Introduction

The talks translated in this book were all taken from old cassette tape recordings of Venerable Ajahn Chah, some in Thai and some in the North-Eastern dialect, most recorded on poor quality equipment under less than optimum conditions. This presented some difficulty in the work of translation, which was overcome by occasionally omitting very unclear passages and at other times asking for advice from other listeners more familiar with those languages. Nevertheless there has inevitably been some editing in the process of making this book. Apart from the difficulties presented by the lack of clarity of the tapes, there is also the necessity of editing when one is taking words from the spoken to the written medium. For this, the translator takes full responsibility.

Pali words have occasionally been left as they are, in other cases translated. The criteria here has been readability. Those Pali words which were considered short enough or familiar enough to the reader already conversant with Buddhist terminology have generally been left untranslated. This should present no difficulty, as they are generally explained by the Venerable Ajahn in the course of the talk. Longer words, or words considered to be probably unfamiliar to the average reader, have been translated. Of these, there are two which are particularly noteworthy. They are Kamasukhallikanuyogo and Attakilamathanuyogo, which have been translated as Indulgence in Pleasure and Indulgence in Pain respectively. These two words occur in no less than five of the talks included in this book and although the translations provided here are not those generally used for these word, they are nevertheless in keeping with the Venerable Ajahn's use of them.

Venerable Ajahn Chah always gave his talks in simple, everyday language. His objective was to clarify the Dhamma, not to confuse his listeners with an overlog of information. Consequently the talks presented here have been rendered into correspondingly simple English. The aim has been to present Ajahn Chah's teaching in both the spirit and the letter.

In this third printing of A Taste of Freedom, a number of corrections have been made to clumsily worded passages, of which there are now hopefully less than in the first editions. For such inadequacies the translator must also take responsibility, and hopes the reader will bear with any literary shortcomings in order to receive the full benefit of the teachings contained herein.

The translator