Have you ever felt like you’re just... spiritual window shopping? It is a familiar experience—moving restlessly from one mindfulness app to another, searching for an immediate flash of enlightenment, yet inevitably returning to the beginning with an incessant internal monologue. In a world that’s constantly yelling at us to move faster and promote the newest "quick solution" for mental tranquility, it can be profoundly fatiguing. Our preoccupation with achieving a breakthrough often causes us to neglect the present moment.
It is because of this that the narrative of Sayadaw U Kundala stands out. He was not an instructor who sought out public fame or seeking widespread popularity. He was an authentic practitioner—a calm and unwavering figure who didn't feel the need to fill the air with fancy words. For those seeking a brief path to peace, his guidance would not suffice. Rooted securely in the classic Mahāsi Vipassanā system, his core teaching focused on the very thing we tend to escape: staying in place.
The simplicity of his methodology is striking, despite appearing challenging initially. He did not encourage students to "decorate" their meditative experience or to simulate tranquility while their physical sensations were quite difficult. It was just: rising, falling, walking, aching. It was a practice free from embellishment or psychological exit strategies. He guided individuals in the art of remaining with discomfort and confronting it squarely. There is a profound courage in that approach, wouldn't you agree? In certain ways, his quietude carried more weight than any inspiring lecture.
The reality is that we are saddhammaramsi sayadaw conditioned toward constant activity —adding new techniques, trying new rituals— that we ignore the potency of reducing everything to the basics. Sayadaw U Kundala’s core message could be summarized as: cease the attempt to "improve" yourself and focus on being more aware. He would explain that wisdom grows at its own pace, similar to the ripening of fruit. It is impossible to accelerate the ripening of a peach through sheer will, isn't it? It requires its own natural duration, and the practice of meditation follows the same law. It calls for an unusual, striking mixture of persistent effort and profound humility.
Ultimately, it becomes clear that genuine spiritual commitment is not found in some spectacular or sweeping life renovation. It is a much more minute and, in some ways, more demanding task. It’s choosing to be sincere even when you’re bored. It is the act of opting to observe your chaotic internal states instead of using a mobile phone as a means of avoidance.
Sayadaw U Kundala might not have left behind a "brand" or a loud legacy, but he left something much better: a reminder that the quiet path is often the one that actually leads somewhere. Each inhalation, every footstep, and every minor irritation serves as a potential doorway to insight. The path is not always aesthetic, and it is undoubtedly not a quick one, yet there is true spiritual freedom in the choice to finally... end the constant striving.
I am interested to know, does the notion of "slow-growing" wisdom align with your present experience, or do you find yourself caught in the modern desire for a rapid breakthrough?