Being Mindful Stories

Story · Ajahn Brahm

Jack Kornfield waited outside Elizabeth Arden

As told by Ajahn Brahm in Freedom Of Desire | Ajahn Brahm | 27 November 2020

1 min read

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

Jack Cornfield he's just wrote quite a few books but I remember him coming to visit uh Thailand once and telling us one of his stories as soon as he went back to uh America you took this robe and just uh to get a job but he went to see his sister he was still in monk's robes so he was a like a westerner in monk's robes and he says I said I I'm I'm doing a like a a beauty thing in Elizabeth Arden

▶ Watch Ajahn Brahm tell it from 13:54 (to 14:27)

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

Freshly back from Thailand, Jack Kornfield sat in his monk's robes outside a New York Elizabeth Arden salon, waiting for his sister. Passers-by wondered what treatment he was there for. He was mortified. Ajahn Brahm loves such stories. Awkward moments are funny once you stop protecting your dignity.

In brief (our summary)

Jack Kornfield back in the US still in robes visits his sister; she is in Elizabeth Arden; he sits outside in the chairs waiting — Westerner in robes amid the beauty salon.

Teaching point

Even a famous teacher can look absurd waiting outside a salon in robes.

When this story may help

  • awkward family visits
  • culture clash

Themes

Source & credit

Told by Ajahn Brahm in Freedom Of Desire | Ajahn Brahm | 27 November 2020 · 2020-11-27 · ▶ watch from 13:54 to 14:27 · Buddhist Society of Western Australia

Caption notes: YouTube auto-captions with machine-added punctuation; words left exactly as captioned. 'Jack Cornfield' = Jack Kornfield.

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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