Stories about simplicity
22 Buddhist wisdom stories about simplicity from Buddhist teachers, each linked to the original talk.
- A monk costs less than a dogStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: When monks of the tradition first went to England, supporters worried whether they could afford one. The head of the trust, an economist on the board of the Bank of England,…
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when the monks in this tradition first went to England, the people there were a bit concerned, I mean, can we... this was in the early days when there wasn't so many supporters. Now, can we afford to look after a monk? You know, how much does it cost to look after a monk and there was this guy he was, he became the head of this trust, which looked after our monastery in England. He was an economist, and he was actually on the board of the Bank of England. He was a professor at one of the universities in England. So you know, he really knew his stuff about economics, so he decided to work out before they invited any monks to their place. How much does it cost to look after a monk? And surprise, surprise, he found out that it's much cheaper to look after a monk or a nun than to look after a dog. Dogs are far more expensive.
- Bare midriffs in a Melbourne winterStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Giving talks in Melbourne in winter, Ajahn Brahm sees the fashion for halter tops and low-slung jeans leaving about six inches of bare midriff in the cold; he swears some girls'…
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and I always also remember the time I was in Melbourne once don't worry about Fashions you know just do what you want to do because I remember going to Melbourne during the winter time giving a series of talks there and going from one place to another looking through the window I saw there was a fashion of these halter tops you know these low slung jeans or skirts and just you know High um jumpers or whatever leaving the whole midriff you know about 6 Ines of bare flesh in the cold me Melbourne winter and I swear I saw a few girls it was blue those poor women they were suffering so much because of fashion what what do you do that for you attra attract a guy do you really need a guy you get freezing to get a guy there's other ways so in the end sort of you know live simply
- Families around the toothpaste-tube lampStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: In his first weeks in a poor Northeast Thai village — no electricity, dirt roads, no TV — Ajahn Brahm walks through at night to a chanting. On every stilt-house veranda, by the…
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I remember one evening, the first few weeks, I was in this part of Thailand, going into the village in the evening, someone was getting married or something, we had to do some chanting. And as we were walking through this village, the houses were built on stilts. Underneath, was where they kept the water buffalo. And upstairs, was an open veranda. And house after house after house, I saw the same scene. There was one little lamp. It was an oil lamp. And they use an old toothpaste tube, which they cut off in half. And they stuck a rag, through the hole in the toothpaste tube. And that was the wick, and that's where they lit, sort of the wick, and the rag was just dipped in cheap kerosene. They couldn't even afford proper lanterns, but that worked fine. And by the light of that one little oil lamp, we saw the whole family sitting around in a semi-circle. And maybe the old grandma was telling ghost stories. Or, the old grandpa was telling fibs about when he went to Bangkok. You know, lies, tall stories, jokes. And the little children were there, the whole family from just you know, two or three years of age. to the old ancient grandma, talking to each other, as they were doing every evening, of their lives. When I saw that, house after house, I realised how much I've missed out.
- First a flag on the summit, then a coffee shopAnalogy · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: On mountain summits people leave flags, cairns and carved names (he jokes about carving 'Peter Betts was here'); next comes a coffee shop and cable car. Better to leave emptiness…
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you get to the top of the mountain and someone's put a flag up there or they put a bunch of rocks up there and they carve on there. My lane name before was Peter Betts. Peter Betts was here. What do you want to say that for? So instead to really respect like a mountain, isn't it best to leave it alone? Cuz what usually happens, you start with putting a flag there. The next thing you put up there is a coffee shop [laughter] which which sells souvenirs. [laughter] That's really terrible. If you get to the top of the mountain, you found out there's a big coffee shop up there and a cable car on the other side of the road which takes you straight up. It takes Why is that not I really objected to that? Because sometimes why do we need all that stuff? Can't we just respect emptiness and nothing and its beautiful nature where nothing is disturbing it is as it was centuries ago, millennia ago. We don't add to it. We don't take it away cuz it's perfect as it already is. We don't try and cure it. We care for it
- First night at Bodhinyana, under a treeStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: On his first night at the Serpentine land that became Bodhinyana, Ajahn Brahm's bed was an old door — but he couldn't find it. The batteries in his torch gave out, and after…
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I literally spent the first night at that place under a tree on the ground I did have a a bed to sleep on which was just an old door but I couldn't find it the batteries in my torch gave out I was wandering around an hour and after hour not finding where I was supposed to be sleeping there was a blanket there and a pillow so I just found the nearest tree and slept underneath it at night that was my first time at a monastery at Bodin Monastery in Serpentine it was really cold but he could sleep it was okay it was a bit of fun really
- “If only my house were this small”Story · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Showing a visiting local women's group his small monastery hut, Ajahn Brahm hears one woman say with envy: “Wow, if only my house were this small, I'd get all my housework done…
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And I still remember about ten years ago taking a group of women who were visiting the monastery, it was a local women's group who wanted to do weird things on an afternoon and had never been to the monastery and that qualified being weird, and when I took them to see my hut my room, I always remember one of the girls turning around to me and saying 'wow if only my house were this small I get all my house work done in half an hour'.
- If you understand, you can explain it to the barmaidAnalogy · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Heisenberg (via Brahm): if you really understand quantum physics you can explain it to the bar girl serving a pint — and she will understand. Same test for Nibbana: if it's…
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there was this very powerful quote by one of the most famous Quantum physicists Vera Heisenberg which even if you weren't a physicist everybody knows Heisenberg by Heisenberg's uncertainty principle you know at least I think you do anyway but you also know that quantum physics is incredibly complicated but this man he's quoted as saying if you really understand quantum physics if you really understand it you can explain it to the bar girl serving you a pint of beer in the pub and she will understand it so if you really understand Nana or God you'll be able to to explain it to somebody serving you beer in a nightclub and they will understand in other words if what you say is Goble cook it means you don't understand so when I gave up Christianity and became a Buddhist
- Imprisoned in a six-star hotelStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: On a conference tour in Japan, his hosts put Ajahn Brahm in what he later hears was a six-star hotel room. He's afraid to touch the taps of the big bath and jacuzzi, can't watch…
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I remember going this one time and I was giving some talks in Japan and going to I'm not sure if it's possible because I couldn't speak Japanese, but this hotel, it looked like it was a six-star hotel. It was crazy. We was just, you know, going to give a series of talks and conferences and stuff when I got inside of there in this hotel and I don't know if you know the Japanese culture said, "Please, we want you to be in here because we want to know where you are." It was a bit of a conference and so had to make sure I was in the right place. And then just I was inside this and I thought this is like a prison for me. I'm a monk. I'm not used to hotels. They had this big bath and a jacuzzi or something. I never been in one of those before. I own too scared to turn on any tap cuz any button or something. If I turned it on, I don't know what would happen. And of course, being a monk, you can't turn on the TV. That's against our rules. And the beds not like beds we have in in Serpentine where monastery where I live. And let many of you been inside my place where I live. And it's just it's not a bed. It's just a mat on the floor about that that thick. That's happy for me. I don't if you put me on big bed, it's very hard to fall asleep. And a small bed is very very easy and comfortable for me. And so what am I doing with this big beds? They're buttons on them. I don't know what to do with those buttons. I must admit though, when I went inside the toilet in this fancy hotel, I well, I couldn't resist pressing the buttons and see what happened. It was crazy. They don't have toilet paper. They just press a button and something squirts out in the right place. And sometimes it's in the wrong place, but never mind. [laughter] you get it hot and cold and all sorts of stuff. It was good fun. But then after a while I said, can't I just have a simple place to stay and it was one thing which I noticed that it was obviously that somebody paid a lot of money for me to spend a night in this hotel. It was part of a conference tour and and I was thought I don't want to be in here. I just want to be a nice little cave know where I stay in serpentine or under just over here just a nice little room. You don't need all this special stuff. And you know after a few minutes I didn't want to be in there. I want to get something else more simple. It's just too elaborate for me. They had many sort of TVs in there. Obviously didn't know which one to turn on. I didn't turn any on. And after a while I realized that I was suffering. You know what was probably I think I heard later on it was a sixstar room in the hotel. Six star. Have you ever been in a six-star hotel room? It really sucks. It's terrible. If you're a [laughter] monk, why on earth? And I realized that what is suffering is not if it's a six-star hotel or if it's just out in the bush somewhere. Any place you don't want to be is called suffering. Any place, even a six-star hotel, any place you like to be, you can feel something nice, beautiful, or simple, or whatever it is. If you want to be here, then you're free. you're happy. If you don't want to be here, you are in a prison.
- “Is this heavy?” — Ajahn Chah and the stickStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Walking back from alms round, Ajahn Chah picks up a stick and asks the young Ajahn Brahm whether it is heavy, then throws it away: it is only heavy while you hold it.
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The first way of letting go, it was starting off with an old experience with my teacher Ajahn Chah, a long time ago, we were walking back from alms round and a great teacher, they always find an opportunity to, sort of you know, give you some teaching, but not these teachings with so many words and big concepts just simple down-to-earth teachings which once you hear, you think "Crikey, that's really good," and you remember it, and it changes much of your life. What he did on this occasion walking back, he picked up this stick, there's forest all over the place, picked up a stick, turned around and says "Brahmavamso, is this heavy?" Is this heavy? [throws stick away] Not now. I was very careful, I didn't throw that too far, wonder what it's gonna bust. It's only heavy when you hold it. But if you let it go it's got no weight at all. Profound, simple, and unforgettable.
- Move huts every two years — by wheelbarrowStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Bodhinyana rule: monks may stay in a hut only two years, then must move — no tractor or car, only a self-pushed wheelbarrow — which reveals how much stuff has accumulated.
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every two years as a monk in voting down a monastery we have to move we have to move huts so you're only allowed to stay in heart for two years and what when you move you cannot use the tractor you cannot use a car you can use a wheelbarrow but you have to push it yourself
- Omega equals one — from a T-shirtStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Science talk of Omega equals one (nothing excess; coming from nothing and going back) — Brahm notes how such insights arrive in unexpected places, including a T-shirt.
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Omega equals one." In science they always have these numbers and figures, and symbols for stuff so that is the case. There is nothing here, no universal life energy, but that is just a device of division. Then coming from nothing and going back to nothing, wow, I think that is really cool. One of the reasons why it's amazing just the insights and understandings which you get in the most unexpected places. This one I got from a T-shirt
- One empty room for emptinessAnalogy · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Analogy: why put a picture on every wall and a pot-plant in every corner? Keep one room in the house deliberately empty — a fashion statement for emptiness and freedom — and…
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it's my empty room well put something in it no it's for emptiness for freedom and now we can store stuff in it no it's empty that will be pretty radical to have one room which has nothing in it just for the sake of emptiness
- One leaf on a swept pathAnalogy · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Ajahn Chah's image: when you've swept a path and one leaf falls on it, it stands out, because it isn't tangled up with all the other leaves — you can really see it, get to know…
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Ajanch used to tell that story. I remember he said if you swept the path and a leaf falls on it why does it stand out? It's because it's not entangled. it's not sort of um confused with all the other leaves which have fallen down there. But if one leaf falls on there, you can really see it and get to know it and understand it.
- Sleeping on a door with a hole in itStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: In the first days of Bodhinyana Monastery the two monks sleep on doors propped on bricks; the senior monk gets the flat one, Ajahn Brahm the ribbed door with a hole where the…
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when I first went to that monastery, the first night I was there, we had a door which I slept on. It was three bricks in each corner and a door. We only had two doors in that monastery. So we didn't sleep on the floor because there's lots of insects and animals that go biting you at night. It was this time of the year, just in January, hot and I was on the door. We only had two doors. Because I was the second monk, because of hierarchy, the senior monk got the flat door. I got the ones with the ribs on it, these houses had the ribs on the door. It's true, I'm not making it up, so I had ribs on the door. I was fortunate, there was one of the doors which the doorknob was actually in the centre of the door, rather than on the edge. So there was a big hole in the middle of the door. And being a positive thinker, I thought, well that's actually very good because that means I don't need to get up out of bed to go to the toilet. It's very, very good. I don't know why they don't make other beds like that, with a hole in the centre, a bucket underneath. You know what it's like getting these hot days or cold days, getting out of bed to go to the toilet.
- Teach year threes and fours BuddhismStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: At the old North Perth temple a teacher dumps year-three/four kids on him: please teach Buddhism — Four Noble Truths won't do; he must find kid-level virtue talk.
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year uh three or year fours who came to our they came to our um Temple when it was stood in North per many years ago and the teacher brought these kids to me I got loaded with them can you please teach our kids Buddhism something and of course it's always very difficult you know when you know you learn Buddhism sort of in place like Thailand you know all about for noble truths and dependent origination and all these very complicated subjects but how can you teach year three or year four year old
- The bucket with so many holesStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Coming from Cambridge to subsistence villages in northeast Thailand, Ajahn Brahm is shocked at how happy people are eating frogs and snails. Years later a villager tells him that…
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And I remember seeing an example of that living in this poor part of Thailand, you know, which had no roads, no electricity. But you know, there's this great sense of happiness in those villages. That's one of the great shocks to me coming from a rich country and having spent 3 years in this elite university where people would actually call you young gentleman. And if you looked at me at the time, that would be a stretch of everybody's imagination to call me a young gentleman the way I behaved in those days. But that we had to be called that. And it is awkward in Cambridge. It's really a weird place. But you come from that place where you could have dinner, you know, with a Nobel laureate or just to play soccer with an earl and all that sort of stuff. And they were actually hopeless at soccer, by the way. But and you went from there to the villages of northeast Thailand of subsistence farming, you know, as I had mentioned before, eating frogs and snails and all this other stuff. Whatever crawled on the floor went into your curry. And seeing that people were so happy. That was one of the weirdest surprises to see that people in these villages had far more happiness than anyone I'd ever seen in those great colleges or this, you know, developed society like UK. It made me challenge, I mean, why are all these aid organizations pouring millions into northeast Thailand making them suffer just like us? And actually that is actually what happened. And I saw it in my own eyes. They saw that I remember cuz I cuz fluent in sort of Thai and now and you would speak to people and I remember this one guy I saw after maybe 20 years I'd been there. And he said, "You know, when we you first came here, yeah, we didn't have very much, but you know, we had enough to get by. We had enough food. No, not the best food, but enough." He said, "Now it's just like having a bucket with so many holes. You know, I get money for all these things. But the more water I put in my bucket, the more holes there are. They just keeps on dripping out and I can never fill my bucket anymore." He said, "That's just all these things I now have to pay for electricity, for television, for medical insurance and blah blah blah." And he says, "In the old days, life was so simple and so happy." And I remember this other guy. He was one of Ajahn Chah's chief disciples.
- The Mexican fishermanStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: An American business professor on holiday meets a Mexican fisherman unloading his morning catch: enough to feed his family, then lunch, a siesta, playing with his kids, dinner…
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it's a story of the old Mexican fisherman you know there was American who went on vacation to the Caribbean coast and when he was uh just walking around by the shore he saw a fishing boat come in to unload its morning catch and his Mexican fisherman unloaded the catch and this American came up to have a conversation with him said what are you doing seor he told the American I've been out fishing all morning I've got enough fish here to sell to feed my family so now I'm going to go home and have a nice lunch after lunch I'm going to have a sleep a cesta it's good for your health you don't get stressed out if you have a siesta can you have a siesta or you're too busy I'm going to have a cester and after cester I'll be home when my kids come back from school they play with them help them with their homework and in the evening I'm going to have dinner with my wife and maybe you know go to the the canteen or the pub in Mexico having a a couple of tequilas not much and play the guitar with my friends now life is good and that's when the American said sir I am a professor of business studies in a business school in the United States I think I can help you don't be so lazy you are not exploiting this wonderful resource of a fishing boat yeah go home and have lunch but go out in the afternoon you'll catch twice as much fish with the extra profit from twice as much fish you'll be able to buy a much bigger boat with a crew that way you'll soon be able to catch about four or six times as many fish with that extra profit you'll be able to buy a second boat in about four or five years you'll probably have a whole Fleet of boats and then with a whole Fleet of boats you can even make your own caner so you can process the fish it's Downstream processing to make increase your profits and then with that business you can actually uh move the center of your business to Mexico City or even better to LA and then because you own the whole business you can float it on the stock market know sell shares because you're the CEO you can award yourself these amazing obscene salaries and give yourself stock options which means if the stock goes up you can buy if it doesn't you don't need to you can make a millionaire many times over in about 10 years now I'm a professor of business studies that's how it's done and the Mexican fisherman listened very respectfully until the end of this presentation the Mexican fisherman said but Senor what will I do with all those millions of dollars and Professor thought for a few moments he hadn't thought the business plan out that far so he had to think that's all people think about making the few Millions but then what and the professor said well yeah with all that Millions few Millions you know you can retire you know you can retire to you know a nice fishing Village like this buy yourself a small boat just to go out in the morning for fun you'll be able to have lunch with your your wife every day you'll be able to take a siesta afterwards and you always be home to play with your children when they come back from school and you'll be able to go out in the evening with no worries at all Senor I do that already
- The nun, the mouse, the cat and the cowStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: A nun living contentedly in a cave finds a mouse has chewed her robe. To keep mice away she asks a supporter for a cat; the cat needs milk, so she asks for a cow; the cow needs…
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In this particular story, it was a story of a Buddhist nun. A Buddhist nun, who was living in a cave, just happy, meditating, peaceful, just being content with the simplicity of her life. But one day when she came back from her morning alms round, because the monks and the nuns, we traditionally go out in the morning, with our bowls, to collect almsfoods, from our disciples, and that's what we feed on. It's a very simple way of living. And when she came back from her alms round, she found that one of her robes, which she left in her cave had been chewed by a mouse. And so, then she had to get out some spare cloth, needle and thread, and sew up her robe. I remember doing that, many many times in Thailand, sometimes you had to be very careful, sometimes very poor. I remember one monk, he hung his robe on the line, he just went to the toilet, and a cow chewed it. [laughter] Now, this is the only robe we got, we can't go to the robe shop and get a new one. So we just get some rags, or whatever, to sew it up. But after spending all this time sewing up her robe, she thought, "Why don't I get a cat?" The cat, you know maybe won't kill the mouse, but at least it'll chase it around, chase it out. The mouse will be able to smell the cat and it'll disappear. So the next time she was on alms round, she told one of the villagers there, her supporter, "Look, I really need a cat. You know, to make sure there's no mice, so I can keep my robe safe." So, they managed to find a little cat, and just left it with her. So she had a cat, so no more problem with the mice. But then the cat needed some milk. And she only got a little bit of food on alms round. So she had to ask one of her disciples, "Look, when I go on alms round in the morning, can you give a bit of milk? For the cat, not for me." So the disciples, and they're very supportive, so they started giving her some milk. But you know, sometimes it's hard to always be asking for things. So she thought, "Look, instead of having, asking for milk everyday, why don't I ask him for a cow? Because then I can actually make my own milk and I won't have to bother everybody." So she ask another of her disciples, "You got lots of cows, can you spare me one, so I can get some milk for my cat. So the mouse won't eat my robes." So they're very kind, Yeah, you're all very kind to the monks and nuns here. So they managed to give the little nun, a cow, a very nice cow. But of course. the cow have to eat as well. And so, they were always asking the people in the town, "Can you bring some grass?" And so they'll come every morning, to bring grass for the cow. And she thought - such a hassle getting grass for the cow everyday, and then she asked, "Is there a small little piece of your farm - little field - can I just let my cow graze in your field?" And they said, "Okay, fine - we're Buddhists, we're very generous." So they gave her a little field so she could graze her cow. But you know what cows are like, sometimes they go in other people's field. So she realized, that, you know, to be able to make sure that she didn't allow her cow to go and graze in other people's field, she needed a little boy to look after the cow. So, you know there are such things like temple boys, those people who have been to Sri Lanka and Thailand. The young people, they can actually stay and look after the monks or the nuns, or the cows - in this case, and you know, they can go to school as well. So, that, one of the supporters said, "Yeah, I've got this son. It'll be very good, because they can associate with the nun, and maybe learn some Buddhism, and get very good character." So they sent this little boy to her, so she had a boy to look after the cow. But then, just like for monks, monks can't have, like women staying in their caves so she need some place for the boy to stay. So she asked the villagers, if they wouldn't mind sort of, building a little hut just outside the cave you know, for the boy. And then one day, one day, someone came up to her and said, "Um, I'd like to ask you a few questions on meditation." She said, "No, I'm sorry, I can't make it right now, because I've got to look after the builders who are building the hut for the boy, who looks after the cow, who looks after the cat, who keeps the mice away from eating my robes." And, then she realised where she had gone wrong. Just a simple thing, just like trying to keep the mouse from eating her robes, and led to her having a cat, a cow, a field, a boy and trying to find a place for the boy to stay, And she realized, just how complicated things get. So what did she do? She sent the boy home, she sold the cow or gave it back, she sold the field, She even gave the cat away. And from then on, whenever her robes, the mouse returned, and she was very happy with her little mouse. And everytime the robes were bitten, and chewed, she would just put a little patch on it. Because that gave her much more time than having to look after all these other things.
- The tycoon's mansion that felt like a prisonStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Visiting a Kuala Lumpur tycoon's mansion to give a blessing, Ajahn Brahm passes machine-gun guards, huge walls and CCTV everywhere, and realises the very wealthy live in private…
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I just remember just going to give him in a blessing and his mansion It was over in Kuala Lumpur somewhere I won't say which guy this is I went to his mansion and there were guards with machine guns the guy You know he was a private person just a tycoon Guards at his gate huge Huge walls see CCTV ninety-three two seats CCC saw something TVs and guards everywhere And I thought this is like going in a prison And it was like a prison He reminded me of a prison, so these guys are very very wealthy actually lived in their own private prisons And they couldn't go anywhere by themselves Always had to have somebody take them around Bodyguards everywhere and so what type of life is that?
- They gave him a wrapped box of nothingStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: When people ask what gift he wants for his birthday, a few who got the message wrap an empty box; he opens it and finds nothing — 'that's just what I wanted'.
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They get a nice little box. They wrap it up and give it to me. And when I open the box, you know what's inside of it? Nothing. Ah, that's just what I wanted. How do you Did you [laughter] know? And it's beautiful. Just a nothing. The emptiness of life
- Walking off with everything he owned on his backStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: After five years as a monk in Thailand (around 1979) Ajahn Brahm leaves his monastery to wander on foot. Nothing can be stored, so he must carry everything; in the tropical heat…
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One of my most memorable experiences in my training as a monk after 5 years being a monk in these monasteries in Thailand you are expected, encouraged to actually leave the monastery, just go wondering on foot. Its a great opportunity to visit other teachers' You have been in a one monastery and to see how the other teachers teach To get a wider experience or may be go and find some solitude in the jungles or the mountains That was after five years--what would that be 1979 or something; somewhere around then. I left the monastery; and the rule was you couldn't store anything there. You can give it away but once you gave it away nothing would be kept for you. So everything which was yours you had to carry with you. And of course if you are walking especially through the hot tropics carrying lots and lots of stuff is just really really unpleasant. It was reminding you how much a burden your possessions were. So after a couple of days, you gave this away and you gave that away and you are down to the absolute minimum you needed Once you got down to that minimum, my goodness it was so light. You can imagine the experience. Just put yourself in that experience that everything you own you are carrying on your back and it's light. And you can dance, there is hardly any burden there at all. Because as a monk we knew that, there are monasteries everywhere any place you go you can get a bed for the night. If you don't get a bed for the night you can sleep under a tree. Its the tropics, it is easy to do. You can go anywhere, you get something to eat, not delicious food but enough to keep you going through the day, there is waters in the well. There was this total sense of freedom freedom from possessions. And that was just like being in heaven. You didn't have any worries at all. You had cloths to wear, you had this little mosquito net umbrella which you could park anywhere to sleep at night. And the best thing about it; you had no appointments. Your future was blank. I could go anywhere I wanted. Every cross road, you can go left, go right, turn around, go forward, stay still No one was asking you to go anywhere, to do anything or be anything. That was one of my wonderful experiences of being free from attachments at all.
- “What day of the week is it?”Story · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: As a forest monk he lived without calendars or clocks and sometimes didn't know the month or year. In the first months in Perth, at the small house in North Perth, a visiting…
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but then the first few months when i came to perth we were staying in a small house in north perth you know lynn knows that she was there at the time and even erica you know you went there there was she's around here somewhere and uh there was a nepalese man who came to visit he had a um you know buddhist background and he had an epileptic epileptic fit just in front of the house so he called the ambulance and then uh first thing the ambulance guy said to him is what day of the week is it and why do you ask that so what if you don't know what day of the week it is they take you away straight away so oh my goodness if you ask me i'd be in big trouble so from that time on i realized i better always at least know what day of the week is