Lao Voices

We might have heard this in the past, ‘Jid Pend Nye, Ghy Pend Bowh’, loosely translated as your mind is the boss, your body is the servant, as human beings we have great latent potential in our minds, but such potential is eclipsed by our anger, delusion, ignorance, craving, selfishness and many other mental defilements.

If we realize that with the passing of every second, we are wasting and misusing our mental energy on unnecessary pursuits then we are more likely to become more aware of how we can utilize our time better. Sometimes I find myself not being able to focus, might be that my mind is cluttered at time, but I read in a book of Buddhism for the Future by Dr. K. Sri Dhammananda that we can train our minds to become more focus, to be able to harness that vast storehouse of mental energy and use it for our liberation from misery, which I’m not sure if I’m capable of doing, but I think that I can harness it for a useful and good purpose. Below is part of the book that has raised many good points.

Do you know the amount of mental energy we are using through our five senses and imagery? So much mental energy is needlessly wasted through our six channels in useless imagination, temptations and frustration. The Buddha has introduced one proven method for us to harness this vast mental energy and it is called Meditation.

Meditation means harnessing our mental energy through concentration and from there we go on training and taming the mind. It is not possible to cultivate the mind simply by faithfully praying and worshiping any God, or by performing various rituals and ceremonies. We can never hope to gain knowledge, wisdom, purity or enlightenment through performing ritualistic practices or prayers. The Buddha says in the ‘Sati Patthana Sutta’ that meditation is the only path or only method that we can use to gain purity and enlightenment. Here we must not confuse Buddhism and Meditation.

Buddhism is the total practice of the teaching of the Buddha manifested through various popular cultures; whilst Meditation is the specific method developed to rid the mind of impurities. Once a person has practiced discipline through Sila (virtue, moral conduct) and achieved control of the body, and then the mind is ready to be developed, through Meditation. It is the only way for our final release from this existence.

Here the Buddha is talking about concentration for mental training and purity for gaining final salvation. Since our minds are polluted, this method helps us to rid ourselves of our worries, miseries and mental disturbances. You may go here and there worshiping various gods and goddesses with the hope of getting rid of your worries and problems. But unless and until you train your own mind to develop a true understanding of the nature of existence, as well as realizing who you really are, you can never gain real relief from such miseries and worries.

Sim made a comment that sort of stuck in my head, “The more attention we focus on the positive things about Laos… the more we will see them appear. And the more the people of Laos will make them appear. If we focus on poverty and corruption, the people in Laos may accept them as a part of their lives. It’s so easy for them to accept their fate because achieving more is hard work. Especially, when Buddhism has taught them that their misfortunes in this lifetime is the direct result of their past lives…” which sadly this is true. I don’t know if there is such thing as future or past life, for I had no recollection of my past life and future life is not here yet, for I’m still living at the present time.

According to the Buddhist teaching, to ensure a better future, or a desirable mental attitudes in the future we must try to develop good mental attitudes by thinking positively and the time to do this is now, in our present life. This way of thinking is nurturing our minds and purify our way of thinking, especially for those that think that our misfortunes in this lifetime is the direct result of our past lives, if we create positive impact now, this will definitely be carried on into the future (or some might think future lives) for further development.

So the mental training for gaining mental purity is a good way for leading a good life as a Buddhist. Don’t fall into trap of thinking that ‘Jid Pend Nye, Ghy Pend Bowh’, if you let it be, then you will be the servant.