A Special Smile

The Venerable Webu Sayadaw had many photographs and video taken of him during this lifetime, and in most of them one can almost see how he continues to be aware of his in-breath, out-breath... this picture is a rare one, showing the great monk in the midst of a smile. Although blurry, one can see the gentle warmth, the ease, the wisdom, the compassion...

And that is not all, this photo has a deeper history. The photograph was shared by a senior teacher in the Sayagyi U Goenka tradition. Many years earlier, he relays how he gifted a copy of this photograph to U Goenka himself, who liked it so much that it remained in the frame, on his desk, so that the great lay meditation teacher could be inspired by this monk every time he sat down.

May this also inspire the practice of many meditators out there seeking full liberation.