# “Give me another hand”

- Teacher: Ajahn Brahm
- Type: Story
- URL: https://beingmindfulstories.com/stories/brahm-deaf-boy-wanted-another-hand
- Themes: disability, adaptation, consent, mind
- Life situations: disability, losing eyesight or hearing, medical decisions for children

## Synopsis (editorial summary)

A GP tells the parents of a boy born deaf that an article reports 10% of such children can have hearing restored by a simple operation. The parents agree and it works. But the boy is angry: “Why didn't you ask me if I wanted to hear? This is a terrible noise. If you wanted to help me, give me another hand.” He had learned to explore the world with his hands, and preferred being deaf.

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

There was a case which I read uh in a scientific journal. There was a boy who was born deaf and uh one day his parents took him for a medical checkup with his GP. his GP had just read an article, you know, in one of the medical magazines that some researchers had found that 10% of children who were born deaf could have their hearing restored and with a very simple operation but only 10%. So the doctor said it seems that your boy know might be one of those 10%. Would you like to give it a try? And you know the parents asked you know is it really invasive? is going to be painful. It's going to be a bit of discomfort, but you know, who knows? You know, your kid may hear as result of the operation. So, the parents gave the child the operation and it worked. The child could hear again. And as soon as the child recovered from the operation with his hearing restored, he was really angry and upset at his parents. Said, "Why did you not ask me if I wanted to hear?" He said, "This is a terrible, terrible noise. I've got to figure this one out now." He said, "If you really wanted to help me, give me another hand." Because he had learned to use his hands to explore the world where other people would have used sound. And when I realized that this was a person who was deaf, it was a person who understood what it was like. And he said, "That's actually much better." He preferred being deaf.

## Teaching point

Losing a sense does not diminish the mind; other faculties grow to compensate.

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

A boy given his hearing by surgery was furious: nobody had asked him, the noise was awful, and he'd rather have had another hand. He knew the world through touch. The account is unverified, but the point holds. Losing a sense doesn't shrink the mind, and people know their own lives better than we assume.

## Source

- [No Fear | Ajahn Brahm | 20-05-2011](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIMWm5JnNrE) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 53:06 to 54:52: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIMWm5JnNrE&t=3186s

Other tellings of this story:

- [Oh What A Relief! | by Ajahn Brahm | 16-05-2013](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_3cozc023Y) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 8:35 to 11:22: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_3cozc023Y&t=515s