All excerpts

57 events, 357 sessions, 2746 excerpts, 156:12:06 total duration

Most common tags:
Ajahn Chah (668)  Ajahn Pasanno (296)  Suffering (223)  Abhayagiri (215)  Relinquishment (196)  Monastic life (192)  Mindfulness of breathing (186)  Self-identity view (169)  Discernment (159)  Culture/Thailand (158) 

Page:   123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627

Remembering Ajahn Chah Weekend, Session 35: Final Reflections by Ajahn Sumedho – Apr. 29, 2001

Download audio (1:48)
1. Reflection by Ajahn Sumedho: The effect of one human being. [Human] [Practicing in accordance with Dhamma] [Kamma] [Ajahn Chah] // [Culture/Thailand] [Liberation] [Conventions] [Vinaya] [Compassion] [Happiness] [Emptiness] [Not-self]


Download audio (3:00)
2. Reflection by Ajahn Sumedho: The unexpected value of traditional Buddhist forms. [Conventions] [Culture/West] [Theravāda] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Ajahn Chah] // [Zen] [History/Thai Buddhism] [History/Other Theravāda traditions]


Download audio (2:57)
3. Reflection by Ajahn Sumedho: The convention is like a skeleton, but the life comes through the individuals. [Conventions] [Vinaya] [Theravāda] [Ajahn Chah] // [Ajahn Sumedho] [Judgementalism] [Compassion] [Goodwill] [Teachers] [Liberation] [Personality] [Ardency] [Continuity of mindfulness]


Download audio (2:55)
4. Recollection: The June 2000 Saṅgha Meeting discusses allowable sweets and protecting Ajahn Chah’s name. Recounted by Ajahn Sumedho. [Wat Pah Pong] [Saṅgha] [Saṅgha decision making] // [Ajahn Sumedho] [Seclusion] [Personality] [Thai Ajahn Chah monasteries] [Medicinal requisites] [Technology]


Download audio (1:53)
5. Story: Wat Pah Pong monks develop malnutrition when Ajahn Chah goes away for several months. Told by Ajahn Sumedho. [Wat Pah Pong] [Almsfood] [Sickness] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support] [Ajahn Chah] // [Mae Chee] [Food] [Almsround] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Ajahn Liem] [Fierce/direct teaching]


Download audio (3:00)
6. Recollection: The June 2000 Saṅgha Meeting concludes in harmony. Recounted by Ajahn Sumedho. [Wat Pah Pong] [Saṅgha] [Saṅgha decision making] [Communal harmony] [Ajahn Chah] // [Views] [Harsh speech] [Asking forgiveness ceremony] [Three Refuges] [Culture/West]

Quote: “Luang Por Chah wasn’t giving us views and opinions....[He gave] us all a confidence in the unspoken unity of our humanity.” [Faith] [Human]


Download audio (0:41)
7. Quote: “Luang Por Chah was always pointing us beyond the limitations of ourself.” — Ajahn Sumedho. [Self-identity view] [Liberation] [Not-self] [Ajahn Chah]


Remembering Ajahn Chah Weekend, Session 36: Closing Chanting – Apr. 29, 2001

Download audio (1:32)
1. Ajahn Amaro explains the Sharing of Blessings chant. [Chanting] [Merit] // [Kamma] [Goodwill] [Ajahn Chah]


Download audio (2:34)
2. Chanting: Sharing of Blessings. Offered by Ajahn Amaro. [Chanting] [Merit]

Reference: Amaravati Chanting Book, p. 33.


Download audio (1:40)
3. Chanting: Paying respects to the shrine and Ajahn Chah. Offered by Ajahn Amaro. [Chanting] [Bowing] [Three Refuges] [Ajahn Chah]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 1: Turning to the Formal Practice – Jan. 4, 2005

Download audio (44:42)
[Session] On the first day of the three-month retreat, Ajahn Pasanno gives detailed instructions on posture, attending to the breath, arousing energy, and investigating the meaning of mindfulness. [Mindfulness of breathing]


Download audio (4:39)
1. Balancing the body: detailed instructions on sitting posture. [Posture/Sitting ] [Mindfulness of breathing]


Download audio (1:49)
2. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno: The meaning of Buddho. [Buddho mantra] [Clear comprehension] [Mindfulness] [Mindfulness of breathing]


Download audio (6:20)
3. Walking meditation instructions. [Posture/Walking] [Mindfulness of breathing]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 2: Preparing the Mind to Receive the Dhamma – Jan. 5, 2005

Download audio (40:35)
[Session] Reflecting on the third and fourth steps of the Ānāpānasati Sutta (MN 118), Ajahn Pasanno describes entering into the bodily sensations of the breath (kāyasaṅkhārā) as a foundation of training that prepares the mind to receive Dhamma. [Mindfulness of breathing]

Reference: Keeping the Breath in Mind and Lessons in Samādhi by Ajahn Lee Dhammadharo, particularly “Method Two”.


Download audio (4:57)
1. Reviewing our meditation habits and the purpose of meditation. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Meditation] [Discernment] // [Equanimity] [Knowledge and vision] [Liberation]


Download audio (2:58)
2. Quote: “With each in-breath and each out-breath, really trying to recollect that we have the opportunity to experience the Dhamma, to experience truth, to realize the fruits of the Buddha’s teaching and guidance leading to liberation.” — Ajahn Pasanno. [Recollection/Dhamma ] [Liberation] [Mindfulness of breathing] // [Thai] [Gratitude]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 3: Being Present with Pain, Pleasure, and the Neutral – Jan. 6, 2005

Download audio (44:31)
[Session] Reflecting on the second tetrad of the Ānāpānasati Sutta (MN 118), Ajahn Pasanno describes meditation as relaxing so that awareness comes to the fore and explains the importance of perception in relating to painful, pleasant, and neutral feeling. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of feeling]

Reference: Keeping the Breath in Mind and Lessons in Samādhi by Ajahn Lee Dhammadharo, particularly “Method Two”.


Download audio (5:35)
1. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno: Long-term effective strategies for dealing with pain. [Pain ] [Long-term practice] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of feeling] // [Mindfulness] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Aversion]


Download audio (11:09)
2. Applying the factors of first jhāna in mindfulness of breathing. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Jhāna] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of feeling] // [Directed thought and evaluation] [Rapture] [Unification]


Download audio (6:43)
3. The importance of sustaining attention with neutral sensations. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Neutral feeling] [Directed thought and evaluation] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of feeling]

Sutta: SN 36.6: The Dart.


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 4: Recognizing and Relinquishing the Hindrances – Jan. 7, 2005

Download audio (30:36)
[Session] Ajahn Pasanno elucidates the Buddha’s similes for the Five Hindrances (MN 39.14). He encourages us to investigate the tone of the mind to identify the presence or absence of hindrances and to delight in the inherent well-being of the mind when the hindrances are relinquished. [Hindrances] [Similes]


Download audio (4:52)
1. Simile: Sensual desire is like being in debt. (MN 39.14) — Ajahn Pasanno. [Sensual desire] [Hindrances] [Similes]


Download audio (6:04)
2. Simile: Ill-will is like being sick. (MN 39.14) — Ajahn Pasanno. [Ill-will ] [Hindrances] [Similes] // [Ajahn Pasanno] [Sickness] [Happiness]


Download audio (5:21)
3. Simile: Sloth and torpor is like being in prison. (MN 39.14) — Ajahn Pasanno. [Sloth and torpor] [Hindrances] [Similes]


Download audio (3:15)
4. Simile: Restlessness and worry is like being a slave. — Ajahn Pasanno. [Restlessness and worry ] [Hindrances] [Similes] // [Mindfulness of body]


Download audio (2:50)
5. Simile: Skeptical doubt is like a merchant travelling through a dangerous desert. — Ajahn Pasanno. [Doubt] [Hindrances] [Similes]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 5: Working Further with the Hindrances – Jan. 8, 2005

Download audio (24:51)
[Session] Using the breath to steep the body and mind with attention and awareness can reveal and dispel subtle hindrances. (Incomplete recording) [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of body] [Hindrances]


Download audio (5:17)
1. Bringing attention to the breath is an alternative to sensual gratification. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sensual desire] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of body] [Hindrances]


Download audio (6:39)
2. Recognizing subtle forms of irritation. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Aversion] [Ill-will] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of body] [Hindrances]

Tibetan Buddhism translates klesha as affliction. [Vajrayāna] [Unwholesome Roots] [Translation]


Download audio (2:53)
3. Preventing the settled mind from sinking into dullness. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sloth and torpor] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of body] [Hindrances]


Download audio (1:10)
4. Quote: “You have to be willing to die...and then the mind easily goes into jhāna.” — Ajahn Jumnien. Quoted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Jumnien] [Energy] [Jhāna]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 6: Nourishing and Starving the Hindrances – Jan. 9, 2005

Download audio (24:39)
[Session] Following the outline of SN 46.51, Ajahn Pasanno describes the factors that feed or attenuate each of the Five Hindrances. (Incomplete recording) [Hindrances]


Download audio (4:43)
1. Attending to attractive objects nourishes sensual desire. (SN 46.51) Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sensual desire] [Hindrances]

Reference: Amaravati Chanting Book, p. 55: The Five Recollections


Download audio (6:43)
2. Attending to what we feel obstructed by nourishes ill-will. (SN 46.51) Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ill-will] [Hindrances] // [Divine Abidings] [Discernment]

Story: A monk with an aversive temperament worsens it with repeated asuba and death contemplation. [Aversion] [Unattractiveness] [Recollection/Death] [Idealism] [Goodwill]


Download audio (4:51)
3. Following the path of least resistance nourishes sloth and torpor. (SN 46.51) Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sloth and torpor] [Hindrances] // [Energy]

Story: The novice’s nibbāna.


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 7: Silence, Composure, plus the Hindrances – Jan. 10, 2005

Download audio (13:00)
1. Reflections by Ajahn Pasanno on the value of noble silence during Winter Retreat. [Meditation retreats] [Idle chatter] [Right Speech] // [Community] [Culture/Natural environment] [Tranquility]


Download audio (16:40)
2. Ajahn Pasanno urges the Abhayagiri community to cultivate mindfulness, composure, sensitivity, and silence in the details of moving and speaking during Winter Retreat. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Meditation retreats] [Posture/Walking] [Tranquility]

Note: Abhayagiri’s communal space consisted of two small buildings in 2005.


Download audio (24:39)
3. The commentaries contast the Five Hindrances with the five factors of first jhāna. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Hindrances] [Jhāna] // [Directed thought and evaluation] [Sloth and torpor] [Doubt] [Rapture] [Ill-will] [Happiness] [Restlessness and worry] [Unification] [Sensual desire]

Story: Ajahn Boon Choo dispels sloth and torpor. [Ajahn Boon Choo] [Devotion to wakefulness]

Quote: “Sensual desire is like looking for the turtle with the mustache.” — Ajahn Chah. [Ajahn Chah] [Similes]

Download audio (2:57)

Meditation instruction: Breathing with the five factors of first jhāna. [Mindfulness of breathing]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 8: Sitting, Walking, and the Hindrances – Jan. 11, 2005

Download audio (15:41)
1. Meditation instruction: Be present with the physical experience of the breath. Bring a sense of ease into the body. Ground awareness in the body. Offered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of body]

Quote: Keeping the breath in mind is like getting the spoon into the mouth and the mouth onto the spoon. — Ajahn Lee Dhammadharo. [Ajahn Lee Dhammadharo] [Similes]

Download audio (4:35)

Story: “The body understands!” [Direct experience] [Zen] [Koan] [Ajahn Pasanno]

Download audio (2:26)

Body and mind are not separate things. [Form] [Heart/mind] [Aggregates ] [Dependent origination] [Consciousness]

Water similes for the mind with and without hindrances. (SN 46.55) [Hindrances] [Sensual desire] [Ill-will] [Sloth and torpor] [Restlessness and worry] [Doubt]

Sutta: DN 2.98: “These are shoals of fish...”

Quote: “You can get a lot of wisdom from walking meditation.” — Ajahn Chah. [Ajahn Chah] [Posture/Walking] [Discernment]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 9: Working with Mind Objects – Jan. 12, 2005

Download audio (41:17)
[Session] Continuing with the second tetrad of the Ānāpānasati Sutta (MN 118), Ajahn Pasanno urges us to use awareness grounded in mindfulness of breathing to investigate feelings, perceptions, and hindrances. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of feeling] [Perception]


Download audio (1:58)
1. Story: Winnie-the-Pooh hears a buzzing sound, associates it with honey, and begins climbing a tree. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Winnie-the-Pooh] [Perception] // [Conditionality]


Download audio (4:28)
2. Relaxing into the breath when experiencing pain in meditation. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Pain] [Tranquility] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of feeling] [Perception]


Download audio (3:23)
3. Maintaining alertness in the midst of pleasant feeling. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Happiness] [Energy] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of feeling] [Perception]


Download audio (6:46)
4. Developing sensitivity to neutral feeling. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Neutral feeling] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of feeling] [Perception] // [Equanimity] [Factors of Awakening]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 10: Experiencing the Mind – Jan. 13, 2005

Download audio (46:25)
[Session] Beginning the third tetrad of the Ānāpānasati Sutta (MN 118), Ajahn Pasanno teaches that by attending to the mind itself with each breath, we can recognize that the direct experience of the defiled mind is suffering. Relinquishing the defilements brings peace. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Mindfulness of mind]

Sutta: MN 10.34: Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta, mindfulness of mind section.


Download audio (0:52)
1. Quote: “One who is lost in the world is lost in their moods. One who is lost in their moods is lost in the world.” Quoted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Moods of the mind] [Mindfulness of mind]


Download audio (3:33)
2. Story: Three Harvard professors take a course in meditation. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Mindfulness of mind] // [Direct experience] [Larry Rosenberg]


Download audio (2:21)
3. Story: “I’m not very peaceful, but I don’t have any excuses anymore.” Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Unwholesome Roots] [Mindfulness of mind] // [Poo Jum Gom] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Culture/Natural environment]


Download audio (8:26)
4. Discerning the fundamental mind base amidst the moods of the mind. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Mindfulness of mind] // [Ajahn Mun] [Ajahn Chah] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Similes] [Concentration] [Relinquishment]


Download audio (7:45)
5. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno: Differing interpretations of citta; returning to the knowing, our refuge of peace. [Heart/mind] [Nature of mind ] [Knowing itself] [Mindfulness of mind] // [Unwholesome Roots] [Unconditioned] [Commentaries] [P. A. Payutto] [Ajahn Chah]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 11: Gladdening the Mind – Jan. 14, 2005

Download audio (42:07)
[Session] AN 10.2 explains that samādhi and liberation follow naturally from gladdening the mind with a foundation of virtue. Elucidating the tenth step of the Ānāpānasati Sutta (MN 118), Ajahn Pasanno describes various ways to allow the mind to delight in Dhamma and stillness. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Gladdening the mind]


Download audio (7:15)
1. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno: Fine-tuning the balance between stillness and investigation. [Calming meditation ] [Insight meditation ] [Gladdening the mind] // [Mindfulness of breathing]

Sutta: SN 15.1: “Bound by ignorance and obstructed by craving.” [Ignorance] [Craving]


Download audio (3:55)
2. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno: Gladdening the mind through corpse contemplation. [Recollection/Death] [Unattractiveness] [Gladdening the mind] // [Mae Chee Sansanee] [Disasters] [Dispassion]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 12: Concentrating the Mind – Jan. 15, 2005

Download audio (45:24)
[Session] Practicing the eleventh step of ānāpānasati (MN 118) involves purifying the mind of obstructive states and firmly establishing the mind with the breath so that it becomes pliant, malleable, and bright. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Concentration]


Download audio (4:58)
1. Delighting in the beautiful and benevolent breath. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Gladdening the mind] [Concentration] // [Ajahn Brahmavaṃso]


Download audio (5:04)
2. Reflections by Ajahn Pasanno on jhāna and attainment. [Jhāna] [Conceit] [Concentration] // [Ajahn Chah] [Mindfulness of mind] [Suffering]

Sutta: SN 43.1: “Meditate [jhāyatha] bhikkhus, do not be negligent, lest you regret it later.”


Download audio (8:50)
3. Ārammaṇupanijjhāna (meditation using an object as a focus) and lakkhaṇupanijjhāna (meditation using the characteristics as a focus); when to contemplate anicca, dukkha, anatta. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Jhāna] [Calming meditation] [Insight meditation] [Characteristics of existence] [Concentration]


Download audio (13:25)
4. The four results of samādhi described in AN 4.41. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Meditation/Results] [Concentration] // [Jhāna] [Perception of light] [Psychic powers] [Mindfulness] [Clear comprehension] [Aggregates] [Impermanence] [Outflows]

Story: As a novice, Ajahn Puth directed his mind to which questions would be on the Nak Tam exams. [Ajahn Puth] [Learning]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 13: Releasing the Mind – Jan. 16, 2005

Download audio (47:57)
[Session] When practicing the twelfth step of ānāpānasati (MN 118), each breath is the occasion to release the clinging that binds us to suffering. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Clinging] [Liberation]


Download audio (2:26)
1. Simile: A trap for monkeys who don’t let go. — Ajahn Pasanno. [Animal] [Clinging] [Similes]


Download audio (6:11)
2. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno: We’re not diminished beings if we don’t get what we want. [Sensual desire] [Clinging] [Liberation] // [Food] [Drawbacks] [Mindfulness of breathing]

Simile: A dog gnawing on meatless bones (MN 54.15). [Similes]


Download audio (9:38)
3. The drawbacks of wrong view and clinging to views. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Drawbacks] [Views] [Clinging] [Liberation] // [Kamma] [Conflict]


Download audio (5:19)
4. Attending wisely to the breath versus blindly clinging to the practice. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Attachment to precepts and practices] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Clinging] [Liberation]

Sutta: MN 57: The Dog-Duty Ascetic.


Download audio (6:59)
5. Attending to what is rather than concepts about a self. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Doctrine-of-self clinging] [Direct experience] [Clinging] [Liberation] // [Mindfulness of breathing] [Cause of Suffering] [Self-identity view]


Download audio (1:44)
6. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno: Our suffering is fed and sustained by clinging. [Suffering] [Cause of Suffering] [Clinging ] [Liberation] // [Translation]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 14: Contemplating Impermanence, I Breathe In – Jan. 17, 2005

Download audio (52:47)
[Session] Introducing the fourth tetrad of the Ānāpānasati Sutta (MN 118), Ajahn Pasanno reflects on impermanence as the doorway into the relam of insight. Mindfulness of breathing can illuminate all three characteristics of impermanence, suffering, and not-self. [Impermanence] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Characteristics of existence]


Download audio (6:24)
1. Making impermanence the focal point for attending to the breath. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Impermanence] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Characteristics of existence] // [Insight meditation] [Direct experience]


Download audio (3:48)
2. Animitta samādhi takes impermanence as its object and is not drawn into the characteristics of things. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Concentration] [Impermanence] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Characteristics of existence] // [Robes] [Nimitta] [Knowing itself]


Download audio (7:09)
3. When one sees through dukkha, the concentration that develops is called appaṇihita samādhi. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Suffering] [Concentration] [Impermanence] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Characteristics of existence] // [Desire] [Directed thought and evaluation] [Liberation]

Quote: “Imagine a mental state that isn’t looking for anything else.”


Download audio (3:33)
4. Emptiness is the experiential counterpoint of not-self. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Not-self] [Emptiness ] [Impermanence] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Characteristics of existence] // [Conditionality]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 15: Investigating Dispassion – Jan. 18, 2005

Download audio (43:27)
[Session] Passion is the deep belief in what feelings, objects of attention, and views represent. Expounding the fourteenth step of the Ānāpānasati Sutta (MN 118), Ajahn Pasanno explains how to cultivate dispassion with each in and out breath. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Dispassion]


Download audio (4:34)
1. Story: A man diagnosed with AIDS loses his story. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sickness] [Self-identity view] [Dispassion] // [Amaravati] [Ajahn Amaro]


Download audio (17:51)
2. Developing dispassion by reflecting on the body. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Mindfulness of body] [Unattractiveness] [Dispassion] // [Food] [Self-identity view]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 16: Death and Dispassion – Jan. 19, 2005

Download audio (43:47)
[Session] The contemplation of death resets our priorities and lays the ground for dispassion to cool the heart of its impusles to follow desires, moods, and biases. [Recollection/Death] [Dispassion]


Download audio (1:22)
1. Simile: As dawn precedes sunrise, when one recognizes the quality of appamāda (heedfulness), one can expect the unfolding of the Eightfold Path. (SN 45.55) — Ajahn Pasanno. [Similes] [Heedfulness] [Eightfold Path] [Recollection/Death] [Dispassion] // [Liberation]


Download audio (2:02)
2. Story: Larry Rosenberg watches a 1938 film and realizes that the actors, directors, and producers are all dead. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Larry Rosenberg] [Artistic expression] [Recollection/Death] [Dispassion]


Download audio (3:00)
3. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno: If this were the last moment of my life, is this the kind of mental state I want to carry into death? [Recollection/Death] [Dispassion] // [Mindfulness of breathing] [Ajahn Pasanno]


Download audio (3:21)
4. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno from Ajahn Koon Balisoodtoh: “Am I dying?” with each breath. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Recollection/Death] [Dispassion] // [Amulets]


Download audio (5:05)
5. Story: A group of Thai villagers are afraid to dig up their dead in order to conduct funeral rites. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Funerals] [Fear] [Death] [Recollection/Death] [Dispassion] // [Ajahn Pasanno] [Dtao Dum]


Download audio (2:57)
6. Story: A Thai monastery turns into a makeshift morgue after the 2005 tsunami. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Death] [Disasters] [Recollection/Death] [Dispassion]


Download audio (0:58)
7. Quote: “Ajahn Chah was larger than life, but he’s been dead for over 10 years now.” — Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Recollection/Death] [Dispassion] // [Naturalness]


Download audio (6:03)
8. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno: We will be alone when we die. [Death] [Recollection/Death] [Dispassion] // [Heedfulness] [Rodney Smith] [Mindfulness of breathing]

Quote: “In the end, one is cooked and eaten by the King of Death.” — Varapañño Bhikkhu (Paul Breiter). [Paul Breiter]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 17: Attending to Cessation – Jan. 20, 2005

Download audio (32:05)
[Session] Allowing things to cease is the middle way between the extremes of clinging to becoming and annihilation. Abiding in the quality of cessation between each in and out breath breaks the habit of becoming and forms the basis of peace. [Cessation] [Cessation of Suffering] [Mindfulness of breathing]


Download audio (2:33)
1. Simile: The mind that does not allow cessation is like the derelict Chithurst House stuffed with junk. — Ajahn Pasanno. [Chithurst] [Cessation] [Similes]


Download audio (11:52)
2. The cessation of self view is a window into emptiness. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Self-identity view] [Emptiness] [Becoming] [Cessation] [Cessation of Suffering] [Mindfulness of breathing]

Meditation instructions from Ajahn Jumnien: Rest attention midway between the eye and a visual object. [Sense bases]

Download audio (2:06)

Samatha practices allow us to become familiar with peaceful places in our mind. [Calming meditation] [Tranquility]

Download audio (2:01)

Teaching by Ajahn Chah: Can you be continuously angry for two hours? [Aversion] [Impermanence]


Download audio (1:19)
3. Ajahn Buddhadāsa translates nirodha as quenching. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Buddhadāsa] [Cessation] [Translation]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 18: Relinquishing the Defilements – Jan. 21, 2005

Download audio (41:58)
[Session] Reflecting on the last step of the Ānāpānasati Sutta (MN 118), Ajahn Pasanno explains how relinquishment is key to entering and abiding in Dhamma. He encourages us to contemplate relinquishment with each in and out breath. [Mindfulness of breathing] [Relinquishment]


Download audio (2:19)
1. Recollection: Total relinquishment was a characteristic of Ajahn Chah’s practice. Recounted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Relinquishment ] // [Ajahn Pasanno] [Dhamma]


Download audio (5:14)
2. Story: Practicing the Dhamma is to renounce this life. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Dhamma] [Relinquishment] // [Vajrayāna]


Download audio (5:07)
3. Reflection by Ajahn Pasanno: Seeing things as they are. [Knowledge and vision ] [Relinquishment] // [Aggregates] [Self-identity view]


Download audio (10:49)
4. Attending to the simplicity of the elements. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Elements ] [Direct experience] [Relinquishment] // [Mindfulness of breathing] [Self-identity view]


Download audio (4:23)
5. Ajahn Buddhadāsa translates paṭinissagga as “giving back”. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Buddhadāsa] [Translation] [Relinquishment] // [Naturalness] [Mindfulness of breathing]


Ānāpānasati: Mindfulness of In-and-Out Breathing, Session 19: Backbone of the Practice – Jan. 22, 2005

Download audio (43:24)
[Session] Mindfulness is critical at all stages of meditation. Mindfulness of breathing develops calm, stable, focused attention and can be a vehicle for the discernment that frees us from discontent. [Mindfulness] [Mindfulness of breathing]


Download audio (1:22)
1. Story: A Zen student complains that the breath is boring. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Zen] [Mindfulness of breathing]


Download audio (0:48)
2. Quote: “A moment of lack of mindfulness is a moment of derangement.” — Ajahn Chah. Quoted by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Mindfulness]


Download audio (0:57)
3. Story: A student gets hit by a car while engrossed in reading Mindfulness in Plain English. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Mindfulness] [Bhante Gunaratana]


Download audio (16:21)
4. The four constituents of Right Mindfulness. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Right Mindfulness] [Mindfulness of breathing] // [Mindfulness] [Ardency] [Clear comprehension] [Relinquishment] [Right Effort]

Sutta: MN 10: Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta.

Commentary: Clear comprehension has the characteristic of non-confusion, its function is to investigate, and it manifests as scrutinty. (Path of Purification by Bhikkhu Ñāṇamoli, p. 154)

Commentary: Mindfulness has the characteristic of remembering, its function is not forgetting, and it manifests as guarding. (Path of Purification by Bhikkhu Ñāṇamoli, p. 154)


Download audio (7:14)
5. When mindfulness is established and the breath becomes subtle, attend to the presence of the breath and the knower itself. Teaching by Ajahn Pasanno. [Tranquility] [Knowing itself ] [Mindfulness of breathing] // [Relinquishment] [Delusion]

Quote: “If you let go a little, you get a little peace. If you let go a lot, you get a lot of peace. If you let go completely, you get complete peace.” — Ajahn Chah.


Metta Retreat, Session 1 – Sep. 9, 2008

Download audio (0:12)
1. Quote: “It looks like there’s a veritable blizzard of questions. That’s always encouraging.” — Ajahn Pasanno. [Questions]


Download audio (6:21)
2. “Can you speak a little about samatha/vipassana and explain the difference between serenity and equanimity?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Calming meditation] [Insight meditation] [Equanimity] // [Commentaries] [Ajahn Chah] [Relinquishment] [Liberation] [Concentration] [Divine Abidings] [Factors of Awakening] [Discernment]

Quote: “Samatha-vipassanā is like a green mango and a ripe mango. Same mango.” — Ajahn Chah. [Similes]


Download audio (17:10)
3. “Could you please explain about the death process…how quickly does rebirth occur?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Death ] [Rebirth] // [Recollection/Death] [Delusion] [Self-identity view] [Recollection] [Impermanence] [Not-self] [Theravāda] [History/Early Buddhism] [Sutta] [Vajrayāna] [Clinging] [Culture/Thailand] [Chanting] [Goodwill] [Relinquishment] [Ceremony/ritual] [Kamma]

References: Amaravati Chanting Book, p. 55: Five Recollections; Amaravati Chanting Book, p. 12: The body is impermanent... [Similes] [Craving]

Simile: Fire blown by the wind (MN 72: Aggivacchagotta Sutta)

Story: A former monk asks Ajahn Chah about working with dying people to give them the opportunity for wholesome rebirth. [Ajahn Chah] [Teachers] [Fierce/direct teaching]

Quote: “I practice dying.” — The Dalai Lama. [Dalai Lama]


Download audio (12:30)
4. “As a guilt-ridden American, how do you respond to personal mistakes without guilt?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Guilt/shame/inadequacy] [Culture/West] [Great disciples] // [Saṅgha] [Conscience and prudence] [Pāli] [Skillful qualities] [Self-identity view] [Respect] [Perception] [Virtue] [Buddha]

Story: A monk falsely accuses Sāriputta (AN 9.11). [Forgiveness]


Download audio (3:22)
5. “How would you describe the jhana states and do you teach this kind of meditation?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Jhāna] [Ajahn Pasanno] // [Concentration] [Energy] [Clear comprehension] [Knowledge and vision] [Ajahn Chah] [Relinquishment] [Craving] [Conceit]


Download audio (9:32)
6. “When there is a lot of pain in the body, it is difficult to maintain ‘right effort,’ yet sometimes through patient endurance the pain lessens or dissipates. Could you speak about right effort and the connection between right effort and samadhi?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Pain ] [Right Effort] [Patience] [Concentration] // [Skillful qualities] [Unskillful qualities] [Fear] [Aversion] [Discernment] [Naturalness]

Recollection: Ajahn Pasanno learned from pain and illness in his early monastic life. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Sickness] [Monastic life]


Download audio (6:42)
7. “What is loving kindness? What is the body and mind’s experience when I feel metta for myself and others?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Goodwill] // [Idealism] [Culture/West] [Right Intention] [Aversion] [Thai] [Happiness] [Translation] [Bhante Gunaratana] [Tranquility] [Spaciousness]

Quote: “The base of loving-kindness is dwelling in non-aversion.”


Download audio (0:21)
8. Quote: “I appreciate people’s questions. I enjoy the questions, and I never quite know what’s going to come out when people present a question. It’s interesting to me as well.” — Ajahn Pasanno. [Questions ] [Ajahn Pasanno]


Page:   123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627