Stories for hospital stay
5 Buddhist wisdom stories for hospital stay from Buddhist teachers, each linked to the original talk.
- A thank-you letter to the Health MinisterStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: A monk enjoys his stay in Fremantle Hospital because the nurses are so kind; at Ajahn Brahm's suggestion he writes to thank the Minister of Health, and gets back a personal…
Read full story
there's some time ago, one of our monks spent time in hospital. I think it was in Fremantle hospital. And I asked him when he came out, it was only a small thing. How did you enjoy it? What was it like in there? He said, wonderful time, people were so kind. And they were just so nice to me, all the nurses. I said, well, you should actually write to somebody to thank them. And he wrote to the Minister of Health. Said thank you for your hospital. You know what happened, then it was McGowan. Was it McGowan? Minister of Health anyway, Minister of Health sometime. He got this personal letter back, not dictated to a secretary not printed out. But handwritten. Oh thank you so much. I got your letter that made my day. Thank you for enjoying this this wonderful health service; and signed, the minister or something.
- Meditating through the feverStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Three or four weeks into an undiagnosed fever (later found to be scrub typhus) in a basic Ubon hospital ward, with no energy and nothing working, the young monk feels low and…
Read full story
But I do remember one of the times. And I wish I had been a bit more mindful, but I can understand why I wasn't cuz I had such such incredibly low energy. Never had so much low energy as that time fever of about 3 or 4 weeks. And anyway that uh one day I got sort of depressed but not a depression which was um negative. I don't know that I thought oh this is really awful. Nothing's working. This is terrible. So why don't I do some meditation actually practice know what my teacher would teach me what the Buddha would say do something useful. And this was like three weeks or four weeks into a a very heavy fever and nothing was working, feeling just so exhausted. So I decided to meditate and obviously not cross-legged but just laying on the bed, laying on my back or half on my back, half on this, half on that and being able just to let go of my body. And it was such a wonderful experience just sitting there or not so not sitting. They're laying there with legs all over the place. We've seen people in hospital with a fever. They're not really caring about just how their body is positioned. You're all over the place. But then just going deep inside away from my body, closing my eyes. It was in a a ward of a hospital. So there's lots of noise there, but I couldn't hear anything. No smell. No taste, just going inside to some nice beautiful mind state. Oh, it's just a wonderful time. And I'm really sure that that would be when the fever stopped simply because that's the nature of the mind. It's incredibly powerful and it's so powerful inside. It just stops all this stuff in your body and very happy afterwards.
- The worst procedure in the wardStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: In a Rockingham Hospital ward with three other men, they compare medical procedures to decide which is worst. Someone names a barium enema; a man in the corner goes white —…
Read full story
But one of the things we did in that ward, there was three other gentlemen in that ward and a monk. [laughter] And then having nothing to do all day, we just have these stupid conversations. And one of the conversations that four of us had is what's because some of them been in the hospital many times. That's my first time in hospital for years. And they we asked, "What's the worst medical procedure?" And someone said, "Oh, this procedure." And said, "No, no, no, no, no. That's easy. This procedure, no, no, that's easy." And I think if I get it right, I don't know if I remember this correctly, so many years ago, they said, "Oh, a barerium enema is the worst." And this poor man in the corner, his face went white. He said, "That's what I'm having this evening.
- Under a gynaecologist, and no pyjamasStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: On his last hospital stay, at Rockingham, Ajahn Brahm is admitted under a family-friend doctor who is a gynaecologist — his bed sign confuses the nurses. Told at reception he…
Read full story
That was about 26 years ago now. Yeah 26 years ago was the last time I went to hospital. It was in Rockingham Hospital. It's very interesting because the fellow who looked after me it's actually the secretary Gita's father. And he's a gynecologist. But because he knew me sort of he said oh let's… I'll take you in and I'll look after you. So, on the bed there was: Ajahn Brahm's doctor: dr Mendez, gynecologist. I do look weird enough wearing these robes. But being under a gynecologist, that was really cool. And all the nurses, “what, what are you?” good fun. But especially when you check in you know, you've got to check in first of all. The first question they asked me at the reception: “where's your pyjamas?” “monks don't have pajamas.” “but you've got to have pyjamas.” “but I don't have any!” “but you have to.” I said “listen. It's these robes or nothing. Take your choice.” and actually they let me wear my robes.
- “You're either going to get better or you're going to die”Story · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Seriously ill with typhus in a Ubon hospital with no night nurse, young Ajahn Brahm is overjoyed when the famous Ajahn Chah visits — for five seconds. Ajahn Chah says,…
Read full story
That's when I was really, really down and sick as I said a few weeks ago. Really down and sick in this third-world hospital in Ubon in Thailand, 35, 37 years ago now really really bad. That was the hospital where first evening there you know you had typhus fever felt terrible, next to death and at 6:00 p.m. the nurse disappeared one hour later the night nurse still hadn't appeared and I asked the monk next to me in the next bed should we let someone know the night nurse hasn't arrived but there is something happens in the middle of the night you know you got no one to help you and that's when the monk said there is no night nurse in this hospital we only have a nurse during the daytime sometimes. If something happens in the middle of the night that's just bad kamma. That was not reassuring. Now it is true you only had nurses there for half the day at nighttime you're at your own resources and people really sick and there's no bell to ring no one would come, you scream and you know no one would come to help you. So good for a hospital but anyway after feeling so bad for day about two or three weeks that's when Ajahn Chah came to visit me and now this was this big scene even by that time he was famous and he came just to visit me. Oh I felt so so good and so happy and so relieved, the great master comes to visit me, yeah. But the euphoria only lasted for about five seconds that's all because this great teacher he came right up to me and he said to me Brahmavamso that's the full name not Ajahn Brahm, "Brahmavamso," he said “you're either going to get better or you're going to die” and then he left. His wisdom was wonderful but his bedside manner was terrible. And that's so true, it doesn't last you're either going to get better or you're going to die, that's it. Very good teaching. So if any of you are going to visit your mother this weekend in hospital Mom, I heard from this monk, you are going to get better or you're going to die, bye bye, see you tomorrow. Don't do that. That really hurt me