ing branches to break off and crash down around them. They
were never sure of surviving this onslaught of rain, wind, cold,
and loose debris flying at them from all directions. During such
hardships, they just endured the best they could. They had to
abide the heat, the cold, the hunger, the thirst, and the uncer-
tainty of their existence while they waited for the villagers’ mis-
trust to subside. Even though they received only plain rice, their
supply was, at best, erratic. Drinking water was hard to come
by; so they had to walk down to the foot of the mountain to fill
their kettles, carrying the water back up to serve their daily needs.
Despite such an impoverished existence, the villagers showed no
sympathy for their plight.
In spite of the hardships, Ãcariya Mun felt free of anxieties
and responsibilities as his meditation practice progressed unhin-
dered. He took great pleasure from listening to the calls of the
various wild animals in the surrounding forest. Seated in medita-
tion under the trees late at night, he constantly heard the sounds
of tigers roaring close by. Curiously, those huge tigers rarely ven-
tured into the area where he was seated. Occasionally, a tiger did
approach Ãcariya Mun. Perhaps, suspecting him to be wild game,
it snuck in to have a look. But as soon as the tiger saw him make
a move, it leapt off into the forest in alarm, and was never seen
again.
Nearly every afternoon, three or four men came to check
them out. They stood around whispering among themselves with-
out a word to Ãcariya Mun, who, in turn, ignored their pres-
ence. When they arrived, Ãcariya Mun focused his citta on their
thoughts. They, of course, never suspected that he knew what they
were thinking or what they were whispering about. It’s unlikely
jacob rumans
(Jacob Rumans)
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