Joke · Ajahn Brahm
The professor who ate the menu
The story — as told by Ajahn Brahm (verbatim captions)
There was once a professor of philosophy here in Perth, Yeah ... the experience is important, which we are now going to see with the simile of the professor and... Ahh, experience is past when it's interpreted from the knowledge of your past, in other words you take the experience and you compare it with something else, which means it becomes limited by the past. To learn the words actually stand in the way of truth, that's why that in meditation we learn how to be absolutely quiet, to feel and to know, that becomes the truth in the same way that the student of Lao Tzu could actually see... didn't see the sunset, only saw the words, and that great Taoist master made a very good comment that it is the person if they wanna see the sunset they gotta put aside all the words, descriptions, the words, actually block the experience that's it. Okay, back to the professor. There was a professor who of philosophy, in the university... whenever you mention a professor of philosophy in Buddhism they always get a bad rap, so if there are any professors over here, I do apologize, it's just our tradition. But this professor of philosophy, He found out there was a new five-star restaurant opening in Perth, and he wanted to go there to test out the food, so he made an appointment, he rang up, there was a two-month waiting list, that's how popular the restaurant was. And so two-month waiting list, he decided to book his place there anyway, and when he booked his place there, two months later, he walked up at the restaurant. And of course they wanted to see his ID, to make sure he'd really booked a place. And so they checked his ID and yes he was booked in. So he went in, the maitre d' took him to his table, he sat down at the table and a waiter came, you know these really well-dressed waiters, and gave him the menu. And this menu was in thick parchment, and the menu was written in gold letters and calligraphy, even the menu was a work of art, as you would expect in an expensive restaurant, this is no fish and chip shop, this is a top-class five-star restaurant. So he looked at the menu and then he ate the menu and then he paid and left. Because the professor had no idea of the difference between the menu and the food.
▶ Watch Ajahn Brahm tell it from 44:29 (to 47:31)
A reflection (in the spirit of Ajahn Brahm's talk)
Knowing about peace, love or the Path is only the menu. The food is the experience. Don't let second-hand knowledge stand in the way of what you can taste for yourself — keep a free mind that sees things as they are.
In brief (our summary)
A philosophy professor waits two months for a table at an exclusive restaurant, is handed a beautiful parchment menu — and eats the menu, pays and leaves.
Teaching point
“Too often the menu is one's knowledge, and the food … is the experience, which is why I said never allow knowledge to stand in the way of truth.”
When this story may help
- over-intellectualising
- spiritual seeking
- reading instead of living
Themes
- knowledge vs experience
- direct experience
- humour
Source & credit
Told by Ajahn Brahm in Four Ways of Letting Go | Ajahn Brahm | 09-04-2010 · 2010-04-12 · ▶ watch from 44:29 to 47:31 · Buddhist Society of Western Australia
1 other telling of this story
- Cztery sposoby na to, jak odpuścić - Ajahn Brahm [LEKTOR PL] · 2015-02-13 · ▶ watch from 44:29 to 47:33 · Sasana.plSame telling as English original (translated voice-over); no plot differences noticed.
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