# The Elvis impersonator with the walking stick

- Teacher: Ajahn Brahm
- Type: Story
- URL: https://beingmindfulstories.com/stories/brahm-elvis-impersonator-walking-stick
- Themes: kindness, mental illness, kamma, monastery life
- Life situations: facing aggression, caring for someone with brain injury

## Synopsis (editorial summary)

At the old North Perth temple a man who had fallen off a roof and suffered brain damage starts dressing as Elvis, comes violent with a walking stick (always missing), and Ajahn Brahm — with no counselling training — can only silently practise make-peace-be-kind-be-gentle until the man calms down.

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

I remember this one guy once, this was in our previous temple over in North Perth. When I first came here he'd fallen off a roof and he hit his head and he was actually crazy, he had brain damage. And he was very nice guy at first, but now he started dressing up like Elvis Presley and impersonating Elvis Presley. He was out of his mind and he came to see me and he was violent, he had his walking stick and every now and again he'd try hitting me with a walking stick but always missing. He wasn’t a very good shot thank goodness and the only thing I could remember to do, I had no, I had no training on how to counsel people who were that sort of mad. The only thing I could think of: just make peace, be kind, be gentle, make peace, be kind be gentle, even though I didn't know what I was doing and I was in a very dangerous, very... maybe not life-threatening but I could certainly got injured very easily if I'd have said the wrong word and upset him, he'd have smashed me with his walking stick for sure. "Be kind, be peaceful, be gentle." And you calmed the whole person down. It's wonderful to be able to do things like that. When you know how to make good mental kamma, you get good results.

## Teaching point

Good mental kamma — peace, kindness, gentleness — can defuse what force cannot.

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

A man with a brain injury, dressed as Elvis, came swinging a walking stick at the old temple. With no counselling training, Ajahn Brahm silently repeated: be peaceful, be kind, be gentle. The man calmed down. Force often fails against someone stronger. Never underestimate a steady, gentle mind.

## Source

- [Meditation Kamma | Ajahn Brahm | 06-06-2008](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3M5Fxmq5c9s) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 47:46 to 49:09: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3M5Fxmq5c9s&t=2866s

Other tellings of this story:

- [Dealing With Difficult People | Ajahn Brahm | 09-07-2010](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSQI1e8D3Qo) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 22:24 to 23:34: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSQI1e8D3Qo&t=1344s