Relics (sarīra)
Devotional practice / Objects of veneration / Relics 
11 excerpts, 1:05:36 total duration



Thanksgiving Retreat 2011, Session 5 – Nov. 23, 2011

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5. “Was Ajahn Chah an arahant? How can one tell when someone’s work is done? Also, is it inappropriate to ask one’s teacher if they are a stream enterer, once-returner, etc.?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Arahant ] [Teachers] [Stages of awakening] // [Suffering] [Unwholesome Roots]

Quote: “To me, I’m more like a tree that birds can come and feed in. ... [What they say] I am is just the chattering of the birds.” — Ajahn Chah. [Similes] [Teaching Dhamma]

Sutta: AN 4.192: Discerning another person’s wisdom. [Discernment]

Recollections of mistaken estimates of enlightenment. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Delusion] [Relics]


Thanksgiving Retreat 2012, Session 5 – Nov. 21, 2012

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10. “Would you discuss Buddhist rites and rituals regarding death and dying? What are the rites surrounding the death and cremation of an arahant?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ceremony/ritual] [Death ] [Funerals] [Arahant] // [Cultural context] [Recollection/Virtue] [Three Refuges] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Wat Pah Nanachat] [Culture/Thailand]

Recollections of Ajahn Chah’s funeral. [Ajahn Chah] [Wat Pah Pong] [Relics] [Ajahn Chah Stupa]

Follow-up: “Did you see Ajahn Chah’s relics?” [Relics] [Amulets]


Thai Forest Tradition, Session 1 – Jun. 14, 2014

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9. Story: Ajahn Mun becomes enlightened and goes back to teach his teacher. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Mun] [Ajahn Sao] [Liberation] [Thai Forest Tradition]

Story: Ajahn Mun’s relics [Relics] [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Abhayagiri]


2014 Thanksgiving Monastic Retreat, Session 1 – Nov. 22, 2014

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3. “Is walking meditation as ‘good’ as sitting meditation. Can one achieve the level of undistractedness that one needs to be able to investigate the human experience? Or is it part of the bigger picture of mindfulness for seven full days to experience stream entry?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Posture/Walking] [Posture/Sitting] [Insight meditation] [Stream entry] // [Meditation/General advice] [Continuity of mindfulness] [Concentration]

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Stories about Ajahn Khao. [Ajahn Khao ]

Story: Walking meditation was Ajahn Khao’s preferred mode of practice. [Ajahn Khao ]

Story: Ajahn Khao’s relics were purple, clear, and incredibly beautiful. [Ajahn Khao ] [Relics] [Abhayagiri]

Recollection: Ajahn Khao expresses gratitude for the place he realized Awakening. [Ajahn Khao ] [Liberation] [Gratitude] [Lodging] [Bodhi Tree]


The Four Foundations of Mindfulness, Session 15 – Jan. 24, 2015

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7. Ajahn Sucitto speaks of feeling water washing through you [as a way of releasing tension related to effort]. Comment by Debbie Stamp. [Ajahn Sucitto] [Elements] [Right Effort]

Story: Khun Kesari’s brother enters concentration by visualizing drinking a glass of water. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Concentration] [Visualization]

Story: Kesari’s mother walked into Wat Ban Tad before there was a road. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Wat Pah Ban Tat] [Relics]


The Teaching and the Training, Session 7 – Mar. 23, 2018

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6. “What about relics?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Relics ] [Monastic life] // [Ajahn Mun] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Ajahn Khao] [Mae Chee Kaew] [Master Hsuan Hua] [Ajahn Chah]

Story: Ajahn Pasanno’s mother observes multiplying relics. [Relics ]


Questions and Answers about Ajahn Chah, Session 2 – Jun. 18, 2025

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4. Story: A group of military generals ask Ajahn Chah to bless some medallions. Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Amulets] // [Wat Pah Pong] [Food] [Saṅgha decision making] [Relics] [Ajahn Chah Stupa] [Funerals]