The title is The Student and His Secret Thoughts.

A gentle young man suddenly lost his mind, the cause being long-held secret thoughts that offended the sacred.

In the quiet afternoon of a small, humble house, the scent of incense drifted through the door crack. His mother had just finished paying respects to the Buddha and placed a meal on the old cement altar. The boy sat in the corner studying, books scattered around him, his eyes still as gentle as the earth.

"Study, my son. I am going to the temple for a while. I will return tonight to cook braised pork."

His mother stepped out, and the door closed. He was alone at home, with only the sound of vehicles passing by outside.

He grew up well-behaved and kind. In his second year of university, his grades were always among the top. As the only son in the family, with aging parents who pinned all their hopes on him to continue the lineage, he carried a heavy expectation. But one day, while studying, he suddenly stared blankly, his hands trembling, causing his books to fall. Taken to the hospital, doctors diagnosed him with mental illness, stating he could no longer continue his studies. His parents were distraught and brought him to see a teacher.

The mother clutched her documents, tears streaming down her face.

"Teacher, please help. My child is so good-natured. He never scolds or hits anyone. Why did he suddenly go mad? We have only him. Who will marry him now? How can he carry on our family line?"

The teacher looked at the bewildered young man and saw no harmful behavior toward others. He wondered, "In this life, he has created no negative karma. Why has the fruit of madness come to him?" Then, observing quietly, he discovered the truth: deep within the boy’s mind, impure thoughts had been secretly arising for a long time.

When his mother went to pay respects to the Buddha, the boy would sit idly, and thoughts would arise.

"My mother is superstitious. She worships a mere cement statue endlessly. Is there really a Buddha? It is like saying we do not exist."

He never spoke these words aloud, but in his heart, he continuously offended the sacred. When his parents asked what he was doing, he smiled gently and said, "I am studying." No one knew. These thoughts silently ripened, like poison seeping into the brain.

One day, his father said,

"Go to the temple with your mother. Pray for good conditions in your life."

The boy shook his head, and again, rebellious thoughts arose.

"The statues are insentient. What is the point of praying?"

And so it continued. Outwardly gentle, inwardly hostile. Eventually, when his mind collapsed, he fell into madness. No one suspected that secret thoughts were the cause.

The turning point came when the teacher clearly pointed out that hidden thoughts, though unseen by others, create great transgressions, no less than spoken words.

The family was astonished. The teacher instructed them to keep their thoughts pure. Although the boy had not yet recovered, the family shifted to reciting the Buddha's name. His parents began to cultivate their minds, striving not to let bad thoughts arise.

His life flowed quietly onward, but the lesson remained: even mere thoughts create merit or demerit. The health of the mind depends on whether it is nourished by good or bad thoughts.

The Meaning of the Story

Secret thoughts that no one knows still create karma. Maintaining good thoughts throughout life protects the mind and leads to a peaceful death; harboring wrong views pushes one toward madness, bringing immediate karmic results. Spiritual practice begins with the management of thoughts.

Compiled from a dharma talk by Venerable Thich Chan Quang