Vampires!!!

Don’t waste your time working like people in the world do, such as building temples, monks’ living quarters or kuṭīs, assembly halls or sālās, and then forget to do your Dhamma practice that will keep your heart calm, peaceful and cool. When you don’t practice, you’ll feel bored and restless, and be driven to do some other kind of work, like building shrines and pagodas that don’t promote peace and calm, but disarray and trouble, inside and outside the temple. Inside the temple, it troubles the monks or bhikkhus and novices or sāmaṇeras. Outside the temple, it troubles the lay supporters. It’ll strain the relationship between the laity and the bhikkhus who are puñña khettaṁ lokassa, the best people to make merits with. Instead of cooperating, they will oppose each other. The Sangha or the community of monks now turns into vampires instead of being the best people to make merit with. So how can this lead to peace and tranquility? Think about it! It’s because the bhikkhus aren’t sticking to their occupation which is to develop morality and the citta to perfection. You need satipaññā to constantly look after your citta, and you should never be without it, if you want your citta to become worthy of adoration and reverence. It isn’t beyond the disciplining ability of satipaññā. The Lord Buddha prescribed the forty meditation subjects or themes or kammaṭṭhānas for each practitioner to choose from, depending on his or her character and disposition. They are the basis of your mental development and your most important undertaking.

(The Teachings of Ajahn Maha Boowa)