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With respects to Thay, to Sakya Chan Khong,

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and to all our ancestral teachers

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through many generations.

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Dear community

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Today is the 7th of August,

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in the year 2016.

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And we are in our wake-up earth retreat

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in the Still Water Meditation Hall

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of the Upper Hamlet.

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They call me Sister True Dedication,

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and I'm made of non-me elements.

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So it's not really me sitting here today,

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but it is all the elements who have made me

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including our wonderful sangha,

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my sisters and brothers, our teacher,

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and also my parents, my mother, my father.

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I come from England, when the sangha had a

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chance to visit my parents in England,

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there were many brothers and sisters

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who then said: "Ah!............ "

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"Now I get it!"

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"Now I know why you are like how you are."

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We are made of our mother and our father.

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And many of us have a beautiful aspiration

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in our own lifetime to transform and heal

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and repair some of the weaknesses

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of our parents.

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And my own experiences was that

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I didn't spend enough time cherishing

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their qualities well.

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Our father and mother have transmitted

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many wonderful qualities to us.

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I can sit here because my father

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transmitted courage.

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And as I was breathing, my heart was

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beating, and my breath was very short.

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And we have a practise to breathe with

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often our fathers' lungs Thay would invite us

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as we sit in meditation.

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I breathe with my father's lungs,

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I sit with my father's back,

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but my father has short breath.

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So this morning

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I breathe with my mother's lungs.

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My mother has very big lungs,

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and it help me a lot.

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I am also here with the energy of the sunrise

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from this morning.With the wonderful food

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that have been eaten and

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many of us have been preparing.

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So we inter-are,I inter-am with you all.

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And you all inter-are

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with me and with everything in the cosmos.

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Thay has a wonderful line that I really

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like.

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He says you can't be by yourself alone.

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You have to

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inter-be with the whole cosmos.

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You inter-are with the whole cosmos.

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Thay would often point to the flower

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on the podium and say every flower

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is made of non-flower elements.

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And my first reaction I have to confess

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is "but I'm not a flower".

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But it is still true that

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we are made of non-us elements.

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And that is the good news

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that is a delight, it is a joy, it is something

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that we can discover and touch everyday.

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I was very touched when I heard Thay say

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that we all need a spiritual dimension in our life.

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And hearing that I thought

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"Yes,I am thirsty

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for a spiritual dimension to my life".

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My soul is thirsty.

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And in our life here in a practise center

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like Plum village,

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we have so many opportunities to

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keep the spiritual dimension of our life

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alive, nourished and connected.

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We have this meditation poems that we use

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throughout the day.

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When we touch running water,

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perhaps we are taking some water to drink,

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or we're opening the tap to wash our face,

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and we comtemplate the water,

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and we have a beautiful poem.

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"Water comes from high mountain sources,

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water runs deep in the earth,

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miraculously water comes to us

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and sustains all life.

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My gratitude is filled to the brim."

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So we have the simple actions

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to serve water, to draw water.

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But somehow we look deeply and

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with our mindfulness, we connect ourselves

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to the true nature of the water.

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It has come from the mountains,

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it has come from the oceans,

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and now it is becoming a part of us.

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When I used to work in an office,

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I recited this poem at the water cooler.

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I was in 6th floor

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in the center of the city of London.

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And I felt connected to the whole cosmos.

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I could have a magical minute.

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No one knew I was doing it.

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A magical minute as I drank my water.

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When we take a shower, we can ask ourselves

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whose body is this?

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where has it come from?

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what was the warmth,

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the original warmth that made this body,

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it has been handed from generation to

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generation, and never got cold.

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I am English, and I like to drink tea.

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I invented the poem for boiling the kettle.

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Often when we have a difficult moment,

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culturally, we put the kettle on

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It's our first response.

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So having a moment to feel spiritual

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about boiling the kettle enriched my life.

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When we write a poem like this,

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we look at all the different elements

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that are coming together in the miracle of life

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to support us.

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So there is the water, there is the energy in the electricity,

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where has it come from?

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And there is me, where have I come from?

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And we have all traveled

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since beginningless time

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to arrive in this moment,

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of making a cup of tea.

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So I invite all of us to

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write our own poems,

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choose one or two things

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in your daily actions

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that you like to become spiritual moments

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for you and your day.

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Where there is mindfulness,

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where there is deep looking.

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And Thay has said that any act we do can

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become sacred when we have that energy

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of mindfulness to enrich it.

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In the early mornings here we have

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the chance to come to practise

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sitting meditation together and

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enjoy the beautiful walking meditation

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together in the silence of the morning.

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And a few years ago in the winter retreat,

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Thay was staying in his hut

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on the side of the hill.

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And that morning he stepped out,

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and he saw the sky filled with stars,

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and he felt such love for the earth,

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for this planet and this beautiful cosmos.

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And that day or the next day,

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when he gave the Dharma talk,

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he said that

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he had fallen in love with the earth.

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He had realized

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he was in love with the earth.

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I often ask myself

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am I in love with the earth yet?

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We speak about the wonders of life,

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and when I look deeply and

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see the wonderful diversity

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of earth manifestations.

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How many millions or billions of years

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they have taken to evolve.

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I have a kind of awe and

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wonder of the fertility

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and beauty of life.

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And I am training myself

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to cherish this as much as I can.

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But sometimes it's not so easy.

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I think I grew up in very cynical environment

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in my society in my generation.

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Somehow a tree just did't seem exciting.

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But I am learning to look

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with the eyes of wonder, and to see

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the miracle that a tree is or a bug or any

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kind of living being,

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or even any human being.

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So I'm training myself to fall in love

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with the earth to learn more about

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the earth.

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And Thay had said that if we love the

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earth enough,then we will know what to do

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in order to help protect the earth.

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And we will have the energy we need to

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protect the earth because love is a

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wonderful source of energy.

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It sustains us,it nourishes us,

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it keeps up happy,

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it keeps our mind fresh and delighted.

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(Bell sounds)

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I came to Plum Village

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when I was almost 22 years old.

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And I had a lot of questions,

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I just graduated,

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and I had felt that

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my education had cheated me.

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I asked myself who am I,

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and somehow my university degree

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and my school hadn't told me.

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I was asking myself what do I want,

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what do I really want in my life?

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Of course I asked the question

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why am I here.

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It means why I am here on this planet,

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and what am I to do?

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Why am I here?

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The fact is I wasn't yet

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practising mindfulness,

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so I wasn't very present at all.

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So I don't think I could say

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I was even present here

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when I ask the question why am I here.

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But slowly I am learning

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to be more present.

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I also wanted to know what can I trust,

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what can I count on,what can I rely on.

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Mother nature is often smiling to us,

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we can usually rely on

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the fact nature is smiling to us.

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In particular in difficult moments,

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in moments of crisis,

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in moments when I felt overwhelmed,

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I wanted to know what can I rely on.

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I also wanted to know where am I going,

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what is the direction.

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I had this feeling like

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I'm being on a conveyor belt,

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and I had to do this set of exam,

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I have to go to this school and do that

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exam and you have to go to a university,

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I felt like I was sped out age 22,

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the conveyor belt still have a lot of

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energy telling me now you need to do this,

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you need to have this kind of career,

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you need to go there, learn this.

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And I felt I hadn't yet stopped,

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to really ask myself, where am I going,

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and where do I want to go, how much

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of these directions until now is me,

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and how much is everything around me

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pushing me.

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We have a story in Buddhist tradition,

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about someone on a horse,

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riding very fast past cross-roads,

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there is a man standing there, he says:

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"Where are you going so fast?"

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And the rider says:

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"I don't know. Ask the horse."

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Are we on a horse?

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Do we know where our horse is going?

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What are the elements

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that have given energy to the horse?

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What is pushing us?

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Have we mastered the horse yet?

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Since I've come to Plum village

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and been living here,

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I have learnt that it takes a while

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to learn how to ride.

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Take some traning and we can do it.

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We can master the horse.

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Another question I had was how can I help,

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I had a sense that I have some energy

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and I see there are problems in the world,

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and I want to know what can I do to help?

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So slowly here I think there is one peot

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who once said

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we live our way to the answers.

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So I am living my way to

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answer these questions.

277
00:18:30,951 --> 00:18:32,901
I hope that we can all actively

278
00:18:32,992 --> 00:18:36,992
live our way to answer these questions.

279
00:18:37,930 --> 00:18:40,320
Some of you may know we have a five year

280
00:18:40,321 --> 00:18:44,321
monastic training program in Plum Village.

281
00:18:44,359 --> 00:18:47,599
It wasn't an option when I ordained

282
00:18:47,646 --> 00:18:49,646
So as we learned yesterday,

283
00:18:49,694 --> 00:18:50,884
I didn't have to suffer

284
00:18:50,934 --> 00:18:54,334
from having too much choice.

285
00:18:54,397 --> 00:18:58,397
Just made a lifetime commitment.

286
00:19:05,533 --> 00:19:08,433
But when it came to five years,

287
00:19:08,472 --> 00:19:10,452
and Thay was convinced that five years is

288
00:19:10,470 --> 00:19:12,610
more than enough to be able to

289
00:19:12,661 --> 00:19:14,001
learn a lot of things,

290
00:19:14,016 --> 00:19:15,976
and then go out into the world,

291
00:19:16,034 --> 00:19:20,034
and continue to be a teacher in lay society.

292
00:19:21,217 --> 00:19:23,777
So when I got to five years,

293
00:19:23,814 --> 00:19:26,744
I had to do a reality check.

294
00:19:26,825 --> 00:19:30,825
and I ask myself what have I learned?

295
00:19:31,403 --> 00:19:35,403
This is what I discovered,

296
00:19:36,206 --> 00:19:40,206
I have learned how to eat.

297
00:19:41,314 --> 00:19:45,184
It's harder than you think.

298
00:19:45,273 --> 00:19:47,333
How to listen to my body?

299
00:19:47,396 --> 00:19:50,246
How to choose the right foods?

300
00:19:50,317 --> 00:19:54,317
How to feel connected when I eat?

301
00:19:54,951 --> 00:19:57,161
How to nourish and joy

302
00:19:57,184 --> 00:20:00,314
myself and others with food.

303
00:20:00,407 --> 00:20:04,237
How to respect life as I eat?

304
00:20:04,403 --> 00:20:08,403
How to nourish my compassion as I eat?

305
00:20:08,997 --> 00:20:12,417
So I maybe have completely mastered it.

306
00:20:12,569 --> 00:20:16,069
I have made good progress.

307
00:20:16,219 --> 00:20:19,759
How to sleep?

308
00:20:19,864 --> 00:20:21,894
I think only by arriving and living in the

309
00:20:21,955 --> 00:20:23,795
monastry did I discover

310
00:20:23,848 --> 00:20:25,908
how unstable my life was

311
00:20:25,930 --> 00:20:29,310
and I imagine it's the case for many of us.

312
00:20:29,404 --> 00:20:32,564
Are you getting enough sleep?

313
00:20:32,701 --> 00:20:35,721
Are you getting good quality sleep?

314
00:20:35,858 --> 00:20:38,158
Do you know how to prepare yourself

315
00:20:38,198 --> 00:20:42,198
to have a good night's sleep?

316
00:20:42,402 --> 00:20:46,402
How to wake up without headache?

317
00:20:48,307 --> 00:20:50,277
How to smile to yourself

318
00:20:50,323 --> 00:20:53,283
as you wake up in the morning?

319
00:20:53,333 --> 00:20:55,993
I have made good progress on this one.

320
00:20:56,077 --> 00:20:57,987
But I am not a master yet.

321
00:20:58,030 --> 00:20:59,890
As my sisters in the last week

322
00:20:59,890 --> 00:21:04,160
can tell you.

323
00:21:04,837 --> 00:21:07,387
I also somehow learned something about

324
00:21:07,393 --> 00:21:10,243
taking care of my body and mind,

325
00:21:10,432 --> 00:21:13,382
handling my body and mind,

326
00:21:13,438 --> 00:21:17,438
listening to my body and mind.

327
00:21:19,251 --> 00:21:21,011
So it's something about energy,

328
00:21:21,073 --> 00:21:23,513
life is energy,

329
00:21:23,592 --> 00:21:26,842
that horse pushing us is a kind of energy.

330
00:21:27,085 --> 00:21:29,355
And have we learned how to listen to

331
00:21:29,465 --> 00:21:33,465
our unique combination of energies?

332
00:21:34,808 --> 00:21:38,118
So that we can master them

333
00:21:38,219 --> 00:21:40,549
like riding a horse.

334
00:21:40,623 --> 00:21:42,233
So that we can live beautifully,

335
00:21:42,268 --> 00:21:46,268
peacefully,happily as much as possible.

336
00:21:53,113 --> 00:21:54,983
And this is what Thay has said,

337
00:21:55,073 --> 00:21:56,623
what's more important than to know

338
00:21:56,691 --> 00:22:00,221
ourselves,how to generate happiness

339
00:22:00,242 --> 00:22:01,852
in our daily life,

340
00:22:01,859 --> 00:22:05,889
and how to handle difficulties,suffering.

341
00:22:07,347 --> 00:22:11,347
Thay has reassured us, this is possible.

342
00:22:11,827 --> 00:22:14,147
We can learn how to generate

343
00:22:14,181 --> 00:22:17,571
moments of happiness in our day.

344
00:22:17,739 --> 00:22:19,599
We can also learn how to

345
00:22:19,706 --> 00:22:23,706
handle our suffering,our difficulties.

346
00:22:27,360 --> 00:22:31,080
How to not feel overwhelmed?

347
00:22:31,118 --> 00:22:32,538
How we can learn

348
00:22:32,582 --> 00:22:36,582
what to do in difficult moments.

349
00:22:37,602 --> 00:22:40,482
When I first came here,I didn't know

350
00:22:40,499 --> 00:22:44,499
any of these things as a 20, almost 22 year old.

351
00:22:45,196 --> 00:22:48,636
I didn't know how to generate happiness,

352
00:22:48,754 --> 00:22:52,034
I didn't know how to handle my suffering.

353
00:22:52,130 --> 00:22:54,370
Sometimes our suffering may have

354
00:22:54,440 --> 00:22:57,554
come to us from previous generations.

355
00:22:57,554 --> 00:23:01,354
It's not exactly US.

356
00:23:01,393 --> 00:23:04,043
Perhaps the seed of sadness or

357
00:23:04,086 --> 00:23:07,646
despair, this is what I'd discovered.

358
00:23:07,862 --> 00:23:10,032
My seed of sadness and despair

359
00:23:10,085 --> 00:23:12,705
had been transmitted to me.

360
00:23:12,750 --> 00:23:16,460
I'd done a fair bit of helping it grow too.

361
00:23:16,501 --> 00:23:19,431
But I had received a strong seed already

362
00:23:19,453 --> 00:23:23,453
from my parents and from my grandparents,

363
00:23:24,141 --> 00:23:26,961
and probably their parents.

364
00:23:27,001 --> 00:23:28,785
Because even our parents

365
00:23:28,785 --> 00:23:30,885
are not just themselves.

366
00:23:30,885 --> 00:23:32,935
They're also their parents.

367
00:23:32,935 --> 00:23:41,305
Each of us has a treasure trove of elements that we've received from our ancestors.

368
00:23:41,312 --> 00:23:44,152
And we need to know what they are.

369
00:23:44,243 --> 00:23:46,423
We need to know how to handle them.

370
00:23:46,504 --> 00:23:48,944
at least, I needed to know what they were.

371
00:23:49,044 --> 00:23:51,824
I needed to know how to handle them.

372
00:23:51,979 --> 00:23:54,069
So that I can feel free in my life.

373
00:23:54,179 --> 00:23:55,579
So that I could answer

374
00:23:55,747 --> 00:23:59,747
some of these questions.

375
00:24:05,820 --> 00:24:07,480
We learn here that

376
00:24:07,492 --> 00:24:12,072
we are made of many different elements.

377
00:24:12,255 --> 00:24:16,255
And I would like to draw something

378
00:24:16,385 --> 00:24:20,385
on the board to illustrate this.

379
00:24:24,609 --> 00:24:35,129
We can see ourselves as five different rivers,we have our physical body.

380
00:24:35,216 --> 00:24:42,784
Thay often like to draw this with segments of clementine, tangerine

381
00:24:59,994 --> 00:25:03,930
So we have our body

382
00:25:05,250 --> 00:25:09,132
This has been transmitted to us from many generations

383
00:25:09,132 --> 00:25:13,982
That we nourish with everything we eat.

384
00:25:13,988 --> 00:25:17,988
I wish it was a 360 degrees board, but it is not

385
00:25:17,988 --> 00:25:21,988
Body

386
00:25:24,238 --> 00:25:28,238
And the next segment is our feelings

387
00:25:30,422 --> 00:25:34,422
They may come from the body or from our emotions

388
00:25:39,745 --> 00:25:43,982
Our perceptions

389
00:25:51,100 --> 00:25:54,362
So our perceptions is how we are perceiving things,

390
00:25:54,362 --> 00:25:57,362
how we are perceiving the world,

391
00:25:57,362 --> 00:25:59,130
ourselves,

392
00:25:59,130 --> 00:26:00,930
other people,

393
00:26:00,930 --> 00:26:03,314
situations.

394
00:26:04,201 --> 00:26:07,474
Generally most of them are wrong

395
00:26:17,004 --> 00:26:19,777
And then we have our mental formations

396
00:26:19,811 --> 00:26:21,808
so based on our perceptions

397
00:26:21,808 --> 00:26:23,263
and feelings

398
00:26:23,263 --> 00:26:25,679
we give rise to a state of mind,

399
00:26:25,679 --> 00:26:28,038
a mental formation.

400
00:26:36,378 --> 00:26:38,450
It could be something like frustration

401
00:26:38,450 --> 00:26:41,450
or anger

402
00:26:41,450 --> 00:26:45,064
or depression, sadness,

403
00:26:45,064 --> 00:26:46,436
or joy

404
00:26:46,436 --> 00:26:48,719
some positive ones

405
00:26:48,719 --> 00:26:50,762
hope

406
00:26:55,128 --> 00:26:58,374
And then we have consciousness

407
00:27:03,950 --> 00:27:06,390
which is the ground of our beeing

408
00:27:08,056 --> 00:27:11,190
So to share a little more about consciousness

409
00:27:14,793 --> 00:27:17,175
our teacher likes to draw a circle.

410
00:27:17,175 --> 00:27:20,061
But I'm not very good at drawing circles

411
00:27:20,171 --> 00:27:22,272
So I've got some help

412
00:27:40,603 --> 00:27:42,892
I think that was been my English ancestors

413
00:27:42,892 --> 00:27:45,100
rather than my Vietnamese ancestors.

414
00:27:49,319 --> 00:27:52,153
So, our body and our mind

415
00:27:53,708 --> 00:27:56,280
Thay often speaks about two levels of the mind

416
00:27:59,409 --> 00:28:02,030
So we have the upper part of our mind

417
00:28:02,030 --> 00:28:04,235
and the lower part.

418
00:28:04,235 --> 00:28:07,400
And we call the upper part "mind consciousness"

419
00:28:10,414 --> 00:28:12,854
and the lower part "store".

420
00:28:18,500 --> 00:28:20,402
So, here...

421
00:28:20,611 --> 00:28:23,377
we are talking a lot about store consciousness.

422
00:28:23,377 --> 00:28:25,765
And this is were we have all the seeds.

423
00:28:26,289 --> 00:28:28,981
These elements that have been transmitted to us

424
00:28:30,288 --> 00:28:31,377
that we carry

425
00:28:32,282 --> 00:28:37,698
and that are potentials in life

426
00:28:38,388 --> 00:28:40,381
So we have seeds like ...

427
00:28:42,690 --> 00:28:44,183
Joy

428
00:28:44,439 --> 00:28:46,086
and Hope,

429
00:28:47,258 --> 00:28:48,569
Mindfullness,

430
00:28:50,117 --> 00:28:51,152
Peace,

431
00:28:52,568 --> 00:28:55,367
and some other ones like .... Anger,

432
00:28:58,618 --> 00:28:59,893
Fear,

433
00:29:01,130 --> 00:29:02,638
Anxiety.

434
00:29:04,688 --> 00:29:06,434
Any others we can think of ?

435
00:29:09,152 --> 00:29:10,706
Jealousy .... very good,

436
00:29:13,670 --> 00:29:15,265
Sadness,

437
00:29:17,468 --> 00:29:19,971
Compassion,

438
00:29:21,401 --> 00:29:23,390
Desire, Craving.

439
00:29:26,323 --> 00:29:28,360
Sometimes we crave

440
00:29:28,484 --> 00:29:31,026
we usually crave sensual pleasures

441
00:29:31,597 --> 00:29:37,852
but we may also crave money, status, fame, power... craving...

442
00:29:39,889 --> 00:29:42,231
So it is a little bigger than the other ones

443
00:29:45,935 --> 00:29:47,184
Any more ?

444
00:29:48,213 --> 00:29:49,545
Doubt,

445
00:29:52,325 --> 00:29:54,426
Pride ... oh, wonderful,

446
00:29:54,832 --> 00:29:56,768
How big is that ?

447
00:29:58,042 --> 00:29:59,078
And we have Doubt.

448
00:29:59,078 --> 00:30:00,727
So we have a lot of seeds.

449
00:30:04,013 --> 00:30:06,450
And somehow our store consciousness

450
00:30:06,452 --> 00:30:09,715
is both individual and collective.

451
00:30:11,364 --> 00:30:12,939
We also share it.

452
00:30:14,230 --> 00:30:18,153
So, when the seed of fear in society is very strong,

453
00:30:18,658 --> 00:30:21,740
our own seed of fear will be

454
00:30:24,896 --> 00:30:27,181
will take more place, will be more active.

455
00:30:27,543 --> 00:30:32,149
And if our parents have transmitted to us a strong seed down here

456
00:30:32,049 --> 00:30:34,409
then it will be more strong perhaps than in

457
00:30:34,409 --> 00:30:41,059
other people and our mind is receiving

458
00:30:41,059 --> 00:30:46,760
information from sense doors from our

459
00:30:46,760 --> 00:30:55,699
eyes our ears, our ears, our nose, our tongue,

460
00:30:55,699 --> 00:31:05,250
and from our body

461
00:31:18,355 --> 00:31:22,936
So information is coming in all the time

462
00:31:30,930 --> 00:31:33,990
So when we watch a news bulletin, or we

463
00:31:33,990 --> 00:31:37,340
listen to the radio, that will come in

464
00:31:37,340 --> 00:31:40,620
and it may water the seeds of fear in us,

465
00:31:40,620 --> 00:31:44,660
or the seed of anger in us, and that seed

466
00:31:44,660 --> 00:31:49,990
will then come up and manifest in the

467
00:31:50,910 --> 00:31:54,260
upper level of our consciousness. So when

468
00:31:54,260 --> 00:31:56,430
we want to learn how to handle our mind,

469
00:31:56,430 --> 00:31:59,570
we need to know what to do when this

470
00:31:59,570 --> 00:32:01,920
happens. First of all we need to know

471
00:32:01,920 --> 00:32:04,170
anger has come up.

472
00:32:04,170 --> 00:32:08,000
Fear has come up. Sadness has come up.

473
00:32:08,000 --> 00:32:11,120
So we have to recognize, we have to identify

474
00:32:11,120 --> 00:32:13,700
that it happened. And that's why we need

475
00:32:13,700 --> 00:32:15,900
the energy of mindfulness. Mindfulness

476
00:32:15,900 --> 00:32:20,960
helps us to know what is going on.

477
00:32:20,960 --> 00:32:22,960
So the energy of mindfulness is another seed

478
00:32:22,960 --> 00:32:25,180
and if we say that it's the seed of

479
00:32:25,180 --> 00:32:27,100
anger that has come up, we can say that

480
00:32:27,100 --> 00:32:32,480
mindfulness comes up and embraces

481
00:32:32,480 --> 00:32:36,290
the anger. So you have one energy which is

482
00:32:36,290 --> 00:32:41,080
anger, and we have the other energy which

483
00:32:41,080 --> 00:32:46,310
is our compassion. I said compassion

484
00:32:46,310 --> 00:32:50,360
because the antidote to anger is

485
00:32:50,360 --> 00:32:51,530
compassion.

486
00:32:51,530 --> 00:32:55,320
So we have mindfulness embracing anger

487
00:32:55,320 --> 00:32:58,790
and if we can generate an energy of

488
00:32:58,790 --> 00:33:01,580
compassion that will help cool the anger.

489
00:33:04,514 --> 00:33:06,410
So what I have been learning here is to

490
00:33:06,410 --> 00:33:08,390
have a strategy for when different

491
00:33:08,390 --> 00:33:11,380
mental formations come up and to know

492
00:33:11,380 --> 00:33:15,920
how to invite certain seeds to come up

493
00:33:15,920 --> 00:33:22,700
in order to embrace the one that has manifested.

494
00:33:22,770 --> 00:33:26,977
So many different seeds have different antidotes.

495
00:33:29,884 --> 00:33:31,570
We could say that

496
00:33:31,570 --> 00:33:36,780
when we have restlessness, the antidote

497
00:33:36,780 --> 00:33:41,040
might be relaxation.

498
00:33:41,040 --> 00:33:46,030
If we feel restless maybe we could spend 10 or 20 minutes to relax.

499
00:33:49,603 --> 00:33:55,190
If we feel sadness, perhaps five or

500
00:33:55,190 --> 00:33:57,780
ten minute bath in the present moment

501
00:33:57,780 --> 00:34:02,310
will refresh us. We can nourish ourselves

502
00:34:02,310 --> 00:34:05,350
with the wonders of life. But if the

503
00:34:05,350 --> 00:34:08,480
sadness is a bit stronger and it takes

504
00:34:08,480 --> 00:34:12,719
the form of despair, we have to have a

505
00:34:12,719 --> 00:34:17,089
even stronger strategy.

506
00:34:17,089 --> 00:34:21,880
And I've learned that the antidote to despair we have a

507
00:34:21,880 --> 00:34:26,770
bodhisattva who is fearless and persevering.

508
00:34:28,311 --> 00:34:29,709
So we have an energy of hope

509
00:34:29,709 --> 00:34:33,120
and we are fearless and we don't give up

510
00:34:33,120 --> 00:34:36,620
And that is how we handle our seed of

511
00:34:36,620 --> 00:34:39,040
despair. That is how i have learned to

512
00:34:39,040 --> 00:34:44,300
handle my seed of despair.

513
00:34:44,300 --> 00:34:46,380
And we have many wonderful practices to cultivate

514
00:34:46,380 --> 00:34:50,100
non fear, like the five remembrances

515
00:34:52,315 --> 00:34:54,750
aware that we are of the nature to grow

516
00:34:54,750 --> 00:35:00,000
old, to get sick, and to die and to be

517
00:35:00,000 --> 00:35:02,100
separated from those we love. We have a

518
00:35:02,100 --> 00:35:04,770
contemplation on that, and that helps us

519
00:35:04,770 --> 00:35:07,720
strengthen our non-fear. We accept the

520
00:35:07,720 --> 00:35:12,050
reality and we cultivate courage and non-fear.

521
00:35:13,810 --> 00:35:16,220
And sometimes the seeds that come up are

522
00:35:16,220 --> 00:35:20,840
very big and overwhelming and some of us

523
00:35:20,840 --> 00:35:23,280
may have had that experience there's not

524
00:35:23,280 --> 00:35:27,140
even space for mindfulness to intervene

525
00:35:27,140 --> 00:35:30,120
and those are the moments when we need

526
00:35:30,120 --> 00:35:34,800
to practice a kind of emergency practice

527
00:35:34,800 --> 00:35:38,550
and for me my emergency practice has

528
00:35:38,550 --> 00:35:40,580
been something that has taught us to do

529
00:35:40,580 --> 00:35:46,940
which is deep belly breathing. So when

530
00:35:46,940 --> 00:35:53,590
our mind has a seed running riot we have

531
00:35:53,590 --> 00:35:57,810
to come down from here which has become

532
00:35:57,810 --> 00:36:01,550
a chaos of a thunderstorm and we have to

533
00:36:01,550 --> 00:36:04,280
bring our energy down to our breathing

534
00:36:04,280 --> 00:36:09,190
so we take our energy down from the

535
00:36:09,190 --> 00:36:10,990
upper level of our consciousness and we

536
00:36:10,990 --> 00:36:15,330
just breathe and we trust in

537
00:36:15,330 --> 00:36:17,540
the good seeds down here who have some

538
00:36:17,540 --> 00:36:19,820
space to help respond to the situation

539
00:36:19,820 --> 00:36:24,840
so if necessary we lie down we take

540
00:36:24,840 --> 00:36:27,950
ourselves out of this situation that has

541
00:36:27,950 --> 00:36:32,640
triggered our anger or sadness or our

542
00:36:32,640 --> 00:36:35,520
despair and we put our hand, I put my

543
00:36:35,520 --> 00:36:40,250
hands on my belly and I'm bring all my

544
00:36:40,250 --> 00:36:45,720
attention 100-percent to the rising and

545
00:36:45,720 --> 00:36:51,760
the falling of my abdomen

546
00:36:51,760 --> 00:36:55,000
And I often give myself the challenge

547
00:36:55,000 --> 00:36:59,870
that I have to follow the breath all the

548
00:36:59,870 --> 00:37:03,370
way through and all the way back again

549
00:37:03,370 --> 00:37:09,320
strictly no thinking and it's not very

550
00:37:09,320 --> 00:37:12,340
easy but if we have our hands on our

551
00:37:12,340 --> 00:37:15,040
belly and we are fascinated by the

552
00:37:15,040 --> 00:37:17,899
experience of our in-breath and are out

553
00:37:17,899 --> 00:37:18,810
breath

554
00:37:18,810 --> 00:37:22,210
I've discovered that with practice

555
00:37:22,210 --> 00:37:27,030
it's possible to breathe 10 times in and

556
00:37:27,030 --> 00:37:30,990
out with not a single thought and I do

557
00:37:30,990 --> 00:37:33,580
it like snakes and ladders so if I have

558
00:37:33,580 --> 00:37:35,070
a thought I have to start again and

559
00:37:35,070 --> 00:37:40,280
count from one. And i started doing this

560
00:37:40,280 --> 00:37:42,550
because i thought if i cannot even

561
00:37:42,550 --> 00:37:44,520
master my breathing

562
00:37:44,520 --> 00:37:46,890
Who am I to know what to do in this

563
00:37:46,890 --> 00:37:48,140
situation

564
00:37:48,140 --> 00:37:51,860
my mind is not clear. I haven't

565
00:37:51,860 --> 00:37:55,870
got a grip on my mind. So I shouldn't

566
00:37:55,870 --> 00:37:59,050
trust my mind in this situation it has

567
00:37:59,050 --> 00:38:02,510
no right to have a voice until it has

568
00:38:01,650 --> 00:38:05,840
breathed 10 times

569
00:38:05,840 --> 00:38:09,420
and the amazing thing is that after ten

570
00:38:09,420 --> 00:38:13,000
breaths there's clarity there is

571
00:38:13,000 --> 00:38:16,450
stability it made on a bad day it may

572
00:38:16,450 --> 00:38:20,670
take 20 minutes or 25 minutes to have 10

573
00:38:20,670 --> 00:38:22,110
clear breaths

574
00:38:22,110 --> 00:38:25,970
but after that there is clarity and we

575
00:38:25,970 --> 00:38:29,980
know what to do and what not to do. So

576
00:38:29,980 --> 00:38:33,060
somehow i have learned not to trust my

577
00:38:33,060 --> 00:38:36,560
mind but to trust my breathing

578
00:38:36,560 --> 00:38:44,750
if in doubt breathe. And it has never

579
00:38:44,750 --> 00:38:48,320
failed me and that has given me a real

580
00:38:48,320 --> 00:38:50,600
solid basis something I always know I

581
00:38:50,600 --> 00:38:52,750
can trust and I don't need to be afraid

582
00:38:52,750 --> 00:38:55,750
because I always know that the breathing

583
00:38:55,750 --> 00:39:00,440
when I breathe fully 100-percent will

584
00:39:00,440 --> 00:39:07,034
help calm clarifying and give me courage

585
00:39:18,047 --> 00:39:21,314
(bell sound)

586
00:39:56,740 --> 00:39:59,560
So what we are taking in, through our

587
00:39:59,560 --> 00:40:01,480
sense organs

588
00:40:01,480 --> 00:40:05,810
it's a kind of food. And that is going to

589
00:40:05,810 --> 00:40:08,590
affect how our mind is going to operate.

590
00:40:08,590 --> 00:40:14,540
so our sense impressions, what we watch

591
00:40:14,540 --> 00:40:23,790
movies, websites, what we listen to, music,

592
00:40:23,790 --> 00:40:30,190
or even conversations, what we smell

593
00:40:30,190 --> 00:40:33,230
you'll notice that some you are very

594
00:40:33,230 --> 00:40:36,630
sensitive to certain kinds of smell, what

595
00:40:36,630 --> 00:40:40,750
we eat, so the kinds of foods edible

596
00:40:40,750 --> 00:40:46,120
foods that we eat, they are nourishing

597
00:40:46,120 --> 00:40:51,820
something in us, so if we eat food that

598
00:40:51,820 --> 00:40:57,200
has violence or suffering in it then

599
00:40:57,200 --> 00:40:59,730
somehow we r that is becoming a part of

600
00:40:59,730 --> 00:41:04,440
us and that is affecting who we are but

601
00:41:04,440 --> 00:41:06,880
if we are able to eat with compassion

602
00:41:06,880 --> 00:41:09,970
then our seed of compassion here will grow

603
00:41:09,970 --> 00:41:13,790
so every day you can have a day without

604
00:41:13,790 --> 00:41:17,710
meat you can say to yourself I have

605
00:41:17,710 --> 00:41:20,089
nourished my seed of compassion today,

606
00:41:20,089 --> 00:41:23,260
and i have not nourished my seed of

607
00:41:23,260 --> 00:41:27,040
violence or suffering, and we know that

608
00:41:27,040 --> 00:41:30,149
the animals suffer deeply when they are

609
00:41:30,149 --> 00:41:33,310
killed, and that is what we are eating,

610
00:41:33,310 --> 00:41:37,990
and when we eat meat that it is

611
00:41:37,990 --> 00:41:40,730
destroying our planet to cultivate that

612
00:41:40,730 --> 00:41:44,760
meat, then we are also eating something

613
00:41:44,760 --> 00:41:47,119
that is not wholesome, we are not

614
00:41:47,119 --> 00:41:50,480
nourishing our compassion and our care,

615
00:41:50,480 --> 00:41:57,179
so we can learn about four kinds of

616
00:41:57,179 --> 00:42:03,160
nutriments

617
00:42:08,399 --> 00:42:13,487
so the first is edible foods

618
00:42:17,580 --> 00:42:20,684
edible foods and drink,

619
00:42:25,826 --> 00:42:29,690
so this includes orange juice and alcohol

620
00:42:29,690 --> 00:42:34,840
okay so we know that it takes a lot of

621
00:42:34,840 --> 00:42:40,420
grain to make liquor and maybe that

622
00:42:40,420 --> 00:42:42,460
grain could be better used for something

623
00:42:42,460 --> 00:42:47,829
else. Our earth is in need for our help.

624
00:42:51,390 --> 00:42:59,500
Our sense impressions, that's all the movies,

625
00:42:59,500 --> 00:43:04,680
the movies, the music and so on.

626
00:43:04,680 --> 00:43:06,940
even now I still remember movies I

627
00:43:06,940 --> 00:43:10,830
watched 20 years ago. they come up

628
00:43:10,830 --> 00:43:13,919
sometimes even in my meditation and i

629
00:43:13,919 --> 00:43:16,640
think god how did I let that come in.

630
00:43:16,640 --> 00:43:19,990
because once its come in, it's somehow

631
00:43:19,990 --> 00:43:22,899
they're in our memory and it's very

632
00:43:22,899 --> 00:43:27,150
trusting of us we go into a cinema we

633
00:43:27,150 --> 00:43:31,040
even pay for the privilege for someone

634
00:43:31,040 --> 00:43:35,169
else to then put all this stuff into our

635
00:43:35,169 --> 00:43:40,080
consciousness that may be violent or

636
00:43:40,080 --> 00:43:44,710
disturbing unpleasant. so we have to be

637
00:43:44,710 --> 00:43:47,490
very careful when we choose what to

638
00:43:47,490 --> 00:43:52,250
watch and feel free to walk out i guess

639
00:43:52,250 --> 00:43:55,389
i didn't have enough courage to walk out

640
00:43:55,389 --> 00:43:57,950
of cinemas or to switch off movies but I

641
00:43:57,950 --> 00:43:59,740
think we need to be able to switch them

642
00:43:59,740 --> 00:44:04,059
off

643
00:44:07,347 --> 00:44:13,162
Third Kind is volition.

644
00:44:17,079 --> 00:44:21,190
This volition comes from the world will, like

645
00:44:21,190 --> 00:44:24,319
"volonté" (in French). it's a kind of technical word

646
00:44:24,319 --> 00:44:28,009
but it just means our deepest desire

647
00:44:33,004 --> 00:44:34,430
do you know what you want to do with

648
00:44:34,430 --> 00:44:38,849
your life what you really really want to

649
00:44:38,849 --> 00:44:41,009
do with your life?

650
00:44:41,009 --> 00:44:48,139
what is your deepest desire, and our

651
00:44:48,139 --> 00:44:50,359
deepest desire is like a seed that we've

652
00:44:50,359 --> 00:44:54,089
planted in our consciousness and when we

653
00:44:54,089 --> 00:44:57,670
can identify it and take care of it it

654
00:44:57,670 --> 00:44:59,829
will be a great source of energy in our

655
00:44:59,829 --> 00:45:03,650
life, and we need to know what we want to

656
00:45:03,650 --> 00:45:04,819
do.

657
00:45:04,819 --> 00:45:07,759
life is precious we don't know how much

658
00:45:07,759 --> 00:45:12,739
of it we have. we would like to think

659
00:45:12,739 --> 00:45:15,159
that we will all live to 80 but maybe

660
00:45:15,159 --> 00:45:18,199
that won't be the case. so what do you

661
00:45:18,199 --> 00:45:22,339
want to do, we have this one body, we had

662
00:45:22,339 --> 00:45:24,799
this life, and what we do with it.

663
00:45:24,799 --> 00:45:30,259
A terrorist is someone who has the

664
00:45:30,259 --> 00:45:38,499
intention to revenge vengeance.

665
00:45:38,499 --> 00:45:42,809
That is a kind of deep desire. A terrorist

666
00:45:42,809 --> 00:45:45,549
also have seeds of compassion, of

667
00:45:45,549 --> 00:45:50,439
kindness, of peace, of joy, of love. but

668
00:45:50,439 --> 00:45:52,369
they have watered another kind of seed

669
00:45:52,369 --> 00:45:54,289
that drives them to do something very

670
00:45:54,289 --> 00:45:58,699
violent. so we can see the power of this

671
00:45:58,699 --> 00:46:01,839
kind of energy and each of us we need to

672
00:46:01,839 --> 00:46:07,889
know what we want to do with our life.

673
00:46:07,889 --> 00:46:13,220
how would we like to live. what talents

674
00:46:13,220 --> 00:46:16,180
that we have been transmitted would we

675
00:46:16,180 --> 00:46:20,420
like to cultivate. we are a wonder of the

676
00:46:20,420 --> 00:46:24,500
earth, and how will our particular flower

677
00:46:24,500 --> 00:46:28,650
in the garden of humanity sing her song.

678
00:46:28,650 --> 00:46:32,750
what is your song? How will you be a flower

679
00:46:32,750 --> 00:46:33,940
on this earth?

680
00:46:33,940 --> 00:46:35,639
what would you like to cultivate and to

681
00:46:35,639 --> 00:46:40,059
offer? and its deepest desire, our volition

682
00:46:43,648 --> 00:46:45,299
I came here because I wanted to

683
00:46:45,299 --> 00:46:50,470
transform and to live

684
00:46:50,470 --> 00:46:54,010
leanly we have a wonderful word in English.

685
00:46:59,002 --> 00:47:04,389
It means some simply, just what

686
00:47:04,389 --> 00:47:07,199
is necessary in order to have more

687
00:47:07,199 --> 00:47:13,769
energy to act, to help, to not destroy

688
00:47:13,769 --> 00:47:17,569
with my way of consuming. and the final

689
00:47:17,569 --> 00:47:22,637
one is consciousness

690
00:47:27,300 --> 00:47:29,460
so we've been learning the consciousness

691
00:47:29,460 --> 00:47:32,250
is both individual and collective and

692
00:47:32,250 --> 00:47:34,530
here it's mostly we're talking about

693
00:47:34,530 --> 00:47:39,740
collective consciousness.

694
00:47:39,740 --> 00:47:43,640
The environments we are exposed to, our kind

695
00:47:43,640 --> 00:47:46,710
of food coming into our being,

696
00:47:46,710 --> 00:47:51,390
if you've ever been on a protest for

697
00:47:51,390 --> 00:47:54,330
social justice when everyone is

698
00:47:54,330 --> 00:47:56,820
collectively having a very strong energy

699
00:47:56,820 --> 00:47:59,660
sometimes in in a protest there is also

700
00:47:59,660 --> 00:48:02,750
an energy of anger of demanding and you

701
00:48:02,750 --> 00:48:04,680
may feel that you are carried by this

702
00:48:04,680 --> 00:48:08,580
collective consciousness or like now we

703
00:48:08,580 --> 00:48:12,640
have a lot of fear and anxiety in the

704
00:48:12,640 --> 00:48:15,320
world at the moment, so that is coming in

705
00:48:15,320 --> 00:48:18,330
and triggering our own fear and anxiety

706
00:48:20,630 --> 00:48:22,890
or in our family, if something is

707
00:48:22,890 --> 00:48:25,950
happening in our family, certain seeds

708
00:48:25,950 --> 00:48:28,180
may be stronger at one time then another.

709
00:48:28,180 --> 00:48:35,360
jealousy or anger, or at work, or in our

710
00:48:35,360 --> 00:48:37,420
friendship group is a kind of collective

711
00:48:37,420 --> 00:48:40,760
energy and we need to be aware what is

712
00:48:40,760 --> 00:48:43,150
being triggered in us by our environment

713
00:48:43,150 --> 00:48:47,430
so we need to learn when to walk away,

714
00:48:47,430 --> 00:48:51,910
when to step out of the room, when to

715
00:48:51,910 --> 00:48:54,910
switch off the television. that is our

716
00:48:54,910 --> 00:48:58,700
freedom, that is empowering us to be the

717
00:48:58,700 --> 00:49:01,990
kind of person would like to be. that is

718
00:49:01,990 --> 00:49:04,810
how we protect our mind and our body.

719
00:49:04,810 --> 00:49:08,730
because when we have things that make us

720
00:49:08,730 --> 00:49:12,630
tense or afraid or anxious, we live that

721
00:49:12,630 --> 00:49:16,721
also in our body.

722
00:49:25,639 --> 00:49:27,859
this evening we will have a presentation

723
00:49:27,859 --> 00:49:31,220
on the five mindfulness trainings and

724
00:49:31,220 --> 00:49:35,500
they are a wonderful path of practice

725
00:49:35,500 --> 00:49:40,690
showing us how in our daily actions we

726
00:49:40,690 --> 00:49:47,490
can cultivate our mind. so that we can be

727
00:49:47,490 --> 00:49:49,279
the kind of person we would like to be.

728
00:49:49,279 --> 00:49:53,620
so that we can have more compassion. so

729
00:49:53,620 --> 00:49:55,930
that we can have more inner space,

730
00:49:55,930 --> 00:50:01,069
more freedom, more courage to be able to

731
00:50:01,069 --> 00:50:05,839
make wonderful use of this precious life

732
00:50:05,839 --> 00:50:10,249
that we have. and to be able perhaps to

733
00:50:10,249 --> 00:50:13,379
deserve the earth in ways that we would

734
00:50:13,379 --> 00:50:16,809
like to serve the earth. she needs our

735
00:50:16,809 --> 00:50:23,494
help, we need her, and she also needs us.

736
00:50:29,250 --> 00:50:34,195
Thank you for listening.