Guided Meditation

0:01 Excellent. I'm sorry for being late. Actually, I'm not sorry for being late. It's not my fault, but I heard that VIPs are always supposed to arrive late. Is that correct? Report an error in the passage at 0:01 Highlight the passage at 0:01

0:19 No! Well, I'm a VIM, not a VIP. What does VIM mean? Report an error in the passage at 0:19 Highlight the passage at 0:19

0:30 I'm a V-I-M, not a V-I-P. What is V-I-M? Thank you. Report an error in the passage at 0:30 Highlight the passage at 0:30

0:42 Now I was doing something nicely, which inspired me. And so anyway, welcome to the meditation. Part of the meditation is learning how to be patient. Report an error in the passage at 0:42 Highlight the passage at 0:42

0:56 I always say, make peace, be kind, be gentle. That's part of the Buddha's instructions on what to do when you're meditating. But part of that, make peace, be kind, be gentle, is be patient as well. To learn how to wait. Because sometimes we rush. And when we rush, that's often when we injure ourselves. Report an error in the passage at 0:56 Highlight the passage at 0:56

1:21 And when we're patient, it's amazing that we never expect something to happen. And it does. And what happens is beautiful. Report an error in the passage at 1:21 Highlight the passage at 1:21

1:32 A lot of times, I give all these stories from Ajahn Chah, like learning to sit under the mango tree. Put your hand out and a mango will fall. That's what Ajahn Chah said. And I always thought if you sit still under a mango tree, then of course if you sit long enough a mango will fall, but never in your hand, maybe on your head, maybe somewhere else. Report an error in the passage at 1:32 Highlight the passage at 1:32

2:06 But the amazing thing is, some of these teachings on meditation, they don't follow what we think is logic. But reality, sometimes our logic is wrong. And that's one of the reasons we think if we do nothing, then nothing happens. Report an error in the passage at 2:06 Highlight the passage at 2:06

2:26 But we don't realize how powerful the meaning of what nothing is. To learn how to be still, with no thoughts, but mindfulness, open to anything happening in the mind. A lot of times we've been trained. It trains so much we cannot see new things. And that is why in some of the examples I've used, many years ago when I was asked to go and give the keynote address at the World Computer Conference in South Korea, they wanted, why? Report an error in the passage at 2:26 Highlight the passage at 2:26

3:13 What am I doing there? I'm not great on computing, but how we can add to what they know with what a Buddhist monk knows. And especially when I started talking about insight, otherwise known as innovation. One of the first computer stories I told, I don't know when the last time I told you this one. It's not a joke, it's a true story. Years ago, NASA... Report an error in the passage at 3:13 Highlight the passage at 3:13

3:49 National Aeronautical Administration, whatever they call themselves, had installed a new mainframe computer in Houston. They installed it as the biggest number cruncher probably ever existed. And once they installed it, they could not get it to work. They had all these experts, so-called experts, from different parts of the US fly them in first class as soon as they could. Report an error in the passage at 3:49 Highlight the passage at 3:49

4:20 To try and fix up the problem, nothing worked. Do you remember the story? A couple of you do. But anyway, one of the engineers there, fortunately, was a Buddhist. And he said, if we can't fix it up, I know a person who might give it a try. And they're in Houston right now, and they're very cheap. So if you don't have to pay much money, People say, yeah, okay, give it a go. He was a Thai forest monk who was visiting the Thai temple in Houston. Report an error in the passage at 4:20 Highlight the passage at 4:20

5:07 His name was Ajahn Jamnian. He's still alive. But anyway, Ajahn Jamnian came into their place. All they needed to pay him was not even a cup of tea, I think a Pepsi, that was all. Very cheap fee. That's why monks, they're high quality. And so he went into the room and all he did was do a little bit of chanting and meditation. Report an error in the passage at 5:07 Highlight the passage at 5:07

5:41 The meditation first and then some chanting and after he finished the chanting. This is no exaggeration. That computer worked perfectly. Don't ask me why it worked, but it did. And as a result of that, they were very happy. With this monk, they didn't want just to give him a crate of Pepsi Colas for life or something. What they did was they asked, how can we help? Report an error in the passage at 5:41 Highlight the passage at 5:41

6:15 And so what they gave him, the reason we found out, was that they gave him a diplomatic visa for life to enter the United States at any moment without needing to apply ever again. Report an error in the passage at 6:15 Highlight the passage at 6:15

6:35 That was in the times of homeland security. He had this incredible visa. You just come in and never need to worry about a thing. We think, I thought, they may have done that in case the computer broke down and they could get him in a moment's notice. Report an error in the passage at 6:35 Highlight the passage at 6:35

6:58 Because it worked! And that's how I kind of taught these people at the World Computer Conference. There are some things which don't make sense, which happen, which are true. The reason we found that out because when he arrived at San Francisco to teach at one of the temples there, of course the monk asked him, can I just check your visa, make sure everything's okay? Report an error in the passage at 6:58 Highlight the passage at 6:58

7:26 When the monk saw the nature of the visa for the United States, just a time man with no income, with no money, had a diplomatic visa for the rest of his life. Pretty rare visa. And I said, how come you got this? And then the story came out, they checked, it was true. That's one of the reasons why when I went to the World Computer Conference, I told that story, but also that, what is this? Report an error in the passage at 7:26 Highlight the passage at 7:26

7:56 I didn't actually, it was more like a bottle of water. It's not too heavy. What is this I'm holding up? What is it? What else? What else? What else? Keep on looking. The trouble is, Report an error in the passage at 7:56 Highlight the passage at 7:56

8:19 The trouble is a lot of times we think there's a right answer and we stop looking. We don't go deeper. That's why with some modern technologies like computing, it's like new. We're still trying to understand it deeply. Report an error in the passage at 8:19 Highlight the passage at 8:19

8:39 We look at it. We keep on looking at it. We see new parts in it we've never seen before. We understand why it wasn't working. Report an error in the passage at 8:39 Highlight the passage at 8:39

8:52 But it needs a lot of time looking, seeing, deeper and deeper and deeper into the reality of something which is so common, we just think about its utility. It's a place to put some water. It's always much deeper than that. That's why we're meditating, insight meditation, to see deeply into something. Report an error in the passage at 8:52 Highlight the passage at 8:52

9:19 Never ever think there's a right answer and a wrong answer. We just look deeper and we find new answers. That's where we make breakthroughs, where we can have new ways of looking, new ways of doing, new ways of solving problems. Report an error in the passage at 9:19 Highlight the passage at 9:19

9:43 Generally it's called innovation. And you say that word innovation to your company managers and they really listen deeply. Report an error in the passage at 9:43 Highlight the passage at 9:43

9:57 So that's what I did. Talk about innovation. But a lot of times, be able to see something deeply. We need to look at it for a long time. Report an error in the passage at 9:57 Highlight the passage at 9:57

10:11 To do that, we need to be patient. Keep on looking. And as soon as we think we know it, push that conclusion aside and carry on looking. Report an error in the passage at 10:11 Highlight the passage at 10:11

10:24 Do you know who you are? Of course not. You spend your whole life being with yourself. And how many times do you really know who you are? I mean deeply know. Don't just say girl or boy or age. But see if you can look more deep than that. For those of you who have partners, do you know who your partner is? Your job is to keep on looking. Report an error in the passage at 10:24 Highlight the passage at 10:24

11:01 And you find things in there you haven't seen before. You've ignored. Now you understand how powerful this meditation can be. Report an error in the passage at 11:01 Highlight the passage at 11:01

11:12 It's not just overcoming difficulties. It's going much deeper than that. And that's why we meditate. We learn, we see, we understand so much more. And we see different things in our life. Report an error in the passage at 11:12 Highlight the passage at 11:12

11:34 So much different things that you can become successful in life. Really successful and healthy. Even so many sicknesses which people have to endure, how do they get better? Report an error in the passage at 11:34 Highlight the passage at 11:34

11:58 Sometimes you can ask your doctor, some of you are doctors, and some of you realize they're not really looking, they're assuming too much. But for you, you should be able to know your health better than anybody else. You've been with your body for such a long time. Report an error in the passage at 11:58 Highlight the passage at 11:58

12:19 So please use all that knowledge. If you feel not well, look deeper. See what's happening. And then you get some insights into things which are really important for you. And then you're wise. You share them with other people. You can come and sit up here. And I can take a rest. Report an error in the passage at 12:19 Highlight the passage at 12:19

12:51 Okay. Okay? Okay. Okay. So anyway, that's just the introduction to some of the incredible power of meditation. And it can take you so much deeper than you've ever been before. Report an error in the passage at 12:51 Highlight the passage at 12:51

13:08 Never be afraid. Be an explorer. You know that sometimes explorers get afraid? They go to places they've never been before. And to me it's fun. You're always totally safe. You just go and see what happens. Report an error in the passage at 13:08 Highlight the passage at 13:08

13:30 When you're really still and you're kindful, please don't ever minimize the importance of kindness when you're meditating. Put that together with mindfulness and it takes you so deep into the reality of who you are. Okay, so I talked enough. Usually I talk too much. So if you can just check that your meditation position is nice. Report an error in the passage at 13:30 Highlight the passage at 13:30

14:02 Nice is a good word. People say that's bad English. If they say it's bad English, I will rebel against them and say, why? Report an error in the passage at 14:02 Highlight the passage at 14:02

14:15 I know what that word means. Report an error in the passage at 14:15 Highlight the passage at 14:15

14:20 My mind and my body feel good. We feel ready to let go of the world and go inside and see more of the world. So Report an error in the passage at 14:20 Highlight the passage at 14:20

14:48 first of all, I do this because I'm supposed to be leading this. class for your benefit but also I love doing it myself it's very deep relaxation of my body it's not just ordinary relaxation it's Report an error in the passage at 14:48 Highlight the passage at 14:48

15:13 deeper and I start with kindfulness on the furthest part of my body from my head my toes and it's like I ask my toes No real inquiry. Toes, how do you feel? It's just between you and I. No one else will be told. Report an error in the passage at 15:13 Highlight the passage at 15:13

15:44 You be honest. Report an error in the passage at 15:44 Highlight the passage at 15:44

15:52 This afternoon, my big toe of my right foot, I shouldn't say, the big toe of my right foot is being squashed. So I'm just going to move my body slightly. Report an error in the passage at 15:52 Highlight the passage at 15:52

16:04 If I hear a complaint from any part of my body, I will address it. Move, scratch, sneeze or whatever is needed. In this case I just move my legs slightly apart. Report an error in the passage at 16:04 Highlight the passage at 16:04

16:25 The first few minutes of the meditation I really care about my body so much. And Report an error in the passage at 16:25 Highlight the passage at 16:25

16:36 the toes now respond, thank you. I have a relationship with my body. I don't ignore it. You care for it. And then it kind of disappears for me. Report an error in the passage at 16:36 Highlight the passage at 16:36

16:53 So I can watch the mind and go into deeper meditations. All these years I've been a monk, I've been practicing, it's still amazing just how I can feel my toes. Report an error in the passage at 16:53 Highlight the passage at 16:53

17:12 Now that when they are relaxed and I'm caring for them, it gives me a deep sense of peace and pleasure, just my toes, just starting. Report an error in the passage at 17:12 Highlight the passage at 17:12

17:25 And I move up to the balls of my feet. I might have... Report an error in the passage at 17:25 Highlight the passage at 17:25

· · · silence, 1 minute

17:29 Just slightly closer to my brain than the toes. And I feel them. I don't just make up feelings. I feel how they are. Report an error in the passage at 17:29 Highlight the passage at 17:29

17:48 And because I care for them, that more than anything else relaxes them. Report an error in the passage at 17:48 Highlight the passage at 17:48

17:58 And I can feel that sensation of relaxation which was not there when I started. Now it's a tingle. I haven't got the language to describe it. Report an error in the passage at 17:58 Highlight the passage at 17:58

18:12 It's a tingle, but a beautiful tingle. My feet are relaxing to the max. Then to the soles of the feet, I Report an error in the passage at 18:12 Highlight the passage at 18:12

18:29 can feel them. They also tingle, but in a different way than the balls of my feet and the heels. The whole bottom of my feet gets so comfortable. If you're sitting on a chair and you haven't achieved that degree of comfort yet with your feet, You can try moving your feet out from the chair or moving them the other way, inwards, until you can find the maximum delight for your feet. Report an error in the passage at 18:29 Highlight the passage at 18:29

19:11 This is important if you want to get into very deep meditations. Understanding relaxing does generate that delight and you really start to enjoy meditation a lot. Report an error in the passage at 19:11 Highlight the passage at 19:11

19:33 And then I go to the uppers, on the other side from the soles of my feet. I Report an error in the passage at 19:33 Highlight the passage at 19:33

19:43 can feel them as they are. They're kind of at ease. Nothing is pressing on them. There's no sign of stress anywhere in my feet. Report an error in the passage at 19:43 Highlight the passage at 19:43

19:59 If there was any injury there, it can heal. There's no injury there. It just relaxes even more deeply. Report an error in the passage at 19:59 Highlight the passage at 19:59

20:12 So now I can go further up my body to my ankles. Report an error in the passage at 20:12 Highlight the passage at 20:12

20:20 My ankles, I'm in my mid-70s now. I've had injuries, fallen off cliffs, off motorbikes, sports injuries. But now my ankles feel perfect. Can't feel any ache at all. I'm Report an error in the passage at 20:20 Highlight the passage at 20:20

20:47 relaxing everything. When I relax things, you do get the feeling of delight. Report an error in the passage at 20:47 Highlight the passage at 20:47

20:58 I only tell you this because you know the way of teaching. You've been here many times. Whoever describes their ankles as delightful. I Report an error in the passage at 20:58 Highlight the passage at 20:58

21:13 go further up. Now to the big muscles in my calves. The bones, the skin in front. Sometimes you can have bruises there. My ankles feel fine. So calves feel fine. I just stay and enjoy the feeling. I have no pain, no business. When I say no business, nothing to be done, it's another word for freedom. Report an error in the passage at 21:13 Highlight the passage at 21:13

21:50 I can let my lower legs go, nothing to be done there. And I go to my knees. And knees are a problem point for many people. Report an error in the passage at 21:50 Highlight the passage at 21:50

22:09 For me, I can feel those knees. Report an error in the passage at 22:09 Highlight the passage at 22:09

22:14 My method of relaxing them is to expand them, imagine them expanding. And with it all those channels for which the blood flows and lymph, goodness knows what else flows, all flowing freely, but no obstructions. Report an error in the passage at 22:14 Highlight the passage at 22:14

22:37 So I feel I have the knees of a newborn baby, even better than a newborn baby. Report an error in the passage at 22:37 Highlight the passage at 22:37

22:48 No obstructions at all. So I move up from my knees, To my thighs, big group of muscles, and Report an error in the passage at 22:48 Highlight the passage at 22:48

23:04 I just know how they feel. Report an error in the passage at 23:04 Highlight the passage at 23:04

23:13 And if there's any abnormal feeling in my left thigh, just above the knee, there's a bit of a pain. Report an error in the passage at 23:13 Highlight the passage at 23:13

23:26 It's already gone now. I just, you look at it and you're kind to it. And when you're kind to something, it relaxes. It's like sometimes people don't know me. You see them for the first time. And you speak kind words, you smile, and you take the fear away. You take fear away. The pain, the reaction gets less and less and less until my thighs are totally relaxed. Report an error in the passage at 23:26 Highlight the passage at 23:26

24:05 I feel them like they're sinking. I imagine them sinking into the cushion. I don't hold anything back. And then to the buttocks. Report an error in the passage at 24:05 Highlight the passage at 24:05

24:18 They feel quite comfortable, surprisingly so. And the feeling that's left, which is not that unpleasant, it's just the result of the transfer of my weight through those buttocks onto the cushion. And as I said many times, after a few moments, that feeling vanishes. It's constant. There's an alter. And because of that, it becomes like amniot. Report an error in the passage at 24:18 Highlight the passage at 24:18

24:53 Physical feeling, ambient, which means it doesn't change. And that's the way that these things vanish. In only a few moments, I know that by experience, that feeling will change. Report an error in the passage at 24:53 Highlight the passage at 24:53

25:12 As I go up to my waist, and then my waist, I like just making sure my waist is kind of pulled in. To me, that makes it more comfortable. Report an error in the passage at 25:12 Highlight the passage at 25:12

25:30 It's up to you to find the best position for your waist. with less pressure or pain in the upper body. Report an error in the passage at 25:30 Highlight the passage at 25:30

25:42 and first of all focusing on my back. to make sure the waist is so positioned that the spine is comfortable. and I go inside my body. Report an error in the passage at 25:42 Highlight the passage at 25:42

25:59 from the bottom of the torso going upwards. I usually go through... It's up to you to find the The digestive system to make sure that the colon and intestines have no aches or pains at all. If I do come across any ache, I stay there for a little while and give it kindness. Report an error in the passage at 25:59 Highlight the passage at 25:59

26:27 It's like when in hospital you may have had an accident or fall and someone comes to see you and they massage that area. Report an error in the passage at 26:27 Highlight the passage at 26:27

26:41 And as they're massaging it, the tightness, the tension vanishes. Here I'm massaging my own intestines with loving kindness. And Report an error in the passage at 26:41 Highlight the passage at 26:41

26:58 this is also where I learn more about loving kindness, what it actually is. Loving kindness is not aimed to get rid of things. Report an error in the passage at 26:58 Highlight the passage at 26:58

27:11 That's not loving kindness. Loving kindness accepts. It relaxes and allows the problem to disappear in its own time until Report an error in the passage at 27:11 Highlight the passage at 27:11

27:33 I get to my stomach. If I go past any organs, and these days I don't know which organ is which, if I find any ache or pain or tightness, I will just go to that point in my body and give it as much love and kindness as I can. Report an error in the passage at 27:33 Highlight the passage at 27:33

27:56 And it usually relaxes everything. Sometimes I just relax outside of that organ. And then imagine that relaxation power going inwards inside that organ and healing it. Just Report an error in the passage at 27:56 Highlight the passage at 27:56

28:22 imagination. But I found that works. And Report an error in the passage at 28:22 Highlight the passage at 28:22

28:30 go from my stomach up to my lungs. And here I also practice gratitude. My lungs have been breathing all my life. They've never ever let me down. Report an error in the passage at 28:30 Highlight the passage at 28:30

28:49 Even sometimes in difficult situations like places where I'm reacting to hay fever or places which are very smoky or places like walking up to tiger's nest in Bhutan when the amount of oxygen is very low percentage in the natural air. But Report an error in the passage at 28:49 Highlight the passage at 28:49

29:19 my lungs adapt. Report an error in the passage at 29:19 Highlight the passage at 29:19

29:26 I go up further from my lungs to my heart. I'm talking about the physical heart here. I'm making sure. It's hard to imagine my heart. Report an error in the passage at 29:26 Highlight the passage at 29:26

29:41 I've never ever had any heart surgery. I don't know what my heart looks like. You can feel that area and give it a lot of peace and kindness. Report an error in the passage at 29:41 Highlight the passage at 29:41

29:57 Allow there to be no tightness or tension there at all. And Report an error in the passage at 29:57 Highlight the passage at 29:57

30:04 then from my heart I go up to my shoulders. That's good. If you've heard me a lot, I usually complain that my shoulders, when I look at them, often exhibit signs of tension. Right now there's no tension there at all, which is kind of odd. Report an error in the passage at 30:04 Highlight the passage at 30:04

30:27 They're as relaxed as could be. So I go down from the shoulders to the upper arms and to the elbows, and Report an error in the passage at 30:27 Highlight the passage at 30:27

30:47 the elbows, the forearms, and the wrists. Report an error in the passage at 30:47 Highlight the passage at 30:47

30:54 I'm actually doing this, scanning my body and checking it as I go. From the wrist to the hands and then to the fingers. And often at this point I ask my fingers as if they were not mine, they were somebody else's. Are you comfortable? Report an error in the passage at 30:54 Highlight the passage at 30:54

31:19 Today my fingers say I could be a little bit more comfortable so I'll move them. Report an error in the passage at 31:19 Highlight the passage at 31:19

31:28 It really is acts of care. I don't care. What the camera photographs is or what it picks up, if that is a normal posture or a unique posture, I let my fingers decide how they should be. Report an error in the passage at 31:28 Highlight the passage at 31:28

31:51 And the result is they cooperate so wonderfully well. I say thank you to them. I care about them. And I'm showing it. And then I go back to my shoulders and neck. Report an error in the passage at 31:51 Highlight the passage at 31:51

32:14 I feel how my neck is and my breath is. Report an error in the passage at 32:14 Highlight the passage at 32:14

32:20 I often know that if my head is too far forward or too far back, it causes a pain in the neck. It's too far left or too far right. So I balance my head on top of the neck to get the most comfortable posture. Report an error in the passage at 32:20 Highlight the passage at 32:20

32:44 I also experiment. I find out for me, me, if I... Bend my neck slightly backwards. It gives it more energy and counters any sleepiness, but only slightly. Report an error in the passage at 32:44 Highlight the passage at 32:44

33:03 Then lastly, I feel the muscles on my face, around the eyes, around the nose and around the mouth. Report an error in the passage at 33:03 Highlight the passage at 33:03

33:18 It's very useful that any tension in those three places means that there's an emotional tension. That's why people can read your emotions by the shape of the muscles on the face. I relax all those muscles as deeply as I possibly can. And with it, the emotions get lighter. And last of all, I imagined all my parts of my body which can feel relaxing. Report an error in the passage at 33:18 Highlight the passage at 33:18

34:00 Now I join everything together. My head, my shoulders, arms. Torso, back, bottom, legs, feet. Pull them all together. And if I see anything which is not relaxed, I'll focus there and relax it. Report an error in the passage at 34:00 Highlight the passage at 34:00

34:24 Then I can feel my whole body as relaxed as I've been since I last meditated. No aches, no pain, no Report an error in the passage at 34:24 Highlight the passage at 34:24

34:40 stress. Report an error in the passage at 34:40 Highlight the passage at 34:40

34:46 And the only reason why I'm hesitating is because usually at this point, I feel the delight, the pleasure of relaxation, the feel-good factor. Now Report an error in the passage at 34:46 Highlight the passage at 34:46

35:07 I can feel it. I often wait for it, because once I feel that it's delightful to have such a relaxed body, Report an error in the passage at 35:07 Highlight the passage at 35:07

35:22 it relaxes even more. It's Report an error in the passage at 35:22 Highlight the passage at 35:22

35:28 automatic response. I Report an error in the passage at 35:28 Highlight the passage at 35:28

35:36 don't feel any ache or pain in my body at all. So Report an error in the passage at 35:36 Highlight the passage at 35:36

35:43 now I can let it go. Report an error in the passage at 35:43 Highlight the passage at 35:43

35:48 I go to the idea of peace, the emotion of peace, what peace feels like. How peaceful am I right now? Peace is a mental object. Report an error in the passage at 35:48 Highlight the passage at 35:48

36:12 What causes peace? I think you all know. First of all, you abandon the past. You let go of the future. How do you do that? Be kind. Report an error in the passage at 36:12 Highlight the passage at 36:12

36:34 Kind to the past and kind to the future. And Report an error in the passage at 36:34 Highlight the passage at 36:34

36:47 you find memories of the past aren't so harsh. Fears of the future aren't so desperate. You can let them go much more easily. So Report an error in the passage at 36:47 Highlight the passage at 36:47

37:07 before we even start to notice something like the breath, we abandon past and future. And Report an error in the passage at 37:07 Highlight the passage at 37:07

37:21 then we abandon There's inner speech. We're quiet inside. We don't try and describe anything with words. We know it with feelings. And Report an error in the passage at 37:21 Highlight the passage at 37:21

37:49 soon the calm and peace of silence prevail. Report an error in the passage at 37:49 Highlight the passage at 37:49

38:05 Because I abandon words, I can't do much more. From now it happens automatically. You know the breath. Breath calms down. You start to bliss out. Report an error in the passage at 38:05 Highlight the passage at 38:05

· · · silence, 16 minutes

54:41 now getting very close. The end of the meditation. Don't open your eyes yet. Report an error in the passage at 54:41 Highlight the passage at 54:41

54:54 As usual inside Report an error in the passage at 54:54 Highlight the passage at 54:54

54:59 How do you feel? How Report an error in the passage at 54:59 Highlight the passage at 54:59

55:10 is your body? And how is your mind? It's Report an error in the passage at 55:10 Highlight the passage at 55:10

55:39 the end of the meditation. We learn. Report an error in the passage at 55:39 Highlight the passage at 55:39

55:45 how meditation works. Report an error in the passage at 55:45 Highlight the passage at 55:45

56:03 in a few moments, I'm going to ring the gong. Please enjoy the sound of the gong, when the ringing of the gong vanishes, then come out from the meditation. Thank Report an error in the passage at 56:03 Highlight the passage at 56:03

· · · silence, 1 minute

57:08 you. If Report an error in the passage at 57:08 Highlight the passage at 57:08

57:21 you're really peaceful when the gong goes, just keep your eyes closed and carry on. In the mind voice, It could sometimes feel like a million miles away. I Report an error in the passage at 57:21 Highlight the passage at 57:21

57:39 still remember that, you know, when I was doing walking meditation in Bangkok. And all the walking meditation, even all the sound went so far away. Report an error in the passage at 57:39 Highlight the passage at 57:39

57:56 And then I had this amazing experience when I heard somebody saying my name in the distance when I paid more attention. I found it wasn't in the distance at all. It was a monk who was shouting in my ear. I'd missed an appointment. He was sent to come and get me. And when I heard, he was just... It sounded like a long distance away, even though he was shouting as loud as he could to try and get my attention. Report an error in the passage at 57:56 Highlight the passage at 57:56

58:35 I've always had understandings about the nature of sound, even in a busy place. It goes so deep inside, even when you're walking. It's so peaceful. Anyway, do we have any questions from the internet, first of all? Report an error in the passage at 58:35 Highlight the passage at 58:35

58:55 I honestly prefer the questions from the internet after meditation, because I hoped each one of you become so quiet you don't have questions at first. Thank you. So three questions from the internet. From Germany, from UK, and from the Czech Republic. Report an error in the passage at 58:55 Highlight the passage at 58:55

59:19 Dear Ajahn Brahm, after scanning my body I can stay with my breath too long because my body gets back up. I'm severely ill and need peace and meditation. Oh, after scanning my body I can't stay with my breath too long because my body gets back up. I'm severely ill and need peace and meditation. Please help kindly. Do your body scan more quickly and just A couple of minutes. I stay with my breath too long. I don't know if there can be a too long with the breath. Report an error in the passage at 59:19 Highlight the passage at 59:19

1:00:05 If your body gets very peaceful and you're still staying with the breath with no effort, usually the whole body relaxes and whatever illness you have just kind of gets much less. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:05 Highlight the passage at 1:00:05

1:00:22 The peace and the meditation really starts to help you. I think I've told many of you that I always have to be careful with these stories. I know this monk who had scrub typhus and it's a very bad fever and so after a while he decided to just let go and got into a very deep meditation. When he came out of his meditation he just noticed a posture and the posture was lying in a bed. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:22 Highlight the passage at 1:00:22

1:01:01 With arms and hands all over the place. He's never seen a posture like that in any book. But it was so peaceful, I got into the deep meditations, the jhāna. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:01 Highlight the passage at 1:01:01

1:01:16 You can imagine how that must have felt. I was sick with a fever. The whole body just bleh. And then blitting out. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:16 Highlight the passage at 1:01:16

1:01:30 So anyway, if you are severely ill, if you can, not just sit, but lay down if that's more comfortable. And just let go of the body. You can scan it as much as you can just to get it as relaxed as you can quickly. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:30 Highlight the passage at 1:01:30

1:01:48 And then let it go. If the body does disappear, then your body, when it disappears and you're blissing out in your mind, that really does some very effective healing. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:48 Highlight the passage at 1:01:48

1:02:04 From the UK. Is there a way meditation can help me with ill will? As I've had to deal... With really unpleasant people every day in my life. Mettā meditation doesn't seem to work for me. Thanks Ajahn. Yes. You get into a deep meditation where the hindrances disappear. The five hindrances. Which is either seeing nimittas, these beautiful lights in the mind, or even the jhānas. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:04 Highlight the passage at 1:02:04

1:02:34 And when you come out, the ill will is gone. It's impossible for you for hours. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:34 Highlight the passage at 1:02:34

1:02:43 And I say that because that's how I test people. They come up to me and they say they've just experienced jhāna. I was saying this in Hong Kong. I just came back from Hong Kong. And somebody said they had a very deep meditation. I said, look, people in Hong Kong, especially Hong Kong women, cannot achieve jhāna. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:43 Highlight the passage at 1:02:43

1:03:10 And I look at them. And if I can see any reaction there at all, what do you mean? That's racist. That's misogynistic. If that's how I see they're trying to say, I realize that wasn't the jhāna. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:10 Highlight the passage at 1:03:10

1:03:28 If you had a deep meditation, you can't get irritated. That part of the anatomy of the mind has just disappeared for a while. That's one of the nice things about it. If you really have a nice deep meditation, you're so happy. You can't get upset. That's how I test you, or any teacher tests you, to try and upset you, just to make sure there really was a deep meditation. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:28 Highlight the passage at 1:03:28

1:04:01 If it was, then you just, I don't know, that's the case, I don't mind. It's one of the weird results. Well, it's not weird, but that's how the Buddha taught. Five hindrances such as wanting and ill will, just vanish. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:01 Highlight the passage at 1:04:01

1:04:22 Temporarily, But they are gone. Isn't that wonderful? To be able to have just a wonderful meditation. There's nothing you want in the whole world. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:22 Highlight the passage at 1:04:22

1:04:33 And somebody came and said, here's $500,000. No, thank you. And you really mean it. In a normal state of mind, okay, okay. You don't have any wanting or ill will. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:33 Highlight the passage at 1:04:33

1:04:54 And that's one of the signs of the deep meditation. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:54 Highlight the passage at 1:04:54

1:04:59 So all your ill will disappears for a while. It comes back again later, unfortunately. But at least it's nice to know what it's like to have no ill will, no wanting. Be perfectly self-content. Quick from Tom in Czech Republic. Living by your example, not taking worldly things too seriously and joking seem to sometimes irritate people around. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:59 Highlight the passage at 1:04:59

1:05:28 I think you need to get some better jokes. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:28 Highlight the passage at 1:05:28

1:05:34 Honestly, you know I tell jokes. I have no ill will towards anybody. And some of the jokes are pretty poor. Some you've heard before, but nevertheless I tell them. How to find a compromise between inner peace and harmony with others? We just find out, you know, who appreciates humor. I don't know why it is that sometimes people think like religion, Report an error in the passage at 1:05:34 Highlight the passage at 1:05:34

1:06:03 Spirituality, being a monk, has to be boring and irritating, why you can't sort of tell funny jokes. Ajahn Chah always had a great sense of humor. Many of you know his funny jokes. In the back of a car, I was, and he turned around looking at the monk, young monk sitting next to me, and read his mind. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:03 Highlight the passage at 1:06:03

1:06:34 You're thinking about your girlfriend back in L.A., aren't you? That's better to really watch what you're thinking with someone like an Ajahn Chah. He said, I've got the perfect remedy for that. I heard that people during wartime, if they were drafted into some army or air force, when they had to leave the people they loved the most, they would ask for maybe a lock of their hair. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:34 Highlight the passage at 1:06:34

1:07:05 Or a piece of their dress with their perfume on. Or something to remember them. So ask your girlfriend for something personal of hers. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:05 Highlight the passage at 1:07:05

1:07:16 Send it to you. So when you really miss her, because you're a monk, you can use that to remember her. And even I was shocked by that response. Is that allowable for a monk? You know, yeah, yeah, yeah. But ask her. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:16 Highlight the passage at 1:07:16

1:07:38 You know, to get a little bottle, like those bottles you put medicines in, only about this big, and ask her to put some of her shit in that little bottle and send it to you. So that when you miss her, you can... So Report an error in the passage at 1:07:38 Highlight the passage at 1:07:38

1:07:59 many years ago, you could open the top of the bottle. Oh, that's my loved one back in L.A. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:59 Highlight the passage at 1:07:59

1:08:11 That's not trying to be gross. You can... If you miss... It was really funny. I was bursting out laughing. I remember that was about 50 years ago he said that. But it was just, so if you miss your husband, he goes to work in Africa or something, go and ask him. A little bottle about this size. Put some of his shit in it. I Report an error in the passage at 1:08:11 Highlight the passage at 1:08:11

1:08:42 better stop. You get the message anyway. Okay, Tom in the Czech Republic, ask your wife. You know what to do. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:42 Highlight the passage at 1:08:42

1:08:53 Okay, any... Other questions people have? Report an error in the passage at 1:08:53 Highlight the passage at 1:08:53

1:08:59 Yes, Andy. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:59 Highlight the passage at 1:08:59

1:09:05 Ajahn Brahm, just now, before the start of meditation, you know, you mentioned about meditation on patience, you know. Patience, oh yes. Yeah, yeah. The reason why I'm going to ask you how do you meditate on this, okay? And the reason why I'm asking you this is because the Buddha, he was telling us, you know, Patience, tolerance, and understanding are the highest virtues everyone should practice. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:05 Highlight the passage at 1:09:05

1:09:40 Okay, highest virtues. And sometimes, you know, when our problem, you know, we have problems, the problem stays with us longer. And then we have to apply this patience. How do you do it? Report an error in the passage at 1:09:40 Highlight the passage at 1:09:40

1:09:59 Sometimes I remember, I'm mindful, I'm kindful. Sometimes in my situation people come and tell me all their problems. Physical problems, emotional problems. And sometimes I don't know how to answer. So I don't answer. And the problem heals by itself. Patience teaches me that. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:59 Highlight the passage at 1:09:59

1:10:28 Situations in the world. People think it's the end of the world. Great! I don't even need to plan anything anymore. I don't have to buy tickets to go overseas. The world's going to end. Wouldn't that be nice? So I'm patient. When I appreciate the peace which patience gives me, a lot of problems, they settle by themselves. Report an error in the passage at 1:10:28 Highlight the passage at 1:10:28

1:10:59 I don't live longer because I've only got one experience what actually happens. A lot of times when people get involved and they try to fix up problems, Report an error in the passage at 1:10:59 Highlight the passage at 1:10:59

1:11:10 That's when oftentimes they make it worse. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:10 Highlight the passage at 1:11:10

1:11:15 So sometimes, honestly, I like just to sit down when the world's on fire. Sit down and be peaceful. And if you say that, oh, you'll get burnt as well, Ajahn Brahm, the opposite happens. That's why there's so many stories of monks, one in the suttas, who are in the middle of a fire. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:15 Highlight the passage at 1:11:15

1:11:44 The reason they were in that fire, they were meditating in the jungle. Two villagers found them and decided it's not right, they were Buddhists. It's not right to let that monk be eaten by jungle animals. So they decided to cremate him. They thought he was dead. He wasn't dead, he was just in deep meditation. Once he was put on the pyre, they lit the fire. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:44 Highlight the passage at 1:11:44

1:12:14 Two villagers went away. The next morning that monk came into that village for alms food. If you're in deep meditation, you cannot be affected by fire. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:14 Highlight the passage at 1:12:14

1:12:32 So if there's a big fire in your area of Perth, Eddie, just sit there, cross your legs, get into deep meditation. Your house may be gone afterwards, but you'll still be there. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:32 Highlight the passage at 1:12:32

1:12:49 Yeah, go on. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:49 Highlight the passage at 1:12:49

1:12:57 Oh, yeah. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:57 Highlight the passage at 1:12:57

1:13:01 Yeah. Yeah. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:01 Highlight the passage at 1:13:01

1:13:16 You could think of the verse. Tolerance is great. It calms you down but then even go further than that so you can't feel the heat of the fire. Sometimes you think that's impossible but these things do happen in deep meditation. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:16 Highlight the passage at 1:13:16

1:13:41 Meditation is fantastic and you can, you know, pain just vanishes. You go deep inside the body. Many people say they want to use the meditation to heal the body. One great way of doing that It's to go so deep in meditation that you can't feel the body. And because you don't feel it, you don't interfere with it at all. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:41 Highlight the passage at 1:13:41

1:14:09 I know that sometimes I'm quite fascinated by reading medical descriptions where they give these, not anesthetics, but where they turn off your consciousness. They say it's for healing for a couple of days. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:09 Highlight the passage at 1:14:09

1:14:30 So you get totally unconscious, you can't feel your body. What's it essentially called? Induced coma, yeah. And so that induced coma, once that happens, amazing is how sometimes the body heals. When you're not doing anything, interfering with it. But I know that how that happens, how the body heals, is when you go into a deep meditation, you can't feel the body. The body is busy doing its own healing. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:30 Highlight the passage at 1:14:30

1:15:03 Whenever I get involved, you tend to sort of mess around. So I disappear. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:03 Highlight the passage at 1:15:03

1:15:14 Anyway, try it. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:14 Highlight the passage at 1:15:14

1:15:23 It's many things. It's an intensity, Report an error in the passage at 1:15:23 Highlight the passage at 1:15:23

1:15:34 yes. So there's still the suffering there. There's also so many different types of suffering. There's one thing we call the suffering of existence, suffering of being. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:34 Highlight the passage at 1:15:34

1:15:50 But then we find out when things vanish and disappear, then literally the emptiness, the nothingness, when we can understand what that means and allow that to take over, suffering vanishes. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:50 Highlight the passage at 1:15:50

1:16:06 I don't know about you, but have you ever experienced when you have physical suffering, which is real suffering, but it was not intense, just a toothache, and I wasn't in meditation. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:06 Highlight the passage at 1:16:06

1:16:21 I just could not sleep. I was just a young meditator. I couldn't really meditate properly. The pain in the mouth was just too strong. And then I was up most of the night and then just kind of tried everything and I couldn't stand anymore. There was no medication, no one to talk to. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:21 Highlight the passage at 1:16:21

1:16:44 So I tried everything I knew and nothing worked. And that's when you're in that point where there's nothing left. It was something I heard many times, but I hadn't really done. Let it go. And I did. That's the first time I let it go. And honestly, my memory of that night was really clear, even though that was about 50 years ago. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:44 Highlight the passage at 1:16:44

1:17:14 What happened was, as soon as I let it go, the pain, which was constant, was replaced by bliss. I couldn't understand that. It was a real toothache. It was pain, but then no more pain, but just beautiful bliss. I'm really happy. And that was kind of shocking to me. Report an error in the passage at 1:17:14 Highlight the passage at 1:17:14

1:17:38 That's what happens when you let things go. The brain or the mind is the most powerful organ in the body. And it can do stuff like that. Report an error in the passage at 1:17:38 Highlight the passage at 1:17:38

1:17:54 Yeah. Report an error in the passage at 1:17:54 Highlight the passage at 1:17:54

1:17:59 Yeah. Report an error in the passage at 1:17:59 Highlight the passage at 1:17:59

1:18:04 Yeah. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:04 Highlight the passage at 1:18:04

1:18:08 Patience. Patience is beautiful. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:08 Highlight the passage at 1:18:08

1:18:18 Yeah. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:18 Highlight the passage at 1:18:18

1:18:26 Yeah. You tolerate, you don't overreact. Okay, excellent. Is there any other comment anyone has? Report an error in the passage at 1:18:26 Highlight the passage at 1:18:26

1:18:42 Do you want to tolerate some more? Be more patient? Okay, we can now just do some bowing. And I was just talking to someone just before the meditation. Now, what do you do when you bow? What do I do when I bow? And I told this years ago, through the... Report an error in the passage at 1:18:42 Highlight the passage at 1:18:42

1:19:12 The principal, the headmaster of Christ Church Grammar School said, when I bow to a Buddha statue, I bow to three things. Report an error in the passage at 1:19:12 Highlight the passage at 1:19:12

1:19:23 The first is to virtue. I really, really, really respect virtue. Not lying, being honest, being patient, being tolerant. That's part of virtue. And then, it's so important to me, I bow my head down. I remember why I'm bowing. And the second bow is to peace. Peace is always really important to me. Report an error in the passage at 1:19:23 Highlight the passage at 1:19:23

1:19:55 Peace of meditation, the peace in the community, the peace in a committee. And the last thing I bow to is compassion. I've seen so many people act so beautifully, compassionately, and I remember that. That inspires me. Those are three things I bow to. And for the first time, Report an error in the passage at 1:19:55 Highlight the passage at 1:19:55

1:20:21 Anglican principal of Christ Church Grammar School understood. A couple of days later he drove in his car to Bodhinyana Monastery. I met him. I took him inside a hall in Serpentine. We took off our shoes. I took off my sandals when we entered the hall. He took off his. And together, side by side, we did our three bows. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:21 Highlight the passage at 1:20:21

1:20:50 To the Buddha statue there. That is exactly what happened. The only thing which I would love if we had videoed it. That was inspiring. So I'm inviting you now to bow to those three things as we finish off this meditation session. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:50 Highlight the passage at 1:20:50

1:21:15 Virtue, peace and compassion. Report an error in the passage at 1:21:15 Highlight the passage at 1:21:15