* No words / amount of words can express or describe how grateful and thankful I am to Ajahn Maha Boowa, cos like the Dhamma, it's beyond words.
It's something that can only be felt and experienced from, and in, my heart.
Ajahn Maha Boowa is a disciple of the late Venerable Ajahn Mun.
Like his predecessor, he is also a great warrior, someone who truly deserves the title of a 'Maha' (ie. great).
To me, he is possibly the last warrior of the Sakyan clan - meaning : the last of the authentic forest dhutanga kammatthana Bhikkhu/monk of the Great Buddha's lineage.
He is someone who truly knows his stuff and the Dhamma inside-out, and who has an indept knowledge of the path and practices leading to Arahantship (ie. Enlightenment).
He is someone who's not afraid to admit his faults, that he's 'a roguish, straight-arrow' kind of monk etc, and that's what endears me to him.
As he abides in the peace and serenity of Nibbana, I can only say that I'm grateful and thankful to him for all his teachings, and that I'm truly privileged to be able to find his collection of teachings which I've benefited so much from, for they truly are the Precious Gems.
In this respect, I'm devoting this entry to 3 excerpts of his teachings taken from his books,
'Patipada - The Mode of Practice of Venerable Acharn Mun,
'Arahatta magga Arahattaphala - The Path to Arahantship', and
'Venerable Ajahn Khao Analayo - A True Spiritual Warrior'.
Ajahn Boowa, like the Great Buddha, gave all his teachings freely for ALL.
As the late Venerable Ajahn Mun said it so aptly,
"Dhamma belongs to everyone (and to me, anyone) who truly desires it.
The Buddha did not limit the possession of Dhamma to a particular individual.
Everyone (and anyone) who practises in the right way enjoys the same right of ownership."
And as Ajahn Boowa himself said,
"Dhamma has a value beyond all wealth, and should NOT be sold like goods in the market place",
So how can anyone charge/sell it (ie The Dhamma)?
"At present, all that is left of Buddhism are the words of the Buddha. Only his teaching - the scriptures - remain. Please be aware of this. Due to the corruption caused by the defiling nature of the kilesas, true spiritual principles are no longer practiced in present-day Buddhism.
We constantly allow our minds to be agitated and confused, engulfed in mental defilements that assail us from every direction. They so overpower our minds that we never arise above these contaminating influences, no matter how hard we try.
The vast majority of people are not even interested enough to try : They simply close their eyes and allow the onslaught to overwhelm them. They don't even attempt to put up the least amount of resistance.
This is a fault that we as Buddhists must remedy within ourselves by truly putting into practice the Buddha's teaching."
- (Arahattamagga Arahattaphala - The Path to Arahantship, page 1)
"So please practise it by yourselves until you realise it for yourselves. You will then become convinced and feel a satisfaction that you have accomplished something, far more than you ever will by reading and listening to others.
Because the understanding which comes from what others say, or from textbooks is all within the field of discursive commentary.
Before it is accepted and the heart can agree to believe it, there must be an intense internal struggle and a testing criticism of what has been heard or read.
Sometimes one can even lose out to oneself, believing that oneself has the upper hand, because deciding or weighing up what one has heard or read is one's own opinion.
For, generally speaking, we who follow the way (Sasana) tend to send our thoughts out externally rather than going inwardly and the results which we get, tend to be in the direction of loss to oneself all the time."
- ('Patipada or The Mode of Practice of Venerable Ajahn Mun', page 473)
"The truth of the Buddha's teaching will be revealed to those who truly practise his teaching with diligence and an unwavering determination to discover the Truth.
In order to fully realise the truth about their own nature and about the nature of Dhamma, seekers of the way must strive to become spiritual warriors on the path to liberation.
Their hearts need to have a firm resolve that can boldly stand up their internal enemies, finding the strength of will to fight with all their might without becoming weak or disheartened, and without retreating when the struggle becomes difficult.
When this kind of fighting spirit is exhibited in the pursuit of Dhamma, then time and place are not relevant to their quest for the truth.
Regardless of whether it is the Buddha's age or our present age, Nibbana can always be attained by those who earnestly follow the way with diligence, because the true Dhamma always exists in the present moment - the timeless present, here and now."
- (Venerable Ajaan Khao Analayo - A True Spiritual Warrior, page 212)
"Unresentful like the earth,
Firm like a gate post,
Equipoised and strong in vows,
Mind without impurities like a pool :
For such a one
The round of births exist no."
- The Buddha (on Venerable Sariputta, His first Chief Disciple)
