# Sudhamma's flood jhāna and the laser eyes

- Teacher: Ajahn Brahm
- Type: Story
- URL: https://beingmindfulstories.com/stories/brahm-sudhamma-flood-laser-eyes
- Themes: psychic powers, meditation, jhana, royalty
- Life situations: hearing extraordinary claims, meditation experiences

## Synopsis (editorial summary)

A Thai princess friend (married to a man from Brahm's school) told him about Indonesian monk Sudhamma at Wat Pho: after 7–8 days in deep jhāna in the Javan jungle a flood submerged him unnoticed. One Saturday afternoon she peeked during a Bangkok meditation class and swore she saw rays of light — 'laser eyes' — coming from the monk into a meditator. Brahm says he trusts her and that Sudhamma (now dead) had powers.

## The story, as told by Ajahn Brahm (verbatim captions)

And I was talking in the retreat recently a really juicy psychic power which I never saw myself but the person who told me it I trust implicitly she was actually a Princess in the Thai Royal family a really good friend. She married a guy who went to the same school as I did so basically she started getting involved in meditation because of the western monks and she went to a meditation class every week in Wat Pho that's one of the big monasteries in Central Bangkok that's been taught by this Indonesian monk who I knew He is now dead, his name was Sudhamma he did have powers. you could actually feel that He told me about his experiences He was the one who got into a deep Jhana in the Javan Jungle and after about 7 or 8 days there was a flood he got totally submerged didn't know anything about it So he had really great powers but imagine this happening on a Saturday afternoon you feel there is something weird going on so you open your eyes and take a peak and this is what this Princess did opened her eyes to take a peak and she swore to me absolutely honestly she saw rays of light coming out of this monk into one of the people meditating Real laser eyes That's pretty cool Shall we say one of the monks here to do that we wouldn't do that because once you tell people we'll be taken off to the lab and all sorts of experiments. we'll be just like a laboratory rat from then on to the rest of our lives being experimented on But that's actually true a monk developed the laser eyes that's really cool So there are such things as psychic powers

## Teaching point

Even striking psychic episodes are treated lightly; they are not the point of the path.

## Reflection (in the spirit of Ajahn Brahm's talk)

A trusted friend told Ajahn Brahm she once peeked during meditation and saw light streaming from her teacher's eyes. The same monk had sat so deep in jungle meditation that a flood covered him unnoticed. Ajahn Brahm finds it cool, then moves on quickly. Wonders are interesting. Peace and kindness are the point.

## Source

- [Word of the Buddha (Part 1) | Ajahn Brahm | 27 November 2016](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TZfyq1XTd0) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 59:28 to 1:01:20: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TZfyq1XTd0&t=3568s

Other tellings of this story:

- [Guided Meditation | Ajahn Brahm | 4 July 2026](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afbMpaeQtOg) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 1:29:28 to 1:30:49: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afbMpaeQtOg&t=5368s
- [Word of the Buddha (Part 9) | Ajahn Brahm | 10 December 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSP98sMpgPM) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 56:48 to 57:21: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSP98sMpgPM&t=3408s
- [Word of the Buddha (Part 3) | Ajahn Brahm | 9 February 2025](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVGb4Nn84lo) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 1:01:14 to 1:04:02: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVGb4Nn84lo&t=3674s