Because of helping the old and sick people as much as we can in our meditation center. Many old and sick people in the society can stay in the center without stress, worry, depression. We are also helping them to get the same benefits. Besides, more and more old and sick people in the society are supporting us. If we ignore them, they will also reject or ignore us. Because of taking care of them, they are also taking care of us. That makes Thabarwa centers to be stable and stronger. We protect their life. That’s why they protect Thabarwa centers again. Because Thabarwa center is their home, so they take care of the center. Full-time meditation centers are also easy to stay, so they can also take care of the center. The more we help the people, the stronger the Thabarwa center becomes. In this way, Thabarwa center became an international social organization. It is because of the professionals and volunteers to the old and sick people. With this right understanding, I decided to buy the nursing home in Vietnam. The owner has already done construction details, so we just need to solve her financial problem, then use it in the best way by helping the most needed people in Vietnam. If we do that, TNC Vietnam will be cooperating with other social organizations. One nursing home is connected with other social organizations in Vietnam. Therefore, the loss of this nursing home is the loss of social organizations in Vietnam. Doing for oneself is force, but doing for the others is better. Doing for the Truth is the best, so we should try to do all. Nursing home project in which we are able to support the social activities in Vietnam and social organizations in Vietnam. In this way, they will also support us. If we are not supporting them, they will not support us. This is cause and effect. The more we support the people who are in need of help in Vietnam, support organizations like this nursing home when they need our help; the more help we get from other organizations in Vietnam in the future. It will be the cause of the stability and development of Thabarwa Center Vietnam.
Trying hard by ourselves is not enough. We have been doing by ourselves for nearly 2 years and haven’t had much chance to support the organization like this. Now we have this chance, that is really great. If we don’t take this opportunity, we can miss great results. Besides, we will be helpless when we are in need of help like this nursing home. Although we don’t have spare money, we have the system of doing good deeds together. That’s why now we are using the 10-dollars project for the nursing home. Many people are interested in and they are cooperating with us as they can. We just let the people know the correct information about the nursing home. And then we let the people know about our decision: “We are doing like this. It is good to do. You can cooperate with us!”. That’s all. It is easy to reject and to accept. We just need to share this message to more and more people in the society and in the world. Now it is working steadily, I also did the same for the Southern Italy Thabarwa center. We have difficulty to change the piping systems for the heaters and cooking to use gas. Changing the whole piping system of the center costs about 5000 Euro. so I have written about it to establish the situation, the good points, weaknesses. I announced it to a Burmese, she is also traveling to many countries. She likes Italy and interested in the Italy center. She has got my bank account and donated 5000 Euros 3 days ago. This is the way I collect, only one Euro per person. But most European are not used to donate like this, so it is not working very well in Europe, but we use Myanmar language also. That’s why we can find a suitable donor for the Italy center. This is useful to solve the problems of every organization.
I also have experience with the people who are working for their families. They have problems in finance but the business in the country and in the world is not good, so it is difficult to survive. Therefore, it is better to do good deeds more and more instead of paying attention to business. I suggest them and I cannot lend the money to them. But in several cases, I can give them some of the amount for free, no need to give back to solve apart of the problems only. If It is better to lend the amount, we should do it. Only if we can lose that amount because it is not sure to pay back, the debt is not sure. Because I’m also solving many problems concerned with Thabarwa center, I know very well about it. I also have many experiences with those who are in trouble by receiving loans from others to help other people. When they cannot give back they are in trouble. That is really difficult to solve and it is better to guide them to do good deeds and detach from those problems. That is about the laws and regulations. If we cannot payback for the debt and if we can accept that punishment, it is OK. Because of do not dare to accept the punishment, we are in trouble. If we cannot pay back, we should take it. Even if they cannot pay back their amount, we must dare to take punishment. That is right to do, but most of the people in the society cannot accept losing their belongings and getting punishment. Therefore, they are making mistakes again and again. If we are working for money, we cannot avoid the people who are working from money. If we can let go of the job, we can deal with the people who are working for the others and working for the Truth. In this way, we can stay away from the people who are working for money and for themselves. That’s why letting go or abandoning business is really useful to solve not only our problems but also the others’.
Now I can successfully guide the people in the society how to solve their problems, how to detach, how to let go, how to accept the Truth, what is best. It really works. It is better for us to be busy with this kind of teaching and job. It is difficult to understand my way of using the money, using the people, using the place, using the time because it is practical and necessary. It is beyond limit and beyond understanding. That’s why it is difficult to be satisfied, to support me and Thabarwa centers by volunteering, by donating, by cooperating with us. It used to be like this because we are doing beyond the limits. We are also doing within limits. Most of the people in Thabarwa centers are doing within limits. Only a few are doing beyond limits, but we are together. For those who are grasping only what they understand and what they can do, they cannot accept it. Those who are staying in the center can accept doing beyond limit although they cannot do. That’s why we can work together for a long time. It is nature and we cannot change. When we are doing traditionally, many people who are doing like us will be satisfied, but we cannot be satisfied. If we go beyond the tradition when we do good deeds, we can be satisfied, but the others who are not doing like us cannot be satisfied. Therefore, we need to choose one whether we will fulfill the need of the others or ourselves. But most people are working for the others, they are not working for themselves actually. Because they are taking care too much of the others, they are living by the opinions of the others’ views. They don’t understand living with the right view, right understanding, right action. If we are able to rely on our own right view and action, we don’t need to rely on others’ views. We cannot make others be satisfied without doing by themselves like us. We solve this problem, we establish more and more new Thabarwa center around the world. This is the best way we can do now.
When we practice traditionally, many people and many meditators will agree: “You are doing in the right way and you will be satisfied”. But the problem is we cannot be satisfied. We emphasize on the method: “This is right to do. We must do like this!”. Because of grasping like this. The mind is not free from greed, angers, worries. That’s why we cannot be satisfied. If we try to be doing-only which is beyond limits, the other meditators may not be satisfied because they cannot understand and they cannot accept. They may think it is possible, in this way, they may not satisfy. But we are not grasping anything in the mind. That’s why we can be satisfied. If we think something in the mind, there will be worries, fears, greed, delusion. If we remove something and someone, time, place from the mind, the mind will be free. Thabarwa centers are useful to teach people detaching from their home, job, family and to do good deeds freely. Thabarwa center is really useful to teach them lessons of detachment from their own family, belongings practically. And also to be able to do good deeds freely; to be professionals, volunteers, and meditators. We are not destroying the family life, business in society. We are just fulfilling the need of the power of mindfulness and detachment of the society.
Elli Askew transcribes