center of our body, the center of our mind. Stop within stop, still within still, soft and at ease, deeper into the center of the center, of the center — knowing the center, stopping at the center, staying still at the center, continuously. Then send the mind and heart directly toward the path of Nibbāna. The mind is an element of accomplishment — whatever we set, so it becomes. We appear luminous at the center of Nibbāna, boundless beyond counting; Nibbāna already holds all beings at its center.
Any being who abides in universal goodness appears luminous at the center of the Triple Gem and of Nibbāna — whether or not they know Buddhism, whether or not they follow any religion at all. When they abide in goodness that is universal, they appear luminous at the center of Nibbāna, boundless beyond counting, and the stream of merit flows continuously in. Nibbāna takes this pure merit element and uses it within its own knowledge, refining and helping us toward purity and liberation, continuously.
Spreading Loving-Kindness to the World and the Universe
Once He has brought this great benefit into our life, we in turn build a good cause that benefits others and all beings by cultivating (เมตตาธรรม). Loving-kindness is a tool of the wholesome system, meant for those with abundant merit to support those with less — simply by holding sincere love and goodwill. As loving-kindness — a bright, clear sphere — arises, the stream of merit is drawn continuously into its brightness. Its special quality is that it can dissolve all resentment and irritation in the hearts of people, beings, things, or even in the atmosphere itself.
Let us extend this mind full of loving-kindness to cover our own home, and it will shine and refine every particle of the surroundings, of people and beings, making them clear and bright. Extend it further to cover the whole village, the district, the province, the country, other countries, until it covers the entire world — making this world a crystal world, luminous, clear, cool, clean and pure. May the people of the world and all beings be free from suffering and share in happiness alike: 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 already happy grow happier still. May the earth-bound and sky-bound devas, the heavenly beings of every realm, the Brahmas and formless Brahmas, and also the beings of hell, the asuras, and the animals — may all beings be free from suffering and share in happiness alike.
Having made this wish, extend this mind of loving-kindness further, out into the atmosphere of the cosmos, covering countless stars — tens, hundreds, thousands, millions of them — and further still, to the ten thousand world-systems, the countless universes, letting our loving-kindness shine and refine every particle of every being and every thing, luminous, clear, cool, clean and pure. Our mind expands and blossoms — open, spacious, at ease, clear, cool, clean, pure, luminous — while the stream of merit keeps flowing continuously into the brightness of this loving-kindness.
Dedicating Merit, Forgiving Karmic Counterparties, and Merging With the Triple Gem and the Great Teachers
May the people of the world and all beings share in the merit we have intended and done well here, and be free from suffering, happy alike. May this merit belong to our parents, siblings, grandparents, teachers, and all who have shown us kindness, as well as the devas who help and support us, and those who tend and protect all beings — including any (คู่กรรมคู่เวร) we may have wronged. May we forgive one another, and may all receive a share of this merit equally.
Having dedicated this merit to all people and beings, we now merge our mind with the Triple Gem and the great teachers (มหาปูชียาจารย์) as one — for their kindness to us is beyond measure, and we can never be apart from them. Every moment of theirs is spent watching over and helping us, day and night, whether we sleep, wake, stand, walk, sit, or lie down. Let us merge and rest still at the center of the Triple Gem — at the center of the Buddha Jewel, still at the center of the Dhamma Jewel, still at the center of the Sangha Jewel — then merge and rest still at the center of of Luang Pu, still at the center of the Dhamma body of Luang Phor, and still at the center of the Dhamma body of Khun Yai Ajarn.
The mind is an element of accomplishment — whatever we set, that appears in our mind. As we set ourselves merged with the Triple Gem and the great teachers, we appear luminous at their center, and they appear luminous at ours — every body, from the subtlest to the coarse human body, the refined body, the celestial body, the Brahma and formless-Brahma body, our entire lineage of elements and Dhamma, all appearing luminous at their center. We and they appear together, luminous, at the center of Nibbāna, the center of the One who Knows, of boundless power beyond counting, while the stream of merit continues flowing in without pause.
Setting the Aspiration
Using this most auspicious moment, we bow to ask for blessing and set our aspiration deep within this bright sphere of merit: we humbly ask for the merit, radiance, strength, power, and unwavering authority of Nibbāna throughout all elements and Dhamma, together with the merit of Luang Pu, Luang Phor, and Khun Yai Ajarn — may all this merit combine with whatever merit we have sincerely built since our very first life, through countless lives, up to the present — may it all combine into a sacred merit of boundless power, purifying our body, speech, mind, our elements of Dhamma, our seeing, remembering, thinking and knowing, our earth, water, fire, wind, space and consciousness elements, making them luminous, clear, cool, clean and pure — freeing us from misfortune, sacred demerit, the results of past kamma, obstacles of every kind in life, letting them all vanish, along with , hatred, delusion, lust, , wrong view, craving, and clinging, down to the last trace — may we gain the eye that sees the Dhamma, penetrating fully into the knowledge of the Dhamma, attaining the three and eight higher knowledges, the six psychic powers, the four kinds of analytical , the eight liberations, and the fifteen conducts, complete in every respect — and may we carry a vast and sacred merit that lets us recall our past lives from birth and before birth, together with a clear and radiant inner Dhamma body, studying the Dhammakāya path correctly and truthfully alongside Luang Pu, Luang Phor, and Khun Yai from our youth until the end of this life.
Whatever unwholesome kamma we have created through past mistakes, may it never catch up with us or find the chance to bear fruit — may it be forgiven for good; and may we commit no new wrong through body, speech, or mind. Whatever merit we have sincerely built, may it all combine and yield a sacred, powerful, wondrous result, continuing on from this moment until the very end of the Dhamma. May all these good wishes come to fulfillment — come to fulfillment, come to fulfillment — for all of us, from this moment onward, in every life, until the very end of the Dhamma, by the boundless power of every Buddha. May it be so, in every respect.
The sit closes with a chant invoking the protective power of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha over the minds of all present.