into Laos, he practiced the ascetic way of life for some time in the
area around Luang Prabang, eventually returning to Thailand to
spend the rains retreat near the village of Ban Khok in Loei prov-
ince, quite close to Pha Pu Cave. The following rains retreat was
spent at Pha Bing Cave, also in Loei province. Back then, these
places were all wilderness areas, teeming with wild animals where
village communities were located far and few between: one could
walk all day without coming across a single settlement. A person
losing his way in that vast wilderness could find himself in the
precarious situation of having to sleep overnight in an inhospit-
able environment at the mercy of tigers and other wild beasts.
On one occasion Ãcariya Mun crossed the Mekong River
and settled in a large tract of mountainous forest on the Laotian
side. While he camped there, a huge Bengal tiger often wandered
into his living area. Always coming at night, it stood some dis-
tance away watching him pace back and forth in meditation. It
never displayed threatening behavior, but it did roar occasionally
as it wandered freely around the area. Being well accustomed to
living in close proximity to wild animals, Ãcariya Mun paid little
attention to the tiger.
During that excursion he was accompanied by another
monk, Ãcariya Sitha, who had been ordained slightly longer than
he had. A contemporary of Ãcariya Mun, Ãcariya Sitha excelled in
the practice of meditation. He liked the type of seclusion that the
wilderness offered, preferring to live in the mountains stretching
along the Laotian side of the Mekong River. Only occasionally did
he cross the river into Thailand, and then never for very long.
On that occasion, Ãcariya Mun and Ãcariya Sitha were
camped some distance apart, each depending on a separate village
jacob rumans
(Jacob Rumans)
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