were there. They told him that they were worried about the fate of
an unfinished stupa^20 which they were building together when they
died. The small novice was the woman’s younger brother, and
they had worked together to construct the stupa. Their concern
about the stupa and their regrets at having died before its comple-
tion made them feel a strong, persistent obligation to it. Although
reborn into a state of anxiety, they were not as tormented by it as
might be expected. Still, they could not feel decisive about being
reborn into another realm of existence.
So Ãcariya Mun advised them: “You should not be con-
cerned about things that have already come and gone, for they
are truly irredeemable. No matter how convinced you may be
that you can turn back the clock – it’s just not possible. Anyone
supposing they can will experience nothing but frustration when
their hopes fail to materialize. The future, having yet to come,
shouldn’t be clung to either. What has already happened should
be let go of as being past. What has yet to arrive should be let go
of as its time is not yet ripe. Only in the present is it possible to
accomplish something meaningful.
“If your dream of building that stupa were meant to come
true, then you would have had a chance to finish it first instead of
dying unexpectedly. Now you are trying to deny death. Not only
that, you still long to complete the stupa even though it is now
wholly impossible. So, now you have erred twice in your thinking.
If you continue on hoping to fulfill this wish, you will compound
your mistake yet a third time. Not only is your thinking affected
by this, but your future state of birth and your well-being in that
state will also be adversely affected. Such an unreasonable aspi-
ration should not be allowed to continue.
jacob rumans
(Jacob Rumans)
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