Being Mindful Stories

Joke · Ajahn Brahm

He renamed his sons Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha

As told by Ajahn Brahm in The Pure Land | Ajahn Brahm | 08-01-2016

3 min read

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

Let's call it a Thai man for change. A Thai man. He He was what we call uh in Buddhism a Wasak Buddhist. So, like an Easter Christian. You only go to the church once a year. So, he'd only go to the temple once a year on Wasak and it's only cuz his wife made him to made him go there. And he just his life was hopeless if he you know hell to live if he didn't do what his wife said. One day a year. It's a holy day of the year. Go to the temple, Wasak, please. So, he went there. He was a businessman. And as a businessman, he like making money, just doing deals, working in the businesses here and there. Quite a wealthy man. But even though he's wealthy, he still didn't like giving any donations. But Wasak, I suppose I'd better. And he was wondering just listen to all these boring sermons and meditating with his legs aching. Can't there be an easier way? And he happened to listen to one of these sermons by one of the monks. And at this sermon, the monk mentioned that this is classic Buddhist teachings. The most important time is your last moments before you die. And if you have a brilliant, beautiful, good thoughts as your last thought before you pass away, then your next life will be great, maybe even get reborn in a heaven realm. And the monk was saying that the best thing you can think about before you pass away is what they call in Buddhism the Triple Gem, Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha. And if you can think of those three things, the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha, as your last thought before you pass away, then you're guaranteed 100% to go to heaven. No questions asked. So, this businessman, mean I don't have to keep precepts. I don't have to keep all these rules. You know, all I need to do is Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha. Don't need to give donations. No, as long as you think of Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha just as your last thought, then you go to heaven. He thought, "Wow. At last, I know how to work the system." So, he said, "All I need to do is to make it sure I don't have to go to temple anymore. I can stay in the shop doing business. I can watch the TV. I can go and get drunk. I don't have to do any of those things. All I need to do is make sure I think of Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha. How can I achieve that?" And he came up with this great idea. Because it just so happened he had three children, three sons. So, as soon as he got home, he got a lawyer and he officially changed their names to Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha. Because he knew that even today in Australia, when you die, your children are by your bedside in the hospital or at home. And sure enough, it worked according to plan. When he was on his last few hours of life, his three devoted children were next to him. And he was looking at them thinking, "Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha, I'm going to go to heaven. Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha going to heaven." His plan was working perfectly until it just so happened he was saying to Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha, his three children, "I'm going to heaven. No trouble at all." Until he suddenly thought, the thought arose in him, "My goodness, if my three children are here by my bedside, who's looking after my shop

▶ Watch Ajahn Brahm tell it from 5:19 (to 8:54)

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

A once-a-year Buddhist heard that dying with Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha in mind ensured heaven, so he named his sons that. On his deathbed, seeing all three, his last thought was: who's minding the shop? There's no shortcut. Our final thoughts grow from a lifetime of habits. Practise kindness now.

In brief (our summary)

A once-a-year 'Vesak Buddhist' businessman hears that thinking of Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha at death guarantees heaven, so he legally renames his three sons that — until on his deathbed he panics: if they're all here, who's looking after my shop?

Teaching point

There is no last-minute shortcut past a lifetime of habits.

When this story may help

Themes

Source & credit

Told by Ajahn Brahm in The Pure Land | Ajahn Brahm | 08-01-2016 · 2016-01-08 · ▶ watch from 5:19 to 8:54 · Buddhist Society of Western Australia

1 other telling of this story

Caption notes: YouTube auto-captions: unpunctuated, words left exactly as captioned. 'Wasak' as captioned (Vesak).

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

  • Dying peacefully like Dad (the bus-driver joke)

    In brief: A comedian wants to die peacefully in his sleep like his father — unlike the screaming passengers on the bus his father was driving.

    Read full story

    He said, "When I die, I want to die in my sleep just like my father. He died in his sleep. Not like the passengers in the bus he was driving at the time, screaming and shouting."

    Open story page·Watch this telling

  • The penguin funeral (“Freeze a jolly good fellow”)

    In brief: Penguins grieve a dead friend, bury him in the ice and sing at the ceremony: “Freeze a jolly good fellow.”

    Read full story

    even Penguins they have this beautiful sense of social cohesion and they have their own ceremonies when one of their members dies and apparently what happened is this penguin died and as soon as it died all its friends came around it to grieve but then after grieving for a little while they actually dug a hole in the snow in the ice and they put the dead penguin in the snow in the ice and they covered him over with the freezing ice and then afterwards they did a little ceremony for for the dead penguin their friend they sang a song free the jolly good fellow

    Open story page·Watch this telling

  • Snoopy: “Most days we won't”

    In brief: Charlie Brown and Snoopy sit on a pier enjoying a beautiful view of mountains and lakes. Charlie Brown says, “You know, Snoopy, all of us…

    Read full story

    And this Peanuts, this Charlie Brown and his dog Snoopy, must have been on vacation somewhere, they were on a pier and they were sitting there enjoying the afternoon, this beautiful view, just mountains and lakes and waters, having a beautiful afternoon there, and Charlie Brown says to his dog Snoopy, "You know Snoopy, all of us one day will die." And Snoopy, this great philosopher, he really is wise dog, much wiser than human beings, Snoopy says, "True, one day all of us will die, but most days all of us won't die.

    Open story page·Watch this telling

  • The woman who refused to go back

    In brief: A woman who dies on the operating table meets a spirit telling her it isn't her time; she refuses — she's having too good a time — until…

    Read full story

    there's this one lady who died on the operating table and so she left her body looking at her body over there just a mess so off she went but apparently that she described it as meeting some Spirit and the spirit saying you know it's it's not your time you know you got to go back and she said no way I'm having too good a time I don't want to go back sorry and the spirit said but you have to go back I don't care about that I'm not going you know like people are pretty independent these days and you know you don't actually do what you're told by your parents or by the government or by God or anybody so Spirits you know go and get lost I'm having a good time so that degree of Independence know she didn't want to sort of go anywhere until eventually having this argument you you got to go back no way apparently she described because obviously she did go back that's why she could tell this story this Spirit sort of got hold of her and threw her back into her body and it just had all this aches and pains and heaviness again and she was really pissed off of that spirit I mean really big time so when she gave this interview said now when I die next time of course I would die eventually I'm going to find that guy and I you do know what I'm going to do to that guy what he did to me that's how you described it

    Open story page·Watch this telling

All stories·Find a story for your situation