khunlungphudhu

Some how........I doubt it!

Had some dealings with the staff at Lunar House myself a few years back. After about a dozen frustrated phone calls, demanded I speak with a native English person.

Request granted, very politely, and it turned out that at that time there were only two people among a staff of three hundred or so that answered that description.

They were the two 'heads', I got number two, and she was there only temporarily it seems!

Have wondered ever since if maybe Thailand would give me a job on their immigration if I managed to sneak in somehow!

hi lao pao

yes, there are but most are doing packaged hotel/travel things OR are younger then 31 yrs. of age backpacker types that get cheaper tickets (dont know if this is done in other countries but here it is for the after army set that do the round the world to india etc for a year, they are all between 22 yrs and 30--)

Bina, consider ALL options including 'flight+hotel packages', over the years I have found many such packages much cheaper than flight only, and you do not have to stay in any hotel, so a Bankok flight/hotel trip could well suit.

Thailand's Songkran water festival death toll continues to rise

Thirty-four provinces, including Bangkok, have been casualty-free so far.

--TNA 2006-04-09

No casualties in 34 provinces, including Bangkok????

Reckon all the bad ones have gone north!

This sounds extremely tolerant to me......

This is to be done by one skilled in aims

who wants to break through to the state of peace:

Be capable, upright, & straightforward,

easy to instruct, gentle, & not conceited,

content & easy to support,

with few duties, living lightly,

with peaceful faculties, masterful,

modest, & no greed for supporters.

Do not do the slightest thing

that the wise would later censure.

Think: Happy, at rest,

may all beings be happy at heart.

Whatever beings there may be,

weak or strong, without exception,

long, large,

middling, short,

subtle, blatant,

seen & unseen,

near & far,

born & seeking birth:

May all beings be happy at heart.

Let no one deceive another

or despise anyone anywhere,

or through anger or irritation

wish for another to suffer.

As a mother would risk her life

to protect her child, her only child,

even so should one cultivate a limitless heart

with regard to all beings.

With good will for the entire cosmos,

cultivate a limitless heart:

Above, below, & all around,

unobstructed, without enmity or hate.

Whether standing, walking,

sitting, or lying down,

as long as one is alert,

one should be resolved on this mindfulness.

This is called a sublime abiding

here & now.

Not taken with views,

but virtuous & consummate in vision,

having subdued desire for sensual pleasures,

one never again

will lie in the womb.

The Karanitta sutra(sp?)

There are many other translations, but so far have found no contradictions.

It is truly unfortunate that that same tollerance is not applied in so many other phylosophies.

Just watch this space!!!!

If it continues it will be a first!

khunlungphudhu, I love your avatar, any significance?

(ps in a vain hope to re-start the thread! is this CPR for a thread?)

As previously posted, time I have anything written, the thread is usually closed.

So appropriate in the circumstances!

Just watch this space!!!!

If it continues it will be a first!

I went to LOS the first time because I was ordered to go, by the British Army no less, the second time, still with the Army, to get married to the girl I met the first time.

Forty years and two Thai wives later, still visiting and loving it even more all the time.

Always something new to see or do every time!

Hoping to give up the travelling this year tho, at that end!

Initially stationed there in the sixties, have been visiting as and when I could ever since.

It has taken me forty years to overcome this 'problem'!

This year I chose to visit over New Year, knowing that the children would be off school for only a few days and that all the grown ups would be busy.

Using my nephew's pick-up, I wandered a little further than I should have and was very late getting back, so, at five p.m. sharp, my mobile rings.

'Where are you?' 'You go where?' 'Have you eaten?' etc. etc. My answer to all was 'Don't know!'

They kept on ringing me at regular intervals until I rolled through the gate at eleven p.m.

It was no doubt, cruel, but they have at last learnt that 'Uncle' is a big boy now and can go out alone without getting lost, starving to death or worse!

Ah freedom! Wonderful!

And we all enjoy each others company even more.

Had two TWs!

Do I get two votes?

Niether came through any agency though!

I liked what one poster said about being a solitary adherent, this is what I've always seen myself as. Being a solitary adherent is OK when things are going well, but with dark clouds looming on the horizon, I struggle to adhere to anything except the beckoning call of Mara's daughters.

I'm certainly not qualified to advise on resisting Mara's daughters but I remember John Blofeld wrote that his Chinese (Mahayana) friends in the 1930s told him we aren't supposed to torment ourselves with abstinence, rather we should get married and work on the gradual reduction of lust through meditation.

Camerata friend, been there, done that......and believe me.......it works!

Solitary adherant, do not post often,(usually stick my foot in my mouth when I do!) but read posts regularly and with great interest. Probably one of the liveliest Buddhist forums around.

Welcome.

I have spent the last five years living in an old people's sheltered housing complex, in the UK, looking after my father, and, when other residents remarked how good I was for him, he would say 'It is something he picked up from Thai culture!'

I think that it must be about 95 per cent of the residents here that pass away feeling forgotten and unwanted, out of sight, out of mind.

Is it any wonder that I hope to spend my last days with my Thai family, who are queing up to look after uncle? and they do know I have no money!

Thought I had read somewhere that Skype is illegal in LOS?

Anti-inflamatory............time the flamer has it spelt right the fire has gone out!

Otherwise just a mix of me and what I do.

The cries of disbelief from the young!

Wisdom does come from age!

I have been celebate now for five or more years. My age helped, though I am not too old to change, but being surounded by eighty year old wrinklies makes life so much easier, LOL!

And I still believe I am more likely to die from tobacco addiction than 'internal poisoning'.

Being celebate, through choice, I have found my life to be so very much easier I doubt that I will go back to being 'active' again.

So few problems it's unbelievable.

Sir, would you have consider celibacy when you were half your age?

It would be a challenge to quit at the prime of life.

No, I was then too attached to the prosect of leaving an heir!

And please do not think I am knocking the young, I loved every moment of being so.

The cries of disbelief from the young!

Wisdom does come from age!

I have been celebate now for five or more years. My age helped, though I am not too old to change, but being surounded by eighty year old wrinklies makes life so much easier, LOL!

And I still believe I am more likely to die from tobacco addiction than 'internal poisoning'.

Being celebate, through choice, I have found my life to be so very much easier I doubt that I will go back to being 'active' again.

So few problems it's unbelievable.

I don't know about the specifics you raise, however, I have one point that always occurs to me when thinking about celibacy.

Surely being celibate 'increases' your sexual cravings?

Celibacy, as with sexual prowess, gets easier with practice.

As with most things, practice makes perfect.

Yes,That sounds like the place.

She did mention that its up/near Doi Inthanon which as it happens I have never visited ...yet.

Also like the idea of it being a retreat for stressed out womenfolk, could be in for a good hol...

A large meditation centre to the rear of the Wat, English speaking instructors as well, could even book yourself in if you wanted(?)

When I visited in January the Wat was undergoing extensive re-furbishment, could be completed by now, but hardly condusive to good meditation I would have thought.

In my teens was a tweeny, could not decide to be a mod or a rocker,

eventually decided to just drop out

and joined the British Army!

Well......

It is keeping me out of trouble while I try....

Well I think I have, just can't really remember!

At my age I reckon I have been there, done it all!

Wish I could somehow remember some of it!