Guided Meditation

0:00 So we can start this afternoon's meditation class. But first of all, as usual, we have the beginners meditation class as well. And the introduction to meditation class is being held in the room on my right. You pass that room as you come in past the reception area and into here. That is the introduction to meditation class. Report an error in the passage at 0:00 Highlight the passage at 0:00

0:28 The reason why we do have two classes is that if you're just starting meditation, to get the basic instructions, where we want people to do like four sessions, and there the meditation length is not that long. It's only just usually a quarter of an hour or more, and they do some walking meditation as well. We're in here. Report an error in the passage at 0:28 Highlight the passage at 0:28

0:55 I prefer to do longer meditations, usually about 40 minutes. I hope you don't mind that length. And if anybody has any difficulty in doing long meditations, maybe one day you're more disturbed about something than usual, one lovely trick or skillful means we usually call them, is that you're meditating and the mind isn't getting... Report an error in the passage at 0:55 Highlight the passage at 0:55

1:23 That peaceful, after a quarter of an hour or 20 minutes, you can open your eyes and even have a look at the clock or look at the Buddha statue, just have a break, no move, but just sit there enjoying whatever's happening and then close the eyes again and go into deep meditation again. Report an error in the passage at 1:23 Highlight the passage at 1:23

1:43 That happens, just a little break for yourself. So instead of doing a 40 minute meditation, you do two 20 minute meditations. And just giving that little opportunity to have a break, to look outside, just to see a Buddha statue or to see whatever's in front of you, the monks or whoever else is teaching it, that actually is helpful rather than getting up and moving. Report an error in the passage at 1:43 Highlight the passage at 1:43

2:09 But anyhow, hopefully you don't even need to do that, because sometimes the meditation gets very comfortable. Now, 40 minutes is not that long in... The tradition of meditation which I was brought up in, sometimes we meditate for much longer than that. If your body is comfortable and you're feeling good, carry on. Report an error in the passage at 2:09 Highlight the passage at 2:09

2:34 You know, just sitting down and you have a bit of extra time, why keep it just 40 minutes? Do it a little bit longer. And people have done that. I've been sitting here for so many years and I do remember times when... You know, we say, okay, now any questions? I ring the gong and you look at the audience and some people are still meditating with their eyes closed and you can tell they're hardly moving. Report an error in the passage at 2:34 Highlight the passage at 2:34

3:01 You let them carry on. And if it's working, if it's more comfortable, isn't it preferable to carry on and get even more still and see what happens when people are still? And they get more still and more still and more still. Isn't it wonderful? The way you can actually add stillness upon stillness upon stillness. Report an error in the passage at 3:01 Highlight the passage at 3:01

3:30 It does build up. When people go on meditation retreats, then they have all the time in the world to meditate. They can continue and they get into the groove, as they used to say in the old days. And then they're really meditating. Well, they carry on meditating and get more and more and more still. And you find you do get deeper and deeper and deeper and deeper. Report an error in the passage at 3:30 Highlight the passage at 3:30

3:57 What's it like to be deeper and deeper? Is it not just words? How does it feel? If it's meditating properly, the deeper you feel, the more happy you feel, the more content. That's one of the reasons why you do continue meditating. Report an error in the passage at 3:57 Highlight the passage at 3:57

4:15 It's because it's joyful, it's happy. And this is something which I've talked about for years. And I've noticed that other teachers don't talk about it as much as I do. How just sitting down and relaxing your body creates peace and happiness inside of it. You're sitting down and just don't start with the breath, you know, or anything. Report an error in the passage at 4:15 Highlight the passage at 4:15

4:44 And the pleasure which you feel is important. It feels nice. That's just a pretty dull word. It feels happy to be able to sit with a body which doesn't want to move and doesn't need to move. It's happy being still. And when you can do that and feel the pleasure, there's something which is important which I try to explain. Report an error in the passage at 4:44 Highlight the passage at 4:44

5:32 You understand that meditation is and can be associated with happiness. It's not just pain. It's not trying to endure. I beat your record of how many minutes you can sit, you know, enjoying the discomfort. It literally does feel incredibly pleasant. And because the body feels pleasant, it's easier to relax. And you relax up to a point that the physical body kind of disappears. Report an error in the passage at 5:32 Highlight the passage at 5:32

6:06 You don't feel it after a while. It vanishes, you can't feel your legs, you can't feel your hands, you can't feel your torso, you can't feel your head. Everything kind of disappears. And that to me was an important part of meditation, the disappearance of the body. So what are you watching when the body vanishes? A lot of time, if you wish to, just look at the bliss, the happiness, the joy. Report an error in the passage at 6:06 Highlight the passage at 6:06

6:37 The sense of freedom. You don't have to feel anything in your body. It's sat down, it's kind of disappeared, and you're on the inside part of your mind. Report an error in the passage at 6:37 Highlight the passage at 6:37

6:48 A lot of times I've tried to explain that using this simile of, it's an old Buddhist simile, but not Theravadan. It's the Vajrayana, the thousand petal lotus simile. And that thousand petal lotus The deeper you go into the lotus, and it opens up and opens up and opens up, the deeper you go in, the more the outside petals become, you know, you can't feel them. Report an error in the passage at 6:48 Highlight the passage at 6:48

7:18 And that's what happens in meditation. The body is so relaxed, you can't feel it. It's wonderful when that happens. And it's not just feeling physical sensations, it's also the other senses, such as sight. Report an error in the passage at 7:18 Highlight the passage at 7:18

7:37 You know that a lot of times I've had many, many experiences in meditation. A lot of times you didn't really interpret them properly. One of the things I remember doing is walking meditation. You see people outside doing the walking meditation. These are the ones who are training in the introduction to meditation group. Report an error in the passage at 7:37 Highlight the passage at 7:37

8:01 The reason we don't do it here, there's too many people. And it's hard to find a path where you can just walk quietly without bumping into each other. Where I first became a monk was in a Bangkok monastery. And in the morning, I was only a novice monk. We all had to go and do the morning chanting and meditation, which was five minutes, and then the gong went. Report an error in the passage at 8:01 Highlight the passage at 8:01

8:29 They weren't really into the meditation, but once they finished and they left, I did my walking meditation in the hall. And I didn't know why, but they had a grandfather clock in the meditation hall. Every 15 minutes, ding dong, ding dong, ding dong, ding dong, ding dong, ding dong, dong. Report an error in the passage at 8:29 Highlight the passage at 8:29

8:55 Why in a meditation hall would it have something like that? But anyway, what I knew... In my walking meditation, it took half an hour to go from one end to the other end, another half an hour to go back. That's my one hour walking meditation. It was not because I was timing myself. Just naturally walking, you got so aware of the movement in your feet and in your legs. Report an error in the passage at 8:55 Highlight the passage at 8:55

9:22 So aware, you couldn't walk fast. And it was just too much going on. And so I walked very comfortably for half an hour, got to the end, turned around and walked back again. I never realized how deep that meditation was. I'd always been told you can't get into the very deep meditations, the jhānas, while you're doing walking meditation because you have to be aware of where you're walking. Report an error in the passage at 9:22 Highlight the passage at 9:22

9:50 And a lot of times, you know, as monks, we tell funny stories. Somebody said there was one monk who could get into jhānas while he was walking meditation. You knew because of all the bruises and cuts on his face. Report an error in the passage at 9:50 Highlight the passage at 9:50

10:07 But what I did notice once, when I was walking in the hall, nice and safe, after about 45 minutes, I hadn't finished yet, I heard a very strange sound. And the sound which I heard was, Brahma Wangso. Report an error in the passage at 10:07 Highlight the passage at 10:07

10:32 That was my Buddhist name. But it was like, honestly, have you ever had those experiences? You can hear a sound, but it's so far away, like a kilometer away. Report an error in the passage at 10:32 Highlight the passage at 10:32

10:45 Brahma Wangso. And it was fascinating. I wasn't scared or alarmed. But someone was shouting my name from a distance. And so I stopped walking and put my attention, this is what you do in walking meditation or other types of meditation, you can actually turn your attention to your ears. Report an error in the passage at 10:45 Highlight the passage at 10:45

11:10 And then once it turned to my ears, I could know that I was not listening to that a long distance away. Oh good, some of the introduction to meditation walkers. Where participants are doing walking meditation outside. They're going a bit fast, but they're just starting out, it's fine. But anyway, I turned my attention to my ears and I realized it was not a long distance away. Report an error in the passage at 11:10 Highlight the passage at 11:10

11:44 There was a monk shouting in my ear hole, about a millimeter away. Trying to get my attention, Brahma Wangso. But to me it appeared, it was perceived as being such a long distance away. My sense of hearing was disappearing. And that's what it felt like. What had actually happened was I was supposed to finish early that day so I could go to an appointment somewhere. Report an error in the passage at 11:44 Highlight the passage at 11:44

12:15 I was late and this monk was sent to come and get me. That's why I was shouting in my ear as loud as he could. It took a long time for me to actually to recognize what was really happening and to turn around. But it showed me what happens in meditation. Report an error in the passage at 12:15 Highlight the passage at 12:15

12:33 First of all the feeling in your body vanishes. That sensation tends to disappear. Whether you like it or not, the hearing starts to disappear as well. Report an error in the passage at 12:33 Highlight the passage at 12:33

12:47 So you're not going deaf. It's just a sense of sound. It's being attenuated until there's hardly any sound left there at all. And that was kind of important. I was being taught from my own experience on what this meditation does. It's very safe in there. There's no harm which could be done to me inside that hall. Report an error in the passage at 12:47 Highlight the passage at 12:47

13:14 But everything started to soften up. My body felt more comfortable. And the sound started to disappear. And of course my eyes were open there. But in other experiences, even the sight, if your eyes were open. There's that wonderful experience in the Zen monastery which I went to once. It was a monastery so I could actually meditate there. But I never realized what Zen meditation was. Report an error in the passage at 13:14 Highlight the passage at 13:14

13:47 You kept your eyes open when you were doing Zen meditation. And you had to sit still with your eyes open, staring at a whitewashed wall. And after about 10 minutes, the wall disappeared. Report an error in the passage at 13:47 Highlight the passage at 13:47

14:06 It was kind of weird. This is a wall, something solid. But then there was no wall. My eyes were made fully open. What was happening? The sense of sight turned off. It was just like, I can't see now. That's fair enough. But my eyes were fully opened. It's like you can turn off these senses, the five senses especially, so they're not distracting you anymore. Report an error in the passage at 14:06 Highlight the passage at 14:06

14:40 They disappear. And that was really fantastic, to experience these things actually happening. And that's what the meditation does. That's one of its purposes, to shut down the senses so you can't hear anything. Report an error in the passage at 14:40 Highlight the passage at 14:40

15:00 If you had your eyelids open, you can't see anything. You can't feel the body. The body is like in sleep, but your mind is fully awake. You're not dreaming. It's much better than that. No disturbance from the body, hardly any disturbance from sound, and you're watching something else. Report an error in the passage at 15:00 Highlight the passage at 15:00

15:29 That's why we have six senses in Buddhism, and that sixth sense is the mind. The sixth sense. When you start to feel that, that's one of the reasons why we do the breath meditation. But honestly, these days I never ever ever start with my breathing. That always comes to me. I relax my whole body, close my eyes, stop listening to things outside, and then after a while, The breath comes up by itself. I never go looking for it and there's only the reason why I become aware of the breath is that's the only thing left happening. Report an error in the passage at 15:29 Highlight the passage at 15:29

16:10 You can't feel anything in your body. You can't hear anything. You've got your eyes, lids closed and the body is just at peace. But the breath is always happening, going in and going out. So that's one of the reasons why in this Buddhist meditation, Though we talk a lot about the breathing, but we don't do anything. We just watch and this comes up naturally, you can feel the breath. Report an error in the passage at 16:10 Highlight the passage at 16:10

16:39 What happens naturally when you feel the breath? You tend to automatically get so refined you can only see a part of the breath, the part of the breath happening right now. Report an error in the passage at 16:39 Highlight the passage at 16:39

16:54 It's so simple. So instead of watching in-breath, out-breath, in-breath, out-breath, It's that part of the breath happening now, right in this very moment, just now. And one of the other things which we do is to make sure we don't conceptualize and give things names and be intellectual. The idea is not to understand anything now. That just gets you into thinking. You want to be still, silent. Report an error in the passage at 16:54 Highlight the passage at 16:54

17:27 And that inner silence, when I was Talking a day or two ago to a therapist, he was asking some advice. How can you teach people not to keep thinking so much? Otherwise, what he was calling talking to yourself too much. How do you stop that? It's so easy. Report an error in the passage at 17:27 Highlight the passage at 17:27

17:55 I know one little method I taught him was when you start describing something like your breath or your body, Or whatever it is you're doing in your meditation. Start deliberately thinking slowly. Report an error in the passage at 17:55 Highlight the passage at 17:55

18:14 Put gaps between the syllables. And when you do that, you're not thinking fast. You actually deliberately think. Report an error in the passage at 18:14 Highlight the passage at 18:14

18:41 And it calms the momentum of your thinking process. Report an error in the passage at 18:41 Highlight the passage at 18:41

19:07 And you can taste the beauty of silence in between the syllables. In whatever language you use. And after a while, this is what happens in my case, the silent moments between the noisy ones are so much more attractive. You get attracted to the silence. And the mind enjoys that more. And the gap between the Words get longer and longer until you can feel, experience the silence. Report an error in the passage at 19:07 Highlight the passage at 19:07

20:11 Isn't that wonderful? You don't have to conceptualize. You don't have to record anything. Instead of the words, you're getting emotional. Report an error in the passage at 20:11 Highlight the passage at 20:11

20:30 Sensitivity, how it feels. I'm not trying to give it words. I'm not sure about you, but some of the feelings which you get in meditation are very beautiful, but it's a struggle. Can you please describe that so other people can understand? It's almost impossible. You don't need to. It's much better if you want to describe it to yourself. Report an error in the passage at 20:30 Highlight the passage at 20:30

20:59 The emotional description of that silence, that beauty, that peace. And you're turning off that part of the brain which always struggles to find the right words for it. And you're feeling the meditation. What is peace? You don't need to write an essay about it. You can feel it. You can recognize it. And that peace just grows stronger and stronger. And you should also notice, I'm not saying this as an order, it's what naturally comes up, it's beautiful peace. Report an error in the passage at 20:59 Highlight the passage at 20:59

21:45 How many of you have been in nature? And sometimes it's by yourself in a beautiful part of the world. I just see the most recent experience of beauty. Report an error in the passage at 21:45 Highlight the passage at 21:45

22:01 Early in the morning, when I was at the retreat center over in the monastery in Victoria, where I spent a week last week, it snowed. Report an error in the passage at 22:01 Highlight the passage at 22:01

22:17 And in the middle of the retreat center, there was a big stupa like the ones we have at China Grove, the stupa like at Borod Podor. And the lights, electric lights were shining on it. And the snowflakes coming down were like they were blessing the stupor. These wonderful illuminated white flakes falling slowly down onto the ground. It was snowing, it was beautiful. Report an error in the passage at 22:17 Highlight the passage at 22:17

22:48 I can't describe it. Only just, it satisfied me so much just sitting, no, standing there looking at the snowfall. And that's weird over here in Australia. But nevertheless, I enjoyed that to the max, one of the most beautiful experiences. I'm trying to describe it, but not in painting a picture, but describing the emotions which are constructed in me. Report an error in the passage at 22:48 Highlight the passage at 22:48

23:20 That's a much better way of knowing life, a much better way of describing what meditation is and what it does to you. If you start conceptualizing, trying to find the right name or the right description for it, it's kind of just too hard, for me anyway. Report an error in the passage at 23:20 Highlight the passage at 23:20

23:41 So that's why eventually when you start being aware of the breath and other parts of the body start to disappear, it becomes beautiful. Report an error in the passage at 23:41 Highlight the passage at 23:41

23:52 And then you carry on meditating. And honestly, that silence is enough to take you into much deeper meditations. Where you experience the peace and the beauty but with stillness as well. I'm not saying watching a breath. It's experiencing the beauty, the joy and the stillness without giving anything a name. Without trying to keep anything. Report an error in the passage at 23:52 Highlight the passage at 23:52

24:25 A lot of times, why do we try and give things names and describe it? Because we want to keep it or keep its memory. You don't need to do that. Trust your emotions to let you know exactly what's happening. And the emotions are a much better recorder of memory than any words. Report an error in the passage at 24:25 Highlight the passage at 24:25

24:48 And then you can get some really deep, lovely meditations. And you remember those emotions, oh wow, that was a really good meditation. And I come and ask you, what did you experience? Report an error in the passage at 24:48 Highlight the passage at 24:48

25:02 Don't try and put it into words. So things disappeared, felt peace. You felt freedom. What is freedom? You have to go to work, you've got your responsibilities with your family, with your relationships and other stuff. What's it like when you have no responsibilities at all? You feel so wonderfully free, at ease, peaceful, happy. Report an error in the passage at 25:02 Highlight the passage at 25:02

25:31 And I can really go extremely deep. So that's the little introduction. As usual, I speak too much. Let's actually do the meditation now. I'll do a guided meditation, which means I do say some words at the beginning, 10 minutes max, and then I'll be quiet. So if you're not sitting in your meditation position yet, please do so now. Report an error in the passage at 25:31 Highlight the passage at 25:31

26:07 I will emphasize the feelings, the inspiration of what you're doing. I'll Report an error in the passage at 26:07 Highlight the passage at 26:07

26:21 close my eyes. Report an error in the passage at 26:21 Highlight the passage at 26:21

26:28 You know, when I close my eyes, I never feel guilty. I'm not watching what you're up to. I trust you. The same what I do with my body. I'm not looking at it. I trust it. My body loves being free. Report an error in the passage at 26:28 Highlight the passage at 26:28

26:53 And for myself, the understanding of freedom is freedom from aches and pains, not having to do anything. Report an error in the passage at 26:53 Highlight the passage at 26:53

27:05 And I have this little method. I start with my toes. Feel them. And Report an error in the passage at 27:05 Highlight the passage at 27:05

27:15 after a while, if Report an error in the passage at 27:15 Highlight the passage at 27:15

27:21 you had your eyes open, you'd see me yawn. That's what my body wanted to do. I never ever feel guilty about yawning or burping or whatever. Report an error in the passage at 27:21 Highlight the passage at 27:21

27:34 That's what my body decides to do. It's natural. But anyway, I go back to my toes. Feel them. Thank you, method, because... I noticed the toes in my right foot were squashed. And I'm very, very happy to move my leg at the beginning of the meditation to get my toes more comfortable. Report an error in the passage at 27:34 Highlight the passage at 27:34

28:06 If I don't look, deliberately look and see what's happening, I wouldn't notice that. And now it's my toes and that part of my foot, feet next to the toes, are kind of saying thank you. Report an error in the passage at 28:06 Highlight the passage at 28:06

28:26 I feel the rest of the foot scanning my attention upwards from my toes, the balls of the feet, the soles of the feet, the heels. It's like a cleansing, a relaxing. If there's anything which I haven't positioned properly, I will notice it. And if I cannot remove that cause, Report an error in the passage at 28:26 Highlight the passage at 28:26

28:59 Of pain or discomfort. I will at least relax that part of the foot. It Report an error in the passage at 28:59 Highlight the passage at 28:59

29:11 does make the feet pleasurable, believe it or not. I have happy feet. Maybe not the correct emotion, but that's what it feels like. Report an error in the passage at 29:11 Highlight the passage at 29:11

29:34 I go past the heels of the foot to the ankles. Report an error in the passage at 29:34 Highlight the passage at 29:34

29:42 Because I'm sitting cross-legged, On a mat, I imagine the ankles sinking an inch or two deeper into that cushion. Just imagination, but it has the result of relaxing my ankles even more, taking off any tension, and go beyond the ankles to the calves of my legs. Report an error in the passage at 29:42 Highlight the passage at 29:42

30:17 They too. Report an error in the passage at 30:17 Highlight the passage at 30:17

30:21 So I relax those just by being aware of them, focusing my awareness on them, and learning how to loosen every part of my calves and get to my knees. That can be a very painful and disturbing part of your body. I'm aware of both knees right now. Report an error in the passage at 30:21 Highlight the passage at 30:21

30:59 And those two, I kind of imagine them sinking deeper into the cushion, maybe half a centimeter. But that shows that I'm letting go. I'm loosening. I'm not holding them. And they feel so much better. And pass the knees to my thighs, even relaxing those deeper. Letting them not be squashed. Not be stretched, to be loose. And they have not moved since I suggested that to them. Report an error in the passage at 30:59 Highlight the passage at 30:59

31:43 But nevertheless they feel as if they're free to, if they want, if they can find a way to. And that much means that my thighs feel more relaxed than when I started. Report an error in the passage at 31:43 Highlight the passage at 31:43

32:00 It's the image they're supplying to my mind of really relaxed thighs. Report an error in the passage at 32:00 Highlight the passage at 32:00

32:11 I get up to my buttocks. There I have the feeling of pressure, my heavy body, the weight being transferred through those buttocks onto the sitting cushion. Report an error in the passage at 32:11 Highlight the passage at 32:11

32:28 And that kind of is interesting to me because even though that's a pain which I would always feel to be disturbing, as long as I am well balanced the way I'm sitting. Report an error in the passage at 32:28 Highlight the passage at 32:28

32:44 That feeling doesn't change. Because it doesn't change, it disappears. It's one of those things about the brain. It only notices things which get worse or which suddenly get better. When they stay the same, that ambient feeling is not worth perceiving. The brain turns off from it. And I go to my waist. Report an error in the passage at 32:44 Highlight the passage at 32:44

33:19 I have a special way of dealing with my waist and keeping my back straight because it feels much more comfortable. So I get that feeling of the waist. This position supports the back and the whole torso. Report an error in the passage at 33:19 Highlight the passage at 33:19

33:39 When it's in the right position, the back feels good and the torso feels relaxed. And Report an error in the passage at 33:39 Highlight the passage at 33:39

33:52 I scan my awareness up my torso. Just a centimeter every time, even less. As I feel my attention, my mindfulness, my kindfulness scan up my body, if I notice as I go upwards that any part of my body is tight, tense, aching, I pause there and Report an error in the passage at 33:52 Highlight the passage at 33:52

34:26 I give that one part full kindness. The kindness meals, it means it relaxes. It eases off. I've used that so many times over the years. A tummy ache, a sort of an ache in the liver or kidney somewhere. You relax until it disappears. And I'm sure that's caused great health benefits. And I... Teach people that if ever they have a cancer somewhere, maybe in your breast, pause if you feel the sensation of a tumor. Report an error in the passage at 34:26 Highlight the passage at 34:26

35:19 After a while you can notice it feels different than any other muscle. Give it kindness, relax it to the max. Make peace, be kind, be gentle. Until that feeling gets less and less and less and eventually disappears. Report an error in the passage at 35:19 Highlight the passage at 35:19

35:40 That's how you cure these things. Report an error in the passage at 35:40 Highlight the passage at 35:40

35:45 Until I get up to my lungs, and my tummy first of all, my stomach. That's how I used to cure food poisoning. Go up to my lungs. Don't need to breathe so much. I'm not doing this on purpose. The more relaxed you are, the more or the less you need to metabolize. It's just nature. Report an error in the passage at 35:45 Highlight the passage at 35:45

36:19 And it's nice. To still breathe, but softer and softer and softer. And go to my heart region. It's hard to feel the heart, but I make sure I'm kind to that area. Relax it to the max. Report an error in the passage at 36:19 Highlight the passage at 36:19

36:47 And then go up from the heart region to my shoulders, relaxing those. Report an error in the passage at 36:47 Highlight the passage at 36:47

36:58 As I go both sides, making sure my shoulders, As easy as I can make them. Sorry, not easy as I can make them. Easy as I can let them be. Report an error in the passage at 36:58 Highlight the passage at 36:58

37:15 I don't do anything. I don't make anything. I take away that power, that control, and just let them be until Report an error in the passage at 37:15 Highlight the passage at 37:15

37:30 the attention goes down, my shoulders down, each arm past the elbows, which feel at peace. If there is anything happening there, I will deliberately relax them to the max with kindness and go past the elbows to the forearms, which I can actually feel right now. There it is. To the wrists, which are also not causing any difficulty for me. Report an error in the passage at 37:30 Highlight the passage at 37:30

38:05 To my hands and my fingers. I always like pausing a little bit more with my fingers. It's the end points of one part of my body, the arms. I just make sure that they're okay, in a reasonably good position. Report an error in the passage at 38:05 Highlight the passage at 38:05

38:28 I look at them now, sometimes right hand over the left hand, thumbs slightly touching. Now the thumbs are way apart, but they're comfortable, so I leave them alone. The Report an error in the passage at 38:28 Highlight the passage at 38:28

38:48 correct posture is not what it looks like, it's how it feels. If he feels comfortable, no need to move. I go back up to my shoulders and neck. Report an error in the passage at 38:48 Highlight the passage at 38:48

39:05 I find it useful if I am tired to actually put my head slightly tilting backwards. Because when you get sleepy, you tilt forward. And Report an error in the passage at 39:05 Highlight the passage at 39:05

39:25 then go up my neck to my face. And I find this very fascinating. Your emotional world, this is the segue going to your mind. How are the feelings on your face right now? If there is kindness there, you find that the lips are slightly smiling. If Report an error in the passage at 39:25 Highlight the passage at 39:25

39:58 your eyes are relaxed, they're closed but they're not screwed down tightly. Anyone looking at you thinks you're at ease. Report an error in the passage at 39:58 Highlight the passage at 39:58

40:16 Once my face is relaxed, it's at that point where I try and join up all those parts of the body I've been looking at. Kind of a unit now, just one body. I did a good job just then. The body is very relaxed. I can feel it all. Because it is relaxed, it really does have a feeling of Report an error in the passage at 40:16 Highlight the passage at 40:16

40:56 Pleasure, happiness, joy. Report an error in the passage at 40:56 Highlight the passage at 40:56

41:01 In Pāli, the pīti sukha. It's just in the body feeling, not in the mind yet. Report an error in the passage at 41:01 Highlight the passage at 41:01

41:11 It feels good. And I like lingering there for one minute or two. Report an error in the passage at 41:11 Highlight the passage at 41:11

41:23 The first time I did that, I thought it's indulgence, but now I know no. When I notice the contentment of the body being like this, the relaxation deepens. Report an error in the passage at 41:23 Highlight the passage at 41:23

41:39 Naturally, and the happiness gets more. That satisfies me. I don't need to think about anything else. I Report an error in the passage at 41:39 Highlight the passage at 41:39

41:54 just be here in this moment. That's Report an error in the passage at 41:54 Highlight the passage at 41:54

41:59 what I like to do. Just to let go of past and future. The present moment being with a relaxed body is pretty neat, very comfortable. Report an error in the passage at 41:59 Highlight the passage at 41:59

42:15 So I just stay here, not Report an error in the passage at 42:15 Highlight the passage at 42:15

42:24 a prisoner of the past. Understanding now is where my future is being made. It's really cool being here. The Report an error in the passage at 42:24 Highlight the passage at 42:24

42:41 next thing I do is a cause for me stopping talking. Report an error in the passage at 42:41 Highlight the passage at 42:41

42:48 Here the guidance ends. I stop describing things. Report an error in the passage at 42:48 Highlight the passage at 42:48

43:01 Feel this moment with your emotions. Get that peace deeper and deeper and deeper. It's Report an error in the passage at 43:01 Highlight the passage at 43:01

· · · silence, 15 minutes

58:20 getting very close to the end of this meditation period. Do not open your eyes yet. Just know how you feel. What's it like inside? Report an error in the passage at 58:20 Highlight the passage at 58:20

58:43 What is the emotional content of your mind right now? I Report an error in the passage at 58:43 Highlight the passage at 58:43

· · · silence, 1 minute

59:59 have some questions. Yeah, that's all. That's good. So we usually do some of the questions which have been sent in. Then afterwards we open it for any questions from the people sitting here. Report an error in the passage at 59:59 Highlight the passage at 59:59

1:00:22 The first question from Germany. Dear Ajahn, I'm severely ill and have many doctors. How do I deal with doctors who treat you badly because they don't care and I need help? How to meditate with anger? How to find good doctors? I'm not quite sure what the situation is over in. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:22 Highlight the passage at 1:00:22

1:00:55 But I know that sometimes the doctors aren't overlooking you all the time unless you're in a hospital. You said you're severely ill. But sometimes have you not got some autonomy? Time by yourself, you can close your eyes and you can look at this body which does respond to you. And give it some kindness. And with that kindness and that making peace, allow that body to relax. Report an error in the passage at 1:00:55 Highlight the passage at 1:00:55

1:01:39 And all the rules which they say you have to follow, please, don't follow any rules for the meditation. And first of all, for your posture, don't just try and sit cross-legged if that's going to hurt you. If you wish to lay on the bed, any posture, find the most comfortable, not the comfortable posture because sometimes it's hard to find any posture which is comfortable, but which is the least painful and disturbing. Report an error in the passage at 1:01:39 Highlight the passage at 1:01:39

1:02:19 And then close the eyes and see if you can ask your body in this present moment right now, there you can find a little bit of peace. We don't have to strive. Hatred gives you a cause to do something. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:19 Highlight the passage at 1:02:19

1:02:42 And you don't want to do anything at this time. You want to relax to the max. So let hatred just, let it go for five or ten minutes. Pick up the hatred later if you really feel it's important. But let it go and just feel the body as relaxed as possible. It's what you do for it. And then when it gets really relaxed, see if you can relax it further. Report an error in the passage at 1:02:42 Highlight the passage at 1:02:42

1:03:13 I say that because I even said that last night that sometimes when you get really, really peaceful, you can get into the deepest of meditations in a position which I've never seen in any book about how to sit meditation. You can break new ground and find the most comfortable posture for you is the best. And you can get in the deepest of meditations. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:13 Highlight the passage at 1:03:13

1:03:46 And if you can do that, wow, that's just a beautiful experience. And then you always, the body gets better and the doctors get, wow. And you teach the doctors, not by words, but just how your body feels and reacts. When you can make peace with it. Okay. One of the problems with questions by the internet, by email, that sometimes you may miss something because the emotional language can sometimes not be totally transferred. Report an error in the passage at 1:03:46 Highlight the passage at 1:03:46

1:04:31 We do it in words rather than emotions. Anyway, second question from India. From Indonesia. Dear Ajahn, please explain what we can do to have stronger mindfulness and how can the breath bring so much happiness? The breath doesn't bring happiness. It's the mind. The breath can sometimes lead people to have such a beautiful feeling of just breathing in, breathing out, right in this moment. Report an error in the passage at 1:04:31 Highlight the passage at 1:04:31

1:05:10 Later on you will notice that you're not feeling the breath as a physical touch. The physical touch does not have the same happiness as the mental perception of the breath. That's why in the suttas the Buddha calls it not a kaya saṅkhāra, that's a bodily feeling, a jitta saṅkhāra. It's a mental perception of the breath. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:10 Highlight the passage at 1:05:10

1:05:38 And it gets to such a point that the mental perception of the breath becomes beautiful. So calm the physical feeling down. When that disappears, you know the breath is a mental perception. And then it's usually beautiful. It's like going into the lotus flower. The way you open the lotus is with kindfulness, mindfulness plus the kindness. Report an error in the passage at 1:05:38 Highlight the passage at 1:05:38

1:06:06 And the kindness opens up the mind perception of the breath. And that is usually very, very beautiful. And that's one of the reasons why the mindfulness and kindness of the breath can bring a lot of happiness. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:06 Highlight the passage at 1:06:06

1:06:27 How do you build up stronger mindfulness? By adding the kindness to it. From India, I am feeling a lot of ill will. I feel less ill will only when listening to you and amongst the nuns. Thank you. Listen to me more, whatever works. When I am working, I cannot listen to you and the others. Please advise. I try to spend as much time as possible meditating, still experiencing ill will. Report an error in the passage at 1:06:27 Highlight the passage at 1:06:27

1:07:01 You know that sometimes people who create ill will in you use that to control you. Refuse to be controlled. It's I'm going to be happy no matter what. Make a resolution and then brainwash yourself. I'm going to be happy even though I'm working. I'm going to be happy even though I'm working. I'm going to be happy even though I'm working. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:01 Highlight the passage at 1:07:01

1:07:29 It's almost like using the sense of defiance to create that happiness. Dear Ajahn, when I'm so focused on my work on computer, I often can't hear other people talking to me. Is this the same kind of hearing lost during meditation? Thanks. Not the same, but similar. Because you're focusing your awareness on the ideas on the computer, and because of that, you know, you're focused on one thing. Report an error in the passage at 1:07:29 Highlight the passage at 1:07:29

1:08:03 But what happens in the meditation? What you're actually focusing on is beautiful. I've never seen anything on the internet, on a computer, which is so beautiful. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:03 Highlight the passage at 1:08:03

1:08:19 But nevertheless, because you're focusing, it shows you what the mind can do. It can turn off the importance of other things. So it is similar, but if it's something really, really beautiful and you can't hear, And it was a good simile, like seeing a sunset, a beautiful sunset. I'm fortunate to live in Australia, in Western Australia, and the monastery where I live is on a hill facing the west coast. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:19 Highlight the passage at 1:08:19

1:08:56 There are some beautiful sunsets in Bodhinyana Monastery, and sometimes they can be so gorgeous that you're looking at that and that fills up your whole mind. It's like you've got no place left for listening to sound. And gratitude from Canada. Dear Ajahn Brahm, thank you for all you've done for me with your talks. Much respect from Gray. Report an error in the passage at 1:08:56 Highlight the passage at 1:08:56

1:09:27 Thank you, Gray. I'm very happy to be of service. And thank you for saying thank you. And thank you to all those people. We send nice messages back like that, saying thank you, because that motivates me to actually to speak more, to speak deeper, and to actually to break new ground on the meditation, to say things which other people don't say. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:27 Highlight the passage at 1:09:27

1:09:55 So if it wasn't for people like you, Gray, I would just give up talking. How many talks have I given on a computer? Haven't I discussed everything so many times over? When somebody says they enjoy what I say, okay, I'll be here next week and say it all over again for fun. Report an error in the passage at 1:09:55 Highlight the passage at 1:09:55

1:10:20 Sometimes people say, but you know, you've said that before. How many times did like Beethoven perform his concertos? How many times did the Beatles? Play the same song again and again and again and again and again. Did you ever get bored of it? Of course not, because it's beautiful. How many times do you see the sunset on the west coast over the Indian Ocean? Thousands of times. Report an error in the passage at 1:10:20 Highlight the passage at 1:10:20

1:10:58 Do you ever get bored of it? There's something beautiful which you can never get too much of. Sometimes the dharma is like that. Sometimes it's so inspiring. Wow! And I've heard this so many times. But please, I'd like to hear it again. Thank you. Now, from the audience here, from you, any questions you have? Report an error in the passage at 1:10:58 Highlight the passage at 1:10:58

1:11:29 Earl has got the microphone there. Thank you, Earl, for running around with it. Hi. Hello, Ajahn Brahm. My question is about inspiration. So you're talking about that and meditation. Yeah. Where, you know, sometimes, like, close your eyes, you don't know what you're going to get, and then something comes up. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:29 Highlight the passage at 1:11:29

1:11:56 And not how you control or do any of that, but just how you respond to inspiration. Welcome it. Welcome it. Yeah. Inspiration's beautiful. And it's a free happiness. Report an error in the passage at 1:11:56 Highlight the passage at 1:11:56

1:12:10 You know, something you may have just heard, and then, wow, that was just so great, so beautiful. And, look, I have so many examples in my life as a monk. We had a beautiful, great teacher, an Ajahn Chah, and sometimes he would say things which was out of character. He never said that before, but it was so beautiful, it inspired me. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:10 Highlight the passage at 1:12:10

1:12:40 When you get inspired, you can take that and just almost internalize it. It gives you so much energy. I mean, nothing which is distracting energy, but just makes watching those moments so easy. I love that times. And of course, one of those stories you have heard before, but just like the sunset or Beethoven's Fifth, you don't mind hearing it again. Report an error in the passage at 1:12:40 Highlight the passage at 1:12:40

1:13:10 Even as a monk, sometimes you're passing by someone, they've got Beethoven's Fifth on, or some of that music you just loved before. You're not supposed to want to hear it, but you just do it by accident. Wow! Your mind goes towards it. But that Ajahn Chah, he would give so many talks, some were boring, some were incredible. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:10 Highlight the passage at 1:13:10

1:13:37 And one day he gave this talk before going to his sauna. And that really inspired me. How many times have I listened to him? It's something that's about eighth or ninth year I was a monk. And it was such a beautiful talk. I would usually go and help him with his sauna, but no. I went around the back of the hall. Report an error in the passage at 1:13:37 Highlight the passage at 1:13:37

1:14:00 Just like here, so many places you can go and sit and I sat down on the concrete, didn't have a cushion or a mat or anything, but I was so inspired. It's so easy to meditate when you're so inspired and Report an error in the passage at 1:14:00 Highlight the passage at 1:14:00

1:14:18 just give you so much energy and so much inclination to being peaceful. Got into a nice deep meditation for a couple of hours. That, you know, shows if it's over half an hour, you can only do that on hard concrete when you're really inspired. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:18 Highlight the passage at 1:14:18

1:14:34 And that was Ajahn Chah's fault. And then I got up and thought, maybe I can help him with something or other. So I walked towards the sauna. I realized I was too late because he was coming in the opposite direction, already dressed with his driver who was going to take him back to Wat Ba Pong. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:34 Highlight the passage at 1:14:34

1:14:59 If you haven't heard this story before, wow! And then when he came towards me, I came off the path, which is what you're supposed to do to a teacher like an Ajahn Chah, give him more space. Report an error in the passage at 1:14:59 Highlight the passage at 1:14:59

1:15:16 And then he stopped. I said this recently, and I don't know how I can explain it better to everybody, but the emotional truth was that he went into my mind and read it. You know about mind reading? When you actually experience it from someone like an Ajahn Chah, you could feel it. Clearly, I mean, not just a more maybe, it's just I was peaceful enough to be able to recognize he was really checking me out. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:16 Highlight the passage at 1:15:16

1:15:52 But no, for a couple of minutes, not just quickly. And I often tell people, you know, that monks like me don't read your minds. And the reason is because they're boring. Report an error in the passage at 1:15:52 Highlight the passage at 1:15:52

1:16:07 I'm being honest with you. What are you doing that for? And then number two, it is abusive without your permission. I got no right to go in there. And then anyway, then he went, I was happy he was reading my mind. It just came out of a nice deep meditation. So nothing to be afraid of. And so then he came out and he looked at me. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:07 Highlight the passage at 1:16:07

1:16:35 Brahma also, he not gently but You know, quite fierce, but not cruel. And then he next said, you know, keeping eye contact with me, Why? Report an error in the passage at 1:16:35 Highlight the passage at 1:16:35

1:16:54 Now you never see many teachers asking questions like that. Why? It was obvious to me afterwards, he was trying his best to enlighten me. He had a nice deep meditation, trying to push me just over that edge. And I replied, I don't know. You're being honest. Why? I don't know. And a great monk like an Ajahn Chah would never criticize you, even though I deserve to be criticized for being stupid. Report an error in the passage at 1:16:54 Highlight the passage at 1:16:54

1:17:33 He just laughed. He really laughed a lot. And then he stopped laughing and he looked at me again. Brahmarangsa, I will tell you the answer. And that made me excited now. I'm getting the... He answered a really deep question from a monk like an Ajahn Chah. And the answer is, he said, there's nothing. Report an error in the passage at 1:17:33 Highlight the passage at 1:17:33

1:18:03 There's nothing. And he looked at me and he said, do you understand? And I said, yes. He said, no, you don't. When he said, no, you don't, oh, all my inspiration left. And he walked away. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:03 Highlight the passage at 1:18:03

1:18:24 But I'll never forget that moment. That was inspiring. And a great monk like Ajahn Chah gave me that conversation which I love to share with people. Each one of you, you know what I'm going to do. You know why? There's nothing. Do you understand? No, you don't. But you will do. What a beautiful, beautiful, beautiful teaching. You can remember that so easily. If you want to answer that question easily, quickly, don't try and intellectualize it. Report an error in the passage at 1:18:24 Highlight the passage at 1:18:24

1:19:13 Emotionalize it. There's nothing. What does that feel like? That's freedom. Report an error in the passage at 1:19:13 Highlight the passage at 1:19:13

1:19:23 Do you understand? Report an error in the passage at 1:19:23 Highlight the passage at 1:19:23

1:19:28 No, but yes, but thank you very much. Okay, very good. Excellent. Thank you. Report an error in the passage at 1:19:28 Highlight the passage at 1:19:28

1:19:37 Yeah. Ajahn, this is an oldie, but a goodie, because watching Crime and Punishment, and we were talking about people behaving badly. So, if people truly believed that we're immortal, would they be more inclined to live a moral and ethical existence? Yes, simply because they want to be happy. If it's immortality, But immortality doesn't make any sense at all to me. Even that belief doesn't make sense. There comes a time when I always remember a movie about Dracula. Report an error in the passage at 1:19:37 Highlight the passage at 1:19:37

1:20:26 It's supposed to be the thinking man's Dracula. Eventually the only way that he could be immortal, he would die and leave the world. As if he was caught outside under the sunshine. He lived for three or four hundred years and eventually he decided, he decided to allow himself to be tempted outside so he could die. Report an error in the passage at 1:20:26 Highlight the passage at 1:20:26

1:20:54 He wanted to die after a while. Immortality was too much suffering for him. What I was kind of meaning is if people truly believed in rebirth. Oh yeah. If they truly believed in it. Yeah. Would they be more inclined towards an ethical, moral life? Yes. Or do certain people still think they're extraordinary people beyond that? Report an error in the passage at 1:20:54 Highlight the passage at 1:20:54

1:21:22 Oh, that's crazy. Extraordinary people beyond that. If you believe in rebirth, and find your own past life, why not? And if you want to know how to do that, It's easy, just get into your deep meditations, you know, which teach you jhāna, you bliss yourself out having a wonderful time. When you come out afterwards, please ask yourself, what is my earliest memory? Keep it simple. Report an error in the passage at 1:21:22 Highlight the passage at 1:21:22

1:22:02 And if it really was a deep meditation, as you come out, a memory will come straight away. And if that memory does come up, don't try and analyze it. Just feel it. And that would be usually a memory of your early life as a baby. Report an error in the passage at 1:22:02 Highlight the passage at 1:22:02

1:22:27 What is... Can I give an example? I'm going over time again as usual. About one of our members. I saw her just a few days ago. And when she did this, she was breastfeeding in her mother's womb. Report an error in the passage at 1:22:27 Highlight the passage at 1:22:27

1:22:45 Only, as she looked, that wasn't her mum. It was someone else. And she was really disturbed. Has my mother not told me something? Am I really her mother or was I adopted? So anyway, she talked to me about that and I told her, ask your mum. She was a good Buddha. She's been on pilgrimage with me to India many years ago. Report an error in the passage at 1:22:45 Highlight the passage at 1:22:45

1:23:18 And so she asked her mum, and the mum was quite surprised, what are you talking about? Of course I'm your mum. No, this is what I saw. And the mum asked, what does she look like? And one thing I will tell you here, if it's a memory after a deep meditation, you remember it pretty easily. It's not just like remembering what you had for dinner today, for lunch. It's very clear. Report an error in the passage at 1:23:18 Highlight the passage at 1:23:18

1:23:47 So she described this person she saw from whose womb she was sucking, not from whose womb, whose breast she was sucking milk. Report an error in the passage at 1:23:47 Highlight the passage at 1:23:47

1:23:58 And her mother was, how on earth could you remember that? That was her wet nurse. She said, you gave such an amazing, accurate description of the woman which I hired and my family hired to feed you in those early days. Report an error in the passage at 1:23:58 Highlight the passage at 1:23:58

1:24:19 And this is the beautiful thing about it. You know it's true because the hindrance of doubt is gone. But number two, you can remember it so easily. And you can go asking people or go to libraries and find out. The messages are there, your name, who your mum was, where you lived. It's all there. That gives you confidence. Report an error in the passage at 1:24:19 Highlight the passage at 1:24:19

1:24:49 First of all, the early life memories that you can recall what you're not supposed to be able to remember. Then you go earlier, please, and get previous lives. Report an error in the passage at 1:24:49 Highlight the passage at 1:24:49

1:25:03 But one warning, because I know a couple of people said, please, please, please give this warning, that if you go earlier, please, you often get those times. In your past life, which are closest to this life, which is your death moments, which are often very unpleasant, you're not remembering, you're re-experiencing, like you're back there. Report an error in the passage at 1:25:03 Highlight the passage at 1:25:03

1:25:33 And so that's very unpleasant. So a few disciples suggested to me, and I accept this, please tell, if ever that happens to you, Get an earlier please, and it's your past death experience. Please, say earlier please. Go back a little bit earlier. Otherwise, you'd get traumatized. That's all you need to do, earlier please. At that time, your mind is just so obedient. Report an error in the passage at 1:25:33 Highlight the passage at 1:25:33

1:26:08 You give it a suggestion, it'll do that. Then you can remember your past lives. It'd be wonderful if people could. Convince you that these things aren't real. It explains a lot about what goes on in life. You know, why you fall in love with some person and not other people. Why you feel very unhappy with some people. You want to be far away from them. Those traumas in which people experience, we're talking about this afternoon, they don't just finish at death. Report an error in the passage at 1:26:08 Highlight the passage at 1:26:08

1:26:50 They carry on. Report an error in the passage at 1:26:50 Highlight the passage at 1:26:50

1:26:54 That's one of the reasons. It's nice to be able to say that. And it's true. You remember things. And that teaches you so much. Report an error in the passage at 1:26:54 Highlight the passage at 1:26:54

1:27:07 Do you like insight meditation? How did the Buddha teach insight meditation? I think I said this a few weeks ago. It's not the usual way, like in Stadipatthana. The Buddha said, get the tevija, the three insights. Insight number one, past lives. Where were you before? Insight number two, how karma works. Report an error in the passage at 1:27:07 Highlight the passage at 1:27:07

1:27:41 If you understand those two, then that's the end of any abusive behavior or speech or anything. And the last one was full enlightenment. Report an error in the passage at 1:27:41 Highlight the passage at 1:27:41

1:27:52 That's real insight. The point is, no one actually mentions that these days. Insight meditation, what's that? I just noticed the four elements, the five this and yeah, that's true, but real big ones. When you remember who you were before, you can check in, it's real. Report an error in the passage at 1:27:52 Highlight the passage at 1:27:52

1:28:15 That's something which is not just a belief, much more than that. Report an error in the passage at 1:28:15 Highlight the passage at 1:28:15

1:28:25 Thank you, that is so inspiring. Now you can meditate. Anything else? Okay, there's more people coming for the next whatever we're doing here. Excellent. So thank you again for listening and see you again next week. Report an error in the passage at 1:28:25 Highlight the passage at 1:28:25

1:28:49 I've been going overseas and also teaching in Melbourne, I have many responsibilities. Even just going overseas to the Indonesian group, they called it BIF, Bodhinyana International the Zen National Foundation, that's the Ehi Paseko's group, and also Also, going to Melbourne, Buddhist Society Victoria. I'm the spiritual advisor. Ajahn Jakra was that, and so when he left, I inherited that as well. Report an error in the passage at 1:28:49 Highlight the passage at 1:28:49

1:29:27 And sometimes that gives you a bit more understanding what's happening in other parts of the world with Buddhism. We're trying to help everybody. So if I'm not always here, it's also a wonderful opportunity. For monks like an Ajahn Brahmali, for the nuns to teach here as well. So that's my job, so please forgive me for not being here for you. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:27 Highlight the passage at 1:29:27

1:29:55 Let's bow to the Buddha. Report an error in the passage at 1:29:55 Highlight the passage at 1:29:55