All questions
59 events, 291 sessions, 2023 excerpts, 118:58:38 total duration
Most common topics:
Ajahn Chah
(140)
Ajahn Pasanno
(128)
Monastic life
(126)
Mindfulness of breathing
(87)
Suffering
(66)
Death
(61)
Happiness
(61)
Jhāna
(60)
Proliferation
(59)
Directed thought and evaluation
(56)
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1. “Can you provide guidance on the contemplation of conceiving, and name and form?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Conceit] [Aggregates] [Proliferation] // [Suffering] [Nature of mind] [Advertizing] [Impermanence] [Relinquishment] [Non-identification] [Four Noble Truths]
Sutta: Ud 3.10: “For however one conceives it, it is always other than that.”
Quote: “The mind is a liar and a cheat.” — Ajahn Chah. [Ajahn Chah] [False speech]
Reference: Ajahn Buddhadāsa’s Nine Eyes, The Island by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Amaro, p. 116. [Ajahn Buddhadāsa] [Characteristics of existence]
Sutta: Ud 1.10 Bāhiya Sutta: “In the seen there is only the seen...” [Sense bases] [Perception]
Quote: “You can hurt yourself even with really good tools.” [Meditation/Techniques] [Right Effort]
2. “Can you restate Luang Por Dune’s rendering of the Four Noble Truths?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Dune] [Four Noble Truths] // [Thai]
3. “What does the phrase “beyond good and evil” mean in reference to the mind of an arahant?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Arahant] [Skillful qualities] [Unskillful qualities] // [Thai]
Quote: “Above cause, beyond effect. Above good, beyond evil. Above merit, beyond demerit.” — Ajahn Chah. [Ajahn Chah] [Conditionality] [Merit]
1. “Do the Thai Forest masters emphasize hair, teeth, nails, and skin in their body contemplation because those are more obvious to cultivate?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Thai Forest Tradition] [Mindfulness of body] [Unattractiveness] // [Ordination]
2. “Do you contemplate the body before you contemplate mind?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Thai Forest Tradition] [Mindfulness of body] [Mindfulness of mind] // [Culture/West] [Nature of mind] [Sense bases] [Aggregates]
Follow-up: “Do you need to let go of the body before you can go deep into the mind?”
3. “When you are sick, the body is not happy, so it is not that easy to meditate, right?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sickness] [Happiness] [Meditation]
5. Story: Ajahn Kalyano instructs monks to memorize the organs while watching an autopsy. Told by Ajahn Jotipālo. [Ajahn Kalyāṇo] [Unattractiveness] [Mindfulness of body] // [Aversion]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Disenchantment] [Dispassion] [Skillful qualities]
1. “I’m half expecting the earth to shake.” Comment by Ajahn Ñāṇiko after the reading of “Five Piles of Bricks.”
Response by Ajahn Pasanno: All five of the Buddha’s first disciples were liberated when listening to the Anattalakkhaṇa Sutta (SN 22.59; Chanting Book translation). [Buddha/Biography] [Liberation] [Aggregates] [Not-self]
2. ““Is Ajahn Ṭhānissaro the first voice in a couple thousand years to propose that the khandas may not be a self, or is he drawing from another tradition?”” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Ṭhānissaro] [Commentaries] [Aggregates] [History] // [Buddha]
3. “Could you talk about practicing with intention?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Volition ] // [Pāli] [Ajahn Chah] [Precepts]
Follow-up: “Is volition the same as becoming or an aspect of becoming?” [Becoming]
4. “How shall we listen to the Dhamma talks [read during Winter Retreat]?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Hearing the true Dhamma] [Ajahn Ṭhānissaro] [Learning] // [Volition]
5. “In trying to create separation between self and the khandas, are there other tools that can help around the act of becoming?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Aggregates] [Self-identity view] [Becoming] // [Knowing itself] [Volition] [Tranquility] [Investigation of states]
6. The Buddha taught not-self by ecouraging his disciples to ask these questions. [Teaching Dhamma] [Not-self] [Questions] [Philosophy]
Sutta: SN 22.59 Anattalakkhaṇa Sutta questionaire (Chanting Book translation).
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Skillful qualities] [Ajahn Chah]
1. “Why is trying to conquer pain a disaster?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Pain] // [Self-identity view] [Craving not to become] [Suffering]
2. “At what point in the Forest Tradition do you use a “warrior strategy” to conquer pain, defilements?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Unwholesome Roots] [Pain] [Thai Forest Tradition] // [Determination] [Self-identity view] [Spaciousness] [Right Effort]
Comment: The Krooba Ajahns can get intense and fiery, but what they are actually doing is making their minds calm and then contemplating and understanding pain and defilements. [Fierce/direct teaching] [Tranquility] [Discernment]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Culture/West] [Abuse/violence] [Culture/Thailand]
Story: A gung-ho five vassa monk tears down the spirit house in a southern Thai fishing village. [Superstition] [Rains retreat] [Ajahn Chah]
3. “Ajahn Sumedho talks about Ajahn Chah making him miserable, testing him. Was that your experience when you were practicing with Ajahn Chah?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Mentoring] [Ajahn Pasanno]
4. “When dealing with pain, could you give examples of the questions you would ask yourself?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Kaccāna. [Pain] [Questions] [Investigation of states] // [Visualization] [Ajahn Ṭhānissaro] [Elements]
1. “In working with the breath, when I try to spread well-being throughout the body, it seems to diminish. How do I discern whether to maintain this feeling or go back to the more intense feeling?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Rapture] // [Concentration] [Volition]
2. “Does insight arise from deeper concentration or can it also arise from different things?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Concentration] [Insight meditation] // [Tranquility]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno experiences insight on a bus in Bangkok. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Contact]
1. “Can I respond to my thoughts in ways that I think are useful?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Directed thought and evaluation] [Self-identity view] // [Right Effort] [Cause of Suffering] [Cessation of Suffering] [Knowing itself]
Reference: “Identity” in The Sound of Silence by Ajahn Sumedho (Anthology volume 4 or commercial).
Appreciation for Ajahn Sumedho’s image of the wheel. [Similes]
Sutta: MN 24: The purpose of Buddhist practice. [Liberation]
1. Comment about the meaning of sañña as memory. [Perception] [Memory]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Pāli]
1. Comments on skillful happiness and the need for patient endurance. [Skillful qualities] [Happiness] [Patience]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Discernment] [Faith]
2. “Regarding internal happiness, is part of our problem that we don’t have enough means to access it?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Happiness] [Gladdening the mind] // [Culture/West] [Learning] [Faith]
5. “Do people confuse the definitions of ego and self?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Western psychology ] [Self-identity view] // [Four Noble Truths]
Story: An applicant to Wat Pah Nanachat writes a letter avoiding all personal pronouns.
2. “Contemplating the decline of Vesali, how can we distinguish saṃvega from sadness that has no purpose?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [History/Indian Buddhism] [Spiritual urgency] [Depression] // [Principles of non-decline] [Naturalness]
Reference: “The Deathless Drum,” Chapter 9 of Rude Awakenings by Ajahn Sucitto and Nick Scott.
Sutta: AN 7.21: Seven principles of non-decline.
Comments by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Pesalo about Buddhism relying upon principles rather than geographic location. [Dhamma] [Geography/India] [Visiting holy sites]
2. “What is the balance between sorting out feelings internally and expressing feelings externally, not repressing them?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Emotion ] [Western psychology] [Community] // [Goodwill] [Compassion] [Discernment] [Learning]
3. Comment: Avoidance strategies can be both external and internal. [Pain] [Western psychology] [Meditation]
Responses by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Jotipālo. [Spiritual bypass] [Hindrances]
2. “If, in meditation, one sees thought at the point it arises, is it the sense consciousness that sees that or the pure citta?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Directed thought and evaluation] [Sense bases] [Consciousness] [Heart/mind] // [Knowing itself]
3. “How was “atta” defined in the Buddha’s time?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Jotipālo. [Doctrine-of-self clinging] [Culture/India] // [Happiness] [Rebirth]
Reference: Anattalakkhaṇa Sutta (Chanting Book translation).
4. Comment by Ajahn Kaccāna: The Thai Forest Tradition is looking for something that really works. [Thai Forest Tradition] [Attachment to precepts and practices]
Quote: “If you find something you think is a diamond, smash it with a hammer and see if it’s really a diamond.” — Ajahn Lee. [Ajahn Lee Dhammadharo]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Direct experience]
3. “Could you say something about the problem of swinging back and forth with restraint practices?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sense restraint] [Determination] // [Practicing in accordance with Dhamma] [Learning] [Becoming] [Self-identity view] [Eightfold Path] [Discernment]
Follow-up: “I remember you saying something similar in respect to sīla.” [Virtue] [Attachment to precepts and practices]
4. “How are contact and viññāṇa nutriment?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Contact] [Consciousness] [Nutriment ] // [Feeling] [Aggregates] [Becoming]
Sutta: SN 12.63: Son’s Flesh.
1. “How much did you have to adapt Ajahn Chah’s training for your own practice?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Ajahn Chah] [Monastic life] // [Teaching Dhamma] [Generosity] [Mindfulness] [Discernment]
Quote: “Ajahn Chah didn’t have a template.” [Meditation/Techniques]
2. “Did Ajahn Chah have a common statement about his own core practice?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Ajahn Chah] [Meditation/Techniques] // [Ajahn Pasanno] [Teaching Dhamma]
Sutta: MN 118: Ānāpānasati Sutta.
Story: Ajahn Piak reports that Ajahn Chah reaches jhāna quickly. [Ajahn Piak] [Psychic powers] [Jhāna]
4. “Why did you leave Wat Pah Pong to practice on your own?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Wat Pah Pong] [Seclusion] // [Ajahn Chah] [Wat Keuan] [Wat Tam Saeng Pet]
7. “Did you stay at Wat Pah Nanachat from then on?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Wat Pah Nanachat] // [Wat Pah Pong] [Tudong]
8. “Were you on tudong for a year?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Tudong] // [Seclusion] [Dtao Dum] [Ajahn Chah]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno takes a restless novice on tudong. [Novices] [Food]
1. “Does Abhayagiri have a Korwat Manual?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Abhayagiri] [Protocols] [Wat Pah Nanachat] // [Vinaya] [Learning]
2. “Can you talk about the bowl washing?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Ñāṇiko. [Abhayagiri] [Almsbowl] [Cleanliness] [Protocols] // [Animal]
3. “Ajahn Sucitto [in ‘Awareness: Nameless and Stopped’] described how dealing with the difficulties of jungle monastery life in Thailand developed the practice. How do you apply the same principles in well-supported monasteries?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Thai Forest Tradition] [Lay life] [Culture/Natural environment] [Poverty] [Gain and loss] // [Truth]
4. “Does name and form cease or not arise?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Aggregates] [Cessation] // [Language] [Proliferation]
Sutta: DN 11.85.10: Kevaṭṭasutta.
5. “Is there a precise definition of the saṅkhāra of delusion?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Volitional formations] [Delusion] // [Suffering] [Cessation of Suffering]
3. “Did you go to his cremation?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Paññāvaḍḍho] [Funerals] [Ajahn Pasanno] // [Humility]
1. “Is sleepiness not dullness? Is there a separation?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Jotipālo. [Sloth and torpor] // [Translation] [Concentration]
1. “Is it possible for a monastic to look after their parents while still practicing the vinaya?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Jotipālo. [Monastic life] [Vinaya] [Parents] // [Ajahn Viradhammo] [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Liem] [Ajahn Dtun] [Ajahn Jayasaro]
Story: Two burka-clad women stare at Ajahn Jayasaro in Kuwait. [Robes] [Conventions]
3. “How can I change my motivation around trying to get my Buddhist parents to adopt the correct Right View?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Right View] [Right Intention] [Parents] // [Compassion] [Patience]
Recollection: Ajahn Chah taught in a way that made you think that you figured it out yourself. [Ajahn Chah] [Teaching Dhamma] [Self-reliance]
Ajahn Ñāṇiko quotes the Dtao Te Ching regarding leadership. [Taoism] [Leadership]
1. Question about neutral feeling and awareness. Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Feeling] [Neutral feeling] [Delusion] [Mindfulness] // [Unwholesome Roots]
Sutta: MN 44.22: Discussion of the three kinds of feeling.
1. “What are your thoughts about developing wholesome qualities when there are so many things that mask them?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Skillful qualities] [Delusion] [Equanimity] [Contentment] // [Spiritual bypass] [Sloth and torpor] [Goodwill] [Conflict] [Discernment] [Suffering]
Reference: Working with the Five Hindrances by Ajahn Tiradhammo, p. 27.
Sutta: AN 4.28: Noble Lineages. [Requisites] [Judgementalism]
3. “Did you find any particular holy sites especially affecting?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Visiting holy sites ] // [Tranquility]
Reference: SN 56.11: Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta (Chanting Book translation)
4. “Is it still safe to go on pilgrimage on foot in India?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Culture/India] [Tudong] [Crime] // [Lodging]
5. “Did you get sick [during your pilgrimage in India]?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Culture/India] [Tudong] [Sickness] // [Food] [Almsround]
6. “How did you find Ajahn Jayasaro again [in India]?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Ajahn Jayasaro] [Visiting holy sites] // [Tudong] [Lodging] [Ajahn Koon (Chiang Rai)] [Ajahn Chai] [Ajahn Chah] [Culture/India]
1. “Could you comment on the issue of feeling that there need to be certain conditions in place for me to practice?” [Meditation] [Conditionality] // [Ajahn Chah] [Mindfulness] [Discernment] [Continuity of mindfulness]
Quote: “You can go off to the forest and be happy on your own or you can stay here and I can teach you how to be happy all the time.” — Ajahn Chah to Ajahn BahnKow. [Ajahn BahnKow] [Happiness] [Seclusion] [Everyday life]
2. Question about the differences between expansive knowing, concentration, and divided knowing or awareness; difference between viññāṇa and paññā. [Ajahn Ṭhānissaro] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of body] [Consciousness] [Concentration] [Spaciousness] // [Energy] [Unification] [Continuity of mindfulness]
1. “What does “sabbe saṅkhārā dukkhā“ mean in relation to the first Noble Truth?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Suffering] [Volitional formations] [Noble Truth of Suffering ] // [Self-pity]
Quote: “Sumedho loves to suffer.” — Ajahn Chah. [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Sumedho]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fierce/direct teaching] [Compassion]
1. “Could you talk about how to integrate interaction and physical seclusion to develop citta viveka - mental seclusion?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion ] [Community] // [Concentration] [Continuity of mindfulness] [Relinquishment] [Happiness] [Contact] [Proliferation]
Quote: “Cittaviveka is essentially sāmadhi.”
2. “What is the difference between upadhi viveka and citta viveka?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion ] [Concentration] [Discernment] // [Relinquishment] [Aggregates] [Characteristics of existence]
Quote: “Upadi viveka is more transportable. You can carry it with you.”
Sutta: SN 22.22: The Burden (Chanting Book translation).
3. “How is Dzochen similar to the Thai Forest Tradition?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Amaro] [Vajrayāna] [Thai Forest Tradition] [Emptiness]
Ajahn Pasanno describes the context of the Small Boat, Great Mountain retreat. [Spirit Rock] [Tsoknyi Rinpoche] [Theravāda]
Reference: Small Boat, Great Mountain by Ajahn Amaro.
4. “What is the value of assigning a monk to do chores rather than sitting practice?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Work] [Meditation] [Sutta] // [Concentration]
Reference: Small Boat, Great Mountain by Ajahn Amaro.
5. Discussion about keeping the continuity of practice within engagement and daily life. [Everyday life] [Continuity of mindfulness] // [Ajahn Chah] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Ajahn Kinaree]
Story: Ajahn Chah sews a robe obsessively. [Robes] [Craving]
Follow-up: “Were Ajahn Mahā Boowa’s teachings less focused on daily life?” Aswered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Pesalo. [Ajahn Mun] [Cleanliness] [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Determination] [Ardency] [Personality]
Story: Ajahn Mun teases Ajahn Mahā Boowa for being like an old boxer.
Comment: You can read the suttas, but you don’t really get a feel for what the Buddha’s teachings are until you study and practice the Vinaya. [Sutta] [Vinaya] [Protocols] [Communal harmony] [Requisites]
6. “What is right effort? What is the right level, kind of effort so that mindfulness comes more easily?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Right Effort ] [Continuity of mindfulness] [Ardency] [Long-term practice] // [Aids to Awakening]
Quote: “You look at the definition of Right Effort, and it’s not about what you do, but it’s about the quality of the mind.” [Skillful qualities] [Unskillful qualities]
7. “How important is contentment and joy in the object you pick up [in meditation].” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Right Effort] [Contentment] [Happiness] // [Discernment] [Meditation/Techniques]
8. “What factor leads into Right Effort? How does inspiration relate to Right Effort?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Kaccāna. [Right Effort] [Faith] // [Factors of Awakening] [Investigation of states] [Energy] [Hearing the true Dhamma] [Disenchantment]
Reference: MN 95.16 Caṅkī Sutta.
Comment about maintaining continuity of mindfulness of breathing. Contributed by Ajahn Kaccāna. [Continuity of mindfulness] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Tranquility]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Desire] [Contentment] [Happiness]
1. Question about views on whether the cause of suffering is desire or clinging to desire. Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Sumedho] [Craving] [Clinging] [Cause of Suffering] // [Ajahn Ṭhānissaro] [Idealism] [Suffering] [Cessation of Suffering]
Reference: Saluatation to the Triple Gem: “Rūpūpādānakkhandho...”
Follow-up: “Is the greater suffering the reaction to pain?” [Pain] [Feeling] [Aversion]
Quote: “All these different teachings and expressions of teachings....We don’t have to make them mesh, but try to figure out what they are pointing to.” [Hearing the true Dhamma] [Recollection/Dhamma]
1. “What is a good question to pose to yourself to investigate perception?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Perception] [Questions] // [Ajahn Ṭhānissaro]
3. “Is there a way to stabilize the perception of impermanence?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Jotipālo. [Perception] [Impermanence] // [Cessation] [Relinquishment] [Suffering]
Sutta: SN 12.15: Kaccānagotta.
1. “You mentioned suttas about meditation and practical life issues. Are there any other general categories of suttas?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sutta] [Human]
2. “How do these particular teachings (AN 5.48: Situations) fit with kamma?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Kamma] [Sickness] [Sutta] [Human] // [Lawfulness] [Characteristics of existence]
3. Comment: I appreciate that AN 5.48 includes devas and Māra. [Deva] [Māra] [Realms of existence] [Sutta] [Human]
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] [Parents] [Health care]
5. “In this sutta (AN 5.48), there’s the assumption that everyone has enemies. It’s making me a little paranoid.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fear] [Sutta] [Human] // [Judgementalism]
6. “With development (bhavana), is one able to shape the course of sickness or heal oneself to a degree?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Meditation] [Sickness] [Health] // [Happiness] [Medicinal requisites]
7. 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] [Sutta] [Human]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [History/Thai Buddhism]
8. 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]
9. 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. [Sutta] [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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Lay life] [Family] [Killing] [Animal] // [Human] [Patience]
8. “Is the list of Seven Treasures sequential?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Treasures] // [Stream entry] [Practicing in accordance with Dhamma] [Conditionality] [Eightfold Path]
9. “I like the translations ‘conscience’ and ‘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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Hearing the true Dhamma ] [Practicing in accordance with Dhamma ] [Determination ] [Dhamma online] // [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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sutta]
Sutta: MN 107: Gaṇakamoggallāna Sutta
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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sickness ] [Suffering] [Fear] // [Happiness] [Gratitude]
3. “What is the difference between yoniso manasikara and insight?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Appropriate attention ] [Insight meditation] // [Conditionality]
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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Animal] [Killing ] [Monastic life] // [Lodging] [Culture/Thailand]
5. “Could you tell us your stories related to the King Rama 9 of Thailand?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [King Rama IX] [Culture/Thailand] // [Leadership] [Meditation] [Recreation/leisure/sport] [Commerce/economics]
Story: Thai lay supporters remember King Rama IX at Abhayagiri’s 2016 Kaṭhina. [Abhayagiri] [Kaṭhina]
Story: King Rama IX attends Ajahn Chah’s funeral. [Ajahn Chah] [Funerals] [Wat Pah Pong] [Tranquility]
Story: King Rama IX asks President Nixon for understanding. [Politics and society] [Communal harmony] [Listening]
6. “Does the Buddha say all beings are inherently good? How about generosity? Do all human beings have the capacity for generosity?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Nature of mind ] [Generosity ]
Sutta: AN 1.51-52
Story: A Mafia boss stays under Ajahn Chah’s kuti and helps out at Wat Pah Pong. [Ajahn Chah] [Crime] [Wat Pah Pong] [Precepts]
Quote: “Generosity is an important doorway for many reasons.”
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.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Unwholesome Roots ] [Fear] [Conditionality] // [Biases] [Sensual desire] [Abhayagiri]
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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Desire ] [Health care] [Lay life] // [Cause of Suffering] [Craving] [Aids to Awakening] [Bases of Success] [Hindrances] [Sensual desire] [Language]
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, etc., of people’s’ lives in the current modern times? We are worried about Trump’s presidency!” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Monastic life] [Lay life] [Politics and society] // [Monasteries] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support ] [Abhayagiri] [Views] [Conditionality] [Dhamma]
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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [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.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sickness ] [Suffering] // [Gladdening the mind] [Compassion] [Patience] [Idealism]
5. “Can I be aware of my mind states while I am aware of my breath? It doesn’t seem so.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of mind] // [Right Mindfulness]
6. “Luang Por, for this ten day retreat, what is your Dhamma wish for us?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Meditation retreats] // [Tranquility] [Clear comprehension] [Faith]
7. “In practice we are often doing battle with our defilements. Can you speak about ways of “gladdening” the heart?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Unwholesome Roots] [Gladdening the mind] // [Ajahn Pasanno] [Conflict] [Self-identity view] [Skillful qualities]
Quote: “Quit picking a fight with them.” [Right Effort]
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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Heart/mind] [Volitional formations] [Gladdening the mind] // [Pāli]
Sutta: MN 118 Ānāpānasati Sutta.
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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Form] [Heart/mind] // [Christianity] [Conditionality]
Recollection: Ajahn Chah engaged in conversation with the villagers before the meal to reveal the junior monks’ desires around food. [Idle chatter] [Food] [Sensual desire]
Advice from Ajahn Chah: “Don’t admonish anybody before the meal.” [Admonishment/feedback]
Update about the progress on the new Ajahn Chah biography. [Dhamma books] [Ajahn Jayasaro]
Reference: Stillness Flowing by Ajahn Jayasaro
Story: Nine year old Ajahn Chah goes to the monastery after getting fed up with household chores. [Culture/Thailand] [Geography/Thailand] [Faith] [Monasteries] [Family] [Work]
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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Politics and society ] [Ill-will] [Equanimity ] // [Divine Abidings] [Goodwill] [Conflict] [Aversion] [Judgementalism] [King Rama IX]
Sutta: Dhp 5: Hatred is never overcome by hatred...
11. “It seems I can quiet my mind easier in the midst of noise. It’s been one continuous monkey mind. Please help.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Calming meditation] [Proliferation] [Restlessness and worry] // [Tranquility] [Culture/Natural environment] [Suffering] [Investigation of states]
Story: Spending the Vassa at quiet Poo Jum Gom [Poo Jum Gom] [Geography/Thailand]
Quote: “I’ve got nobody to blame anymore.” — A junior monk.
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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Politics and society] [Leadership] [Virtue] [Thai Forest Tradition] // [Self-reliance]
13. “What about aversions that have a message, as a signal to understanding something? How is one to trust that from regular aversion?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Aversion ] // [Conditionality] [Unskillful qualities] [Skillful qualities] [Heedfulness]
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?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Faith] [Right Speech] [Spiritual traditions]
15. “Ajahn, what is your instruction regarding the Noble Eightfold Path and the most useful attitude toward the word “right”?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Eightfold Path ] // [Pāli] [Cessation of Suffering]
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 this conversation skillfully?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Family] [Politics and society ] [Right Speech ] // [Judgementalism] [Listening] [Human] [Sense restraint]