"I never decided to become a monk!" Pim exclaimed with a lively smile.
When her future teacher asked her "You say you want to travel the world, but you are scared to shave your head?”, her young spirit couldn't resist the challenge. This is seriously why, at age 33, Pim decided to prove her courage by spending just 3 weeks - she thought back then - in a nascent female Buddhist temple in Chom Thong.
When time was over though, she felt she had only learned to look like a monk and desired a deeper understanding. She kept extending her stay month my month and before she knew it, four years had flown by - yet her longing to explore the world persisted.
The day her teacher prohibited her from traveling abroad and learn new ways toward the Dharma (the truth of the nature of life), Pim took matters into her own hands, left that temple behind and journeyed to Sri Lanka instead.
Surprising was for her that the hard scheduling she had been following in the previous 4 years (waking up at 4 30, eating once per day, no technology allowed) as well as reading books in Pali or Sanskrit were not required by her new teacher. Good usage of technology was also permitted.
Experience and observation of the body and the mind were the way to Dharma.
During the 5 days I volunteered with Pim in the outskirt of Bangkok, she kindly shared with me many lessons learned like focusing only on what we can control and learning by experiencing. The most important one, she said, is: "If you do good things for yourself and others you will be happy."
Her contagious smile was the proof.
Pim´s story made me feel truly thankful for the support I received in the end from my manager, colleagues, even candidates, friends and family when I decided to take a sabbatical and travel around Asia to learn and explore.
Now, while heading to my first vipassana retreat - by coincidence in Chom Thong as well! - I am seriously wondering what impact this experience will have on me and how long it will take for me to decide to leave the temple ;) ...
do you want to make a bet? I say 7 days!
Luckily, shaving my head is not required at all!
And now, what thoughts, feelings or questions does Pim`s journey evoke in you?
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Cr.https://www.transformationalvisions.com/post/are-decisions-changing-lives
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