Part of key topic The Human Dillema
Subsumes: Bias from fear (bhayāgati)
73 excerpts, 5:54:23 total duration
6. “Can you speak about working with fear and loss of ego identity, fear, and death?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fear] [Self-identity view] [Death] // [Goodwill] [Aggregates] [Impermanence] [Delusion] [Faith] [Eightfold Path] [Perfections] [Recollection]
Reference: Description of dukkha. [Suffering]
Quote: “We respond to teachings on liberation and Nibbāna with a curious sense of fear and trepidation.” — Ajahn Mahā Boowa speaking about Ajahn Mun [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Ajahn Mun] [Liberation] [Nibbāna] [Fear] [Family] [Clinging]
7. “I have a hard time ending or letting go of relationships after they no longer serve me or prove to be unskillful people...Is this attachment to person or aversion/ fear etc of the unknown?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Relationships] [Relinquishment] [Clinging] [Fear]
2. “How should we relate to the Buddha’s statement that sensual pleasure is to be feared?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sensual desire] [Sense bases] [Fear] // [Culture/West] [Guilt/shame/inadequacy]
Sutta: MN 66.19: Sensual pleasure is to be feared.
3. Comment by Ajahn Kaccāna: When working with the mind in a comfortable environment, one can skip past the fear of death. [Mindfulness of mind] [Pain] [Fear] [Death]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno.
6. “Have you found a difference between being afraid of death and being afraid of dying?” Answered by Debbie Stamp. [Fear] [Death]
2. “I’ve had the experience on retreat of getting to slow, shallow breathing and panicked because I couldn’t find the breath. Could you say more about just going to the knowing?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Meditation/Unusual experiences] [Tranquility] [Fear] [Knowing itself] [Mindfulness of breathing ] // [Mindfulness of body] [Investigation of states] [Nimitta] [Faith]
3. “I have a hard time breathing normally due to congestion and athsma. How does one get past the initial fear, ‘I just can’t breath. How am I going to do this?’” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Health] [Fear] [Mindfulness of breathing ] // [Mindfulness of body] [Body scanning] [Tranquility]
10. “If unwholesome thoughts arise and it creates fear and a repeating pattern, what is the best method for breaking the patterns? For instance, mettā meditation replacing the fear or attention with something else? Thank for the inspiration.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fear] [Goodwill] [Unskillful qualities] [Habits]
10. “Thank you for so many wonderful teachings. I am contemplating cessation and would like to hear more about the cessation of the body-death. I have been with a few beings as they have died, 1 human and a few pets. Is the manner of death important to having a ‘good’ rebirth? Does being afraid or suffering a great deal affect the next life directly or is the experience of death just added to ones overall karma?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Death] [Rebirth] [Cessation] [Fear] [Suffering] [Kamma] // [Stream entry] [Health care] [Patience] [Humility]
15. “Although in reasonable condition, I am realizing that fear / anxiety of death / non-becoming is pervasive in the background of my daily life. Does the Buddha speak to that which continues after the body dies? Other than the five recollections and contemplating impermanence, does he offer guidance on how to best prepare to greet ones own death? Thank you so much.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fear] [Death ] [Rebirth] [Recollection] [Impermanence] // [Naturalness] [Spiritual urgency] [Clear comprehension] [Mindfulness of body] [Dispassion] [Divine Abidings] [Recollection/Devas] [Protective Meditations] [Factors of Awakening]
Quote: “The Dhamma is neither tall nor short, black nor white; it’s just right (por dee)” — Ajahn Kinaree [Ajahn Kinaree] [Dhamma] [Middle Path]
1. “Do you need to be a non-returner to be free from the fear of death?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Non-return] [Fear] [Death] [Sensual desire] // [Arahant] [Conceit] [Stream entry] [Faith]
16. “The fear that arises upon the realization that there’s nothing there is so strong that it takes away from the awareness being able to stay with it. Any suggestions?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fear] [Knowledge and vision] [Not-self] // [Recollection] [Goodwill] [Gladdening the mind] [Suffering] [Cessation of Suffering] [Learning] [Faith]
4. Comment about working with not-self in direct experience in relation to discomfort and awareness of embodied release. [Direct experience] [Feeling] [Suffering] [Impermanence] [Not-self] [Mindfulness of body] [Relinquishment] [Fear]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Proliferation]
5. “In this sutta (AN 5.48), there’s the assumption that everyone has enemies. It’s making me a little paranoid.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fear] [Sutta] [Human] // [Judgementalism]
2. “I have a cancer and finished my treatment and am afraid it will come back if I don’t take care of myself as doctor told. So it is my stress. How can I think about my stress to hold it in my mind?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sickness ] [Suffering] [Fear] // [Happiness] [Gratitude]
7. “At the Friday evening talk, you mentioned the three poisons/kleshas of greed, hatred and delusion. But you also added fear. Fear seems to me more like a result. Please explain.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Unwholesome Roots ] [Fear] [Conditionality] // [Biases] [Sensual desire] [Abhayagiri]
17. “I grew up in an environment where any difference was met with hostility. I was bullied, I was robbed a few times, I didn’t feel safe. No wonder the idea of refuge always resonated with me....However, even after living in very tolerant California and generally feeling myself safe here, when I am outdoors practicing walking meditation, whenever I see or hear strangers approaching me, my mind begins rushing in anticipation that this encounter would turn hostile. Being on precepts makes me feel particularly vulnerable. Could you share some teaching about protecting qualities of the Dhamma and how I can feel less fear while keeping the precepts? Could some of the monastics share their stories of receiving unexpected kindness from seemingly hostile strangers or stories of resolving physical or verbal attacks while wearing the robes and keeping precepts?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Discrimination] [Abuse/violence] [Fear] [Three Refuges] [Meditation retreats] [Precepts] [Dhamma] [Monastic life] [Stories] [Generosity] // [Human] [Truth] [Compassion] [Abhayagiri] [Almsround]
Story: A football hooligan has a sharing session with a monk on a train.
Story: Ajahn Gunha wanders into a Communist base on tudong. [Ajahn Gunha] [Tudong] [Politics and society] [Rains retreat]
Story: Ajahn Sudanto goes almsround each day in White Salmon. [Ajahn Sudanto] [Pacific Hermitage]
2. “How do I become a more generous person if there is a constant underlying worry about having enough (money for living, retirement, etc.)? How to create a sense of abundance within so I can freely give to others?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Generosity ] [Fear] [Commerce/economics] // [Culture/West] [Greed] [Community] [Culture/Thailand] [Poverty]
Quote: “I don’t have any money, but I’m not poor.” — Por Am, a Wat Pah Pong lay supporter [Lay supporters] [Wat Pah Pong] [Health care]
Recollection: Thai children sharing cold Pepsi given to them by the monks at special events.
15. “Would you please give some advice on how to deal with obsessive compulsive thoughts that cause fear in the mind and tension in the body? I have tried to remember that “mental formations” are not self, but this doesn’t seem to alleviate the problem or help much.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Habits] [Fear] [Volitional formations] [Not-self]
8. “Do you have any inspiring stories to share of practicing with strong fear (animals,etc)? I’m inspired when I hear such stories from monks of this tradition.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fear] [Stories] [Animal]
Story: A tiger circles Ajahn Pasanno’s walking path. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Dtao Dum] [Fear] [Posture/Walking]
Sutta: MN 4: Fear and Dread.
Story: A tiger kills a 1,500 pound Brahma bull.
3. “I got a little confused about the part [of MN 19] where it says, ‘these thoughts are not to be feared.’” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fear] [Directed thought and evaluation] // [Right Intention] [Calming meditation] [Happiness]
Quote: “In trying to stop thinking, there’s an incredible tension that is created in the mind.” [Suffering]
Follow-up: “[MN 19] mentioned that these thoughts might make you tired.” [Sloth and torpor]
4. “When you go into your body to feel the underlying emotion behnd a thought, what happens when the bodily feeling is so uncomfortable that you really don’t want to feel it?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Mindfulness of body] [Emotion] [Directed thought and evaluation] [Suffering ] [Aversion] [Fear] // [Recollection/Buddha] [Recollection/Saṅgha] [Recollection/Virtue] [Faith]
Follow-up: “It seems really difficult to think of Dhamma or the refuges while in such a wrapped-up state. I don’t know if I could do that.” [Noble Truth of Suffering] [Visualization] [Goodwill] [Compassion]
15. “My friend is having anxiety about her pregnancy issues. These are understandable but not helpful for her well-being. Do you have any recommendations for dealing with legitimate fears?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Restlessness and worry] [Health] [Birth] [Fear] // [Visualization] [Goodwill] [Compassion]
Follow-up: “Would this go under the category of taking a smaller peg? (MN 20 method one)” [Directed thought and evaluation]
14. “When you find happiness, there’s the hope that you won’t lose it and the fear that you will. How do you peel away the hope and the fear and bathe in happiness?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Happiness] [Desire] [Fear] [Impermanence] // [Suffering] [Learning] [Relinquishment]
8. “Any advice to guide me after retirement? How to get rid of the fear of death?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ageing] [Fear] [Death] // [Happiness] [Merit] [Generosity] [Virtue] [Meditation] [Mindfulness]
18. “Can you talk about fear as a cause of dukkha and how to work with it?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fear ] [Suffering] // [Unwholesome Roots] [Abhidhamma] [Delusion] [Mindfulness of body] [Continuity of mindfulness] [Biases]
Quote: “In terms of personality, [fear] was my go-to option.” [Ajahn Pasanno] [Personality] [Fear ]
2. “Is the desire to become fearless a cause of suffering? Is wearing a different kind of clothes also I-making?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Desire] [Fear] [Cause of Suffering] [Attachment to precepts and practices] [Self-identity view] // [Craving] [Unwholesome Roots] [Naturalness] [Discernment] [Suffering] [Liberation]