The Importance of Mindfulness in Daily Life : หน้า 16/163

A single monk in front of the image of the Buddha is sitting equally statue-like, motionless in meditation. Although he has been sitting for a long time, his body remains erect. The moon moves across the zenith of the heavens, becoming ever brighter. The monk, clad in yellow robes is in his early thirties. His forehead shows determination, intelligence and an uncommon strength of character. A draught blowing across the hall catches the corner of his robe. At this point the monk releases a heavy breath, audible throughout the building. A half-smile appears on his face as he beams with delight. He murmurs to himself: "Ah! . . . it is so hard like this. This is why no one else could manage to achieve it. Sensation, memory, thought and cognition: all these must be united into one single spot. Once the mind is still, it ceases to be. Once it ceases to be, the new one can arise." The murmur died away as suddenly as it had come. Delight is the enemy of success in meditation. He was well aware of this. Even so, for this monk with over a decade's experience, it was very hard to contain the ecstasy of fulfillment. He closed his eyes again in silence. Without rest, again and again that evening, he relived his revelation, reflecting backwards and forwards, backwards and forwards. The experience this day was the culmination of eleven years devotion and meditation. * Many great spiritual people are born in poverty in remote villages. Nature fastens a harmony with the cosmos, and leads them to the ultimate questions of existence. On Friday tenth of October 1885, in the village of Song- 18