Once the Buddha was staying in a forest and took up a handful of leaves. He asked the bhikkhus which they thought were more numerous, the leaves in his hand or those in the forest. When they replied that the leaves in the forest were more numerous, the Buddha responded: Even so, bhikkhus, those things I have known directly are numerous, while those I have taught are few. And why, bhikkhus, have I…

The Four Requisites are the basic possessions of an alms-mendicant: a set of robes, alms-food, shelter and medicine. A monk or nun may be offered more, but these are the basics. The training is about keeping possessions to a minimum. Based on simplicity and minimal needs, the monastic life helps you to steer away from habits of gathering, accumulation and collection of things that may seem ‘absolu…

One of the most important skills monks at Wat Pah Pong were expected to develop in the first years of their training was the ability to judge ‘the right amount’ – not too much and not too little, the optimum amount – when consuming the requisites. Reflections on wise use of the requisites were included in the morning and evening chanting sessions to provide regular reminders. Too much of anything…

In our society, we are very much conditioned to believe that our memories are really ours. We don’t generally remember the ordinary events of our lives, but we do remember the very good ones; we remember when we won a prize or had a wonderful romance. We also remember the bad things we have done or that have been done to us. Grasping occurs either when we hold on and regurgitate all our memories o…

In positive terms, right speech means speaking in ways that are trustworthy, harmonious, comforting, and worth taking to heart. When you make a practice of these positive forms of right speech, your words become a gift to others. In response, other people will start listening more to what you say and will be more likely to respond in kind. This gives you a sense of the power of your actions: the w…

I’ll tell you a story about the Supreme Patriarch, something I’ve heard from other people. He went to China and, when he arrived, the Chinese gave him a teacup. It was really beautiful. There was nothing like it in Thailand. And as soon as he received the teacup, he suffered: Where was he going to put it? Where was he going to keep it? He put it in his shoulder bag. If anyone touched his shoulder…

In Pali, the language of early Buddhism, the word for forgiveness—khama—also means “the earth.” A mind like the earth is non-reactive and unperturbed. When you forgive me for harming you, you decide not to retaliate, to seek no revenge. You don’t have to like me. You simply unburden yourself of the weight of resentment and cut the cycle of retribution that would otherwise keep us ensnarled in an u…

A person endowed with these four qualities can be known as ‘a person of integrity.’ Which four? There is the case where a person of integrity, when asked, doesn’t reveal another person’s bad points, to say nothing of when unasked. Furthermore, when asked, when pressed with questions, he is one who speaks of another person’s bad points not in full, not in detail, with omissions, holding back…. Then…

Tonight some of you have dedicated the chanting to your departed relatives. You did it voluntarily: there has been no instruction to do that. What makes it something so natural and spontaneous that you overcome whatever self-consciousness may be there to write down a dedication with your name on it and put it right up here? What gives you the authority to do that? Where does that come from? When y…

The Buddha relates a story of a king who had all the people in his realm who were born blind assembled together and introduced to an elephant. The king then asked them what an elephant was like. ‘Those blind people who had been shown the head of the elephant replied, “An elephant, your majesty, is just like a water jar.” Those blind people who had been shown the ear of the elephant replied, “An el…