Untitled : หน้า 42/194

meal to be a gift from the Great Abbot, gleaned from the faithful who wished the merit of supporting him as a field of merit. It didn’t matter how such food was served – there could be nothing wrong with such auspicious food, no matter how it was served up. She saw everything in a positive light. If she was treated abruptly by the canteen staff, she assumed they must be tired from their duties, from being in front of the hot stove all day and from having to get up before everyone else in the morning, to go to market. As for those who misunderstood that she was infected with tuberculosis, she thought to herself that perhaps it was her good fortune, because she could have more time for herself and could eat as much or as little as she pleased without having to have consideration for others at the same table. Instead of having to chat, she could reflect on the inner experience she had attained at the centre of her body as she ate. The Great Abbot would constantly push her to progress in her meditation practice. He would ask her, “On the way to the refectory, do you still maintain your mind at the centre of your body?” This meant Chandra to keep her mind at the centre of the body the whole of the time, just in case he asked, throughout her waking hours. In such a way, her adeptness in meditation depthened until she was allotted one of the special meditation beds in the meditation workshop. The so-called ‘meditation beds’ were rather like a personal platform just large enough to sit on cross-legged. They were considered a sign of honour, accorded only to those whose attainments deserved 1. In Buddhism purely practicing monks are believed to yield tremendous merit to those who share gifts with them. 2. The so-called ‘Kard Roo’ beds were allocated only to those meditators whose mind was immersed completely on the inner experience.