# Ajahn Mosquito

- Teacher: Ajahn Brahm
- Type: Story
- URL: https://beingmindfulstories.com/stories/brahm-chah-call-them-ajahn-mosquito
- Themes: patience, irritation, teachers, acceptance
- Life situations: small annoyances, difficult people

## Synopsis (editorial summary)

As a young monk, Ajahn Brahm finds the mosquitoes intolerable and asks for repellent, coils and screens — surely the monastery can afford them. Ajahn Chah says no: from now on call them 'Ajahn Mosquito' — they are your teachers.

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

the mosquitoes will irritate you so much And it was worse for the Western monks We used to get bitten maybe 10 or 20 times as much as the Thai monks did I didn't understand First I thought what it was Now Look; if you were in Thailand you are lucky because you got hair on your head Actually what we are supposed to in Thailand, it's so hot we have the bare shoulder So literally we had more seats at the dinner table for the mosquitoes They can get on you because you had more exposed skin And number two: it was the very first time in Thailand that there were westerners in that area. I went to many villages and I was the first westerner, the first white man they have seen in the village. Let alone a monk. So that was the same with the mosquitoes That was the first time they had western food in that area of Thailand You know what it is alike a new Chinese Restaurant a new Lebanese Restaurant people love to taste it First of all it's like a specialty, a rarity, a novelty So all those mosquitoes were going around and telling their mates Hey there's western food in this monastery 'come on taste it, it's a novelty' So we got bitten to death. And we complained to Ajahn Chah Look can't we get some repellent, can't we get some mosquito coils Can't we get some mosquito nets? Help us! Look, we are getting bitten to death And Ajahn Chah told us 'from now on you call those mosquitoes--Ajahn Mosquitoes They are now going to be your teachers not me

## Teaching point

Irritations can be our teachers; respect them instead of fighting them.

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

Young monks begged Ajahn Chah for coils and nets against the mosquitoes. Call them Ajahn Mosquito, he said; they're your teachers now. Ajahn Brahm still wants a nose transplant for his hay fever. Irritations bring us to the meditation cushion. Thank them, and let them teach you patience.

## Source

- [Dealing with people that irritate us | Ajahn Brahm](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Haj6wtNSP2k) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 1:01 to 2:45: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Haj6wtNSP2k&t=61s

Other tellings of this story:

- [How To Be A Happy Hermit | Ajahn Brahm | 15-01-2010](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wx7n5CpmWRM) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 27:30 to 28:02: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wx7n5CpmWRM&t=1650s
- [Below The Mist | Ajahn Brahm | 11 Apr 2008](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajTBWboDBRE) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 46:44 to 47:32: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajTBWboDBRE&t=2804s
- [Relax the Mind | Ajahn Brahm | 13 June 2025](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_HZAqnmAYM) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 25:34 to 28:16: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_HZAqnmAYM&t=1534s
- [Meaning of Life | Ajahn Brahm | 21 February 2020](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nHnVOw9lWg) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 23:35 to 27:45: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nHnVOw9lWg&t=1415s
- [Guided Meditation | Ajahn Brahm | 4 December 2021](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_WAb3MKJpM) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 8:13 to 8:49: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_WAb3MKJpM&t=493s
- [Guided Meditation | Ajahn Brahm | 15 May 2021](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I96q7QSYHGY) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 10:03 to 10:26: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I96q7QSYHGY&t=603s
- [Menghadapi orang yang menjengkelkan kita | Ajahn Brahm | Dharma singkat](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y59KFUi0cGw) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 2:21 to 2:46: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y59KFUi0cGw&t=141s
- [MN36: Mahāsaccakasutta - The Longer Discourse With Saccaka | Ajahn Brahm | 12 June 2022](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t23deQS-OPw) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 1:05:32 to 1:06:54: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t23deQS-OPw&t=3932s