If you can understand Thai ... some good stuff here.

[fabianfred]

I have always been an avid reader, and when i first started living in Chiangmai I used to visit the DK bookshop often, and always checked out the Buddhism section. I found a book called 'Fruit of Karma'...and it changed my life..

from my review on Amazon... http://www.amazon.com/Fruit-Karma-Sudassa-Onkom/dp/9748303292/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1388017548&sr=1-1&keywords=fruit+of+karma

It gave me a deeper understanding of Buddhism, Karma and Meditation, and led me to go and study meditation at the actual temple in the book- in Thailand. The Thai author is a doctor of philosophy and teaches Buddhism at University level. She has been a student and devoted follower of Luang Por Jaran for over twenty years. 'Fruit of Karma' is the first 20 chapters of her original Thai text 'All beings fare according to their karma' which was started in 1987 and grew to 80 chapters in all. It is a work of Faction, or the novelisation of a few years in the life of Luang Por Jaran, a Thai Buddhist monk and Abbot of a temple in Central Thailand. He teaches Vipassana meditation and copes with the daily problems of his local community, besides having to suffer the Fruit of his own heavy Karma. As a result of his many years of practising he has some unusual abilities; able to read minds and 'see' peoples past, present and future karma. This helps him advise those who come with problems. All set in a background of everyday life in Thailand.
More of this story has been written in Thai, and awaits translation.

..........

I read it very quickly and then realised that it would be a long time before any more was translated. Although my Thai was quite good, my reading wasn't, but I got the original Thai book and started on it. It was hard going at first but my Thai improved rapidly and each time I read it it got easier. I also wrote to the author and discovered that there was an actual temple called Wat Amphawan at Singhburi where LP Jaran was. In the book the author tried at first to disguise the location by calling it Wat Pah mamuang.

The author later managed to translate another 20 chapters and published it combined with the first 20 under a new title

'Views Through a Temple Window'... and under a different name of her own Suchitra Ronruen

http://www.amazon.com/Through-Temple-Window-Suchitra-Ronruen/dp/9748239667/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1388017771&sr=1-1&keywords=view+through+a+temple+window

Presently it is published as Fruit of Karma -part 1 and I doubt if part 2 , the remaining 40 chapters, will ever get done.

This first book of hers 'Sat Lok yorm pen pai tarm gam' (สัตว์โลกย่อมเป็นไปตามกรรม) starts when LP Jaran is the abbot and ends when he has an auto accident, which he believes will end his life. She later wrote two prequels called 'makaliphon' (มักกะลีผล) and 'Nariphon' (นารีผล) and later two sequels called 'Wat Jakr chiwit' (วัฏจักรชีวิต) and 'kwarm long nai songsarn' (ความหลงในสงสาร).

Makaliphon starts when he is a boy living with his grandma and ends with him as a young monk, having studied with LP Sodt (Wat Pak nam) and LP Derm (Nakorn Sawan) and learning vipassana at Wat mahathat BKK.

Nariphon continues with him being appointed as temp, then full, abbot of Wat Amphawan, Singhburi... and ends by bringing us up to where 'Sat lok..' started.

The last two continue from where 'Sat Lok..' left us.

These are all written in a novelised style, so they are very easy to digest and entertaining, but all the events described are fact. One is entertained, and also learns much about karma, vipassana, and every aspect of a monk's life in thailand.

He was appointed temp abbot of Wat Amphawan in the year 2500 (1957). to give an idea of the period written about.

I started to go on 7 day retreats to Wat Amphawan whilst living in Chiangmai and that was my introduction to vipassana, but I had already got much ground work from the books.

Even if you cannot read Thai at all, or very well, there are sets of the books on mp3 which are read out like talking books. if your Thai is good enough to understand 50% then you will be able to enjoy, and improve your Thai too.

Perhaps the first title which was written first, 'Sat lok', would be the place to start to get a feeling for the works, even though it eventually became the third of a five book set.

for makapiphon download from here.. https://archive.org/details/Makareephon

or here.. http://audio.palungjit.org/f22/%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B5%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%AD%E0%B9%88%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B5%E0%B8%9C%E0%B8%A5-%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%9E%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%98%E0%B9%8C%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%94%E0%B8%A2-%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B8%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B2-%E0%B8%AD%E0%B9%88%E0%B9%88%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%84%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%A1-4593.html

for Nariphon here... http://multimedia.buddhistthaipost.com/index.php/thai/2012-12-26-11-35-8/item/49-%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B5%E0%B8%9C%E0%B8%A5-%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%94%E0%B8%A2-%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B8%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B2-%E0%B8%AD%E0%B9%88%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%84%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%A1

or here... http://www.fungdham.com/book/sutassa-nareepon-old.html

[hookedondhamma]

I actually read a book by LP Jaran, but it used his Ecclesiastical name instead of his well know name. It was extremely inspiring and I read it several times.

Whenever I heard about LP Jaran I looked him up and found it was the same monk whose book I had read.

There's a website which has a few of his talks and some essays/transcription s of his talks. The only thing is one must know thai to be able to read it and or listen to it.

As of now I am currently making requisites in Isaan but plan on making a trip to his temple very soon.

There are many monastic circles in thailand which speak of this monk or that, but LP Jaran was monk that I had to find out about on my own. His style is wonderful and if you can read thai, you can see how things were back in the times when he ordained.

Edited December 26, 2013 by hookedondhamma

[fabianfred]

Some people's Thai is good enough to listen and understand but not to read so the mp3 are useful there..

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