Peace in Present Moment

0:00 You know this meditation does create psychic events, miracles. I look to the people when I close my eyes to begin this meditation and there's always more people afterwards when I open my eyes, only half an hour. That's why we only do half an hour meditations. If we did an hour meditation, this place wouldn't be able to handle all the people who suddenly appear. Report an error in the passage at 0:00 Highlight the passage at 0:00

0:30 That's what it feels for me because I've got my eyes closed. I don't pay attention to sounds of people coughing or moving in. It's one of those trainings you have in meditation when you don't really pay attention to sounds and you don't ever consider them to be problems. They're just sounds. What's the big deal? They don't kill you. They don't disturb you. It's one of the reasons why I learned this. Report an error in the passage at 0:30 Highlight the passage at 0:30

1:02 Now from Ajahn Chah, there was a teacher over in Thailand and he would tell us that if ever you're in a noisy place, there is a way of dealing with that. And a particular time when this was really disturbing for us was when the local villagers had a party. Report an error in the passage at 1:02 Highlight the passage at 1:02

1:26 Now this was like Laotian culture. And if they have a party in Laotian culture, Whatever time they start, it usually takes three days to finish. They do sleep for three or four hours, and then they get up and carry on. Report an error in the passage at 1:26 Highlight the passage at 1:26

1:45 And I thought, like many of us Westerners thought, isn't that a bit extreme, partying for three days? You know, can't you give the monks a bit of a rest? Because they didn't have electricity in those days in the villages. They had generators. And when they turned those generators on and they started partying, even though we were one kilometer away, it was still extremely loud. Report an error in the passage at 1:45 Highlight the passage at 1:45

2:18 So much so that when they finally tired out and just had a sleep, it was about 2 o 'clock in the morning, 2.15 in the morning, and at 3 o 'clock in the morning, that's when our monastery bell rang. Report an error in the passage at 2:18 Highlight the passage at 2:18

2:32 And a half an hour of sleep, that's all. Then he carried on again and again for three nights in a row. So we were really losing sleep. So we went to see the great compassionate wise master Rajan Chah and he told us, it's not the noise disturbs you. It's you who disturbed the noise. And it's not what I expected. And that made me really sort of contemplate what on earth does he mean? Report an error in the passage at 2:32 Highlight the passage at 2:32

3:03 And for the rest of my life as a meditating monk, Instead of trying to find the quiet places in the world where you don't hear noise, instead you find the quiet place in your mind where you don't disturb the noise. You let it be. Have a peace with it. You don't fight it. And after a while, it's not that hard to do. Report an error in the passage at 3:03 Highlight the passage at 3:03

3:30 After a while, we have all these wonderful methods of not disturbing the noise. One of those. I tested myself out many times. I can only talk of personal experiences because these are the ones I know. And I want to embarrass and encourage them, so I want to embellish them. I remember just in the old days, for those of you who've lived in Perth a long time, opposite Hay Street Mall, there was a, I think it was a Uniting Church there. Report an error in the passage at 3:30 Highlight the passage at 3:30

4:09 And they didn't mind if people for good causes would do some kind of demonstration or protest on the steps of that church. There's plenty of space there. And this was like a Buddhist demonstration. You know what a Buddhist demonstration is like? Incredibly peaceful. Report an error in the passage at 4:09 Highlight the passage at 4:09

4:33 We just sat on the stairs and meditated. And when I was invited to join, it was a... organized by the Burmese Buddhist community for what was going on over in Burma at that time. But instead of actually chanting or anything, we just sat perfectly still on the stone steps for a couple of hours. Report an error in the passage at 4:33 Highlight the passage at 4:33

5:01 I must admit I wanted to try that to see whether I could do it. With all that noise going on outside, I saw all those people walking past A Street Mall and William Street, but the most noise was coming from a shop just on the opposite side of the road. Many of you may remember this type of shop. It was in many cities at the time. It was called Time Zone. It was blaring out all sorts of very loud music. Report an error in the passage at 5:01 Highlight the passage at 5:01

5:35 It was just basically right opposite where I was sitting. So while I was sitting, and the road is probably just between you and me, Palash, that's all. Not that far, boom, boom, boom, coming out all the time. And so I sat down, closed my eyes. See whether you couldn't ask the shop to turn the music down. Report an error in the passage at 5:35 Highlight the passage at 5:35

6:00 You couldn't ask the cars to drive more quietly. You couldn't tell people not to disturb me. I had to find out what it meant not to disturb the noise. And after a while, it was not that hard to do. You just literally let it be. Not fighting it, not getting angry at it, not getting disturbed by it. It's not that hard to do. And it really helps when you really come into this present moment, relaxing with the noise. Report an error in the passage at 6:00 Highlight the passage at 6:00

6:41 And right now, If you ever notice, when you do get upset by noise, what are you actually getting upset by? A lot of time it's that feeling that it's going to carry on for a long time. Report an error in the passage at 6:41 Highlight the passage at 6:41

6:57 I can't stand this any longer. You are standing it right now. It's just the longer bit when you add this merciless time. Right in this moment, it's not a problem at all. That's why I always found the present moment awareness was one of the most important tricks to being able to endure no matter what noise it was. Report an error in the passage at 6:57 Highlight the passage at 6:57

7:26 And so when you learn how not to disturb noise, then you can apply that to so many other things in life. I don't know how many times people come and ask me if I have the time sitting outside the problems they have in life. Report an error in the passage at 7:26 Highlight the passage at 7:26

7:46 Is there anyone of you hasn't had any problems at all this past week? Report an error in the passage at 7:46 Highlight the passage at 7:46

7:58 If you have, you must be a robot. Everyone has problems, but how many of you cannot disturb them, leave them alone? One of the things I've obviously discovered over so many years here in Western Australia, of course there are problems. I'm the boss monk. Report an error in the passage at 7:58 Highlight the passage at 7:58

8:26 And somebody gave me that name. I think they've gone back home now, a couple of kids. I'm a senior monk, so I've got to deal with those problems, according to our committee. So what do I do? I've got two normal responses. If there is a solution, obviously we'll say it. If there's no solution, I reply, I will think about it. Because I cannot tell lies. Report an error in the passage at 8:26 Highlight the passage at 8:26

8:58 I will think about it, but don't think about it much. Report an error in the passage at 8:58 Highlight the passage at 8:58

9:06 It's like a cop-out strategy. But not just a cop-out out of laziness. It's an understanding that sometimes if you don't even think about it or worry about it, then solutions come by themselves. Report an error in the passage at 9:06 Highlight the passage at 9:06

9:25 People get tired or you realize it's not a problem after all. How many times when you've been sick, If you healed up. Why? Was it because of some medicine you took? Or some exercise which you did? Or was it just body heals up when you can relax and let it be? How many times do you think, oh my goodness, I've got a cancer. Report an error in the passage at 9:25 Highlight the passage at 9:25

9:58 Oh my goodness, what should I do? These days people go on the internet and find out all the different problems and probabilities and stuff like that. Report an error in the passage at 9:58 Highlight the passage at 9:58

10:11 Instead, why not just think, who knows? Just be in this moment, relax to the max, and see what happens. Too many times when I've done that, I think I told a few people earlier, that I think I should let people know that I do have a disease. Report an error in the passage at 10:11 Highlight the passage at 10:11

10:34 It's called terminal disease. Report an error in the passage at 10:34 Highlight the passage at 10:34

10:41 This evening, once again, I'm going to the airport terminal. I'm flying off to London tonight. I call that terminal disease. Report an error in the passage at 10:41 Highlight the passage at 10:41

10:54 Because I go to too many terminals in my life. Other than that, I'm pretty healthy. But you can see just how that attitude of making light of it, being able to laugh at it. Why not? Report an error in the passage at 10:54 Highlight the passage at 10:54

11:15 I know that sometimes people say, Ajahn Brahm, you're not serious enough. This is challenging someone. They may die. Yeah. What's wrong with dying? You know what? A long time ago, I was told by Ajahn Chah, if you want to have a quiet place to meditate in Thailand, it's really hard to find quiet places to meditate. Report an error in the passage at 11:15 Highlight the passage at 11:15

11:45 He said the best places To go in Thailand is to go to the charnel grounds. That's where they burn the bodies of the local villagers. That was a wonderful meditation place. I was never disturbed by any ghosts. But I did notice the local villagers, they were so afraid of ghosts. They had a quiet time. I could just sit there and no one would bother me. Report an error in the passage at 11:45 Highlight the passage at 11:45

12:20 And if anybody did come close, I could always go, and they would leave me alone. Report an error in the passage at 12:20 Highlight the passage at 12:20

12:35 Otherwise, and again, being honest, truthful, that sometimes I didn't need to understand the local language. Sometimes they'd see me just sitting meditation in the forest, and sometimes they would I remember this lady came up to me and she put one bottle of, I think it was Pepsi, one piece of paper and a pencil. Report an error in the passage at 12:35 Highlight the passage at 12:35

13:08 Som pop. You know what that meant. The pencil and paper was to write down some numbers. And the Pepsi was, if I wrote down the numbers then I could drink the Pepsi. When I refused to write down any numbers, she took the Pepsi away. Report an error in the passage at 13:08 Highlight the passage at 13:08

13:32 Because they would always feel that anyone who is a meditator who can sit in the forest alone, they must have some special powers. And for them, the only powers which really meant anything, which was useful for them, was the number. Report an error in the passage at 13:32 Highlight the passage at 13:32

13:51 They were always bothering me with numbers. So much so that I tell them, OK, I can give you a number, but I guarantee it. It would always be a wrong number. They still kept bothering me. Anyway, I think I can tell this story again. Once I was staying at a beautiful monastery, at a lovely cave, and on top of a mountain, and the villagers there were just very kind, and it was in the area in Thailand called Khao Wong, and that mountain was very quiet because The Japanese had been there during the war and I think the commander-in-chief of that area just committed suicide there. Report an error in the passage at 13:51 Highlight the passage at 13:51

14:46 So a bit concerned that maybe still ghosts around. They were also worried, wondered where all the money went to, collected during that Second World War. So they were still afraid of ghosts. So I could go out there and have a wonderful time. But at the very end, Report an error in the passage at 14:46 Highlight the passage at 14:46

15:07 I was going to stay there much longer, but then one of the villagers, many of them came up to ask me questions. And I thought, wow, at last they're interested in learning meditation or learning the dhamma. Report an error in the passage at 15:07 Highlight the passage at 15:07

15:22 And so I did answer the questions as best I could. But then after a while, there were so many people come and said, what's going on? And they said, don't you know, tomorrow the lottery is being drawn. Report an error in the passage at 15:22 Highlight the passage at 15:22

15:37 They're always coming up there to try and find lottery numbers. And eventually the day it was drawn in the evening, a lot of them came up there and said, oh, thank you very much. And the head man of that local district came up and said, look, we're very happy with you. You're a good meditator. So we want to invite you to stay much longer. Report an error in the passage at 15:37 Highlight the passage at 15:37

16:01 We're ready to build a monastery for you in this area on top of the hill. And I thought, oh my goodness, what's happened? Report an error in the passage at 16:01 Highlight the passage at 16:01

16:08 I never expected that I was giving you a number. And they said, but you did. No, I didn't. Yes, you did. What did I say? When we asked you how long you're staying, I answered, in two or three days, I think I will leave. But I don't really know. And in the way of speech about lottery numbers in those days, In two or three days, that meant five. And I don't know meant zero. And five zero was the number which came up that week. Report an error in the passage at 16:08 Highlight the passage at 16:08

16:53 And so that's why they all wanted me to stay. Not because they're interested in Buddhism or meditation. They just want to become rich. So I left the next day. Report an error in the passage at 16:53 Highlight the passage at 16:53

17:07 Staying for the wrong reasons. Anyway, that's kind of why to find some peace and quiet. Sometimes it was difficult sometimes. But now, many years later, you know how to find peace and stillness almost anywhere. Report an error in the passage at 17:07 Highlight the passage at 17:07

17:24 It's one of those lovely things you can learn. And one of the places which I remember getting some wonderful meditation to be able to experience deep stillness and peace was when I went to Suvarnabhumi Airport. Report an error in the passage at 17:24 Highlight the passage at 17:24

17:42 I arrived there, go visiting Thailand. It's not terminal disease, but terminal wisdom. When I went there to this big airport, when I was greeted by the guests who were going to a conference, they said, would you mind if you can sit down and stay for a little bit longer, just here, because the next person is coming in an hour's time. Report an error in the passage at 17:42 Highlight the passage at 17:42

18:09 It's convenient for us, the hosts, if we take you to the venue together. Yeah, sure. And so they said, well, there's not really a peaceful place to stay. Would you like to go to a restaurant or something? And all I said was, no, I'll sit right here. So just right in the middle of the welcoming concourse of Suvarnabhumi Airport, I just sat down, closed my eyes, and meditated. Report an error in the passage at 18:09 Highlight the passage at 18:09

18:41 When you're not disturbing the noise, and the noise doesn't disturb you, It was just like meditation in my cave over in monastery. So peaceful, so still, so gorgeous. The result of that, when you have more places you can meditate, any place almost in the world, it does also mean you can have more time to be still. Report an error in the passage at 18:41 Highlight the passage at 18:41

19:11 When you have more time to be still, The results of those wonderful meditations are incredibly profound. What it means, you can feel your body relaxing, totally relaxing. Report an error in the passage at 19:11 Highlight the passage at 19:11

19:27 As a doctor, wouldn't it be wonderful to be able to teach every patient who comes into your rooms how to relax? Even if they're sick, if they're hurting, if they have a fever. Report an error in the passage at 19:27 Highlight the passage at 19:27

19:43 Of course, I've been a meditating monk for such a long time now. Yes, 51st year next December, 51 years as a monk. And just being able to sit almost anywhere, no matter how much noise, and get really peaceful. My little trick, as I've mentioned to many of you, is these days, imagining a bubble around me, like I'm sitting in a bubble. Report an error in the passage at 19:43 Highlight the passage at 19:43

20:11 Noise is outside, peace is inside. And that really helps me to turn off from the noise. The noise is not dangerous. You can sit there and get really quiet and very peaceful. What happens afterwards, when you come out, your mind is so clear, profound. You can see things much more deeply. And I do tell the monks, like I think I told you this morning, I feel a bit silly this morning. Well, not you, over there. Report an error in the passage at 20:11 Highlight the passage at 20:11

20:43 I don't feel silly, I just got almost too much energy. I shouldn't have, just even like now. I've been very busy this afternoon, getting ready to go overseas and think, Ajahn Brahm, why do you give a talk this evening? Are you going to go to the airport and get on an aircraft this evening? It's a long flight. Can't you take a rest? Report an error in the passage at 20:43 Highlight the passage at 20:43

21:13 No need. You get energy coming up inside of you. And it's not energy from drinking drugs or anything. It's energy from just the joy of touching the body, getting it really relaxed, going into stillness and peace, getting the energy of the mind coming up. That is huge. It's one of the reasons why I think monks know me now. If I come up in the morning and just really... Report an error in the passage at 21:13 Highlight the passage at 21:13

21:49 Buzzy, Buzzy, is that the word, Buzzy? You know, just had a lovely meditation. This is the afterglow of letting go of the world and all your burdens. Report an error in the passage at 21:49 Highlight the passage at 21:49

22:02 Sometimes I just, when I was young, I used to spend a lot of vacations, because I was poor, just with a backpack, very heavy backpack, and it was so heavy, that was a... He used to have a tent in there and a sleeping bag and hardly anything else. He'd go trekking all over the mountains in Scotland mostly in the summertime. Report an error in the passage at 22:02 Highlight the passage at 22:02

22:28 And it was so heavy. But I did that because when you go to those quiet places and sit down and be peaceful, you get so much energy coming up. That's even what I do these days. That was actually a beautiful holiday. I had so much joy. Report an error in the passage at 22:28 Highlight the passage at 22:28

22:49 Open your eyes afterwards. This was in the highlands of Scotland or on the west coast, in the beautiful islands off the coast. And any people from Scotland here? Any Scots? No. It was a beautiful land. But the best way to enjoy it is by walking. And during the summertime, there is a summertime there, and there's these beautiful views, hardly anybody there. Report an error in the passage at 22:49 Highlight the passage at 22:49

23:21 I still remember one of the experiences I had there was just walking on a little road. It was almost like a lane on the hills on the edge of the ocean. Just look to your left and there was this gorgeous ocean with all these tiny islands scattered in the ocean. And it was just breathtaking. It was so beautiful. Report an error in the passage at 23:21 Highlight the passage at 23:21

23:52 And so as I was walking there, just blissing out, then I noticed a car was parked by the side of the road. And I thought, I know what that car is doing. It doesn't matter how busy they are, they've also noticed the beautiful scenery around. They must have just stopped to look. Report an error in the passage at 23:52 Highlight the passage at 23:52

24:15 And as I got closer to the car, I looked through the window. You know what I saw? I couldn't believe it. This gentleman was reading a newspaper. What on earth are you doing reading a newspaper when such gorgeous nature is happening right in front of you? And I remember at the time my reaction. I thought I did have a knife or some scissors in my bag somewhere. Report an error in the passage at 24:15 Highlight the passage at 24:15

24:48 I imagine I should get those scissors out and cut a hole in the newspaper so you could see what's just a millimeter on the other side of that newsprint about the war, about some scandal or something. On the other side of that newspaper, what many people think about and get obsessed with, just on the other side, just a millimeter or two, this beautiful landscape of waves, the blue... Report an error in the passage at 24:48 Highlight the passage at 24:48

25:19 Surf was glistening in the early morning sunshine. It was warm. And the way that those little islands were spread out there on a clear morning was absolutely breathtaking. Report an error in the passage at 25:19 Highlight the passage at 25:19

25:31 And I think he was reading about whatever else was happening in the world. Honestly, you do have a choice. Why do you keep worrying about things? Why can't you just walk outside and put your head up? And look at the Milky Way or whatever other stars up in the sky. There's so much beauty in nature. Of course, as Buddhist monks and nuns, we live out in some of the most beautiful parts of the world. Report an error in the passage at 25:31 Highlight the passage at 25:31

26:07 You're welcome there as well. You see the beautiful hills around Serpentine and all the wonderful animals which are there. I get to love those kangaroos. Report an error in the passage at 26:07 Highlight the passage at 26:07

26:23 Respect them and just see just the way they look at you. They recognize who you are. They've been there all the time. They do graze a little part of the monastery to another part of the monastery, but they always come back again. And sometimes they don't move out of the way. Report an error in the passage at 26:23 Highlight the passage at 26:23

26:44 So I have to go off into the bush. I kind of love that. And also just love the way that if you have any food left over, When I have a retreat, I kind of love that retreat time too, because the last retreat I had, this gentleman here, Nicholas, would fill my bowl every day. And honestly, I only ate maybe a third of it. The kangaroos ate the rest. And I don't know, maybe it's not good for the kangaroos, I might admit that. Report an error in the passage at 26:44 Highlight the passage at 26:44

27:23 But the thing which they like the most of all, their favorite food, and I think they can only get this at Bodhinyana Monastery. Sometimes I put a lot of food out there for them and they push aside the apple. They're not interested in the carrot or any lettuce, they push that aside. What they go for, when they can see it, pizza. Report an error in the passage at 27:23 Highlight the passage at 27:23

27:51 It's true. Is that true monks? Yeah. You can see them holding the pizza. They know how to eat that. Once I did leave them some spaghetti. They liked the taste of spaghetti but then I saw this poor kangaroo. He had a spaghetti in his mouth on either side. He just did not know what to do next. No one had ever taught a kangaroo how to eat spaghetti. Report an error in the passage at 27:51 Highlight the passage at 27:51

28:25 You have so much fun. Just leaving him. Beautiful, peaceful places where you have the time to notice it. That's one of the terrible things why people do get upset in this world, why they do get anger, they get even like depression, they do get sicknesses. Why? Because we don't have the time to enjoy the beauty which nature is up to all the time outside. Report an error in the passage at 28:25 Highlight the passage at 28:25

28:56 If you can kind of take that time, grab it for yourself. This is one of those stories which got very popular. And even some of these stories which I say, I'm not exaggerating, they get very, very popular and really helpful. This is what someone showed me from Harvard University Business School many years ago called Investment of Time. Report an error in the passage at 28:56 Highlight the passage at 28:56

29:26 You know what the Investment of Time was? It came from, it started off a little talk which I gave, I think it was over in Brisbane at a HR conference, human resources. Report an error in the passage at 29:26 Highlight the passage at 29:26

29:44 I'm writing to human resources, but I give a talk anywhere. I'm kind of challenging to give a talk where you never, you don't know what you're talking about, basically. But you can always make something up which is really helpful. And this was when I started talking about why do people feel stress? Why? Is it because you've got too much work to do? Report an error in the passage at 29:44 Highlight the passage at 29:44

30:13 Or is it because you don't know how to be efficient? Report an error in the passage at 30:13 Highlight the passage at 30:13

30:18 This afternoon, like many Fridays when I come here, I always just check in with our ops manager and one of our administration officers. Report an error in the passage at 30:18 Highlight the passage at 30:18

30:34 We have a lot of fun, a lot of jokes. Report an error in the passage at 30:34 Highlight the passage at 30:34

30:40 I made this little joke. I had to write something about our volunteers. Every year, we write something about our volunteers. And what did I say? Can you put that online? Please excuse me, but it was fun. I did a serious one afterwards. But for all the volunteers who work here, I said... This is to thank all our hardworking volunteers. Please understand, you're so well respected, you're not allowed to die. Report an error in the passage at 30:40 Highlight the passage at 30:40

31:13 If any of you die, I'll be upset at you, because we need to exploit you some more or something like that. It's only just having a bit of fun. Of course, I don't want any of you to die. But nevertheless, if any of you did, it does happen. Actually, how little does it happen? That is one thing which sometimes kind of shocks me. All the people who come here and there's a number of people who pass away. Report an error in the passage at 31:13 Highlight the passage at 31:13

31:48 Very few. All the years we've had Bodhinyana Monastery. How many monks here? 31 monks now. How many monks have died at Bodhinyana Monastery? Report an error in the passage at 31:48 Highlight the passage at 31:48

32:12 No monk has ever died at Bodhinyana Monastery. Is that true, Ajahn Brahm? Yeah. Pretty safe place, isn't it? What's going on? Report an error in the passage at 32:12 Highlight the passage at 32:12

32:31 Even this year, I thought, first time we're going to have a monk who dies in the monastery. Report an error in the passage at 32:31 Highlight the passage at 32:31

32:39 I saw him this morning. He was supposed to die, he didn't. He's very rebellious. Very stubborn. That's when it all passed along. Report an error in the passage at 32:39 Highlight the passage at 32:39

32:50 There's too much laughter. Not enough fear. And also, a lot of meditation. It extends your life enormously. So anyhow, this is what we get up to, all starting from not being disturbed by sound. Not disturbing the sound means the sound doesn't disturb you. Not disturbing sickness means that sickness doesn't disturb you. Report an error in the passage at 32:50 Highlight the passage at 32:50

33:24 Is that so? Something going on. All I know is how my body works. Report an error in the passage at 33:24 Highlight the passage at 33:24

33:34 All of these experiences I've had being sick, not that many I'm very glad to say, but one of those times when I was sick, that was with food poisoning. Report an error in the passage at 33:34 Highlight the passage at 33:34

33:47 I've had other sicknesses as well, like, what's it called, dysentery over in Thailand. That was, I just took some garlic. That sort of solved that problem. But having like... Food poisoning inside, you don't know actually what it is. Just after a meal from one of you. Report an error in the passage at 33:47 Highlight the passage at 33:47

34:13 It was, it was one of the people who come and bring food. And I don't know who gave what, so I don't mind. So there I got into my cave. You know, you've been to my cave, many of you. When I went inside the cave, that's when it really started. Report an error in the passage at 34:13 Highlight the passage at 34:13

34:38 Now you may wonder, Ajahn Brahm, why do you do this, like acting out these scenarios? One of the, I think I figured out only recently why I like to, like, you know, ah! Report an error in the passage at 34:38 Highlight the passage at 34:38

34:52 It was because I found out in the school I went to, there was two famous actors went there. One was, I still forget his lay name again. Sorry? Report an error in the passage at 34:52 Highlight the passage at 34:52

35:14 Alan Rickman, yeah. Alan Rickman. Apparently he was Dr. Snape over in Harry Potter movies. I went to school with him. So somehow or other that school encouraged you to be dramatic. Report an error in the passage at 35:14 Highlight the passage at 35:14

35:34 I think being dramatic is much better than being accurate. But anyway, I'm being accurate. And the other person I went to school with, he was after me. be dramatic. Report an error in the passage at 35:34 Highlight the passage at 35:34

35:47 That was Hugh Grant. He was another actor over there. You see, so the three famous actors. Report an error in the passage at 35:47 Highlight the passage at 35:47

35:58 Is that true? Okay, anyway. Report an error in the passage at 35:58 Highlight the passage at 35:58

36:05 So I had just these spasms in the gut. It was in my cave. In the cave in which I live, no one can hear what goes on inside. Report an error in the passage at 36:05 Highlight the passage at 36:05

36:21 I knew no one even heard me, and it was real. I had these spasms. So, you know, you had choice. I love these choices. Either you open the doors, two doors, that's why it's quiet inside. Open two doors and crawl outside. Ah! And get all the monks just messing around trying to get ambulance or whatever. Or just stay inside the cave and use meditation. Report an error in the passage at 36:21 Highlight the passage at 36:21

36:49 That's what I did. Meditation was brilliant. Simple, not deep. Report an error in the passage at 36:49 Highlight the passage at 36:49

36:57 Don't fight. Make peace. Be kind. Be gentle. Can you do that when it really hurts? Basically, I had no choice. So I made peace with the pain. It was kind. It was gentle. And one other thing there was being patient. That was really important. And I just noticed as I was watching this feeling, it actually got a tiny bit less every time. Report an error in the passage at 36:57 Highlight the passage at 36:57

37:27 Now it's relaxing. Relaxing. And relaxing, and relaxing. And kind of, I don't know why, but when you're actually experiencing this and you see it happen, it still surprises you. It took me half an hour. After half an hour, no more spasms, no more pain. It just got less and less and less and less and less until it totally vanished. Report an error in the passage at 37:27 Highlight the passage at 37:27

37:58 It's amazing what meditation can do. And anyway, how it just... It gets rid of aches and pains, even like food poisoning. And to this day, I haven't got a clue how those little bacteria, whatever it was, causing that food poisoning. Report an error in the passage at 37:58 Highlight the passage at 37:58

38:19 But I always remember just how, when I was a scientist, I looked through a microscope to see bacteria. And I remember just remembering them like little blobs with all these tentacles coming off them. Report an error in the passage at 38:19 Highlight the passage at 38:19

38:36 Do you understand what I mean? A blob with tentacles. And I thought, how come that they weren't causing any problems anymore? Had I annihilated them? No, I wouldn't do that. I thought, those little bacteria with all their tentacles, they were now, if you could look at them through a microscope, they had all their tentacles cross-legged, sitting quietly in meditation like I was doing. Report an error in the passage at 38:36 Highlight the passage at 38:36

39:06 I think that's how you cure. cure bacteria infections or whatever get them to meditate with you and then there's no problem The main thing which I was saying earlier about Harvard Business School where I first taught this conference over in Brisbane and I went to another conference and another conference and this was why it is people get stressed out Report an error in the passage at 39:06 Highlight the passage at 39:06

39:38 Do you get tired? Is your boss at work really hard? Report an error in the passage at 39:38 Highlight the passage at 39:38

39:46 Is your boss who came to check on your work schedule this afternoon really very fierce? I can't be fierce. I just joke and laugh so much. I hope you feel like that. But anyway, so how you deal with too much stress is learn how to relax. Report an error in the passage at 39:46 Highlight the passage at 39:46

40:15 Because I said this to someone. To the Vietnamese monk. We have a visiting Vietnamese monk. He doesn't speak much English. I don't speak any Vietnamese. So I was teaching him about what meditation is and how you can relax. How heavy is this glass of water? Any guesses? Report an error in the passage at 40:15 Highlight the passage at 40:15

40:40 How heavy is it? Report an error in the passage at 40:40 Highlight the passage at 40:40

40:44 Don't say how many grams. Because I remember just giving this simile over in Imperial College in London. Very smart. People in there, too smart for their own good, honestly. And so, they said, I think, like 200 grams or something. And then I said, that's not the question. The question is, how heavy does it feel? The longer you hold it, the heavier it feels. Report an error in the passage at 40:44 Highlight the passage at 40:44

41:15 I used to give this simile almost once a week or once a day sometimes. Mine's got fed up with it. Is that the case sometimes? Report an error in the passage at 41:15 Highlight the passage at 41:15

41:26 Will nuns get fed up with it? I hope you don't get fed up with it. I know that when people do get fed up, very recently, actually not recently, about 20 years ago, that's recent for me, they would throw shoes at the speaker. They did that to George Bush, didn't they, once? Throwed shoes at him. That's why we ask people to take off their sandals before they come into hall when I'm giving a talk. Report an error in the passage at 41:26 Highlight the passage at 41:26

41:58 Anyway, how heavy is this? And the longer you hold it, the heavier it feels. If I keep holding this for five minutes, it really feels incredibly heavy. I'll be in pain. If I keep holding it like this for half an hour, I'd be in agony and a very stupid monk. What should I do when it starts getting too heavy? Report an error in the passage at 41:58 Highlight the passage at 41:58

42:29 To hold comfortably. That's an easy question, easy answer. You put it down. You let it go. You relax. If you don't believe me, you can try this at home. For all of you watching this online, try it at home. After about one or two minutes, when your hand gets tired, you put it down and relax. Only for about a minute or two, you pick up the glass, It feels lighter. Honestly. You can handle it, hold it, with much more comfort. That's how to overcome stress. Report an error in the passage at 42:29 Highlight the passage at 42:29

43:13 Pretty simple. You're working really hard. Take 10 or 15 minutes off. Sit down and meditate, just let go. Don't think about things. Put the glass down. And then, after 15 or 20 minutes, you get up and go back to your computer, you turn it on, you get all the answers really quickly. Report an error in the passage at 43:13 Highlight the passage at 43:13

43:40 That happens so easily, so often. I don't see why more people don't do it. You know, once I understood what that meant, I also understood why my ancestors in UK, why we got really close to almost controlling the whole of the world. Report an error in the passage at 43:40 Highlight the passage at 43:40

44:06 The sun never sets on the British Empire. They did some terrible things, I admit that. But how did they get such a position? Report an error in the passage at 44:06 Highlight the passage at 44:06

44:16 It's because they had a tradition, which many people don't realize how powerful that tradition was, to have a tea break for 15 minutes in the morning, an hour for lunch and a 15-minute tea break in the afternoon. Report an error in the passage at 44:16 Highlight the passage at 44:16

44:34 They knew how to put down the cup of responsibility to take a break, and that means they got more done in a much better way. Report an error in the passage at 44:34 Highlight the passage at 44:34

44:46 So that's what I would ask. The Ops Manager of this organization here, to please install that as company policy. Tea break in the morning. Not a coffee break. Coffee break makes you crazy. No, Report an error in the passage at 44:46 Highlight the passage at 44:46

45:11 we just have a rest. And that's what Harvard meant by an investment of time. Take a break. After 15 minutes break or half an hour break, afterwards, you get two hours work done in an hour. Report an error in the passage at 45:11 Highlight the passage at 45:11

45:34 I was telling this story to someone today, I forget who it was now, but my first book which I wrote, Opening the Door of Your Heart, I hope you've read that now. Report an error in the passage at 45:34 Highlight the passage at 45:34

45:47 You know how I wrote it? How I wrote it was that one of the members of our group over in Armadale, They said, these stories which you tell, you know, that two bad bricks and stuff like that, they really, really help her. And they said they managed to keep her alive. Said it's like almost criminal of you, Ajahn Brahm, not writing those books, those stories down so more people can't hear them or read them. Report an error in the passage at 45:47 Highlight the passage at 45:47

46:19 You know what my reply was? I'm such a compassionate monk. I said, no, I'm too busy. Report an error in the passage at 46:19 Highlight the passage at 46:19

46:26 I'm trying to cop out. But then, she was one of the wisest women I've ever met. She said, oh, what I'll do, I will write them for you then. Report an error in the passage at 46:26 Highlight the passage at 46:26

46:39 That was so smart of her. Because when she wrote the first five of those stories, they were so bad. Report an error in the passage at 46:39 Highlight the passage at 46:39

46:51 No way in the world am I going to let her write my stories. So I decided I'd better do it myself. That's how she got me to do it. Report an error in the passage at 46:51 Highlight the passage at 46:51

47:01 But how I did it was weird. I was doing a two-week retreat and I thought, well, I'm not going to spoil my retreat by just writing stories all the time. I said, one hour every day. A piece of paper, I'll write them down. And in that, was it 14 days, I wrote more than half the book. Report an error in the passage at 47:01 Highlight the passage at 47:01

47:29 Easy. Just wrote, wrote, wrote, wrote, wrote, wrote. And the interesting thing about it was I still got the manuscript. Report an error in the passage at 47:29 Highlight the passage at 47:29

47:40 Ajahn Brahm, have you seen that manuscript? I've got it in my room. And every now and again I pick it out just to have a look at it. It inspires me how easy it was to do this. There's hardly any corrections, right? And you just write it down when you've had some nice meditation. You just write it down perfectly. And people think, what font was that on your computer? Report an error in the passage at 47:40 Highlight the passage at 47:40

48:10 I didn't have a computer. That was just handwritten. It was almost perfect. And how it got... I was just writing it down. And how it got published. It's so hard to get a publisher these days. Is it? Nah. I got one of our members, Ron Story. He passed away eventually. He's got his ashes around the back here. He passed away. But before he passed away, he typed it all out by hand. Report an error in the passage at 48:10 Highlight the passage at 48:10

48:41 I said, The best place to get it published is over in Melbourne. That was almost like a center of Buddhist publications or other publications over there. And so he gave it to me on a CD, you know, those little round things. And I said, look, I'm going tomorrow. So he gave it to me on a CD. I just put it in my bag. And off I went onto the airport and went to Melbourne. I'm not exaggerating. As soon as I landed... Report an error in the passage at 48:41 Highlight the passage at 48:41

49:09 The first event was a talk at Melbourne University to the Buddhist community over there. So I went there, gave a talk. After the talk had finished, I hadn't even had a shower, gone back here to the place I was staying. And this lady came up to me and said, there's a lovely talk you gave. She said, I work in the publishing industry. Report an error in the passage at 49:09 Highlight the passage at 49:09

49:35 If ever you have a book you would like published, please let me know. I reached inside the book, here you go. I came into it straight away. Oh! They published it. And I'll never forget her name. Magnolia was her first name. It's easy to remember because we had our first center over in Magnolia Street. Surname Flora. Magnolia Flora. Report an error in the passage at 49:35 Highlight the passage at 49:35

50:05 Very... A bouquet name. Honestly, that did become bestseller. And even in Germany, it's still the bestseller over there, as far as I know. Anyway, I don't really know because all the money over there, where did it go, Lehar? Come and admit it. I dedicated it to go to the BSWA to pay your salary. And a few other things as well. Report an error in the passage at 50:05 Highlight the passage at 50:05

50:38 But anyway, you deserve it. You work really hard. And not only that, it was that, where was I going to go with this one? Oh yeah, it was about six or seven years before I saw her again, over in Melbourne. She came out and said, where did you go? And she said that she got cancer, so she had to resign from her work. Report an error in the passage at 50:38 Highlight the passage at 50:38

51:03 And it was because of that book. She said, I need to come and see you and say thank you, because it's actually what I read and what I practiced. Once I had that diagnosis, look at me now, I'm full remission. Thank you. That was one of the nicest thank yous I've got. So this is what happens. I don't know, I have a wonderful life as a monk. All these wonderful stories, which are all true, and just how it changes your life to see such positive things, no matter what happens in life. Report an error in the passage at 51:03 Highlight the passage at 51:03

51:41 Can I tell one more story? Sometimes it can always make you late, but... This is a story that just came to my mind about wonderful events in life. This was this guy who told me this story from Sri Lanka. Report an error in the passage at 51:41 Highlight the passage at 51:41

51:58 This Sri Lankan, which is an ordinary guy, and he would, on his way to work every morning, as he was walking to work, he'd always take a couple of pieces of bread to feed the fish in a nearby lagoon. And of course the fish, he'd been doing this for quite a while, the fish knew that some... Bread was coming soon. They'd always come. And one morning, as he went to the lagoon, he saw there was a crocodile in the lagoon. Report an error in the passage at 51:58 Highlight the passage at 51:58

52:27 And the crocodiles usually eat fish. They're dangerous. So he thought, he got a few more pieces of bread. He gave a couple of pieces of bread to the crocodile. And the crocodile never made any noise or commotion. He just came from that day onwards every morning to get his two slices of bread. He was very happy to feed the crocodile. Is that wasting bread, do you think, feeding a crocodile? This is what happened next. Report an error in the passage at 52:27 Highlight the passage at 52:27

52:58 That's why I tell the story. That one day he walked there with the bread to feed the fish and the crocodile. And then was it Christmas Eve or Boxing Day? The tsunami which hit. And I don't think he finished feeding the fish. The tsunami, the big wave hit him. And before he knew it, he was being carried out to sea. And as he was being carried out by these very powerful waves, you know, he was trying to survive. Report an error in the passage at 52:58 Highlight the passage at 52:58

53:33 And one of the first things which he saw was a chair. He tried to grab onto it, but the currents were so strong, it ripped the chair away from his grasp. The next thing he noticed was a log of wood. He grabbed onto the log of wood because it was just more rough bark. He could actually hold on to that. As he was holding on to the bit of the log of wood, that's when he started to notice, he was getting his senses together, and he noticed that log of wood was actually going the opposite direction to all the other flotsam which was being carried out to the ocean. Report an error in the passage at 53:33 Highlight the passage at 53:33

54:14 It was actually going to the shore. Everything else was flowing out. This is really weird. And as his log of wood got even closer to the bank, he got close enough he could jump off it. And only afterwards, when he jumped off it, did he look with more care at that log of wood and found it wasn't a log of wood. Report an error in the passage at 54:14 Highlight the passage at 54:14

54:37 It was his crocodile. It saved his life. And I know some people, first of all, think, well, of course a crocodile would have saved his life. If he let that man die, that crocodile would get no more bread. Report an error in the passage at 54:37 Highlight the passage at 54:37

54:56 That's not how crocodiles think. This was a member of Sri Lankan crocodile, so probably Buddhist. Report an error in the passage at 54:56 Highlight the passage at 54:56

55:07 So I reckon that crocodile does karmic reward. You feed me bread, I'll save your life. Pretty good deal. Thank you for listening. Sadhu. Oh, come on, that's not much of a sadhu. Come on. Report an error in the passage at 55:07 Highlight the passage at 55:07

55:27 Sadhu. Sadhu. Sadhu. You know what sadhu means? What does it mean? Awesome, yeah. Sadhu is a Bali word, Indian word. The best translation I've ever come up with is awesome. Report an error in the passage at 55:27 Highlight the passage at 55:27

55:48 Thank you. Okay, questions? Report an error in the passage at 55:48 Highlight the passage at 55:48

55:54 Those who need to leave, I always speak too much, I'm sorry. But I'm not going to go to bed until a couple of days' time. Report an error in the passage at 55:54 Highlight the passage at 55:54

56:03 Friday night. Okay. Ivy from Singapore. I'm troubled by some Buddhist teachings that say suicide causes rebirth in a real hell. No, that's not true. Please, I'm well respected in Singapore. I will absolutely argue against that for a long time. And the person will suffer forever, is never be reborn. That's totally wrong. One of the stories I say, I mean, some of you may remember this. Report an error in the passage at 56:03 Highlight the passage at 56:03

56:41 This Sri Lankan family, their son was found early in the morning on the end of a rope on the veranda. He committed suicide. Imagine what that's like. 17 years of age. He hadn't started his end of the year exams yet. Soon to do them. So, good old Prem brought them to monastery during our range retreat. And that's what they had heard. Report an error in the passage at 56:41 Highlight the passage at 56:41

57:14 Imagine just how much pain that is to know your son has died. And somebody else says, oh, they're going to go to hell forever. That is ridiculous. And it's also not just wrong, really hurtful. So to convince them, convince everybody how wrong that saying is, I said about how many exams is your son supposed to do for the year-end exam? Report an error in the passage at 57:14 Highlight the passage at 57:14

57:45 He said about five subjects. How many papers in each subject? Say two. There's ten exams. How many questions in each exam? We don't know. Let's say eight. So 80 questions he has to do. Imagine, 79 of those questions are answered perfectly. Report an error in the passage at 57:45 Highlight the passage at 57:45

58:09 But the last question he makes a big mess of. Gives a totally wrong answer. 79 right, 1 wrong. 79 out of 80. Would you go to UWA or even Cambridge with 79 out of 80? Report an error in the passage at 58:09 Highlight the passage at 58:09

58:32 You have a good chance, don't you? 79 out of 80 is a good score. So why do you say the person makes a mess of their last moment of life? They have to go to a hell realm. What about all the rest of the stuff they've done? All the good, kind, beautiful stuff. And that actually worked for them. The family understood that straight away by that simile. Report an error in the passage at 58:32 Highlight the passage at 58:32

58:58 And because of that, obviously they felt a loss of their son, but they never, ever, ever, ever, ever thought he would go to a hell realm. Report an error in the passage at 58:58 Highlight the passage at 58:58

59:10 Oh my goodness. The page has gone blank. Report an error in the passage at 59:10 Highlight the passage at 59:10

59:17 You want to get it started again? Report an error in the passage at 59:17 Highlight the passage at 59:17

59:29 Okay. Very good. If I didn't answer these questions, I'd go to hell. No. Which suttas are more important to you, Ajahn? Someone from Poland. Which suttas? I must admit, the most simple suttas are some of the best. Report an error in the passage at 59:29 Highlight the passage at 59:29

59:57 Actually, during my six-month retreat, it was the Anattalakena Sutta. That was the sutta on non-self. But sometime afterwards, I remember wondering why it was. Report an error in the passage at 59:57 Highlight the passage at 59:57

1:00:14 That the first monk who brought Buddhism to Sri Lanka, what sutta did he teach? That was the Chulahati Padopama Sutta, Elephant's Footprint Simile. Why? Read that sutta again. It's powerful. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:14 Highlight the passage at 1:00:14

1:00:36 You're doing that on the workshop? My goodness! That workshop tomorrow? Tomorrow! Wow! Report an error in the passage at 1:00:36 Highlight the passage at 1:00:36

1:00:48 That sort of made Buddhism... the religion of Sri Lanka for such a long time, that Sutta which you're going to find all about tomorrow. Wow, is it too late for me to cancel my flight tonight? Report an error in the passage at 1:00:48 Highlight the passage at 1:00:48

1:01:09 if you can't come like someone like me, you can always hear it online or get a recording. Next question. I find it really hard to create a bond with someone. I feel like creating one would very much help me with my problems. I've tried many times but none have worked. Thank you, love and kindness. Yes, I know that's an often solution which people suggest. And I remember I just happened to be in Singapore when they were giving a talk on Waste, no, not Waste Day, on Valentine's Day. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:09 Highlight the passage at 1:01:09

1:01:41 And so the organizer, the MC said, well, look, before we start the question time after the talk, I thought I would ask everybody, how many people here are single? Report an error in the passage at 1:01:41 Highlight the passage at 1:01:41

1:01:56 I put up my hand, you should put up your hand as well, you're single. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:56 Highlight the passage at 1:01:56

1:02:02 And the organiser said, no, that's not what I meant. Put your hands down, mucks. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:02 Highlight the passage at 1:02:02

1:02:09 Please, if I can be naughty and make people laugh, I'll always do it. How about creating a bond with yourself? That's one of those little deep meditations I often teach. To be able to say to someone, The door of my heart is open to you, no matter who you are, no matter what you ever do. That's what I got from my father. It's a powerful saying. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:09 Highlight the passage at 1:02:09

1:02:38 The door of my heart is open to you, no matter who you are, no matter what you ever do. And I realized, of course, I'd also have to say that to myself as well. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:38 Highlight the passage at 1:02:38

1:02:51 Make that bond with yourself first, to be able to say to yourself totally honestly, me. As a person you've known for so many years, with all of the faults and difficulties and sufferings and mistakes we make, say to yourself, me, the door of my heart will always be open to me, no matter what I've ever done or would ever do. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:51 Highlight the passage at 1:02:51

1:03:22 You find if you can say that, meaning it, it doesn't mean you become a bad person. It encourages you to be better and better and better. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:22 Highlight the passage at 1:03:22

1:03:35 Go on again. No, no. It's okay. Okay. Yes, but I make mistakes. But I make mistakes because I'm proving that I really mean it. The door of my own heart is always open to me even though I keep sort of logging off or whatever I do. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:35 Highlight the passage at 1:03:35

1:03:57 Is that true? Is the door of your heart open? Oh, come on. Okay. If you can bond with yourself... And open your heart to yourself. It's amazing how many other people you can open your heart to. Then you have a bond and relationship basically with everybody. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:57 Highlight the passage at 1:03:57

1:04:19 Why not? Report an error in the passage at 1:04:19 Highlight the passage at 1:04:19

1:04:22 Honestly, that's often how I feel. I see each one of you, and I've known some of you for such a long time. Such a long time, so many years. Every time I see you, I think you're like family. You know, not sort of disciples or friends or whatever. Anyway. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:22 Highlight the passage at 1:04:22

1:04:44 How to overcome fear of death? Easily. Die. You've Report an error in the passage at 1:04:44 Highlight the passage at 1:04:44

1:04:53 done it so many times before. Why are you afraid? You should be experts by now. That's why I tell many people when I teach overseas, if ever you want to have a talk about dying, go to the Buddhists, Buddhist monks and nuns. We're the experts. You know why? Because we've died many times. We've been reincarnated. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:53 Highlight the passage at 1:04:53

1:05:17 Or reborn, whatever you wish to call it. So if you're a Christian, you only die once and then you go to heaven or something. We are the experts because we've got personal experience. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:17 Highlight the passage at 1:05:17

1:05:29 Is that right? Report an error in the passage at 1:05:29 Highlight the passage at 1:05:29

1:05:33 Now to be more accurate, it's all right to have fear of dying. Dying can be painful. That's kind of legitimate. Dying, okay, but not fear of death. Death is a release, a freedom. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:33 Highlight the passage at 1:05:33

1:05:53 Question from Germany. Dear Ajahn, I am severely ill with no chance of healing and not mobile. How can I continue life in peace and joy and in a helpful way despite the sadness? Thank you kindly. It's the sadness which is the problem, not sort of what other sicknesses you have. No one can take away peace and joy. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:53 Highlight the passage at 1:05:53

1:06:16 Peace and joy live in the mind, not in the body. And after a while, it's wonderful. To be able to have that peace and joy and knowing it doesn't come from your body, but it comes from the mind inside, your heart. That's where it comes from. It's beautiful when you can actually touch that and you can make it grow. It's one of the reasons why. Ah, just a story I was just remembering was when I gave another conference a message for the... Report an error in the passage at 1:06:16 Highlight the passage at 1:06:16

1:06:49 It was over in the old convention center. And it was on Mental Health Week. And I'm talking to mental health clients, not their doctors, not the ones who look after them, but the persons who are suffering. And I remember this talk because it's mostly Westerners. And apparently when I first went in the door to give my talk, there was a couple of English ladies outside. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:49 Highlight the passage at 1:06:49

1:07:18 Please excuse me. They said, they came to apologize to me afterwards. They said that when I first came in the door, they thought, who is this wanker coming to talk to us? Report an error in the passage at 1:07:18 Highlight the passage at 1:07:18

1:07:34 That's a rude word, but I laughed as well. I thought it was very funny. They said you made us cry and laugh. I don't know how that happened. The story they liked most of all was when I said that, you know, for any human being, You are like a tree in the forest. And if I try and find the most beautiful tree in the forest, it's never a perfect one. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:34 Highlight the passage at 1:07:34

1:08:05 The trees which I love the most of all in forest down in Serpentine, or if in Dhammasara, or if in Santi, the most beautiful trees there are the trees which are all bent and crooked, with leaves being eaten by insects, or leaves which are dying in the wind. in the fall time, when they get beautifully brown, leaned over this way, leaned over that way, and they have many branches missing because of the storms. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:05 Highlight the passage at 1:08:05

1:08:34 And in those branches, that's where the birds or the possums live. It's their homes. most beautiful trees the most twisted and bent. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:34 Highlight the passage at 1:08:34

1:08:47 then I said to these, Subjects, I will never call them victims, subjects of the Emotional diseases. If you are one of those trees, twisted and bent, and other people think you're not perfect enough, please know, number one, this is where you belong. This is where you're always welcome, in the natural forests of the world. And those of you who are the most twisted and bent and crooked, you are, honestly, some of the most beautiful trees in the forest. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:47 Highlight the passage at 1:08:47

1:09:31 The trees which you always go to, wonder how on earth did they survive, but you're beautiful, thank you for being here. That's why they cried. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:31 Highlight the passage at 1:09:31

1:09:42 Brings tears to my eyes as well. So that's actually how you deal. If you have very much great difficulty in life, you know, with some disease or illness, the very fact that you're here, number one, you belong. Don't let anyone say you don't belong here. And number two, get some of the most beautiful trees in the whole forest. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:42 Highlight the passage at 1:09:42

1:10:11 Okay, think that was it. think. Did I get it all? You're doing a good exercise today. Report an error in the passage at 1:10:11 Highlight the passage at 1:10:11

1:10:27 from the audience? Report an error in the passage at 1:10:27 Highlight the passage at 1:10:27

1:10:31 Ajahn Report an error in the passage at 1:10:31 Highlight the passage at 1:10:31

1:10:39 Brahm, thanks very much for the wonderful deep talk tonight. Really good. You mentioned a lot about meditation in the talk tonight. Ajahn Brahm, you know, In this restless world we live in now, our mind, we absorb a lot of negativity. And then as a result, there's stress, anxiety. If it's too long, then we fall to depression. And then there's mentalistic... So what do you think, Ajahn Brahm? Report an error in the passage at 1:10:39 Highlight the passage at 1:10:39

1:11:12 In this case, meditation as well as mindfulness... They are the seventh and eighth of the Eightfold Path, okay? Meditation to calm us down, mindfulness, put in positive thoughts to help us up, to heal, to help us, to heal our mental problem. Yeah, meditation is the best. Meditation, yeah. Powerful. Can you just maybe roughly tell us, Ajahn Brahm, how you... Report an error in the passage at 1:11:12 Highlight the passage at 1:11:12

1:11:47 How you, you know, like through meditation? How your meditation works, it's like, a good example of that is that simile which I've given so many times also. Going up those pyramids in the jungles of Guatemala when I was only just turned 18. You climbed up those pyramids. Above the jungle, you could see so far in every direction. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:47 Highlight the passage at 1:11:47

1:12:12 In the jungle, you can only see about 10 or 15 meters in front of you. After deep meditation, you can actually see what the problems really are and how they're created by us. So this is not theory anymore, you're seeing for yourself. And that makes your mind incredibly powerful. Like Rostov's hierarchy of needs, isn't it? Report an error in the passage at 1:12:12 Highlight the passage at 1:12:12

1:12:36 You reach the top, then you see down, then you can see. Yeah, I'm not quite sure what you're referring to, but I do remember that experience of going up the pyramid. And the top of the pyramid, this was the Mayan civilization in Guatemala, was always just above the tree line. So you could see above the trees. I was only just traveling in the jungle for three days. And that really was such a strong experience. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:36 Highlight the passage at 1:12:36

1:13:02 Walking up there, now you can actually see For infinity in all directions, with nothing between you and infinity. No one needed to describe it to you, interpret it to you. You can actually see. Wow. So that's the ultimate one. If you don't do this, you're going to see a doctor. They give you all these tranquilizers. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:02 Highlight the passage at 1:13:02

1:13:24 It's only temporally and the sun effect. Yeah, but it's good that we give work to doctors. But if we need it, for the doctors, you have to use it. Isn't it, Ilana, if you don't know how to do the meditation, but ultimately it's meditation and the weapon? A lot of doctors are overworked. So it would be great to sort of let the doctors, there's one of the members here, I don't know if they're still here, that he's working for Medicine Sanfonte here. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:24 Highlight the passage at 1:13:24

1:13:55 A huge amount of respect for that group. So those are doctors which do the really tough work. Good on them, great. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:55 Highlight the passage at 1:13:55

1:14:08 Ajahn Brahm, when you meditate sometimes, you know there's bliss that arise? Yeah. This bliss can overcome the negativity, isn't it? Of course. The negative emotions, isn't it? Absolutely. Negative emotions can't exist when you're blissing out. Thank you. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:08 Highlight the passage at 1:14:08

1:14:30 Okay, I mean, I just do indulge in them, but why not? They make me happy. Give me energy and I share it with you. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:30 Highlight the passage at 1:14:30

1:14:43 Sorry? I'm leaving at one o 'clock in the morning. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:43 Highlight the passage at 1:14:43

1:14:50 No, okay, make it the last question then. Ajahn Brahm, when we make a promise to ourself, it might be, I'm going to promise to help all beings and give loving kindness. Is that different to making a vow? It's sometimes not. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:50 Highlight the passage at 1:14:50

1:15:13 But even making a vow, sometimes, a good example of that, I remember there was one of our significant teachers, he said that he was a bit concerned, he made a vow not to become enlightened until all other beings were enlightened. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:13 Highlight the passage at 1:15:13

1:15:31 Now you've heard that before, I was just talking to you earlier, and just how impossible that is. I always remember like at the end of time. There might be all these bodhisattvas lining up and say, no, I vow to be the last, but so did I vow to be the last. You go first. No, you are going to go first. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:31 Highlight the passage at 1:15:31

1:15:50 I made a vow. Okay, that's a bit naughty and cheeky, but you can see the problem there. So instead of that, vows and promises, if they're made when there's still delusion happening, you haven't seen the dharma clearly yet, please, they must be broken, because sometimes, Based on false ideas. But I promise you try to do your best. If it's somehow or other can't be done. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:50 Highlight the passage at 1:15:50

1:16:23 If you have confidence in me, I forgive you. No, thank you. That was very good. It helped me a lot. Thank you. Okay. I think I'd better be going off now because if I don't finish now, each one of you can go out anyway. I'll probably be left here until only one person left to listen to me before I go to the airport. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:23 Highlight the passage at 1:16:23

1:16:44 Is that all right? Okay, so let's pay respect to Buddha, Dhamma and Saṅgha and then we can all, those of you who have got a home to go to can go to the home and I'm going to go to my terminal doctor. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:44 Highlight the passage at 1:16:44