Stories about non-judgement
7 Buddhist wisdom stories about non-judgement from Buddhist teachers, each linked to the original talk.
- Angulimala: 'I have stopped. You stop.'Story · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Angulimala, a serial killer in the Buddha's time (some say 999 victims, more likely 99), ran after the Buddha to kill him, but however fast he ran he couldn't catch up. He…
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One who stands out was Angulimala. He killed Some people say 999. That seems a little bit much, but probably 99 human beings. A serial killer. Eventually, the Buddha converted him. Interesting what happened there. I often tell this in retreats. The Uh Angulimala was actually running after the Buddha trying to kill him. And no matter how fast Angulimala ran, the Buddha used some psychic power so the Angulimala couldn't catch him. So this Angulimala, the serial killer, shouted out to the Buddha, "Stop! Stop!" And the Buddha turned around and said, "I've already stopped. You stop." It wasn't just stopping running. It was stopping the way the mind just tries to do things, judge things, change things, improve things. Stop. And that was such a powerful, unexpected command by the Buddha. Angulimala did that. He stopped. He became a monk. And stopped all those what we call defilements, became fully enlightened by stopping.
- Ronnie Kray's promiseStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: One of the most notorious prisoners he visited in England was Ronnie Kray, the mentally disturbed one of East London's Kray twins. As Ajahn Brahm left, Kray thanked him and said…
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One of the most notorious prisoners I ever met was was Ronnie Cray. He was actually one of the Cray twins in East London. He was the one who was the crazy one. He was actually mentally disturbed and he would do some terrible evil things to others. But when I went to see him just before I left, he said, "Ajent Brah just, you know, thanks for visiting. If I ever get a few quid, I'll send some to your monastery." He never did because he didn't have any quid. He was in died in prison.
- The cow that criedStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: After a meditation talk at Karnet Prison Farm, a prisoner — a murderer, born in Northern Ireland — asks to see Ajahn Brahm. His prison job is slaughtering animals; they always…
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there was a prisoner over there who came to see me after I gave a a a talk on meditation. He wanted a private interview because he was very upset that he was a slaughterer in that prison, and he was about to slaughter a cow. All the cows would be screaming and hollering and trying to escape, but one cow came in which didn't quiet which didn't quiet at all, which came in I I'm going to tell the story now. I've already started. Of all the cows and the sheep and other animals which this guy had to slaughter, that was his job in Carnat Prison Farm. He was a prisoner. He was a murderer, actually, he told me. And now he got this job of killing cows and sheep, the slaughterer. He said, "All the animals who came in would always cry and struggle to escape. They needed dogs and these electric shock cattle prods to force them into the enclosure into the place where the executioner stood with his electric bolt gun. And he said that every animal would always scream and try and escape. He said on this one day this cow came in without making any noise, head down, and just walked one foot after another slowly and positioned itself voluntarily to stand underneath the platform where its executioner stood. And this cow this cow then lifted its head and looked this prisoner in the eye. Straight eye contact. This was so weird, so unusual, that this man, who was born in Northern Ireland, he told me that he was stabbed when he was 7 years of age. That was his first stabbing. When the school bully came up to him and asked for the money he had for his lunch. He said, "No." And the school bully took out a knife. "Give me your lunch money." He said no a second time. The bully never asked a third time, but plunged the knife into this boy's arm. He was badly wounded with blood streaming down his arm. His first thought was to run to his home, which was just around the corner, where his father was unemployed. He ran into his house, screamed to his father, "I've been stabbed! I've been stabbed!" His father looked at the wound and took him into the kitchen, but not to dress his wound, but to take out another knife from the kitchen drawer, give it to his 7-year-old son, and ordered the son, "Go back into the school and stab the boy back." And he said that was how he was brought up. And that's why he'd been in prison many times. And he confessed to me that he'd killed people. He was a murderer. And now he was killing cows. When you find out where these people come from, their upbringing, sometimes your view of these people as bad people just disappears. Your whole perception of them changes. You think about them in a different way. But anyway, with the cow, as this cow got eye contact with this prisoner, the prisoner couldn't move. He was frozen. He'd never seen such a thing before. He couldn't pull the gun to execute the cow. He didn't know how many minutes passed by, but then something very strange happened. He noticed in the left eye of the cow, just above the lower eyelid, there was liquid welling up, getting more and more and more. And you all know how big cows' eyes are. The water got so much above the left eyelid, bottom eyelid of the cow, that it started to drip over the edge and down the cow's cheek. The cow was crying. He got so confused. Soon he noticed the same was happening in the other eye. On the lower eyelid of the right eye, there was more water coming until that too was far too much for the eyelid to hold. And that too started to stream over the right eyelid and down the cow's cheek. The cow was crying. He swore, threw down the gun, and told and said, "That cow ain't dying." When he came to see me, he said he was now a vegetarian. Here's a murderer who is now a vegetarian cuz he saw a cow cry.
- The live eel in the birthday boxStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Growing up in Acton, West London, when jellied eels and mash were a craze, eight-year-old Peter (Ajahn Brahm) spent his pocket money on a live eel, put it in a shoe box, wrapped…
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But but anyway, so you know what naughty Satan A Brah did as a kid, 8-year-old? I just went got some pocket money and I bought an eel. A live one cuz live one I could buy a live one. They didn't ask me what I wanted it for. So, I already had the little shoe box and some wrapping paper, and I put this heel in a shoe box, and I wrapped it up really carefully, as best as an 8-year-old kid could do. Just make sure it's really nicely folded. A nice little tape. And even have the bow to tie it up with a nice bow and a little gift card in a happy birthday to mommy on your birthday with love from your son Peter. That's my name. XXX. And when I haded it to my mother as a surprise. Oh, she was just her heart was almost just exploding with with pride. That's my little kid. And he did it all by himself. And the amazing thing was I actually could pull it off, you know, that without sort of laughing and giving the game away, what was inside. And I remember my mother was almost cry with pride and joy. And if you get a nice present from a a young little kid, 8-year-old, and said, "A I wonder what's inside." when she opened it up and I was looking at her. Ah, what's inside? Oh, surprise, mommy. She was surprised cuz this little eel. As soon as she opened the box, the eel came up right and she screamed so loud. That was where I understood what like an exit strategy was. I'd already planned out where I was going to run and hide for 2 hours.
- The poem by Adolf HitlerStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: In Opening the Door of Your Heart he included a beautiful poem about a son's unconditional love for his demanding mother — and only afterwards does the reader see the author:…
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Have a read of that book “Opening the Door of Your Heart” and there you'll see a poem of a mother's, of a son’s love to her mother. I forget exactly how it goes but it's something like “when your mother grows old, when her eyes are dim and her hands become very weak, when she asks you for a favor reply in kindness, if she asked you again, reply in kindness the second time and a third time, please help her because the time will come, the terrible time when your mother can’t ask no more, so, and every time she asks, give time to her. It was something like that. But when I read first read that poem I couldn't believe it was written by Adolf Hitler!
- The retreat cook on work releaseStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Without a cook for a nine-day retreat at Jhana Grove, Ajahn Brahm finds Carl, a brilliant cook who does everything alone. At the closing thanks he has gone — back to the prison…
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We were teaching a retreat many years ago and we couldn't find a we couldn't find a uh a cook for the retreat. So I managed to to grab this guy to do the the cooking for us. And he was brilliant cook. He did it all by himself and he did a wonderful job. And at the end of the retreat when we start to thank people, he disappeared. He'd gone. They said, "Where's Carl? We want to say say thank you to him." And so he's back in kind of prison farm now. He was on work release. And I told people then that Carl was in prison for multiple rape. And straight away people said, "I jump on. You mean you let a multiple rapist come and cook for us for 9 days? Isn't that dangerous? I said, "No, look, I know him. He wouldn't hurt the fly. He never did. He did those crimes when he was uh young and involved in drugs. He wouldn't do anything now. He never did. But the main purpose of not telling them first of all and telling at the very end was to say just how How unfairly do we judge people? He's changed. He's uh paid for his crimes. Maybe not paid. I'm not sure. But he's certainly just leaving him in jail to rot is not going to help anybody. But let him come out. He's I think he's Where is he working now? He's got married to a nice uh girl now. And I think he's working. He's in the northern suburbs somewhere. Osman Park. No, not Osman Park, but somewhere around that area. Really nice guy.
- 'Whatever you're doing, come and do it again'Story · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Years ago a senior prison officer at the Canning Vale jail phones Ajahn Brahm insisting he come back to teach himself, not send other monks. Why? In his whole career, he says, he…
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I remember just uh getting this phone call years ago from one of the prison officers in the jail in Canning Veil. I think that's Hake. I'm not quite sure. They keep changing the names of the prisons. But anyway, in that prison over there, there was one of the prison senior prison officers and they really they wanted they made sure they wanted to talk to me. And I said, "Why?" He said, "We want you to come back to our prison to teach your meditation or whatever you're teaching over there." I said, "Look, I'm really busy these days. Got so many other duties. I usually send other monks to actually to go there." And he said, "No, we want you." I said, "Why?" He said, "Because something has happened. I've been in this prison service all my life." He said, "And I've noticed that every prisoner who comes to your class, everyone once they're released from jail never comes back again. Zero recidivism." I thought, "That's impossible." Said, "What have I been doing?" He said, "I don't know what you've been doing, but come and do it again, please.