0:00:00.465,0:00:06.146
So anyway for the talk[br]just to warm people up.

0:00:06.146,0:00:12.558
They're one of the good friends,[br]disciples, followers from Canada.

0:00:12.558,0:00:17.223
I'm sure is listening [br]and if not listening now

0:00:17.223,0:00:19.599
will get hold of the talk later on.

0:00:19.599,0:00:25.373
They're very, very devoted disciples,[br]very wonderful people too.

0:00:25.373,0:00:29.110
But they asked me that they've been[br]trying to encourage some of their friends

0:00:29.110,0:00:32.166
to do some meditation.

0:00:32.166,0:00:37.893
But then some of the friends equate[br]meditation to mindfulness practice.

0:00:37.893,0:00:42.678
And sometimes you see[br]the people who practice mindfulness

0:00:42.678,0:00:46.123
that sometimes they get[br]into difficulties and problems.

0:00:46.123,0:00:53.988
Sometimes it's just like people who[br]have Covid 19 vaccine.

0:00:53.988,0:00:59.736
Sometimes they have problems[br]only it's a tiny, tiny sort of proportion.

0:00:59.736,0:01:01.703
I think somebody said that

0:01:01.703,0:01:05.933
you've got more chance of [br]having a problem with a Covid vaccine.

0:01:05.933,0:01:09.562
The chances of that are just more remote[br]than winning the Lotto.

0:01:09.562,0:01:11.908
It's just like people surfing,

0:01:11.908,0:01:16.458
some people who surf on [br]Western Australia get eaten by sharks

0:01:16.458,0:01:20.215
that doesn't really stop people surfing.

0:01:20.215,0:01:23.412
But even with mindfulness practice

0:01:23.412,0:01:25.864
sometimes there's some problems there.

0:01:25.864,0:01:32.008
You know, it doesn't need to be.[br]It's much safer than surfing,

0:01:32.008,0:01:36.417
but it's also much more healthy.

0:01:36.417,0:01:41.147
And one of the reasons why[br]any problems exist in the first place

0:01:41.147,0:01:48.672
is that this thing called mindfulness[br]has been just almost like titrated

0:01:48.672,0:01:53.412
and just taken away from its context[br]in other forms of Buddhist practice.

0:01:53.412,0:01:56.404
And when it's by itself it misses out

0:01:56.404,0:02:01.426
on some of the wonderful safeguards[br]which are always there.

0:02:01.426,0:02:10.180
And to make a point, when I first went[br]to teach meditation overseas.

0:02:10.180,0:02:18.769
I think it was over in Malaysia. [br]Malaysia is a Muslim country,

0:02:18.769,0:02:22.220
there's a lot of Buddhists[br]over in Malaysia as well.

0:02:22.220,0:02:27.705
And over there they were very keen[br]on doing all the parts of Buddhism

0:02:27.705,0:02:30.624
especially meditation practice.

0:02:30.624,0:02:35.768
when I talked to them [br]I was stunned, I was surprised!

0:02:35.768,0:02:38.068
Because they were complaining

0:02:38.068,0:02:42.488
that meditation gave you[br]"Samadhi headache!"

0:02:42.488,0:02:45.762
They called samadhi means like, [br]well it actually meant over there,

0:02:45.762,0:02:47.741
concentration. [br]It really means stillness.

0:02:47.741,0:02:49.384
"Meditation headache?"

0:02:49.384,0:02:55.725
I couldn't understand that. I've been[br]meditating for years by that time.

0:02:55.725,0:02:58.859
How many years of, crikey![br]About 30 years probably.

0:02:58.859,0:03:01.939
I never had a headache by meditating.

0:03:01.939,0:03:05.843
Actually I use meditation[br]to overcome headaches.

0:03:05.843,0:03:14.913
I use meditation overcome headaches,[br]indigestion, scrub typhus fever.

0:03:14.913,0:03:18.265
That's a pretty big one. [br]And all these other stuff,

0:03:18.265,0:03:23.691
even injuries, bruises[br]and stuff if we fell over.

0:03:23.691,0:03:26.490
And it's amazing I thought,

0:03:26.490,0:03:29.711
meditation is there to help your health

0:03:29.711,0:03:32.570
not to create more headaches [br]and problems.

0:03:32.570,0:03:36.093
What on earth have you been doing?

0:03:36.203,0:03:40.294
And of course, it was a meditation[br]which was being done,

0:03:40.444,0:03:44.813
which has a lot of problems [br]if you compared it with

0:03:44.813,0:03:48.183
traditional Buddhist meditation.

0:03:48.853,0:03:52.365
The meditators there were [br]struggling and striving

0:03:52.365,0:03:54.835
and trying to get something.

0:03:55.445,0:03:57.431
And you find whenever [br]you want something,

0:03:57.431,0:03:59.948
try to get something [br]and strive something;

0:03:59.948,0:04:03.529
I'm going to do this.[br]I'm going to make sure it works.

0:04:03.529,0:04:04.901
I'm going to be ...

0:04:04.901,0:04:07.486
My own story...

0:04:09.011,0:04:10.981
I'm still a lay person,

0:04:10.981,0:04:16.336
we started doing some meditation[br]and it was the Vesak time.

0:04:16.336,0:04:21.684
This was celebrating the birth[br]enlightenment, passing away of the Buddha.

0:04:21.694,0:04:27.287
And when I heard the story[br]of the Buddha's enlightenment.

0:04:27.287,0:04:31.917
What I heard was that[br]the Buddha sat under the Bodhi tree

0:04:31.917,0:04:36.896
and he made a resolution, [br]a determination.

0:04:36.896,0:04:40.097
"I'm gonna get enlightened.

0:04:42.077,0:04:45.149
Right here, I'm not gonna move.

0:04:45.149,0:04:51.759
Even if my blood dries up[br]and my bones turn to dust.

0:04:51.759,0:04:55.845
I'm not gonna move from this seat until

0:04:55.845,0:04:59.775
... until I get full enlightenment".

0:05:00.855,0:05:05.446
Being stupid at the time I thought that[br]was really cool.

0:05:06.166,0:05:08.473
So you know what I did?

0:05:08.473,0:05:13.183
I went back to my room,[br]I put a little couple of cushions out,

0:05:14.145,0:05:15.145
(Laugh)

0:05:16.107,0:05:21.539
stupid young man, [br]I was about 18 at the time (laugh)

0:05:21.539,0:05:24.159
You know, 18 year old men.

0:05:24.159,0:05:26.305
Any 18 year old man here?

0:05:26.754,0:05:28.456
Don't admit it. Don't admit it.

0:05:28.456,0:05:30.999
Come on, you're not 18 [br]you're much older than that.

0:05:30.999,0:05:32.579
I said 18 not 80.

0:05:37.634,0:05:44.997
So I sat down on that cushion[br]I made a resolution.

0:05:45.647,0:05:48.071
I'm as good as the Buddha.

0:05:48.071,0:05:51.251
That was in India,[br]he didn't have an education.

0:05:51.251,0:05:54.860
I thought like that, really arrogant.

0:05:54.860,0:05:59.407
You know my maximum amount of time[br]I could meditate for at 18

0:05:59.407,0:06:02.948
was about 20 minutes[br]and that was pushing it,

0:06:02.948,0:06:06.574
25 sometimes on a good meditation.

0:06:06.664,0:06:09.458
So I sat down and said forget about[br]all of that,

0:06:09.458,0:06:13.819
I'm not going to move.[br]Now I've got to get enlightened,

0:06:13.830,0:06:18.846
I want to get it out of the way, I've got[br]many other things to do in my life.

0:06:18.846,0:06:21.724
I sat there and made the resolution[br]I'm not gonna move

0:06:21.724,0:06:25.005
until I get perfect enlightenment or

0:06:25.005,0:06:28.455
you always gotta have [br]an alternative or

0:06:28.455,0:06:31.695
my blood dries up and [br]bones turn to dust.

0:06:31.695,0:06:35.383
I actually made that resolution,[br]honestly I did.

0:06:35.383,0:06:38.570
It was hell. After half an hour

0:06:38.570,0:06:44.425
I meant to get to half an hour, my bones[br]were just ... they were burning in pain,

0:06:44.425,0:06:46.839
my back was aching, [br]every muscle was on fire.

0:06:46.839,0:06:49.749
No, I'm not enlightened yet, carry on.

0:06:50.179,0:06:52.633
[Laughter]

0:06:52.633,0:06:56.371
You know, I got about[br]between 35 and 40 minutes.

0:06:56.371,0:06:59.061
I couldn't stand it any longer

0:06:59.061,0:07:03.281
and I opened my eyes and[br]you know I wasn't enlightened!

0:07:03.281,0:07:09.900
And my blood hadn’t dried up yet,[br]my bones hadn't turned to dust.

0:07:09.900,0:07:12.827
I was really stupid!

0:07:12.827,0:07:18.977
But later on, instead of just running[br]because of arrogance

0:07:18.977,0:07:24.229
and meditating just because[br]I thought I was so good.

0:07:24.229,0:07:29.152
I had a marvelous teacher[br]like an Ajahn Chah.

0:07:29.152,0:07:32.010
And he kept on saying [br]not just once but

0:07:32.010,0:07:35.640
many, many, many, many times.[br]Probably a thousand times

0:07:35.640,0:07:39.249
in the nine years [br]which I meditated with him.

0:07:39.249,0:07:45.349
He said you meditate to let go of things[br]not to gain things.

0:07:45.539,0:07:51.140
And I didn't understand a word of it[br]when I first heard it.

0:07:51.140,0:07:55.166
I realized that was some of the most[br]wonderful advice he could ever give.

0:07:55.166,0:07:57.083
You want to get something,

0:07:57.083,0:08:02.814
something you want to aim for,[br]to strive for, you get very tense.

0:08:02.814,0:08:07.258
But if you want to let go of things[br]you get lighter and lighter

0:08:07.258,0:08:11.062
and the path becomes [br]so easy and peaceful.

0:08:11.412,0:08:14.445
And that becomes another reason why[br]many people,

0:08:14.445,0:08:20.687
if they don't understand[br]what meditation or mindfulness is,

0:08:20.687,0:08:22.880
they want to get something,

0:08:22.880,0:08:25.780
always be the tension,[br]the tightness there.

0:08:25.780,0:08:27.767
And a lot of times you can't get

0:08:27.767,0:08:32.587
what you think you want[br]or you think you need.

0:08:32.587,0:08:34.605
You don't need very much.

0:08:34.605,0:08:36.693
But every time we think we need this

0:08:36.693,0:08:42.107
and when you're fighting[br]you'd always get injuries,

0:08:42.107,0:08:45.198
or sometimes they call[br]collateral damage.

0:08:45.448,0:08:49.770
And that's actually what happens when[br]people are just mindful.

0:08:49.770,0:08:57.446
So as soldiers they can shoot[br]more accurately and kill people.

0:08:57.446,0:09:03.817
When they're mindful so they can win[br]more arguments in debates.

0:09:03.817,0:09:06.239
When they're mindful [br]so they can make more money

0:09:06.239,0:09:09.039
on the stock market or whatever.

0:09:09.039,0:09:11.392
If you're trying to get something

0:09:11.392,0:09:15.502
you'll find that's not really[br]Buddhist meditation,

0:09:15.952,0:09:17.484
it's not mindfulness.

0:09:17.484,0:09:21.624
When you're trying to let go of things,[br]to simplify your life,

0:09:21.934,0:09:25.107
to make your life more peaceful, [br]more at ease.

0:09:25.107,0:09:27.954
We always know in spiritual life[br]you keep on saying

0:09:27.954,0:09:30.219
how much do you really need

0:09:30.219,0:09:34.299
to be healthy, to be happy,[br]to have a wonderful life?

0:09:34.299,0:09:36.251
How much do you really need?

0:09:36.251,0:09:41.055
If you want to know, next time you go to[br]Bodhinyana monastery,

0:09:41.055,0:09:47.512
go and ask to have a visit[br]to my home where I live.

0:09:47.512,0:09:51.862
Hands up now, how many of you[br]have actually been into my cave?

0:09:52.232,0:09:57.846
I've got to put my hand up as well cause[br]I've got to be honest I've been in there.

0:09:57.846,0:09:59.362
Is it big?[br](Laughter)

0:10:04.622,0:10:09.742
It's big in peace. [br]It's big in freedom.

0:10:09.742,0:10:15.419
It's a tiny little cave and that's all[br]I need, I got a toilet around the back

0:10:15.419,0:10:20.448
but it's about three meters,[br]it's like a dome

0:10:20.448,0:10:26.573
three meters... no, three meters diameter[br]and that's semi dome.

0:10:26.573,0:10:31.438
And in that cave I've got a bed,[br]meditation cushion,

0:10:31.438,0:10:38.961
a blanket and water, a flashlight[br]and a clock, a little Buddha statue.

0:10:38.961,0:10:42.800
And I do have I must admit electricity

0:10:42.800,0:10:51.816
that's just to light the way and[br]a...not bamboo, a cork floor. That's it.

0:10:51.816,0:10:56.320
You know it's really easy to clean,

0:10:56.880,0:11:01.001
it doesn't take that long but[br]it's also the simplicity of it.

0:11:01.001,0:11:03.626
What do you need?

0:11:04.056,0:11:09.511
So a lot of times even in life[br]when we simplify things

0:11:09.511,0:11:14.191
we find that life is much more peaceful.

0:11:14.191,0:11:19.550
And even in meditation,[br]if you want to get things

0:11:19.550,0:11:23.104
then there's no end [br]of getting more things.

0:11:23.104,0:11:25.180
How many more things do you want?

0:11:25.180,0:11:27.431
How rich do you want to be?

0:11:27.431,0:11:32.916
Have you noticed really rich people,[br]they always have to keep on working?

0:11:33.976,0:11:37.323
You know Elon Musk, [br]he's got enough money now

0:11:37.323,0:11:42.571
he should be able to retire.[br]He has to work!

0:11:42.571,0:11:45.935
So how much money would you want?

0:11:45.935,0:11:50.847
Apparently that somebody[br]won the lottery on Friday.

0:11:51.447,0:11:53.145
Anyone here?

0:11:55.125,0:11:59.309
If it was you, now being that wealthy[br]is just really a burden,

0:11:59.309,0:12:01.445
it causes you so much suffering.

0:12:01.445,0:12:06.385
I remember, I don't mind saying,[br]meeting this guy

0:12:06.385,0:12:12.365
he was the CEO of Tropicana resort and [br]lots of other businesses over in Malaysia

0:12:12.365,0:12:18.611
and he invited me to his house. No,[br]I can't say houses... mansion, huge thing.

0:12:18.611,0:12:25.524
But what really I...was really struck me[br]that going into his residence

0:12:25.524,0:12:32.263
there were like two guards[br]with machine guns at the gate,

0:12:32.263,0:12:37.910
it's like going into Buckingham palace[br]where they have these household guards.

0:12:37.910,0:12:43.890
And so, why do you need guards[br]with machine guns?

0:12:43.890,0:12:49.100
I've got no guards with machine guns[br]in front of my cave. (laughter)

0:12:51.240,0:12:57.014
Is because there's a lot of fear [br]when you have many things.

0:12:57.014,0:13:01.110
If you only have a few things or old[br]things you don't have to be afraid at all.

0:13:01.110,0:13:03.979
I learned that from my father,[br]strange enough,

0:13:03.979,0:13:09.614
because where he lived was [br]in a very small council flat in London,

0:13:09.614,0:13:13.954
like government sponsored housing[br]for the poor.

0:13:13.954,0:13:17.171
But it was very...[br]we had a very happy time there,

0:13:17.171,0:13:21.624
but often I just asked him[br]"why don't we lock the door when we go out

0:13:21.624,0:13:24.264
aren't you afraid of burglars?"

0:13:24.264,0:13:27.736
You know what my father said, he said:[br]"No, I'm not afraid of burglars

0:13:27.736,0:13:31.597
in fact I'm quite hopeful[br]a burglar might come in

0:13:31.597,0:13:35.829
take pity on us and leave us something."[br](Laughter)

0:13:39.684,0:13:43.706
So at least you didn't have [br]to worry about anything.

0:13:43.706,0:13:47.966
Not worrying about anything,[br]great peace and happiness, contentment.

0:13:47.966,0:13:49.560
So that's also one of the reasons

0:13:49.560,0:13:52.770
when you're not worrying about[br]attaining things or losing...oh no

0:13:52.770,0:13:56.857
attaining, getting things [br]but you're more happy

0:13:56.857,0:13:59.300
with emptying out your mind.

0:13:59.300,0:14:03.099
then actually you're meditating[br]in a proper way.

0:14:03.099,0:14:07.825
And where that comes from[br]if anybody wants to check me out,

0:14:07.825,0:14:11.664
that comes from the second factor[br]of the eightfold path,

0:14:11.664,0:14:14.762
meditation is a whole path [br]eightfold path.

0:14:14.762,0:14:18.302
Meditation ... the deep meditations [br]are the last factor.

0:14:18.302,0:14:19.973
Mindfulness is the seventh factor.

0:14:19.973,0:14:26.357
The second factor is of the right ways [br]of what we call right motivation.

0:14:26.357,0:14:28.607
Ajahn Brahmali kept calling it intention

0:14:28.607,0:14:31.644
but I prefer motivation,[br]where you're coming from,

0:14:31.644,0:14:33.718
not what you're trying to achieve.

0:14:33.718,0:14:37.542
Because the right motivations are[br]three right motivations for meditation.

0:14:37.542,0:14:40.807
If you do your mindfulness practice

0:14:40.807,0:14:44.547
with these three motivations [br]you're really safe.

0:14:44.547,0:14:48.496
The first motivation[br]is called nekkhamma.

0:14:48.496,0:14:51.846
It's a Pali word it means [br]letting go, renunciation,

0:14:51.846,0:14:54.806
giving up, simplifying.

0:14:54.806,0:14:57.798
I knew that was... that's really Buddhist,

0:14:57.798,0:15:00.098
we are supposed to live simple lives.

0:15:00.098,0:15:03.876
Very few people live [br]simple lives these days.

0:15:03.876,0:15:08.940
But we really try as best we can [br]as monks and nuns

0:15:08.940,0:15:15.075
to live simple as we possibly can.

0:15:16.695,0:15:20.282
It's really strange isn't it that [br]you know, sometimes I go off

0:15:20.282,0:15:22.552
I used to go overseas..

0:15:22.552,0:15:26.357
I used to go overseas and sometimes you[br]know what would happen?

0:15:26.357,0:15:30.878
People buy you business class tickets,[br]honestly they did.

0:15:30.878,0:15:37.818
I did this ... what was it called,[br]a keynote address at conferences.

0:15:37.818,0:15:46.560
I used to go to conferences, a keynote[br]address at the 2018 I think it was

0:15:46.560,0:15:52.470
World Computer Conference[br]in Dejun, South Korea.

0:15:52.470,0:15:55.988
That was a really good gig,

0:15:55.988,0:15:59.672
the World Computer Conference

0:15:59.672,0:16:05.179
and I'm not just giving a small talk,[br]giving the keynote address.

0:16:05.179,0:16:08.974
That's after all these politicians[br]and dignitaries and stuff gave

0:16:08.974,0:16:13.178
and then I had to set the tone[br]of the conference.

0:16:13.178,0:16:17.405
And I did really well. [br]You know that's where they brought...

0:16:17.405,0:16:20.933
they offered this business class ticket[br]on Singapore airlines

0:16:20.933,0:16:25.158
all the way to South Korea and back,[br]nice hotel.

0:16:25.158,0:16:29.123
And they gave 2000$[br]to the Buddhist Society

0:16:29.123,0:16:32.173
just for a quarter of an hour's talk.

0:16:32.173,0:16:38.988
So what we call a nice little earner[br]for our BSWA. (laugh)

0:16:41.218,0:16:44.184
But then you know [br]you go on business class

0:16:44.184,0:16:47.619
and they ask how much do you earn?[br]Nothing!

0:16:47.619,0:16:53.124
How much money have you got? [br]Zero.

0:16:53.124,0:16:57.777
What's a poor person doing[br]travelling on business class,

0:16:57.777,0:17:00.568
no money in the bank anywhere.

0:17:00.568,0:17:05.002
So I like those like [br]contradictions in life

0:17:05.002,0:17:07.598
and what is a person who...

0:17:07.598,0:17:16.368
I don't know much about computers, [br]do I? (laughter)

0:17:16.368,0:17:19.229
When anything goes wrong [br]you have to ask somebody else,

0:17:19.229,0:17:23.382
what's gone wrong?

0:17:23.642,0:17:28.526
What are you doing dude?[br]Do the keynote address

0:17:28.766,0:17:35.602
in front of all these computer wizards?[br]They asked me that.

0:17:35.602,0:17:38.775
And I gave the answer [br]that in life

0:17:38.775,0:17:45.030
you don't have to know very much[br]to actually to innovate.

0:17:45.030,0:17:48.571
In fact the more you know,[br]the less you see.

0:17:48.571,0:17:53.782
And you're trained always to see things[br]in the same way.

0:17:53.782,0:17:57.442
A narrow course of mind.

0:17:57.442,0:18:02.033
And as a monk you can actually[br]do all sorts of weird stuff,

0:18:02.033,0:18:07.343
like meditate and see things[br]in a different way.

0:18:07.343,0:18:11.397
To innovate [br]means being still,

0:18:13.577,0:18:17.197
letting everything go[br]and seeing things afresh.

0:18:17.887,0:18:21.184
And of course, [br]we all know in economies,

0:18:21.184,0:18:24.638
innovation is a key to success.

0:18:24.638,0:18:30.162
Not doing things in the same old way[br]but doing things in a different way.

0:18:30.162,0:18:34.882
And look at this place I mean[br]Buddhist Society Western Australia.

0:18:34.882,0:18:39.642
As far as I know it's one of the biggest[br]Buddhist societies in the world.

0:18:39.872,0:18:46.336
It's because this is how we practice,[br]innovation, doing things differently.

0:18:46.336,0:18:50.148
But anyway back to mindfulness[br]when we learn how to let go of things.

0:18:50.148,0:18:54.419
The other thing in right motivation[br]is letting go

0:18:54.771,0:19:04.042
and then the second factor of right[br]motivation is kindness, compassion.

0:19:05.302,0:19:08.994
and that was something[br]I often say this to people

0:19:08.994,0:19:12.891
that was something I thought[br]was obvious if ever you read

0:19:12.891,0:19:16.265
the life story of the monks and nuns[br]in the time of the Buddha.

0:19:16.265,0:19:21.802
Compassion was really important,[br]being kind to all beings.

0:19:22.082,0:19:28.242
This is one lady, I think,[br]she didn't say where she was from.

0:19:28.242,0:19:33.242
There's still a lot of people[br]who have discriminatory minds

0:19:33.242,0:19:38.304
and she was a Buddhist but she said[br]something happened last week.

0:19:38.874,0:19:43.251
She said her son came out [br]and said he was gay.

0:19:43.251,0:19:46.410
" Oh! Ajahn Brahm, [br]what should I do?"

0:19:46.410,0:19:50.940
Because there's some societies [br]where that's still regarded as terrible

0:19:50.940,0:19:55.914
and I said look, you probably chant[br]this every day as a Buddhist,

0:19:55.914,0:19:59.184
"may all beings be happy and well."

0:19:59.184,0:20:04.003
I think you chanted that here[br]just before I came in.

0:20:04.003,0:20:10.713
Gay people, lesbians, transgenders,[br]L G B T Q I A plus.

0:20:12.373,0:20:14.935
Aren't they beings?

0:20:15.385,0:20:18.355
Do they deserve kindness, [br]compassion, empathy

0:20:18.355,0:20:22.693
just like everybody else?[br]What's the problem?

0:20:22.693,0:20:24.443
And the fact that [br]she didn't realize

0:20:24.443,0:20:27.983
she'd be chanting and part of the chant,[br]may all beings be happy and well.

0:20:27.983,0:20:34.485
Even Donald Trump, Mr. Putin.

0:20:34.485,0:20:38.955
Who else is in the black books?[br]May they all be happy and well, come on.

0:20:38.955,0:20:44.080
Because there's something powerful[br]which I saw in this type of Buddhism

0:20:44.080,0:20:47.432
when you give happiness to your enemies

0:20:47.602,0:20:51.448
then your enemies are not[br]your enemies anymore.

0:20:51.448,0:20:56.295
It's weird but they become soft[br]and peaceful.

0:20:56.795,0:21:00.087
And where this comes up,[br]Why I wanted to bring this up was

0:21:00.087,0:21:04.507
you know sometimes when I think[br]this BBC article I read a long time ago,

0:21:04.507,0:21:07.219
so one of the problems with mindfulness

0:21:07.219,0:21:10.393
they get you to actually just allow[br]things to be.

0:21:10.973,0:21:14.193
That's not good enough.

0:21:14.193,0:21:16.731
Because sometimes what comes up

0:21:16.731,0:21:19.781
is some of the past traumas[br]which people have.

0:21:19.781,0:21:22.797
And those past traumas if [br]it's just being aware of them,

0:21:22.797,0:21:24.998
you can't hold them,[br]you can't handle them,

0:21:24.998,0:21:27.088
they're just really painful.

0:21:27.088,0:21:30.182
And that's where a lot of times people[br]just have almost psychosis

0:21:30.182,0:21:32.512
with this mindfulness practice.

0:21:32.512,0:21:35.042
But what's the difference between[br]how we do things

0:21:35.042,0:21:38.062
in Buddhist mindfulness practice?

0:21:38.062,0:21:41.658
If something comes out from the past [br]and it's really a bad memory,

0:21:41.658,0:21:43.622
very awful memory, [br]difficult memory,

0:21:43.622,0:21:50.483
something very hard for you to hold.[br]How can we let go of that past?

0:21:51.473,0:21:53.935
With kindness.

0:21:54.413,0:21:58.940
It's a strange thing to say but I've[br]said this so many times before

0:21:58.940,0:22:05.013
if you are meditating and you know[br]your mind just wanders off to the past

0:22:05.013,0:22:07.752
where something really hard [br]happened to you

0:22:07.752,0:22:11.284
or a repressed memory comes up [br]into your mind

0:22:11.284,0:22:15.968
and it's a painful memory.[br]What do you do with it?

0:22:16.808,0:22:22.269
And if you try and get rid of it,[br]you give it anger, ill will.

0:22:22.269,0:22:26.680
You don't want to face it,[br]it often gets much worse.

0:22:27.520,0:22:29.679
So there's something else [br]you can do with it

0:22:29.679,0:22:33.079
give it kindness.

0:22:33.559,0:22:38.771
Give you yourself kindness.[br]Give whoever did that to you kindness.

0:22:38.771,0:22:44.535
And here we go again with this simile,[br]it's such a beautiful simile.

0:22:44.535,0:22:48.755
The last time I gave on the retreat[br]which I did after Easter

0:22:48.755,0:22:50.856
I remember after doing this simile

0:22:50.856,0:22:53.896
everyone was looking at me, [br]just blown away

0:22:53.896,0:22:59.436
even though they heard before.[br]Many actually were teary afterwards.

0:22:59.566,0:23:04.233
There was that simile of that...[br]that group here in Perth

0:23:04.233,0:23:11.143
called ASSETT - Australian Society [br]Survivors of Torture and Trauma.

0:23:11.143,0:23:16.817
And one day they invited me to go[br]and visit their center

0:23:16.817,0:23:19.150
do a blessing or something.[br]I said: "Yes, sure."

0:23:19.150,0:23:21.840
because many of them actually came here

0:23:21.840,0:23:27.358
and I didn't know why.[br]Why did you invite me?

0:23:27.358,0:23:34.593
And they said because a couple of[br]their key strategies - they learnt here.

0:23:34.593,0:23:37.654
Which ones? [br]And when they told me

0:23:37.654,0:23:42.605
oh it's just it's an emotional[br]deep right inside me, really high,

0:23:42.605,0:23:46.716
make me incredibly happy. [br]That's why I love telling that story.

0:23:46.716,0:23:49.982
They said the one story[br]which worked the best.

0:23:49.982,0:23:52.720
It was kindness.

0:23:53.125,0:23:55.558
What do you mean kindness?

0:23:55.558,0:24:01.302
It's that old story of telling[br]what my father told me.

0:24:01.302,0:24:05.852
My father teaches... pictures a lot[br]in this talk this evening.

0:24:05.852,0:24:09.309
My father used to tell me just[br]"Son, wherever you go,

0:24:09.309,0:24:12.216
whatever you do, however [br]you turn out in your life.

0:24:12.216,0:24:15.015
He said to me when I was [br]about 14 year old.

0:24:15.015,0:24:19.335
And it's so uncertain in life.[br]He said "whatever you do,

0:24:19.335,0:24:24.154
the door of my house will always [br]be open to you."

0:24:24.154,0:24:28.124
And of course his house was a council flat[br]with hardly anything in it.

0:24:28.814,0:24:33.743
But you know that sometimes[br]somebody says something

0:24:33.743,0:24:37.665
maybe here, maybe a friend,[br]maybe something you read or hear.

0:24:37.665,0:24:40.289
It's so you know this is important.

0:24:40.289,0:24:43.379
And I remember that [br]as a 14 year old boy

0:24:43.379,0:24:46.835
that this is important.[br]I don't know why I can't understand it

0:24:47.135,0:24:50.715
because you know boys emotions [br]are not very developed.

0:24:50.715,0:24:54.787
But I remembered it enough that[br]when I became a monk.

0:24:54.787,0:24:59.056
And one of the nice things about[br]being a monk or a nun, you have time,

0:24:59.056,0:25:02.877
you have time to really figure out your[br]emotional world and what it means.

0:25:02.877,0:25:05.846
And that was one of[br]the unfinished business

0:25:05.846,0:25:09.216
I had from my father - he died[br]when I was about 16.

0:25:09.216,0:25:11.975
What did he really mean by that?

0:25:12.235,0:25:14.621
And of course, you've heard me[br]say this before

0:25:14.621,0:25:17.184
it became the title of my first book.

0:25:17.184,0:25:22.402
What he meant was not his house,[br]he meant his heart.

0:25:22.402,0:25:25.382
He said whatever you do, [br]however you turn out,

0:25:25.382,0:25:28.206
whatever happens to you,

0:25:28.206,0:25:33.406
the door of my heart [br]will always be open to you.

0:25:33.406,0:25:38.146
When I realized that was just me[br]that hit me so deeply.

0:25:38.146,0:25:44.729
It was the first expression [br]of unconditional love

0:25:45.249,0:25:51.892
that I could really understand.[br]And it made so much sense to me

0:25:51.892,0:25:55.732
and of course, a father to his son[br]was, you know, so powerful.

0:25:55.732,0:25:59.361
I wish I'd understood that [br]when he said it to me

0:25:59.361,0:26:01.781
how powerful it was.

0:26:01.781,0:26:05.845
And of course that story, which [br]I can see you're looking at me,

0:26:05.845,0:26:09.119
and it's meant something to you already.

0:26:09.119,0:26:11.695
That meant something [br]to a couple of psychologists,

0:26:11.695,0:26:14.415
psychiatrists who would come here

0:26:14.415,0:26:20.021
and then work with people who had been[br]very badly abused overseas.

0:26:20.381,0:26:25.468
And people who had survived somehow.

0:26:25.468,0:26:28.279
When I heard some of their statements[br]I don't know how

0:26:28.279,0:26:34.084
they could survive some of that abuse, [br]physical, emotional

0:26:34.084,0:26:37.664
in some of these regimes overseas.

0:26:38.404,0:26:43.094
But anyway they'd made it[br]to Australia physically safe,

0:26:43.094,0:26:47.188
emotionally still in the torture chambers,

0:26:47.308,0:26:52.368
still being raped, beaten [br]for no reason.

0:26:53.788,0:26:59.963
I've had a very simple life[br]so I can't really understand

0:26:59.963,0:27:06.462
how they must have felt and[br]how they survived is beyond me.

0:27:06.652,0:27:10.280
But now they're here, they're still[br]carrying that huge burden

0:27:10.280,0:27:14.910
and how they overcame that burden.

0:27:14.910,0:27:19.690
And that's because I developed [br]that story and taught it

0:27:19.690,0:27:24.421
that gives me so much joy.[br]How they overcame that was

0:27:24.421,0:27:30.078
they decided to incorporate that[br]as one of their strategies.

0:27:30.078,0:27:34.231
But when a person feels safe, [br]you can't force anything,

0:27:34.231,0:27:39.869
you can't say now do it.[br]It has to be when you're ready.

0:27:39.869,0:27:42.857
And they would sit down [br]in a comfortable safe place,

0:27:42.857,0:27:45.207
the safety was important

0:27:45.207,0:27:51.666
and then they closed their eyes and[br]then they imagine a heart in their chest

0:27:51.666,0:27:56.425
and it was a Valentine's day heart[br]not a real heart.

0:27:56.425,0:27:59.405
If you've seen real hearts[br]in medical books

0:27:59.405,0:28:06.314
they're not beautiful at all,[br]got tubes all over the place.

0:28:06.314,0:28:09.950
But the Valentine's day heart[br]as everyone knows

0:28:09.950,0:28:14.120
imagine a Valentine's heart[br]in the center of your chest

0:28:14.120,0:28:18.969
with two big doors.[br]The two doors open out

0:28:18.969,0:28:21.973
and the nice part of you, [br]the part of you

0:28:21.973,0:28:26.769
which you can respect and love[br]and live with happily,

0:28:27.379,0:28:29.046
all the nice times you remember,

0:28:29.046,0:28:32.549
the joyful times that people[br]who care for you and love you

0:28:32.549,0:28:36.544
and the wonderful experiences[br]you've had in your life

0:28:36.544,0:28:43.186
all those little beings which bear your[br]name at different ages, that's inside.

0:28:43.186,0:28:47.255
That's you,[br]you can very easily live with.

0:28:47.255,0:28:51.713
Then what happens next [br]is you look outside,

0:28:51.713,0:28:57.016
outside of your own heart,[br]is these little beings,

0:28:57.016,0:29:01.554
you were in the past, [br]young girls, young boys

0:29:01.554,0:29:08.358
who were treated just so painfully.[br]The physical abuse is only

0:29:08.358,0:29:12.648
a fraction of it, the emotional - Why?

0:29:12.648,0:29:16.363
That just makes it just so hard to bear.

0:29:16.383,0:29:19.417
You kept all those beings outside[br]of your own heart

0:29:19.417,0:29:24.604
and they were you.[br]So, imagine a ladder

0:29:24.604,0:29:31.601
coming from your heart [br]going down to the ground

0:29:31.601,0:29:36.497
and seeing all these people [br]who were you

0:29:36.497,0:29:38.837
and you're inviting them up.

0:29:38.837,0:29:45.242
I don't, I won't judge who you are [br]what happened to you,

0:29:49.642,0:29:53.468
no matter who you are, come in.

0:29:53.848,0:29:57.392
And to actually to do that,

0:29:57.392,0:30:04.611
it's just one of the most[br]courageous things you could do.

0:30:04.611,0:30:08.220
Invite those little beings[br]you're trying to just forget.

0:30:08.220,0:30:10.398
Trying to ignore, [br]trying to cover up,

0:30:10.398,0:30:12.398
trying to get out of here, get away,

0:30:12.398,0:30:16.344
you don't belong with me.[br]You're just so painful.

0:30:16.344,0:30:19.508
You allow them all to come up one by one

0:30:19.508,0:30:22.163
so little beings who have been alone

0:30:22.163,0:30:27.364
and separated out of your heart[br]for so many years

0:30:29.044,0:30:35.154
and you embrace them.[br]They're in your heart now, not out.

0:30:36.324,0:30:42.372
That's a huge change and they said[br]that worked amazingly.

0:30:42.372,0:30:46.595
And some of those women[br]who've gone through that

0:30:46.595,0:30:49.415
would come here on a Friday night.

0:30:49.415,0:30:53.752
I remember speaking to them, seeing them[br]and it just blew my mind.

0:30:53.752,0:30:56.757
They told me what they've been through[br]and you look at them now.

0:30:56.757,0:31:00.812
Wow! they were just[br]some of the amazing heroes.

0:31:00.812,0:31:05.636
So strong, they were like saints.[br]They said that's who I am!

0:31:06.996,0:31:12.803
And they don't traumatize themselves[br]with that anymore.

0:31:13.803,0:31:18.460
That's an extreme, I mean[br]you've been through some,

0:31:18.460,0:31:21.396
we've all been through some pain[br]and difficulty in our life.

0:31:21.396,0:31:23.089
There's things we'd rather forget.

0:31:23.089,0:31:26.073
Why don't we invite that in instead,

0:31:26.073,0:31:30.481
you embrace that [br]that's who you are, it's your life

0:31:30.481,0:31:36.071
and something happens,[br]what happens,

0:31:36.071,0:31:40.619
I keep on saying the same old stories [br]but they're powerful.

0:31:40.619,0:31:45.264
What happens is the old story of[br]the monster in the emperor's palace.

0:31:45.264,0:31:48.606
Monster came in the emperor's palace.[br]Get out, you don't belong.

0:31:48.606,0:31:51.408
Who do you think you are, [br]coming in here.

0:31:51.408,0:31:54.183
and the empress, [br]she was wise.

0:31:54.183,0:32:00.008
Because she was also a member of[br]the Buddhist Society of Western Australia

0:32:00.008,0:32:05.522
she'd come every Friday night.[br]So when she went back to the palace

0:32:05.522,0:32:09.792
she saw this big monster in there,[br]really ugly, really frightening.

0:32:09.792,0:32:15.032
What she said to the monster was[br]"welcome, thank you for visiting.

0:32:15.232,0:32:18.756
is there anything, anyone got you[br]anything to drink yet? Anything to eat?

0:32:18.756,0:32:20.288
What can we do for you?"

0:32:20.288,0:32:24.562
She'd turned such kindness to monsters

0:32:24.562,0:32:28.245
and what happened? This is[br]based on a Buddhist story.

0:32:28.245,0:32:33.402
Every thought, deed, act of kindness

0:32:33.402,0:32:36.322
and the monster grew an inch smaller,

0:32:36.322,0:32:41.286
an inch kinder, a little bit more...[br]more civil.

0:32:41.286,0:32:43.607
And they kept on [br]with the kindness so much,

0:32:43.607,0:32:46.697
- this is the shortened [br]version of the story -

0:32:46.697,0:32:50.855
That soon the monster, [br]who was so ugly and big

0:32:50.855,0:32:54.405
and frightening and violent[br]soon became so small

0:32:54.405,0:32:58.172
that one more act of kindness

0:32:58.172,0:33:01.079
and the monster [br]vanished completely away.

0:33:01.079,0:33:05.389
And that's in the Buddhist suttas,

0:33:05.389,0:33:10.569
that the Buddha said we call that[br]"anger eating monsters."

0:33:10.569,0:33:13.515
The more anger you give it, [br]the more negativity you give it,

0:33:13.515,0:33:16.235
the bigger it gets.[br]There's so much of that in our world.

0:33:16.235,0:33:20.884
But here I'm just saying in you,[br]get out of here bad memory

0:33:20.884,0:33:25.668
you don't belong and [br]the bad memory gets worse.

0:33:25.668,0:33:31.578
It takes a lot of guts and training[br]but if you do the kindness;

0:33:31.578,0:33:40.169
"welcome, welcome bad memory.[br]Thank you for coming to visit me".

0:33:40.169,0:33:44.026
Give kindness to it, [br]kindness to yourself

0:33:44.026,0:33:49.576
because so many times when you have[br]a memory which is embarrassing;

0:33:49.576,0:33:53.914
maybe you're ashamed of,[br]when you actually feel about it,

0:33:53.914,0:33:57.189
it's a human being, [br]you make mistakes;

0:33:57.189,0:34:00.446
please be kind to yourself.

0:34:00.446,0:34:04.526
Forgive yourself, care for yourself.

0:34:06.466,0:34:08.747
Other people who have hurt you

0:34:08.747,0:34:12.208
I don't know why they hurt you.[br]You don't know why they hurt you.

0:34:12.208,0:34:15.368
Maybe they thought they were doing[br]the best thing for you, I don't know.

0:34:15.368,0:34:19.050
Maybe they had other sort of things[br]they were thinking about at the time

0:34:19.050,0:34:23.587
or maybe they were drunk or[br]they're in drugs or whatever.

0:34:23.877,0:34:29.168
Sometimes if you can somehow put[br]yourself in their position a little bit.

0:34:29.168,0:34:33.856
Why do they do that?[br]What was their cultural training, why?

0:34:33.856,0:34:37.895
If you give kindness to people[br]who've hurt you,

0:34:37.895,0:34:43.305
it means you're not so vindictive.[br]There's no wanting to

0:34:43.305,0:34:46.491
sort of harm them back or [br]want you to harm yourself.

0:34:47.111,0:34:52.876
So when you give kindness to the[br]negative things of your past.

0:34:52.876,0:35:00.854
You find all those psychosis,[br]traumas, the bad memories,

0:35:00.854,0:35:04.950
the stuff which you can't get out of [br]your head,

0:35:04.950,0:35:09.350
stop you sleeping,[br]stop you enjoying your life

0:35:09.350,0:35:12.787
because you keep remembering[br]all these bad things.

0:35:12.787,0:35:18.243
You know, after a while [br]they gets so soft, so peaceful,

0:35:18.243,0:35:21.775
you can let them go.

0:35:21.957,0:35:28.557
It's weird but you overcome[br]negativity with kindness.

0:35:28.557,0:35:34.082
There's an amazing beautiful ability [br]in each one of you

0:35:34.162,0:35:36.191
to be soft and gentle.

0:35:37.051,0:35:40.671
And if you're soft and gentle [br]to your past;

0:35:40.671,0:35:44.688
The negative to the past can't stand it,[br]it vanishes.

0:35:44.688,0:35:48.595
So when we do mindfulness[br]we don't just be aware of the stuff.

0:35:48.595,0:35:50.334
we know the strategies.

0:35:50.334,0:35:52.741
If you get a bad feeling from the past

0:35:52.741,0:35:55.165
you can first of all you say

0:35:55.165,0:35:58.042
okay, I'll just let that go because[br]I'm not ready for it yet.

0:35:58.302,0:36:00.652
But there comes a time[br]when you are ready for it,

0:36:00.652,0:36:03.965
have all these strategies on[br]how to deal with it.

0:36:03.965,0:36:08.175
Another strategy how you deal with[br]some of the negativity of the past.

0:36:08.175,0:36:13.681
You know, every bad feeling[br]you have in your head, in your mind,

0:36:13.681,0:36:19.956
has a corresponding feeling in your body,[br]a physical feeling.

0:36:20.515,0:36:22.974
I already mentioned that at the beginning

0:36:22.974,0:36:26.354
when you are mindful of the body [br]and relaxing the body

0:36:26.354,0:36:29.435
I was talking about like the head.

0:36:29.435,0:36:33.745
If you are negative you can read[br]on a person's face.

0:36:33.745,0:36:37.820
Muscles tighten up, these other[br]muscles loosen up

0:36:37.820,0:36:40.802
and that's actually pretty much universal.

0:36:40.802,0:36:44.354
You know indigenous tribes in[br]the middle of the Amazon somewhere

0:36:44.354,0:36:48.537
you can still read their emotions[br]on their facial features.

0:36:48.827,0:36:54.928
So, all of those negative emotions[br]from the past

0:36:54.928,0:36:58.645
or fears of the future,

0:36:58.645,0:37:02.395
that's also written on[br]your body somewhere.

0:37:02.395,0:37:04.979
And that's one of the reasons why

0:37:04.979,0:37:08.966
if you do have some anxiety[br]or fear or whatever,

0:37:08.966,0:37:15.836
by doing some meditation practice,[br]it's not that hard to overcome that.

0:37:15.836,0:37:21.408
And it just amazes you how easy it is[br]and how effective it is.

0:37:21.408,0:37:25.300
And of course the one I'm going [br]to bring up now was...

0:37:25.300,0:37:27.375
she's not here this evening[br]thank goodness,

0:37:27.375,0:37:29.575
otherwise people get embarrassed.

0:37:29.575,0:37:33.274
But this was a lady who had[br]very bad anxiety.

0:37:33.274,0:37:37.334
So much anxiety[br]she couldn't get out of bed,

0:37:37.334,0:37:40.890
afraid even to go through the door[br]out into the world.

0:37:40.890,0:37:44.070
And she was in Adelaide,[br]a university student

0:37:44.950,0:37:50.624
and being in university[br]she had free medical care.

0:37:50.624,0:37:56.272
Great psychologists, psychiatrists,[br]every possibility and drugs and stuff.

0:37:56.272,0:37:58.815
Nothing worked.

0:37:58.815,0:38:03.165
So she was like bedbound; an anxiety[br]which no one could cure.

0:38:03.165,0:38:13.648
But fortunately her father, no,[br]not father... uncle.

0:38:13.648,0:38:19.485
Uncle comes here. [br]So uncle said go and ring up Ajahn Brahm.

0:38:21.705,0:38:24.320
Love it whenever she called me up

0:38:24.320,0:38:27.260
and she told me what was[br]happening with her

0:38:27.260,0:38:31.157
and that's where mindfulness practice

0:38:31.157,0:38:34.667
but not just mindfulness.[br]I said that's not enough.

0:38:34.667,0:38:40.023
But first of all I said: [br]"When you have an anxiety attack,

0:38:40.023,0:38:46.215
a panic attack - you're bedridden -[br]where on your body do you feel it?"

0:38:46.215,0:38:48.733
I wasn't asking about[br]her mind, her emotions

0:38:48.733,0:38:51.829
because that was just too strong[br]for her to really get to know.

0:38:51.829,0:38:55.141
"Where do you feel it on your body?"[br]she said: " In my chest."

0:38:55.141,0:38:58.460
I said "It's not good enough,[br]I want know exactly where?"

0:38:58.460,0:39:02.680
She was studying dentistry[br]so part of science,

0:39:02.680,0:39:06.301
I want coordinates[br]from your navel, your belly button,

0:39:06.301,0:39:09.191
I want centimeters, [br]millimeters even

0:39:09.191,0:39:11.391
to the center of the feeling [br]in your chest

0:39:11.391,0:39:14.543
and how far does it extend? [br]is it circular?

0:39:14.543,0:39:18.463
or is it ovular? or is it a square?

0:39:18.463,0:39:22.751
I want you to describe it to me[br]accurately with dimensions.

0:39:22.751,0:39:26.226
Is it more to the left more to the right[br]or really central?

0:39:26.226,0:39:28.856
And give me a call in three days.

0:39:28.856,0:39:32.373
I mentioned that because [br]I wasn't just,

0:39:32.373,0:39:39.161
well part of it was I was very busy [br](laugh) I got to be honest

0:39:39.161,0:39:43.412
but it's also I just[br]wanted her to do something.

0:39:43.412,0:39:46.158
You know, one of the terrible things[br]if you're in trouble

0:39:46.158,0:39:50.500
with either bad feelings in meditation[br]or other stuff.

0:39:50.500,0:39:53.260
When people tell you what to do,

0:39:53.260,0:39:59.771
they're taking away your...[br]almost like your sense of being

0:39:59.771,0:40:02.391
an owner of your problem [br]and your body.

0:40:02.391,0:40:07.592
You give up ownership of the disease[br]or the problem to some experts.

0:40:07.592,0:40:11.113
I didn't want that to happen. [br]So this is your body,

0:40:11.113,0:40:18.181
it's your emotions. So you tell me, [br]I'm not gonna control you.

0:40:18.181,0:40:21.845
So after three days she called

0:40:21.845,0:40:24.581
and I was really amazed[br]at the descriptions she gave.

0:40:24.581,0:40:26.658
and I said: "Well, exactly that's [br]where it is.

0:40:26.658,0:40:27.658
How does it feel ?

0:40:27.658,0:40:29.924
Is it burning or is it aching, [br]does it change?

0:40:29.924,0:40:32.204
is it the same all over, whatever?

0:40:32.204,0:40:35.899
"Oh, I don't know."[br]"Give me a call in three days."

0:40:37.049,0:40:40.252
Which she did, she gave another[br]really amazing explanation

0:40:40.252,0:40:43.191
of what it feels like, [br]sensations in the body

0:40:43.191,0:40:46.402
when you have a panic attack.[br]"Great!" I said now

0:40:46.402,0:40:52.436
that's making her mindful,[br]that's just the awareness part of it.

0:40:52.436,0:40:55.623
A lot of times that's what people do[br]when they practice mindfulness

0:40:55.623,0:40:59.928
they get to know these things [br]but no more.

0:40:59.928,0:41:04.417
And then the extra part which is[br]the important part was,

0:41:04.417,0:41:07.271
well, now you know, [br]when you have a panic attack,

0:41:07.271,0:41:09.411
where it is, what it feels like.

0:41:09.411,0:41:12.350
Now I said I want you [br]to get your hand when you have...

0:41:12.350,0:41:16.233
she's in bed [br]get your hand and massage that area

0:41:16.233,0:41:19.773
with your hand[br]as kindly as you possibly can

0:41:19.773,0:41:25.153
with much compassion [br]and gentleness as you possibly can.

0:41:25.153,0:41:29.000
And I said to her [br]if you can't do it

0:41:29.000,0:41:35.950
ask your boyfriend to do it for you.[br]I don't think he'd mind

0:41:35.950,0:41:40.190
and give me a call in three days[br]and she did that.

0:41:40.190,0:41:44.147
It was beautiful, because this is[br]one of those times again

0:41:44.147,0:41:48.817
which really makes me feel wonderful [br]how meditation works.

0:41:48.817,0:41:52.304
And I asked: "Did you follow [br]my instructions?" She said: "Yeah."

0:41:52.304,0:41:56.090
What happened when you massage[br]the panic attacks in your chest?

0:41:56.090,0:41:58.511
So I massage them and massage[br]and massage them

0:41:58.511,0:42:02.431
and then the feeling in the chest[br]sort of got loosened and relaxed

0:42:02.431,0:42:04.980
and eventually the feeling[br]in the chest went away.

0:42:04.980,0:42:08.570
And I said:" Well, when the feeling[br]in the chest went away,

0:42:08.570,0:42:12.081
what happened to the anxiety,[br]to the panic?"

0:42:12.081,0:42:16.761
And that's one of those beautiful moments[br]when she paused.

0:42:16.761,0:42:21.703
it's when the light bulbs went on[br]when the eureka moment happened.

0:42:21.703,0:42:26.753
She said:" Well, when the physical[br]feeling vanished so did the anxiety."

0:42:26.753,0:42:32.143
Now you know [br]how to overcome your anxiety.

0:42:32.143,0:42:36.527
Deal with the physical manifestation,[br]the physical counterpart.

0:42:36.527,0:42:40.510
Once that disappears also the emotional,

0:42:40.510,0:42:44.490
the inside part also turns off [br]and vanishes.

0:42:44.490,0:42:48.034
That was wonderful lovely lady.

0:42:48.944,0:42:53.464
I think it was two weeks[br]as she was back in classes again,

0:42:53.464,0:42:58.608
out of bed and graduated with[br]first class honours in dentistry.

0:42:58.608,0:43:02.517
And then just her boyfriend she married.

0:43:02.517,0:43:06.500
And one of nice things people think [br]that Ajahn Brahm's not a romantic

0:43:08.260,0:43:12.869
but they got married[br]in the sunken gardens in UWA.

0:43:12.869,0:43:16.425
And who do you think[br]gave the blessing there?

0:43:17.915,0:43:19.816
Had to have me go there.

0:43:19.816,0:43:24.327
I didn't find it out until later on.[br]She was so impressed

0:43:24.327,0:43:28.713
that she actually nominated me [br]for Australian of the year.

0:43:29.653,0:43:34.813
I didn't get it but I could understand.[br]She was just wow, this really works.

0:43:34.813,0:43:38.370
But this is actually just an example [br]of how we deal with negativity,

0:43:38.370,0:43:39.790
not just a mindfulness,

0:43:39.790,0:43:43.340
not being aware of it, [br]she was totally aware of it

0:43:43.340,0:43:46.988
but also what to do with it[br]when it comes up.

0:43:46.988,0:43:49.513
Give it compassion and kindness.

0:43:49.513,0:43:52.093
The right motivation in Buddhism is,

0:43:52.093,0:43:57.829
it is letting go, [br]being kind, being gentle.

0:43:57.829,0:44:02.419
And if you do your mindfulness practice[br]with those things in mind.

0:44:02.419,0:44:08.555
You will find that when something comes up[br]which is a bit negative.

0:44:08.555,0:44:14.856
Ahh, some bad memory[br]from the past has come up ahh...

0:44:14.856,0:44:18.480
and you can actually be soft with it[br]and kind with it

0:44:18.480,0:44:21.800
and it just melts it all away.

0:44:21.800,0:44:24.827
So that's something which we can do

0:44:24.827,0:44:28.017
and it's powerful stuff as well.

0:44:28.017,0:44:31.371
Those little stories which[br]I mentioned there,

0:44:31.371,0:44:35.428
they're real stories [br]and it happens.

0:44:35.428,0:44:39.292
And my own little stories

0:44:39.292,0:44:44.227
you know every time[br]if I have sicknesses and stuff

0:44:44.227,0:44:48.117
it's not just emotional problems,[br]physical problems.

0:44:49.427,0:44:51.781
I keep telling monks, it's an old joke.

0:44:51.781,0:44:54.197
I keep telling the monks [br]that you know

0:44:54.197,0:44:59.616
my 70th year on planet earth now,[br]in August I'll be 70.

0:44:59.616,0:45:04.366
So I kept on telling them[br]" Monks, I'm getting old."

0:45:04.366,0:45:06.673
And they said:[br]" No, you're not getting old."

0:45:06.673,0:45:09.467
and I thought they would say that[br]because of kindness.

0:45:09.467,0:45:13.107
They said: "No, no, we're not saying[br]that out of kindness to you.

0:45:13.107,0:45:18.379
We're saying that out of truth.[br]You are old, you're not getting old.

0:45:20.371,0:45:23.052
You've already arrived."

0:45:29.372,0:45:33.742
But I don't know where I was going[br]with this one but anyway...

0:45:36.672,0:45:42.051
So many times in my life,[br]you have sicknesses

0:45:42.051,0:45:46.290
and some of those sickness [br]which I've had

0:45:46.290,0:45:49.226
you try and take medicines and stuff

0:45:49.226,0:45:53.654
and quite honestly these days[br]I much prefer doing kindness

0:45:53.654,0:45:56.874
to any sicknesses which I have.[br]Awareness and kindness.

0:45:56.874,0:46:00.171
Looking at my body, [br]where's the problem?

0:46:01.321,0:46:07.571
you may have... like the time[br]which I had food poisoning,

0:46:08.611,0:46:13.874
real food poisoning in my ... [br]in my cave.

0:46:13.874,0:46:17.625
I was screaming, [br]no one could hear me

0:46:17.625,0:46:21.736
because these were like cramps [br]which food poisoning gives you

0:46:21.736,0:46:27.050
Agh! and then it just ... Agh!

0:46:27.050,0:46:30.670
Totally involuntary I couldn't do[br]anything with it.

0:46:30.670,0:46:34.471
And then I knew no one could hear me

0:46:34.471,0:46:36.501
because that's the point [br]of having a cave

0:46:36.501,0:46:38.081
two doors, it's underground.

0:46:38.081,0:46:40.341
Well I can't hear [br]what's going on outside

0:46:40.341,0:46:43.299
which is wonderful,[br]but they can't hear what's going on inside

0:46:43.299,0:46:46.587
which is a difficulty sometimes.

0:46:46.587,0:46:52.056
So anyway, I did my ...[br]same as I teach other people,

0:46:52.056,0:46:55.979
sit there being mindful and being kind.

0:46:55.979,0:47:01.089
Those two are very, very, powerful.

0:47:01.089,0:47:05.347
I think the last talk I gave here about[br]opening the lotus, wasn't it?

0:47:05.347,0:47:11.047
Remember that's the sun[br]has light and warmth.

0:47:11.047,0:47:15.266
That's what opens lotuses up,[br]the light and warmth of the sun.

0:47:15.266,0:47:19.188
The light stands for mindfulness,[br]the warmth stands for kindness.

0:47:19.188,0:47:24.506
Those two go together and [br]they're incredibly powerful.

0:47:24.506,0:47:31.536
I was just kind to the cramps [br]in the tummy.

0:47:31.536,0:47:35.726
So kind to them [br]every time they repeat it

0:47:35.726,0:47:43.336
ah, ah, ah ... maybe 2 or 3 minutes[br]before you had a cramp.

0:47:43.336,0:47:47.255
but every time that the cramp got less.

0:47:47.255,0:47:50.362
My awareness was sharp enough[br]that you could feel it

0:47:50.362,0:47:53.922
just less painful,[br]because I was kind to it.

0:47:53.922,0:47:56.881
Next one was less painful, [br]next time was less painful,

0:47:56.881,0:48:00.092
next time was less painful.[br]Only a tiny bit less painful

0:48:00.092,0:48:03.462
but I could perceive that [br]because I was aware.

0:48:03.462,0:48:07.823
I wasn't trying to think I'm gonna die[br]what should I do.

0:48:07.823,0:48:11.573
But I was being aware of it[br]and then it got so soft

0:48:11.573,0:48:15.394
and after 30, 40 minutes[br]it just vanished completely.

0:48:15.394,0:48:20.214
That was weird even I was[br]really struck by that

0:48:20.214,0:48:23.441
because usually food poisoning[br]you just gotta go to doctor.

0:48:23.441,0:48:24.915
I don't know what you gonna do

0:48:24.915,0:48:27.525
but this is much better[br]than going to a doctor.

0:48:27.525,0:48:30.243
And then just after meditating[br]nice and peacefully.

0:48:30.243,0:48:35.313
It never came back again.[br]It's weird but it's so true.

0:48:35.313,0:48:38.146
I'm sure many of you may have[br]had examples like that.

0:48:38.146,0:48:40.336
So the mindfulness with the kindness

0:48:40.336,0:48:44.146
put those two together and[br]it is really powerful.

0:48:44.626,0:48:50.613
And not just powerful,[br]you find your awareness get stronger.

0:48:50.613,0:48:54.842
That's the part which [br]most mindfulness teachings

0:48:54.842,0:48:58.184
the worldly stuff,[br]they don't really mention that.

0:48:58.184,0:49:02.342
That's where your mindfulness,[br]awareness gets really so strong.

0:49:02.357,0:49:07.528
I have to invent words for[br]this because no one else does.

0:49:07.528,0:49:11.219
Like, powerful mindfulness [br]and superpower mindfulness

0:49:11.219,0:49:13.919
and mega-power mindfulness.

0:49:13.919,0:49:18.742
That's what it feels like,[br]I do not take drugs.

0:49:18.742,0:49:22.832
But sometimes people asked:[br]"What drug are you on Ajahn Brahm today?"

0:49:22.832,0:49:26.258
Because you're so happy and joyful[br]and healthy.

0:49:26.258,0:49:28.418
"What's going on?"

0:49:28.418,0:49:32.121
This is natural,[br]you're empowering your awareness.

0:49:32.121,0:49:36.391
And your awareness after a while[br]gets incredibly strong.

0:49:36.391,0:49:42.214
That's when if any of you [br]like food, I don't know about you.

0:49:42.214,0:49:44.847
You're going out for a meal[br]after the talk tonight?

0:49:44.847,0:49:51.599
Maybe you didn't have a meal before?[br]or if you really want to enjoy food

0:49:51.599,0:49:57.132
meditate here first of all [br]and then go out

0:49:57.132,0:50:03.037
and you will find you don't have to spend[br]a lot of money on an expensive restaurant.

0:50:03.037,0:50:08.290
Just go around the corner to,[br]what was it, McDonald's

0:50:08.290,0:50:11.892
and you just bite into that whatever[br]you're biting into

0:50:11.892,0:50:14.332
and it taste out of this world.

0:50:16.462,0:50:20.953
It's nothing to do with the hamburger[br]or whatever else you're eating.

0:50:20.953,0:50:25.801
But everything to do with your[br]mindfulness being so strong, so powerful.

0:50:25.801,0:50:29.896
That hamburger tastes like[br]it's been made at a 5 star,

0:50:29.896,0:50:33.856
no, not five star, [br]six star restaurant.

0:50:33.856,0:50:37.998
It's not what's in what you're seeing.

0:50:37.998,0:50:41.444
It's not what's seeing what you're eating.

0:50:41.444,0:50:47.598
It's everything what's in your mind,[br]your mind is clear, sensitive.

0:50:47.598,0:50:54.137
And if you hear any music,[br]wow! it thrills you

0:50:54.137,0:50:56.640
because you're picking up everything.

0:50:56.640,0:51:02.354
which is being... being there in the sound[br]and this is what happens.

0:51:02.354,0:51:06.654
This life as a monk.[br]I love this, you have so much joy.

0:51:06.654,0:51:10.274
At night time, right now, [br]in Serpentine

0:51:10.274,0:51:16.208
you look at the stars in the evening.[br]Absolutely thrilling, they're gorgeous.

0:51:16.208,0:51:20.248
You just look up and you just[br]can't take your eyes away.

0:51:20.248,0:51:27.380
The dawns it makes...[br]it just amazing. Who wants a tv?

0:51:27.380,0:51:30.575
Who wants anything?[br]You want to watch that.

0:51:30.575,0:51:35.047
Who wants to go to a museum [br]when that's happening right there

0:51:35.047,0:51:41.756
it's for free. And so, so much [br]of the world of life

0:51:41.756,0:51:46.756
becomes so sensitive and so amazing,[br]it's so beautiful.

0:51:46.756,0:51:49.863
You get a huge amount[br]of happiness and joy

0:51:49.863,0:51:52.963
when your mindfulness gets really strong.

0:51:52.963,0:51:57.563
And even you, sometimes you meditate,[br]you look at the carpet.

0:51:57.563,0:52:01.483
Have you ever noticed[br]how beautiful that carpet is?

0:52:04.373,0:52:06.789
Am I going crazy?

0:52:10.439,0:52:14.679
The point is that when[br]your mindfulness gets strong.

0:52:14.679,0:52:19.044
Every shade of those light blues [br]and dark blues

0:52:19.044,0:52:21.544
and reds and yellows and whites

0:52:21.544,0:52:27.902
and the way that they interact together[br]and the texture of that carpet.

0:52:27.902,0:52:33.977
It just really comes out [br]and blows your mind, becomes beautiful.

0:52:34.837,0:52:38.531
Free happiness in the ordinary.

0:52:38.531,0:52:41.660
And if that carpet looks beautiful.

0:52:41.695,0:52:47.295
You look at your old grandma.[br]She's gorgeous.

0:52:49.310,0:52:52.728
And I'm not joking. [br]That's what happens.

0:52:52.728,0:52:56.565
Superpower mindfulness and you see[br]beauty in so many things

0:52:56.565,0:52:58.845
in your past, in your future,

0:52:58.845,0:53:02.969
in people you live with,[br]in your children, in your partners

0:53:02.969,0:53:08.026
in your grandparents,[br]in your monks and your nuns,

0:53:08.026,0:53:15.018
in your politicians,[br]in the police who stop you.

0:53:16.868,0:53:20.065
You know sometimes I just wonder,

0:53:20.065,0:53:25.545
you know, people like being around monks

0:53:25.545,0:53:29.074
that's what you do anyway because[br]you come every Friday night.

0:53:29.074,0:53:30.984
But why?

0:53:30.984,0:53:32.800
I always remember that one politician

0:53:32.800,0:53:36.270
apparently she's still in politics[br]that's Alannah MacTiernan.

0:53:36.270,0:53:38.996
Years and years, about 20, 30 years ago[br]or something.

0:53:38.996,0:53:42.452
She was in politics and we went to [br]see her for something

0:53:42.782,0:53:47.281
and afterwards you know, [br]after we talked to her about something,

0:53:47.281,0:53:49.381
she had some really wonderful advice.

0:53:49.381,0:53:54.076
And as she got off her seat [br]instead of letting her secretary

0:53:54.076,0:53:58.151
take us to the door, she escorted us [br]to the door with kindness

0:53:58.151,0:54:04.281
and she said "you know I really enjoy[br]people like you coming to my office."

0:54:04.281,0:54:07.187
and she meant it with sincerity.

0:54:07.797,0:54:10.683
I always wonder why did she say that.

0:54:10.683,0:54:13.371
This is because, the monks and nuns[br]are kind.

0:54:13.371,0:54:16.562
Well, generally we have something[br]to complain about but we don't do:

0:54:16.562,0:54:21.939
"Hey! why are you doing this, why are you[br]doing that? We... Blah, blah, blah..."

0:54:21.939,0:54:28.339
I just could feel the kindness there,[br]the gentleness, the beauty, the peace.

0:54:28.339,0:54:32.029
So that's what happens[br]when you're mindful and kind.

0:54:32.029,0:54:36.179
You make friends[br]in the weirdest of places.

0:54:36.179,0:54:39.642
So anyway that's the talk [br]for this evening.

0:54:39.642,0:54:45.671
The mindfulness by itself,[br]I agree can have some problems.

0:54:45.671,0:54:49.311
But you add the kindness,[br]you add the rest of the factors like

0:54:49.311,0:54:53.749
we're doing this not to get things[br]but to let go of things.

0:54:53.749,0:54:56.712
We're doing this out of[br]kindness and gentleness.

0:54:57.102,0:55:00.037
If that motivates your life, wow!

0:55:00.037,0:55:03.257
Meditation is so beautiful.

0:55:03.257,0:55:05.707
Thank you for listening.

0:55:05.967,0:55:09.757
(Audience) Sadhu, Sadhu, Sadhu

0:55:09.757,0:55:13.400
I always say when people try and do[br]something and they don't do it properly

0:55:13.400,0:55:16.131
if you're gonna clap, clap.

0:55:16.131,0:55:21.291
(Audience) clapping

0:55:23.641,0:55:25.603
But anyway, thank you.

0:55:25.663,0:55:29.933
First of all any questions[br]from the people here?

0:55:30.923,0:55:36.048
(inaudible from audience)

0:55:41.768,0:55:48.325
Q-Ajahn, how do we apply a loving kindness[br]in a not for profit organization?

0:55:48.325,0:55:54.326
Yeah, again that Buddhism is one[br]of the few non-profit religions

0:55:54.326,0:55:57.512
because we don't believe in prophets.

0:55:57.512,0:56:01.801
You know, Jesus was a prophet,[br]other people are prophets

0:56:01.801,0:56:08.339
but we don't have prophet in Buddhism,[br]we're really non....

0:56:08.339,0:56:12.761
Okay, it's an old bad joke but never mind.

0:56:12.761,0:56:16.919
How to have loving kindness?

0:56:16.919,0:56:23.359
I think because I have met[br]many millionaires in my life

0:56:23.359,0:56:27.712
and I just... when I once I was... [br]okay don't mind saying.

0:56:27.712,0:56:32.562
At a state dinner once over in Canberra[br]I went to the toilet.

0:56:32.562,0:56:37.986
In male toilets, you know, for urinals,[br]you just had one next to the other

0:56:37.986,0:56:43.460
and so I went in there and the[br]fellow was in the next urinal to me

0:56:43.460,0:56:53.476
was uh... sorry, yeah that's right[br]Lachlan Murdoch,

0:56:53.476,0:56:57.546
he is Rupert Murdoch son,[br]Dr. Murdock.

0:56:57.546,0:57:01.055
And as soon as I saw his badge[br]Lachlan Murdoch I thought

0:57:01.055,0:57:04.935
if only I had a donation envelope.[br](laugh)

0:57:08.590,0:57:14.737
But that... like one of the people [br]I think I quoted recently

0:57:14.737,0:57:20.874
which was the head of the Changi airport [br]corporation many years ago

0:57:20.874,0:57:26.831
and it was the day before [br]he was opening terminal 3, no 4,

0:57:26.831,0:57:31.377
terminal 4 in Singapore. [br]And he was next to the head of

0:57:31.377,0:57:35.727
Keppel Shipping who was the [br]highest paid CEO in Singapore.

0:57:35.727,0:57:39.067
So these were... actually Buddhists. [br]And he said

0:57:39.067,0:57:43.907
"how do you do loving kindness[br]and put Buddhism into your business?"

0:57:43.907,0:57:49.562
I remember the head of[br]the Changi Airport Corporation,

0:57:49.562,0:57:54.497
he said "people go to work [br]every morning and expect to be happy."

0:57:54.497,0:57:57.651
But how many go to work [br]in the morning

0:57:57.651,0:58:03.176
with the resolution to make[br]someone else happy today?

0:58:03.176,0:58:06.099
So that's why you don't feel [br]any happiness,

0:58:06.099,0:58:08.229
you expect someone else[br]to make you happy,

0:58:08.229,0:58:11.699
but you don't go to work with[br]the main desire of

0:58:11.699,0:58:14.969
"I'm gonna make someone happy today."

0:58:14.969,0:58:18.522
So just changing a person's attitude [br]a little bit .

0:58:18.522,0:58:20.892
I don't know where you work,

0:58:20.892,0:58:26.796
I work in BSWA so I often go[br]to work on a Friday night.

0:58:26.796,0:58:32.556
I'm gonna make somebody happy tonight.[br]So you put happiness in there

0:58:32.556,0:58:39.076
instead of expecting happiness[br]to be given to you.

0:58:39.076,0:58:42.676
You become proactive [br]so that's one way

0:58:42.676,0:58:47.536
in any organization you can actually[br]put some joy and happiness in there.

0:58:47.536,0:58:50.018
It's wonderful when that happens.

0:58:50.018,0:58:54.328
Human beings are just [br]gorgeous people.

0:58:54.328,0:58:58.451
And they just need to touch that goodness.

0:58:58.451,0:59:00.384
I just remember just...

0:59:00.384,0:59:06.554
because I don't know why I got involved[br]in Curtin university of all places.

0:59:06.554,0:59:09.291
But I was given the John Curtin Medal[br]there once,

0:59:09.291,0:59:13.059
and so often I go there [br]for one reason or another.

0:59:13.059,0:59:19.135
But it happened over here.[br]There was a Sri Lankan woman and

0:59:19.135,0:59:22.175
she would come here, not that often[br]because she was very busy

0:59:22.175,0:59:26.355
looking after two children.[br]And her husband

0:59:26.355,0:59:30.970
was actually working two jobs [br]to get enough money,

0:59:30.970,0:59:37.687
because the wife was actually doing a[br]training in nursing at Curtin university.

0:59:37.687,0:59:42.818
And unfortunately that one night, [br]double job, not enough sleep,

0:59:42.818,0:59:46.228
he crashed the car and killed himself.

0:59:46.668,0:59:51.825
It was a tragedy, you know,[br]just trying to work too hard.

0:59:51.825,1:00:00.443
And the wife, the two kids, no way[br]she could pay the tuition fees at Curtin.

1:00:00.443,1:00:07.618
So, I got on the phone to[br]the vice chancellor, Jeannette Hackett.

1:00:07.618,1:00:10.338
She became a good friend.

1:00:10.338,1:00:14.718
I confessed this that on one occasion,[br]she was just retiring

1:00:14.718,1:00:17.574
"Ajahn Brahm, I just loved[br]my association with you" she said.

1:00:17.574,1:00:20.068
She said "I'm going to give you a hug."

1:00:20.068,1:00:22.956
You're not supposed to do that [br]to a Buddhist monk

1:00:22.956,1:00:28.396
but she was too fast for me.[br](laughter)

1:00:28.456,1:00:30.808
It's only once.

1:00:30.808,1:00:35.468
But anyway, I called her up I said [br]"Look, this is real tragedy."

1:00:35.468,1:00:39.087
She said "What is it?"[br]And because they know you,

1:00:39.087,1:00:41.269
you can actually get straight[br]through to them

1:00:41.269,1:00:45.105
and I said "Look, any chance [br]of getting a scholarship for her?"

1:00:45.105,1:00:48.195
" Leave it with me." she said.

1:00:48.195,1:00:51.265
And of course, they got[br]the scholarship for her

1:00:51.265,1:00:55.320
and so everything paid for[br]in Curtin university.

1:00:55.320,1:00:59.556
And just I think the locals over here[br]we try to help her.

1:00:59.556,1:01:04.876
Some donations for her costs[br]of living and stuff.

1:01:04.876,1:01:07.685
And eventually when she graduated [br]as a nurse from here,

1:01:07.685,1:01:13.076
she came up, I remember, [br]just came up and said thank you

1:01:13.076,1:01:15.556
and that basically saved her life.

1:01:15.556,1:01:19.148
Unfortunately couldn't save her husband's[br]life but at least could save her.

1:01:19.148,1:01:22.690
So you know, these people you may think[br]are they just big bosses somewhere.

1:01:22.690,1:01:25.133
They like doing good things as well, [br]kind things.

1:01:25.133,1:01:28.151
They don't like being exploited [br]you give them an opportunity

1:01:28.151,1:01:33.188
to do something good[br]and they will just...they will run for it.

1:01:33.188,1:01:37.375
Anyway all the good people[br]I've seen in life here,

1:01:37.375,1:01:41.395
give them an opportunity and[br]they love doing great stuff.

1:01:41.395,1:01:47.085
Q - Okay, from Hong Kong,[br]I'm very sensitive to smell

1:01:47.085,1:01:52.458
halfway through the meditation I smell[br]cigarette smoke and drain smells.

1:01:52.458,1:01:56.995
Is it desirable for me to deal with them,[br]ie. to close windows halfway through?

1:01:56.995,1:02:02.071
Sometimes that's why people [br]used to light incense in temples

1:02:02.071,1:02:10.129
because when hygiene wasn't that good[br]you need smelly incense.

1:02:10.129,1:02:13.159
I don't know why in Hong Kong, [br]halfway through meditation

1:02:13.159,1:02:14.849
I smell cigarette smoke.

1:02:14.849,1:02:19.485
You know, sometimes you can turn[br]the sense of smell off.

1:02:19.485,1:02:22.966
In other words you're just going inside[br]the body

1:02:22.966,1:02:27.499
and the joy of peace is so strong[br]that you don't hear things,

1:02:27.499,1:02:30.564
you can't be disturbed[br]by something like smell.

1:02:30.564,1:02:35.886
So if you go deeper quickly then you[br]won't smell anything at all.

1:02:35.886,1:02:38.533
and I don't know where you're meditating

1:02:38.533,1:02:41.343
if those cigarette smoke and[br]drain smells are there anyway

1:02:41.343,1:02:45.914
just try and meditate somewhere[br]else which hasn't got those smells.

1:02:46.694,1:02:51.451
Is it desire for me to deal with them[br]close windows halfway through?

1:02:51.451,1:02:54.121
No, close the windows before you start

1:02:54.121,1:02:58.959
and then you won't have those cigarette[br]smoke and drain smells.

1:02:58.959,1:03:04.207
From Poland, "When we meet a person who[br]is saying or doing awful things to us

1:03:04.207,1:03:06.083
how we can still be kind to that person

1:03:06.083,1:03:09.770
when they continue to be [br]in our life and do us harm?"

1:03:09.770,1:03:15.594
If they're saying things and then,[br]are they really doing you harm?

1:03:15.594,1:03:21.166
This is one of the reasons why,[br]when I complained

1:03:21.166,1:03:26.086
to my teacher, Ajahn Chah,[br]about the mosquitoes.

1:03:26.086,1:03:30.410
they were really doing us harm,[br]you know, biting us all over the place.

1:03:31.020,1:03:34.707
And who knows that, you know,[br]he said they don't have malaria

1:03:34.707,1:03:38.750
just need one, [br]just one and that's it.

1:03:38.750,1:03:43.750
But anyway so when I asked Ajahn Chah[br]can we have some mosquito repellant

1:03:43.750,1:03:50.461
or some coils or some protection[br]mosquito nets.

1:03:50.461,1:03:52.921
He said "No!"

1:03:52.921,1:03:56.757
That's how kind he was, I thought.

1:03:56.767,1:04:00.883
But then what he really meant was [br]"No, from now on" he said

1:04:00.883,1:04:06.783
"you'd call the mosquitoes your teacher, [br]Ajahn Mosquito."

1:04:06.783,1:04:13.387
That was hard but it was beautiful,[br]you learned so much from that.

1:04:13.387,1:04:20.348
So, you meet a person[br]who's saying and doing awful things to us

1:04:20.348,1:04:25.396
see if you can protect yourself[br]however much you can

1:04:25.396,1:04:32.552
and also be kind. If it's still[br]too difficult to be kind to them.

1:04:32.552,1:04:39.482
There's an old saying in Chinese[br]"to love the tiger but at a distance."

1:04:39.482,1:04:42.667
So you can move away from it a little bit.

1:04:42.667,1:04:45.050
If they are doing awful things[br]to you again

1:04:45.050,1:04:50.462
sometimes you have to call the police[br]if they're really doing your physical harm

1:04:50.462,1:04:55.472
but sometimes if not.[br]Okay here's another story.

1:04:55.472,1:05:01.066
This is after about being here[br]nine or ten years.

1:05:01.066,1:05:05.833
I've been here now 37 or 38 years[br]in Australia, in Perth.

1:05:05.833,1:05:08.724
But anyway, this woman [br]came to see me once

1:05:08.724,1:05:11.898
and just after one of the talks,[br]just before this hall was made,

1:05:11.898,1:05:15.349
we had our talks in the community hall.[br]And she came and said:

1:05:15.349,1:05:22.289
" I've just come to thank you [br]for saving my marriage."

1:05:22.289,1:05:28.061
And I asked her what have we done[br]and then she told her story.

1:05:28.061,1:05:31.872
This is not an example to be followed

1:05:31.872,1:05:36.646
but this was the days when[br]there was very little support

1:05:36.646,1:05:41.007
for women suffering domestic violence.

1:05:41.007,1:05:46.323
She said her husband was being[br]violent to her regularly.

1:05:46.323,1:05:51.133
She said she came to this place[br]not to learn Buddhism

1:05:51.133,1:05:54.303
but at least when she was here[br]she felt safe.

1:05:54.303,1:05:58.062
A couple of hours when[br]she wasn't being hit.

1:05:58.062,1:06:01.612
That was really extreme, [br]I never knew anything about that.

1:06:01.612,1:06:03.708
But she said she kept on coming here

1:06:03.708,1:06:09.091
and she learned the kindness[br]and just focusing on the positive,

1:06:09.091,1:06:14.578
the watering the weeds and not the ...[br]Sorry, no, I got that wrong didn't I?

1:06:16.728,1:06:20.388
Yeah watering the flowers not the weeds.

1:06:21.669,1:06:25.534
And she said she practiced,[br]that took her seven years.

1:06:25.534,1:06:31.486
And she got these little meditation stools[br]you see them in the back over there.

1:06:31.486,1:06:37.208
she said: "you see this meditation stool,[br]she said he made this for me today.

1:06:37.208,1:06:40.090
that's why I need to come and thank you."

1:06:40.090,1:06:45.622
She said if he made something like this[br]four years ago it'd be to hit me with.

1:06:45.622,1:06:51.194
And it was really gross but then I saw her[br]she was this really beautiful woman.

1:06:51.194,1:06:56.553
You know, not just like a supermodel [br]but just her eyes and her goodness

1:06:56.553,1:06:59.153
she was like a saint

1:06:59.153,1:07:01.535
and she said now my husband's[br]totally changed

1:07:01.535,1:07:04.376
he's kind to me because what she did,

1:07:04.376,1:07:09.088
every time he said something[br]abusive or did something abusive,

1:07:09.088,1:07:13.558
she totally ignored that.[br]How she could do that?

1:07:13.558,1:07:14.888
Immense endurance!

1:07:14.888,1:07:17.942
Every time he did something good[br]and kind and wonderful.

1:07:17.942,1:07:21.226
She really let him know[br]he was appreciated.

1:07:21.226,1:07:26.270
The extra hug, the extra kisses,[br]oh! thank you so much.

1:07:26.270,1:07:30.976
She really reinforced the positive[br]behavior in her own husband.

1:07:30.976,1:07:33.432
And then she showed me [br]"he's in the back here,

1:07:33.432,1:07:38.992
over there that's him."[br]And two lovely children.

1:07:38.992,1:07:40.870
She earned those.

1:07:40.870,1:07:44.867
You shouldn't have to earn[br]your happiness in life.

1:07:44.867,1:07:50.619
But I don't know know why she married[br]that man but she totally changed him.

1:07:50.619,1:07:53.121
He came down to the monastery as well,[br]wonderful guy.

1:07:53.121,1:07:58.994
So it's possible but that's going[br]a bit far because of physical abuse.

1:07:58.994,1:08:01.441
But she did it, good on her.

1:08:01.735,1:08:06.445
From Bangalore, "Respected Ajahn,[br]how does one investigate the I or me

1:08:06.445,1:08:09.471
who is meditating, watch his feelings,[br]thoughts, breaths, ect...

1:08:09.471,1:08:12.702
It seems to be a perceiver as long[br]as there's something to perceive?"

1:08:12.702,1:08:16.597
You don't go thinking and trying to[br]perceive these deep teachings,

1:08:16.597,1:08:19.952
you let these deep teachings come to you.

1:08:19.952,1:08:24.586
So, in other words things start to[br]disappear, you relax to the max.

1:08:24.586,1:08:28.212
You don't try and contemplate things,[br]you see things.

1:08:28.714,1:08:31.213
That's how this works and how it works

1:08:31.213,1:08:34.938
many of you've heard this simile before[br]I'm going way over time again.

1:08:34.938,1:08:39.557
The old tadpole and the frog simile.

1:08:39.557,1:08:42.363
Tadpole can't understand water,

1:08:42.363,1:08:45.476
can contemplate water, [br]think about water, investigate water.

1:08:45.476,1:08:47.805
Tadpole will never know what water is,

1:08:47.805,1:08:51.115
no more than a fish[br]can know what water is.

1:08:51.115,1:08:56.324
The reason I said tadpole instead of fish[br]because one day tadpole grows into frog

1:08:56.324,1:09:00.096
and frog grows arms and legs[br]and frog doesn't know what they're doing.

1:09:00.096,1:09:02.699
And they jump out the water one day.

1:09:02.699,1:09:06.296
Now when water has vanished.

1:09:06.296,1:09:10.006
Now the frog can understand [br]what water was.

1:09:10.006,1:09:13.244
The same way we go so deep in meditation

1:09:13.244,1:09:19.412
and soon we don't have our body,[br]don't have our mind, have nothing left.

1:09:19.412,1:09:22.792
Now you understand what you thought[br]you were.

1:09:22.792,1:09:27.154
You don't do this with philosophy.

1:09:27.154,1:09:32.567
Philosophy gives you, please excuse me,[br]gives you headaches.

1:09:33.557,1:09:36.989
Seeing gives you truth.

1:09:37.829,1:09:42.632
From Melbourne, "Dear Ajahn, when worldly[br]pleasures disappear there's sadness

1:09:42.632,1:09:45.543
but when happiness experiences in[br]deep meditation disappears

1:09:45.543,1:09:48.442
no such sadness can be felt.[br]Is this correct?"

1:09:48.442,1:09:53.921
The deep meditation disappears[br]no such sadness can be felt.

1:09:53.921,1:09:58.622
No, because it's a happiness[br]of contentment.

1:09:58.622,1:10:02.562
Contentment means you're happy,[br]no matter what.

1:10:04.542,1:10:10.029
It's contentment of having no desires,[br]the freedom from wanting.

1:10:10.029,1:10:16.390
You don't want anything[br]then suffering starts to vanish.

1:10:16.720,1:10:21.692
From Indiana, "Ajahn Brahm, I lost[br]my 15 year old to suicide in December.

1:10:21.692,1:10:25.380
What would the Buddha say[br]to do to lessen this kind of suffering?"

1:10:25.380,1:10:28.663
Just to understand that your son[br]will come back again.

1:10:28.663,1:10:32.592
Suffering is not the end of all life.

1:10:32.592,1:10:35.171
Sorry no, that's the wrong answer[br]as I'm getting tired.

1:10:35.171,1:10:37.862
Suicide is not the end of all life.

1:10:37.862,1:10:41.902
Many times people who commit suicide[br]they come back again pretty quickly.

1:10:41.902,1:10:48.669
So, the person made a mistake, [br]big mistake.

1:10:48.669,1:10:51.550
So next time they can come back,

1:10:51.550,1:10:54.441
if life is more meaningful

1:10:54.441,1:10:58.411
then who would ever want [br]to commit suicide?

1:10:58.701,1:11:02.751
And I remember just when[br]I was in Singapore

1:11:02.751,1:11:06.827
there was one kid just[br]jumped off the balcony

1:11:06.827,1:11:09.697
of one of this big apartment blocks[br]killed himself.

1:11:09.697,1:11:12.748
But the suicide note was in the front[br]page of the Straits Times.

1:11:12.748,1:11:16.878
And it was just whoa![br]It made many people wake up.

1:11:16.878,1:11:21.001
He said "All I wanted was more time[br]with my parents".

1:11:25.641,1:11:28.620
And of course, you can understand [br]what that means.

1:11:28.620,1:11:31.362
Many times the parents [br]are working so hard

1:11:31.362,1:11:34.278
because they want to get[br]the best education

1:11:34.278,1:11:37.302
the best this, the best that[br]for their kids.

1:11:37.302,1:11:39.938
All the kids really wanted was just time.

1:11:39.938,1:11:43.868
If they had a father like my father,

1:11:43.868,1:11:46.540
who just spent so much time with us.

1:11:46.540,1:11:49.530
He wasn't wealthy at all,[br]he was really poor.

1:11:49.530,1:11:52.186
He gave me so much inspiration.

1:11:52.186,1:11:57.866
That's what children want,[br]they want time with the people they love.

1:11:58.156,1:12:00.560
Lastly, another one from India

1:12:00.560,1:12:04.495
"Which is better to meditate, a place[br]with noise and comfort for meditation

1:12:04.495,1:12:07.383
or place of seclusion[br]with difficult conditions?"

1:12:07.383,1:12:12.941
Ah, the best of those is a place [br]with comfort and seclusion.

1:12:14.991,1:12:17.743
In other words it just changes things.

1:12:17.743,1:12:21.366
Noise and comfort for meditation[br]or place of seclusion with difficult.

1:12:21.366,1:12:23.917
If it's noise it's very easy[br]to stop noises these day,

1:12:23.917,1:12:28.453
just get noise canceling headphones.

1:12:28.453,1:12:30.893
Can you do that?

1:12:30.893,1:12:33.411
The most important thing with[br]whatever you experience,

1:12:33.411,1:12:35.829
comfort, noise, difficult conditions.

1:12:35.829,1:12:38.126
I've meditated so much

1:12:38.126,1:12:41.386
really places you should never[br]be able to meditate in.

1:12:41.386,1:12:44.180
Sometimes I do that to test myself.

1:12:44.180,1:12:49.645
I mentioned I think last time[br]in Suvarnabhumi Airport.

1:12:49.645,1:12:54.413
Now right in the place where[br]people are welcoming the visitors.

1:12:54.413,1:12:56.557
"Hi! Hello, nice to see you. [br]How've you been?

1:12:56.557,1:12:58.327
Why are you waiting for so long?"

1:12:58.327,1:13:01.522
Right there just sat down close my eyes[br]and meditate for an hour,

1:13:01.522,1:13:03.422
very beautiful meditation.

1:13:03.422,1:13:06.962
Or uncomfortable, in Hay street mall.

1:13:06.962,1:13:10.877
Years ago, well might as well [br]mention this.

1:13:10.877,1:13:16.097
Years ago, the Burmese community[br]were doing a little...

1:13:16.097,1:13:18.978
bring people's attention to the troubles[br]in their land.

1:13:18.978,1:13:21.510
It's happening all over again now.

1:13:21.510,1:13:28.351
At that time they invited me just outside[br]of... that church there ...

1:13:28.351,1:13:33.704
anyway, one of those church,[br]to meditate for two hours.

1:13:33.704,1:13:36.738
And that was on the hard pavement,

1:13:36.738,1:13:43.792
no cushions and right opposite I think[br]it was called Time Zone, whatever,

1:13:43.792,1:13:48.041
They made big noise [br]like people play video games

1:13:48.041,1:13:53.072
and big noise just blasting out [br]and traffic going past.

1:13:53.072,1:13:54.969
This is really cool.

1:13:56.639,1:14:02.205
I like challenging myself and so[br]yeah, lovely meditation for two hours.

1:14:02.205,1:14:04.353
It can be done

1:14:04.353,1:14:09.822
but it's better to find a nice quiet place[br]and comfortable place.

1:14:09.822,1:14:15.618
So I wouldn't go trying to meditate[br]outside of or inside a parliament house.

1:14:15.618,1:14:21.058
Which is sometimes noisy [br]or where else is noisy in this world?

1:14:21.058,1:14:23.563
I don't know, anyway [br]but yeah it can be done.

1:14:23.563,1:14:25.556
So learn in the easy places

1:14:25.556,1:14:28.576
and then you can progress[br]to the hard places if you need to.

1:14:30.076,1:14:33.884
Thank you again for listening.[br]Sorry for going on a bit long.

1:14:33.884,1:14:37.686
So now we can bow three times[br]to Buddha Dhamma Sangha

1:14:37.686,1:14:41.459
And then those of you[br]who still want to carry on

1:14:41.459,1:14:45.429
you can ask more questions[br]in a few moments.

1:14:45.429,1:14:49.549
And again my apology for not being able[br]to speak to you before the talk.

1:14:49.549,1:14:52.586
We were just having an[br]important little committee meeting.

1:14:52.586,1:14:56.030
So sometimes we have to look after the...

1:14:56.030,1:15:00.112
the Buddhist Society[br]of Western Australia's administration

1:15:00.112,1:15:02.879
So sorry about that, [br]doesn't usually happen.

1:15:17.310,1:15:31.173
Araham Samma Sambuddho Bhagava[br]Buddham Bhagavantam Abhivademi

1:15:33.323,1:15:41.545
Svakkhato Bhagavata Dhammo[br]Dhammam Namasami

1:15:43.067,1:15:54.887
Suppatipanno Bhagavato SavakaSangho[br]Sangham Namami