Our teacher, the Lord Buddha, was born on the bare earth under a Sala-tree in Lumbini. He was enlightened sitting on the bare earth with just a thin cushion of grass beneath, under the Bodhi-tree in Bodhgaya. He entered final nibbana lying down on the bare earth, under a Sala-tree, with merely his outer robe underneath. Nothing more than that. His whole life the Buddha spent on the earth and under…

Yesterday, when some of us were walking around…we saw many new kuṭis and the new workshop which were all built over the last couple of years since I departed. These were things that Luang Por Pasanno, myself, and others would fantasize about. It’d be a nice place to have a kuṭi there, or we could do this here, or maybe we should put the workshop there. Many of these things have suddenly become a…

How we name things is important. When contemplating what to call the monastery in Redwood Valley, Mendocino County, California, a number of different possibilities were considered. Since we were the fortunate beneficiaries of the generosity of Ven. Master Hsüan Hua in receiving the initial gift of 120 acres of land in Redwood Valley, it was obvious that it would be appropriate to somehow reflect…

You were a fountain of cool stream water in the square of a dusty town, and you were the source of that stream, on a high, unseen peak. You were, Luang Por, that mountain itself, unmoved, but variously seen. Luang Por, you were never one person, you were always the same. You were the child laughing at the Emperor’s new clothes, and ours. You were a demand to be awake, the mirror of our faults, rut…

“They are the Blessed One’s disciples who have practised well. Who have practised directly. Who have practised insightfully. Those who practice with integrity.” These four attributes, or ways of referring to the Sangha, are like the ‘footsteps of the Enlightened Ones’. We show our reverence and respect for these virtuous qualities of Sangha which follow on from the Noble Triple Gem. Within these q…

A sense that somebody wants to help us out, somebody wants to do something that’s of benefit to others; that’s something to be grateful for. When people want to do that, we should pay attention to those things and recognize them. That’s when a lot of gratitude comes, when we pay attention to others and to the efforts that they make. Also, when we put ourselves into a frame of mind that is willing…

The Lord Buddha’s Dhamma teaches us to be aware of and appreciate the kindness that is bestowed on us by people we are indebted to such as our parents or teachers, by those who took care of us or who taught and trained us. We should respect and honor them and help them when necessary. We shouldn’t be stubborn or cocky, boasting that we are highly educated and have high status. We should always rem…

An important part of my own inner life involves continually bringing attention to the heart chakra. When I’m conversing with people, I’ll very often let my attention rest at the heart. This allows me to listen with empathy and be more in touch with the tone of the conversation, rather than just the specific details of what’s being said. For me, this kind of empathic listening is more about underst…

“It has been about ten years since the time I last lived at Abhayagiri, but I always think about the Krooba Ajahn [Luang Por Pasanno], the monks and laypeople. Everyone is probably doing well, though the monastery has likely changed a lot. Thinking about the time I spent at Abhayagiri, practicing with Luang Por Pasanno and the other monks, as well as the laypeople, I feel gratefully indebted to ev…

One night during the retreat, there occurred an incident that Luang Por found so inspiring that, years later, he would often relate it to his disciples. Ajahn Khe had kindly offered to help Luang Por with his study of the Vinaya. Following a long and fruitful session one late afternoon, Luang Por, having taken his daily bath at the well, climbed up the hill to practise meditation on its cool, bree…