happiness had gone. He then adopted a sympathetic attitude:
“That’s too bad. Where’s it gone? Well, don’t be discouraged.
Just put maximum effort into your practice and it will reappear for
sure. It has simply wandered off somewhere. If you accelerate your
efforts it will come back on its own. The citta is like a dog: it inev-
itably follows its owner wherever he goes. It won’t just run away.
Intensify your practice and the citta is bound to return on its own.
Don’t waste time thinking about where it’s gone to. Wherever it’s
gone, it can’t possibly run away. If you want it to return quickly,
concentrate your efforts. Any discouragement will only boost the
citta’s ego. Thinking you really miss it so much, it will play hard-
to-get. So stop thinking about the citta you’ve lost. Instead, think
“buddho”, repeating it continuously, over and over again. Once the
word “buddho” has been mentally established by repeating it con-
tinuously in rapid succession, the citta will hurry back of its own
accord. Even then, don’t let go of buddho. Buddho is the citta’s food
- as long as there is food, it will always come running back. So
repeat “buddho” constantly until the citta has eaten its fill, then it
will have to take a rest. You too will feel satisfied while the citta
rests calmly. When it’s calm, it ceases to run madly about looking
to cause you trouble. Keep this practice up until you cannot chase
it away, even if you want to. This is the perfect method to use with
a mind whose ravenous appetite is never satiated. As long as it
has enough food, it will not leave even if you try to drive it away.
Follow my advice and the state of your citta will never again dete-
riorate. Buddho is the key. So long as its food is there, it won’t stray.
Do as I say and you’ll never again experience the disappointment
of seeing your citta get worse time and time again.”
This was yet another technique employed by Ãcariya Mun