Stories about thinking
4 Buddhist wisdom stories about thinking from Buddhist teachers, each linked to the original talk.
- I could only see the names of the starsStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: In the Cambridge Astronomical Society he learns the names of stars and constellations. In Thailand the night sky is so labelled in his mind that he cannot see its beauty — only…
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when I was at University there was many societies I joined and one was the Astronomical Society always love stuff like that and I had learned the names of the stars and the constellations that you know whether it was a Galaxy or supernova or I knew all those words and when I went to Thailand and I saw the sky at night I couldn't see the Stars anymore all I could see were the names and everyone else was saying how beautiful it was and I couldn't see the beauty all I could see was like little labels next to every Star and it took me years you know I had to do this deliberately to forget the names to an act of it was an act of will so now I can look at the stars at night I don't know which one is which and I can see how beautiful they are
- The man whose thoughts ran awayStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: As a monk of one or two years in Thailand, Ajahn Brahm watches a man who comes to the monastery every morning grow more disturbed over four or five days: talking without…
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I remember seeing that happen once in this fellow who over space of 4 or 5 days when I was a young monk in Thailand, maybe 1 or 2 rains as a monk, 2 years as a monk, he would come to the monastery every morning and you could see he was going more and more crazy. There's no way nothing I could do about it. I didn't know what I was doing. I was observing at the time. He started talking and he wouldn't stop and the talking got more and more quick, more rapid, more incoherent and eventually just completely lost it. You can see that that thought was just going completely out of all bounds. The more he tried to control it, the worse it would get.
- The naughty hour from three to fourStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: As a young monk in a silent forest paradise (one car a week) he fights thoughts — including old girlfriends — until exhausted. At the Buddha shrine he makes a deal: 3–4pm is…
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so that was Paradise for me and so I thought wow this is it I'm going to have a really lovely time and it was a lovely time for the first week or two and then I started thinking and I was only a young mik at the time so you know I didn't really know how to deal with this you know what I did when I started thinking I started to try and stop the thoughts come on stop it watch the breath come on watch your breath and that just made the thoughts worse and worse and worse and they kept going faster and stronger and more weird and soon I was starting to think I don't mind telling the story I started to think of old girlfriends I wonder if she's still available now shut up a bom you're a monk wonder where she is now oh watch your breath and all these really weird thoughts now I like being a monk but you know like you want to meditate but still these thoughts come in and you know they're Uninvited and get out of here and they come in even stronger do you know what I mean you know you're trying to get rid of those thoughts which come into your mind all sorts of stupid ones but you know you can't get rid of them and I was fighting and fighting and fighting until I just got exhausted and you was so frustrated now if ever you come across that frustration during this Retreat remember this is what you're supposed to do I just couldn't stand in the WR I didn't know what to do I just could not get these stupid thoughts out of my head so I went to there's no other monk there to talk to and I was too embarrassed to talk to the late people about what I was thinking so I went into the shrine bowed to the Buddha statue and just asked for some sort of inspiration and the inspiration came and it was do a deal make a make a an agreement and the agreement was this that I would meditate on my breath you know for most of the day but I would give myself a time like a naughty monk time 3: to 4:00 p.m. every afternoon I could think whatever I wanted I was not going to try and stop it or criticize it sexual fantasies romance anything I would let happen from 3: to 4 so I thought okay M if you want to do that 3 to 4 is your your your naughty time if you want to call it that whatever you want to think about you can think about it and I won't stop you I would let you let it happen I I promise to the Buddha I won't stop it from 3: to 4: but the rest of the time you behave now you know that sounded so reasonable and logical to me at the time and I tried that you know it was just still such a fight you know trying to sort of keep these thoughts out and so when it got to 3:00 I was really tired so I just lent against the wall you know and put my feet out cuz they were just aching and I said right now I'm going to keep my bargain mine for the next hour you can think anything you want and I won't try and stop you at all the weirdest sexual fantasies old girlfriends whatever you want to think about off you go and for the next hour no joke no exaggeration the next hour I watched every breath without missing one and I couldn't believe it
- Where everybody thinks the same, no one thinks at allAnalogy · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: At Dalhousie University he joked their Latin motto should be replaced with: where everybody thinks the same, no one thinks at all — praising rebellious, deeper seeing.
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change the name to the old slogan where everybody thinks the same where everybody thinks the same no one thinks at all