Life as a Siamese monk [Import] [Paperback]

Richard RANDALL (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Aukana Publishing; 1st Ed. edition (1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0951176927
• ISBN-13: 978-0951176924
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,774,246 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect as an introduction to Buddhism, June 4, 2004

By 

mary (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Life as a Siamese monk (Paperback)

This was the first book on Buddhism I ever read. Since then I've read many more as a result of this book. I found that because it tells the story of a Westerner who becomes ordained a lot of my scepticism was mirrored in the initial stages of Richard Randall's experience. If you're curious about Buddhism this book will both quell the western sceptic in you, as well as give you a very down to earth account of what it means to walk the path. Personally it led me to want to learn what is meditation, what is mind, what is the self? Still looking for answers, but I highly recommend this book to anyone who feels drawn to Buddhism but isn't quite sure what it is.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a classic, February 3, 2006

By 

Narizdura La Carretera (El Lay, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Life as a Siamese monk (Paperback)

This is a must-read for any Westerner interested in Thai Buddhism. Randall's account of Wat Paknam-style jhana meditation is excellent.

However I think many Buddhists would agree that this style of meditation leads to the attainment of jhana (absorption states) but NOT enlightenment or nibbana. The latter comes only from satipatthana vipassana, as explained in the Maha-Satipatthana Sutra. Concentration techniques such as those taught by Ven Phra Mongkhon Thepmuni are valuable prepatory techniques for more advanced vipassana methods. They produce calm and concentration in a person, but not enlightenment.

2 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars the master of dhammakaya, September 1, 2000

By 

amphaporn (THAILAND) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Life as a Siamese monk (Paperback)

THE MONK,VENARABLE PRAMONGKOLTHEPMUNI,DISCVERED ABOUT DHAMMAKAYA SUBJECT THAT LOSS MORE THAN 2500 YEARS AGO. HE FOUND THE WAY OF ENLIGHTENMENT. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR HUMAN LIFE TO MEDIATE THEMSELEVES. I HAVE LOTS OF OPINION LATER I WILL WRITE YOU AGAIN SORRY I HAVE SOME JOB URGENT I THINK I INTERESTE IN THIS BOOK. THANK YOU SO MUCH