a hearty laugh Chao Khun Upãli immediately acknowledged it to
be true, saying this in praise of Ãcariya Mun:“You are truly masterful. I myself am a respected teacher, yet
I’m inept compared to you – and I feel embarrassed. You
truly are a master. This is exactly how a genuine disciple of
the Lord Buddha follows in the footsteps of the Supreme
Teacher. We can’t all be incompetent in the practice of the
Lord Buddha’s teaching – somebody has to maintain this
exalted Dhamma in the spirit that it was originally taught.
By not allowing the modern age we live in to foster a lazy,
defeatist attitude toward the highest attainments, you have
demonstrated the timeless quality of the Buddha’s teach-
ing. Otherwise, the true Dhamma will no longer arise in
the world, despite the fact that the Buddha proclaimed it for
the benefit of all mankind. The special knowledge you have
just displayed to me is most admirable. This is the way the
Lord’s teaching should be developed and put into practice.”Ãcariya Mun stated that Chao Khun Upãli had the utmost admi-
ration and respect for him. There were certain occasions when he
sentfor Ãcariya Mun to help him solve certain problems he was
unable to resolve to his own satisfaction. Eventually when the
time was right, Ãcariya Mun left Bangkok and returned directly
to the Northeast.
IN THE YEARS PRIOR to his sojourn at Sarika Cave, Ãcariya Mun
traveled into the neighboring country of Burma, later returning by
way of the northern Thai province of Chiang Mai. Continuing on