2018 11 29 UH EN Discourse on Being an Island unto myself br Phap Dung
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1:30 - 1:33Dear respected teacher,
dear sangha, -
1:34 - 1:39today is November the 29th
in the year 2018, -
1:40 - 1:42and we are in Upper Hamlet
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1:44 - 1:47in the Still Water
sitting meditation hall. -
1:49 - 1:52And we are on our lay day.
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1:53 - 1:57A lay day is all our lay friends are here,
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1:57 - 2:00for long term, some are here
for three months, -
2:00 - 2:03some are here for a year, two years.
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2:03 - 2:05So it is
-
2:06 - 2:10a very beautiful rains retreat tradition.
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2:11 - 2:13Today is also a monastic day.
-
2:13 - 2:16I think they are in Lower Hamlet.
-
2:18 - 2:21When I first came into Plum Village,
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2:21 - 2:24we didn't have monastic day or lay day.
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2:24 - 2:27There are maybe 45 monks and nuns,
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2:27 - 2:30we can all fit in Thay's hut.
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2:30 - 2:33On Thay's deck.
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2:33 - 2:38That has grown bigger and Plum Village
became more, how you call it, -
2:40 - 2:43more a place of refuge.
-
2:46 - 2:49Somehow, the monastics,
we were like very small. -
2:50 - 2:53So during the year,
we hardly get to see each other -
2:53 - 2:56to practice together
-
2:56 - 3:00and look at some of the things
within the monastic community. -
3:00 - 3:03So slowly, there was that need.
-
3:04 - 3:07And the same thing with lay friends.
More and more came, -
3:07 - 3:09and they stay longer.
-
3:09 - 3:14And many of them became OI members
and Dharma teachers. -
3:14 - 3:20So we feel very grateful that
the fourfold sangha grew together. -
3:20 - 3:24And we wouldn't be able to have
a monastic day -
3:24 - 3:30without solid, stable, happy, harmonious,
peaceful, lay friends, -
3:31 - 3:34our sisters and brothers who are -
-
3:34 - 3:41We are very grateful here in Plum Village,
that you dedicate your life to come here, -
3:41 - 3:45not just long-term, but some of you
are thinking of moving here. -
3:45 - 3:48Some already have moved here.
-
3:48 - 3:51Before coming in here, I saw a baby.
-
3:52 - 3:56I think there is a family here
that lives in Thénac, I think you know. -
3:56 - 3:59There are two babies in Plum Village.
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4:00 - 4:06I knew them when the mother
was having the belly bulging, -
4:07 - 4:09the first baby.
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4:09 - 4:12So I always look at the couple and I say,
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4:12 - 4:17'What have I produced in these last
three years? They produced two babies! -
4:17 - 4:19(Laughter)
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4:19 - 4:21So what do I do here?
-
4:21 - 4:27What kind of love. It's from love
that you - And your hope and your- -
4:30 - 4:37You have a kind of love for your child,
and so on. -
4:39 - 4:42So this is a kind of mantra for me.
-
4:42 - 4:47I when I see the farmers too,
when they work on the farm, -
4:47 - 4:52like now, they are clipping
the grape vines. -
4:53 - 4:58I used to, as a novice I came here
many years ago, in my second year -
4:58 - 5:02I used to walk by them
and I felt really -
5:02 - 5:07you know, they are doing a lot of work.
All I do is walk around, eat, and sit, and -
5:08 - 5:09(Laughter)
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5:10 - 5:12maybe wash a few dishes.
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5:12 - 5:15But what do I do?
-
5:15 - 5:21I mean, it's cold, their hands in the -
It's very tough to be a farmer. -
5:22 - 5:25And so sometimes I feel very
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5:26 - 5:28like I live a very privileged life.
-
5:28 - 5:33I left a lot of things, my bank account,
my car, -
5:33 - 5:39my blood family, my sisters, my nieces,
my nephew. I live here. -
5:40 - 5:45And once in a while,
when I was a novice, -
5:45 - 5:50it would come up. I felt kind of guilty.
I remember feeling, Gosh! -
5:51 - 5:53It is quite -
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5:55 - 6:00So it may encourage me to really look
into, what do we do here? -
6:01 - 6:04What is it that we are
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6:06 - 6:11producing, or offering to the world?
-
6:11 - 6:16I remember my university friend came
and visited me. -
6:16 - 6:19She stayed for about five, or six days.
-
6:20 - 6:23And she was a kind of practitioner too.
-
6:24 - 6:27But I think we -
She was not very happy with me, -
6:28 - 6:31because we were architects together.
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6:31 - 6:38And she felt that I was deserting our
'save the world' aspiration. -
6:39 - 6:44As a young college student graduating
after working a while, -
6:44 - 6:49you have very idealistic, you know,
I'm going to save the climate! -
6:49 - 6:52Save the polar bears! Or something.
-
6:52 - 6:58I wanted to save Los Angeles,
make it a humane city, -
6:58 - 7:02with trees, and nature,
and everyone sharing, and - -
7:04 - 7:06So you are very idealistic.
-
7:07 - 7:10And she said, she felt,
she didn't say it, -
7:10 - 7:17but I could feel that she felt I was
deserting our commitment. -
7:18 - 7:21I think a few of us in college,
we supported each other, -
7:21 - 7:26we knew we wanted to help the world
be a better place. -
7:26 - 7:30And at a moment I said, 'You know,
I'm doing my part, I'm still working here, -
7:30 - 7:35doing things'. And she said, 'Yes! Sure!
It's easy for you to be in Plum Village!' -
7:37 - 7:40She felt like I was hiding here.
-
7:40 - 7:43I haven't talked to here for a while.
-
7:43 - 7:47I think in a few years we will come
back together and we will do inventory. -
7:47 - 7:52How much have you helped the world?
And how much have I done? -
7:53 - 7:56It's very - What do you call it?
-
7:56 - 8:00You know, gross national happiness
kind of thing. -
8:00 - 8:02What have you produced?
-
8:02 - 8:06How have you been useful?
This is a kind of a way of thinking -
8:07 - 8:11that I was trained in in America.
-
8:12 - 8:17I just share with you how Plum Village
has grown so much. -
8:18 - 8:26And I think now I am a few more at peace
and at ease with what Plum Village is -
8:26 - 8:32and what is doing as I grew more into
this community and into the practice, -
8:32 - 8:37and looked more deeply at ways
we can help better the world. -
8:38 - 8:42Some of you who have been here
at least one year, or two years, -
8:42 - 8:46you see so many kinds of people
go through here, -
8:46 - 8:50and the kind of breakthroughs they have
in their heart, in their mind. -
8:50 - 8:54The kind of reconciliation they have
with their loved ones. -
8:54 - 8:59The happiness and peace
they manage to generate. -
8:59 - 9:04As well as we do see anger,
and irritation, and frustration, -
9:04 - 9:07these kind of daily things.
-
9:07 - 9:11Their eyebrows become a little bit more -
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9:11 - 9:14That is already a great plus.
-
9:15 - 9:19The monastics, we, sometimes
after a retreat we come back to our room, -
9:19 - 9:23and our residence, we say, 'Did you see
how his face changed?' -
9:23 - 9:26Just one week. After one retreat,
-
9:26 - 9:30from the day a person comes,
-
9:30 - 9:33and after seven days,
-
9:33 - 9:35the face -
-
9:35 - 9:40And I think some of you are feeling that.
Maybe not in your face, but in the body, -
9:41 - 9:44maybe the way you chew.
-
9:45 - 9:49So for me these little things,
I began to look more deeply -
9:50 - 9:53as a kind of a -
I don't want to say -
9:54 - 9:58it's what we do over here.
It's not what we produce, -
9:58 - 10:02but it is a kind of
what Plum Village is about. -
10:03 - 10:07A place for healing, transformation,
as well as for nourishment, and -
10:07 - 10:11inspiration. You've been here
for the Wake Up retreat, -
10:12 - 10:16five hundred young people, wow!
They come here and their battery is - -
10:17 - 10:21Full capacity. And they go out there
and save the world. -
10:23 - 10:24Good luck!
-
10:25 - 10:26(Laughter)
-
10:27 - 10:30But it is good. Young people
need a place where they - -
10:30 - 10:35Because it's tough! We are living
at a very tough period. -
10:35 - 10:39Not tougher than in the Middle Ages,
or like - -
10:40 - 10:45Or the Barbaric times and so on.
But it is a tough time, -
10:45 - 10:49because of the media, and the amount of
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10:50 - 10:53stimulation.
-
10:53 - 10:57Every time I go back to the US
and I visit my family, -
10:57 - 11:01I see that it's so hard to raise a family,
to raise a child now. -
11:03 - 11:07So I feel a lot of inspiration
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11:07 - 11:12to create more conditions for families,
supporting families, parents, -
11:13 - 11:15brothers and sisters.
-
11:16 - 11:19So that is my reflection.
-
11:20 - 11:25The fourfold sangha growing
and making Plum Village be meaningful, -
11:25 - 11:33is Thay's greatest wish, to create
many Plum Villages around the world. -
11:34 - 11:36Ways -
-
11:36 - 11:41How we call it, places that are not good
for their economy. -
11:42 - 11:46I have a list I'll share with you
just to make to laugh. -
11:46 - 11:51I'm making a list, what Plum Village
is not good for. -
11:51 - 11:53(Laughter)
-
11:53 - 11:57And one of the first ones is,
Plum Village is not good for the economy. -
11:57 - 11:59(Laughter)
-
12:00 - 12:04Because people would come here,
and over, and over again, -
12:04 - 12:06after we see them, they quit their job.
-
12:06 - 12:08(Laughter)
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12:09 - 12:11That is the first thing.
-
12:11 - 12:15They stay and, 'How come you're here
for two weeks?' - 'I quit my job.' -
12:15 - 12:17(Laughter)
-
12:17 - 12:20Before it was very hard for them
to find one week. -
12:20 - 12:24And I see them again and I say,
'You are here for two weeks, really?' -
12:24 - 12:27'Yes, I quit my job.'
And it is classic. -
12:28 - 12:32If you see somebody
hanging around here a long time, -
12:32 - 12:35it is probably not good for their economy.
-
12:35 - 12:37(Laughter)
-
12:37 - 12:39I thought you would laugh.
-
12:40 - 12:43The other one is Plum Village
is not good for your self-image. -
12:43 - 12:46You know, that one is hard, uh?
-
12:46 - 12:49I came here and I was from L.A.
and, you know, -
12:49 - 12:52I was very gangster and -
-
12:53 - 12:56And people start to tell you
a lot of things about yourself. -
12:56 - 13:00And you kind like, mmm, -
-
13:01 - 13:04So your high identity and your,
kind of your - -
13:05 - 13:08You know, in a Dharma discussion
that happens, you know? -
13:08 - 13:11People start to break down their,
-
13:12 - 13:17what do we call it, their veil and
they get to really be who they are. -
13:18 - 13:22And it's such a liberation
-
13:22 - 13:27to be who you are
without fear of being judged. -
13:27 - 13:31You have to put something up
for your parents, -
13:31 - 13:36for your mother, your father,
your friends, society. -
13:36 - 13:39You don't have to do that here. Wow!
-
13:39 - 13:43So it is really bad for your self-image,
that is what I mean. -
13:43 - 13:46The other one,
you are not going to like this one. -
13:46 - 13:49Plum Village is not good
for your relationships. -
13:49 - 13:51(Laughter)
-
13:54 - 13:58It is really - You thought
you were doing well in your relationships -
13:58 - 14:01and then you come here and you realize,
'Oh my God! I'm -' -
14:01 - 14:03(Laughter)
-
14:03 - 14:07Yeah? So you have to really look again
at your relationship. -
14:09 - 14:13You know, this may not apply to you,
you may be fine in your relationship, -
14:13 - 14:17so, don't fix it if it is not broken.
Okay? -
14:17 - 14:20I only say it from a few observations.
-
14:20 - 14:24People really have to look at
their relationships. -
14:24 - 14:29You know, they are attached,
they are projecting, so on. -
14:30 - 14:34Or maybe their partner is projecting
and attached. -
14:34 - 14:39So these are kind of -
And then, something happens. -
14:40 - 14:43Some of the couples become
monks and nuns, so - -
14:43 - 14:45(Laughter)
-
14:45 - 14:48It's like, 'I don't like
this double relationship. -
14:48 - 14:52I want a monk type relationship.'
-
14:52 - 14:55Anyway, I just share a little few things.
-
14:57 - 15:03Anyway, let get serious, because I was
asked to share with you about a sutra. -
15:04 - 15:07So let be a little Buddhist about it.
-
15:07 - 15:13So I was asked to share about
the Discourse on Taking Refuge in Oneself. -
15:13 - 15:16And I think some of you have been around.
-
15:17 - 15:21I won't go through this sutra,
but this is the topic today. -
15:22 - 15:26How to take refuge in oneself.
And what that means. -
15:27 - 15:31And that is very -
For me, -
15:31 - 15:37it is one of the essence
of Buddhist practice. It is a - -
15:38 - 15:41You know, the Buddha at that time,
when he was forming, -
15:42 - 15:48there was a lot of, I guess, religions?
A lot of devotional practices, -
15:49 - 15:53a lot of rituals, a lot of things.
There must have been a lot of suffering. -
15:54 - 15:57People looking outward,
-
15:57 - 16:05looking for magicians, and ritual people
that can help relieve their suffering. -
16:06 - 16:11So this is the time that he was
formulating most of his teachings. -
16:12 - 16:15So people like looked for
things -
16:16 - 16:21that may help them connect to a God
or something, a Savior, -
16:21 - 16:24something would help them bring peace.
-
16:24 - 16:28And also to, also to look for teachers.
-
16:28 - 16:33Even the Buddha did that himself.
He went around looking for teachers -
16:33 - 16:37to help him find a way
so he can liberate himself. -
16:37 - 16:40So you need to know the context.
-
16:41 - 16:45How the Buddha formulated the practice.
-
16:45 - 16:51In that way, you can copy him, in a way.
-
16:51 - 16:57Maybe understand deeply his life.
This is a young man, 29 years old, -
16:58 - 17:03looking for, like you are looking for
when you come to Plum Village, -
17:03 - 17:07or you find Thay's books.
We are on a search, -
17:08 - 17:14spiritual search, a search for relieving
our anger, our frustration, our suffering. -
17:15 - 17:17And finding peace.
-
17:17 - 17:23We all have this kind of innate search
to look for peace, happiness. -
17:25 - 17:30As well as to relieve, and even sometimes
to avoid suffering, -
17:30 - 17:33or get rid of suffering.
-
17:33 - 17:36So we look for a teacher.
-
17:36 - 17:39So people did that.
And the Buddha did that. -
17:39 - 17:42And many disciples did that.
-
17:42 - 17:48Many of the teachers of other students
found the Buddha and so on. -
17:48 - 17:52And their students also
turned to the Buddha. -
17:53 - 17:56So there is this tradition
throughout the ages, I think, -
17:57 - 18:00for us to learn from our teachers,
to learn from those who -
18:01 - 18:04went before us.
-
18:04 - 18:06And I think,
-
18:06 - 18:10in this sutra the Buddha is very strong.
-
18:11 - 18:19In this sutra, two other monks,
Shariputra and Maudgalyayana, -
18:19 - 18:23the two eldest monks in the community.
-
18:23 - 18:27This is already the sangha has grown full,
-
18:27 - 18:31and many monks
already following the Buddha. -
18:31 - 18:34And these two monks have been teaching
-
18:34 - 18:38and are very well loved
by the other young monks. -
18:39 - 18:42And they have passed away.
-
18:42 - 18:45So this is -
-
18:45 - 18:49And the Buddha saw that
a few of the monks were affected. -
18:49 - 18:57His attendant, Thay Ananda, was affected.
I think he even fainted, Thay shared. -
18:57 - 19:02He lost balance, as ,'Now what will I do?
They are gone! Oh!' -
19:03 - 19:08So this is the context of the teaching
of why the Buddha gave this teaching. -
19:09 - 19:13Because there is a kind of
attachment to the teacher. -
19:13 - 19:18So in the sutra Taking Refuge in Oneself,
the Buddha is pointing -
19:20 - 19:26at you letting - You know that there is
only one place that is the true security, -
19:27 - 19:33that you will have refuge and safety,
solidity and so on. -
19:33 - 19:37And that is the island within,
the island -
19:38 - 19:40within oneself.
-
19:40 - 19:43This is beautiful!
-
19:43 - 19:47When I first learned of this teaching,
it just blew my mind. -
19:48 - 19:50The island of self.
-
19:50 - 19:54You know, I mean self is a loaded word
-
19:54 - 19:58in our education growing up.
-
19:58 - 20:01Selfie, and so on.
-
20:01 - 20:04But the island of self here
-
20:04 - 20:06is a kind of quality that we -
-
20:06 - 20:10All the qualities that we think
we don't have, and we are looking for, -
20:11 - 20:15out there, or in a book,
in a self-help books. -
20:15 - 20:18When you are suffering,
-
20:18 - 20:21the self-help books keep going.
-
20:21 - 20:26One reference, and then you go
to the next one, and the next author. -
20:26 - 20:30So we have this tendency to look outward
-
20:30 - 20:33for the answer.
-
20:34 - 20:38This for me was a revolution.
-
20:38 - 20:41Thay and the Buddha told me,
-
20:41 - 20:44the way out is in.
-
20:44 - 20:48So the island of self here
is to look inward. -
20:48 - 20:51And more specifically, in the sutra
-
20:52 - 20:57is recommended that you look inward
and to meditate. -
20:58 - 21:03There is a phrase that says,
"Meditate on the body in the body, -
21:06 - 21:10nourishing Right Understanding
and mindfulness -
21:10 - 21:16to master and transform
your cravings and anxieties." -
21:17 - 21:18That is
-
21:22 - 21:29the best instruction that you will get
in terms of what the Buddhist path is. -
21:29 - 21:33It is go back, look inside your body.
-
21:33 - 21:36And here the body is not,
is just one word 'body', -
21:36 - 21:39but it means the five skandhas.
-
21:39 - 21:45It means also the four foundations
of your practice of meditation. -
21:46 - 21:50The four foundations,
the body, the feelings, -
21:51 - 21:56the mind and the objects of mind,
or the world. -
21:56 - 21:59So those are the four foundations
the Buddha has taught. -
22:00 - 22:05So that when you say, 'Look in the body',
the body means also the feelings, -
22:05 - 22:09the perceptions, the mental formations
and our mind. -
22:10 - 22:15So the body here is also the body
and how the mind works. -
22:16 - 22:21So to be a good meditator
you need to know about that, -
22:21 - 22:25you need to know how this body works,
you need to know -
22:26 - 22:31how the mind, and how you perceive
and work in the world. -
22:31 - 22:35And this is very important.
If we don't understand -
22:35 - 22:39how your mind works,
you will just keep -
22:40 - 22:43entangling yourself.
-
22:43 - 22:45And there is a method
-
22:46 - 22:54to slowly begin to see the subtle ways and
the more gross ways that our mind works. -
22:55 - 22:59The gross way is, you know, when you sit
and meditate, it is hard to tell, right? -
23:00 - 23:02It is very subtle.
-
23:02 - 23:08Whether that person, how they are feeling
or if they are really meditating. -
23:08 - 23:11If they are doing the work.
It's hard to tell. -
23:11 - 23:16They look very peaceful, but as soon as
they stand up, and go to the door, -
23:16 - 23:20and open the door and close it,
you can see their mind. -
23:20 - 23:23You see? That is very -
That is the gross level. -
23:24 - 23:26Do you understand?
-
23:26 - 23:30When you see someone rushing
to the tea house, it's very obvious. -
23:30 - 23:34So the body can reveal the mind.
-
23:35 - 23:39When you see someone take hot water,
-
23:41 - 23:44he pulls the lever down,
-
23:45 - 23:50and how they take the hot water
tells you something. It's energetic. -
23:51 - 23:53It is more subtle.
-
23:53 - 23:58So, slowly, with meditation, you can see,
you train in gross, -
23:58 - 24:00and slowly in more subtle.
-
24:01 - 24:03And how the body works
as well as the mind. -
24:04 - 24:09So we do separate it, but actually
it's one thing. Body and mind go together. -
24:10 - 24:17But it is helpful to train, so
the body sometimes can help the mind. -
24:19 - 24:22Like opening the door.
-
24:22 - 24:25If you train to open the door
in a certain way, -
24:25 - 24:29and you do it every time
you open this door, -
24:31 - 24:35then, what is the mind doing?
So you are not just training your body, -
24:35 - 24:38you are training your mind.
-
24:39 - 24:44That is why as novices, for three years
we are very - -
24:45 - 24:49The brothers look at how we move.
-
24:50 - 24:52How we flip our robe,
-
24:52 - 24:56how we find ways to
put on our robe quickly, you know? -
24:56 - 24:59Because we are not used to it.
-
24:59 - 25:04So as novice, for three years
we have to train to master our steps, -
25:04 - 25:08how we cook, how we sit,
how we make tea, how we get out of bed. -
25:09 - 25:14How our bed looks.
The area where we put our things. -
25:14 - 25:17How the room looks.
-
25:17 - 25:20We call them mindful manners.
-
25:20 - 25:23The first three years is very, very -
-
25:24 - 25:29So the training in the body
is quite helpful at the beginning. -
25:29 - 25:32Because the mind part,
-
25:32 - 25:34tougher.
-
25:34 - 25:38It is more subtle,
because we are quite cerebral animals, -
25:38 - 25:43we are very proud, we are Homo sapiens,
Homo conscious. -
25:43 - 25:48We are very smart.
So as meditators, sometimes -
25:49 - 25:52we are too smarts for ourselves.
-
25:52 - 25:55So the body helps us.
-
25:55 - 25:59So here, when we say,
"Look at the body in the body", -
26:00 - 26:04is to come back and use this
-
26:08 - 26:13vehicle, this body as a meditation.
-
26:14 - 26:19In another sutra, The Sixteen Exercises
on Full Awareness of Breathing, -
26:20 - 26:23the Buddha gave very clear instructions.
-
26:25 - 26:29And he uses the breath
to observe the mind. -
26:30 - 26:33Here in Plum Village,
-
26:34 - 26:36you have experienced
some of the guided meditations. -
26:37 - 26:40They all go with the breath.
In-breath, like this -
26:41 - 26:45we managed before the Dharma talk,
we heard a guided meditation. -
26:45 - 26:50Breathing in, I see myself as space.
-
26:51 - 26:55Breathing out, I feel free.
-
26:56 - 26:59Imagine your body as space.
-
27:01 - 27:04And you feel free.
-
27:05 - 27:10So with the breath we can actually
learn a lot about our body. -
27:11 - 27:15So the following the breath,
don't underestimate that. -
27:16 - 27:21Maybe you've done it a couple of times,
maybe follow your breath a few meditations -
27:21 - 27:25and you, 'Huh! This is like beginners!'
-
27:26 - 27:28But be careful.
-
27:28 - 27:32Following the breath
is a whole life's work. -
27:32 - 27:37So every time you sit, establish yourself
right away to the breath. -
27:38 - 27:44You breathe in, you recognize
it is an in-breath, and find out -
27:45 - 27:49where is it that spot
that is most helpful for you. -
27:49 - 27:52Sometimes it's near the nose.
-
27:52 - 27:55Sometimes it's the back of your head.
-
27:56 - 27:58Sometimes it's around here.
-
27:58 - 28:00So, it changes.
-
28:02 - 28:05So we take the breath
and we recognize -
28:07 - 28:09it is an in-breath.
-
28:12 - 28:14You can out-breath.
-
28:14 - 28:17You recognize the out-breath.
-
28:17 - 28:20It sound like,
'Why it has to do anything?' -
28:21 - 28:24But it is the secret.
-
28:25 - 28:29Sometimes - There is a poem in Zen.
-
28:31 - 28:37You take the silk of the lotus stem,
you know, when you break the lotus stem -
28:37 - 28:42and you pull the stem.
And there is a very thin silk. -
28:42 - 28:45Have you ever seen it?
It's very thin. -
28:45 - 28:48It's very light.
-
28:48 - 28:52And there is a poem where you say,
"You can take one of those silks -
28:52 - 28:57and you can tame an angry tiger."
-
28:58 - 29:00It's beautiful.
-
29:00 - 29:03You don't need a whip,
you don't need a chain, -
29:03 - 29:08you just need a thin silk
from the lotus leaf. -
29:10 - 29:13And you can hold the tiger. Wow!
-
29:13 - 29:17I loved that image
when Thay first taught it. -
29:17 - 29:19So you don't need -
-
29:19 - 29:23And what that silk thread is,
is your breath. -
29:25 - 29:29Don't underestimate your breath.
If you train your breathing, -
29:29 - 29:31it can actually,
-
29:32 - 29:36it can really hold
and bring back your mind. -
29:37 - 29:40So with each breath,
even a small little breath, -
29:41 - 29:43you can bring your mind back.
-
29:44 - 29:46It is drifting somewhere.
-
29:46 - 29:49So these exercises
it is what we do. -
29:50 - 29:53We don't clip vine, you know.
-
29:53 - 29:57The grape vines. We don't build walls
with bricks. -
29:58 - 30:02Monastics here, what we do,
what practitioners do here, -
30:02 - 30:08is you train to have more concentration,
more mindfulness, and more insight, -
30:08 - 30:10more understanding.
-
30:11 - 30:13So with each breath,
-
30:15 - 30:17our mindfulness energy
-
30:18 - 30:20is generated, right?
-
30:21 - 30:23This is all we do!
-
30:23 - 30:28And the more we become consistent,
the more strength it has. -
30:28 - 30:31Even though it is still very subtle,
-
30:31 - 30:35this little silk thread
can really hold you. -
30:35 - 30:39And some of you maybe
have already experienced it. -
30:39 - 30:44You may have this wrong idea about
something and it makes you very angry. -
30:47 - 30:49Just one breath,
-
30:50 - 30:52wow!
-
30:52 - 30:57Second breath, you are like,
oh! I'm so glad I didn't open my mouth! -
30:58 - 31:01You already felt that?
-
31:01 - 31:04By the second breath
you are already feeling gratitude. -
31:05 - 31:08'Oh! I'm so glad
I didn't react to that one!' -
31:09 - 31:10(Laughter)
-
31:11 - 31:13That is the tiger, you see?
-
31:13 - 31:17The tiger now turns around and smiles.
-
31:17 - 31:21Ah! You know? Wow! I got out of that one!
-
31:21 - 31:26Those of you who have been angry,
like I have been in the past, -
31:26 - 31:28I can destroy many things.
-
31:29 - 31:34All the kitchen cupboards, all the doors,
the table, all the knives. -
31:36 - 31:40So you know what that tiger can do, right?
-
31:41 - 31:45But to master the tiger, wow!
-
31:45 - 31:47Now, that
-
31:48 - 31:51is the greatest gift.
-
31:52 - 31:57You know, you to be the CEO,
and have a good company, -
31:57 - 32:02and you got 500 employees,
that's great! -
32:02 - 32:05But it's incomparable
-
32:06 - 32:11to the CEO of your anger, eh?
-
32:11 - 32:13That is a great happiness.
-
32:14 - 32:16When I was first able to do that,
-
32:17 - 32:22I knew this is something very,
very precious. -
32:23 - 32:27And I dedicate my life
to finding out more. -
32:27 - 32:32So this is what the power of
the breathing, the exercise. -
32:32 - 32:37The Buddha didn't just give
a whole teaching on the breath. -
32:37 - 32:43Because, it's what he does
and what he sees can help. -
32:44 - 32:51So don't underestimate the conscious
breathing exercise training, Okay? -
32:52 - 32:56This is how you train to look at
the body within the body. -
32:56 - 33:02You sit, find the time, sit down.
And be with your body. -
33:04 - 33:08Most of the time in our society
we are not taught that. -
33:08 - 33:11Our body sometimes is in the way.
-
33:11 - 33:14It gets hungry? Why it has to get hungry!
-
33:14 - 33:18You just fill it up and then
continue to work. -
33:18 - 33:20So we've never,
-
33:20 - 33:23in the society we don't really
-
33:23 - 33:28value the miracle of having a body,
that your parents gave birth to you. -
33:30 - 33:35So there is a whole miracle, a cosmos
in our body that we can actually -
33:36 - 33:38come back to.
-
33:38 - 33:41I remember the first total relaxation,
-
33:41 - 33:44Sister Chan Khong, in a retreat
in Santa Barbara, I laid down, -
33:45 - 33:49she asked to put our hand on our heart.
My first time! -
33:49 - 33:54Valuing my heart. Do you believe that?
29 years old. -
33:54 - 33:58And the first time going,
'Oh! Thank you, heart' -
33:58 - 34:00I never forget it.
-
34:00 - 34:05I was a very emotional moment
of actually, 'Gosh! -
34:05 - 34:09I know what have I done to my body!'
-
34:10 - 34:15So with mindfulness we come to cherish,
and to value, and to protect -
34:16 - 34:19our body and its energy.
-
34:19 - 34:26So we waste a lot of energy, and
we hold in a lot of stress and anxiety -
34:26 - 34:28in our body.
-
34:29 - 34:32So we learn to release, to relax.
That is fundamental. -
34:33 - 34:35First gross step.
-
34:36 - 34:39But it is nothing less than
taking care of the mind as well. -
34:40 - 34:43Because, you see it, it is the same.
-
34:45 - 34:47When you feel sad,
-
34:48 - 34:52your body feels heavy, and your breath
-
34:53 - 34:55tight,
-
34:55 - 34:59find some place in the forest,
find a quite place. -
35:00 - 35:03And be with that.
-
35:07 - 35:12So, learning to feel your body
in the heavy state, -
35:12 - 35:14and not to go look for
-
35:16 - 35:20you know, a friend to listen to me.
Those are needed too, -
35:21 - 35:25but learn to be with your sadness.
-
35:26 - 35:29Take care of your sadness.
-
35:30 - 35:33There is a bamboo forest out here,
a grove here. -
35:35 - 35:39You can sit in the middle of the bamboos.
-
35:40 - 35:45It is very tight, you let it wrap you.
-
35:45 - 35:51And the bamboo grove here it is like
it has mother energy. -
35:51 - 35:55Find a place down there, in the oak grove.
-
35:59 - 36:04Be with whatever that is discomfort.
-
36:04 - 36:08This is coming back to oneself.
-
36:08 - 36:11We don't go looking for, 'Oh! -'
-
36:12 - 36:15Not all the time.
-
36:15 - 36:18Sometimes we do need a friend.
-
36:18 - 36:22But we need to become our best friend.
-
36:23 - 36:25So that is the feelings, eh?
-
36:26 - 36:28The body, the feelings.
-
36:29 - 36:34And feelings is both
in the 4 foundations as in the 5 skandhas, -
36:35 - 36:39feeling is separated out.
It is also the mind. -
36:39 - 36:42It is also consciousness,
but the Buddha takes it out. -
36:43 - 36:47And I always wondered why
he takes perception and feeling out, -
36:48 - 36:50and makes 5.
-
36:52 - 36:56Because you look at the way we work
as human beings, -
36:56 - 36:59feelings is huge, right?
-
37:00 - 37:04Everything is emotional, everything is
either you like, you don't like, -
37:05 - 37:07it's pleasant, not pleasant.
-
37:07 - 37:11At lunch today, you see your feelings.
-
37:12 - 37:14You know,
-
37:15 - 37:21you feel you are not making contact
with people, or you know, -
37:22 - 37:24another feeling comes up.
-
37:24 - 37:27Then somebody comes and says Hi! to you,
and you, 'Oh!' -
37:28 - 37:32And then another feeling comes up.
So we are feeling animals, -
37:32 - 37:34we are emotional animals, right?
-
37:35 - 37:37If you don't know how that works -
-
37:38 - 37:41It is like the weather, you know?
-
37:41 - 37:46The people, actually, some of my brothers,
they follow the weather a lot! -
37:46 - 37:49They say, 'Oh! Tomorrow
is going to be a great day!' -
37:49 - 37:53Or, 'The next day is going to be sunny,
it's going to be rain, it's going -' -
37:53 - 37:56But you really never know, you know?
-
37:56 - 38:00When the day comes, it is like half rain,
and then it is half sunny. -
38:01 - 38:03But there is so much energy!
-
38:04 - 38:08It is like, whatever! Okay! It's going
to rain, Okay, it's going to rain! -
38:08 - 38:10(Laughter)
-
38:10 - 38:13Your feelings, sorry to say,
it's kind of like that. -
38:13 - 38:18So don't get attached to it. You are
feeling, Oh! Everybody is going so well! -
38:19 - 38:22But then, tomorrow, ummm.
-
38:23 - 38:24Right?
-
38:25 - 38:27(Laughter)
-
38:27 - 38:31I don't mean - If you are going through
a bad time right now, please, you know - -
38:32 - 38:34It's cool.
-
38:35 - 38:38But it is not the only place
we need to be, eh? -
38:38 - 38:43Just don't always base yourself
on the thermometer of your feelings. -
38:43 - 38:46That is terrible!
There is more things going on! -
38:47 - 38:50So feeling is just one, Okay?
-
38:50 - 38:52The food is not good, but like,
-
38:53 - 38:58it's wonderful to be hanging out here,
and the sun is coming out. -
38:58 - 39:01So there are other things
going on besides. -
39:02 - 39:04So feelings -
-
39:05 - 39:09But know how they work,
know how they work. -
39:13 - 39:16Sometimes I read the newspaper,
-
39:17 - 39:22and I look at what kind of emotions,
I look for emotions in the newspaper. -
39:23 - 39:27I don't read it for the news,
because it's all fake anyway. -
39:27 - 39:29(Laughter)
-
39:29 - 39:33No, no fake. But like, you know,
perspective, opinions. -
39:34 - 39:38So I don't get caught at their facts
or what really happened, -
39:38 - 39:42because next week you have another article
that says something else, right? -
39:42 - 39:46So something you look at the newspaper,
as looking for feelings! -
39:46 - 39:50That one is greed,
and that one is anger, -
39:50 - 39:52that one is jealousy, that one is -
-
39:53 - 39:57It is a very good exercise.
You see the human drama. -
39:59 - 40:01And that helps you,
-
40:02 - 40:04it helps me
-
40:04 - 40:06become a little bit,
-
40:07 - 40:11I don't want to say a little bit more
even, I don't want to say detached, -
40:11 - 40:16but like just careful.
Not to let it be overwhelming. -
40:16 - 40:19I'm having a good day?
I'm having a good day. -
40:19 - 40:22I'm not, 'I'm having a good day!'
I'm having a good day. -
40:23 - 40:27It's a great day.
It is a good day. -
40:27 - 40:31It's a nice day to be alive.
-
40:31 - 40:34So I had to train that.
-
40:34 - 40:37I came from a culture where
everything is superlative. -
40:37 - 40:40'Wow! It's so nice to see you!!!'
-
40:41 - 40:42You know?
-
40:43 - 40:44(Laughter)
-
40:44 - 40:47Sorry, I'm making fun of myself.
-
40:47 - 40:55Everything is super, you know,
is superb! Everything is grand! -
40:55 - 41:01Nothing can just be like,
'Yes! It's a beautiful day. It is.' -
41:03 - 41:05It truly is.
-
41:06 - 41:11So these feelings, you explore and find
-
41:12 - 41:16that place where the feeling
doesn't move you. -
41:17 - 41:20That is taking refuge in oneself.
-
41:21 - 41:24You know how to take care
of your feelings. -
41:24 - 41:27If I ask you, 'Do you know how to
take care of our emotions?' -
41:27 - 41:29You have to say, 'Yes.'
-
41:29 - 41:34If you are a practitioner,
you cannot be beat up by your feelings. -
41:34 - 41:37You have to know. It is not to say,
don't have feelings. -
41:37 - 41:42Yes, be sad, be angry, be irritated,
be judgmental, be whatever. -
41:43 - 41:46There is many, many.
-
41:48 - 41:51And you know how to take care of it.
-
41:51 - 41:57Wow! That is the island of self.
Taking care of oneself. -
41:59 - 42:03So the body in the body,
the feeling in the feeling. -
42:03 - 42:06So don't deny yourself,
-
42:07 - 42:12just don't deny yourself
from feeling the unpleasant feeling. -
42:14 - 42:18Eat something that you don't normally
would like to eat. -
42:23 - 42:25Right?
-
42:25 - 42:29Why is it you just go after feelings
that make you feel pleasant and you like, -
42:29 - 42:32and why you just choose
things that you like? -
42:32 - 42:35Why don't choose something that
you wouldn't normally like, -
42:37 - 42:40and feel how that feels?
-
42:40 - 42:44Anyway, I'm sharing with you my kind of
weird way of training, eh? -
42:44 - 42:47Only do this if it works with you, Okay?
-
42:47 - 42:50I am a very, how we call it,
I'm a very tricky person. -
42:51 - 42:53So I have to trick myself.
-
42:53 - 42:56So if you are that kind of person,
-
42:56 - 42:59then this probably makes sense.
-
43:01 - 43:06So you know, I do this so I become
more resilient. I have choices. -
43:07 - 43:11It means that. When you only choose
things that make you feel good, -
43:11 - 43:13you don't have so much choices.
-
43:14 - 43:17Because sometime
they are not going to be there. -
43:17 - 43:20And we are going to have nothing!
-
43:21 - 43:22So,
-
43:23 - 43:29explore pleasant feelings,
unpleasant feelings, neutral feelings. -
43:30 - 43:35Neutral feelings, Thay has an interesting
thing about neutral feelings. -
43:38 - 43:43We can look at something neutral,
like brushing our teeth. -
43:44 - 43:47What is so pleasant about
brushing our teeth? -
43:48 - 43:52I remember first coming across
Thay teaching us about this. -
43:53 - 43:57And it was really hard to -
I had to really do it! -
43:57 - 44:00I mean, you never think
brushing your teeth -
44:00 - 44:02is something that you can enjoy, right?
-
44:03 - 44:06Who ever had that?
-
44:07 - 44:09Some of you, I'm sure.
-
44:09 - 44:13But most people, brushing your teeth
is hygiene, you know? You just - -
44:14 - 44:18Or even going to urinate.
-
44:19 - 44:23Strange, eh? I never thought of it
as something to enjoy, -
44:23 - 44:27until Thay told me one time,
he walked into the forest, -
44:27 - 44:29toilet has this tendency to get away.
-
44:30 - 44:38And Thay looked into the maples outside
the Omega practice center, in the US. -
44:39 - 44:42And Thay enjoyed urinating.
-
44:42 - 44:46And I remember the first time
I heard that from Thay at a retreat, -
44:46 - 44:48and I, 'Wow!'
-
44:51 - 44:53You see? It used to be neutral for me.
-
44:53 - 44:57It was like, you know, Who ever thinks
about enjoying peeing? -
44:59 - 45:01But you see the difference?
-
45:02 - 45:08We think, 'Oh! Only when we eat or we
drink our favorite drink it is pleasant.' -
45:09 - 45:15But actually, the releasing we think
is unpleasant. 'Oh, we have to go pee! -
45:15 - 45:18Oh, we have to go defecate! Or we -'
-
45:18 - 45:24It's just something - But it's amazing
what Thay is revealing to us. -
45:24 - 45:28For me, it was mind-boggling,
it was like, wow! -
45:29 - 45:31And I remember the first trying.
-
45:33 - 45:37It was quite amazing, you know?
The birds - -
45:39 - 45:44It's not something you have to get rid of
and do it quickly, and you have to hide. -
45:48 - 45:53So this is taking something neutral,
what you think is neutral, -
45:54 - 45:59and turning it a little bit. You see?
-
46:00 - 46:04So whatever you think - I used to think
folding clothes is neutral. -
46:05 - 46:07I get it done.
-
46:07 - 46:11So I began to apply it to all aspects
of my life where I can of like - -
46:11 - 46:16you know, it's just gray. You just do it,
you fold your clothes. -
46:17 - 46:19But then I remember,
-
46:19 - 46:24'OK, I'm going to
enjoy folding my clothes.' -
46:24 - 46:28Because we don't have irons,
I don't use an iron. -
46:30 - 46:36So I make it - If you fold it correctly,
and you pack in, and you stack it tight, -
46:37 - 46:38it irons itself.
-
46:38 - 46:40(Laughter)
-
46:40 - 46:42I know, it is -
-
46:42 - 46:45It's not good for the electricity,
you know? -
46:45 - 46:48The company, the electricity company.
-
46:48 - 46:53But you - Now, when I do my clothing,
I fold my clothing, -
46:55 - 47:00at least 30 minutes, maybe.
I don't count, but it takes a while. -
47:01 - 47:05Because I get everything lined up,
the seams, and - It's a little bit - -
47:07 - 47:11What is it? Obsessive? OCD, or something?
-
47:12 - 47:13(Laughter)
-
47:13 - 47:16Something like that.
It's borderline, kind of. -
47:16 - 47:18But I'm smiling
and I'm really enjoying it. -
47:19 - 47:22And my brother, my room-mate,
he knows not to bother me. -
47:22 - 47:26So it is also the time for meditation.
You breathe - -
47:27 - 47:32And I've found ways to fold it
where I can get it pretty, pretty -
47:35 - 47:37smooth.
-
47:37 - 47:39So that is a kind of another one, eh?
-
47:39 - 47:43Folding clothes. It used to be neutral,
it's not neutral anymore. -
47:43 - 47:47It's actually - But it's not like,
'Oh! It's the time to fold clothes!' -
47:47 - 47:49(Laughter)
-
47:49 - 47:54It's more like, 'Ah! I have clothes!'
So I use that time to be grateful. -
47:55 - 48:00You know, I have a rip in my pants,
and I see, 'Oh!'. And I try to value it, -
48:00 - 48:03and keep using it as long as I can.
-
48:03 - 48:06So it's a gratitude too to my clothes.
It's not just - -
48:08 - 48:15Anyway. You see, I have a few more like,
cutting my nails. I share this with you. -
48:16 - 48:20It used to be neutral. Cutting your nails.
And your toenail. -
48:20 - 48:24Now, when it's time to cut my nails -
-
48:25 - 48:27Enjoy it!
-
48:27 - 48:30Specially your last toe.
-
48:30 - 48:32(Laughter)
-
48:33 - 48:37We really underestimate our last toe.
'You are good for nothing! -
48:37 - 48:40What are you doing down there?'
-
48:40 - 48:42(Laughter)
-
48:42 - 48:44There is little excuse for a toe, right?
-
48:44 - 48:47Did you ever look at the nail
of your small toe? -
48:47 - 48:50Ah! It's so cute!
-
48:50 - 48:52(Laughter)
-
48:52 - 48:55Anyway, it's really enjoyable.
-
48:55 - 48:57Because I had my toe infected.
-
48:58 - 49:02And you know when you have
infection on your toe. -
49:03 - 49:09So when I cut my toe, I am very careful
and I appreciate and I am so grateful, -
49:10 - 49:12to every toe.
-
49:12 - 49:18So it sounds funny, but for me,
it is these little things, right? -
49:18 - 49:22Of how you take care of yourself.
Don't underestimate those little things. -
49:22 - 49:25Something that you love to do,
-
49:26 - 49:30don't deprive yourself of it.
-
49:30 - 49:33Right now, when I am in big trouble,
when I start to, -
49:33 - 49:36'I don't have time for it right now.'
Do you know that one? -
49:36 - 49:39'OK. Maybe not this week. No, no no.'
-
49:40 - 49:44It's kind of like I don't deserve it,
or I don't have time for it, -
49:44 - 49:46or this is more important.
-
49:46 - 49:49So be careful with that.
You do it this week, -
49:49 - 49:53you do it more next week,
and so on. -
49:53 - 49:58This is a way of
slowly not taking care of yourself. -
49:59 - 50:02So these are feelings.
-
50:04 - 50:08And we move into the area of mind.
-
50:08 - 50:13Mental formations and objects of mind.
-
50:13 - 50:18So it is the way we think,
the way we perceive, -
50:19 - 50:22and what we have ideas about the world.
-
50:23 - 50:25So remember this, Okay?
-
50:25 - 50:29So, the mind is also mental formations,
the mind is what happens, -
50:30 - 50:33the ideas, the thinking,
everything in your mind. -
50:34 - 50:39And the way you perceive the world,
the dharmas, how you see things. -
50:40 - 50:44And this is the fun stuff.
-
50:45 - 50:50You have a lot of ideas about yourself.
You have a lot of ideas about the world, -
50:50 - 50:54about the people, and your place in it.
-
50:54 - 51:00Those are ideas, notions. And you need
to know that those are notions. -
51:01 - 51:05They are not truth, they are not real,
they are not - -
51:08 - 51:11You made them up.
Sorry. -
51:13 - 51:17That's the part for me that was like,
wow! I did make it up! -
51:18 - 51:25And if you are on the path, this is
a very cool thing to watch, -
51:25 - 51:29how your mind works,
and how the world works. -
51:31 - 51:34And this is how we are
in the world, right? -
51:34 - 51:39So a person who knows and becomes aware
of how her mind works, -
51:40 - 51:43is a little closer to being free.
-
51:45 - 51:49So here the objective is to be free.
-
51:51 - 51:54So this is, you have to ask yourself,
-
51:55 - 52:00what are some notions, some ideas
that keep us tied. -
52:03 - 52:08So in the five skandhas, we have feelings,
and we have perceptions, right? -
52:09 - 52:12And then mental formations,
and then consciousness. -
52:12 - 52:16The area of perceptions that
Thay the Buddha also takes out. -
52:17 - 52:21It is also part of mental formations,
or of mind, right? -
52:21 - 52:25So why did the Buddha
take out perceptions? -
52:26 - 52:31That was always a question of mine
that helped me begin to see more, -
52:33 - 52:35and understand more.
-
52:35 - 52:39When we talk about perceptions,
we usually think -
52:40 - 52:42that there is something out there.
-
52:42 - 52:46But in the Buddhist teachings,
and what he found, -
52:46 - 52:53is that actually the one who is perceiving
and what is out there come together. -
52:53 - 52:57They cannot be separated.
-
52:59 - 53:05This for me was a good exercise,
a good way of contemplating -
53:06 - 53:11how we perceive things
and we think it's real, it's out there. -
53:12 - 53:14But it is actually -
-
53:16 - 53:21The famous example is
someone sees a snake, right? -
53:22 - 53:24And runs away.
-
53:24 - 53:28And then, when there is light
or a flashlight, he comes back, and looks, -
53:28 - 53:31and he sees it is not a snake.
-
53:31 - 53:34It is just a stick on the ground.
-
53:35 - 53:41So there is a lot of that happening, but
there is a strong tendency in us as humans -
53:41 - 53:45to think that's really how reality is.
-
53:49 - 53:55And one way of observing this is
sometime you feel sad, -
53:56 - 54:00and the way you will look at the world
is a little bit different, -
54:00 - 54:03the way you look at the day,
Plum Village is still Plum Village, -
54:03 - 54:06bit if you are handling some kind of
-
54:07 - 54:10strong feeling, a resentment,
or sadness, or anger, -
54:11 - 54:15how you experience Plum Village
is very different from someone else. -
54:16 - 54:21So it is the same environment,
but everyone in this room -
54:22 - 54:25is perceiving it differently.
-
54:27 - 54:31This is a good thing to be aware of.
-
54:33 - 54:38Because the calligraphy that Thay wrote,
'Are you sure?' -
54:39 - 54:42that is what it is referring to,
referring to your perceptions. -
54:43 - 54:45Don't be too sure
-
54:46 - 54:49that that is all that is happening.
-
54:50 - 54:54This is something that helped me
in my practice to observe, -
54:55 - 55:00and to begin to see,
it depends on my attitude, -
55:00 - 55:03my way of perceiving.
-
55:09 - 55:11And when we,
-
55:15 - 55:18when we are very sure about something,
it's usually, -
55:19 - 55:22there is a lot of suffering
involved with that. -
55:22 - 55:24Did you notice that?
-
55:24 - 55:26Sometimes it's very easy,
-
55:26 - 55:30you notice when two people
are having difficulties with each other. -
55:30 - 55:35If you share room with 4 or 5 people,
sometimes there is two people, -
55:36 - 55:38in that room maybe there is ten people,
-
55:38 - 55:42there is two people having
a lot of difficulties with each other. -
55:45 - 55:49And it is related to
how they are perceiving something. -
55:49 - 55:53But you are the lucky one,
you are the tenth person in the room, -
55:53 - 55:56and you are like, 'Wow! That is
an interesting way of looking at it.' -
55:57 - 55:59And then you go to the other person,
-
55:59 - 56:02and it is like, 'Oh! Yeah?
I can see your point too.' -
56:02 - 56:05And then you are the other point,
the tenth perspective, -
56:05 - 56:08and you are not suffering.
You are not angry, -
56:09 - 56:12and you are not angry at them.
But why are they angry at each other? -
56:13 - 56:15Have that ever happened?
-
56:15 - 56:18In families is kind of like that.
If you have siblings, -
56:18 - 56:23it's very interesting. One of the ways
that I began to see more of this, -
56:23 - 56:26is when I'm not involved in it.
It's like, 'Gosh! -
56:26 - 56:29Why they just drop that idea,
and drop that idea, -
56:29 - 56:31and everything will be Okay.
-
56:31 - 56:33No. No.
-
56:34 - 56:37You see? Are you sure?
'I am sure. This is what happened.' -
56:37 - 56:41I say, 'Okay.'
'No, I'm sure this is what happened.' -
56:42 - 56:44And you begin to, wow!
-
56:45 - 56:50This is the gist of it.
And you can see it happening -
56:51 - 56:54when you are not involved.
-
56:54 - 56:57And the more you see that,
-
56:57 - 57:01the more you are very unsure
when you are sure. -
57:02 - 57:05So when you are really sure,
you better be careful, -
57:05 - 57:10because there is probably going to be
some suffering involved. -
57:11 - 57:13So this is in the area of ideas, right?
-
57:13 - 57:16You may have a lot of notions,
and usually, -
57:16 - 57:19'There's a way of doing this,
how come are you not doing it like this?' -
57:19 - 57:22I like it to be done like this.
-
57:22 - 57:27Usually it doesn't go outside of that.
Humans are so habitual animals. -
57:28 - 57:31So anything outside of your usual,
-
57:32 - 57:34and you suffer.
-
57:35 - 57:40The perceptions also are created
by the way we were raised, -
57:40 - 57:42another aspect, Okay?
-
57:43 - 57:46So the more we begin
to understand ourselves, -
57:46 - 57:49our parents, our society,
-
57:50 - 57:55then we can begin to recognize
that this is how we perceive things -
57:55 - 57:58and it is only one way of perceiving it.
-
57:58 - 58:01It doesn't mean you go around
don't perceiving, -
58:01 - 58:06like, 'Um, I'd better not look at that.
Not judgment there.' No, go ahead, -
58:06 - 58:08but be aware
-
58:08 - 58:12that this is not the only way
of looking at it. -
58:12 - 58:16Like, you know, the food.
You like this kind of food, it's good! -
58:16 - 58:19Enjoy it, you know?
Don't say, 'Oh! I don't have an opinion. -
58:19 - 58:22Um, it's Okay.'
-
58:22 - 58:25It means, do it but not be caught by it,
-
58:26 - 58:29by, 'That is the only way
of perceiving it.' -
58:31 - 58:34So I see sometimes people
misunderstand this, -
58:35 - 58:37and they are very afraid of perceiving.
-
58:38 - 58:40They are very protective, you know?
-
58:41 - 58:42But it's Okay.
-
58:42 - 58:48But the world of perceptions, the world
of perceiving is also wonderful. -
58:49 - 58:52So we also have to train how to look.
-
58:52 - 58:55How to have the right view.
-
58:55 - 58:59So when you perceive something,
and you want to hold on to it, -
58:59 - 59:02but it is impermanent, then you suffer.
-
59:02 - 59:05So this is the area of mind, eh?
-
59:05 - 59:10That is in the exercises,
the sixteen exercises, -
59:11 - 59:14the Buddha also recommends us
to look at it. -
59:14 - 59:18To look at things, to perceive things,
as impermanent. -
59:22 - 59:27The hardest part is seeing your loved ones
and seeing your friends as impermanent. -
59:28 - 59:30That is the toughest one.
-
59:30 - 59:36Thay one time shared that his practice
is to wake up for the new day -
59:36 - 59:40and look at his students
as if it is the first time. -
59:42 - 59:45And he shared that it is difficult.
-
59:45 - 59:48But it is a practice.
-
59:48 - 59:52You know, maybe in five years
I will believe that, -
59:53 - 59:59but like moment to moment,
yesterday, I look at you and, -
60:00 - 60:03mmm, yes you are different, but -
-
60:03 - 60:06And so on.
-
60:06 - 60:08Ourselves as well.
-
60:08 - 60:12We might have been something yesterday,
-
60:12 - 60:16then we don't allow ourselves
to be impermanent today. -
60:18 - 60:20That is the hard one.
-
60:21 - 60:24Because, we all know, I'm like this.
-
60:24 - 60:27I'm only like this.
-
60:29 - 60:34I come from this culture.
I'm like that. -
60:34 - 60:41I am PhD, OCD, ADD, I, what?
all those - -
60:41 - 60:45It is about the D's around,
disorders, right? -
60:45 - 60:49You know, you go to a therapist
and they tell a certain thing. -
60:49 - 60:52You're A, you're type A,
you're type B, you're - -
60:52 - 60:54There is so many categories!
-
60:55 - 60:59You are Scorpio, you're Cancer,
or something. -
61:01 - 61:05So these things, if we are not careful,
we box ourselves. -
61:07 - 61:12So maybe we have some of that,
but that is not all of us. -
61:13 - 61:17We are a continuation of our parents,
-
61:17 - 61:24but we are also a living, organic,
growing, evolving being, right? -
61:25 - 61:32That for me is what impermanence helps me
to see that we are part of a process. -
61:33 - 61:36Human beings are not just -
-
61:36 - 61:37You know, like
-
61:39 - 61:41a figure that you move.
-
61:43 - 61:48And reflecting on ourselves
when we were 18 years old is very helpful. -
61:49 - 61:53Reflect on oneself when we were
35 years old. -
61:53 - 61:57And some of us can reflect on
when we were 50 years old. -
61:59 - 62:01When we were 5 years old.
-
62:02 - 62:08So this meditation builds in us
a way of looking at the world. -
62:10 - 62:13This is a way of taking refuge in oneself.
-
62:13 - 62:19You train yourself so that you have
a way of looking at the world. -
62:20 - 62:23You see, that is the refuge.
-
62:23 - 62:27The refuge is not this body,
or this world, or this teacher. -
62:27 - 62:32That is what it means when you
take refuge in the island of the Dharma. -
62:33 - 62:37Some people say that Dharma here
is the truth, the law, -
62:37 - 62:40but here it is the practice.
-
62:41 - 62:45Or more specifically here
is a way of looking. -
62:46 - 62:52The Dharma is also a practice of
looking at things in a certain way. -
62:53 - 62:55You see, the refuge?
-
62:55 - 62:59That is strange as a refuge,
you think like an island is a refuge, -
62:59 - 63:05or a person is a refuge, or -
Like a figure, you know. -
63:05 - 63:08The president is a refuge,
sometimes, yeah. -
63:08 - 63:10(Laughter)
-
63:11 - 63:13Oh! I get in trouble.
-
63:14 - 63:17Your parents is a refuge.
-
63:17 - 63:20We have these ideas, right?
-
63:20 - 63:22But they are changing, impermanent,
and so on. -
63:22 - 63:25They are not very so reliable.
-
63:26 - 63:28What is reliable?
-
63:32 - 63:34That is a good question.
-
63:34 - 63:38If you are here, you should be asking
that question, what can I rely on? -
63:38 - 63:42Thay? The monks and nuns?
My Dharma friends? -
63:43 - 63:45Plum Village?
-
63:46 - 63:48It will be here forever.
-
63:48 - 63:50The sun will shine.
-
63:51 - 63:53You have these notions, you know?
-
63:53 - 63:57But what is it when they say,
'Rely on the Dharma'? -
63:58 - 64:00What is it?
-
64:00 - 64:03It is a way of looking at the world.
-
64:03 - 64:07It is a way of viewing the world,
the Right View. -
64:07 - 64:10This is what you are training
to take refuge in. -
64:10 - 64:13That way, whatever situation
you're put into, -
64:14 - 64:16the way you look at it,
-
64:16 - 64:19you will suffer or not suffer.
-
64:19 - 64:23You will be at peace,
or you will be disturb. -
64:23 - 64:26That is what it means
to have craving and anxiety -
64:28 - 64:30alleviated.
-
64:30 - 64:33There are things we crave for,
-
64:33 - 64:35and we want to hang on to,
-
64:36 - 64:40that disturb us. Because
we don't know how to look at it. -
64:42 - 64:45So Right View is
-
64:46 - 64:51an ongoing process.
Our views can always improve. -
64:52 - 64:54And the best,
-
64:55 - 64:57like the person,
the tenth person in the room, -
64:58 - 65:01you don't have a point of view.
That is amazing! -
65:02 - 65:04You don't have a view.
-
65:05 - 65:07That is the greatest view.
-
65:07 - 65:10And you know that.
And with the example I gave you, -
65:11 - 65:14the ten roommates,
two, three or more arguing, -
65:14 - 65:16and you are the tenth roommate,
-
65:16 - 65:20and you are like, 'I don't have
a point of view. Sorry guys!' -
65:21 - 65:23Who is the -
-
65:23 - 65:26Of course you are suffering,
because your roommates are suffering. -
65:27 - 65:29But you see what having no view is?
-
65:29 - 65:32That is just a gross example.
-
65:33 - 65:36But in politics, you are left,
you are right. -
65:39 - 65:41Both sides have a point.
-
65:42 - 65:46So you try - Anyway, I don't want to
get into views here, get in trouble. -
65:49 - 65:51So, we will -
-
65:53 - 65:56So the area of mind.
Know how the mind works. -
65:57 - 66:00There are ways to study
I won't go through here, -
66:01 - 66:04but Thay has taught in detail
about the mind. -
66:05 - 66:08You can look at it in the book
Understanding Our Mind, -
66:09 - 66:12or The Teaching on Manifestation Only.
-
66:12 - 66:15So there is a whole teaching
on Buddhist psychology -
66:15 - 66:17that you can go through.
-
66:17 - 66:22Thay has spent a lot of his years
clarifying for us -
66:24 - 66:28the teaching on how our mind works.
And we need to know how our mind works -
66:28 - 66:31if we are wanting
-
66:32 - 66:36to alleviate and to be helpful.
-
66:38 - 66:41Because this is what we use to -
-
66:42 - 66:44If we look at a certain -
-
66:45 - 66:49It is the instrument which we are working
with when we work in the world, right? -
66:50 - 66:52When we work with other people.
-
66:52 - 66:56So you need to know how your mind works,
and the mind outside the mind. -
66:56 - 66:59So the second phrase is the,
-
67:00 - 67:04"To look at the elements
outside the body, and in -" -
67:04 - 67:10"To meditate on the elements outside the
the body in the elements outside the body" -
67:11 - 67:16That is your world,
and how the society works. -
67:17 - 67:19You need to know how that works.
-
67:21 - 67:26And the more you know,
the more you have a choice -
67:27 - 67:29not to participate.
-
67:30 - 67:33So this is something -
-
67:33 - 67:36A very clear example of -
-
67:40 - 67:43Recently they had a Thanks Giving,
-
67:44 - 67:49after Thanks Giving
a Black Friday shopping, yeah? -
67:50 - 67:54I heard a few thing about it.
It's hilarious. -
67:56 - 68:01So that is how society works, you know?
They want you to buy things, right? -
68:01 - 68:05And there is - this month? December?
-
68:08 - 68:13It's going to be very hard to resist,
spending, uh! -
68:14 - 68:17I recently shared with my brother,
'If I receive a gift -
68:17 - 68:21that is handmade
from the recycle department, -
68:22 - 68:27I open it, and it's wrapped in like,
you know, recycled wrapping paper, -
68:28 - 68:33and it's made by hand
from bottles and cups, and glued together, -
68:34 - 68:38and I pull it and it moves.
I appreciate it, -
68:39 - 68:43but there is a part of me that says, 'Man!
Why didn't you buy me something?' -
68:43 - 68:45(Laughter)
-
68:48 - 68:51Yeah, something that is like, you know,
it has a tag, and is wrapped, -
68:51 - 68:53and it 's like, you know,
-
68:53 - 68:56it's like produced! Mass-produced.
-
68:56 - 68:58Plastic wrapping.
-
68:58 - 69:02The tendency that we have,
the way we view things, you know? -
69:02 - 69:06This is really ingrained in me,
from childhood all the way up -
69:06 - 69:10growing up in America, you know?
You get a present, it is not bought, -
69:10 - 69:12it is like, 'Ah, that is cheap!'
-
69:12 - 69:14(Laughter)
-
69:14 - 69:19But look at the state of the world now.
It changes the way you look. -
69:20 - 69:23To appreciate something
that is found in the trash, -
69:23 - 69:28glued together and made out of love.
So you have -
69:30 - 69:32to move, pull it around, and -
-
69:33 - 69:37Wow! He spent time on this!
It just took a lot of time! -
69:38 - 69:43It is easy to go buy something on Amazon,
and order it. -
69:43 - 69:48All the packaging involved with it,
it comes to your door, and then so on. -
69:49 - 69:52That is so convenient! Gosh!
-
69:52 - 69:55Anyway, I'm just sharing with you
how to look at things. -
69:55 - 69:58It is a little bit brainwashing,
you know. -
69:58 - 70:02But it is my liberation,
and it is my happiness. -
70:04 - 70:08And it is a North Star.
We cannot be perfect on it. -
70:10 - 70:14So don't be judgmental of others
who do buy things. -
70:14 - 70:18But I share with you is a clear example
of how long it took me to resist -
70:18 - 70:22and to change my way of looking
and valuing things -
70:23 - 70:26that are in the recycled area,
or lost-and-found, -
70:26 - 70:32or it is a leftover from my brothers,
or I go to a storage and find a sweater. -
70:33 - 70:38I had to resist getting something new.
It's a tough practice. -
70:40 - 70:44But it is a - Anyway, something
if you've been here around, -
70:44 - 70:50the urge to buy something is so easy.
Get online, click! And it comes in a box -
70:51 - 70:53in front of the office.
-
70:55 - 71:01So that is a kind of changing a view
of how we relate to the world. -
71:05 - 71:09And it is very important.
I share that kind of humorously, -
71:09 - 71:12but it is huge
-
71:12 - 71:16in terms of how it is
affecting other countries -
71:16 - 71:18that make these products,
-
71:19 - 71:24as well as the plastics, and the wrapping,
and things going back to the environment. -
71:24 - 71:27So nothing is, you know,
-
71:31 - 71:33how we call it -
-
71:33 - 71:35There is a cost to it.
-
71:36 - 71:40And so I think that is something
in our generation, in our time now, -
71:40 - 71:43we need to really, really look again.
-
71:44 - 71:47And so we have been taking refuge in that,
-
71:47 - 71:49the consumers -
-
71:50 - 71:55That was in the last hundred years,
it has been our main refuge, right? -
71:56 - 72:00To buy, and to gain,
and to accumulate material things. -
72:01 - 72:03I think it is time now to find
-
72:04 - 72:06a different way.
-
72:10 - 72:15We kind of look down at societies,
or even certain drives now, -
72:15 - 72:18like they are kind of backwards,
they don't have electricity, -
72:19 - 72:23they don't know - We thought that
they don't know how to () the land. -
72:25 - 72:29But actually
they are very humble about it. -
72:29 - 72:32So we are finding new ways.
It's beautiful! -
72:32 - 72:36We are slowly changing our viewpoints
about past societies, -
72:36 - 72:39we thought they were backwards,
buy actually -
72:39 - 72:44they produce less harm to the environment
than, you know? -
72:45 - 72:48So it's another way of looking.
-
72:48 - 72:50So this is a training.
-
72:53 - 72:57That relates to cravings, anxieties.
-
72:57 - 73:02Anxiety about the future,
the way we look at the future. -
73:04 - 73:06And there is something also
-
73:07 - 73:09I found liberating here is,
-
73:10 - 73:13the future is not something there
that is going to come. -
73:14 - 73:17The future is what I make of it right now.
-
73:18 - 73:21That is very liberating.
-
73:22 - 73:25So other causes,
and other aspirations stuff -
73:25 - 73:27we think we are going to go somewhere
-
73:27 - 73:30or that it is something
that is going to come to us. -
73:31 - 73:34But what I learned from Thay
and the Buddhist teachings -
73:34 - 73:38is, 'I will make the future.'
What I do and choose to do today, -
73:38 - 73:40and how I look at it.
-
73:41 - 73:44So your mind will affect the future.
-
73:44 - 73:47Because you don't let it,
you don't let it get in. -
73:48 - 73:52You don't let the way they describe
the world and the future -
73:52 - 73:56be your only reality.
Do you understand? -
73:58 - 74:04It is all a stuff made-up anyway.
Let's make up a different story. -
74:05 - 74:08It is very liberating.
This is what we need. -
74:09 - 74:14So our anxiety comes because we believe
what they are telling us. -
74:18 - 74:25So we need to recorrect and choose
a course for ourselves. -
74:25 - 74:27And that includes
-
74:28 - 74:34our having less impact on the environment,
on our society, on other people, -
74:35 - 74:39other animals and plants
and so on. -
74:39 - 74:42We have to look and see what,
-
74:42 - 74:46how we are impacting and reduce that.
-
74:51 - 74:54So I just end here.
-
74:55 - 74:58I'll talk about
-
74:59 - 75:03a beautiful image
that Thay shared with me -
75:06 - 75:09as part of his teaching.
-
75:09 - 75:11He talked about a hut.
-
75:12 - 75:14After the wind, the storm,
-
75:15 - 75:17a window blew open,
-
75:19 - 75:21and the storm went in,
-
75:21 - 75:24and disturbs all the papers
and everything is a mess. -
75:26 - 75:31The person will come back to the hut,
and slowly close the window, -
75:32 - 75:34close the door.
-
75:35 - 75:37It is still windy and everything outside.
-
75:37 - 75:40And once he has closed
the window and the doors, -
75:40 - 75:43the papers start to settle.
-
75:43 - 75:46And this person begins to light a fire,
-
75:48 - 75:51in the fireplace in the hut.
-
75:51 - 75:54And outside it is still stormy.
-
75:54 - 75:57Slowly the fire warms the hut,
-
75:58 - 76:02and this person begins to
pick up the papers, -
76:02 - 76:05put up the table again,
-
76:05 - 76:07put the chair back,
-
76:07 - 76:09stack the paper,
-
76:09 - 76:12wipe the water that got through.
-
76:13 - 76:15It's a beautiful image, eh?
-
76:15 - 76:18This never left me, and still,
-
76:18 - 76:21I can still conjure it up.
-
76:21 - 76:24And it is an exercise, a visual exercise
-
76:24 - 76:28that I go through
when I have a difficult moment, -
76:28 - 76:31or I'm feeling kind of bluesy,
-
76:31 - 76:34feeling a little bit irritated,
-
76:34 - 76:37feeling a little bit lonely.
-
76:37 - 76:41How come no brothers are visiting me?
-
76:41 - 76:45Or why do I feel like I should go
visit somebody, you know -
76:45 - 76:49It's just one of those days.
-
76:50 - 76:52And I go back,
-
76:52 - 76:56and I sit and watch the sun
go down over there. -
76:58 - 77:01And I do this exercise.
-
77:01 - 77:06It is a visual exercise, and I offer it
to you for those who have not heard it. -
77:06 - 77:10And it is something you do visually,
I'm a visual person. -
77:11 - 77:14And when I'm lying down
or I'm sitting on a chair, -
77:15 - 77:19and I see the hut,
the rain, the wind. -
77:20 - 77:24And I see myself going in the hut.
-
77:24 - 77:28And I do exactly as
Thay had shared with me. -
77:30 - 77:33Thay didn't share it as an exercise.
He told the story about a monk, -
77:33 - 77:36I think it might be him.
-
77:36 - 77:40But I turned it into an exercise.
And it has helped me a lot -
77:41 - 77:44in getting out of strong emotions.
-
77:45 - 77:48Or kind of depress emotions.
-
77:48 - 77:50Or any kind of
-
77:51 - 77:54you know, something you don't
even know what it is, you know? -
77:54 - 77:56It just feels -
-
77:56 - 77:59But it makes you restless. Whatever.
-
77:59 - 78:04Or you feel disconnected to your blood
family in America, or something. -
78:04 - 78:06It is just unpleasant.
-
78:07 - 78:10So I go through the whole exercise.
I go in, -
78:11 - 78:14and I make myself look mindful
while I'm doing all that. -
78:15 - 78:16(Laughter)
-
78:16 - 78:18I'm probably rushing.
-
78:18 - 78:21But I'm very mindful in my mind, you know?
-
78:21 - 78:24I close the door gently,
-
78:24 - 78:26I'm not running,
-
78:26 - 78:30around trying to get everything tidy,
but I'm doing it very slowly. -
78:31 - 78:37It's very pleasant, if you ever
get a chance to do it. -
78:37 - 78:42Kind of something that you can always,
you can always turn on and do. -
78:44 - 78:46So this is the island of self.
-
78:47 - 78:51You make a place inside yourself
where you can rely on. -
78:53 - 78:56And this is very important.
-
78:56 - 78:59Because there are many,
many other journeys -
78:59 - 79:01that you cross, right?
-
79:01 - 79:04Life is impermanent,
and we will learn more. -
79:04 - 79:07Wherever state you are in now,
-
79:07 - 79:12is not permanent. You will have
challenges, you will have new things. -
79:12 - 79:14It's beautiful!
-
79:14 - 79:17And some of that might be testing.
-
79:18 - 79:21But your are Okay,
now you have a practice. -
79:21 - 79:23And you have to train,
-
79:23 - 79:25and to build this hut.
-
79:26 - 79:28There is a poem here
-
79:29 - 79:33written by a poet (), a beautiful poem.
-
79:34 - 79:36And one of my brothers made it into music.
-
79:37 - 79:39It is in Vietnamese, yeah?
-
79:40 - 79:41But is says,
-
79:42 - 79:44(Vietnamese)
-
79:44 - 79:49It is like, 'Please, make yourself
some clouds and some sunshine. -
79:51 - 79:53January, make it!
-
79:54 - 79:58And don't just borrow
from the Earth and the Heavens. -
80:01 - 80:03Because one day,
-
80:05 - 80:10when the Moon is blocked,
and it is far away, -
80:12 - 80:15that in front of you
-
80:16 - 80:21the light of the Moon is still shining.'
-
80:21 - 80:26It's beautiful. And it reflects
the Buddhist teaching -
80:27 - 80:30that we need to learn
how to create the sunshine, -
80:31 - 80:35and the white clouds,
and the moonlight -
80:36 - 80:38in ourselves.
-
80:38 - 80:42So anytime, when you do
walking meditation, when you walk outside, -
80:43 - 80:48when you eat, you can create this island
-
80:49 - 80:55that has the flowers, the water,
the clear lake, the mountain solid. -
80:55 - 80:59These elements are not out there.
-
81:01 - 81:05This is a way of practicing
so that we become -
81:07 - 81:12a more solid practitioner for ourselves,
we become our refuge -
81:13 - 81:16as well as we can provide
refuge for others. -
81:17 - 81:22Unfortunately, the world needs more
-
81:24 - 81:28how we call it, solid refuge.
-
81:30 - 81:34And don't make them attach to you though.
You got to teach them also -
81:35 - 81:38to make their own island.
-
81:38 - 81:44That is the task. So don't get them,
'Always come to me! Call me anytime!' -
81:45 - 81:48Because you will be burnout
as well, you know? -
81:48 - 81:53So our task, as we learn this,
is to transmit it, -
81:54 - 81:57to share to other people how to do it.
-
81:57 - 82:00The breathing, the body,
the feelings, you see? -
82:00 - 82:05It's not complicated. You don't need
to read anymore self-help books. -
82:05 - 82:08It's in those steps.
-
82:09 - 82:12But you need to do it, that's all.
-
82:13 - 82:15You need to train to -
-
82:16 - 82:20And when something unpleasant happens,
it is an opportunity. -
82:21 - 82:24That is one thing
you always need to remember. -
82:24 - 82:28I was lucky, my mother
grew me up like that, -
82:28 - 82:31always to see challenges as opportunities.
-
82:31 - 82:36She had to escape Vietnam because of
the war, so it's kind of easy, you know? -
82:36 - 82:38To do that.
-
82:38 - 82:41To see everything.
You are out in the Pacific Ocean, -
82:41 - 82:45on a boat with 200 people.
Keep going! -
82:46 - 82:48Don't give up!
-
82:48 - 82:52I also have that contemplation.
I am a refugee, -
82:54 - 82:57and the only place now
I can take refuge, -
82:57 - 83:00not in America, not in France,
not in any country, -
83:00 - 83:03not in any president or CEO.
-
83:05 - 83:08So remember, we are all refugees.
-
83:10 - 83:14And the island is within here.
That would be -
83:16 - 83:20a very strong gift, a great gift
-
83:20 - 83:24that we will have for the holidays
that are coming up. -
83:24 - 83:27Holidays is a very trying time
for a lot of people, -
83:28 - 83:31because they don't have a place of refuge.
-
83:32 - 83:34And the marketing, and the companies,
and the - -
83:36 - 83:38Amazon, they know this.
-
83:39 - 83:43They know you are unstable,
most unstable in December. -
83:45 - 83:47Marketing, simple!
-
83:49 - 83:52The music makes you feel good,
and you - -
83:55 - 84:00So please be a refuge for the loved ones.
And they need a different kind of present. -
84:02 - 84:04And this is what you can offer
to you loved ones. -
84:04 - 84:10'Mum, dad, I have something so precious
I want to give you. It's my presence. -
84:12 - 84:16I cannot wrap it up.
But I want to let you know -
84:17 - 84:19before it's too late.'
-
84:20 - 84:23That is what you can give them.
Just a phone call! -
84:24 - 84:27And it will change everything.
-
84:27 - 84:30Your siblings, your brothers and sisters,
-
84:30 - 84:34apologize, 'Sorry.
I was not there for you. -
84:36 - 84:39But I don't want to hold this resentment.'
-
84:41 - 84:45So this coming month, December,
-
84:46 - 84:50please, give yourself a present,
-
84:50 - 84:53and allow yourself to be a refuge
-
84:54 - 84:56for those who might need it.
-
84:56 - 85:01This is a gift that
we can offer to the world. -
85:03 - 85:05Thank you for being here,
-
85:06 - 85:09and for, you know, not giving -
-
85:10 - 85:13Going, staying on the boat, eh?
-
85:14 - 85:16Another talk I think you all know you here
-
85:17 - 85:19is the island,
I think Thay developed that, -
85:19 - 85:21the island of the sangha, right?
-
85:22 - 85:25the island of the Dharma, and then
the island of Sangha. -
85:25 - 85:27And Thay has spent his whole life,
-
85:28 - 85:31and this is here. So you don't need
to have a teaching on that. -
85:31 - 85:35So today, you can
take refuge in the sangha. -
85:36 - 85:40Just be with your friends here.
Everyone here we have the same aspiration. -
85:41 - 85:44We want to help better the world,
-
85:44 - 85:48we want to bring more peace,
less anger and hate, -
85:48 - 85:51less prejudice, less -
-
85:53 - 85:57So please, take refuge in your sangha,
in your friends here. -
85:57 - 86:00It's also beautiful.
-
86:00 - 86:02But don't get attached.
-
86:02 - 86:04Yeah?
-
86:04 - 86:08We are all flowing together.
Thank you. -
86:10 - 86:12(Bell)
-
86:16 - 86:22(Bell)
-
86:34 - 86:40(Bell)
-
86:54 - 87:00(Bell)
-
87:34 - 87:36(Small bell)
- Title:
- 2018 11 29 UH EN Discourse on Being an Island unto myself br Phap Dung
- Description:
-
You can support us by:
- donating: https://plumvillage.org/support
- helping to caption & translate: https://amara.org/en/profiles/videos/plumvillage/ or http://www.youtube.com/timedtext_cs_panel?tab=2&c=UCcv7KJIAsiddB2YRegvrF7g - Video Language:
- English
- Duration:
- 01:27:42
Plum Village Online Monastery edited English subtitles for 2018 11 29 UH EN Discourse on Being an Island unto myself br Phap Dung | ||
Plum Village Online Monastery edited English subtitles for 2018 11 29 UH EN Discourse on Being an Island unto myself br Phap Dung | ||
Bego Laka edited English subtitles for 2018 11 29 UH EN Discourse on Being an Island unto myself br Phap Dung | ||
Bego Laka edited English subtitles for 2018 11 29 UH EN Discourse on Being an Island unto myself br Phap Dung | ||
Bego Laka edited English subtitles for 2018 11 29 UH EN Discourse on Being an Island unto myself br Phap Dung | ||
Bego Laka edited English subtitles for 2018 11 29 UH EN Discourse on Being an Island unto myself br Phap Dung | ||
Bego Laka edited English subtitles for 2018 11 29 UH EN Discourse on Being an Island unto myself br Phap Dung | ||
Bego Laka edited English subtitles for 2018 11 29 UH EN Discourse on Being an Island unto myself br Phap Dung |