Stories about embarrassment
7 Buddhist wisdom stories about embarrassment from Buddhist teachers, each linked to the original talk.
- “Another hour!” — Ajahn Sumedho's four-hour talkStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Ajahn Sumedho gives an hour's talk in Thai to the overnight lay guests; each time he stops, Ajahn Chah calls “Another hour!” — through mumbling, people leaving and snoring —…
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Ajahn Sumedho, it was him who was asked to give a talk, not on such a big occasion, but on the weekly talks, to all the lay community who were staying in this monastery overnight. So he gave a talk in Thai. It was sort of all right, but westerners giving a talk in a foreign language, it's difficult. Sometimes you say the wrong word and people laugh and you don't know what you've said, but you find out afterwards. You get very embarrassed. And after he finished the hour, he went to stop the talk and go and sit down, but Ajahn Chah said, "Another hour!" And he ordered this monk to give another hours' talk in Thai. You know, that's very difficult. You end up repeating yourselves, telling the same stories. You know, I tell the same stories, but I usually wait two or three weeks, you know, before - and that's why I really like - what I really like talking to is old people who haven't got such a good memory, because then they can always laugh at my talk jokes every week, even though it's the same joke. So he had to do another hour. And when finished the second hour, you know, he said, "Now the talk is over", and Ajahn Chah shouted out, "Another hour!". And at that point, many people got up and left. It's very embarrassing when you're giving a talk and people leave, but he had no choice. He had to keep on speaking. And now, of course, you get lots of pauses. You think, "Well, what am I going to say and how am I going to say it?" And eventually he finished. He finished the third hour. By that time, many people had left. And those people who were still there had their eyes closed, snoring. They weren't paying attention. But he got through the third hour. And then Ajahn Chah said, "Okay, another hour!". And the poor monk had to give another hour of talking. The worst possible talk you can ever imagine. Just mumbling, saying anything when everybody had left, except Ajahn Chah probably. And then Ajahn Chah finally, after four hours, let him off. And he said after that experience, he was never, ever afraid of giving a talk ever again.
- Hey Hare Krishna — and he was oneStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Shopping with his mother on Ealing Broadway, someone shouts 'Hey Hare Krishna!' Embarrassed for mum, he educates the beanie-wearing heckler that he is a Buddhist monk — then the…
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somebody shouted out hey Harry Krishna nah you know they know that you know many years ago they don't know what a Buddhist monk is and they just think they're all the same so my mum was with me I said okay look Mom I'm not having this I've got to educate this person this person is wearing a beanie in a sort of you know a coat because it was cold and I went out to him and said excuse me sir I am not Harry Krishna I'm a Buddhist monk okay you should know better and he listened quite patiently and smiled and then he lifted off his beanie had a little ponytail at the back and said I know you were Buddhist monk I'm Harry Kushner Harry Krishna
- No side entrance — through the public barStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Lions Club talk at the back of a Pinjarra pub; he expects a side door for the monk — there is only one way in, straight through the public bar.
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pub in Pinjara many years ago. There was I know these little stories about monks just getting into trouble. Not real big trouble, but I was giving a talk at the Lions Club and it was in the back room of a pub. That's where they have these talks. And I thought there'd always be like a side entrance around the back. we can go around the back and said, "No, there's only one way in and out to that room through the bar." And so, so the driver dropped me off at the entrance cuz we're not allowed to drive at the entrance. They went off to do something, pick you up later. And I was outside the pub in my [laughter] Thank you for laugh encouraging in my robes, not knowing what to do next. and he said, "Oh, the horse in the back." And I could actually, it's a straight line. I could see it through the door down the back where that room was. Okay, let's go for it. Very courageous. So, I put my head down. I didn't look to the left, the right, and I just went for it. And I almost almost got there almost like 80% of the way. And then somebody hand on my shoulders, pulled me around. Braum, what you drinking? Do you want a beer?
- The BBC cricket commentary blooperStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Ajahn Brahm recalls the famous BBC Test Match Special blooper when, introducing an over with a bowler named Holding and a batsman named Willey, the commentator said the names in…
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And there was this famous BBC commentator called Johnson. Anyway, he was just the one who was considered to be the best BBC commentator. And it did happen that England were playing the West Indies. And as he was commentating and actually got through the BBC sensors before they realized it had gone to where. Because the Englishman who was actually bowling was I think something, was it Jack Willie? I think his name was. And anyway, the West Indian batsman was William Holding, a very very famous batsman for the West Indies. And so he introduced the start of the over “the batsman's holding the the bowlers willie.” and it went on BBC!
- The brochure that opened the tillStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Old-fashioned hardware counter; given a laminex brochure to choose colours; sets it on the electronic till and opens the cash drawer — thousands of dollars spill out in front of…
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laminex or something and so I had to break they gave me the brocher choose your color while I went to serve other people there's so many people about the cter oldfashioned shop you not like these big Bunnings know super super shops know with bit of personal service they gave me the the brochure and I was trying to find a place to put it down and flip through the pages and so actually I just went around behind the counter and the only place I could put it on was you know the the till the cash register it was one of these electronic ones so as soon as I put it down I must have pressed the key for opening the cash
- The toilet frame with no holeStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: For Western visitors, the monastery made a sitting frame to place over squat toilets. An 18-year-old English visitor sits on a frame standing to the side — with no toilet under…
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I remember there was this one girl, this one girl came from England. She was like 18 or 19 years of age, came to visit our monastery. And you know the squat toilets we have in Asia where you squat down on them? So some people have a hard time squatting down on the toilets. You know, they fall over and that's not such a good thing when you want to go. So instead of actually down, we built, especially, out of compassion for all these visitors from places like England and Australia, we built like a frame so you can put it over the squat toilet and actually sit on it. You know, because most people use the squat toilet, so we just put this frame just to the side. And that's the toilet which this girl used. It just had no hole in the bottom. No water. It was only a frame. But she sat on it and did her business and it went all on the floor. [laughter]. Exactly! That's what you did. That's what Ajahn Chah did. That's what I did. I thought it was terribly funny. "Oh thank you for doing that. You gave me another story!
- “You must be the father-in-law!”Story · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: At a wedding of a young Thai bride and an Australian man, Ajahn Brahm greets the elderly Australian as the father-in-law — he is the groom.
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An important occasion like that marriage I did once. It was a Thai girl. She was very, very sweet and very young, maybe 19 or 20. And I had heard she was marrying an Australian guy. So when they came in here for their wedding, I saw this young Thai girl coming in with this elderly Australian man. And I said to this Australian man, "Oh, you must be the father-in-law!" "No, I'm the groom!", he said. That wedding didn't go down very well.