Knowledge is something that everyone believes is important to seek in order to lead to progress and success in life.
The story of learning and the acquisition of knowledge by Khun Ui – Natee Ekwichit also has a very interesting perspective on learning.
Curiosity is the beginning of learning for passing on.
Khun Ui – Natee Ekwichai, the image that we remember is his role as a rapper and member of the band Buddha Bless. Many people are familiar with him as someone who is interested in studying Dharma. If you look at him superficially, you might feel that his two sides are conflicting.
But in reality, Khun Uay has combined these two states very well and has used his knowledge and abilities to complement each other perfectly. As a person, Khun Uay uses Dhamma as a compass to guide his life, and as an artist, he makes his fans understand the rules of life through his words and inserted into his fun songs.
From his direct experience of learning about Dhamma through doubt and questioning, Khun Ui has proven it thoroughly and intends to use the opportunity to encourage the new generation to be curious and search for the meaning and answers of faith, just as he has done before.
Action is a process of understanding.
From the doubts in his mind, when he had the opportunity to prove it by seriously practicing, Mr. Ui found that he saw the difference between finding the answer by reading books to understand the theory and learning by doing clearly.
Khun Ui – told us that “I am a person who is very curious about this matter. But in the past, I found the answer from reading books and arguing with other people. I think it is a learning method that uses a lot of energy but has little result. Until I started to practice, I started to explore both body and mind from actual practice. It made me understand the answer that I was curious about a lot more than when we sat and argued. Because before, we understood through our thoughts. But after practicing, we understand from direct experience too.
We know how to observe the feelings in our hearts, observe what happens to our bodies, observe what comes in and causes reactions in our bodies and minds that we’ve never seen before. When we have a way to learn to observe these things, we can find answers to many of our questions,” Ui told of his learning experiences, adding that in his life, he learned from doubts and suffering. If he thought logically, doubts were a form of suffering. Therefore, he had always sought ways to end suffering in his life by constantly seeking knowledge.
“Knowledge is all around us. We can learn every day.”
“For me, learning happens all the time. It’s not just in the classroom or sitting and talking to someone. When we are alone and quiet, we can learn. And the best learning is when we are suffering. It depends on whether we let that suffering go to waste or whether we use it as a lesson to learn about our own lives, to understand our feelings in order to face the next experience or suffering.”
The more you give, the more you get. Knowledge must be passed on so that others can benefit.
In addition to learning and creating changes in himself, moreover, the teachings of Buddhism also make Khun Ui happy from seeking the value of life. He uses the Dharma as a tool to determine the value in his role as an artist who entertains people through music, hoping that the recipients of his message will also learn and create changes for themselves as well.
Khun Ui – said, “I think that all types of art can teach the Dharma because I have received good encouragement and good ideas from listening to music and watching movies. So I thought that if we can put good ideas into our work, it would be a good thing.” He talked about how he tried to convey his thoughts and experiences into the lyrics he wrote.
Khun Ui said that once he was invited to join a discussion on the topic of Dhamma on a television program, which made people in society know him from another perspective, apart from being a rapper. Since then, the owner of the yellow symbol of the three-color rap group said that his life has changed a lot from before. New groups of people began to greet him more. There were more new forms of work coming in, especially interviews talking about Dhamma.
“This kind of work is something I am very happy to do because it gives meaning to my life, especially speaking to young people in schools and universities about religion. Doing these activities makes me feel very valuable. It has changed my life quite a bit. It has made me realize that I can do more than just sing for entertainment, work to support my parents, or find other pleasures to pamper myself.”
Khun Ui said that many high school and college students have come to consult him saying that they do not want to believe in any religion. What Ui, as someone who has experienced this period, does is talk to these students to learn about the rules and nature of life in order to help them understand themselves better. Ui believes that it is important to learn about yourself thoroughly before choosing to believe in something or not?
“Most of them will ask if it is a sin if they do not have a religion? Why do people think that people who do not believe in any religion are bad people? So I told them that it is good that you have not chosen to believe in anything yet. Because if you have not studied well, there is no need to say what religion you are. It is just a label to tell others. What is more important than labeling your religion is how you behave. Even if you say you believe in a certain religion, if your actions are completely opposite, it is not good. On the contrary, people who say they do not have a religion but are not selfish, and do things with consideration for others, such people will suffer less and cause less trouble to society. Therefore, do not worry about how people will view us if we do not have a religion. What you should do is thoroughly study each religion and weigh it with your own judgment. People can change all the time. At 15 years old, people’s thoughts can be completely opposite at 30 years old. I think the important thing is not whether we have a religion but how we behave,” said Uey, who said that his advice has often made the children he has had the opportunity to talk to feel more relaxed.
“The new generation is at an age where they need reasons to do something,” said Khun Ui. “So you have to make assumptions and experiment to find the answer. Because if you say you don’t believe it from the beginning, you are a superstitious person because you haven’t tested it and haven’t learned anything. If you say you don’t believe it, it’s no different from someone who believes without studying or learning. Both are superstitious.”
Change must start from small corners.
Understanding the rules of nature is the most important keyword in learning the inner self of Khun Ui.
“Many people may think that this must be about Dharma or religion, but I don’t think so. This is a natural thing. No matter what religion we practice, whether we are Buddhist, Christian or Muslim, we all suffer from the same things: love, greed, anger and delusion. I think that truly understanding the rules of life will make us suffer less. I want to pass on this idea in my work,” Ui said about his duty to society, and he believes that what he conveys can create change in people who are ready.
“I think the things we are interested in, even though they may seem difficult to understand at first, if we are really interested, we are ready to learn. But if we are not interested in those things, no matter how easy they are, they will just be boring. So you have to wait until one day you are interested in this. Sometimes it may be a day when you are suffering in your life or not.”
Ui said that he did not expect that what he was trying to do would have a great impact, but if it could create a change for someone for the better, then he considered himself successful in his efforts.
“Some young people have told me that after listening to me, they tried practicing Dhamma, which helped them become more mindful. Or some people said that listening to my songs made them feel better. I think that we don’t have to change society in a big way. Just being able to make one person change their mind in a good way is a very great success for me. Just this gives me the motivation to continue working.”
“But if these people can pass on good ideas to others in the future, it would be a really good thing,” said Uei – Natee Ekwichit, talking about the changes he would like to see.
The story references an interview with Ui – Natee Ekwichit.
From the Transformative Learning Project
Supported by the Health Promotion Foundation (ThaiHealth) (สสส.)
For more articles about the Transformative Learning Project, please visit:
Khun Pan – Thanaporn Waekprayoon On the day we are successful, have money, are famous, but we do not find happiness.
