Hi Dharma Overground, Great Website!

I'd like to make people aware of my website Immediate Mind I teach in the UK predominantly Northampton and in South East Asia, Koh Samui here is a link to the website which provides some more information and below is a bit of history about my meditation experience.

I'm looking forward to making friends with like minded people who share a similar interest in meditation.

2009 to Present United Kingdom Ajahn Chah Tradition Thai Theravadan.

2009 Thailand – October until November: Wat Pha That Phanom Nakhon Phanom.

2008 Thailand – August until September Lay student Wat Nathon Temple, Koh Samui, Itinerant Chapter Vipassana Meditation Training Pali chanting.

2006 Thailand – February until December Lay student Wat Doi Suthep Rajavoraviham Temple, Chang Mai Formal Monastic and Meditation.

2004 Thailand - June until July Lay student International Meditation Centre. Formally educated in Vipassana & Anapanasati within a Theravada Tradition Dhammadana Foundation.

2004 Thailand - March until April Lay student Wat Suan Mokkh Monastery, Surat Thani, Chaiya, Thailand.

Hi, welcome to the DhO! Nice to see a fellow Brit here...



Do you define enlightenment as the attainment of Jhana?

What are your own attainments?

Hi, Bagpuss The Gnome, thank you for your welcome to the DhO. very nice to meet you.

To answer your questions

Do you define enlightenment as the attainment of Jhana? No not exactly, I'll explain why, the initial front page of the website is written/directed towards a mainstream audience, who may have little knowledge of meditation, its aim is to inform people that there is more to be achieved through the practice of meditation than is generally known by the mainstream.

The familiar terms of Enlightenment, Awakening and full Realization have been used, I believe the audience may have some concept of these terms and as a consequence become inspired to investigate the benefits of meditation.

What are your own attainments?

The initial experience occurred prior to actually doing any research into meditation (me completely clueless), I just turned up at a Retreat Centre and followed the Monk's advice, somewhat cynically "I'll be honest" and things just unfolded naturally.

Meditation or what little I'd heard about it seemed to be the right way to go for me, I could see I was behind a lot of my "suffering" I just needed to be shown a way out. I don't know where this puts me on the level of attainments.

I would be interested in hearing yours and other people's take on this, do you define enlightenment as the attainment of Jhana? And what specifically is your definition of enlightenment, I know people's definitions vary.

Do you subscribe to a specific model of attainment, and where would you place yourself on this current level?