Compassionately Mindful - Dhamma Talk & Guided Meditation 1/2

0:02 Thank you. I would have said it quite like that, but that's good enough. Report an error in the passage at 0:02 Highlight the passage at 0:02

0:08 But anyway, welcome everybody. And it's an opportunity to give a little dharma talk first, and then at half past, I can't even see my... It's okay? It's okay? If you can't hear, that just keeps it even more quiet. Report an error in the passage at 0:08 Highlight the passage at 0:08

0:26 And it also means that your ears become much more sensitive to the sound so that you become more understanding why silence is really golden. Have you ever noticed that these days, I don't know if any of you do investments, but we always used to have that statement that silence is golden. And now because of economic turmoil, That sometimes the price of gold has actually gone up. Many more people are investing in gold. So silence is worth more than it was last year. Report an error in the passage at 0:26 Highlight the passage at 0:26

1:08 It's an investment. But it's not just for the sake of enjoying it right now. The silence actually heals you. And I do recall so many experiences. In my life as a monk, experiencing very deep, powerful silences and finding places in the world which were silent. When you find a nice cave on top of a mountain, not when it's windy, when it's really silent, or when you find just a place in the desert, all those places which we used to revere as places of stillness, sanctuaries. Report an error in the passage at 1:08 Highlight the passage at 1:08

1:52 One of the Latest retreat centers were in a half-finished building over in Australia, Sanctuary of Stillness, we call it. In brief, SOS. And that's a beautiful name simply because that's what we all need, a place where we can just be quiet. Not that we can actually experience anything sensational, just so that our mind can relax and be still. Report an error in the passage at 1:52 Highlight the passage at 1:52

2:23 And it's amazing that sometimes when we do have our meditation period, when one person is silent and everybody else joins in, it's amazing you can build up an energy of silence. It's weird, but it's true. Many times, I remember even the first time when I walked into Ajahn Chah's monastery in northeast Thailand. Report an error in the passage at 2:23 Highlight the passage at 2:23

2:50 I walked in there because I had to take the overnight train. And then from the train to actually to find this monastery was difficult. And when I went in there, all the monks were out on alms round. So when I walked in there, I was surprised that so many monks and nuns were in that monastery. But nevertheless, it was absolutely silent. Report an error in the passage at 2:50 Highlight the passage at 2:50

3:15 We couldn't hear anything move. And that was... A great example of the attraction to silence which human beings have. We do live in a very, very noisy world and sometimes when you can find a place or a situation where you can turn off that sound and just be still, be perfectly still. Report an error in the passage at 3:15 Highlight the passage at 3:15

3:43 And it's got an allure to it. It's got the most beautiful sound in the world. I was going to say... While you were coming in, I was surprised that so many people have come on this retreat because we're in competition this weekend with Glastonbury. But Report an error in the passage at 3:43 Highlight the passage at 3:43

4:07 I think that's a totally different sound over there. Many people jumping up and down and shouting and screaming. But this is a much more beautiful sound of silence and it's always there for you. One of those meditations will help your meditation. When you come in this room, what do you see? You don't just look at the saṅgha. You don't just look at the people you know. Report an error in the passage at 4:07 Highlight the passage at 4:07

4:37 You don't just look at the chairs. Do you ever notice the space between those chairs? The space between the walls? The space between all the people? That's always there, but people hardly ever notice it. You go into a room with being... Train to see the things in the room rather than the spaces between them. And the silence, the peace, the freedom lives in the spaces between people, between things. Report an error in the passage at 4:37 Highlight the passage at 4:37

5:09 And there's always more spaces than there are actually things. And that's the same which we learn how to do in our meditation. Report an error in the passage at 5:09 Highlight the passage at 5:09

5:19 When we're meditating, we don't look at what we're experiencing at so much. We look for what's missing, the spaces, the emptiness, the freedom. And it's wonderful to notice that wherever you are in the world, wherever you are, you can always find that freedom, that space. I do remember just a good example of this one monk over in Thailand. He was a very senior monk. Report an error in the passage at 5:19 Highlight the passage at 5:19

5:53 And a very good monk. He never sought for fame or fortune. Well, he didn't have fortune anyway. Never sought for fame or being well-known. But nevertheless, he was such a good monk. He was rising up the hierarchy of monks in Thailand and was second in line to be the head monk of Thailand. And the monk just behind him really wanted that job. Report an error in the passage at 5:53 Highlight the passage at 5:53

6:22 so he The monk behind him started to set him up and accuse him of all sorts of things which he was totally innocent of. And eventually that monk was sent to jail. Report an error in the passage at 6:22 Highlight the passage at 6:22

6:38 And he thought that he never felt any anger towards the monk who caused him to go to jail. In fact he always has much gratitude towards him. Because he wrote in his biography that when this really good monk was sent to jail, That he was one of the most peaceful retreats of his life. He had three years where he didn't need to teach any retreats. He had three years where he didn't have to answer any questions or do any travelling or write any books. Report an error in the passage at 6:38 Highlight the passage at 6:38

7:10 He had three years of perfect solitude. And he had a good meal every day. And he was in a nice little cell, which I think was bigger than the hut he usually stays in. I look at sometimes my hut, which is a little cave. And if I went to jail, I'd have much more space to do walking with me. And I'd have no responsibilities, could sit in my jail cell every morning, no worries at all. Report an error in the passage at 7:10 Highlight the passage at 7:10

7:41 I could understand the argument. But anyway, it was always learning how to see things which we often miss in life. They're always there for us. We just don't know how to see them. And notice them, the beautiful freedoms of life. It's already been explained to you by Venerable Chanda that during this retreat, this is, we practice stillness and compassion. Report an error in the passage at 7:41 Highlight the passage at 7:41

8:13 We don't practice no force. I know that sometimes people say, I think you can expect this story to come now. We don't just ask people to concentrate. Report an error in the passage at 8:13 Highlight the passage at 8:13

8:27 Meditation's got nothing to do with concentration. If it did, what would this be? Who's going to say it first? Yes? Concentration camp. Report an error in the passage at 8:27 Highlight the passage at 8:27

8:45 And that's not a place you want to be. Instead of calling it a concentration camp, I always change the word to club med. Report an error in the passage at 8:45 Highlight the passage at 8:45

8:57 Club meditation. Ifly. Report an error in the passage at 8:57 Highlight the passage at 8:57

9:05 And that's a much better term for it because it should be something which is entertaining. Which means you engage, joyful, deep, profound, and of course very restful. When you go on a retreat, why do you actually call it a retreat? Report an error in the passage at 9:05 Highlight the passage at 9:05

9:25 What's the meaning of the word retreat? We were discussing that, I think, yesterday. A treat again. A retreat. I think actually sometimes we should call it advance, not a retreat. It's actually to go forward in life, to become a better human being. Find more peace, find more meaning, and do something useful in this world to make it a better world. It's a beautiful thing to do on a retreat. Report an error in the passage at 9:25 Highlight the passage at 9:25

9:52 I remember stories years and years ago. There was this one guy who told me he just wanted to go on a weekend retreat. And his wife said, look, I'm too busy on the weekends. You've got the kids to look after the shopping. You've got all those chores you have to do. And so he said, OK, I won't go. But then the week afterwards, he asked again, can I go on a retreat? No, it's too busy. Next week, can I go on a retreat? Report an error in the passage at 9:52 Highlight the passage at 9:52

10:22 No, of course you can't. Mother-in-law's coming. We've got to clean up the garage, whatever. No, you can't go. And after a while, he told me that his wife was so fed up with him. He said, OK, you go on your silly, selfish retreat. Leave me to do all the housework and look after the kids on the weekend. He took that as a yes. Report an error in the passage at 10:22 Highlight the passage at 10:22

10:50 I'm only reporting what happened. I'm not making this up. So he went on the retreat. And after going on the retreat for one weekend, when he came back, he was such a changed husband. He was such a beautiful father. And she saw the difference straight away. And so the next time there's a weekend retreat, he never even needed to ask. She gave him the money and set him off. Report an error in the passage at 10:50 Highlight the passage at 10:50

11:20 And I know many women as well, who sometimes they come home from work and their kids need looking after. And sometimes it's the kids who suggest to them, please go off and do a meditation night on our weekly meditation evenings. And I don't feel like going to meditation. I'm tired. I'm exhausted. Mummy, please go to meditation. Why should I? Mummy, please go to meditation. Report an error in the passage at 11:20 Highlight the passage at 11:20

11:51 Why? Because you're a much nicer mummy when you come home from meditation. If you want to test that out, ask your children. Ask the people you live with. Or put it another way, ask the people who have to put up with you. Report an error in the passage at 11:51 Highlight the passage at 11:51

12:12 And they'll probably give you the money instead you are. The point is that it has a beautiful result. You can relax. But if you make this another thing, like a weekend studies or something, and think you're going to get judged from this afterwards, you're wasting your time. You're not judging. We're accepting. It's a compassionate mindfulness. Report an error in the passage at 12:12 Highlight the passage at 12:12

12:43 So what does that compassion really mean? It means non-judging. It means just accepting, being at peace with things. As my own father once told me famously, that he said to me one afternoon, he said, son, however you turn out in your life, whatever you become, please always remember the door of my heart will always be open for you. Report an error in the passage at 12:43 Highlight the passage at 12:43

13:11 Always. You're my son, and that's enough. Imagine you say that to yourself. Say it now and keep to that like vow or promise throughout the whole weekend. Whatever happens, the door of your own heart will always be open to you. No judging. Just let yourself come in. Be at peace with yourself. Because that's what meditation is supposed to lead to. Report an error in the passage at 13:11 Highlight the passage at 13:11

13:44 A state of peace, serenity. And the great wisdom which comes from that piece. You don't have to be perfect. Quite frankly, I've been a monk over 50 years now. Report an error in the passage at 13:44 Highlight the passage at 13:44

14:01 That's before you were born, wasn't it? Just. Just. Very few people can say that. But anyway, I've been a monk a long time. And even when I was a layperson meditating, I was teaching meditation. One of the meditation talks which I gave was in 1973 when I was a school teacher for one year in Devon. Is anyone here from Devon? Okay. What part of Devon is this? It was in Ottery St Mary's School just west of Exeter. Report an error in the passage at 14:01 Highlight the passage at 14:01

14:45 East of Exeter. I don't know if that's not that far away. But anyway, I was asked to take the talk after morning assembly every week. They used to do an assembly like in those old days at school. And I had to give a talk after the assembly. And for every day, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. And so I asked the headmaster, is it okay if I teach the children about meditation? Report an error in the passage at 14:45 Highlight the passage at 14:45

15:18 He said, yeah, of course. Give it a try. So there were 650 children. It was a high school. You can imagine, I was sitting on the stage, and they were all sitting in front of me, 650 kids, from 11-year-olds to 17-year-olds. And then I said to them, I'm going to teach meditation now. So they could see me sitting on the stage. So first of all, cross your legs as best you can. Report an error in the passage at 15:18 Highlight the passage at 15:18

15:46 And they crossed their legs. And then sit up. And they all sat up and that was amazing because they all obeyed. It wasn't a strict school. I was only just a new teacher, so they weren't afraid of me. And they all just sat up straight, tuck in your chin, close your eyes, and put your left hand over your right hand and thumb slightly touching. Report an error in the passage at 15:46 Highlight the passage at 15:46

16:14 And actually these days I do the right hand over the left hand. And close your eyes. And start watching your breath going in. And just watch the breath go out. A little guided meditation just for, I think, about three minutes. And every one of those children, they'd never meditated before in their lives. And afterwards, they all behaved, which was amazing. Report an error in the passage at 16:14 Highlight the passage at 16:14

16:43 It was in, as I said, 1973, a long time ago. And after the meditation was finished, And I said, okay, you can open your eyes now. Spontaneously, and I'm not exaggerating here, it's the sort of thing you would exaggerate on, but not me. Report an error in the passage at 16:43 Highlight the passage at 16:43

17:03 I'm being really honest. They gave me an ovation. They didn't stand up, but they started clapping. And they'd never done that before. They really felt it, they enjoyed it. There was something in there, just an ordinary meditation they felt happy to be able to do. And none of them misbehaved at all. I didn't have to tell them to be quiet. And I know that one of the senior teachers, he asked me afterwards, he said, what would you have done if one of the children started laughing? Report an error in the passage at 17:03 Highlight the passage at 17:03

17:36 And only then did I feel afraid, because I never even considered that was possible. And because I had that type of confidence, none of the children laughed. They enjoyed instead. 650, because I know if one had started giggling. You'd have lost the whole lot. 650 people would be laughing at me. But none of them did. And they remembered that. Report an error in the passage at 17:36 Highlight the passage at 17:36

18:04 And even some years ago, quite a few years ago now, because I've been a monk a long time, I was visiting one of the monasteries down in Hartridge in Devon. You know that one? Okay, there's a monastery down there anyway. And then this guy came up to me and, please never do this to me. He said, do you remember me? Report an error in the passage at 18:04 Highlight the passage at 18:04

18:31 And that was such a silly question because I said, no. And he said, who are you? And he said, I was one of the children in that school. Report an error in the passage at 18:31 Highlight the passage at 18:31

18:43 Yeah, sure, I'm going to remember you. But he said that changed his life, just that meditation. It really meant something for him. It's only one, but that's a good start. But certainly just meditation is so simple. So peaceful, so gorgeous. After a while you can kind of touch it, taste it, feel it. There's something very beautiful in here. Report an error in the passage at 18:43 Highlight the passage at 18:43

19:11 But if you start struggling, you know, you have to do some meditation, you have to get it right. That's when it all goes pear-shaped. So please, don't struggle. To be able to feel peace, you have to really listen hard to feel peace. Once it's pointed out, it's all around you, the peace. And the silence and the kindness. You can really relax into it. So these days whenever I teach meditation, I usually have to change things a little bit every time. Report an error in the passage at 19:11 Highlight the passage at 19:11

19:47 Otherwise people get bored. So the usual phrase I use this time is a phrase which I developed in South Korea. Any Koreans here today? Report an error in the passage at 19:47 Highlight the passage at 19:47

20:02 Anyone from South Korea? But I was asked to do a little retreat and give some talks up in the demilitarized zone between North Korea and South Korea. And it's not just a military sort of place. There's real human beings who've been separated from their loved ones who are still suffering. They can see just across the border, not only just, it's a long distance. There is their old grandma and old uncle and they're not able to visit them anymore because they're put in this big demilitarized zone and anybody who tries to cross it gets shot. Report an error in the passage at 20:02 Highlight the passage at 20:02

20:52 And so we wanted to do a little bit of loving kindness, like compassionate mindfulness. compassionate mindfulness. You know, to try and at least give a little bit of healing for those people who miss their loved ones. And so we did a meditation talks and we even did some walking meditation. And the walking meditation which we did was actually inside the DMC, the Demilitarized Zone. And that's a very dangerous place. Report an error in the passage at 20:52 Highlight the passage at 20:52

21:27 And I did tell many people, and look, I'm a monk, I cannot lie. I did get shot many times with cameras and videos. Report an error in the passage at 21:27 Highlight the passage at 21:27

21:42 I'm not lying, I did get click, click, click, zoom, zoom, zoom. Report an error in the passage at 21:42 Highlight the passage at 21:42

21:49 But nevertheless, I was inspired because you were doing something using your mindfulness, using even your presence to try and do something to maybe change the mindset of people to create a better human world, one which is human rather than inhuman. So anyway, at the end of that particular session, they asked me to, anything which I can leave with them, about three or four thousand South Koreans there, to actually, to remember me by. Report an error in the passage at 21:49 Highlight the passage at 21:49

22:22 And that's when I said, to meditate, in brief, if you want to meditate, keep in mind this phrase. And that was, relax. And I got all these three thousand South Koreans, I think it was more than that. That's about 6,000, I think. 6,000 South Koreans to repeat after me. Remember, English was not their first language. To get them to say, relax. Report an error in the passage at 22:22 Highlight the passage at 22:22

22:49 So now I'm going to ask you to do that. Relax. Come on. What are you supposed to say? Okay, louder. Relax. Good. And the second part, to the max. To the max. Report an error in the passage at 22:49 Highlight the passage at 22:49

23:09 So when you get about 6,000 South Koreans saying that in front of you, suddenly I remembered that. And it was a beautiful little saying, how to meditate. Report an error in the passage at 23:09 Highlight the passage at 23:09

23:22 Relax to the max. If you're going to relax, how can you do that? To relax, you do need to be able to be mindful. Right now, are you relaxed? Really? Report an error in the passage at 23:22 Highlight the passage at 23:22

23:43 To the max? You can always relax a little bit more. And that little bit more is the important part of relax to the max. That's one of the reasons why when I start my meditation practice, I always like to check my body, making sure everything is comfortable. Because if you're not aware of your body, you don't know exactly what pressures you're putting on your body. And you don't know how to relax the body. Report an error in the passage at 23:43 Highlight the passage at 23:43

24:14 A good example of that. Many years ago, when I was in a monastery in Perth, I got food poisoning. Have you ever had food poisoning? I don't know my case of food poisoning. I live in a cave, that's the truth. And when I was in my cave, I got all these spasms, which were very, very painful. And as you had the spasm, I just didn't have any choice. It was totally automatic. Report an error in the passage at 24:14 Highlight the passage at 24:14

24:52 And I love giving this talk when I think people are getting a bit sort of dozy or tired. It's a great talk to stop sloth and talk. Report an error in the passage at 24:52 Highlight the passage at 24:52

25:06 But that's actually what was happening. I never knew when it was coming. And when the spasm came, it just really hurt. And just the scream came out. But then, what do you do if you're suffering from food poisoning? What I decided to do... It's over. Report an error in the passage at 25:06 Highlight the passage at 25:06

25:24 It was just to meditate. Instead of going to the... If I went to the telephone in the monastery, it was a long distance from where I was in the cave. And I'm not sure that if you actually got there, sometimes, you know what happens, emergencies, when you want to get on the phone and somebody else is on the telephone and you can't get in. Report an error in the passage at 25:24 Highlight the passage at 25:24

25:46 So anyway, I said, I don't want to do that. Because it's also a long way from the nearest... ambulance. It'll take about 15-20 minutes for an ambulance to So instead I decided to, I tell everybody else about the power of meditation. So I wanted to try it out myself. Report an error in the passage at 25:46 Highlight the passage at 25:46

26:07 So instead of actually calling to a phone, I just started meditating. As I was meditating, how do you meditate? Relax to the max. And that's what I was doing. You could feel the tightness in your guts. And I tried to, not tried, figured out how to let it be so it relaxed as much as I possibly could. And all the time being mindful, because I was mindful, I noticed that the contractions and the pain was a little bit less than the time before. Report an error in the passage at 26:07 Highlight the passage at 26:07

26:54 Just a little bit less. But that was enough. The next time I had a contraction, it was even less. The next time, even less. It took me half an hour. That's all. I couldn't believe how effective it was until those contractions got less and less painful. Eventually, instead of, ah, it was, ah. Report an error in the passage at 26:54 Highlight the passage at 26:54

27:24 And then it stopped completely. And it's things like that, you know, when you experiment. And you find these things actually work and they're very, very safe for you. And they also just give you confidence in just how the interaction of the mind and the body, how you can make use of that by learning how to relax to the max with kindness and mindfulness all working together. Report an error in the passage at 27:24 Highlight the passage at 27:24

27:59 And I've had many other instances. I like doing that also these days to vehicles and to cameras and things which you shouldn't be able to influence at all. Do you think that's possible? Giving loving kindness to your car when it won't work? Report an error in the passage at 27:59 Highlight the passage at 27:59

28:31 That's a shame. Because many years ago... You're right. I totally agree with you. But it's a shame you believe that because there Report an error in the passage at 28:31 Highlight the passage at 28:31

28:45 was this lady in Perth in our youth group and after finishing their youth group, you know, the Buddhist youth group, do some meditation. It was a hot evening. So they were going to the beach. There's lots of beaches in Perth. And they were going to the beach but their car, they couldn't get the car, they could get the car to start but the boot was locked and they couldn't open it. Report an error in the passage at 28:45 Highlight the passage at 28:45

29:09 And they'd been trying for about half an hour. They rang up the, you know, what you'd call the AA here in the UK, the RAC over there. And they called and the person hadn't turned up. So they were waiting, getting sort of frustrated that no one could open the boot of the car. And they saw me coming. They said, here comes Ajahn Brahm. Report an error in the passage at 29:09 Highlight the passage at 29:09

29:30 He can open the boot of the car. They had so much faith in me. Report an error in the passage at 29:30 Highlight the passage at 29:30

29:38 And so one of these... She was Indonesian. Her name was Veronica, Ronnie. And so she said, Oh, Ajahn Brahm, you can open the boot of this car. We've been trying for half an hour. We can't get it open at all. And I asked her, I said, Okay, if I open the boot of the car, what's in it for me? Report an error in the passage at 29:38 Highlight the passage at 29:38

30:04 She knows me. And I said, I will open the boot of your car if you promise to become a bhikkhuni. Nobody's none. Report an error in the passage at 30:04 Highlight the passage at 30:04

30:21 If ever she comes over here, you can ask her. You can ask her when you see her at this range retreat. And she said, yeah, okay. Report an error in the passage at 30:21 Highlight the passage at 30:21

30:33 She regretted that afterwards. Because I said, give me the key. I gave her the key. And I opened the door, the lock. It'll open first time. And I opened the boot of the car. Report an error in the passage at 30:33 Highlight the passage at 30:33

30:47 She said, no, I opened the boot of the car. Now you have to keep your promise. You have to ordain as a bhikkhuni. She'd make a good bhikkhuni, I reckon. Report an error in the passage at 30:47 Highlight the passage at 30:47

30:59 No, she didn't want to do it, but it was a promise. And promises are promises. We keep virtue very important in Buddhism. So she promised. So she knew she was in a difficult situation. But there was another member of our Buddhist youth group who was a lawyer. Report an error in the passage at 30:59 Highlight the passage at 30:59

31:22 And she said, yeah, but she promised she would become a bhikkhuni. But she never said when. Report an error in the passage at 31:22 Highlight the passage at 31:22

31:36 So I had no choice but to let her stay. But she has to one day. She promised me. She has to become a bhikkhuni one day. Whether she likes it or not, she made a promise. Report an error in the passage at 31:36 Highlight the passage at 31:36

31:48 You're not. We'll see what happens. But anyhow, it was also amazing that these things can be done. You've got a good cause. You're not trying to make money out of it or impose upon somebody. But even, have you ever noticed? That even your compassion can also work with physical things as well. Always give that a try. Your car, sometimes just stroke it in the back. Report an error in the passage at 31:48 Highlight the passage at 31:48

32:18 Nice car, thank you for surfing me. You'd be amazed at how often that works. I had, you know, when I was a young monk, I did a lot of work building. And so I had a cement mixer, like a concrete mixer. And much of Bodhinyana Monastery and Jhana Grove was built with that concrete mixer. And other monks could not get it to work. Honestly. Report an error in the passage at 32:18 Highlight the passage at 32:18

32:44 They tried to pull the cord to get the engine started, didn't work, didn't work again, didn't work again. So what did I do? Report an error in the passage at 32:44 Highlight the passage at 32:44

32:53 All I did was actually stroke it. Honestly, stroke the engine, and that's concrete mixer. I know you're probably tired, you've been overworked. You haven't been, I honestly did this, I'm not crazy, because it works. Report an error in the passage at 32:53 Highlight the passage at 32:53

33:10 Please, if you don't mind, please. And I spoke to it a few times, then pulled it, and it worked every time. Some of the other monks, when you go there, check it out, they all said that it actually worked. Why does it work? Because the power of compassion and mindfulness is huge. It's not just for your own body, it's for even things which you live with, and animals, my goodness. Report an error in the passage at 33:10 Highlight the passage at 33:10

33:36 I don't know how many pets you have or animals which live with you. I always remember this. Somebody asked me recently, they had an infestation of ants, you know, A-N-T-S. And I said, can you do anything? I said, yeah, of course. Never think that, you know, you can't do anything at all. So what I did when I was building this monastery, I was building a nice hut. It was in a beautiful position, but there was only one impediment. Report an error in the passage at 33:36 Highlight the passage at 33:36

34:15 There was a big ant's nest close by. I mean, really close by, just in the corner of the site. So I just made a vow to those ants. Please, please, please, I will never harm you. Please, we're just building a little hut here. It's not in your path. The hut was on little stumps. and raised above the ground. So you can come and go whenever you want, however you want, but we'll make sure we won't harm you. Report an error in the passage at 34:15 Highlight the passage at 34:15

34:46 Because I was the builder, I kept that promise. It was like compassion. I had to be very mindful. If I let a piece of wood fall in the wrong place, it would have hurt their home. I can't still build my home. I was the first person to live in that, this this particularly particular Report an error in the passage at 34:46 Highlight the passage at 34:46

35:08 I wouldn't like my home to be destroyed, so I kept my part of the vow. It took extra time, but honestly, it does work. It seemed to anyway, because then I lived in that hut, and in the morning, outside of the hut, you can see the ants going their way, and I'd always greet them, wish them a happy morning. Report an error in the passage at 35:08 Highlight the passage at 35:08

35:33 Please speak to animals. Speak to even ants. And when they... He spoke to them. They were just happy neighbours. And then one day, what changed everything was when one of the workers at the monastery, they were driving a tractor, and they drove the tractor right over the ants' mound. Report an error in the passage at 35:33 Highlight the passage at 35:33

36:00 You don't get angry, you just think, why did you do that? It felt very sad. From that day on, honestly, those ants started coming into the hut. Report an error in the passage at 36:00 Highlight the passage at 36:00

36:12 The agreement was broken. So please never ever do that. If you're going to make a promise or even a contract with animals, please keep it. Report an error in the passage at 36:12 Highlight the passage at 36:12

36:28 And a similar story, I won't go on too long, because I've got to finish at 10.30. Let me do some meditation. There was one of the great forest monks in Thailand many years ago. He wrote this story in his biography. I checked it out. They're pretty accurate. He was wandering from village to village and he came to one village one evening and he found a nice tree in which to put his mosquito net and the little umbrella which those forest monks used to use in those days. Report an error in the passage at 36:28 Highlight the passage at 36:28

37:03 And they told the villagers, you had to let the villagers know if you were coming there because the villagers would want to prepare something for you to eat the next morning. So he told the villagers, and they were quite impressed. He was a very, very good monk. And so they said, okay, we can come this evening to listen to dharma talk. Report an error in the passage at 37:03 Highlight the passage at 37:03

37:22 He said, oh yeah, sure. So they went back to the village to get some dinner, have an early dinner. And they said we'd be back about eight o 'clock to listen to a dharma talk. And so he sat down to prepare for the dharma talk by doing a couple of hours meditation. And when he started his meditation, It's only then he realized he should have been a bit more careful where he was sitting. Because where he was sitting was on a big mound of red ants. Report an error in the passage at 37:22 Highlight the passage at 37:22

37:55 And those red ants, they love climbing up you and biting you all over the place. And so after about five minutes, he could feel all these ants climbing up his legs and biting him. And then he said it was amazing how he lost his mindfulness. Report an error in the passage at 37:55 Highlight the passage at 37:55

38:16 Because he didn't know exactly what had happened, but he was running away. And it was about two or three seconds where he didn't know how he'd actually jumped up and how he got out underneath from the mosquito net, but he was running. And that's when he thought, no, I'm a monk, a forest monk. We shouldn't run away from problems like this. Report an error in the passage at 38:16 Highlight the passage at 38:16

38:38 There must be another way to deal with this. And this was some really tough monk, a very good monk. and eventually He turned around, went back and sat where he was sitting before and felt all these ants start crawling up his legs again, biting him. But this is where he changed his meditation. Instead of doing a breath meditation, to doing a loving kindness meditation. May all beings, in particular ants, be happy and well. Report an error in the passage at 38:38 Highlight the passage at 38:38

39:17 And he had such a powerful mind. He continued that, and after a few moments, the ants stopped biting him, which was such a pleasant relief. He was actually working. And then he could feel the ants, they were crawling down his legs, and down past his knees, through his thighs, to his feet, and off his body. Report an error in the passage at 39:17 Highlight the passage at 39:17

39:44 They were leaving him. And then he had this beautiful meditation for about an hour and a half, and then he was getting time. For the monks, for the villagers to come for the dharma talk he promised to give them. It was at that point that he heard a really strange ceremony in that part of Thailand. Because as the villagers were coming to meet the monk for the dharma talk, they were doing a special dance. Report an error in the passage at 39:44 Highlight the passage at 39:44

40:20 He'd never seen this form of dancing ever before. But when he looked more carefully, he noticed they weren't really dancing. They were jumping up and down in pain. Report an error in the passage at 40:20 Highlight the passage at 40:20

40:36 The red ants were biting them. And he noticed a very strange sort of scene. Around his body where he was sitting, there was like maybe a meter circle, a meter radius circle of kind of no man's land. Report an error in the passage at 40:36 Highlight the passage at 40:36

40:55 And outside of that, The red ants. They were guarding him. Protecting him. Have you ever seen a red ant swarm in Southeast Asia? There's hundreds of thousands of them. Uncountable numbers. And they were all protecting him. That's the only way he could explain it. They were biting the villagers who they thought were his enemy. So I always loved that story because it's a nice soft story. Report an error in the passage at 40:55 Highlight the passage at 40:55

41:28 A beautiful story. And that's why on this retreat, it's like each one of you, you're ants. Retreat ants. Report an error in the passage at 41:28 Highlight the passage at 41:28

41:41 I said that silly joke yesterday, but anyway. Report an error in the passage at 41:41 Highlight the passage at 41:41

41:48 And before we actually start the guided meditation, can I let you know something? That monk, his name was Ajahn Lee, L-double-E, one of the forest monks in Thailand. He built this monastery. Report an error in the passage at 41:48 Highlight the passage at 41:48

42:07 called Asokarama. No other monastery I've ever seen built like that or with that name. But Asokarama was also a monastery built, I don't know, 2,000 years ago in Pataliputa, Patna, by this great king, Emperor Asoka. Report an error in the passage at 42:07 Highlight the passage at 42:07

42:29 And sometimes people say, are you making this up, Ajahn Brahm? No. That when this monk Ajahn Lee was giving a talk in a more... In a comfortable environment, actually in Ubon, Rajatani, in a big hall, from the roof a medallion fell. Report an error in the passage at 42:29 Highlight the passage at 42:29

42:51 This metal medallion fell on the ground. It's not one you'd normally expect to see anywhere except in a museum. It was a medallion with the figure of the head of Emperor Asoka on it. Report an error in the passage at 42:51 Highlight the passage at 42:51

43:07 And that is not a coincidence. Many of these monks... Ah, followers. We talked to them at length. He had a former life. He was the Emperor Asoka. Report an error in the passage at 43:07 Highlight the passage at 43:07

43:29 Kind of unbelievable, these things. But I've seen so many unbelievable things in my life as a monk. Sometimes, when you see this one and check it out, some of the people have told me these stories. You've maybe heard of some of them, but they're still alive. I never want to actually... To give extra trouble to anyone who's still alive who corroborated these stories. But anyway, amazing things happen in life. Report an error in the passage at 43:29 Highlight the passage at 43:29

43:59 I feel I should actually at least let you know. So, this is what happens with compassionate mindfulness. It's amazing just how safe you can feel. So, when you do the actual meditation, it's so simple. Can you feel kindness? Report an error in the passage at 43:59 Highlight the passage at 43:59

44:20 What act of kindness has happened to you today? Someone just being really soft to you and even just smiling at you, saying, how are you? Because I know we're supposed to be silent, but I've already made many of you break the rule by asking where you're from. How many of you are from UK? I can't hear you. Report an error in the passage at 44:20 Highlight the passage at 44:20

44:52 Sorry? Okay, how many are from UK? First of all, say yeah. It can't be both. How many not from UK? How many from UK and not from UK? Report an error in the passage at 44:52 Highlight the passage at 44:52

45:16 Good, bad, who knows? That's the other lovely thing about sort of giving retreats. Sometimes you meet people from all over the place. Sometimes you haven't met them for years. And sometimes it's nice to see one another again. Now these days, I'm just being honest, it's not a dharma talk, just how I feel at my age. Report an error in the passage at 45:16 Highlight the passage at 45:16

45:39 Because I've been a monk for such a long time and have taught for so many places. Some of you I see will remember you. And sometimes I remember your parents as well and your grandparents. And sometimes I feel like an old grandpa who's known your family for such a long time. It's been a privilege helping you, caring for you, serving you all these years. Report an error in the passage at 45:39 Highlight the passage at 45:39

46:07 A good example of that. One of my disciples over in Perth, he was a doctor. His parents were good Buddhists. When I was very young, they helped start our monastery over in Perth. It's a little bit long, but I'll cover five minutes. It's almost there, but I'm just going to change the title. Report an error in the passage at 46:07 Highlight the passage at 46:07

46:43 It's a lovely little story to start off with. Report an error in the passage at 46:43 Highlight the passage at 46:43

46:54 Anyhow. Report an error in the passage at 46:54 Highlight the passage at 46:54

46:58 So this gentleman was the head psychiatrist in one of the big hospitals in Perth. And his wife was a very good Buddhist who really served and helped us in our early years. And they had a son called Sam. Report an error in the passage at 46:58 Highlight the passage at 46:58

47:19 And when Sam was young, he was always in the Dharma school at the temple. So you got to know him really well. He was just an ordinary kid, sometimes naughty, sometimes good. I do remember just catching him on a wayside day with a few other kids the same age, eating some sandwiches at three o 'clock in the afternoon. Report an error in the passage at 47:19 Highlight the passage at 47:19

47:39 And I said, you're supposed to be on eight precepts. Oh, sorry, Ajahn Brahm, don't tell our mummy. And I said, look, there are some much better places around the corner over there where you can hide. Report an error in the passage at 47:39 Highlight the passage at 47:39

47:55 I can never be strict. The only kids, they're trying their best, for goodness sake. So anyway, eventually he did well at school and he became a doctor. But he was the one that he came to see me one Saturday after the meditation class. And he said, I was on duty this morning. Something happened and I have to resign. I cannot carry on with my job as a doctor, a medical doctor. Report an error in the passage at 47:55 Highlight the passage at 47:55

48:22 Because you've known him for such a long time. He's a really good kid. A good young man now. He's in his 20s. And I said, what happened? And that's what he told me. That morning, one of the patients he was supposed to be caring for died. Report an error in the passage at 48:22 Highlight the passage at 48:22

48:41 Unexpected. Nobody's fault. It's just they didn't actually check those areas which was dangerous for her. She was a 23-year-old young woman. Report an error in the passage at 48:41 Highlight the passage at 48:41

48:56 This doctor, Sam, had to go and tell the husband that your wife unexpectedly has passed away. He broke down. He knew he was sick, but not that sick. And as a doctor, to tell someone who's still really much in love, you know, your partner, another one you've committed to who's no longer there, and then also to tell the two children. Report an error in the passage at 48:56 Highlight the passage at 48:56

49:29 You've got no mummy anymore. He was a very sensitive young man. And that was too hard for him. He said he managed to do that, but he said he would never ever be able to do that again. To tell somebody he was responsible for, not his fault, he was responsible for, their doctor, that, you know, your wife, your husband, sorry, your wife has now died. Report an error in the passage at 49:29 Highlight the passage at 49:29

50:00 Your children have got no father. Mother. Thank you. And so he said, I can't do this any longer. So I have to find another job somewhere. And I thank him for actually telling me that because that's where I taught him. So you've missed the point. The purpose of being a doctor is not to cure people. If you think that's your job, to cure your patients, you're going to come across this. Report an error in the passage at 50:00 Highlight the passage at 50:00

50:38 Tragedy many, many times in your life. There are some people who just can't cure. Your job as a doctor is to care for your patients and their family and everybody who's involved. Care for them. You never need to fail if you're a carer. You put caring first priority. Report an error in the passage at 50:38 Highlight the passage at 50:38

51:07 So your first job as an Angarika is to care for Ayah Chanda. Not to feed her. Report an error in the passage at 51:07 Highlight the passage at 51:07

51:21 When it comes to looking after you, the two are synonymous. I never said that. But of course, it's the caring that's more important than curing. Report an error in the passage at 51:21 Highlight the passage at 51:21

51:32 And if you've got a partner in life, are you going to try and cure him of all his bad behavior? If you try that, you're missing the point. Report an error in the passage at 51:32 Highlight the passage at 51:32

51:45 Don't cure him, care for him. He cares for you. Caring is so much more powerful than wanting to cure things. You want to have beautiful meditations. Don't look at your defilements, your obstructions and your hindrances and try and cure them. Report an error in the passage at 51:45 Highlight the passage at 51:45

52:08 Care for them. If Report an error in the passage at 52:08 Highlight the passage at 52:08

52:12 you care for them, they're not obstructions anymore. I'm not saying this in a light way, in a beautiful way. You learn from them and they're not obstructing you anymore. They become friends rather than enemies. Report an error in the passage at 52:12 Highlight the passage at 52:12

52:34 If you're having difficulty with local councils, don't try and cure them. Care for them. Well, we started Bodhinyana Monastery. I'll finish after this story. Maybe. Let's give them a little. Oh, after this story. Report an error in the passage at 52:34 Highlight the passage at 52:34

53:03 You know me. So if you want to cure me of my speech, forget it. Care for it. But anyway, we were building our monastery over in Perth. Just like building a nice... And he was kind of almost, almost Report an error in the passage at 53:03 Highlight the passage at 53:03

53:57 as... Robust. Robust. Robust. But anyway, he had this monk who was visiting at the time. Many of you may have heard of him, Ajahn Gunha. He was visiting. And Ajahn Gunha was the one who could pat tiger snakes. Report an error in the passage at 53:57 Highlight the passage at 53:57

54:20 So Ajahn Gunha, I should have known this was possible, but I didn't think you would do it. Ajahn Gunha went up to the mayor and Report an error in the passage at 54:20 Highlight the passage at 54:20

54:31 started patting him on the chest. And I couldn't stop him. And I thought, oh my goodness, that's it. You know, we're not going to get any permission to do any building at all in this place. We've offended the mayor. And he runs the shire. And so I thought, okay, let's go move somewhere else. But then the mayor, I remember seeing him. Report an error in the passage at 54:31 Highlight the passage at 54:31

54:54 He just started giggling and laughing and smiling. He literally enjoyed every moment of that. Having his tummy patted. Report an error in the passage at 54:54 Highlight the passage at 54:54

55:07 And we got all our approvals. And he became a really good friend of our monastery. I remember just being with him, just when eventually he passed away, his wife passed away first of all, and just to give him some counseling. He said it's so hard when you've been married to someone for about 50 or 55 years, that now he's alone. But he passed away a short while afterwards. Report an error in the passage at 55:07 Highlight the passage at 55:07

55:31 He was a good friend, simply because we gave him some mindful kindness. So, please. When anyone from the council comes to visit next time, please let me pat him on the tummy. Report an error in the passage at 55:31 Highlight the passage at 55:31

55:57 I love lovely stories like that, because it does make you very peaceful, very kind, and the meditation just takes off. Thank you for listening. Thank you for enjoying. And thank you for letting me go on and on and on and on. I don't know what to tell you. Report an error in the passage at 55:57 Highlight the passage at 55:57

56:16 So now we can have the toilet break? Or no toilet break? Okay, who wants a toilet break? Put your hand up. Okay. Well please, off you go and have a toilet break, but come back quick afterwards. Okay? Okay, come back now. Report an error in the passage at 56:16 Highlight the passage at 56:16

56:41 Okay. Is there Report an error in the passage at 56:41 Highlight the passage at 56:41

· · · silence, 7 minutes

1:03:54 enough female toilets, but not enough male? Can we not do that? Report an error in the passage at 1:03:54 Highlight the passage at 1:03:54

1:04:10 Yes, I think that's a very good idea. Because it's obviously... There's more females on this retreat than males. So if females need to use one of the male toilets, if somebody could just stand on the outside just to make sure and say, look, we've taken this over as a female toilet, so please don't go knocking on the door or scaring anybody. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:10 Highlight the passage at 1:04:10

1:04:38 But I think that's a really good idea to do. So I'm not quite sure where the toilets are, but please. Can we manage that? To take over some of the female toilets? Oh, the male toilet? No, no, no. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:38 Highlight the passage at 1:04:38

1:04:56 Oh, fair, fair. Okay, yeah, please do that. Whatever toilet is needed. Sorry? Okay, great. Okay, so we're now going to do a guided meditation. Now you've been to the letting go room, which is what we do meditation in. Any Report an error in the passage at 1:04:56 Highlight the passage at 1:04:56

1:05:33 problem? Report an error in the passage at 1:05:33 Highlight the passage at 1:05:33

1:05:37 It's all handled. Excellent. That's what I usually say to people because I come from Australia. No worries. She'll be alright. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:37 Highlight the passage at 1:05:37

1:05:51 Okay. Sorry. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:51 Highlight the passage at 1:05:51

1:06:00 There are. We try to work together. We can't do that without every one of us. Okay, so we're now going to do some meditation. The first meditation. Sorry. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:00 Highlight the passage at 1:06:00

1:06:13 And it's a beautiful thing to do meditation even before lunchtime because it does make the lunch taste even more delicious than it would do otherwise. I've always noticed that. Some more people coming in. Good. So please, if you like, to close your eyes. Maybe even 11 to 18-year-old kids could do this. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:13 Highlight the passage at 1:06:13

1:06:37 And Report an error in the passage at 1:06:37 Highlight the passage at 1:06:37

1:06:42 when your eyes are closed, it's like one of the senses. Don't need to be concerned about, which is the sense of seeing. With your eyes closed, the sight can be tranquilized, quieted, made peaceful. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:42 Highlight the passage at 1:06:42

1:07:00 And you're all really safe in these retreats. Always expect people to keep the precepts, especially the two precepts. The two precepts are not doing anything which harms another being. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:00 Highlight the passage at 1:07:00

1:07:18 And the second precept, never doing anything which harms oneself. There's two precepts which create harmlessness. With Report an error in the passage at 1:07:18 Highlight the passage at 1:07:18

1:07:38 these two precepts in action, you're Report an error in the passage at 1:07:38 Highlight the passage at 1:07:38

1:07:45 sitting down. How Report an error in the passage at 1:07:45 Highlight the passage at 1:07:45

1:07:55 do you feel? Because right now, don't send the mind out into the future, how you will feel, or into the past, how you have felt. Just know that's enough. How do you feel right now? How's your body? Report an error in the passage at 1:07:55 Highlight the passage at 1:07:55

1:08:22 When I just suggested that question for you, I also checked my body and it's not comfortable so I'm going to adjust my position. It Report an error in the passage at 1:08:22 Highlight the passage at 1:08:22

1:08:47 feels so much better. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:47 Highlight the passage at 1:08:47

1:08:54 So you experiment until Report an error in the passage at 1:08:54 Highlight the passage at 1:08:54

1:09:01 you find that position which Report an error in the passage at 1:09:01 Highlight the passage at 1:09:01

1:09:06 your body says is a comfortable position to be still. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:06 Highlight the passage at 1:09:06

1:09:17 After many attempts, many days of meditating, you soon find what for you is comfort. A comfort in the body which you can maintain for long periods of time even. Be Report an error in the passage at 1:09:17 Highlight the passage at 1:09:17

1:09:40 compassionate to your body. The Report an error in the passage at 1:09:40 Highlight the passage at 1:09:40

1:09:54 mindfulness is always getting feedback from your body. My body is telling me, well done, I'm in a really comfortable position right now. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:54 Highlight the passage at 1:09:54

1:10:09 I was leaning against the backrest of this chair but now my back supports itself. That's for me, not for you. You find what works for you. If you're still not comfortable, then do a little movement. Report an error in the passage at 1:10:09 Highlight the passage at 1:10:09

1:10:28 Is that feeling better or feeling worse? If Report an error in the passage at 1:10:28 Highlight the passage at 1:10:28

1:10:42 it's feeling better, continue on. Report an error in the passage at 1:10:42 Highlight the passage at 1:10:42

1:10:48 No one is going to take any photographs of you so you don't have to worry what you look like. Report an error in the passage at 1:10:48 Highlight the passage at 1:10:48

1:10:58 You're accepted. The door of our heart is open for you. You don't need to try and impress or prove anything. Just relax to the max. This Report an error in the passage at 1:10:58 Highlight the passage at 1:10:58

1:11:19 is being compassionate to your own body. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:19 Highlight the passage at 1:11:19

1:11:28 I often like asking my parts of my body, how are you? How are your knees? How are your legs? How are your shoulders? Report an error in the passage at 1:11:28 Highlight the passage at 1:11:28

1:11:45 And again, I'm not sure why, but often I can be aware of tightness in my shoulders. And Report an error in the passage at 1:11:45 Highlight the passage at 1:11:45

1:11:56 how I deal with it, I do a little imaginary exercise. I imagine these like... Two bundles of strings on either side of my spine being stretched. The left side being stretched and the right side being stretched. I imagine they're being stretched because they're being held on both ends, on both sides by these two invisible demons pulling at the muscles on my left shoulder and my muscles on my right shoulder, stretching them. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:56 Highlight the passage at 1:11:56

1:12:34 There's no need. So imagine those Two invisible imaginary demons letting go. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:34 Highlight the passage at 1:12:34

1:12:49 Imagine them letting go. I feel the muscles relaxing, getting loose and no longer tight. And Report an error in the passage at 1:12:49 Highlight the passage at 1:12:49

1:13:06 I know the effect of this. Because when strings are stretched tight, they're like a violin. You touch the string and it makes a sound. As you loosen the tension, the strings become more slack. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:06 Highlight the passage at 1:13:06

1:13:27 Then things touches the string and it starts to make no sound at all. When Report an error in the passage at 1:13:27 Highlight the passage at 1:13:27

1:13:38 your body relaxes, it gets resilient, soft, beyond harm, resilient. And Report an error in the passage at 1:13:38 Highlight the passage at 1:13:38

1:14:00 I become aware of the feeling of resilience, Report an error in the passage at 1:14:00 Highlight the passage at 1:14:00

1:14:09 how the body can relax even more. And if you're safe, comfortable, at ease, because Report an error in the passage at 1:14:09 Highlight the passage at 1:14:09

1:14:31 I've been meditating for so long. And as soon as I relax, I start to be aware of my breathing. Honestly, I never go looking for my breath. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:31 Highlight the passage at 1:14:31

1:14:45 It always comes to me. I feel the breath as it comes in my body. I don't ask it to come in. I don't force it. I let it come in. I let it go out. And Report an error in the passage at 1:14:45 Highlight the passage at 1:14:45

1:15:06 all the time, I'm kind to my respiratory system. A lot of gratitude towards my... Breathing apparatus. I've been alive almost 74 years now, and that breath has never let me down. Never, not once. It's always kept me supplied with oxygen, taken away all the harmful byproducts. Trust Report an error in the passage at 1:15:06 Highlight the passage at 1:15:06

1:15:50 it. It's never, ever let me down. I Report an error in the passage at 1:15:50 Highlight the passage at 1:15:50

1:16:01 trust it so much that in meditation, sometimes you get so tranquil, the body doesn't need much oxygen. So the amount of breathing you do gets less and less and less. And Report an error in the passage at 1:16:01 Highlight the passage at 1:16:01

1:16:22 don't get afraid. Because I trust the breath. If Report an error in the passage at 1:16:22 Highlight the passage at 1:16:22

1:16:33 I need to sneeze, I sneeze. And Report an error in the passage at 1:16:33 Highlight the passage at 1:16:33

1:16:44 if you know how to relax to the max, you may notice as you're breathing in, the breath gets very soft and delightful. Not just an ordinary breath. It's a delightful breath. A beautiful breath. Feels good. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:44 Highlight the passage at 1:16:44

1:17:25 Because the breathing starts to feel delightful, it becomes easy to watch. But Report an error in the passage at 1:17:25 Highlight the passage at 1:17:25

1:17:44 please don't have a commentary about the breathing. Your job is just to know the breath within inner silence. No need to take notes. No need to make plans. No need to tick off lists. Just Report an error in the passage at 1:17:44 Highlight the passage at 1:17:44

1:18:33 to be able to observe the breath. Breath coming in and going out. Just compassionately. Please, Report an error in the passage at 1:18:33 Highlight the passage at 1:18:33

1:18:49 not trying to get anywhere or do anything or achieve anything. Just Report an error in the passage at 1:18:49 Highlight the passage at 1:18:49

1:18:59 to be aware and kind. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:59 Highlight the passage at 1:18:59

· · · silence, 1 minute

1:19:43 Just to make it interesting. Which is longer? The time you take to breathe in or the time you take to breathe out? Report an error in the passage at 1:19:43 Highlight the passage at 1:19:43

1:20:02 Just roughly. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:02 Highlight the passage at 1:20:02

1:20:25 Which feels more peaceful? In breathing or out breathing? Now Report an error in the passage at 1:20:25 Highlight the passage at 1:20:25

· · · silence, 1 minute

1:21:28 is the only time you have. The Report an error in the passage at 1:21:28 Highlight the passage at 1:21:28

1:21:37 past? The present Report an error in the passage at 1:21:37 Highlight the passage at 1:21:37

1:21:43 is the place where your future is being made. You care about the future. Keep your attention in the place it is being constructed. Now, how Report an error in the passage at 1:21:43 Highlight the passage at 1:21:43

· · · silence, 3 minutes

1:25:29 does this feel? The Report an error in the passage at 1:25:29 Highlight the passage at 1:25:29

1:25:37 more peaceful, the more aware you are, the more beautiful it feels. It's Report an error in the passage at 1:25:37 Highlight the passage at 1:25:37

· · · silence, 18 minutes

1:43:58 getting close to the end of the meditation period. Report an error in the passage at 1:43:58 Highlight the passage at 1:43:58

1:44:07 Don't come out too fast. Report an error in the passage at 1:44:07 Highlight the passage at 1:44:07

1:44:11 Now is your opportunity to see how you feel. What worked for you? Did Report an error in the passage at 1:44:11 Highlight the passage at 1:44:11

1:44:25 you really manage to relax your body, relax your mind? What Report an error in the passage at 1:44:25 Highlight the passage at 1:44:25

1:44:37 worked and what was difficult? This Report an error in the passage at 1:44:37 Highlight the passage at 1:44:37

1:44:45 is where we learn. We find out how beautiful meditation is and how to allow those problems. So evaporate, so we can really enjoy the process of meditation on this retreat. Now Report an error in the passage at 1:44:45 Highlight the passage at 1:44:45

1:45:24 for those of you who want to do some walking meditation, we didn't have much time to describe it. Just walk carefully, relaxed. It's usually good to find a path, a simple path, but there's many of you, so just see if you can find. A little bit of solitude to do the walking meditation. Report an error in the passage at 1:45:24 Highlight the passage at 1:45:24