Stories for complaining
3 Buddhist wisdom stories for complaining from Buddhist teachers, each linked to the original talk.
- A problem or an irritation?Story · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: A backpacker working his way round Europe gets a job in a restaurant (in Germany or Austria) where staff eat for free. The owner over-orders sauerkraut and tells the staff their…
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There's another story about Awitz which I remember reading a good story. There was a a backpacker who was traveling through Europe said travel is now becoming allowable again. when this backpacker was traveling through Europe, he'd just get a job at restaurants and cafes and just any old uh easy work to get a few more dollars and then he would go on his next leg of his journey. And he got a job in this restaurant in somewhere in Germany. And then as he was um I think in Austria I think he said in that restaurant [snorts] it was always known if you get a job in a restaurant you get free food. That's you know part of the deal. You don't get paid very much. You get a few tips but the free food makes it just really quite worthwhile. But then one day the owner of the restaurant told all the workers he'd ordered too much sauerkraut. I don't know if you know Sauerkraut. We have a couple of German monks at Bodhinana Monastery and even though he's not a monk, we have like you know I'm talking about Amandis. Many of you been down there. You know Amandis and he loves sauerkraut. So anyway, they' ordered too much sauerkraut. And so the owner of the restaurant, this is quite a few years ago, told everybody, "If you want free food, it has to be sauerkraut. Sauerkraut for breakfast, sauerkraut for lunch, sauerkraut for dinner, whatever it is. Sauerkraut and only sauerkraut." And this young backpacker said, "You can't do that to us. That is unfair. That's not what we signed up for. I know some people like sauerkraut, but not everyone likes sauerkraut. This is not right. you can't do this to us. And he got very angry. And that apparently was when the owner, not the owner, the cook of the restaurant came up and took him aside. He said, "Look, I've been working at this restaurant for quite a few years now." Said this old man. And he said, "I want to tell you the difference between a problem and an irritation. And then this old cook, he bared his arm and you could see the tattooed numbers on his arm. He said I was in Awitz and he said every morning when I woke up I didn't know whether I would survive that day. I was very fortunate many of my relations and friends and loved ones did die. I survived living in Awitz. That is a problem. Eating sauerkraut is only an imitation.
- One sentence every seven yearsJoke · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: In a strict silent monastery a monk may say one sentence to the abbot every seven years. After seven years, the wise words he rehearsed vanish and he blurts: 'The food in this…
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This is an old joke about this man who joined a monastery, and as he joined this monastery, was a very strict monastery, where you weren't allowed to speak at all, its absolute silence except after seven years, you are allowed to say one sentence to the abbot, the idea was so he could have some idea of your spiritual progress. So this young man joined this very strict monastery. And after six years, 11 months and 30 days of absolute silence, you can imagine his excitement when the next morning he could say his first sentence to the abbot. So he decided to practice in his cell something wise, you know, to inspire his abbot, something very meaningful something, you know, like one saying you find in a book. And he practices this amazing wise saying, when he went into the abbot's room, his mind went totally blank, you know what it's like, and the words which came out was “the food in this place is terrible”. Now the point was he didn't have another chance to say a word, he'd had his sentence and he'd blown it and he felt so terrible! Now he has to wait another seven years. So 13 years 11 months and 30 days, now he had his second chance to say something, and this time he was more relaxed, you know, spiritual life had done something, he is more in control of himself. So he had a good night's sleep, really relaxed, rested and his wise words he was supposed to say seven years ago, he went to open his mouth and again he forgot and the words which came out he said “you make us work too hard.” Very good, said the abbot, come back in another seven years. He blown at the second time! And of course, after twenty-one years, now he was totally at ease and he went into the Abbot office, he said precisely what he intended to say, his one sentence was this: “can't stand this place any longer, I'm leaving.” And the abbot replied “very good because you've done nothing but complain ever since you came here.”
- The suggestion box at BarreStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: A well-funded meditation centre in Barre, Massachusetts — one of the first places for meditation retreats in the West — wondered what more it could do and put in a suggestion…
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once I remember this uh meditation center in Barry, Massachusetts, one of the first uh places where you can do meditation retreats. And they put a lot of money into that. And then one day they decided, you know, what more can we do? Let's put in like a suggestions box. Now, we don't have suggestion boxes here. Thank goodness. [laughter] because the suggestion box filled up within an hour and they thought they' done so cuz it's easy the closer you get to perfection the more uh faults you find.