Luang Po Doo Prompanyo

Luang Po Doo Prompanyo

Luang Pu taught that we often see many compassionate initiatives in the name of Buddhism, such as efforts to propagate the Dhamma, but sometimes we neglect the importance of stillness and equanimity. 

For example, many enthusiastic Buddhists or new Buddhists may have just come to experience the Dhamma and are very excited about going to temples and practising meditation, as they see the value of Buddhism. 

So sometimes they will keep talking and talking about the Dhamma and suttas and whatnot, pushing their friends to go to the temples to join meditation retreats of 3, 5 or 7 days and longer. But Luang Pu cautioned that this is not the way of skilful means. 

When we invite people to experience the Dhamma or Buddhism, we must see whether they are interested in it in the first place and what stage of maturity their mind is. For example, some people may only be in the stage to do dana and tamboon but not yet ready to keep the 5 precepts. While others have been keeping the precepts but are still not interested in mental cultivation. 

Luang Pu told a story as an example. It is as though a man fell into a hole. A passer-by, full of metta wants to save him out of loving-kindness and ends up following into the hole together with him. The next passer-by is a man of karuna. Out of compassion, he tries to rescue the both of them and also falls in. 

Along came a man of mudita, who with sympathetic joy hoped to see all 3 of them rescued successfully so that he can delight in all of their well-being, so he too tries to pull them up but fell into the hole with all of them instead. 

Lastly came a man of upekkha, who with his equanimous mind saw that he was unable to rescue the 4 people in the pit, and had to go along his journey, and hopefully he could find more people and the necessary tools to perform the rescue. So he did not fall into the hole and was unscathed. 

Luang Pu Doo Prompanyo

Wat Sakae, Ayutthaya Province