Part of tag cluster Teaching Dhamma in key topic Teaching and Teachers
Ajahn Chah taught us to speak without preparation. Recollection by Joseph Kappel. [Teaching Dhamma ] [Ajahn Chah] // [Trust]
Remembering Ajahn Chah Weekend [2001], Session 11, Excerpt 5.1
“Do you have any advice about how to hold a particularly strong “fighting spirit” teaching, like Ajahn Dtun?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fierce/direct teaching] [Teaching Dhamma ] [Ajahn Dtun] // [Culture/Thailand] [Ardency] [Right Effort] [Restlessness and worry] [Heedfulness] [Discernment] [Goodwill]
Sutta: AN 1.49: The mind is radiant.
Quote: “If you invite visitors into your home [the mind] and they just make a mess, then you want to close the door on them before they come in. You can’t be too polite.” — Ajahn Chah. [Ajahn Chah] [Similes] [Unwholesome Roots]
Our Roots in the Thai Forest Tradition [2014], Session 18, Excerpt 4
“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] [Teaching Dhamma ]
6. Ajahn Chah teaches his disciples in everyday living situations. Recollection by Ajahn Jitindriyā. [Teaching Dhamma] [Everyday life] [Ajahn Chah]
Story: “Is the log heavy?” [Relinquishment] [Clinging] [Suffering]
Story: A monk drops a tape recorder after getting an electric shock.
7. Quote: “I never lived with him, so I never got the chance to get disillusioned with him.” — Ajahn Jitindriyā. [Discernment] [Teachers] [Ajahn Chah] // [Teaching Dhamma] [Clinging]
10. Quote: “I feel incredibly indebted to Ajahn Chah.” — Ajahn Jitindriyā. [Gratitude] [Respect for elders] [Ajahn Chah] // [Cultural context] [Language] [Teaching Dhamma] [Goodwill] [Perfectionism]
6. How Ajahn Chah taught me. Teaching by Ajahn Sumedho. [Teaching Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Sumedho ] // [Ageing] [Faith] [Happiness] [Vinaya] [Humor] [Self-identity view] [Culture/West] [Goodwill] [Right Effort] [Idealism] [Clinging]
Quote: “It was through example that I really learned.”
8. Ajahn Chah made me look at myself. Teaching by Ajahn Sumedho. [Teaching Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Sumedho ] // [Hearing the true Dhamma] [Posture/Sitting] [Pain] [Aversion] [Admonishment/feedback] [Humor] [Patience] [Goodwill] [Discernment] [Contentment] [Cessation] [Happiness] [Saṅgha] [Views] [Relinquishment]
Quote: “Your practice now is patience.” — Ajahn Chah.
Story: Ajahn Chah chats for hours after Pāṭimokkha. [Idle chatter] [Judgementalism]
3. Quote: “Ajahn Chah was a wonderful teacher, but more important, he was a trainer. He trained people how to live.” — Ajahn Pasanno. [Teaching Dhamma] [Monastic life] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support] [Ajahn Chah]
Story: Māghā Pūjā at Wat Pah Pong. [Festival days] [Lunar observance days] [Wat Pah Pong] [Meditation] [Devotion to wakefulness] [Lay life] [Saṅgha]
5. The sea of faith in Northeast Thailand. Recollection by Ajahn Pasanno. [Faith] [Culture/Thailand ] [Ajahn Chah] // [Poverty] [Culture/Natural environment] [Geography/Thailand] [Thai Forest Tradition] [Self-reliance] [Patience] [Teaching Dhamma] [Suffering]
In Central Thailand, lay people don’t come to the monastery on observance days. [Lay life] [Lunar observance days] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Tudong]
6. Recollection: The direct and earthy culture of Northeast Thailand. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Culture/Thailand] [Language] [Ajahn Chah]
Story: A direct teaching to a man whose wife had died. [Fierce/direct teaching] [Death] [Suffering] [Teaching Dhamma] [Grief]
7. Quote: “He really didn’t give us a lot of room to feed or problems and our neuroses and our desires and our attachments. ... That was an extraordinary gift.” — Ajahn Pasanno. [Teaching Dhamma] [Nutriment] [Suffering] [Delusion] [Ajahn Chah] [Craving] [Clinging] [Gratitude]
8. Ajahn Chah used the forest environment to train us. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno. [Culture/Natural environment ] [Teaching Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] // [Pace of life]
Story: Two mating lizards fall out of a tree. [Almsround] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Animal] [Sensual desire] [Suffering]
4. There was a strong independent streak in Ajahn Chah’s practice. Recollection by Paul Breiter. [Self-reliance] [Ajahn Chah] // [Teachers] [Seclusion] [Ardency] [Teaching Dhamma] [Patience]
6. Ajahn Chah expected his students to rely on themselves. Recollection by Paul Breiter. [Self-reliance] [Mentoring] [Teaching Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] // [Vinaya] [Ardency]
8. Story: Ajahn Sinuan meets Ajahn Chah. Told by Paul Breiter. [Ajahn Sinuan] [Ajahn Chah] // [Perception of a samaṇa] [Personality] [Monastic life/Motivation] [Cleanliness] [Unattractiveness]
Story: It was always said that Ajahn Chah had it in for Ajahn Sinuan. [Sloth and torpor] [Work] [Suffering] [Saṃsāra] [Teaching Dhamma]
9. Quote: “I thought of him as the world’s most compassionate sadist.” — Paul Breiter. [Compassion] [Fierce/direct teaching] [Ascetic practices] [Ajahn Chah] // [Teaching Dhamma]
10. Quote: “In an instant he could put you in a space where you just let go of everything, your anger, your worry, your anxiety–the things you thought you had to do a lot of work to get through and get rid of.” — Paul Breiter. [Relinquishment] [Aversion] [Restlessness and worry] [Teaching Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] // [Humor] [Suffering]
11. Quote: “He taught different people differently. ... He gave us what we needed.” — Paul Breiter. [Teaching Dhamma] [Mentoring] [Ajahn Chah] // [Paul Breiter] [Patience] [Monastic life] [Generosity] [Upatakh] [Devotional practice]
12. Parable about teaching Dhamma: Two oxen pulling the same cart. [Teaching Dhamma] [Similes] [Ajahn Chah]
5. Ajahn Chah taught us to speak without preparation. Recollection by Joseph Kappel. [Teaching Dhamma ] [Ajahn Chah] // [Trust] [Human] [Noble Truth of Suffering] [Spaciousness]
8. Ajahn Chah emphasized sīla and precepts when teaching in the West. Recollection by Joseph Kappel. [Virtue ] [Five Precepts] [Teaching Dhamma] [Culture/West] [Ajahn Chah] // [Communal harmony] [Meditation] [Sensual desire] [Long-term practice]
1. “What is the daily schedule like?” Answered by Ajahn Amaro and Joseph Kappel. [Monastic routine] [Ajahn Chah] // [Wat Pah Nanachat ] [Ajahn Amaro] [Joseph Kappel] [Almsround] [Work] [Abhayagiri] [Teaching Dhamma]
Quote: “Ajahn Chah had this most amazing disrespect for time.” — Ajahn Amaro. [Pace of life] [Teaching Dhamma]
2. Many of the most profound teachings happened under Ajahn Chah’s kuti. Reflection by Joseph Kappel. [Teaching Dhamma] [Lodging] [Ajahn Chah] // [Tranquility]
3. You weren’t there to prepare for something else. Reflection by Paul Breiter. [Teaching Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] // [Sequence of training] [Everyday life] [Disrobing] [Kamma] [Monastic life] [Ascetic practices] [Suffering] [Happiness] [Saṃsāra]
Quote: “Talk about the benefits of lay life. ... on paper you can make a good case for it. In practice it’s a constant challenge just to keep your head above water and remember how you’re supposed to deal with things. I urge people in robes to stay there.” [Lay life] [Right Action]
Quote: “Ajahn Pasanno doesn’t want me sending everyone to ordain with him, but I think you do better following his way than my way.” [Ajahn Pasanno] [Paul Breiter]
5. One of the fundamental aspects of Ajahn Chah’s teaching was to establish Right View. Reflection by Ṭhānissarā. [Teaching Dhamma] [Right View ] [Ajahn Chah] // [Views] [Direct experience]
7. One of Ajahn Chah’s main methods was the monastic training. Recollection by Ṭhānissarā. [Monastic life] [Teaching Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] // [Suffering] [Direct experience] [Idealism] [Relinquishment]
1. Reflection by Ajahn Sumedho: From idealism to the way it is. [Idealism ] [Equanimity] [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Sumedho] // [Culture/Thailand] [Culture/West] [Suffering] [Delusion] [Aversion]
Story: A Thai monk’s perspective on worldly stupidity. [Military]
Quote: “Someone with that kind of pure presence is really a mirror.” [Personal presence] [Teaching Dhamma]
4. “His way of teaching was direct. ... He would use the essential teaching of the Buddha, the Four Noble Truths.” Recollection by Ajahn Sumedho. [Teaching Dhamma] [Four Noble Truths ] [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Sumedho] // [Noble Truth of Suffering] [Human] [Culture/Thailand] [Ageing] [Sickness] [Death] [Spiritual traditions] [Self-identity view]
Quote: “It’s the suffering that awakens you.” — Ajahn Chah. [Suffering] [Liberation]
2. “My life has been hugely impacted by Ajahn Chah, his teachings, and the spiritual family he introduced me to.” Reflection by Kittisaro. [Gratitude] [Teaching Dhamma] [Saṅgha] [Ajahn Chah] // [Happiness] [Teachers] [Learning] [Respect for elders] [Meditation retreats] [Body scanning] [Conceit] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Goodwill] [Humility] [Mentoring]
Story: Ajahn Chah sniffs around like a dog. [Kittisaro] [Similes] [Humor] [Mindfulness of breathing]
Quote: “He gave me a practice path that goes on and on to this day.” [Eightfold Path]
4. Ajahn Chah’s inner freedom. Reflection by Ajahn Sundarā. [Liberation] [Courage] [Conventions] [Unconditioned] [Ajahn Chah] // [Teaching Dhamma] [Dhamma books] [Personal presence]
5. The confidence to be totally yourself. Reflection by Ajahn Sundarā. [Faith] [Self-reliance] [Ajahn Chah] // [Gratitude] [Ajahn Chah lineage] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Teaching Dhamma] [Aversion]
6. Story: Half a million people attend Ajahn Chah’s funeral. Told by Ajahn Sundarā. [Funerals] [Ajahn Sundarā] [Ajahn Chah] // [Food] [Free distribution] [Meditation] [Ajahn Chah Stupa] [Chanting]
Quote: “The heart of [Ajahn Chah’s] teaching is the ability to bring people together.” [Teaching Dhamma] [Saṅgha] [Community]
Story: The cremation pyre catches fire and number 16 wins the lottery. [Humor]
1. “How did Ajahn Chah relate to the lay community around him and tailor the Dharma to their own circumstances?” Answered by Ajahn Sumedho and Ṭhānissarā. [Lay life ] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support] [Ajahn Chah] [Teaching Dhamma]
Story: Thai villagers tell Ajahn Sumedho that they never understood Buddhism until they met Luang Por Chah. Told by Ajahn Sumedho. [Culture/Thailand] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Hearing the true Dhamma] [Monastic life] [Generosity] [Meditation] [Community] [Family] [Mindfulness]
Quote: “He didn’t respond to the external cues but went to the heart and grabbed you in that way.” — Ṭhānissarā. [Teaching Dhamma] [Conventions] [Fierce/direct teaching] [Not-self]
2. “Did Ajahn Chah pass his teaching style to you or do you use your own separate style?” Answered by Ajahn Sumedho and Paul Breiter. [Personality] [Ajahn Chah] [Teaching Dhamma]
Story: Ajahn Sumedho, first abbot of Wat Pah Nanachat. Told by Ajahn Sumedho. [Ajahn Sumedho] [Abbot] [Wat Pah Nanachat ] [Sequence of training] [Culture/West] [Joseph Kappel] [Aversion] [Suffering] [Guilt/shame/inadequacy] [Humor]
Quote: “The special thing about Luang Por Chah was that he was at ease and completely himself.” — Ajahn Sumedho. [Contentment]
Response by Paul Breiter: “The elements are there, but different teachers are expressing them in a living way.” [Teaching Dhamma]
3. “Learning to Listen.” Teaching by Ajahn Chah. Translated and read by Joseph Kappel. [Learning] [Hearing the true Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] // [Present moment awareness] [Teaching Dhamma] [Questions] [Buddha] [Continuity of mindfulness] [Unconditioned]
3. Ajahn Sumedho has been so important in my life. Reflection by Jack Kornfield. [Ajahn Sumedho] [Jack Kornfield] [Gratitude] [Ajahn Chah] // [Wat Pah Pong] [Monastic life] [Teaching Dhamma]
Simile: Ajahn Sumedho explains Ajahn Chah’s jazz. [Similes]
8. Quote: “This is as cold as it gets.” — Ajahn Chah. Quoted by Jack Kornfield. [Ajahn Chah] [Jack Kornfield] [Wat Tam Saeng Pet] [Culture/Natural environment] // [Almsround] [Mentoring] [Suffering] [Teaching Dhamma] [Sickness] [Fierce/direct teaching] [Humor] [Relinquishment]
12. Story: Ajahn Chah to Jack Kornfield, “Did I heal her?” Told by Jack Kornfield. [Jack Kornfield] [Sickness] [Health] [Protective chants] [Ajahn Chah] [Teaching Dhamma] [Healing] // [Wat Pah Pong] [Truth]
24. The compassion that came because he didn’t want anything from anybody. Reflection by Jack Kornfield. [Compassion] [Dispassion] [Ajahn Chah] // [Relinquishment] [Tranquility] [Teaching Dhamma]
2. Did Ajahn Chah train Thais and Westerners differently? Reflection by Kittisaro. [Culture/West] [Culture/Thailand] [Monastic life] [Ajahn Chah] // [Jack Kornfield] [Teaching Dhamma] [Suffering] [Compassion]
In my contact with Ajahn Chah, he tended to be very loving and very kind. [Kittisaro] [Goodwill]
2. “Why did Ajahn Chah found Wat Pah Pong? [Inaudible question removed]” Answered by Ajahn Amaro. [Wat Pah Pong ] [History/Thai Buddhism] [Ajahn Chah] // [Tudong] [Teaching Dhamma] [Personal presence] [Seclusion] [Compassion] [Family] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support]
Story: The first Rains Retreat with Ajahn Chah. [Rains retreat] [Devotion to wakefulness]
5. Teachings hanging in the trees at Wat Pah Pong. Recollection by Ajahn Amaro. [Wat Pah Pong] [Culture/Natural environment] [Teaching Dhamma]
3. Ajahn Chah’s illness: his last teaching. Reflection by Paul Breiter. [Sickness] [Teaching Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] // [Paul Breiter] [Health care] [Grief] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Respect for elders] [Monastic life] [Saṅgha] [Upatakh] [Almsfood] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support]
13. Story: Ṭhānissarā visits Ajahn Chah’s hut outside of Oxford. Told by Ṭhānissarā. [Ṭhānissarā] [Conventions] [Lodging] [Ajahn Chah] // [Kamma] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Humor] [Goodwill] [Not-self] [Teaching Dhamma]
1. “In the palm reader story, you mentioned that Ajahn Chah still had a lot of anger, but he chose not to act from it. So does this mean that if there was a troublesome monk, Ajahn Chah would still experience a flare of anger but have the wisdom to set it aside and consider what to do with a cool head? This sounds similar to something Ram Das said about his practice. ...” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Aversion ] [Discernment] [Ram Dass] [Unwholesome Roots] // [Personality] [Kamma]
Story: Ajahn Jayasaro is massaging Ajahn Chah’s feet when a monk undergoing a disciplinary procedure walks by. [Ajahn Jayasaro] [Vinaya] [Fierce/direct teaching] [Emotion]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno observes Ajahn Mahā Boowa’s fierce behavior. [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Arahant] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Rapture] [Goodwill]
Quote: “You never quite knew. ... You were always very careful around [Ajahn Chah] because you never knew which side was going to come out. It wasn’t as if he was just playing with you, but he always responded to the situation or the person.” [Heedlessness] [Personal presence] [Teaching Dhamma]
13. Reading from the draft biography: Ajahn Chah visits Ajahn Mun. Read by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Mun] [Tudong] [Ajahn Chah ] // [Relics] [Cleanliness] [Perception of a samaṇa] [Personal presence] [Vinaya] [Conscience and prudence] [Teaching Dhamma] [Knowing itself] [Nature of mind] [Conventions] [Unconditioned] [Faith]
Reference: Stillness Flowing by Ajahn Jayasaro, p. 54
2. “When you and other Western seekers went to Thailand [and returned to teach], are the teachings of lay and monastic disciples of Ajahn Chah the same or different? How can we as laypeople relate to the teachings and tradition of the monastic establishment?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Teaching Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah lineage] [Lay teachers] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support] [Ajahn Chah] // [History/Thai Buddhism] [Military] [History/Western Buddhist monasticism] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Virtue] [Right View]
Story: Abhayagiri’s bell is an American bomb casing. [Abhayagiri]
Diligent lay meditators attend Wat Pah Pong’s all-night vigil on the lunar observance days. Recollection by Ajahn Pasanno. [Lay life] [Ardency] [Wat Pah Pong] [Devotion to wakefulness] [Lunar observance days]
2. “Did you as a Westerner have any difficulties meeting Ajahn Chah either with Buddhism or with Thailand? How did it get resolved or did it get resolved?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Culture/West] [Theravāda] [Culture/Thailand] [Ajahn Chah]
Story: Ajahn Chah replies evasively when asked three straightforward questions to teach his translator (Ajahn Pasanno) a lesson. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Aversion] [Questions] [Simplicity] [Teaching Dhamma] [Food] [Suffering]
5. Story: Ajahn Chah’s practice matures and he receives permission to teach. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Teaching Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] // [Wat Pah Pong] [Rapture] [Almsround] [Ajahn Kinaree]
8. Reading from the draft biography: Ajahn Chah’s ability to draw people in and respond with compassion. Read by Ajahn Pasanno. [Personal presence] [Compassion] [Generosity] [Ajahn Chah] // [Wat Tam Saeng Pet] [Rains retreat] [Sickness] [Almsround] [Teaching Dhamma] [Similes] [Upatakh]
Reference: Stillness Flowing by Ajahn Jayasaro, p. 705
10. “Can you speak about intuitive/esoteric meditation?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Meditation/Techniques] // [Ajahn Pasanno]
Sutta: SN 47.9.4: The Buddha never taught with a closed fist. [Teaching Dhamma]
8. “How did Ajahn Chah communicate to the Western monks?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Western Ajahn Chah lineage] [Language] // [Intuition] [Direct experience]
Quote: “Teaching Westerners is easy. Just like teaching buffaloes.” — Ajahn Chah. [Teaching Dhamma] [Humor]
Quote: “Practicing Dhamma isn’t about the language, it’s about the experience.” — Ajahn Chah.
10. “Can, and if so, how, may one formally take refuge as your lay disciple? Do you think it is useful if one is genuine and sincere about it?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ceremony/ritual] [Teachers] [Lay life] [Three Refuges] // [Buddha/Biography] [Ordination]
Quote: “As we continue to explore these refuges, it forms the core or kernel of liberation.” [Liberation]
Recollections of Ajahn Mahā Boowa responding to Dhamma questions by mail. [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Teaching Dhamma] [Fierce/direct teaching] [Ajahn Pasanno]
2. “Ajahn, how are you doing? Is teaching a retreat as busy as being involved at the monastery? It is so pleasant to have a group of monastics here. Chanting and the whole energy is like sweet medicine. Wishing you all well, and thank you so much for coming here.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Meditation retreats] [Teaching Dhamma] [Monastic life] [Gratitude]
1. Comment: Dear Ajahn, You and your crew have been and continue to be so generous with us. This abundant generosity is such an incredible teaching. It seems as though it’s the stuff that may save the planet. [Generosity ]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Monastic life] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support] [Teaching Dhamma] [Culture/Thailand] [Children]
Reference: Vessantara Jātaka [Jātaka Tales] [Teaching Dhamma]
16. “In a discourse to the young Sigāla (DN 31.10), the Buddha advises against singing, dancing, and attending fairs. But fairs are fun, and song and dance can inspire. Please comment.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Entertainment and adornment] // [Intoxicants] [Restlessness and worry] [Culture/Thailand]
Story: Two or three villagers were killed at local fairs while Ajahn Pasanno was abbot of Wat Pah Nanachat. [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Killing]
Story: Master Hua discourages Rev. Heng Sure from giving away his instruments. [Rev. Heng Sure] [Artistic expression] [Vinaya] [Master Hsuan Hua] [Teaching Dhamma]
Story: Old habits arise during a recording session. [Habits] [Self-identity view]
21. “As I understand Ajahn Sumedho in The Sound of Silence and Stephen Batchelor, they do not believe in rebirth or reincarnation in a literal sense. What is your belief and understanding in regards to this? Stephen in particular says this is a holdover from the society the Buddha was born into and not really his teaching. He also comments that the Buddha was more interested in creating a new civilization than individual enlightenment. Please comment.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Sumedho] [Stephen Batchelor] [Rebirth] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Culture/India] [Buddha/Biography] [Politics and society] // [Sutta] [Teaching Dhamma] [Liberation]
Vinaya: Mahāvagga 1.6: The Buddha’s activities after his Awakening.
28. Comment: Not only has the Saṅgha practiced well, it has also questioned well. Much gratitude to you all for holding the space, and to Ajahn Pasanno and his crew for an enlightening retreat. May we all grow in Dhamma for the benefit of all beings. [Saṅgha] [Questions] [Gratitude]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Desire] [Teaching Dhamma]
31. “I think about sharing the Dhamma with my family. Any suggestions on where to start? Has your family taken to the teachings since you’ve been on the path?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Teaching Dhamma] [Family ] [Ajahn Pasanno] // [Habits] [Non-contention] [Renunciation] [Amaravati]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno’s sister and her six-week-old baby attend his first meditation retreat in Canada. [Meditation retreats]
5. Story: Ajahn Mun doesn’t spend consecutive rains retreats in the same place until his mid-70s. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Mun] [Rains retreat] [Ageing] [Tudong] // [Stages of awakening] [Seclusion] [Teaching Dhamma]
Story: Saṅgha authorities appoint Ajahn Mun abbot of a monastery in Chiang Mai. He leaves before dawn the next day. [Abbot] [History/Thai Buddhism] [Saṅgha decision making]
Story: One million people attend the funeral of Ajahn Mahā Boowa. [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Funerals]
13. “To what extent is spreading the teachings part of the tudong tradition?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Teaching Dhamma] [Tudong] // [Culture/Thailand]
Vinaya: Mahāvagga 1.23: Venerable Assaji’s demeanor inspires Sariputta. [Great disciples] [Perception of a samaṇa]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno goes tudong and is asked for lottery numbers. [Ajahn Pasanno]
3. “Would you kindly comment on the cultivation and use in one’s Dhamma practice of one’s creative gifts, such as music, art, dance, writing, and so on?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Artistic expression ] // [Skillful qualities] [Unskillful qualities] [Self-identity view] [Culture/Thailand] [Ajahn Mun] [Blame and praise]
Story: Master Hua disapproves of Rev. Heng Sure giving his instruments away. [Master Hsuan Hua] [Rev. Heng Sure] [Teaching Dhamma]
9. “What is hasituppāda citta—consciousness producing mirth—that is the Buddha’s smile?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Humor ] [Buddha/Biography] // [Teaching Dhamma]
Suttas: MN 81; MN 83; AN 5.180: Examples of the Buddha’s smile.
Sutta: MN 12.58: “You might think that the jujube fruit was bigger in those days ...” [Ascetic practices]
Sutta: SN 17.5: A dung beetle gloats about his pile. [Gain and loss] [Fame and disrepute] [Similes] [Monastic life]
10. “Thank you for teaching that listening to Dhamma is a spiritual practice, not just information download. When you opened your heart to Ajahn Chah, even though you couldn’t understand his words, would you say that was a sort of Dhamma transmission directly from one heart to another?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Hearing the true Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Teaching Dhamma] // [Buddha]
11. “As wild and woolly as some of my experiences have been in the practice, I was wondering if there’s a place for wilder-ness along the path? What is crazy wisdom?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Unwholesome Roots] [Spiritual traditions] [Conventions]
Recollection: Some people thought Ajahn Tongrat was crazy. [Ajahn Tongrat]
Reference: Ajahn Utane’s biography of Ajahn Tongrat. Ajahn Mudito translated this into Portuguese in 2019, and there is a machine translation from the Portuguese. [Dhamma books]
Story: Ajahn Tongrat dies on the Dhamma seat. [Death] [Teaching Dhamma]
18. “Can you recommend any particular books which share the teachings of the Buddha in more user-friendly ways—‘Dhamma for Dummies’? I found the readings from the discourses/Canon repetitive and hard to relate to, yet you share so many Dhamma tidbits that are captivating and memorable.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno, Ajahn Karuṇadhammo and Ajahn Yatiko. [Dhamma books ] [Tipiṭaka] [Teaching Dhamma] // [Bhikkhu Bodhi]
Reference: Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness by Bhante Gunaratana (commercial). [Eightfold Path]
Reference: In the Buddha’s Words by Bhikkhu Bodhi (commercial). [Sutta]
Reference: The Life of the Buddha According to the Pali Canon by Bhikkhu Ñāṇamoli. [Buddha/Biography]
23. “I have had more of a pedestrian view of the Dhamma, and for the first time I’m having trouble even referring to the Buddha as ‘the Lord’ (Amaravati Chanting Book, p. 23). Can you review taking refuge in the Buddha? Likewise, who is Lord Sahampati in the chant of requesting a Dhamma talk (Amaravati Chanting Book, p. 124)?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Buddha] [Chanting] [Respect] [Three Refuges] [Brahma gods] // [Translation] [Culture/West] [Devotional practice] [Gratitude] [Recollection/Buddha] [Discernment] [Compassion] [Virtue]
Sutta: MN 26.20: The Brahma Sahampati invites the Buddha to teach. [Buddha/Biography] [Teaching Dhamma]
5. “Was Ajahn Chah an arahant? How can one tell when someone’s work is done? Also, is it inappropriate to ask one’s teacher if they are a stream enterer, once-returner, etc.?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Arahant ] [Teachers] [Stages of awakening] // [Suffering] [Unwholesome Roots]
Quote: “To me, I’m more like a tree that birds can come and feed in. ... [What they say] I am is just the chattering of the birds.” — Ajahn Chah. [Similes] [Teaching Dhamma]
Sutta: AN 4.192: Discerning another person’s wisdom. [Discernment]
Recollections of mistaken estimates of enlightenment. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Delusion] [Relics]
17. “Could you please talk about Shakyamuni Buddha, whose teaching we learn, and the ones before him, and the one to come Maitreya? Are the teachings the same? What is important for us to know about the Buddhas?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Buddha] [Previous Buddhas] [Metteyya Bodhisatva] // [Naturalness] [Teaching Dhamma] [Discernment] [Goodwill]
Reference: Amaravati Chanting Book Volume 2, p. 54: The Twenty-Eight Buddhas’ Protection. [Protective chants]
Quote: “Ajahn Chah had tremendous lovingkindness, and because of that he had many, many people coming to him all the time. I’m going to focus on equanimity.” — Ajahn Liem. [Ajahn Liem] [Wat Pah Pong] [Ajahn Chah] [Equanimity]
14. Comment: “Thank you for developing the wisdom to teach and the compassion to choose to teach. I trust we give you the opportunity to deepen your practice, especially of compassion and patience. The Buddha would be proud of you and your decision to teach instead of living in that nice little cave in a beautiful forest all peaceful and still. With metta.”—us sentient beings. [Gratitude] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Discernment] [Teaching Dhamma] [Compassion]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno: “It was actually Ajahn Chah who made me teach.” [Ajahn Chah] [Teaching Dhamma] [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Abbot]
8. “Could the summary of this week’s rich teachings be represented graphically? For some people, it is helpful to see the flow of a process visually, including all the players, interactions, and scenarios. There are so many details in the chain of events that it’s easy to miss one.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Teaching Dhamma] [Learning] [Visualization]
15. “You mean all I have to do is drop dukkha from the mind? Why didn’t you tell me that years ago?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Cessation of Suffering] [Teaching Dhamma]
15. Comment: Thank you for your generosity in teaching, the clarity of the teachings, and especially for your friendliness and humor. Today I had the insight that rather than teaching us a metta concentration practice, you’ve been showing us how to have metta for ourselves in our practice. [Generosity] [Teaching Dhamma] [Goodwill]
26. Expressions of gratitude for Ajahn Pasanno’s teaching and the presence of the Abhayagiri Saṅgha at the end of the 2011 Thanksgiving Retreat. [Gratitude] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Teaching Dhamma] [Abhayagiri]
1. Comment by Ajahn Yatiko: In the image of planting a seed (AN 1.314-315), for Dhamma practice it needs to be a seed that comes from the Buddha. [Similes] [Hearing the true Dhamma] [Practicing in accordance with Dhamma] [Teaching Dhamma] [Gradual Teaching] [Buddha]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Right View] [Christianity]
7. “In the West, there are so many religious practices from the East. How do we relate to them all.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Spiritual traditions] [Hinduism] [Gradual Teaching] // [Buddha/Biography] [Teaching Dhamma]
Sutta: MN 95: Caṅkī Sutta [Conditionality] [Faith]
Quote: “I’ve been an abbot for thirty years, and I’m quite happy. One of the reasons I’m happy is I don’t feel I have to go and convince anybody of anything.” — Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Monastic life] [Happiness] [Contentment] [Teaching Dhamma]
9. “I find myself struggling with staying in the moment. [I can’t] stop planning for the future. There are so many recent catastrophes: storm Sandy, floods in Thailand, earthquakes, etc. My ageing parents are worried. Emergency preparedness kits stir up more anxiety. It seems never enough. To what extent does one plan for a disaster, and how do I gently and compassionately explain that to my parents using wise words from Dhamma?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Disasters] [Proliferation] [Parents] [Restlessness and worry] [Teaching Dhamma] // [Winnie-the-Pooh]
23. “I understand that it isn’t okay for any monk or human being to say that they are enlightened. How come the Buddha himself proclaimed the enlightened one, the knower of the world? Did people write this down or quote the Buddha?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Liberation] [Buddha] // [Devotional practice] [Buddha/Biography] [Teaching Dhamma]
Sutta: MN 26.25: The Buddha’s encounter with Upaka.
Vinaya: Bhikkhu Pācittiyā 8: The rule against revealing superior human states. [Vinaya] [Gain and loss]
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] [Teaching Dhamma ]
12. “If you had to pick one of the following, which one would be more important: Understanding/insight into kamma or understanding/insight into anicca?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Knowledge and vision] [Kamma] [Impermanence] // [Liberation] [Teaching Dhamma]
Sutta: AN 6.63.33: Kamma formulated in the pattern of the Four Noble Truths. [Four Noble Truths]
15. “I’ve always felt a draw to the Fire Sermon (SN 35.28). Could you expound a bit more on this teaching?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sutta ] [Teaching Dhamma] // [Sense bases] [Similes] [Unwholesome Roots] [Disenchantment] [Buddha/Biography] [Insight meditation]
The three cardinal suttas give different frameworks for investigation:
Sutta: SN 56.11: Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta; Amaravati Chanting Book Volume 2, p. 2. [Four Noble Truths]
Sutta: SN 22.59: Anattalakkhaṇa Sutta; Amaravati Chanting Book Volume 2, p. 14. [Not-self] [Aggregates]
Sutta: SN 35.28: Ādittapariyāya Sutta; Amaravati Chanting Book Volume 2, p. 24.
3. Reflections by Ajahn Pasanno on SN 42.13: The Buddha’s clarity with definitions and bringing doubts about views back to conduct. [Teaching Dhamma] [Doubt] [Views] [Virtue]
3. “Have any teachers explained the meaning of the questions in MN 109?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Questions] [Aggregates]
Commentarial explanation of the context of MN 109. [Teaching Dhamma] [Culture/India] [Views] [Culture/West] [Christianity]
Sutta: DN 1: Brahmajāla Sutta.
5. “Why does Sāriputta recommend teaching the aggregates to people who don’t know about Buddhism (SN 22.22)?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Teaching Dhamma] [Aggregates] // [Questions] [Culture/India]
6. “Was the word saṅkhāra used before the Buddha?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Volitional formations] [Pāli] // [Language] [Teaching Dhamma] [Aggregates]
10. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno: In SN 22.3, Venerable Mahākaccāna extrapolates from the literal to the figurative. [Great disciples] [Teaching Dhamma] [Symbolism/metaphor] // [Commentaries] [Aggregates] [Sense bases] [Proliferation]
3. “Why does SN 22.26 say both impermanent and subject to change?” Answered by Ajahn Karuṇadhammo and Ajahn Pasanno. [Impermanence] // [Sutta] [Abhidhamma] [Translation] [Ajahn Ṭhānissaro] [Teaching Dhamma] [Language]
Sutta: SN 22.59 Anattalakkhaṇa Sutta (Chanting book translation).
1. Comment: MN 35 demonstrates how the Buddha asks questions to elicit people’s reactions and train them. [Buddha/Biography] [Questions] [Teaching Dhamma]
Reference: Skill in Questions by Ajahn Ṭhānissaro.
3. Comment by Ajahn Karuṇadhammo and Ajahn Pasanno: The conclusion that what is not under our control can’t be self isn’t immediately obvious. [Volition] [Not-self]
Follow-up: “How have you come to understand this over time?” [Self-identity view] [Feeling]
Follow-up: “How does the chant, ‘I am the owner of my kamma’ relate to this?” [Kamma] [Language] [Conventions]
Sutta: AN 5.57 Five Recollections (Chanting Book translation).
Comment by Ajahn Jotipālo: The suttas are summaries rather than transcripts. [Sutta] [Teaching Dhamma]
4. Reflection by Ajahn Karuṇadhammo: SN 22.86 is a classic exposition of the unapprehendability of the Tathāgata at death. [Buddha] [Death] [Non-identification] // [Right View] [Aggregates] [Teaching Dhamma]
1. “Is there another sutta not spoken by the Buddha in which as many people become enlightened as SN 22.89?” Answered by Ajahn Karuṇadhammo and Ajahn Pasanno. [Great disciples] [Teaching Dhamma] [Liberation]
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).
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
6. Comment: I find that the experience of uncertainty and loss can give rise to compassion. [Impermanence] [Grief] [Compassion]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Right View] [Emotion] [Teaching Dhamma] [Ardency]
15. “What would you say to someone who committed suicide if you could?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Suicide] [Teaching Dhamma]
4. “Was this talk given on a formal occasion?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Teaching Dhamma] [Ajahn Chah] // [Thai sects]
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. [Teaching Dhamma] [Language] [Naturalness]
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.”
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]
2. “Did Ajahn Chah tend to emphasize certain Dhammas for Westerners and for Thais?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Teaching Dhamma] [Culture/West ] [Culture/Thailand] [Ajahn Chah]
4. “Do you have any advice about how to hold a particularly strong “fighting spirit” teaching, like Ajahn Dtun?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fierce/direct teaching] [Teaching Dhamma ] [Ajahn Dtun] // [Culture/Thailand] [Ardency] [Right Effort] [Restlessness and worry] [Heedfulness] [Discernment] [Goodwill]
Sutta: AN 1.49: The mind is radiant.
Quote: “If you invite visitors into your home [the mind] and they just make a mess, then you want to close the door on them before they come in. You can’t be too polite.” — Ajahn Chah. [Ajahn Chah] [Similes] [Unwholesome Roots]