# The ants and the A-frame hut

- Teacher: Ajahn Brahm
- Type: Story
- URL: https://beingmindfulstories.com/stories/brahm-a-frame-hut-ant-mound
- Themes: loving-kindness, animals, trust, monastic life
- Life situations: living with insects, coexisting with nature

## Synopsis (editorial summary)

Ajahn Brahm builds the A-frame hut at Serpentine right next to an ant mound — against the Vinaya — after chanting and apologising to the ants and promising not to disturb them. He never touches the mound; living there, the ants go under and around the hut but never in. Then an unmindful anagarika drives the tractor over the mound — and from that day the ants come into the kuti.

## The story, as told by Ajahn Brahm (verbatim captions)

You know that big A-frame over in Serpentine still there? I built that and it was right next to an ant mount and it was a beautiful place but you're not really supposed to build a monk's hut next to an ant mount to disturb it. That's against the vinaya. But so what I did and I went there did some chanting wishing all those ants well pleased. Look, I'm sorry. I will not try and disturb you at all. I'm going to build this heart without disturbing you. And I managed to do that. I never so touched that ant mound at all. And so that once that hut was finished, I was the first person to stay in that hut. And the ants never bothered me at all. You know, they could climb in if they really wanted to. But they they stayed away from my hut. They went underneath it. They went around it, but never actually in it until one day one of the anagarakers, they weren't being mindful. They drove the tractor over that ant. I felt so disappointed. From that day on, the ants started to come into the kouti. That's no exaggeration. Sometimes your kindness can actually do so many wonderful things if you're kind to the group of ants and the ants will never harm you or hurt you. And that's, you know, afterwards if you break that trust, of course, they'll come in.

## Teaching point

Kindness and trust with creatures is real; break the trust and they come in.

## Reflection (in the spirit of Ajahn Brahm's talk)

Ajahn Brahm built his hut beside an ant mound, apologised to the ants and promised not to disturb them, and they never came inside, until someone drove a tractor over their mound. He uses it to talk about meditation too: stop dragging the wandering mind back like a control freak. Be kind to it, and it settles.

## Source

- [Our Mind and Our Health | Ajahn Brahm | 7 July 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irCk-DJXisM) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 45:15 to 46:41: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irCk-DJXisM&t=2715s

Other tellings of this story:

- [Getting Along with Difficult Family Members | Ajahn Brahm | 18 June 2021](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SKiukqiAK8) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 27:00 to 29:57: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SKiukqiAK8&t=1620s
- [Albany Dhamma Talk & Meditation | Ajahn Brahm | 20 September 2020](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xt8fuCLt3YM) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 1:23:22 to 1:24:08: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xt8fuCLt3YM&t=5002s
- [Guided Meditation | Ajahn Brahm | 8 February 2025](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Kb3B02G6OQ) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 1:17:39 to 1:19:04: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Kb3B02G6OQ&t=4659s