Ajahn X (Phra Suthanai Dhaniyo) has been a monk for 22 years, and has lived and trained for 16 years with Luang Por Liem at Wat Nong Pah Pong, Ajahn Chah's original monastery.

Ajahn shares some of his experiences of life at Wat Pah Pong, and reflects on teaching he has received from Luang Por Liem personally.

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#buddhism #dhamma #ajahnchah #buddhistmonk #wisdom

Vipassana comes from the Pali verb 'Vipassati' = 'to see clearly'.

To practise Vipassana, we have to train ourselves to watch as a neutral, uninvolved, observer. We can't interfere or manipulate things we observe, just as a researcher can't manipulate the experiment, if he wants to really find out how reality works.

However, there are certain areas, certain features of reality the Buddha is pointing us to. They are there all the time, we don't have to create them, they are part of nature. But we overlook them constantly due to delusion, and if the Buddha points out where to direct our 'Clear Seeing' towards, then it's easier to finally recognize what has been always there, but hidden but defilements:

1. Anicca - Impermanent, unreliable, unsure
2. Dukkha - Ultimately disappointing, suffering
3. Anattā - Not Self, not me, not mine

There's also a post in our Dhamma Reflections blog on the same subject here.

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#vipassana #insight #mindfulness #sati #dhamma #meditation

Ajahn Dhammasiha is asked about the difference between perception (Pāli: saññā) and consciousness (Pāli: viññāna), and how we can distinguish these two in our experience.

The question is important, as both are part of the 5 Groups of Clinging (pañcupādānakkhandhā), which are the five focal points of attachment and identification.

To abandon attachment, and to see through the illlusion of self, we have to carefully investigate the 5 Groups of Clinging as they arise in our present experience. And to investigate them successfully, naturally, we have to know what each of them actually are, and how they differ.

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#consciousness #perception #awareness #clinging #attachment #dhamma

Prompted by a question from the audience, Ajahn Dhammasiha shares reflections on the theme of developing Sympathetic Joy (Muditā).

Muditā is on of the four Divine Abodes (Brahma-vihāra), together with loving kindness, compassion and equanimity.

Sympathetic Joy is the quality of rejoicing and feeling happy in other beings success.

It's the very opposite of envy and jealousy.

Ajahn suggests a similar approach as in developing mettā: We imagine someone we really like anyhow, and then remember some wholesome achievement they accomplished.

Next we use a mantra like formula, like for instance:

"May you enjoy all your success!" or similar.

We continue till we can really feel the corresponding emotion.

However, we have to be careful that we only delight in wholesome success...

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#mudita #sympatheticjoy #brahmavihara #divineabidings #buddhism

In the famous discourse on the 'Foundations of Mindfulness' (Satipaṭṭhāna) the Buddha promises us that we can attain Nibbāna or Non-Returning in just 7 days, if we practise as descibed by him.

Why, then, are we still enmeshed in suffering?

Ajahn Dhammasiha describes six obstructions that we have to abandon first - otherwise we're not able to practise Satipaṭṭhāna in the way the Buddha described them:

1. Delight in Work
2. Delight in Chatting (including social media!)
3. Delight in Sleep
4. Delight in Socialising (including social media!)
5. Lack of Sense Restraint
6. Not knowing the Right Measure when Eating

• [Anguttara Nikāya/Numerical Discourses, Book of Sixes, #117

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#mindfulness #sati #vipassana #meditation #dhamma #buddhism

Ajahn Dhammasiha responds to two closely related questions from the audience:

1.

We may experience highs and lows in our meditation practice. Sometimes it even seems like we're suddenly back to zero, almost like riding a roller coaster.

How can we make our Dhamma practice more consistant?

2.

How can we prevent unwholesome mindstates from arising?

This is actually the first of 4 factors of Right Effort (sammā-vāyāma), number six in the Noble Eightfold Path: Rather than trying to abandon unwholesome states once they have come up, it's better to 'nip them in the bud', as they say, by eliminating the conditions that potentially cause defilements to arise in the first place.

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#dhamma #buddhism #dhammatalk #dhammatalks #righteffort #sammavayama

Dependent Origination (Paṭicca Samuppāda) is one of the core teachings of the Buddha.

However, it is a teaching that the Buddha himself described as 'deep, profound, subtle, difficult to see...'.

Ajahn Dhammasiha explains how we can observe aspects of dependent origination during a common, every-day activity:

Taking food from a buffet! 🍚🍛🥄🥣

Ajahn offers reflection how we can observe the relationship of:

Sense Contact (phassa)

Craving (taṇhā)

Clinging / Grasping (upādāna)

While taking food from the buffet.

The moment we lift up some food from the buffet, and put it onto our plate, something remarkable and very powerful happens in our mind:

We now regard this food as 'mine', it has somehow become 'my food'.

However, nothing has changed in the food. It's still the same food. But once it's on our plate, something has very much changed in our mind, 'mine-making' has occurred.

We have actively done something to dramatically change our attitude to that food, by taking possession of it mentally.

This same process of mine-making we do all the time, every moment with all 5 groups of clinging (pañc'upādānakkhandhā):

1. Form / Body (rūpaṃ)
2. Feeling (vedanā)
3. Perception (saññā)
4. Intention / Will (sankhārā)
5. Consciousness (viññāṇaṃ)

However, it's more difficult to clearly see in regards to these 5 groups of clinging.

What's happening with our mind at the buffet is easier accessible to direct observation, and can get us started in investigating upādāna.

If we can carefully, mindfully observe how we're doing 'mine-making' while taking food from the buffet (or even while buying a new iPhone from the shop), we can hopefully understand how upādāna arises in our mind, and then STOP mine-making.

That would be all that's required to fully liberate ourselves:

If we stopped all mine-making, our heart would be fully released and experience Nibbāna!

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#upadana #minemaking #dependentorigination #paticcasamuppada #dhamma

Loving Kindness is an extremely beneficial mental quality, and an excellent meditation object. However, in some situations Compassion (Karuṇā) or Sympathetic Joy (Muditā) may work even better to overcome unwholesome mind states, and develop wholesome ones.

(Of course, there is also the extremely important 4th 'Divine Abiding' (Brahmavihāra), namely Equanimity (Upekkhā), but that will have to be covered in another talk)

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#karuna #compassion #mudita #sympatheticjoy #brahmavihara #divineabodes

Ajahn Dhammasiha responds to a question from the audience:

What's the meaning of Anatta ( Not Self ) ?

In particular, Ajahn reflects about the important distinction between Not Self (anatta), which the Buddha expounded very frequently, and No Self (natth'attā), which the Buddha actually never taught.

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#anatta #notself #not-self #buddhism #dhammatalk

Ajahn Dhammasiha and Ajahn Moneyyo recite the traditional Pali verses of blessing, anumodanā, and sharing of merits with departed loved ones.

This is what we chant every day for our kind and generous donors, when they offer alsmfood for the monks' daily meal.

You can read the full Pali text and English translation in this blog post on our website.

Below is only about half the chant, as much as fits into the podcast description:

"Yathā vāri-vahā pūrā

paripūrenti sāgaraṃ

Evam-eva ito dinnaṃ

petānaṃ upakappati.

Icchitaṃ patthitaṃ tumhaṃ

khippam-eva samijjhatu;

Sabbe pūrentu sankappā

cando paṇṇa-raso yathā

maṇi joti-raso yathā.

As all the water in the streams

is flowing to the boundless sea,

Just likewise all your offerings

  are flowing to the spirit world.

And all you wish for and desire

  shall soon and safely be attained;

May wholesome wishes be fulfilled

just like the moon at full-moon night

  just like a wish fulfilling gem.

Sabb'ītiyo vivajjantu,

sabba-rogo vinassatu;

Mā te bhavatv-antarāyo,

  sukhī dīgh'āyuko bhava.

May all distress come to an end,

   may all desease be quickly healed,

May all your problems be resolved,

may you live long and happily.

Abhivādana-sīlissa,

  niccaṃ vuḍḍh'āpacāyino;

Cattāro dhammā vaḍḍhanti:

  Āyu vaṇṇo sukhaṃ balaṃ.

When someone's always honouring

   the elders worthy of respect,

Then they will grow in these four things:

   long life, strength, beauty, happiness.

( ... )

(Not enough space in this description to include everything)

Also, please note the monks only chant the Pali part, English translation above is just for your information.

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#blessing #anumodana #sharingmerits #buddhistchanting #palichanting

A couple getting married was interested to get some advice on Buddhist teachings how to make a marriage work, so that it lasts long and both spouses can live in harmony.

Ajahn Dhammasiha cites a study done in Italy with functional MRI brain scans, that claimed to have found that the feeling of romantic love biologically is not designed to last for decades.

In fact, the researchers considered the absolute maximum duration as approximately 4 years or so (though often it is much shorter).

This seems to agree with personal experience of most people.

As marriage is usually supposed to last a whole lifetime, it follows that romantic love lasting max 4 years can not be a sufficient foundation.

Instead, a married couple has to build up other qualities in their relationship, which sound much less 'romantic', but actually do last for a lifetime...

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#wedding #marriage #love #commitment #respect #buddhism #dhamma