Venerable Sujiva is a Buddhist Theravada monk who has devoted his life to the meditational aspects of the Buddha's teachings. He donned the robes shortly after his university graduation in 1975. During his monastic training he practised under several meditation masters, including the Venerable Sayadaw U Pandita. Since residing in Santisukharama (Johor, Malaysia) in the early 1980s he has conducted numerous Vipassana retreats.

To calm the mind means to find the right balance. If you try to force your mind too much it goes too far; if you don't try enough it doesn't get there, it misses the point of balance. For most of us the mind is never at peace, it never have the solid enery of calmness.

It is a truism to say that nobody likes suffering and everybody seeks happiness. In this world of ours, human beings are making all possible efforts for prevention and alleviation of suffering and enjoyment of happiness. Nevertheless, their efforts are mainly directed to the physical well-being by material means. Happiness is, after all, conditioned by attitudes of mind, and yet only a few persons give real thought to mental development; fewer still practice mind-training in earnest.

Crimes are acts that are forbidden and punished by law; these acts may threaten the well- being of the society, or injure any of its members. People are most likely to commit a criminal act between the age of fifteen and twenty five years. Imprisonment is a method of dealing with people who commit crimes by confining them to a fortified boundary with certain strict rules for all - that is, the prison.

Throughout history, there have been numerous traditions of meditation and all of them are, in one-way or another, attractive to people of differing dispositions. Yoga, Kundalini, Transcendental Meditation, Sufi, Zen, Samatha, Vipassana, and Satipatthana are some examples.

Seekers of goodness who have gathered here please listen in peace. Listening to the Dhamma in peace means to listen with a one-pointed mind, paying attention to what you hear and then letting go. Listening to the Dhamma is of great benefit. While listening to the Dhamma we are encouraged to firmly establish both body and mind in samadhi, because it is one kind of dhamma practice.

In the world today, there is much confusion, ignorance and controversy about psychiatry, meditation and the relationship between the two. Health professionals and mental health professionals are not even clear about the scope of their own field of expertise. Neither do they have a clear understanding of exactly what meditation is. It is little wonder, then, that the common man is puzzled.

I began my meditation practice with mindfulness of breathing (anapana-sati) and cultivation of loving-kindness (metta-bhavana), two techniques widely practised by Theravada Buddhists in Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Burma.