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Khun Yay's word had a certain power to them — because no sooner had she spoken them, all the assembled students, including Khun Phadet, discarded the remainder of their cigarettes into Khun Yay's spittoon and made a vow in her presence that they would never smoke again for the rest of their lives — possibly the best birthday present they had to give. That day when everyone had gone home except Khun Chaiyaboon, he gave Khun Yay a present to exceed that which had come before — which was to take a vow before her that he would maintain celibacy for the rest of his life. Khun Yay listened out his oath with great joy and pride in her student. His example inspired many of his friends later to do the same — and Khun Yay's birthday each year became an occasion when her students would set their spiritual ambitions into words, closer and closer to the ideals she inspired. The student group were all young, enthusiastic people, firm believers in the doctrine of the Buddha. With great ambition, they were devout Buddhists and ready to spread the Teaching of the Buddhas to the world. The group seemed to grow larger and larger each day. As the group grew, Khun Yay maintained the original determination and virtue of the pioneer students. She always taught her students to remain chaste, reminding them of the burdensome nature of the householder's life. Indeed her student often wanted to drop out from his studies at Kasetsart — so strong was his sense of urgency to ordain. However, Khun Yay would not let him, saying she would only permit him to ordain if he had already graduated. He would have to be a scholar both of worldly and spiritual knowledge and bring both of these to bear for the prosperity of Buddhism. Because of the pov-