This talk was given as part of Vesak reflections, that celebrate the Buddha's birth and entry into pari-nibbanna. Luang Por reflects on the question: Was the Buddha humble? Humble in this context refers to a mind, without a sense of "conceit", or I making and my making. Without "self narratives"

This dhamma talk, comments, questions and responses was offered on May 30, 2026 for “How do I apply the Dhamma to THIS!?!” 00:00 - DHAMMA TALK 42:56 - COMMENTS, QUESTIONS & RESPONSES

This talk was given on the occasion of Vesak 2026. Ajahn Viradhammo reflects on the quality of "Humility" as opposed to "conceit". Which is descried as the sense of "My making" and "I making". "The mind not engaging in the conceits through stories" Coming back to the theme of the foreground and the background, a sense of listening, through awareness.

The human tendency to want can range from highly unskillful or harmful forms of grasping and compulsion, through ordinary desires of life, into beautiful forms of aspiration and care. Buddhist teachings show how we can develop the more skillful forms of desire, such as wanting to be ethical, to practice meditation, or to awaken. Interestingly, moving into skillful wanting is an act of letting go.

Short Reflection on the Ten Fetters & Guided Meditation | Earthworm Practice for the Anthropocene IV | Online Wednesday-Morning

Learning to understand that the Dharma path unfolds in an organic, natural way helps to lessen the tendency to make Dharma practice another self-help project. Seeing the conditioned nature of suffering and the conditioned nature of happiness allows the self to get out of the way and let wisdom and discernment guide us along the path.

Margaret is the author of the just released book, Quiet Strength: Find Peace, Feel Alive, and Love Boundlessly through the Power of Equanimity. In this she leads in an exploration on this key quality that is so needed in these times. As a therapist, Margaret facilitated psycho-social support groups for cancer patients and their loved ones for over 30 years. She has led research studies on the impact of contemplative programs, co-developed the Compassion Cultivation Training with Thupten Jinpa at Stanford University. Margaret is the founder of Compassion Corps, a program which brings compassion programs to underserved populations around the world. She has been a meditation practitioner for over 40 years.