A Still Forest Pool: The Insight Meditation of Achaan Chah (Quest Book) [Paperback]

Achaan Chah (Author), Paul Breiter (Author), Ajahn Chah (Author), Jack Kornfield (Editor)

Book Description

Series: Quest Book | Publication Date: January 1, 2004

Buddhist master Achaan Chah spent years meditating in a forest monastery of Thailand. This remarkable book reflects his simple and powerful message as well as the quiet, joyful Buddhist practice of dhudanga, or "everyday mindfulness," with profound insights for the West.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Quest Books; 1st edition (January 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0835605973
• ISBN-13: 978-0835605977
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #104,951 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

57 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pay attention to this book., June 19, 2001

By 

"edelbisnovati" (Rocky Mountain Wilderness, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Still Forest Pool: The Insight Meditation of Achaan Chah (Quest Book) (Paperback)

Achaan Chah's teachings are like a breath of fresh air floating among some obscure and mystifying old texts. Some of his other books are available on the web at accesstoinsight.org for free, and anyone who is interested in getting a flavor of his teaching should read these.

The measure of any buddhist book meant for people who are practicing buddhists is whether it makes you want to get right back to meditation. This book is very inspiring in that regard. It's message is clear: (and I'm paraphrasing) "Put down this book! There are no answers in it! Go back to meditating!" He says this in a number of different ways, so it's hard to read more than a little bit of it at a time. It's good for when doubts about what you are doing arise. Or when you begin to feel distracted, and perhaps tempted to put your energies into trying to transform the world outside of yourself, or even into trying to transform yourself. Then, it makes you feel like you should stay on your path.

What I find most satisfying about this book is its directness and its deep wisdom about meditation practice. This isn't one of those new-age type buddhist meditation books; it doesn't harp incessantly on becoming one with the universe, and assume that you have already done so. This is buddhism at its finest--a repeated command to find out everything for yourself within yourself, to pay attention, to let it go. His entire teaching is summed up on page five: "Do not try to become anything. Do not make yourself into anything. Do not be a meditator. Do not become enlightened. When you sit, let it be. When you walk, let it be. Grasp at nothing. Resist nothing." Those of you who still remember the Beatles might see a similarity to their song: "There will be an answer. Let it be."

Achaan Chah was a monk in the Thai forest tradition, and perhaps the most famous one in the West. In case you are not familiar with the Thai Forest Tradition, it is a tradition that began in the late 1800's that combines the physical rigor of the Zen of the olden days, with strict observance of the precepts and some of the traditional "acetic" practices from the very olden days, such as receiving food by going on alms rounds, wandering in the most fearsome forests, and eating one meal a day. The Thai forest tradition emphasizes meditation for the development of calm and wisdom, as opposed to the study of texts, or other practices.

This book was admirably translated, and the selections carefully culled and arranged. It is one of those books that you will want to read very quickly at first, and then very slowly between times when you meditate, and also a book you will want to refer back to frequently. In my opinion, it is the only book you might really want to own if you are serious about "letting it be." Every time you feel like reading a book, it will tell you in a variety of ways, often warmhearted and humorous, that you are looking in the wrong place if you think there are any answers in books; or that if look for answers in a deliberate fashion, you will find any.

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Deep Forest Pool, April 24, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: A Still Forest Pool: The Insight Meditation of Achaan Chah (Quest Book) (Paperback)

Excellent for both the advanced practitioner and the novice. Rather than the usual obscure metaphors often used in Bhuddist teaching, Jack Kornfield conveys the wisdom of his teacher with clarity and depth. This is a book that can be merely read to obtain an idea of "what Buddhism is about", or it may be digested, chapter by chapter for a deep experience of the Dharma (Buddhist practice). I own and study many books, but if I could only keep one, it would be this one.

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Buddhism in the forests of Northern Thailand., January 31, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: A Still Forest Pool: The Insight Meditation of Achaan Chah (Quest Book) (Paperback)

This book is a highly readable, simple yet deep introduction to Buddhist life, practices and attitudes. It is anecdotal in style rather than systematic or comprehensive. It describes life in a remote forest monastery in Northern Thailand but always stays relevant to the everday life of a city dwelling westerner. Achaan Chah was one of the masters under whom Jack Kornfield practiced meditation. This book would make an ideal gift for someone interested to know about Buddhism but is also of value to someone already quite familiar with Buddhism. Its emphasis is constantly on the value of practice rather than too much intellectualising. I recommend it highly.