# She failed her exams — and blamed the monk

- Teacher: Ajahn Brahm
- Type: Story
- URL: https://beingmindfulstories.com/stories/brahm-exam-girl-blamed-the-monk
- Themes: blame, responsibility, humour
- Life situations: being blamed unfairly, exam stress, student life, relying on luck

## Synopsis (editorial summary)

A first-year Malaysian student asks Ajahn Brahm to chant for her exams. Later her friends tell him she's going round the university saying he's a hopeless monk — because she failed. Free from her family for the first time, she had partied and never gone to lectures or done assignments, believing the great monk would take care of that part.

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

Malaysian girl, though she came to me to do some chanting, she was doing her uh, I forget, first, second, third year university exams or whatever it was. And she said: “Can you do some chanting? Got my exams next week.” So I chanted chanted chanted really give everything I’ve got for exams, and afterwards, She never came back. I never saw her again. But some of her friends came and told me, said she's going around turning all of her friends: “Ajahn Brahm is a bad monk. Ajahn Brahm is no good

## Teaching point

People will blame you for things you are not responsible for; you can't stop it, so don't take it on.

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

A first-year student asked Ajahn Brahm to chant for her exams, then told everyone he was a hopeless monk because she failed. She had partied all year and expected the chanting to do her studying. People will blame you for things that aren't your fault. Don't take it on. And do your own homework.

## Source

- [Not Blaming Others | Ajahn Brahm | 15 November 2019](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0U4jfovcOM) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 2:42 to 3:23: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0U4jfovcOM&t=162s

Other tellings of this story:

- [How to deal with blame and criticism | Ajahn Brahm | 18 Nov 2016](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39mEezTbMcc) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 3:40 to 5:41: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39mEezTbMcc&t=220s
- [Superstitions | Ajahn Brahm | 12-01-2007](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RggiVQ6F0fk) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 11:00 to 12:25: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RggiVQ6F0fk&t=660s
- [Learn to Not Blame Yourself | Ajahn Brahm | 25 May 2018](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNBuRBzCJrY) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 38:31 to 39:41: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNBuRBzCJrY&t=2311s
- [Learn to be Silent | Ajahn Brahm | 13 April 2018](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sw-RV0F1OJw) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 16:13 to 17:05: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sw-RV0F1OJw&t=973s
- [Turning Suffering into Wisdom | Ajahn Brahm | 23 January 2026](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADB9WrlJSgY) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 29:42 to 30:20: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADB9WrlJSgY&t=1782s
- [Guided Meditation | Ajahn Brahm | 2 December 2017](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pigE64H6EQ8) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 59:53 to 1:00:44: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pigE64H6EQ8&t=3593s