Abandon

The fund raising is a great idea, and very kind. But for now we'll have to wait to see what will happen.

Afterall he may have a giant life insurance policy. He was also pretty good with money, so they'll certainly be ok for the moment.

Perhaps Yeti's brothers or close friends from France will set up some kind of support. Next hurdle is the family leaving and Mrs Yeti getting used to being alone, and sorting out all the legal details and bills etc.. She has real character in fact - I never cease to be amazed by Thailand. She took it all in her stride and kept everything on an even keel.

I should say that none involved can really fault the hospital. It was top quality care - as good as you will get anywhere. It's one of those things .... there was no reason for a healthy young guy to react so badly to a flu, or to spiral down the way he did. His entire body was kept going by machines - I am sure that even 10 - 15 years ago he would have died pretty quickly from the condition he was in. Yes, I'd have thought a Dr should be there (for that money) through the night when he obviously needed it. But it seems pretty clear there was nothing they could do.

He was insured but only for certain treatments, and there was a cap on the payout which was exceeded. The bill is many millions of baht. His parents will pay, but it will clean them out. The condo Yeti bought has a hefty mortgage that his wife will never be able to maintain. I guess she will be reliant on the French family to support her - but his parents are in their 80's already - it is going to be very tough. Yeti has 2 brothers also.

The French side of the family are also very anti-Buddhist, and their main concern as Yeti was getting better was to get the children Baptised (or is it Christened?). In fact I was visiting in the middle of the night to avoid upsetting his parents (as I am Buddhist). Even when he recovered enough to tell them I was a friend and he wanted me there, they were pretty hostile. His wife hung a little Buddha image behind his bed hidden in a little bag of scent to dusguise it, but they were very unhappy when they found out about it. Such a shame, as they were otherwise very nice people.

On the plus side, it was quiet in the middle of the night, and it was his hardest time as there were no distractions and he could not sleep.

He was straight and clear that his children could make up their own religious minds when they are older. The parents allowed one day for a Thai funeral and then ship the body back to France for a Christian burial. I can't imagine they have much left after the costs of the last 2 months.

It seems somehow wrong that someone so nice can pass away, and all that's left is a thread in a forum that fades away, and a gravestone. Will his children google this up in years to come ? I can understand why people build monuments to their loved ones, but a monument does not seem right either - Samsara is a hard place to fathom.

Yes - it was hard to watch. Visiting someone who can speak due to breathing tubes - its hard to think of things to talk about. Especially when everything was so uncomfortable for him. But how fast you get complacent. He was getting better so we took our eye off the ball. And then *poof*

Our good friend Yeti - who has posted on Thai Visa for a number of years passed away today, Sept 22nd 2009.

He was 32 years old, and leaves behind a Thai wife and two kids : Girl of 14 months and a boy of just a few weeks. He saw his new born son only once, and was not allowed to touch him.

Yeti, Christophe Bilhaut, called in at hospital with a skin rach and a slight fever about 2 months ago. He was kept over night and by the next morning was in the ICU. He was on the brink of dying for 5 days, when he started to stabilize slightly. He was not conscious for the 5 days, but I saw him on the sixth and there was a slight reaction to speech. His parents had already flown in to be with him, and they kept him in Samitvej hospital throughout.

The diagnois was battered around for several days, but in the end they siad it was type A flu virus, but not swine flu, which is a later and slightly more potent version of its predecessor. Its possible it was h1n1 and they did not want to panic the staff.

The virus was gone pretty quick but Yetis body had filled with water, and with bacterial infections all over. His brain was relatively untouched.

A few days later he spiralled down and Drs said he would not last the night. He did last, and slowly, inch by inch clawed his way back into contention amongst the living. All his organs had shut down, espcially lungs (filled with fluid), kidneys, liver, intestines. He was conscious, and could nod or shake his head. He indicated (after many many yes/no questions) he wanted ice cubes, and his fingers hurt. He also wanted his legs moving around as he was too weak even to raise a hand.

He got ever so slowly better, but in the ICU throughout. After 3 weeks in the ICU his breathing pipe was removed, and a day or two after that he could speak again. He did not remember anything before the point where he could speak, though he was very clearly conscious for most of the time.

Once his 'self' had returned so did the panic, and his heart rate shot back up into the 130-140 range. After 1 month he got out of the ICU for a couple of days, only to return following breathing problems connected with the Dialysis. Another week and he got out of the ICU and had just started on weak soup and banana (He was still fed milk through a nasal feeding tube - and he said he was always a bit sick when he took milk).

When they removed the dialysis pipes, for no apparant reason, he spiralled into shock. Back in the ICU he was jerking around violently throughout the night. Despite the 80 000 - 120 000 baht PER NIGHT charge, the Doctor was not there - the nurses treated him with the Doctor on the phone (?!?!?!) I was there at that time.

A day later and he was 'brain-dead' which means legally he had died. It was not just a deep coma. The Drs told me he would not recover, but they maintained his body for 2 more weeks while the family adjusted. He finally passed at 4 pm today.

Yeti was always utterly polite, even behind the anonyimity of the internet. A lovely guy, with very few friends or social activities, he was more than happy to stay home with his wife and daughter. He posted on TV fairly often, mostly in the computing forum. I met him in person via TV.

His parents, both in their early 80s are lumbered with the bulk of the bill, which will run into many millions of baht, even with some insurance for some of the treatments. His wife has no trade, and two babies in tow. They only recently bought a condo, so its unlikely she'll be able to keep that. The flu virus cleared after a few days, so it was the ensuing complications that brought about the problems. In fact, the Drs and everyone is agreed that there is no real medical reason for this kind of reaction to the flu in the first case, or the sudden final spiralling in the latter stages.

His parents as strong Catholics have insisted on taking the body back to France for a Christian burial. Which seems a bit harsh on Mrs Yeti, but then the whole story is harsh.

Be careful you have good health insurance! Yeti was 'insured' but the fine print shows it covers some treatments and not others, with caps on payouts.

Wat Thammakai/Dhammakaya is perhaps the closest equivalent Thailand has to that huge Baptist church in Dallas, Texas, I forget the name but it's the one with the largest congregation of any church in America, has a few celebs in the crowd now and then, and lots of political connections (mostly in the Republican camp).

Wat Thammakai has the largest regular attendance of any temple in Thailand I believe, is hugely wealthy with endowments exceeding 50 billion baht, has political connections and favours interpretations of Theravada Buddhism that some would call aberrant. Temple literature allegedly (I haven't read any myself) keys advancement towards nibbana to donation size. The type of meditation they teach appears to be entirely limited to attaning jhanas (absorption states).

Here's a link to a BBC article about the abbot's being accused of embezzlement. I believe he was never sanctioned or convicted.

Wat Dhammakaya

Wat Thammakai has the largest regular attendance of any temple in Thailand I believe, is hugely wealthy with endowments exceeding 50 billion baht, has political connections and favours interpretations of Theravada Buddhism that some would call aberrant. Temple literature allegedly (I haven't read any myself) keys advancement towards nibbana to donation size. The type of meditation they teach appears to be entirely limited to attaning jhanas (absorption states).

Wat Dhammakaya

I am sorry that you have bought into the Press criticisms of Wat Dhammakaya without any genuine examination.

Nowhere does Wat Dhammakaya propose that progress to nibbana is keyed to donation size. That is utter nonsense. There is a lot of money there, and this, as anywhere attracts criticism, as everyone seems to know better how it should be raised/spent.

Dhammakaya meditation is not Jhana.

Wat Dhammakaya made some of the first advances towards ordination of women (about 4 years ago). They also have gotten massive numbers of people attentding their retreats - at the peak about 200 000 at a time. Few Thai temples genuinely try to get people to meditate rather than just tam boon. Few genuinely try to get 'devotees' to keep precepts. That is Dana, Sila, Bhavana - for 200 000 people at a time. And without charge.

They also have a tight vetting process for monks who want to remain monks .. it is not easy to get ordination there other than for a short period after which they must disrobe. All other Thai temples allow pretty much anyone to ordain and stay in robes if they choose. The list goes on, but I shalln't.

So what is the press on about then?

Nowhere does Wat Dhammakaya propose that progress to nibbana is keyed to donation size.

I didn't realise you knew so much about Dhammakaya - so have you read their literature regarding donations, etc? PA Payuttho is one of the people criticising Wat Dhammakaya for the (alleged) practice. Several expose-style features, both in English and in Thai, have also reported this.

Judging from the text camerata quoted, the WD clerics seem to know how many lives one will have according to specific acts (could be based on suttanta, I don't know).

From what I've read about Dhammakaya meditation technique - on the temple's own website as well as branch centres - it appears to be pure samatha with the objective of attaining jhana.

dhammakaya meditation

pathama magga jhana

They also have a tight vetting process for monks who want to remain monks .. it is not easy to get ordination there other than for a short period after which they must disrobe. All other Thai temples allow pretty much anyone to ordain and stay in robes if they choose.

There are quite a few monasteries around that are strict about ordination. A few I know because I've enquired myself include Wat U Mong, Wat Pa Nanachat, Wat Nong Pa Phong, Wat Thepsirin and Wat Bowon. I've only asked at about a dozen places so I assume there must be many more, even if it's not the majority. So I don't think Wat Dhammakaya can claim to be very exclusive or unique in that sense. At the risk of sounding cynical, I imagine with the proper donation, anyone can ordain at Wat Dhammakaya for as long as they like.

Phra Paisan Vimalo is another vocal critic.

A clean and orderly atmosphere is the first impression most visitors have about Wat Phra Dhammakaya, but it is the sacred that binds the large number of followers to this wat with tenacious faith. Besides its reputedly powerful miracles, its sacred is immanent and touchable. Its sacred is characterized by the Buddha's Dhammakaya and nibbana. Its nibbana and the Buddha's Dhammakaya are not only a permanent self (atta) but also perceivable like matter (having physical qualities like cold and soft). Moreover, ordinary people (that have not advanced in meditation) can have contact with the Buddha's Dhammakaya, through their "rice offering to Dhammakaya in nibbana" ceremony.

Vimalo

More from Phra Dhammapitaka (PA Payuttho):

Post

The link above might not work. I can't tell because for months now I've not been able to access the Post online, and I can't figure out why. The article appears in the 19 Feb 1999 issue, so if you can get into the Post archives you can find the article quoting Phra Dhammapitaka on how Wat Dhammakaya is selling 'indulgences' (to borrow a term from medieval Catholicism). Could all be wrong, and I wouldn't know the motives behind it.

Enough from me on the topic, though, it's all secondhand (albeit from sources I generally trust).

I've read Life as a Siamese Monk too, agree it's a must-read for westerners interested in modern Thai Buddhism. His descriptions of the jhana attainments were very lucid, I thought.

I'd almost forgot about it in this discussion, but I worked with this method at Wat Bowon in the 70s, as the Sangharaja was then teaching the Wat Paknam method (I believe Wat Bowon switched to the Mahasi Sayadaw method shortly after Khantipalo moved to Oz, but not sure). At home (in Thonburi then) I didn't have a crystal ball so was told to start with a candle flame instead. Under HH's and Phra Khantipalo's instruction I got far enough along that I could produce (if that's the correct word, instruction was mostly in Thai and HH used the Thai term สร้าง nimitta (meditation image) at will both inside and outside the body. Wherever I go in Thailand now, when meeting monks or laypeople who also practice this method, everyone cross-examines each other to compare how 'far up the ladder' we are.

Thais are often amazed that a foreigner has learned to สร้างอุคคหนิมิต (produce acquired meditation image), so one of the things I liked about Randall's book was that he demystifies it for the most part and shows how, taken step-by-step, it's not all that difficult (though I'm sure it varies from individual to individual). It seemed to me to be a fairly easy practice that anyone could train to do within a month or so, even meditating part time. Of course it is only considered the first stage, there's a lot more afterwards (attainments which Randall, as I recall, did reach).

Other than the side benefits like improved concentration at work, I couldn't see any insight or wisdom about the human condition, about dukkha, anicca or anatta developing with the practice. Contemporaneous with the Wat Bowon classes I started attending abhidhamma discussions with Ajahn Sujin, and later worked with Mahasi Sayadaw-related meditation almost exclusively. Nowadays I seldom practice samatha/jhana meditation, though I haven't given it up entirely Satipatthana/vipassana can be practiced anytime, anywhere, while samatha/jhana meditation generally requires a quiet place, etc, and I fear once you need special atmosphere for your practice, you've effectively drawn a counter-productive line between your spirtual and wordly life. I find that many of the lay Thais that practice the Paknam/dhammakya method nowadays don't practice all that much sila, they sit around discussing their meditation attainments while getting smashed on Chivas (a phenom I previously thought was limited to western Buddhists ) Just my opinion ... it's all good.

I know, quoting Phra Vimalo and Phra Dhammapitaka was over the top, and showing actual images of the temple, terribly polemic.

Here's a fairly balanced look at the Dhammakaya cult:

Santisuda Ekachai

and for a more light-hearted look:

Slate

Can't resist one more photo, of Abbot Dhammachayo with a statue of himself and (fake?) gold bullion. And not all that unorthodox by Thai standards.

I really wish that the mainstream Sangha, or even just one temple, would use modern mass-marketing methods to attract young people to the core teachings and make them relevant, but I suppose the Sangha's "feudal" organization prevents that.

Getting back to my OP, what I was concerned about was the distortion of the Buddha's message to suit someone's conservative cultural agenda. I'm d@mn sure the Buddha didn't say anything about promiscious people coming back as gays or lesbians for 500 lives. Convention dictates that karmic results are closely related to karmic actions, so it's logical that a promiscious/unfaithful person would come back in another life as a prostitute or spouse of an unfaithful person, or even (from a Thai's perspective) have his genitalia severed. But this group is claiming that being gay is an appropriate result for those who are promiscious and immoral.

How quickly the moralists dispense with compassion and pass judgment on those who are different. And how ironic that if they didn't condemn gays, gays wouldn't have to suffer.

It seems Wat Thammakai and the Dhammakaya Foundation have been very successful at mass marketing, both in methodology and content, eg, teaching that there is a permanent atta (soul) that lives in nibbana for eternity (or put another way, nibbana contains atta, and Dhammakaya is also atta), a notion that has always worked well for the propagation of Mahayana Buddhism, relative to Theravada.

As Khun Sanitsuda's article mentions, you hear it said that among Dhammakaya followers Abbot Dhammachayo is regarded (or regards himself, the point isn't clear and it may be spurious) either as a reincarnation of Buddha or as a bodhisattva sent by Buddha to combat Black Dhammakaya, a sort of anti-Buddha atta locked in a long-lasting cosmic battle with White Dhammakaya, the 'good' atta.

I would agree, the apparent social agenda is more worrying than apparent/alleged deviations in Buddhist metaphysics and philosopy. Perhaps catering to latent homophobia is part of the marketing strategy?

Hope this is not seen as a tirade. I remember a year or two back when someone here posted questions about SGI/Nichiren scandals, to which I responsded with added info, an SGI devotee accused me of being a Satanic agent. And then buggered off, never to be seen in this branch again.

I must admit I fear the Dhammakaya Foundation could become Thailand's Soka Gakkai. In fact it'll probably never reach that point and the sect may fade into relative obscurity just as Santi Asoke did, after an initial decade or two of mass popularity. Then again Santi Asoke was never this big.

Stretched to 7 posts in which your arrogance is surpassed only by your ignorance. And all off topic too. You should grow up a bit mate. Try some Chivas.

...to which I responsded with added info, an SGI devotee accused me of being a Satanic agent. And then buggered off, never to be seen in this branch again

You sure do think an awful lot of yourself. That guy had the right idea.

Cya.

Wat Thammakai/Dhammakaya is perhaps the closest equivalent Thailand has to that huge Baptist church in Dallas, Texas, I forget the name but it's the one with the largest congregation of any church in America, has a few celebs in the crowd now and then, and lots of political connections (mostly in the Republican camp).

Wat Thammakai has the largest regular attendance of any temple in Thailand I believe, is hugely wealthy with endowments exceeding 50 billion baht, has political connections and favours interpretations of Theravada Buddhism that some would call aberrant. Temple literature allegedly (I haven't read any myself) keys advancement towards nibbana to donation size. The type of meditation they teach appears to be entirely limited to attaning jhanas (absorption states).

Here's a link to a BBC article about the abbot's being accused of embezzlement. I believe he was never sanctioned or convicted.

Wat Dhammakaya

Wat Thammakai has the largest regular attendance of any temple in Thailand I believe, is hugely wealthy with endowments exceeding 50 billion baht, has political connections and favours interpretations of Theravada Buddhism that some would call aberrant. Temple literature allegedly (I haven't read any myself) keys advancement towards nibbana to donation size. The type of meditation they teach appears to be entirely limited to attaning jhanas (absorption states).

Wat Dhammakaya

I am sorry that you have bought into the Press criticisms of Wat Dhammakaya without any genuine examination.

Nowhere does Wat Dhammakaya propose that progress to nibbana is keyed to donation size. That is utter nonsense. There is a lot of money there, and this, as anywhere attracts criticism, as everyone seems to know better how it should be raised/spent.

Dhammakaya meditation is not Jhana.

Wat Dhammakaya made some of the first advances towards ordination of women (about 4 years ago). They also have gotten massive numbers of people attentding their retreats - at the peak about 200 000 at a time. Few Thai temples genuinely try to get people to meditate rather than just tam boon. Few genuinely try to get 'devotees' to keep precepts. That is Dana, Sila, Bhavana - for 200 000 people at a time. And without charge.

They also have a tight vetting process for monks who want to remain monks .. it is not easy to get ordination there other than for a short period after which they must disrobe. All other Thai temples allow pretty much anyone to ordain and stay in robes if they choose. The list goes on, but I shalln't.

So what is the press on about then?

Nowhere does Wat Dhammakaya propose that progress to nibbana is keyed to donation size.

I didn't realise you knew so much about Dhammakaya - so have you read their literature regarding donations, etc? PA Payuttho is one of the people criticising Wat Dhammakaya for the (alleged) practice. Several expose-style features, both in English and in Thai, have also reported this.

Judging from the text camerata quoted, the WD clerics seem to know how many lives one will have according to specific acts (could be based on suttanta, I don't know).

From what I've read about Dhammakaya meditation technique - on the temple's own website as well as branch centres - it appears to be pure samatha with the objective of attaining jhana.

dhammakaya meditation

pathama magga jhana

They also have a tight vetting process for monks who want to remain monks .. it is not easy to get ordination there other than for a short period after which they must disrobe. All other Thai temples allow pretty much anyone to ordain and stay in robes if they choose.

There are quite a few monasteries around that are strict about ordination. A few I know because I've enquired myself include Wat U Mong, Wat Pa Nanachat, Wat Nong Pa Phong, Wat Thepsirin and Wat Bowon. I've only asked at about a dozen places so I assume there must be many more, even if it's not the majority. So I don't think Wat Dhammakaya can claim to be very exclusive or unique in that sense. At the risk of sounding cynical, I imagine with the proper donation, anyone can ordain at Wat Dhammakaya for as long as they like.

Phra Paisan Vimalo is another vocal critic.

A clean and orderly atmosphere is the first impression most visitors have about Wat Phra Dhammakaya, but it is the sacred that binds the large number of followers to this wat with tenacious faith. Besides its reputedly powerful miracles, its sacred is immanent and touchable. Its sacred is characterized by the Buddha's Dhammakaya and nibbana. Its nibbana and the Buddha's Dhammakaya are not only a permanent self (atta) but also perceivable like matter (having physical qualities like cold and soft). Moreover, ordinary people (that have not advanced in meditation) can have contact with the Buddha's Dhammakaya, through their "rice offering to Dhammakaya in nibbana" ceremony.

Vimalo

More from Phra Dhammapitaka (PA Payuttho):

Post

The link above might not work. I can't tell because for months now I've not been able to access the Post online, and I can't figure out why. The article appears in the 19 Feb 1999 issue, so if you can get into the Post archives you can find the article quoting Phra Dhammapitaka on how Wat Dhammakaya is selling 'indulgences' (to borrow a term from medieval Catholicism). Could all be wrong, and I wouldn't know the motives behind it.

Enough from me on the topic, though, it's all secondhand (albeit from sources I generally trust).

I've read Life as a Siamese Monk too, agree it's a must-read for westerners interested in modern Thai Buddhism. His descriptions of the jhana attainments were very lucid, I thought.

I'd almost forgot about it in this discussion, but I worked with this method at Wat Bowon in the 70s, as the Sangharaja was then teaching the Wat Paknam method (I believe Wat Bowon switched to the Mahasi Sayadaw method shortly after Khantipalo moved to Oz, but not sure). At home (in Thonburi then) I didn't have a crystal ball so was told to start with a candle flame instead. Under HH's and Phra Khantipalo's instruction I got far enough along that I could produce (if that's the correct word, instruction was mostly in Thai and HH used the Thai term สร้าง nimitta (meditation image) at will both inside and outside the body. Wherever I go in Thailand now, when meeting monks or laypeople who also practice this method, everyone cross-examines each other to compare how 'far up the ladder' we are.

Thais are often amazed that a foreigner has learned to สร้างอุคคหนิมิต (produce acquired meditation image), so one of the things I liked about Randall's book was that he demystifies it for the most part and shows how, taken step-by-step, it's not all that difficult (though I'm sure it varies from individual to individual). It seemed to me to be a fairly easy practice that anyone could train to do within a month or so, even meditating part time. Of course it is only considered the first stage, there's a lot more afterwards (attainments which Randall, as I recall, did reach).

Other than the side benefits like improved concentration at work, I couldn't see any insight or wisdom about the human condition, about dukkha, anicca or anatta developing with the practice. Contemporaneous with the Wat Bowon classes I started attending abhidhamma discussions with Ajahn Sujin, and later worked with Mahasi Sayadaw-related meditation almost exclusively. Nowadays I seldom practice samatha/jhana meditation, though I haven't given it up entirely Satipatthana/vipassana can be practiced anytime, anywhere, while samatha/jhana meditation generally requires a quiet place, etc, and I fear once you need special atmosphere for your practice, you've effectively drawn a counter-productive line between your spirtual and wordly life. I find that many of the lay Thais that practice the Paknam/dhammakya method nowadays don't practice all that much sila, they sit around discussing their meditation attainments while getting smashed on Chivas (a phenom I previously thought was limited to western Buddhists ) Just my opinion ... it's all good.

If that is not a tirade then its author needs to take a couple of aspirin and a very early night.

It really saddens me when I find so-called Buddhists tirading about how their system is so right, and others are for the dumb.

And if 4 posts worth is not enough to convince you, there is the final proof for the village idiot:

I find that many of the lay Thais that practice the Paknam/dhammakya method nowadays don't practice all that much sila, they sit around discussing their meditation attainments while getting smashed on Chivas

Gosh, consider me a convert.

There are jobs teaching subjects other than English. There are lots of international schools and uni's to apply to that teach in English medium. You can always teach English while you find your bearings and apply for jobs.

Also do not limit yourself to history. The level of education in the West is far superior to Thailand, and you might find yourself able to fill all kinds of teaching and managerial positions.

You can do your Phd here no problem. The intensity of study is far lower and you should be able to take it while you are workind full time (which is usually about 25 teaching hours per week) It will be far, far cheaper for you to do it here, and will also be useful in looking for futher work in Thailand if you want to stay here long term. There are a few good universities in and around Bangkok, including Culalongkorn, Mahidol, Thammasart, APEC ....

It will also likely be much more fun to finish your Phd here ... Though there are places that teach in English, you can also study in Thai medium - all universities will allow you to write everything in English, including taking exams, even if you are in a thai medium course (meaning you will need rudimentary Thai so that you can communicate with teachers and follow lectures .. )

There are leads if you google:

Yoga class sukhumvit area

I use the latest bit comet and it works very well. The file will play fine with VLCPlayer ... this free program plays just about everything. I have had this problem only once with BitComet, but the file played fine. There are also a couple of DivX repair programs called DivXRepair and DivXfix that work well.

I read that book .. it is a classic. Describing Thailand back in the 50's - he was the first western monk in Thailand. Though he failed somewhat at the end, the foundation he layed down blossomed years later under Ajahn Sumedho. If you google " Honourable Fathers " you can DL a PDF that covers a lot of the same people.

u can do a free, very good virus scan at Trend

http://www.trendmicro.com/en/home/global/enterprise.htm

look for the free virus scan. I have found trend to be excellent - other programs always show viruses where there are none. Trend will delete or fix the virusses, or else you can click on the virus name for instructions for removing the really nasty ones.

however, I too think that your problem is not a virus ...

Looking For Meditation Cause Or Group...

- The cause of meditation is to end suffering.

gotcha.

but the cause is suffering; the goal is to end suffering. Or is the cause the goal to end suffering?

Wat Thammakai has the largest regular attendance of any temple in Thailand I believe, is hugely wealthy with endowments exceeding 50 billion baht, has political connections and favours interpretations of Theravada Buddhism that some would call aberrant. Temple literature allegedly (I haven't read any myself) keys advancement towards nibbana to donation size. The type of meditation they teach appears to be entirely limited to attaning jhanas (absorption states).

Wat Dhammakaya

I am sorry that you have bought into the Press criticisms of Wat Dhammakaya without any genuine examination.

Nowhere does Wat Dhammakaya propose that progress to nibbana is keyed to donation size. That is utter nonsense. There is a lot of money there, and this, as anywhere attracts criticism, as everyone seems to know better how it should be raised/spent.

Dhammakaya meditation is not Jhana.

Wat Dhammakaya made some of the first advances towards ordination of women (about 4 years ago). They also have gotten massive numbers of people attentding their retreats - at the peak about 200 000 at a time. Few Thai temples genuinely try to get people to meditate rather than just tam boon. Few genuinely try to get 'devotees' to keep precepts. That is Dana, Sila, Bhavana - for 200 000 people at a time. And without charge.

They also have a tight vetting process for monks who want to remain monks .. it is not easy to get ordination there other than for a short period after which they must disrobe. All other Thai temples allow pretty much anyone to ordain and stay in robes if they choose. The list goes on, but I shalln't.

Wat Maha Taht have group practise 3 times a day ... morning, afternoon and evening. Goto Section 5. There is no teaching given in English though there is usually a Thai monk around who can speak English who can advise.

"The meditation cause is to end suffering." What's that Meadish??

I am sure there was a Thai on board one of them

Last year the Nation had a little section for teaching Thai to Johnny foreigner. They were teaching words and phrases for Songran festival; and at the bottom they had :

" Song Naam na ai hia ...... (use only with friends) "

Was this a forerunner of what we see today?

Wow ... and I thought things got heated in here form time to time.

I am really shocked (and amused ..) by what I just saw there.

you slimeballs complain about our Pla Raa (fermented fish) well smell your gorgonzola feet and anchovy anuses .....

was one of the more imaginative lines.

I'm off to look in my dictionary.

I wonder if this thread is not reifying truth.

In other words is it trying to concretise something inappropriately.

In other words is this thread trying to thingify the unthingifiable?

Even if you disagree you'll have to admit I've used some great words.

We agree, you have.

http://www.divx-digest.com/

http://www.doom9.org/

http://forum.videohelp.com/

easier guide for virtual dub

http://www.afterdawn.com/guides/archive/cu..._virtualdub.cfm

yes - I used to thank the song taew driver until a freind asked me why I did that. He said it was as if the driver had given me a free ride or something, and I should not say it.

I also observe that Thai's do not round off the conversation with a distinct ending or goodbye. They kind of just stop talking and move away.

I think it would be hilarious to see what would happen if I tried to open up a restaurant called "The Last Supper" where everyone sat at huge buffet-style tables, drank out of grails, and all the waiters dressed like apostles. Jesus would come over halfway through your meal and ask how everything was

I hope the OP sees the thread ... I found it unanswered from a couple of weeks ago.

To be absolutely safe, presuming you are not on a laptop (another poster who does not put in details !!!) take out your hard drive and put it in a different machine. Scan it with Trend PC cillin online virus scan - which is the only scanner that I have found that does not give false alarms.

http://www.trendmicro.com/en/home/global/enterprise.htm

If it finds a virus or malware, click on the name of it in the list, and it will link you to instructions of how to remove it. Some can be auto removed, others are much harder and you will have to print out the instructions and roll up your sleeves.

You can do this in your own machine too. There is a slight risk if it is a seriously malicious virus, of it wiping out your hard drives ... but not a significant risk in my experience. I have safely and easily removed malware a number of times. Usually these virus programs are after information, not trying to wipe your hard drive.