A meditation question at the urinal

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• Sixty pilgrims' photographs and a near-missed flight

  In brief: Changing flights at Singapore airport, Ajahn Brahm is recognised by 60 or 70 Indonesians returning from pilgrimage in India. Group photos,…

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  This was at the airport in Singapore. I was going from one terminal to one a flight to another flight connecting flight and all these Indonesians they just come back from going on pilgrimage uh in India and they recognize me Ajan Brah said yeah oh it's not so lucky to meet you can we take photograph of you of course I don't mind but there was about 60 or 70 of them and they had to have the group photograph individual photographs photographs with their close close family. It was taking forever and that's the only time the only time when I had a collecting a connecting flight and when I got to the gate they were calling out my name. Mr. Brahma Wango, your flight is about to leave. Come quickly. I almost missed my flight because of that. So I tried to stop the problem and the reason I tried to stop the problem I actually the way I started to uh stop the problem I was telling people that when I went to that big monument in central Java Bora Pador there were signs there saying please don't take photographs of the great monument B pador and I said ask Why? Actually, the flashes of the cameras was degrading the stone, was destroying the monument. It's proved scientifically. And I said, "Well, look at me. I'm degrading fast." So, they thought that was very funny. So, they took more photographs.

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• No escape, even in the toilet

  In brief: Returning exhausted from Los Angeles via Singapore, Ajahn Brahm is met at the gate by supporters with an airport buggy who take him for…

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  the worst thing worst occasion one worst stories about this was when I was just returning from Los Angeles this it's a long journey on that aircraft and unfortunately when I fly Singapore Airlines there's people in the airport who know me and they meet me at the gate you know this is in the internal area because they got these little cars they can go anywhere in the airport so it's very nice they go and take me for a cup of tea or cup of coffee and they start asking questions about their meditation or about Buddhism about their family life and gee that you know if you're a counselor you've got an office and you can actually secretary have appointments and certain times for me that it's anytime and I got really I must admit that that time I got a bit tired and think just can't you leave me alone and of course you can't really say that as a monk instead I said I need to go to the toilet and I did you know I could hold on for a bit longer but going to the toiler was the way of escaping and sitting down in a place I could have a bit of peace and quiet but of course what happened as soon as I went into the L the toilet attendant recognized me oh a br can I ask you some questions about Buddhism even in the toilet I can't escape

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• The two sisters: one with a husband, one without

  In brief: Two Thai sisters come for counselling. The elder can't stand her Australian husband and is considering divorce ('recycling'); the younger…

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  These two Thai sisters came one day to see me. Oh, I'll never forget this. They still come to feed us every now and again, but they wanted personal counseling. And so I talked to them and the elder sister first. And the elder sister said to me, he said, "Oh, you know, I've got a husband, a Western husband, Australian guy." He said, "I can't stand him." There's so much suffering and and now I'm just really wondering should I keep working on this? Is it really salvageable or should I sort of get divorced and try again? And you all know again I don't call it divorce anymore. I sped this word around in Singapore. They really liked it. We don't call it divorce. What do we call it in Buddhism? Recycling. Yes. It's a much much more positive word. So, and she was thinking of getting divorced. And so, I gave her some nice ideas about how to solve the problems in a marriage because it's not that hard to solve problems in marriage. Even as a monk, I can do that. Like, oh, this great story which just comes to my mind. Some of these are golden oldies, but you know, they're just great stories about this because actually the lady who told me this, you know, I was uh had lunch with her yesterday in Singapore. She told me that she was a bit of a marriage counselor in her early years and she had one client who came to her Singapore lady. She couldn't stand her husband because her husband was coming home very late at night. She was certain that he had a mistress. And so she told the marriage counselor, you know, actually I don't really need counseling. I just want to get rid of the guy. I want to divorce. I want to separate. Just help me get rid of him. And a marriage counselor was a very very smart girl. She said, "Look, if you divorce him now, do you think he will be happy or he'll be miserable?" And she thought about actually it's what he wants. He'd be really happy. And in your present state, do you want him to be happy? No, I want him to be miserable. So this is the plan. Don't get divorced yet when he, you know, doesn't like you. Go out and get a really good hairstyle. Go and get your face, you know, made up. Go and learn a bit more grooming. Go and get some sexy clothes. And when he comes home, just being really nice to him. Just cuddle him and see what happens. because you fell in love once, see if you can make him fall in love with you again. And when he does fall in love with you again, then divorce him. Yeah. Yeah. What a great idea. So that's what they did. She spent a lot of money just getting sort of uh uh face done up and nice hairstyle and what they call it, a makeover. A nice makeover. So she really looked much more attractive and every week go and see the marriage counselor. He started coming home earlier and earlier and earlier. He started becoming more affectionate towards her and they'd always ask how's it going? Yeah, he's you know he's becoming much more affectionate. It's really seems to be working. He's falling in love with me again. And then she missed an appointment. And so the the counselor called her up at home said, "You missed an appointment this week. What happened?" He said, "Oh, well, he's having such a lot of time. He's fallen in love with me. I'm sure of it." "Great," said the counselor. "Now's the time to divorce him." "Oh, no. We're so much in love now." Mission accomplished. Cuz all it is that sometimes is we have a little bit of problems in life, but there's always ways we can work it out. They fall in love with you once, why not try and fall in love again? Now do something like romantic. No, don't come. Honestly, don't come to the Buddhist society if you want to have a nice romance. You know, we're going to get soon another couple of months Valentine's Day. Go and get her a present. Like that one of my favorite jokes like the person who asked his his wife, he said, "Valentine's Day tomorrow, darling, what do you want?" And she said, "I need nothing. I've got you." He said, "Yes, but what do you want?" He'd been married long enough to know women. And so she looked at him and said, "Something, anything with diamonds in." So when she opened her present the following day, she found a pack of playing cards. It has 13 diamonds in it. So that's what you guys you can get for your your wife's Christmas present. A pack of play cards. Diamonds, darling. Diamonds are a girl's best friend. Anyway, back to reality. So I told this lady, you've got husband suffering. That's what it's like having a husband. you ask other women and it's just it's a difficulty having a relationship. It's not easy but you know you can work at it and make it work. And the junior sister, this the younger one of course her problem was she was looking for a partner in life like many people do. They can't find one. You know they find someone who's just almost okay but then it just all goes pear-shaped. It doesn't work. And people keep telling me actually see all these girls coming up here say I just really need a partner in life. I'm looking for someone to go out with and share my life with someone I can trust. And see all these nice guys come up. I'm looking for a girl. I really should start a dating agency cuz I've got all these potential clients and they're all really nice people. I can't understand it cuz I've known some of these people for such a long time. Why can't you get on together? You I get on with you. Really nice people, really good people. But anyway, this is coming in in a few moments. But I told this lady said, "You you are looking for a husband, somebody you can share your life with. And your elder sister has got a husband she doesn't want. I can see a solution." And I actually said that they got very upset at me. I don't know why. It's logic. It's reason. Your sister's got a husband she doesn't want. a younger sisters and I wants one share. Isn't that what brothers and sisters are supposed to do? But then I told her, okay, you've got, you know, a single woman suffering. And I said, if you find a partner in life, you'll have what your elder sister have, married woman suffering. And so they actually understood that. They said, "Yeah, you're right. And if you're married, you have married woman suffering. If you're single, you have single woman suffering." So they thought they'd become nuns. And I said, "If you become nuns, then you have none suffering. Go and ask the nuns at Gijigan.

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• “Oh no, not again”

  In brief: A baby boy born in a US maternity ward, still attached to the umbilical cord, is said to have spoken words everyone heard: “Oh no, not…

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  there was this one story supposed to be true confirmed as best you possibly can a a baby being born in a maternity ward knows a boy so born in a maternity ward in the u.s when the baby came out of the womb still attached to umbilical cord spoke uttered words and the words which it said were just classic it said and everyone there heard it oh no not again

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