All stories
61 events, 281 sessions, 676 excerpts, 52:01:34 total duration
Most common topics:
Ajahn Chah
(292)
Ajahn Pasanno
(167)
Abhayagiri
(96)
Wat Pah Pong
(70)
Ajahn Sumedho
(62)
Ajahn Amaro
(58)
Wat Pah Nanachat
(53)
Tudong
(47)
Culture/Thailand
(45)
Death
(44)
15. “I’m sitting here looking at the passion of Christ. My good friends are Christian and Muslim, and I want to be respectful and non-judgemental, but once in a great while I think they are micchā-diṭṭhi (wrong view). What does the Buddha say about other beliefs? Are they all true in their own way? How should I skillfully hold my attitude toward Jesus, Mohammed, etc.?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Spiritual traditions ] [Christianity] [Islam] [Judgementalism] [Views] // [Kamma]
Recollection: Buddhist-Christian monastic dialogue at The City of Ten Thousand Buddhas. [Monastic life] [City of Ten Thousand Buddhas]
Quote: “All religions are trying to deal with the human condition in a meaningful way. ... A lot of it is around the intention and integrity that individual practitioners bring to their life and practice as opposed to the label that they practice under.” [Human] [Purpose/meaning] [Truth]
4. “Please describe any techniques or practices for gladdening the mind.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Gladdening the mind ] // [Recollection/Buddha] [Recollection/Dhamma] [Recollection/Saṅgha] [Goodwill] [Recollection/Generosity] [Recollection/Virtue]
Sutta: MN 118.20: “Gladdening the mind, I breathe in,” Amaravati Chanting Book, p. 89. [Mindfulness of breathing]
Story: In Sri Lanka, children write the skillful actions they have done in a book they keep all their life. It is read to them in times of illness or difficulty. [Culture/Sri Lanka] [Children] [Sickness] [Death]
5. “I’m struggling with aversion and doubt. When do I switch to metta?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Aversion] [Doubt] [Goodwill] // [Gladdening the mind]
Story: “I hate metta!” [Bhante Gunaratana]
11. “What does the vinaya set as the standard for personal hygiene? Bathing, cleaning clothes, shaving, etc.? Is the use of deodorant within the purview of vinaya?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Vinaya] [Cleanliness ] [Monastic life] // [Robes] [Food] [Buddha/Biography] [Culture/India]
Vinaya: Khandhaka 15.27.5: Trimming nose-hairs.
Story: An Indian kshatriya notices that Ajahn Pasanno does things just like he’s been trained to do. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Tudong] [Ajahn Jayasaro]
10. “Would you discuss Buddhist rites and rituals regarding death and dying? What are the rites surrounding the death and cremation of an arahant?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ceremony/ritual] [Death ] [Funerals] [Arahant] // [Cultural context] [Recollection/Virtue] [Three Refuges] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Culture/Thailand]
Recollections of Ajahn Chah’s funeral. [Ajahn Chah] [Wat Pah Pong] [Relics] [Ajahn Chah Stupa]
Follow-up: “Did you see Ajahn Chah’s relics?” [Amulets]
13. “From experience I know that lots more walking and less sitting is better for pain management. Should I just continue to sit and work on enduring the unendurable or walk more?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Posture/Walking] [Posture/Sitting] [Pain] [Patience] // [Continuity of mindfulness]
Quote: “You can learn a lot from pain, but it also wears you down.” [Learning] [Energy]
Recollection: Ajahn Khao walked meditation for nine hours a day. [Ajahn Khao] [Monastic routine]
9. “Ajahn Chah mentioned ‘know the mind within the mind.’ Is it just as effective to share Dhamma with a person who is actively dying, but the person is in a state of mental confusion or simply unconscious? Would their ‘mind’ hear the Dhamma? Please share your experience.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Heart/mind] [Death] [Teaching Dhamma ] // [Compassion] [Personal presence ] [Chanting] [Recollection/Dhamma]
Story: “Richard, be quiet.” [Ram Dass] [Parents]
14. “The first time I was confronted with an English roundabout, I drove in the wrong way. I may still be going the wrong way, as I have murder in my heart. I want to eradicate an infestation of insects from my trees so they can bear fruit. Any suggestions for an approach that would keep me on track, at least an attempt at the Five Precepts?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Agriculture] [Killing ] [Animal] [Five Precepts] // [Virtue] [Culture/Thailand] [Environment]
Recollection: Dealing with termites at Wat Pah Pong. [Ajahn Chah] [Wat Pah Pong] [Lodging]
6. “Do you have any thoughts about the cultivation of the later Factors of Awakening?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Rapture] [Conditionality] [Hindrances] [Factors of Awakening] // [Investigation of states] [Mindfulness] [Tranquility] [Skillful qualities]
Recollection: Ajahn Chah’s description of pīti. [Ajahn Chah] [Mindfulness of breathing]
1. “What’s the difference between sleep and sloth and torpor?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sloth and torpor] // [Bhikkhu Bodhi] [Translation] [Devotion to wakefulness] [Craving not to become]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno’s first meditation retreat: “You’ve been stealing sleep!” [Ajahn Pasanno]
Story: After Ajahn Pasanno’s illness, he needs to sleep an hour more. [Sickness]
2. “Would you say that clinging is around the senses and not the sensual desires?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Clinging] [Sense bases] [Sensual desire] // [Aggregates]
Follow-up: “How do we uproot clinging?” [Discernment]
Comment by Ajahn Ñāṇiko: One can only apply the concept of inverted perception from MN 75 to the other sense bases. [Delusion] [Perception] [Ajahn Khao]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno: Showeing after being exposed to poison oak. [Feeling]
Recollection: Ajahn Mahā Boowa perceived difficulty and problems as a whetstone for mindfulness. Recounted by Ajahn Pesalo. [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Mindfulness]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Four Noble Truths] [Conditionality]
9. Explanation of “The Questions of Māgaṇḍiya” (Snp 4.9) and Dr. Saddhatissa’s translation of the Sutta Nipāta. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [History/Early Buddhism] [Dr. Saddhatissa] [Translation] // [Great disciples] [Pāli] [Culture/Sri Lanka]
Story: Ajahn Chah tells Ajahn Sumedho to take Dr. Saddhatissa as the Saṅgharāja of England. [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Study monks]
2. Recollection: Ajahn Chah used the description of what happens to an enlightened being after death from SN 22.85. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Arahant] [Death] [Aggregates]
3. “Are there other stories similar to Vakkali asking to die outside (SN 22.87)?” Answered by Ajahn Karuṇadhammo and Ajahn Pasanno. [Great disciples] [Death] [Culture/Natural environment] // [Perception of a samaṇa]
Story: Ajahn Mun chooses the place of his death. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Mun] [Funerals]
Story: Ajahn Chah chooses a convenient time to die. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah]
3. “Could you talk more about the particular professions that the Buddha laid out as wrong livelihood (AN 5.177)? Why is being in the military not on the list?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Work] [Military] [Right Livelihood ] // [Unskillful qualities] [Kamma] [Killing] [Intoxicants] [Rebirth]
Story: The widow of a wealthy man divests from Singha Beer. [Commerce/economics]
4. “Is growing grapes right livelihood?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Agriculture] [Intoxicants] [Commerce/economics] [Right Livelihood]
Story: The son of a winemaking family lives on the land but doesn’t participate in wine production. [Family]
5. “Can you speak about the people who sell these things [intoxicants] versus those who make them?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Intoxicants] [Commerce/economics] [Right Livelihood] // [Kamma] [Volition]
Story: A clerk at an organic food store asks about selling wine. Told by Ajahn Karuṇadhammo.
16. “Some people want to help but find themselves in situations in which profit dictates the priorities. How can they protect their integrity in such situations?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Compassion] [Health care] [Commerce/economics] [Right Intention] [Right Livelihood ] // [Education] [Idealism] [Requisites] [Happiness]
Story: Ajahn Karuniko studies engineering, then quits a job in the arms industry to become a monk. [Military] [Monastic life/Motivation]
29. Story: The head of Lalanka Water invites monks to stay above his office and teach the employees. Told by Ajahn Yatiko. [Work] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support] [Teaching Dhamma] [Right Livelihood] // [Lunar observance days] [Eight Precepts] [Meditation] [Dhamma discussion] [Respect]
Story: The ultra-competent assistant who wants to ordain. [Monastic life/Motivation]
Story: The king’s assistant who dives into the water to get 20 pounds of gold (DN 17).
3. “Everyone in our group is struggling with issues about livelihood. Does anyone here feel their livelihood is in tune?” Answered by Ajahn Yatiko and Ajahn Pasanno. [Work] [Idealism] // [Contentment] [Eightfold Path] [Kamma]
Quote: “Maybe it would be better phrased ‘Right-enough livelihood.’” — Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Right Livelihood]
Story: An upright career police officer in Thailand transfers in and out of a corrupt assignment. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Community] [Crime] [Corruption] [Family] [Precepts]
Comment by Ajahn Karuṇadhammo: Even monks face moral dilemmas. [Monastic life] [Vinaya]
5. “What is your take on satisfaction, being in tune, and stagnation?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Contentment ] [Energy] [Ardency ] // [Skillful qualities] [Discernment] [Buddha/Biography] [Spiritual search] [Right Effort]
Sutta: AN 2.5: Effort and non-contentment with wholesome states.
Story: The Thai government made it illegal for monks to teach contentment. [History/Thai Buddhism] [Monastic life] [Teaching Dhamma]
Comment about the simile of the lute. [Middle Path] [Similes]
Sutta: AN 6.55: Soṇa Sutta
4. “If my sister has unwholesome friendships, how can I help her redirect these?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Family] [Spiritual friendship] // [Compassion] [Judgementalism] [Right Intention] [Right Speech] [Admonishment/feedback]
Story: An Abhayagiri monk skillfully conveys concerns to his father. [Abhayagiri]
2. “You said that starting with chanting can help focus the mind. But I find myself daydreaming while chanting.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Chanting] [Tranquility] [Proliferation] // [Pāṭimokkha] [Energy]
Story: An elderly woman chants the Dhammacakka Sutta every day. [Ageing]
2. “What is the funeral protocol for monks? What about non-monastics in the West?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Funerals ] [Monastic life] [Lay life] // [Ceremony/ritual] [Culture/Thailand] [Culture/West] [Chithurst]
Recollection: Details of Ajahn Chah’s funeral. [Ajahn Chah] [Lodging] [Food]
Recollection: The complicated cremation of Venerable Master Hua. [Master Hsuan Hua]
[Session] Ajahn Pasanno begins the retreat by encouraging us to return to the basics of the Noble Eightfold Path. He mentions Iris Landsberg, a long-standing lay supporter dying of lung cancer, both to set the tone for the monk’s final visit to her and to encourage us to practice while there is still time. Iris passed away February 1, 2014. [Eightfold Path] [Sickness] [Death] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support] [Spiritual urgency] // [Ajahn Pasanno] [Meditation retreats] [Family] [Health care]
Sutta: DN 16.5.27: The world will not be devoid of awakened beings as long as people are practicing the Eightfold Path. [Stages of awakening]
Story: Ajahn Pāvaro decides to practice in Bodh Gaya after receiving worrying medical news. [Ajahn Pavaro] [Visiting holy sites] [Impermanence]
Sutta: MN 131: Bhaddekaratta Sutta (Amaravati Chanting Book, p. 75)
2. Recollection: This talk was given to a group of Western monks led by Ajahn Khantipālo paying respects to Ajahn Chah in Bangkok. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Ajahn Khantipālo] [Ajahn Chah] // [Ajahn Sumedho] [Translation] [Hearing the true Dhamma]
1. “Ajahn Chah took Ajahn Mahā Amon and Ajahn Sumedho to visit Luang Ta Mahā Boowa and Ajahn Kaew. What happened?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Mahā Amorn] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Ajahn Khao] // [Teaching Dhamma] [Simplicity]
Story: Ajahn Chah turned on a tape recorder, but the only part of the conversation that was recorded was when Ajahn Kaew farted. [Technology] [Psychic powers]
Note: A partially similar story appears in Stillness Flowing by Ajahn Jayasaro, p. 189.
2. “Luang Ta Mahā Boowa often says, “You kill the kilesas” whereas Ajahn Chah in this talk [”Unshakeable Peace”] speaks of the path doing battle with the kilesas. Is this just the translation?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Ajahn Chah] [Unwholesome Roots ] [Eightfold Path] [Teaching Dhamma]
Recollection: When Ajahn Chah would use personal pronouns, he often used we as opposed to you. [Language] [Naturalness]
4. “What does “the longing for the good is the cause of the trouble” mean?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Mun] [Craving] [Skillful qualities] [Right Effort] // [Eightfold Path] [Aggregates] [Liberation] [Self-identity view] [Virtue] [Relinquishment] [Jhāna] [Ignorance] [Cause of Suffering]
Story: Sixth Patriarch Sutra: “No mirror, no dust.”
Recollection: Ajahn Chah taught you could grasp at either samut (the conventional) or vimut (the transcendent). [Ajahn Chah] [Conventions] [Unconditioned] [Clinging] [Discernment]
7. Recollection: Ajahn Pasanno describes Ajahn Mun’s skillful use of language. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Mun ] [Thai] [Language] [Artistic expression] [Teaching Dhamma]
Reference: Venerable Ācariya Mun Bhūridatta Thera: A Spiritual Biography by Ajahn Mahā Boowa [Fierce/direct teaching]
Reference: Regarding the photo in Abhayagiri’s Dhamma Hall: “This is the most warm and fuzzy picture of Ajahn Mun.”
2. Ajahn Pasanno describes the title “Luang Ta.” [Monastic titles] [Older monks] // [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Fierce/direct teaching] [Thai]
3. “When Luang Ta Mahā Boowa says he’s looking for a sign or vision, what does he mean by that?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Nimitta] [Deva] // [Culture/Thailand] [Culture/West] [Dreams] [Determination]
Story: Ajahn Tiradhammo asks Ajahn Chah what event convinced him that he was on the path to liberation. [Ajahn Tiradhammo] [Ajahn Chah] [Dhamma books] [History/Thai Buddhism] [Liberation]
5. “Was the biography compiled from what Luang Ta wrote or stories from his students?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [History/Thai Buddhism] [Dhamma books]
Story: Ajahn Mahā Boowa types Dhamma books and writes letters to practitioners. [Technology] [Teaching Dhamma]
6. “Do you have any information about what the Level 3 Pāli includes?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Education] [Pāli] [History/Thai Buddhism] // [Ajahn Chah] [Commentaries]
Story: P.A. Payutto passes the ninth level Pāli studies as a novice. [P. A. Payutto] [Learning] [Novices] [Ordination] [Royalty]
7. “What do monks do with [Pāli study levels]?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Education] [Pāli] [Culture/Thailand] [Study monks ] // [P. A. Payutto]
Story: Tan Chao Khun Prayoon Dhammacitto, the head of the Buddhist University in Bangkok, visits Wat Pah Nanachat. [Chao Khun Prayoon] [Learning] [Thai sects] [Wat Pah Nanachat]
Story: Ajahn Mahā Adisak, a ninth-degree Pāli scholar, spends a year at Amaravati. [Ajahn Mahā Adisak] [Amaravati] [Ajahn Sumedho]
Story: He found it difficult to translate Ajahn Amaro’s teachings to Westerners into Thai. [Ajahn Amaro] [Culture/West] [Translation] [Dhamma books]
3. “Was Ajahn Ñāṇadhammo’s experience of being pushed unusual for Western monks?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Ñāṇadhammo] [Fierce/direct teaching] [Culture/West] [Ardency] [Ajahn Chah] [Suffering]
Jack Kornfield’s recollections of Ajahn Chah at Insight Meditation Society. Recounted by Ajahn Jotipālo. [Jack Kornfield] [Insight Meditation Society] [Meditation retreats]
7. “Did Ajahn Chah ever have to use any especially powerful methods of pushing people away when the time came for them to go somewhere else?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fierce/direct teaching] [Ajahn Chah] // [Respect]
Story: The unpopular branch monastery. [Wat Pah Supattaram] [Thai Ajahn Chah monasteries] [Building projects] [Abbot] [Fasting]
1. “I am curious about ways to know if one is lying to oneself and what to do?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Truth] [Delusion] // [Suffering] [Discernment] [Bases of Success]
Recollection: Ajahn Chah said the fastest way to enlightenment is to look directly at the mind, point your finger, and say “Liar!” [Ajahn Chah] [Liberation] [Proliferation]
6. Story: Ajahn Dtun unexpectedly manifests goodwill towards Ajahn Ñāṇiko. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Dtun] [Ajahn Ñāṇiko] [Goodwill] // [Abbot] [Malas]
2. Recollection: Brief biography of Upasika Kee Nanayon. Recounted by Debbie Stamp. [Upasikā Kee Nanayon] [Lay life] [History/Thai Buddhism] // [Seclusion] [Community]
1. Ajahn Dtun’s visit and Iris Landsberg. Recollections by Beth Steff. [Ajahn Dtun] [Death] [Recollection/Death]
Quote: “In the morning, a healthy friend. In the evening, a wisp of cremation smoke.” — unnamed Chan master.
3. “I’m interested in the theme mentioned of the body and mind being separate from each other. The questioner asks ‘Don’t they have influence on one another?’ I’m curious about how to reflect on that.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Body/form] [Nature of mind] // [Ajahn Chah] [Sickness] [Knowing itself]
Story: Ajahn Chah retreats into the peace and stability of the mind to cope with a lung infection.
2. Ajahn Ñaniko speaks about the time Luang Por Liem spent at Suan Mokh. [Wat Suan Mokkh] [Ajahn Liem]
Recollection: The Thai translations in the Wat Pah Pong chanting book come from Ajahn Buddhadāsa. [Chanting] [Wat Pah Pong] [Thai] [Translation] [Ajahn Buddhadāsa]
Recollection: Ajahn Liem reads and comments on the monthly poem in the Ajahn Buddhadāsa calendar. [Artistic expression]
3. Story: The Queen invites the best neurosurgeons to help Ajahn Chah in a special suite in Chulalongkorn Hospital. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Sickness] [Royalty] [Health care] // [Saṅgha decision making]
Story: Ajahn Dune occupies the suite after Ajahn Chah. [Ajahn Dune]
2. “In the Pure Land tradition, there are practices that prepare one for death. Are there are specific recommendations that yourself or Ajahn Chah would give for preparation for that last moment before death?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Pure Land] [Ajahn Chah] [Death] [Recollection/Death] // [Buddho mantra]
Story: Family members try to encourage a drunkard to recollect “Arahaṃ“ in his last moments. [Mantra] [Humor]
Story: Ajahn Chah’s response to Paul Breiter’s desire to teach meditation to dying people. Told by Ajahn Ñāṇiko. [Paul Breiter] [Meditation] [Fierce/direct teaching]
Story: Ajahn Karuṇadhammo advises Iris Landsberg to recollect “sorrowless, spotless, secure.” Told by Ajahn Kaccāna. [Ajahn Karuṇadhammo] [Recollection]
Sutta: Snp 2.4: Maṅgala Sutta (English chanting translation).
Story: A couple asks Master Hua what kind of dog they should get. [Master Hsuan Hua] [Animal] [Rebirth]
4. “Was Ajahn Jun around when you were training?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Jun] [Ajahn Pasanno] // [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Liem] [Ajahn Boon Choo]
Story: Ajahn Sumedho gets upset at Ajahn Chah for not admonishing lax monks. [Ajahn Sumedho] [Admonishment/feedback]
5. Story: Ajahn Jayasaro spends a Rains Retreat with Ajahn Koon. Told by Ajahn Cunda. [Ajahn Jayasaro] [Ajahn Koon (Na Pho)] [Novices]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Personality]
3. “How long did Venerable Varapañño spend in robes?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Paul Breiter] [Disrobing] // [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Ajahn Chah] [Wat Pah Pong]
Story: “I need a lawyer!”
Comment by Ajahn Pesalo: Even living for years in close proximity to Ajahn Chah isn’t enough to guarantee people will remain in robes.
Response by Ajahn Pasanno.
6. Ajahn Pasanno tells how he went to Wat Pah Nanachat to make a bowl stand but got sick with scrub typhus. An extended discussion ensues. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Monastic crafts] [Sickness] // [Rains retreat] [Joseph Kappel] [Kittisaro]
6. Comment: There can be this view that the enlightened mind doesn’t have any thoughts or defilements. It’s just perfectly clear and stable and there’s nothing going on. [Liberation] [Directed thought and evaluation] [Unwholesome Roots] [Concentration]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno: Clear and stable and nothing going on are two different things.
Follow-up: “Does the enlightened mind not have any unwholesome thoughts or does it just not pick up unwholesome thoughts?” [Unskillful qualities] [Proliferation] [Clinging] [Cause of Suffering]
Story: A palmist looks at Ajahn Chah’s hands. [Ajahn Chah] [Aversion] [Personality]
7. The character of Ajahn Chah and his relatives. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Personality] [Aversion] [Humor] // [Leadership]
Recollection: Ajahn Chah’s older brother had the same personality. [Family]
10. Story: Ajahn Ñaniko meets Ajahn Mun’s nephew. Told by Ajahn Ñāṇiko. [Ajahn Mun] [Family]
4. Story: Trying to wash Ajahn Liem’s cup. Told by Ajahn Jotipālo. [Ajahn Liem] [Ajahn Jotipālo] [Upatakh]
5. Recollection: Ajahn Liem leads by example. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Liem] [Leadership] // [Ageing] [Work]
7. “Does Ajahn Liem attend morning and evening pūjā?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Liem] [Pūjā] // [Culture/Thailand] [Wat Pah Pong]
Story: Ajahn Liem silently walks around and looks at the monks during morning pūjā. Told by Ajahn Ñāṇiko.
Follow-up: “Did Ajahn Chah go to morning and evening pūjā?” [Ajahn Chah]
Follow-up: “In the early years of Wat Ban Tad, was it always practice on your own?” [Wat Pah Ban Tat] [Thai sects] [Ajahn Tongrat] [Ajahn Baen]
Story: Too many monks skip pūjā to massage Ajahn Liem. Told by Ajahn Ñāṇiko. [Upatakh]
Recollections: Bhante Gunaratana comes to morning pūjā early. Recounted by Ajahn Jotipālo and Beth Steff. [Bhante Gunaratana]
3. Story: Ajahn Tongrat walks past a pregnant woman and says, “Oh, there’s a really good monk in your stomach there.” Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Tongrat] [Ajahn Koon (Na Pho)] [Almsround]
4. Recollection: Ajahn Chah didn’t let Western monks stay with Ajahn Koon since it was close to the Laos border. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Military] [History/Western Buddhist monasticism] // [Ajahn Koon (Na Pho)] [Ajahn Anando]
5. Story: Ajahn Chah prevents supporters from bringing Ajahn Sumedho special food. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Sumedho] [Food] [Ajahn Chah]
1. Introduction to The Natural Character of Awakening and Chao Khun Upāli. Teaching by Ajahn Jotipālo and Ajahn Pasanno. [Chao Khun Upāli] [Ajahn Mun] [Forest versus city monks]
Story: Ajahn Mun takes on the role of abbot at a city temple out of respect for Chao Khun Upāli’s request. [Abbot]
2. Recollection: Background of Wat Keuan. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Wat Keuan] // [Ajahn Chah] [Chao Khun] [Environment] [Ajahn Puriso] [Military] [Animal]
Story: Ajahn Chah ordains a group of university students and takes them to Wat Keuan. [Temporary ordination]
5. “Did Ajahn Chah ever tell a student to study?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Learning ] // [Eightfold Path] [Study monks] [Practicing in accordance with Dhamma]
Quote: “These are not absolute statements. When Ajahn Chah says something, he’s pointing. He just doesn’t work that way. And we take it as an absolute.” [Teaching Dhamma] [Proliferation]
Story: Ajahn Chah monks who became study monks. [Ajahn Bunjong] [Ajahn Mahā In]
1. Ajahn Pasanno describes the atmosphere of Cold War fear. [Fear] [Politics and society] [Military] // [Culture/West] [Amaravati] [Ajahn Sumedho]
5. “How does one work with dullness and drowsiness in sitting meditation?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sloth and torpor] [Posture/Sitting] // [Hindrances] [Ajahn Buddhadāsa] [Ajahn Chah] [Posture/Walking] [Culture/Natural environment] [Posture/Standing] [Continuity of mindfulness]
Sutta: AN 7.58 Capala Sutta: “Are you nodding, Moggallana?” [Great disciples]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno walks in the forest without a flashlight to dispel drowsiness. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Dtao Dum] [Devotion to wakefulness]
5. “Did Ajahn Mahā Boowa always praise the dtuaṅga practices?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ascetic practices] [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Ajahn Mun] // [Incontrovertible practices]
Story: Ajahn Mun tells Ajahn Mahā Boowa to stop sweeping when he is sick with malaria. [Sickness] [Ardency] [Attachment to precepts and practices]
Story: Ajahn Mahā Boowa takes on the dtok bhat practice, but Ajahn Mun puts food in his bowl. Told by Ajahn Kaccāna. [Almsfood] [Conceit]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno meets a monk who didn’t need to sleep. [Devotion to wakefulness] [Sense restraint] [Concentration]
Story: Pa Auk Sayadaw didn’t sleep during a Rains Retreat. [Pa Auk Sayadaw]
1. Story: Ajahn Chah asks Ajahn Mun whether he should reordain as a Dhammayut monk. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Mun] [Thai sects]
2. Ajahn Pasanno gives more information about the cremation ground story. [Ajahn Chah] [Personality] [Postulants]
2. “How common is burial as opposed to cremation in Thailand?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Culture/Thailand] [Funerals ] // [Death] [Suicide] [Ghost] [Rebirth]
Story: A person killed by a gunshot wound doesn’t realize that he is dead.
5. “Did Ajahn Chah say, “I’m such a good teacher because I had so many defilements?”” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Teaching Dhamma] [Unwholesome Roots]
Story: Ajahn Chah explains that he had a lot of defilements to work with. [Ajahn Viradhammo]
3. Ajahn Anan’s deference to Luang Por Chah. Recollection by Ajahn Jotipālo. [Ajahn Anan] [Ajahn Chah] [Respect for elders]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno.
4. The trio of Ajahn Piak, Ajahn Anan, and Ajahn Dtun. Recollection by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Piak ] [Ajahn Anan ] [Ajahn Dtun ] [Wat Pah Pong] [Spiritual friendship] [Ajahn Chah]
Quote: “Ajahn Dtun’s path is the path of wisdom. ... Ajahn Piak is gifted in samādhi. And I have very strong faith.” — Ajahn Anan. [Discernment] [Concentration] [Faith]
2. Story: Ajahn Somboon spends a vassa at Wat Pah Pong. Told by Ajahn Ñāṇiko and Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Somboon] [Wat Pah Pong] // [Abbot] [Thai Ajahn Chah monasteries] [Ardency]
5. “Did you think of relocating Wat Pah Nanachat to Wat Keuan?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Wat Keuan] // [Seclusion] [Ajahn Puriso] [Deva]
Story: Ajahn Chah asks Ajahn Pasanno to take over as abbot of Wat Pah Nanachat. [Ajahn Chah] [Abbot]
Story: Supporters offer Ajahn Pasanno several properties to start monasteries, but he passes them to others. [Generosity] [Culture/Natural environment] [Ajahn Gavesako] [Ajahn Liem] [Environment]
9. Story: After staying up two nights in a row, Ajahn Boon Choo nods in meditation then establishes samādhi and sits without moving. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Boon Choo] [Sloth and torpor] [Devotion to wakefulness] [Concentration] // [Ajahn Kinaree] [Kaṭhina] [Wat Pah Pong]
10. “Did Luang Por Liem ask Luang Por Boon Choo to stay back when Luang Por Chah became ill?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Liem] [Ajahn Boon Choo] [Wat Pah Pong] [Ajahn Chah] [Sickness] // [Wat Pahk Kut Wai] [Upasikā Kee Nanayon] [Geography/Thailand]
Story: Karaoke bars spring up around Wat Pahk Kut Wai. [Seclusion]
11. Story: A Saṅgha meeting decides that Ajahn Boon Choo should look after Wat Keuan. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Boon Choo] [Wat Keuan] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Saṅgha decision making] [Respect for elders] // [Ajahn Puriso] [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Wat Pah Pong]
4. Ajahn Pasanno describes the meditation method he used during his first year as a monk. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Meditation/Techniques] // [Contact] [Feeling] [Movement meditation] [Concentration]
5. Ajahn Jotipālo tells about Luang Por Teean’s technique at Wat Pah Nanachat. [Ajahn Teean] [Movement meditation] [Wat Pah Nanachat]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno: “It isn’t a method that’s going to work. It’s how you apply and use it and become skilled with it.”
7. “Was there a time in Thailand when no one had any noble attainments?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno, Ajahn Jotipālo and Ajahn Cunda. [History/Thai Buddhism] [Stages of awakening] // [Chao Khun Upāli] [Ajahn Jayasaro] [Media]
Story: Prince Mongkut ordains seven times. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Vajirayan] [Ordination] [Doubt]
3. “If you keep chipping away at a theme of contemplation, you keep doing it, doing it, and nothing is changing in your experience, at some stage you feel this isn’t working, do you just have to move on and try something else? Is it the case that you just have to try them all? No-one can tell you which is going to work for you?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Depression] [Recollection] // [Patience] [Spiritual friendship]
Story: Ajahn Wanchai has a spinal injury and is in chronic pain but doesn’t refer to himself. Told by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Ñāṇiko. [Ajahn Wanchai] [Suffering] [Sickness] [Pain] [Conceit]
4. Comment: The story you told where a monk was punched, I really didn’t see the point of that. [Ajahn Jia] [Admonishment/feedback] [Fierce/direct teaching]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Cunda: Enlightened people still have personalities. [Cleanliness] [Liberation] [Personality] [Ajahn Tate] [Spiritual friendship] [Vinaya]
Quote: “Gold wrapped in a dirty rag.” — Ajahn Mahā Boowa describing Ajahn Jia. [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Similes]
Recollection: Ajahn Chah was always the center of attention. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Personal presence]
Story: Some monks go to spend Vassa with Ajahn Jia, but he leaves to take care of his teacher. Told by Ajahn Cunda. [Rains retreat] [Ajahn Khao]
1. Recollection: Saṅgha gatherings at Wat Pah Pong on Ajahn Chah’s birthday. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Wat Pah Pong] [Saṅgha] [Ajahn Chah] // [Thai Ajahn Chah monasteries] [Protocols] [Meditation]
Recollection: Inspecting almsbowls after the meal to see if there was any food left. [Almsbowl] [Food]
2. “Did I understand correctly, that this talk was originally given in Lao?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Language] // [Ajahn Chah] [Thai] [Admonishment/feedback]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno translates the talk “Two Faces of Reality” for the book Bodhinyana. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Translation]
Story: Chao Khun Nor eats the same meal every day. [Chao Khun Nor] [Food] [Seclusion] [Pūjā]
4. “Was your eight years living with novices like how it was described in this reading [‘Toilets on the Path’]?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Novices] // [Thai]
Story: Ajahn Preecha comes to Wat Pah Pong at the age of 11 or 12. [Ajahn Preecha] [Postulants] [Ajahn Chah] [Wat Pah Pong]
7. “How did Ajahn Chah communicate with his branch monasteries and how often?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Thai Ajahn Chah monasteries] [Monastery organizational structure] // [Abbot] [Technology]
Story: Growth of Wat Pah Pong branch monasteries from 1975 to 1980. [Wat Pah Nanachat]
8. Comment: Ajahn Chah probably wasn’t a micro manager. [Ajahn Chah] [Abbot]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno.
Recollection: Ajahn Chah used the branch monasteries as part of the training of senior monks. [Thai Ajahn Chah monasteries] [Sequence of training]
10. “So they do temporary ordinations in Thailand?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Culture/Thailand] [Temporary ordination] [Novices]
Follow-up: “What would be the duration, was there a range?” [Wat Pah Pong] [Ajahn Chah]
Story: Ajahn Chah ordains 80 temporary monks for his mother’s funeral. [Parents] [Death] [Funerals]
Follow-up: “Did they come in as anāgārikas or sāmaṇeras?” [Sequence of training] [Postulants]
Story: Ajahn Chah takes on temporary ordinations for three years.
11. “Did they do temporary ordinations at Wat Pah Nanachat?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Temporary ordination] // [Novices] [Ajahn Kevali] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support]
Story: Ajahn Siripañño’s first ordination was as a temporary novice. [Ajahn Siripañño]
2. “There were a number of different alms routes out of Wat Pah Pong. How was it decided who went on each one and how was the food distributed for the meal?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Wat Pah Pong] [Almsround] [Almsfood] [Saṅgha decision making] // [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Ajahn Liem]
Discussion of almsfood distribution at different monasteries. Led by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Pesalo. [Ajahn Tongrat] [Wat Pah Ban Tat]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno helped pass out food at Wat Pah Pong. [Ajahn Pasanno]
Story: Ajahn Tongrat exposes a monk concealing fish in his ball of sticky rice. [Food] [Admonishment/feedback]
Comments by Ajahn Pesalo and Ajahn Pasanno about food distribution at Wat Baan Tat. [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support]
Quote: “It’s incredibly tiresome how organized we [Westerners] have to be. ... Organic spontaneity—that’s how things work in Thailand.” [Culture/West] [Culture/Thailand]
5. Recollections: Deciding who went on the different alms routes at Wat Pah Pong. Recounted by Ajahn Ñāṇiko and Ajahn Pasanno. [Wat Pah Pong] [Almsround] // [Rains retreat]
[Session] Readings from Sotāpattimagga by Ajahn Anan: “The Peaceful Heart Discovers the Truth” (partial), pp. 21-23; “When Calm Arises, Investigate the Body,” pp. 41-45; “When the Practice Declines,” pp. 68-70; “Nibbana is the Highest Happiness,” pp. 89-91. Read by Anagārika J.R..
Story: Ajahn Pasanno meets Ajahn Anan when Ajahn Anan was still a lay person. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Ajahn Anan]
1. “Are there any stories you can share from the times when you were attendant to Luang Por Chah?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Upatakh] // [Teaching Dhamma] [Mentoring]
Quote: “I never asked him for anything. It never occured to me to ask Ajahn Chah for anything.” [Contentment]
Story: Ajahn Chah makes fun of Ajahn Pasanno’s first Pāṭimokkha chanting. [Pāṭimokkha]
Quote: “He would be unrelenting if you were stuck in some aversion. ... He wouldn’t indulge it. It was inevitably painful if one did.” [Aversion] [Fierce/direct teaching]
2. “Were there any other ways in which he tormented you specifically?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Fierce/direct teaching]
Story: Ajahn Chah won’t let Ajahn Pasanno go to a branch monastery to escape the misery of the hot season. [Culture/Natural environment] [Work] [Thai Ajahn Chah monasteries] [Restlessness and worry] [Aversion]
Story: Ajahn Chah calls Ajahn Pasanno lazy. [Pūjā]
Quote: “Do you give up?” — Ajahn Chah to Ajahn Pasanno. [Vinaya] [Relinquishment]
3. “Would Luang Por Chah teach or test monks and students in different ways?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Mentoring] [Fierce/direct teaching]
Recollection: Joseph Kappel shakes with fear when on the receiving end of Ajahn Chah’s admonishments. [Joseph Kappel] [Admonishment/feedback] [Fear]
4. Recollections of Ajahn Chah charming people. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Personal presence]
Story: “I’ll have her bowing before the end.” — Ajahn Chah speaking of George Sharp’s daughter who travelled with George to Thailand. [George Sharp] [Bowing]
Note: Compare to George Sharp’s version in The Chithurst Story by George Sharp, p. 67.
Quote: “Thank you. That was the most delicious meal I’ve had here.” — Ajahn Chah to an anxious English donor. [Food] [Gratitude] [Culture/West] [Culture/Thailand]
2. Reading: “About the Author” from Simply So by Ajahn Sim. Read by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Sim] // [Ajahn Mun] [Geography/Thailand] [Posture/Sitting]
Story: Ajahn Pabhakaro asks the Bung Wai villagers to sit full lotus. [Joseph Kappel] [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Lunar observance days]
7. Comment: I heard he [Ajahn Waen] was flying on an airplane engine, investigating it, and they had to ask him to leave it alone. [Ajahn Waen] [Psychic powers]
Story: When Ajahn Fun tries to investigate a bus engine with his mind, the engine stops repeatedly. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Fun] [Technology]
6. Recollection: Traditions around dying in Thailand. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Culture/Thailand] [Death] // [Tranquility] [Chanting] [Teaching Dhamma] [Clear comprehension] [Rebirth]
11. “Is there a meditation practice to use with someone who is dying?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Meditation] [Death] // [Faith] [Simplicity] [Happiness] [Recollection/Death] [Ageing] [Sickness]
Story about Ram Dass’s dying mother: “Richard, shut up!” [Ram Dass] [Fear] [Restlessness and worry]
13. Comment: We can’t know the kamma or state of mind of someone who is dying. Because the dying person’s consciousness can be very open, it’s useful to remind them of their wholesome actions. Contributed by Jeanne Daskais. [Kamma] [Consciousness] [Spaciousness] [Recollection/Virtue] [Death]
Story: Sri Lankans keep a lifelong record of the good things they have done. Friends and relatives read this to them at the time of death. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Skillful qualities] [History/Sri Lankan Buddhism]
14. Story: A woman dies peacefully while retelling the story of their life together with her partner of 60 years. [Relationships] [Family] [Recollection/Virtue] [Death]
15. “Living in the West, chances are most of us will die in a hospital, which could be quite chaotic. Any advice?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Culture/West] [Health care] [Death] // [Spiritual friendship] [Community] [Saṅgha]
Story: The Abhayagiri community attends to a dying lay supporter. [Abhayagiri]
Comments about hospitals contributed by Ajahn Karuṇadhammo.
16. Story about creating sacred space around her dying husband. Told by Beth Steff. [Health care] [Devotional practice] [Relationships] [Death]
21. “Can you dedicate merit to someone who is approaching death?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Merit ] [Death]
Story: Ajahn Paññānanda speaks out against superstition but tells the story of a shipwrecked sailor who benefited from dedication of merit. [Ajahn Paññānanda] [Superstition] [Suffering]
25. Comment: Merit is faith driven, so there aren’t any limitations to where that can take you, and it has real value. [Merit] [Faith] [Realms of existence] [Death]
Story: Two Thai doctors take temporary ordination to make merit to rejoin their deceased brother in a future life. [Culture/Thailand] [Monastic life/Motivation] [Temporary ordination] [Family] [Rebirth]
Story: The mother of a woman killed in a bus crash dedicates merit so that the dead woman will be reborn in the family. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Ghost] [Relinquishment] [Ceremony/ritual] [Kamma] [Volition]
Quote: “We live in a fairly limited concept of the world; it’s very material in the West. There’s a lot more happening than what we can see.” — Ajahn Pasanno. [Nature of the cosmos] [Culture/West]