Luang Por Kasem Khemako (หลวงพ่อเกษม เขมโก)
Experience his grace?
Luang Phor Kasem's teachings focused primarily on the practical application of the Dhamma through rigorous discipline, simplicity, and renunciation. His life embodied the core Buddhist values of ethical conduct (Sila), meditation (Samadhi), and wisdom (Panna). Key aspects of his teachings and life example include: Impermanence (Anicca), Unsatisfactoriness (Dukkha), and Non-Self (Anatta): He lived the Dhamma as it arose and faded away in the sequence of the Tilakkhana (the three characteristics of all phenomena), emphasizing the true nature of reality. Contentment and Detachment: He taught that a true forest monk requires no possessions, demonstrating this by giving away any gifts he received from laypeople to other monks. He viewed a pillow as a luxury, stressing the importance of being contented with little. Self-Reflection and Inner Practice: He once stopped delivering public sermons, stating: "Just being busy going around to teach others, wasting their money. Never even teaching oneself. From now on I have to teach myself". This highlights his emphasis on personal practice and the internal path to enlightenment. Metta (Loving-Kindness): He practiced Phae Metta (sending Metta offerings) to people who made offerings to him. Karma and Forgiveness: He was involved in making merit to break curses related to past injustices, teaching about the cause and effect of karma and the importance of forgiveness. His life and practices continue to inspire devotion, and his amulets are highly sought after due to the belief in his psychic abilities and the power of his blessings.
Biography
Royal Lineage and Renunciation: Born into the Tipchak dynasty, a former royal lineage of Lampang, he renounced a life of luxury to pursue the monastic path.Monastic Life: He became a novice monk in 1925 and was ordained at the age of 21 in 1933. He practiced Vipassana meditation and was a "forest monk" (thudong), living an austere, solitary life in the wilderness, unattached to any fixed place.
Ascetic Practices: His life was marked by extreme self-discipline. He:
Slept without a pillow, often in a full prostrate position at his meditation spot.
Owned only essential items: an alms bowl, his robe, and a piece of human bone for meditation practice.
Reportedly ate only to keep his body alive, not for pleasure, and sometimes went without food for as long as 49 days.
Bathed only once a year but never had an unpleasant body odor.
Lived without a shelter or mosquito net in the cemetery (Sussan Trai Laksana) but was never bitten by mosquitoes.
Passing: He passed away on January 15, 1996, at the age of 84. His body did not decay as ordinary human remains do and is on display in a glass coffin at the Sussan Trai Laksana cemetery, a testament to his spiritual attainment and a source of inspiration for devotees.