Stories about prejudice
6 Buddhist wisdom stories about prejudice from Buddhist teachers, each linked to the original talk.
- “How many of you have ever eaten rice pudding?”Story · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Unexpectedly facing 60 Year 1 and 2 children, Ajahn Brahm asks who doesn't like rice pudding; a few hands go up, then, looking around, all of them. Then he asks how many have…
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some years ago i went to rolly stone primary school and they invited me to give a talk to some of these students there and i didn't realize who i was talking to and they were year grade ones and grade twos how can you teach buddhism to grade ones and grade twos you know can you actually tell that story about the most beautiful sound in the world to them or talk about the four noble truths the great great ones and great twos and i had no preparation but what i did there when i went into the room i had to think on my feet very quickly actually i wasn't standing so i thought on my aoi arse i was sitting down and i just asked them so how many of you like i don't know how many of you yet don't like rice pudding you know what rice pudding is you don't have to know but anyway how many of you don't like rice pudding and you know what grade ones and grade twos are like these little people we know two or three people put their hand up they did not like rice pudding all the other kids the boys and girls they were looking around they saw these three or four people had their hands up so they put their hands up as well and after two or three minutes the whole about 60 kids had their hands up they agreed in grade one grade two rollerstone primary school they didn't like rice pudding okay put your hands down now how many of you have ever eaten white sporty and two kids pull their hand up and everyone else laughed you taught dhamma to grade ones and grade twos they got it straight away and so did their parents and the teachers as well
- Joke: the famous-quotations testJoke · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: An American high-school teacher offers to let anyone who identifies a famous quotation go home early. 'Who said "I have a dream"?' Ahmed answers Martin Luther King and goes home.…
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in a school a high school in the United States on a Friday afternoon that teacher was doing a class in in ethics and English and their culture so she made the announcements in the high school I'm going to give a little examination a test on famous quotations and if you get the answer right you can leave school an hour early on Friday you don't have to come back till Monday that surprise so the first question class who said I have a dream and before she could go even to the next sentence armored in the back put his hand up and said that was Martin Luther King and the teacher said wow amazing little istan boy Ahmed very good correct you can go home and the next question is who said it's not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country and Yasmin in a hijab put her hand up and said that was JFK John F Kennedy Miss correct you can go home too and as she was opening the door for little Yasmine to go out this American kid in the back said bloody Muslims and the teacher turned around I said who said that and this American man said Donald Trump see you on Monday
- Roy Hudd remembered Dan Leno's houseStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: English comedian Roy Hudd, lost in a new one-way system after a London show, turns down a street he has never seen in this life and recalls living there before — as music-hall…
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this fellow called Roy Hudd You can get him on the internet R o y second name H U D D He was a TV personality when I was growing up in the U.K. He was always on the TV, comedian a very funny guy but his story was that he has been doing that show in London somewhere at a time when the local government installed a new one way system to try and get the traffic to move a bit more clearly or smoothly and because some usual roots were blocked he got lost he was driving around, he got lost he didn't know the way to get home getting more and more lost, he turned a corner and that's when it happened The hairs on the back of his head stood up now that never happens to a monk because we don't have hairs But anyway, he still felt this is weird, this is strange and it was just so weird, so strange he had never been down this street before in this life! But he remembered it from his previous life And it all flooded back to him And he went to the house where he lived for many many years before now in those houses and those places in London they have the little blue circular disks which shows who lived there before and very interestingly, the last time I was in London close to Russels Square there is a big disk in there In this house lived the mistress of Charles II the mistress, that wasn't very nice but she was famous enough they put it on there So be very careful what you do because sometimes you know if you are... Anyway back to this there was a big blue sign outside the house because in his past life, he was also a celebrity and his past life was as; probably the most famous music hall entertainer of his generation in the times when people would go not to pubs or clubs it was like the music hall where lots of bear, entertainers his name was Dan Leno L E N O and that was a plaque which he said he recognized that was his house before and he knocked on the door and his people opened the door "you are Roy Hudd, we know you we see you on the Telly What are you doing here?" At which he told them He lived here before You haven't lived here before we have been living in this house for 30, 40 years But I was here before you! And because he was well known, recognized they let him into the house he took them all around the house showing what it was like before He remembered, very clear memory even where he did his rehearsing in one of those rooms in front of the mirror So that was a memory from a very well-known personality And now he has written books about Dan Leno supposed to be historical books where he has information which you cannot get from any other source except if you have been there before
- The bikies' funeralStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: A young bikie hits a lamp post and dies; his Buddhist mother asks Ajahn Brahm to support her, and he ends up conducting the funeral in Fremantle. The bikies come in leathers and…
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I remember going to a funeral service. I mentioned this because I was at a funeral service over in Freo um last Wednesday and it was for a bikey funeral. You know, it was real bikes. One of their members had hit a lamp post and died. And the m their mother was a Buddhist and invited me to come to the funeral to, you know, support her. In the end, I ended up doing the funeral service. One of the best funerals I've ever done cuz no bikes. They came in all their leathers and chains and whatever else they had on. and all their their girlfriends again came as if they were going to a dance or a nightclub, not a funeral. They're all dressed up. That was their culture. But I looked a bit weird as well to them cuz I was dressed in brown. And I ended up doing the funeral service. But there was so I always remember it because after the funeral service was concluded, they all came up to me, nice service, sir. Thank you for that, sir. They were just so polite. It totally changed my idea of a, you know, bikey just I was on their side that day
- The kids throwing stones on Bunbury beachStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: In the early years in Australia, while Ajahn Brahm meditates on Bunbury beach, stones start whizzing past his ears. He stands up and walks towards the six or seven kids, who…
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once they threw stones at me. And that was over in Bunbury beach many years ago. These kids - I was just meditating there, minding my own business - and this stone came whizzing past my ears. Very good they were bad shots, but as they got closer and closer, I thought I better do something. So I just stood up and turned around. And there were these kids. For those of you who were old enough, that was when the orange people were here. They thought I was an orange person, fair enough mistake, this is pretty orange. But I actually started walking to them, and it's amazing, when you face people who do things like that, as soon as I started walking <u>towards</u> them, they started running away. [laughs] There was about six or seven kids there, and they could have easily beaten me up, but just the confidence there was enough to get them to scatter. And I just rushed after them, caught them up, and said "Look, why are you throwing stones? I'm a Buddhist monk". "Ohh, you're a Buddhist monk, sorry! We thought you were an orange person. Buddhist monks are cool.
- The Muslim family at the airportStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: On a teaching tour of Indonesia, Muslims attend his talks and a veiled family rushes to the airport to have him sign the book they loved and take a last photo together.
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Even like Indonesia, my trip to Indonesia, that's where all the Muslim terrorists are, you know all the Bali bombers, they came from over there, but I had such a wonderful time with the Muslims, they came to all my talks, we had photos together, got interviewed and photographed in the Muslim newspapers. Even one Muslim family, they came to the airport, they just caught me in time, said "Oh, Ajahn Brahm, Ajahn Brahm you must sign our book, it's the best book we've ever had." So this whole Muslim family in the veils and everything, me in the middle with the book, having a last photograph taken together. Isn't that wonderful, when people of different religions can have so much fun together.