(Half-Bell)

(Bell)

(FRENCH) Does Thay have a
theory of the universe?

(Sr Pine) Dear Thay, 
have you developed theories of the universe?

No.

(Laughter in the audience)

I know that it is a waste of time
to do these things,

so I devote my time
to doing more concrete things.

When you come to Plum Village
you do not learn theories about meditation.

You are given
a concrete practice of meditation,

so that you can change, for the better.

Your body, your feeling, your perception,
there are many wrong perceptions.

Everyone of us maybe a victim
of wrong perception.

Wrong perceptions
can bring a lot of suffering.

Meditation is to calm down,

to be more peaceful, 
to see things more clearly,

so that we can correct
our wrong perceptions.

Our wrong perceptions bring
fear, anger, despair.

That is why we have to look deeply
and meditation is to look deeply,

to correct our perceptions.

So that we don't suffer,
and we don't make other people suffer,

this is very important, practical.

When you elaborate
a theory about the cosmos,

usually you use the mind, the intellect,
your intellect.

With the intellect you cannot go very far.

Because our intellect might be caught
in many prejudices.

We have heard, we have learnt things,

and we believe in
these things that we have learnt.

We are not able to release them.

So even scientists, many of them are
caught in preconceptions.

To be a true scientist,
it means that you are ready to release

what you already know,

in order to reach a
higher level of understanding.

So I do not think that using the intellect

to elaborate a theory about
the cosmos is very helpful.

It takes a long time

and we do not have time
to do other things.

Many scientists deal, contend
with the questions:

What is the Universe?

Where did the Universe come from?

What happens when the Universe
comes to an end?

All these questions they take away
most of our time.

When you come to this deep meditation,

you might recognize, touch 
the truth of no beginning and no ending,

and you might discard
many of the questions

that are untrue, that are unnecessary.

You don't lose your time
because of these questions.

Understanding is what we obtain
with meditation.

Here it is possible to understand
the suffering,

the suffering in yourself
and the suffering in another person.

This understanding of suffering
brings about compassion,

and compassion has the power to heal you

and heal the other person.

These are very, very urgent concerns.

And your understanding continues to grow,

if you understand suffering, 
then you come to understand happiness.

You see the connection between suffering
and happiness.

You can go very fast, 
you can understand that,

being and non being are just notions.

Beginning and ending are just notions,
they cannot be applied to reality.

But the first understaning we need to get

is understanding of suffering.

That is the starting point
of the Buddhist tradition,

and it is very practical.

If you don't suffer much anymore,

your mind is calm,

and you can understand things,

more easily and quickly.

(Half-Bell)

(Bell)