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Story · Ajahn Brahm

'Urinal for dogs'

As told by Ajahn Brahm in What path to take in life? | Ajahn Brahm | 08-02-2013

1 min read

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

when I was a young monk in Thailand there was a problem in the local town of ubon that's you know in Northeast Thailand where aan Cha's Monastery was there was not enough public toilets so there was a place in that town where taxi drivers you know they took took drivers and anyone else who was passing would urinate it was against a wall and everybody would go there to urinate so much the place stack so the local government put a sign up please don't urinate here did that work no they put signs up saying you will be fined if you urinate here did that work no the place got smell it and smell it until one bureaucrat and there are some smart bureaucrats surprise surprise put up the sign which works he just put up a simple sign urinal for dogs and no one would use that place ever since

▶ Watch Ajahn Brahm tell it from 31:30 (to 32:40)

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

Ubon's council tried polite signs, then fines, to stop people urinating against one wall. Nothing worked, until a clever official put up a sign reading 'Urinal for dogs'. Problem solved. Sometimes the answer is simple once you really see the problem, like a company that banned overtime and got more done.

In brief (our summary)

When Ajahn Brahm was a young monk, the town of Ubon had too few public toilets, and tuk-tuk drivers and passers-by all urinated against one wall until it stank. The council put up a sign: 'Please don't urinate here.' It didn't work. 'You will be fined if you urinate here.' That didn't work either. Then one smart bureaucrat put up a simple sign — 'Urinal for dogs' — and no one used the place again.

Teaching point

Sometimes the solution is simple once you really see the problem.

When this story may help

  • management
  • persuasion
  • public behaviour

Themes

Source & credit

Told by Ajahn Brahm in What path to take in life? | Ajahn Brahm | 08-02-2013 · 2013-02-10 · ▶ watch from 31:30 to 32:40 · Buddhist Society of Western Australia

1 other telling of this story

Caption notes: YouTube auto-captions: unpunctuated, words left exactly as captioned. 'took took' = tuk-tuk.

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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