Yesterday, Ajahn told me about J, a Frenchman who came to see him because he had lost his young daughter to a brain disease. He was devastated, and he also blamed himself. “He was grief-stricken. He said all he could do was go to the cemetery every day and cry. I tried to think of … More On Death And Dana

“Work is love made visible,” declared Ajahn this morning. “This is a line from Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet. Have you read it? I think he is one of the Western poets that comes closest to the Buddha’s teachings. You should always try to find joy in your work, and you should focus on those aspects, … More On Work

It occurred to me recently how so much of our suffering is caused by holding on to so many concepts and desires. I need so-and-so to invite me, and I suffer because he didn’t. I want worldly success, and I suffer because I don’t have it. I want a direction in my life, more friends, … More A Religion of Deficiency

“She just bought that umbrella, and it’s already broken,” said Ajahn laughing, looking at a woman running in the rain with a broken umbrella. “Ah yes, I replied, one of those cheap things made to break the first time you open it. I’ve bought a few of those before.” He looked at me with his … More The Broken Glass

“It seems to me that vulnerability is an important component of a monk’s training,” Ajahn declared the other morning during alms round. “Monks depend on the laity, they renounce safety, certainty, autonomy, and the thousand comforts of a home.” He went on to say that the alms round is a powerful symbol of this. “Monks … More Vulnerability

“Frugality is the ultimate freedom,” Ajahn declared this morning during alms round. “When you don’t need much, you don’t depend so much on others or on circumstances. If you are content with a roof over your head and a little food, you have more freedom than the wealthy man who can buy anything he wants, … More On Frugality

This morning during alms round, a young woman came up to talk with Ajahn, and off we went through the market stalls toward a house. Ajahn quickly explained that it was someone’s birthday, and he had been asked to offer a blessing. We soon got to a little deck where an elderly gentleman was sitting … More Belonging and happiness

Every now and again, people try to offer Ajahn some money during alms round. Now the code of conduct established by the Buddha 2,500 years ago strictly forbids monks from earning, owning or handling money. This is one of the most fundamental rules in the Vinaya (code of conduct), one of the pillars of the … More Accepting while refusing

The mind seems to naturally move toward pleasure and away from pain. As soon as there is discomfort, it looks for a way out: food, phone, fun, sex, work, sport, drugs, planning, etc. Anything to avoid discomfort. This may seem like a reasonable thing to do, but as soon as our desire is fulfilled, a … More The weathervane

There was a tall skinny tree growing in a forest. The reason it was so tall and skinny was that it spent all its energy reaching for the light of the sun. It was five metres tall, and barely more than an inch in diameter at the bottom. A skinny five-metre tall stem with no … More Teachings from a tall skinny tree