to teach those of us who were really stupid. But at least I believed
him – in my own stupid way. Otherwise, I would probably still
be chasing after a mind in perpetual decline without any chance
of ever catching it. I’ve written about this matter for the sake of
those readers who may glean some useful ideas from the way a
clever person teaches a stupid one. It is not my intention to glo-
rify my own stupidity or the lenient treatment that I received from
Ãcariya Mun at that time.
FOLLOWING THE RAINS RETREAT, Ãcariya Mun returned briefly to
Ban Na Mon and then moved on to Ban Huay Kaen, settling in
the nearby forest for awhile. From there he moved to an aban-
doned monastery at the base of a mountain near the village of
Ban Na Sinuan, remaining there for several months. While he was
there, he came down with a fever which lasted for days, curing
himself as usual with the ‘therapeutic power of Dhamma’.
In April 1942 he traveled to Ubon Ratchathani to attend
the funeral of his teacher, Ãcariya Sao. Once the cremation cer-
emony was completed, he returned to Ban Na Mon for the rains
retreat. During that retreat Ãcariya Mun employed a wide variety
of methods to press his students to maximize their efforts, exhort-
ing them to be diligent in their practice. He called a meeting once
every four days throughout the entire rains period, helping many
monks to develop in Dhamma and attain inner strength. Many
experienced unusual insights which they reported to Ãcariya Mun.
I had the privilege of listening to those experiences, although I was
not as accomplished in my practice as many of the others. Many
memorable things occurred during that rains retreat – things that