Panditãrãma Shwe Taung Gon Sasana Yeiktha UU PPaannddiittaa OOnnee LLiiffee''ss JJoouurrnneeyy Copy from http://vmc128.8m.com/contents/index.html Panitarama Saraniya Dhamma Meditation Centre www.saraniya.com Contents 1. INTRODUCTION 2. GLOSSARY 3. IN HIS OWN WORDS 4. THE HUMAN WORLD 5. HIS LITTLE SISTER 6. HIS GRANDFATHER AND HIS FATHER 7. HIS LITTLE BENEFACTRESS 8. SMILING AND SERIOUS 9. JOY 10. SOMETHING EXTRAORDINARY 11. HIS NATURE 12. A THIRST FOR KNOWLEDGE 13. LESSON FROM A BROOM 14. TWICE-HEARD WORDS 15. LIKE A CLEANSER VENDOR 16. IMAGINED TOMES 17. A NOBLE TEACHER'S NOBLE STUDENT 18. GENEROSITY BRINGS GOOD COMPANY 19. POSSESSOR OF THE SÂSANA 20. HEALTH SENSE 21. HIS ENDLESS BENEFACTOR 22. CONCERNED ABOUT DISDAIN 23. THE BUDDHA'S WISHES 24. HIS WORDS 25. CONSIDER 26. TRY A TASTE 27. A GOOD LEADER 28. A WEALTHY NATION 29. FAMILY SPIRIT 30. A MASTER 31. NOT EXCESSIVE 32. THE GARDENER'S SMILE 33. BECAUSE IT'S BETTER 34. TO ESTABLISH AN ENDURING SÂSANA 35. TRY THIS 36. ON THE BUDDHA'S SIDE 37. KEEPING AN EYE ON THINGS 38. A LIFE GIVEN TO FULFILLING HIS DUTY 39. JUST FOR THE SÂSANA 40. BE STRONG www.panditarama.net 41. SILVER JUBILEE 42. SWEET, BUT NOT SUGARY 43. CARP FRIED IN ITS OWN OIL 44. ALTRUISM AND PATIENCE 45. ALIVE AND STRONG 46. FADING 47. THE PAGODAS OF SHWE TAUNG GON 48. MUCH IN COMMON 49. MISTAKES 50. ONE CAN'T FORGET 51. WITH ALL HIS HEART 52. A FREE THINKER 53. THE TRANSMISSION 54. OLD AGE 55. THE POWER OF METTÂ 56. THE EMBLEM 57. THE NAME 58. GREAT IN GLORY 59. PÂLI NAMES 60. LET'S GET PREPARED 61. THREE WEEKS 62. TO CUT WITH A KNIFE 63. KEEP A COOL HEAD 64. WHOM CAN I ASK? 65. WISE REFLECTION 66. TO WORK FOR THE SÂSANA 67. DIE IF YOU WANT TO 68. JUST ENOUGH 69. BACTERIA 70. VINAYA 71. I WON'T DIE UNDER THE WEIGHT OF A MAN 72. BROTHERS 73. PRESTIGE 74. LIKE CLEANING A WOUND 75. DHAMMA BLOOD 76. THE VISUDDHÂYONE METHOD 77. TO GIVE STRENGTH 78. BAYINNAUNG 79. OVERSHADOWING 80. DECISION 81. VIPASSANÂ 82. THE FOUNDATION 83. DEVOTION www.panditarama.net 84. ONLY WITH PATIENCE 85. O.K. 86. THE LIBRARY 87. HAPPINESS 88. THE SUCCESSFUL DOCTOR 89. TOES OF A CAT 90. COMPASSION AND WISDOM 91. A FACE OF JOY 92. FOREST FLOWERS 93. SAYAGYI U HPE THIN 94. THE MEDICINE OF IMMORTALITY www.panditarama.net INTRODUCTION It has been a long time that I have wanted to honor Sayadaw by writing of this One Life's Journey of his. I did not think that it would materialize easily. I was convinced that it would take a long time. Due to good kamma and opportune conditions, I got the opportunity to pay my respects. It gives me great pleasure to honor Sayadaw by writing One Life's Journey. I am immensely grateful to all the people who talked to me about his life and made it possible for me to write. I can't help but be pleased and astonished that this book was successfully completed during the rainy season I took off to rest for the sake of my health at the Panditârâma Hse Main Gon Forest Center. I did not intend to rest the whole rainy season. Neither did it cross my mind that I would write while I was taking my break. My impossible plan to recover during this rest period saw success at last. When I think about why it was this successful, I can't help but see Sayadaw's kammic influence as the primary cause. If you were to say that to him Sayadaw would not accept it. Nonetheless, I can't but see it that way. I have written here of Sayadaw's seventy-five years to the best of my knowledge. While I have tried my best not include any errors, what mistakes there are are the author's own. No doubt there is much left out which was out of the scope of my knowledge. Given an opportunity, I would like to continue the effort and publish a second volume of One Life's Journey. This book has been written in a conversational style, with numerous literary sketches. It is my hope that those who read One Life's Journey will find herein things to increase their faith and their knowledge, to emulate and be inspired by, and samvega to motivate their practice, as well as lessons to take with them. Thâmanay Kyaw The 3rd day of the waxing moon of Tansaung, Myanmar era 1358 (13/11/96) www.panditarama.net Pâli Buddha The Awakened Ones, of which Gotama the Sakyan was the most recent. (Buddha is actually the plural form, Buddho the singular) Dhamma Used here as the teachings of the Buddha Sangha Community The ordained followers of the Buddha's teachings Sîla Morality Samâdhi Concentration Pañña Wisdom Vipassanâ Insight The practice (of meditation) which leads to insight (ie. Satipaþþhana) Satipatthana Sati (Mindfulness) + Pa (in various ways; deeply) + þhana (object) Mindfulness meditation Dhammâcariya Dhamma + Acariyo (teacher) The name of the examination for Dhamma teachers held by the government of Myanmar, the culmination of a five-level course of Pâli examinations. Kilesa or Kilesas Refer to the defilments of the mind, attachment, aversion, delusion, and so on. Mettâ Lovingkindness or unconditional love Karuna Compassion Pariyatti Theoretical study of the Buddha's teachings www.panditarama.net Pattipatti Experiential practice of the Buddha's teachings Samvega Apprehension at the suffering of future rebirths, thus a motivation for the practice of the teachings. Sâsana The dispensation: the teachings the Buddha; their study and practice Bhante Respectful term for monk: Venerable Sir. Sayadaw Noble Teacher = elder or teaching monk Sein Pan Emerald Flower Shwe Taung Gon Golden Hill An area in Yangon Yeiktha Peaceful Shade : meditation center www.panditarama.net IN HIS OWN WORDS U Panditâbhivamsa was born on Thursday, the ninth day of the waxing moon of Waso, in 1283 Burmese Era (29 July, 1921) in Greater Yangon (formerly the town of Insein) in the Shwebosu Quarter of Tadahgalay Village. His parents were U Hpe and Daw Chit Su. He was the ninth of ten children. When he was seven years of age his parents enrolled him in the Kocheh Village Monastery School, Pegu Township, Pegu District, under the auspices of U Jâgara Thera, and had him study subjects suitable for young people to learn. When he was a schoolboy he passed the First Lower and First Middle Standards of the Scriptural Ahgone Examination held at the Dakkhinâyone Shwegyin Daik, Ohnneh Village, Kawa Township, Pegu Division. When he was twelve years old, he became a novice under this same U Jâgara. As a novice he studied basic texts for the Tipitaka, Visuddhâyone grammar books, grammar rules, translation rules, and Abidhamma summary books, under the teacher U Gandodaga at the Kochech Village Monastery. When he was eighteen years old he was sent by U Jâgara Thera to the most venerable Sayadaw U Kelâsmhây Thera, of the Mahabodhi Forest Monastery in Kyauktan Village, Pegu Division. When he arrived, he continued his studies of relevant texts both night and day under the Dhamma Lecturer and Assistant Sayadaw U Pandava and teachers U Nandiya, U Paññasirî, and U Obasa. While he was studying in this way, he passed the senior level of the Scriptural memorization examinations at the Mahâbodhi Forest Monastery in Kyauktan village. When he had reached twenty years of age, on the eighth day of the waxing moon of Dabodwe in 1302 BE (1941), U Pandita ordained as a monk in the Khanda Ordination Hall of the Mahâbodhi Forest Monastery with his benefactor the Mahâbodhi Forest Sayadaw himself as his preceptor. His sponsors were U Bo Han and Daw Thaung of Kyauktan village. Within ten months of becoming a monk, his studies had not progressed as much as he had expected, due to the hazards of the Second World War which had broken out. After the war, when he was a monk of three vassâ, he went to the New Kyaikkasan Shwegyin Monastery, a branch of the Kyauktan Mahâbodhi Forest Monastery. Continuing his studies there under his benefactor U Sucinta and the teacher U Chandâdhika, he studied the senior level texts on the Pâli Canon, the Commentaries, and the Sub- Commentaries both day and night. When the first-ever government Patama Pyan Pâli examination was held in 1946 following the end of the Second World War, he passed the Middle Standard examination. In 1947, he passed both the independent Senior and Cetiyanganaparigiyatti examinations. www.panditarama.net Studying like this for himself, on the one hand, and giving classes to other students as a tutor in addition, every minute of his day was occupied. In 1948, being extremely tired, he took a one-year rest from examinations. According to the New Kyaikkasan Shwegyin Monastery Sayadaw's instructions, he went to the New Mahâvisuddhâyone Monastery, taking dependence on Zipin Sayadaw U Siyâtathera. While there, he continued his studies of concerned with the Dhammâcariya examination and graduate level Pâli Canon, Commentary and Sub-Commentary texts under such Mahâtheras as Vissuddhâyone Sishin Sayadaw U Kosalla and the teachers U Ânandapandita (Varanasi Sayadaw), and U Suvannajoti, as well as the Most Venerable New Ma Soe Yein (No Worries) Monastery Sayadaw together with Pathan Sayadaw U Visuddhâbhivamsa, U Vicettâbhivamsa and U Candobhâsâbhivamsa. In Yangon, in addition to studying some of the Nikâya under the teacher U Aung Myat Htut (formerly U Âdiccavamsa) and at the Kyauk Tap Kyi Payah Kyi Monastery, he studied particularly procedures and methodology relating to the Dhammâcariya texts under U Vâsetthâbhivamsa of Dhammikârâma Monastery, Thabyekan Village, Than Lyin District, holder of the "Thiromani" title and author of the Great Paritta treatises.