Being Mindful Stories

Story · Ajahn Brahm

Letting the rip carry him out

As told by Ajahn Brahm in Change | Ajahn Brahm | 17 December 2010

2 min read

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

This monk, he was from New Zealand and he was trekking over in New Zealand with one of his friends— they call it 'tramping' over there. It was a hot day, just like the weather today—it's been really hot today— and he was walking all day, and he managed to get to this pristine beach somewhere in the South Island I think it was. It was one of the most magnificent beaches: secluded, no one was there; they had it to themselves. It was the sort of beach that you built a resort on if it was in close proximity to civilisation, but this was totally wild. It was only him and his mate there and they were very hot, and so they thought let's go for a swim! A very natural decision. So they stripped off—they didn't have any bathers; there's no one around— and off he went into the water and did some swimming. And that's when he realised that he'd made a big mistake because there was a big rip there—this very, very strong current. Later on—he survived, obviously to tell the story—he told me later that many people had perished on that particular beach; he didn't realise that it was so dangerous. How he survived was a very brilliant strategy, and I think this was because he'd been a Buddhist before— he was a Buddhist monk, obviously— but the teachings of Buddhism actually saved his life there because as he was being taken out by the strong currents, straightaway, he realised that it was such a strong rip current that fighting it was useless, so he totally relaxed, he let go, he didn't try to do anything. He let that current take him a long way from the beach, knowing that eventually that current will stop, it will change, it is impermenant; eventually, the force will wither away, and eventually it did, and that's where he started swimming, that's where he put forth all his effort. When he could make a difference, that's when he applied himself. And he managed to swim back to the shore exhausted, but he survived. And he told me if he'd fought that current, he'd still have been taken the same distance away from the shore, but when he got to that distance, he would've been exhausted, he would not have been able to swim back—he would've died. Knowing when to let go and when to put forth effort saved his life, but more importantly, having the courage to let go, the courage to let go when you know you can't do anything, but you're really scared of what might happen. He did let go and that saved his life.

▶ Watch Ajahn Brahm tell it from 25:29 (to 28:20)

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

Caught in a rip, the monk stopped fighting, let it carry him out, and swam only when it weakened. Some situations are simply too strong to push against: a diagnosis, a layoff, a family storm. Save your strength, trust that the current will change, and when it does, give it everything you've got.

In brief (our summary)

A New Zealand monk, tramping with a friend on a hot day, reaches a secluded, pristine beach in (he thinks) the South Island; they strip off and swim — and he is caught in a powerful rip where many have drowned. Realising fighting it is useless, he relaxes completely and lets the current take him far out, knowing it will weaken. When it does, he swims with all his effort and reaches shore exhausted but alive. Had he fought, he says, he'd have ended up just as far out with no strength left.

Teaching point

Know when to let go and when to put forth effort; when you can't resist, go with the flow, conserve strength, and act when change comes.

When this story may help

  • overwhelming circumstances
  • crisis
  • feeling swept away
  • knowing when to act

Themes

Source & credit

Told by Ajahn Brahm in Change | Ajahn Brahm | 17 December 2010 · 2010-12-18 · ▶ watch from 25:29 to 28:20 · Buddhist Society of Western Australia

Caption notes: Manual (volunteer) captions; occasional misspellings kept as is.

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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