40 events, 190 sessions, 1563 excerpts, 88:34:43 total duration
Most common topics:
Monastic life
(105)
Ajahn Chah
(92)
Ajahn Pasanno
(78)
Mindfulness of breathing
(68)
Jhāna
(60)
Death
(50)
Directed thought and evaluation
(50)
Goodwill
(46)
Not-self
(46)
Suffering
(45)
Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 All/Searchable
1. “Please explain more how did the Buddha cross the flood, by neither going forward nor standing still. What does this mean?” [Becoming] [Cessation of Suffering]
2. “How could you accomplish studying Buddhism in Thailand with Luang Por Chah? How did Luang Por Chah teach you as a you were a foreigner new monk? How did you cope with the language issue?” [Ajahn Pasanno] [Ajahn Chah] [Monastic life] [Language]
3. “You often talk about gladdening and lightening the mind. How do I do that?” [Gladdening the mind]
4. “Could you speak a little about the structure of the Pali Canon? How much was written down in the Buddha's time?” [History/Early Buddhism]
5. “Could you talk about woman’s ordination (nuns) during the Buddha's time and in modern times?” [Women's monastic forms] [History/Early Buddhism]
6. “Could you talk about the role memory plays in perception?” [Memory] [Perception]
7. “I'm concerned about Alzheimer's disease and getting stuck between life and death, loosing all I've learned about mindfulness practice and all my dignity. Where is the silver lining in this life's challenge?” [Death] [Sickness] [Ageing]
8. “Please explain the hierarchy of devas, gods, etc. in relation to the Buddha. How is it that a mortal being can be more evolved or enlightened than gods? Do gods and devas create karma? Are they born again as gods or devas or humans?” [Deva] [Buddha]
9. “If a lay person wants to follow the seventh precept in daily life, refraining from entertainment seems fairly straightforward. Would you please explain more specifically refraining from “beautification and adornment?” Does owning artwork fall anywhere into precept seven?” [Entertainment and adornment]
10. “Appreciation for becoming aware of consciousness as a nutriment.” [Consciousness] [Nutriment]
11. “Please demonstrate how to bow. Are there any cultural differences?” [Bowing]
12. “As I've been pondering about consciousness as nutriment, which pointed me to the self. I am wondering, is the self attachment? But attachment is not permanent either. So could we say the self can be either attachment and/or non-attachment, the owner or non-owner? Not trying to find self, rather understanding self? Perhaps pure self as opposed to impure self? Please comment.” [Consciousness] [Nutriment] [Not-self] [Clinging]
13. “I was a little confused this morning about the nutriments. I'm assuming the nutriments nourish our suffering. What are the nutriments? How would consciousness and mental volition differ in feeding dukkha?” [Nutriment] [Consciousness] [Volition] [Suffering]
14. “Would you share one of Pooh's many nuggets of wisdom to inspire?” [Winnie-the-Pooh]
15. “Can you clarify the difference between desire and intention? It seems that either could lead to suffering due to attachments to the results. Yet we are encouraged to have intentions for well-being, health, happiness, etc. Isn't our intention also a desire?” [Desire] [Volition] [Clinging]
1. “In working with the Four Noble Truths, to understand suffering, does the Buddha mean knowing for instance the pain in your heart, the stress around your eyes, or does he also mean to see with insight its karmic effect on yourself and others?” [Four Noble Truths] [Noble Truth of Suffering] [Kamma]
2. “To abandon the cause, does it mean in that moment or completely?” [Cause of Suffering]
3. “All the stories you told us this morning made me realize the fact that what we are seeking is just right here in our mind. What do you think?” [Nature of mind]
4. “Could you talk more about the two levels of understanding the true nature of karma: mundane and transcendent?” [Kamma]
5. “Competitiveness feels so pervasive here in America. What are your thoughts for working with it or healing it?” [Competitiveness] [Culture/West]
6. “Could you describe the progression of anagarika and samanera training?” [Sequence of training]
7. “The Middle Way – It is not 50% becoming and 50% annihilation, right? What is it the middle of?” [Middle Path]
8. “Toward the end of this morning sitting meditation, my body started shaking from left to right for about a minute or so. While this was happening, I was observing it without getting panicked or trying to stop it and then it stopped shaking. How do you explain this experience?” [Meditation/Unusual experiences]
9. “In this afternoon's talk, Ajahn Karunadhammo mentioned the benefits of the bhava that results from practice or the Eightfold Path. Could you elaborate on this?” [Eightfold Path] [Becoming]
10. “Did the Buddha perform any miracles?” [Psychic powers] [Buddha]
11. “Can the monastics speak about the skillful use of caffeine for their practice?” [Medicinal requisites]
12. “Can you please explain the asavas?” [Outflows]
13. “Please speak a little about kataññu.” [Gratitude]
14. “How can I continue to deepen my practice in the absence of a living teacher?” [Long-term practice] [Teachers]
15. “Is it useful to investigate how we can only experience one conscious moment at a time?” [Consciousness] [Investigation of states]
1. “I was just reading a talk of Ajahn Chah's. He mentions “vipassanu.” Could you explain this more?” [Ajahn Chah] [Insight meditation]
2. “An Ajahn visiting Abhayagiri spoke of you receiving an honor. Would you elaborate on what it was, who bestows it, and what it means for you and the community?” [Monastic titles] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Abhayagiri]
3. “Could you talk a bit about the kilesas? How to work with them skillfully without falling into discouragement and self-judgment?” [Unwholesome Roots]
4. “Can you repeat the Thai words for “Is it worth it?” that you mentioned this morning? I'd like to use it as a mantra.” [Thai]
5. “Are there any suttas in the Majjhima Nikaya that you recommend that lay people study?” [Sutta]
6. “Can you give me some ideas for antidotes to restlessness?” [Restlessness and worry]
7. “Why is the Buddha referred to in the present tense in the chants? Is it because we are referring to the present potential within us?” [Buddha] [Chanting]
8. “When bowing three times, do you say something in your mind like taking refuge or anything else?” [Bowing] [Three Refuges]
9. “Can you say more about trusting the seeds of meditation practice after Alzheimer's/dementia kick in? What do you mean by going beyond liberation or consciousness? What do you mean by “many deeper layers” are affected by the practice and the fruits of it will express naturally?” [Sickness] [Consciousness] [Long-term practice]
10. “After forty years of meditating, what do you still find that is interesting?” [Long-term practice]
11. “I am so grateful for the peace I am developing in my life. It feels like a refuge. Is it the fourth refuge?” [Three Refuges]
12. “Several months ago, I started to use the phrase: “I'd rather be loved than right.” This small shift has had a tremendous impact in my life as I relinquish my need to be right, to control and to assert my ego into things.” [Relinquishment] [Views]
13. “How important is chanting for one's practice? Do you have any tips for how to recite/remember the Pali chants?” [Chanting] [Memory]
1. “I'm having a hard time with alcohol (not here!). Not heavy or even daily use; a glass of wine with dinner a few nights a week or at social events. I would like to stop but have a hard time sustaining for more than a month or so. Any words of encouragement?” [Intoxicants]
2. “When you spent time with family, did you notice any old habits resurfacing?” [Ajahn Pasanno] [Family] [Habits]
3. “Can you please speak about faith? How to develop it? How to maintain it through the ups and downs of practice? How have you maintained your faith over forty years of practice?” [Faith] [Long-term practice] [Ajahn Pasanno]
4. “I was wondering if the merit we have done for meditation practice can be dedicated to the people (dead or alive) we pray for? How do we know it? Also, I have heard that the merit from practicing meditation will accumulate and stay with ones who have practiced that, which also carries over throughout the life or the subsequent incarnations. Can you clarify this?” [Merit] [Rebirth]
5. “I understand that there is a council of Theravada elders who are a “decision making panel” guiding the tradition. Who exactly is part of this council and who or what determines their eligibility? Will the honor being bestowed upon you and Ajahn Amaro next month make you eligible? Are there other monks in modern times who have received this honor?” [History/Thai Buddhism] [Saṅgha decision making] [Monastic titles] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Ajahn Amaro]
6. “If I remember correctly, you said with practice what can be realized is not so much the abandonment of the self but the misperception of a self given there has never been a self to be abandoned, correct?” [Not-self]
7. “Can you give a concrete description of how you recollect or contemplate? What's going on in your mind while you do it? What resources or mental formations do you use?” [Recollection]
8. “What chants would you recommend as suitable to use for patients who may be in hospice or close to death? Can Buddhist monks give last rites?” [Death] [Chanting]
9. “The Buddha said that vedana is either pleasant, unpleasant, or neither. Contemplating papañca, I noticed that it felt comfortable – familiar and unthreatening. Would a better way to “neither pleasant nor unpleasant” be “comfortable” rather than “neutral?”” [Feeling] [Proliferation] [Neutral feeling]
10. “Can you tell us what you find interesting about the breath? What insights have arisen for you from watching the breath?” [Mindfulness of breathing] [Insight meditation]
11. “Do you have any tips for embodying the Dhamma in business situations when negotiating with aggressive individuals? I tend to walk away at a certain point, but am wondering if there's another way to turn it around, make it better for everyone?” [Work] [Right Speech]
12. “Have you ever put a publication together on the retreat questions? Are the talks of this retreat being recorded?” [Teaching Dhamma] [Meditation retreats] [Questions]
13. “For decades, I believed the suffering was the food itself–that cake, that pastry, more food, another bowlful. But now I understand dukkha is not “the thing.” It is the overwhelming craving, the feeling itself. And now that the dukkha is understood, how do I tolerate that feeling?” [Food] [Suffering] [Craving] [Noble Truth of Suffering] [Patience]
14. “Is it possible to meditate on forgiveness for someone who died many years ago? Does forgiveness reach that person on some level, or is it more a matter of showing compssion towards myself?” [Forgiveness] [Compassion]
15. “Could you explain what your ordination names mean and how they were chosen?” [Monastic titles]
16. “How does the process work to get a title as you do? Is this title only for monks? Will you be the only one in the USA?” [Monastic titles] [Ajahn Pasanno]
17. “I understand that our genetic disposition can't be changed, but epigenetics say that their expression can be modified by changing lifestyle. In a similar way, our kamma is given but understanding but your teachings say the expression and effects can be changed by practice. Please comment.” [Science] [Health] [Kamma]
18. “Could you speak about Buddhist involvement in social change movements?” [Politics and society] [Activism]
19. “Who are the most senior monks in the Thai Forest Tradition? Can you speak about the lineage? Are there Thai teachers of your seniority who come to the West?” [Thai Forest Tradition]
20. “I have attended many deaths and that last breath appears to be really difficult to relinquish. Does this training really help?” [Death] [Relinquishment] [Long-term practice]
21. “In the Anapanasati Sutta, what is meant by “breathing in/out tranquilizing the mental formation?”” [Mindfulness of breathing] [Volitional formations]
22. “Can you recommend a reflection or phrase to use immediately upon awakening in the morning or the last thing before sleep?” [Recollection]
23. “I'm curious about the ceremony to bestow the honorific title. What does it entail? What is the new title? Does it change the appropriate way for us to address or refer to you?” [Monastic titles] [Ajahn Pasanno]
24. “If one were to choose a life partner who was not practicing the Dhamma as we know it but had some spiritual lightness about them, what are some qualities we should look for in them that would make them a good partner?” [Relationships]
25. “Do you think it's possible to experience Nibbana before becoming fully awakened - “moments of enlightenment?” But if Nibbana is beyond consciousness, would you remember that it happened?” [Nibbāna] [Stages of awakening] [Consciousness]
26. “Is there a way to measure concentration, mindfulness, and awareness?” [Right Mindfulness] [Right Concentration] [Present moment awareness]
1. “You mentioned suttas about meditation and practical life issues. Are there any other general categories of suttas?”
2. “How do these particular teachings (AN 5.48: Situations) fit with kamma?” [Kamma] [Sickness] // [Lawfulness] [Characteristics of existence]
3. Comment: I appreciate that AN 5.48 includes devas and Māra. [Deva] [Māra] [Realms of existence]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno.
4. “In the West, we personalize every bit of suffering. Is it different in Thailand?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Culture/West] [Suffering] [Self-identity view] [Culture/Thailand] // [Language] [Liberation]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno can't translate guilt into Thai. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Guilt/shame/inadequacy] [Thai] [Translation]
Quote: “That's really suffering. Tell them not to do that.” — Ajahn Paññānanda [Ajahn Paññānanda]
Reference: Can't We Talk about Something More Pleasant? by Roz Chast (commercial). [Ageing] [Sickness] [Family] [Health care]
5. “In this sutta (AN 5.48), there's the assumption that everyone has enemies. It's making me a little paranoid.” [Fear] // [Judgementalism]
6. “With development (bhavana), is one able to shape the course of sickness or heal oneself to a degree?” [Meditation] [Sickness] [Health] // [Happiness] [Medicinal requisites]
Comment: I've been reflecting on how AN 5.48 applies to environmental and collective well-being–engaging without the expectation that actions will have a certain result. [Environment] [Politics and society]
Response [History/Thai Buddhism]
7. Comment: I find it difficult to find the line between what you can change and what you can't. [Politics and society] [Everyday life] [Equanimity]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Clear comprehension] [Delusion]
8. Comment: Michael Olds translates sutta as 'magical spell.' The format, repetition, and structure of the suttas has a certain potency. When I read the suttas after meditating, it's completely different. [Psychic powers] [Meditation]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Buddha] [Teaching Dhamma]
2. Comment: When I practice and share Dhamma as a lay person, others complain when I make mistakes. [Lay life] [Virtue] [Buddhist identity]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno.
4. Comment: When I hear the word "shame," it's.a cousin of guilt. But in this context (AN 7.6), it seems more acceptable. [Treasures] [Guilt/shame/inadequacy] [Conscience and prudence]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Language] [Christianity]
5. “This year my whole family got lice. How do we respond to this skillfully?” [Lay life] [Family] [Killing] [Animal] // [Human] [Patience]
8. “Is the list of Seven Treasures sequential?” [Treasures] // [Stream entry] [Practicing in accordance with Dhamma] [Conditionality] [Eightfold Path]
9. “I like the translations 'conscience' aand 'concern' for hiri and otappa. Having done unskillful actions in the past that create suffering, and being aware of the tendency to personalize, how can it be over and done?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Treasures] [Conscience and prudence] [Unskillful qualities] [Suffering] [Kamma] [Self-identity view] // [Four Noble Truths] [Divine Abidings]
Quote: “As a human being, I have the opportunity to learn from the past and move on to skillful action in the future. I don't have to be like a dog that barfs stuff up and goes back and eats it again.” — Ajahn Pasanno [Human] [Learning] [Skillful qualities] [Similes]
Quote: “The not-self refrain, 'This is not me, this is not mine, this is not what or who I am,' is not an abdication of responsibility but an understanding, 'This is the way I can put things down and move on, move past the things that are still creating suffering.'” — Ajahn Pasanno [Not-self] [Relinquishment]
Suttas: SN 42.8 The Conch Blower; AN 3.100: A Lump of Salt.
10. “What is a good balance between listening to Dhamma and practicing more deeply? How long should one keep one's practices, and when to expand or shink them?” [Hearing the true Dhamma] [Practicing in accordance with Dhamma] [Determination] // [Four Noble Truths] [Direct experience] [Ajahn Chah] [Dhamma books] [Mindfulness of mind] [Learning]
11. Comment: I listen to the Abhayagiri Dhamma talks, focusing more on the timbre of the voice rather than trying to get an intellectual grasp of what was said. That projects me into a dimension of well-being. [Hearing the true Dhamma] [Abhayagiri] [Happiness] [Learning]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Tranquility]
12. Comments about ongoing Dhamma practice and coming back to the heart. [Long-term practice] [Suffering] [Cessation of Suffering] [Ill-will] [Forgiveness] [Mindfulness of mind]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Merit]
Quote: “We're making choices all the time anyway; we may as well choose to be happy.” [Volitional formations] [Happiness]
13. “When you're living on the precepts, how do I relate to (for example) a friend who tells me about an affair they are having?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Jotipālo. [Precepts] [Spiritual friendship] [Sexual misconduct] // [Skillful qualities] [Admonishment/feedback] [Discernment] [Right Speech] [Vinaya] [Abhayagiri]
Quote: “Don't admonish your fellow monks before the meal.” — Ajahn Chah. Quoted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Monastic life] [Food] [Eating after noon]
14. “Could you comment on the tendency to use one aspect of the teaching to bypass another?” [Spiritual bypass] // [Four Noble Truths] [Recollection/Dhamma] [Relinquishment]
Quote: “With some things, letting go means you're willing to commit to hard work, and other times you're willing to put down what is burdensome.” [Ardency]
15. “AN 5.38 says, 'Not by sorrow can even the slightest good come.' How does this work with the natural process of grieving?” [Grief] [Skillful qualities] // [Cultural context] [Family] [Ajahn Chah] [Death] [Characteristics of existence]
16. “Part of the sense of loss and sorrow is the joys that have created attachment. How to approach this?” [Grief] [Happiness] [Clinging] // [Naturalness] [Human] [Spaciousness]
Sutta: Thag 1062: Mahākassapa delights in nature. [Great disciples] [Culture/Natural environment]
1. “I am guessing that accountant had little chance of finding his way to Nibbana - unless he ordained? Do you know if he did?” [Nibbāna] [Ordination]
2. “I have a cancer and finished my treatment and am afraid it will come back if I don’t take care of myself as doctor told. So it is my stress. How can I think about my stress to hold it in my mind?” [Health] [Suffering]
3. “What is the difference between yoniso manasikara and insight?” [Appropriate attention] [Insight meditation]
4. “What do you do when there are ants at the monastery? Is there a way to get rid of them naturally without killing them? I had to get rid of some a week ago and witnessed 3 ants die somewhat painfully by what I used which caused both sadness and remorse in me and I don’t want to do it again. But what is “right action” (ie. the precepts) versus what is practical?” [Animal] [Killing] [Monastic life]
5. “Could you tell us your stories related to the King Rama 9 of Thailand?” [Royalty] [Culture/Thailand]
6. “Does the Buddha say all beings are inherently good? How about generosity? Do all human beings have the capacity for generosity?” [Nature of mind] [Generosity]
7. “At the Friday evening talk, you mentioned the three poisons/kleshas of greed, hatred and delusion. But you also added fear. Fear seems to me more like a result. Please explain.” [Unwholesome Roots] [Fear]
1. “Isn’t desire needed for lay life, starting a family, a business etc? And what about polio? Would there be things like a vaccine for polio without desire? Did the Buddha have something else in mind?” [Desire] [Health care]
2. “I was wondering since you are a monk of 40 years, you are happy and mindful. How can you know of the issues, problems of people's’ lives in the current modern times? We are worried about Trump’s presidency!” [Monastic life] [Politics and society]
3. “Though unskillful mind states may come up, as long as we don’t pick them up and feed them, they are just ideas/thoughts that will end.' Can you comment on the effectiveness of this practice? Are there situations where you would definitely recommend it? Definitely not recommend it? Do you see this relating to metta?” [Unskillful qualities] [Impermanence] [Meditation/Techniques] [Goodwill]
4. “I am so grateful for your generous teachings. I am training my mind and am so glad for the dhamma in my life. However, I am experiencing migraine attacks almost daily, and therefore therefore a lot of uncertainty and dukkha. “Will I be able to function today?” “How bad will it be?” “Will I throw up?” “Which medicine will be the most beneficial today?” “Which side effects can I deal with today?” Working with my mind under these conditions is challenging, but I am up for the challenge, at least some of the time. I could use some encouragement, please.” [Generosity] [Health] [Suffering]
5. “Can I be aware of my mind states while I am aware of my breath? It doesn’t seem so.” [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of mind]
6. “Luang Por, for this ten day retreat, what is your Dhamma wish for us?” [Ajahn Pasanno]
7. “In practice we are often doing battle with our defilements. Can you speak about ways of “gladdening” the heart?” [Unwholesome Roots] [Gladdening the mind]
8. “In the mindful breathing sutta, what is the difference between “mind” and “mental fabrication”? And what is meant by “satisfying the mind” in step 10?” [Mindfulness of breathing] [Heart/mind] [Volitional formations] [Gladdening the mind]
9. “Can Ajahn Pasanno teach us how Ajahn Chah teaches or gives techniques on physical states and mental states? Can you tell us more about Ajahn Chah’s biography, for example, when and how Ajahn Chah wanted to become a monk?” [Ajahn Chah] [Meditation/Techniques]
10. “Can you talk about working with the practice in what seems like perilous times?, e.g. the rise in overt expressions of hatred toward sectors of society and the associated change in national leadership? How does one cultivate equanimity while also not turning away?” [Politics and society] [Aversion] [Equanimity]
11. “It seems I can quiet my mind easier in the midst of noise. It’s been one continuous monkey mind. Please help. Would you give a guided meditation towards jhana please?” [Calming meditation] [Proliferation] [Jhāna]
12. “With virtuous leaders passing away and unvirtuous ones coming into power, is the world entering a dark period? Was there any predictions from the Forest Masters about this?” [Politics and society] [Thai Forest Tradition]
13. “What about aversions that have a message, as a signal to understanding something? How is one to trust that from regular aversion?” [Aversion]
14. “When talking with friends, sometimes the topic of faith and religion comes up. Normally, I find this topic pleasant and enjoyable, but on occasion, I find myself in conversation with somebody who believes (often quite insistently) that their faith is “the only way”. Do you have an advice on how I might skillfully navigate these situations?” [Faith] [Right Speech]
15. “Ajahn, what is your instruction regarding the Noble Eightfold Path and the most useful attitude toward the word “right”?” [Eightfold Path]
16. “During the Christmas holiday, I’m going to be spending some time with relatives who do not share my same political views. In the spirit of wanting to understand their views and wanting to heal the divide that exists in our country, I want to talk about the election with them. How do I have conversation skillfully?” [Family] [Politics and society] [Right Speech]