About This Teaching
In this first-person account, Ajahn Jia describes his practice in the jungles of northern Chanthaburi in 1949. A vast, still awareness arose, and his body contemplation then ran on its own. He compares this to a folk doctor who knows exactly where to dig for roots. When his mind felt free and soaring, he did not trust it. He saw that it was like a wisp of cotton that floats only because air holds it up.
He moved into a cave in malaria country full of wild animals, fasting and going without sleep, and fell ill with fever. Watching an ever-finer breath sensation until it faded into complete stillness, awareness let go of body and mind. Ignorance was overturned, which he likens to a knockout punch to the champion of saṃsāra. He describes Nibbāna as a natural principle within everyone that only practice can reveal. He then expresses deep gratitude to his parents and to Ajahn Mun, who had polished the gold hidden in an old rag. Afterwards he returned to his duties as abbot and chose to stay silent about the attainment.