Luang Por Piak public talk – Sunday, April 30
/Luang Por Piak to visit Temple April 28–May 1, 2017
A highly respected teacher will be visiting Temple from April 28–May 1: Ajahn Piak, an accomplished disciple of Ajahn Chah, will offer teachings on the weekend of April 29 and 30, including a public talk offered at 1 p.m. on Sunday, April 30 (in place of the usual meditation workshop). We expect that he will be available for questions and Dhamma conversation also on Saturday, April 29. He will be accompanied by four other monks, including Ajahn Issara Uttamacitto, and Ajahn Siripanyo who will translate from Thai to English. Please join us for this special occasion.
Sunday, April 30, 1 p.m. :
Dhamma Talk in Thai language,
with translation in English
Saturday, April 29, 11 a.m. :
The usual daily meal offering,
followed by Dhamma discussion
For some background, the following is taken from Luang Por's bio:
Luang Por Piak is one of Thailand’s most respected teachers of Dhamma and meditation. Born in 1948, Luang Por Piak’s given name was Prasobchai but he was nicknamed ‘Piak’. As a child and young man Luang Por Piak did not have much interest in religion or meditation. It was when he was studying for his Masters in New York that Luang Por Piak began to develop an interest in cultivation of the mind. On the subway, for example, while heading to work, he would find his mind naturally observing and converging on his breath. There he found both pleasure and peace. He also noticed that he was able to wake up in the morning at whatever time he wished simply by mentally determining the time the night before. Even if he’d spent most of the night at a party, he’d still wake up exactly at the predetermined time. These experiences made him curious about how the mind worked and led on to an interest in meditation.
After returning to Thailand, Venerable Piak then received full bhikkhu ordination from Luang Por Chah of Wat Nong Pah Pong Monastery on July 3rd 1976. In 1981, when Venerable Piak had been ordained for five years, a piece of property was offered outside of Bangkok for the establishment of a branch monastery. Luang Por Chah asked Venerable Piak to live there as the abbot. It was unusual for a monk to be asked to take on so much responsibility at such a young age, but Venerable Piak had had quick progress in his Dhamma practice and was also native to that region. Initially surrounded by rice fields as far as one could see, within ten years his small monastery had been completely engulfed by Bangkok’s urban sprawl. Noise, heat and pollution notwithstanding, Luang Por Piak has remained a refuge of peace and soothing coolness within the heart of Thailand’s largest city.
His monastery is Wat Fakram (Wat Pah Cittabhavanaram) in Lum Lukkha, Pathum Thani, Thailand.
Ajahn Issara Uttamacitto is a long-time student of Luang Por Piak and monk of 35 years standing. He is the abbot of a forest monastery outside of Bangkok and has traveled internationally as assistant teacher with Lunag Por Piak on many occasions.