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Story · Ajahn Brahm

The leper's smile was bigger than anyone's in Perth

As told by Ajahn Brahm in Oh What A Relief! | by Ajahn Brahm | 16-05-2013

2 min read

Content note: disease; suicide comparison; poverty

The story — as told by Ajahn Brahm (verbatim captions)

One thing which changed me was when I went over to India. When I went over to India, I remember seeing this Actually, we you know, we went on this little tour down the Ganges River and on the way back to the bus to take us to our nice hotel, as people do when you visit India. On the way back, we passed through this leper colony. First time I seen real lepers. This is quite a few years ago. And of course, you know, they weren't all that hygienic. They had bandages on, but you know, dirty bandages. You can see the blood and pus coming out through the the bandages. And of course, they were coming to me, not because I had a brown robe, because I had a white face. And a white face meant money. So, they came and asked me for money. And I tried and I was stupid monk sometimes. I tried to say to them, said, "I'm a Buddhist monk. I don't have any money. That's one of my rules." And how would a leper understand English for a start? In India. And I realized I was getting nowhere. So, the only thing which I could do, which I thought I could give him, I could just give him some compassion, kindness. I just put my arms around him, gave him a hug and a big smile. Now, I gave him what I thought was a big smile. But what that leper gave me back was a much bigger smile than I've ever seen for years. I can't see any of you smiling like that leper. Even now. That was a big smile. And that blew me away. And I always remember that to this day. Actually, I could I can visualize it now. How on earth, I thought, you know, on the bus and many other days on that trip, how on earth can a leper be so happy? And he was showing incredible happiness. And when I came back to Perth, where are those smiles? And you haven't got leprosy. You've got nice houses, good health, health card. You can go to any hospital under Medicare. You can get bulk billed if you're poor. You eat very well. You sleep very well. You can go on holidays overseas and live in air-conditioned houses or heaters this time of the year. What are you worried about? And you started to see from that that suffering is not just having no food in your belly. Suffering is not sleeping out in the cold. In Australia, the suicide rate is much, much higher than in Benares, India, with all the poverty there. Why is it that those lepers would never contemplate killing themselves? But rich, beautiful, wealthy, young people in Perth do. Why?

▶ Watch Ajahn Brahm tell it from 29:23 (to 32:14)

A reflection (in the spirit of Ajahn Brahm's talk)

Asked for money by a leper in India, Ajahn Brahm, who carries none, hugged him and smiled. The smile he got back was bigger than any he'd seen in years. Wealthy places can hold deeper despair. The worst pain is often invisible, inside the heart. Kindness and attention can reach where money can't.

In brief (our summary)

On a Ganges tour, walking back to the tourist bus through a leper colony, Ajahn Brahm is approached for money. Explaining he is a monk who cannot carry money fails; he hugs the man and smiles. The leper's smile back is bigger than any he has seen for years. On the bus he wonders how a leper can be so happy — and why Perth's suicide rate dwarfs Benares despite wealth. The worst suffering, he concludes, is the unseen pain in the heart.

Teaching point

Material relief is not enough; the deepest suffering is emotional, and kindness can meet it when money cannot.

When this story may help

  • feeling unhappy despite comfort
  • meeting someone who suffers
  • wanting to help

Themes

Source & credit

Told by Ajahn Brahm in Oh What A Relief! | by Ajahn Brahm | 16-05-2013 · 2013-05-19 · ▶ watch from 29:23 to 32:14 · Buddhist Society of Western Australia

Caption notes: YouTube auto-captions: unpunctuated, words left exactly as captioned.

The narrative is Ajahn Brahm's own telling, quoted from the talk captions. The summary and reflection are Being Mindful Stories's editorial notes. Please credit the teacher and link the original talk. Markdown version

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