Q1 Yesterday I had this thought that there is no shame in suffering. I'm wondering what is noble about the noble about the suffering in the first noble truth. Q2 06:17 Could you differentiate between awareness and consciousness? Q3 16:18 Please speak about bowing. Q4 20:39 Do you start and end your day with any reflections or recollections or practices? Q5 28:03 What is happening when right view and release become partially obscured again after right view has been attained? Why is it becoming obscured? Is cultivation of the empty field the main practice then and purification? Q6 33:32 It's taken several retreats to uncover this tremendous sense of guilt. When it arises it makes sense to avoid reconstructing the stories. the habit is to shut down the feeling. It appears as a pain in the chest. It shifts to holding back tears. Is this karma rather than the person?

Q1 Is chi a teaching of the buddha? How does it affect dhamma practice? Q2 12:25 How do you know when the body is telling you something? Q3 20:25 When sitting if truly inspired thoughts arise, do we treat them the same as we would any other thoughts? Letting them go? Is there no value in storing them for later contemplation? Q4 24:31 Attention and intention, which comes first? How does restraint work in relation to these two for well-being? Q5 36:15 I've heard teachers translate upekkha in other words other ways other than equanimity. Equipoise or perspective, clear perspective. Do you have any insights you can share please? Q6 40:26 I investigate the causes of my suffering. Sometimes I get the impression that some of it may have been handed over through body memories by past generations. Sort of unfinished business. Can you comment on this? Q7 43:04 Can you comment on the importance of rituals and symbols, and one's ancestral language and healing tools. How can they be used to transform whatever I may be carrying from my ancestors? Q8 48:43 Can you speak more about the power of craving?

Examining the mechanisms of the body-mind we see the absence of identity and the presence of experience in consciousness.

Looking into dhammas means looking into the mental, psychological and emotional experiences that arise and saturate, that we cling to.

Ajahn outlines some basic considerations on reclining

A retreat is a practice container that emphasizes cooperation and presence in a steady and communal form.

Pay attention to what demands more attention, what to be glad about, what to remember whenever you are transitioning.

Could you speak more on Buddha mind? Does it involve the heart? Is it with us all the time like an inner guide, below the ego and self-constructed identity?

00:10 Q1 Please share tips to manage the flurry of emotions that might arise when we're back in our day today busy lives. 20:18 Q2 Sometimes when I think of my own death I don't care. How do we manage acceptance in a way that doesn't become apathetic or dull sense of I don't care. 27:47 Q3 How do you establish presence and find your center when your body is in unbearable pain? 34:16 Q4 Can you speak about the use of pharmaceuticals for perceived mental and physical imbalances?

In meditation we practice staying mindful in the presence of something. What are the things that are worthy of being “in mind”?

The epitome of the path to an ancient city described by the Buddha exists between the extremes of affirmation and denial, destroying things and holding on to things.

Questions are précised: Q1 Do we have to unattach ourselves from intense bonds to our parents and children to attain enlightenment? Also, can you explain what the Buddha meant to “fully understand suffering” as the first noble truth? 26:42 Q2 If we don't purify our mindstream or cleanse our karmic baggage and live virtuous lives, we will not attain our Buddha self and seek a cyclical existence as we would have failed to realize the wisdom of reality. 27.54 Q3 Can you suggest some guidance on waking up in the mornings? 32.18 Q4 Reclining posture somehow feels less than the other postures. Is this so? When is the reclining posture appropriate? 37:29 Q5 can you speak on non-aversion? Is it possible?

In place of the “I” that thinks, we can enter the “we” sense, deconstructing and creating a “not to do” list.

00:08 Q1 How do we remain at ease in the face of great suffering? 06:50 Q2 I have been practicing a long time but I cannot relate to Buddha images in an authentic way. Can you help? 13:02 Q3 Is it a luxury to immerse oneself in the scriptures? What about the need to be good and to help others in basic ways? 17:29 Q4 If you didn’t teach would you still find purpose in contemplation and study of scriptures?19:22 Q5 Where does tiredness come from? How to tackle chronic exhaustion?

The brahmavihara provide a dwelling place where ideas pop up that can resolve our dilemmas.

Opening to the we sense.

Devotion allows an openness which is beyond personality. We give back to our deepest selves through mindfulness of citta.

00:13 Q1 How can one develop self-love without being accused of being selfish? 08:33 Q2 How can I cope with repeating pain in the shoulders or back and strong surging of energy? Should one change position? 14:45 Q2 What is the purpose of being alive if not to experience the senses? Trying to dull out the senses to be mindful makes me wonder if we miss the true beauty of life. 27:40 Q3 I'm wondering about the effects of tension on the citta/ sensitivity. I'm aware of deep tension in my body which could have been there since childhood. Qigong and reclining meditation are good. 45:11 Q4 The manifestation of a category such as apple in your example, is that what is meant by nama? 47:25 Q5 What's a good balance of walking, standing and sitting?

We exist with and must respect other beings. How can we develop mutuality, the “we” sense?

The abiding principle is “skillful” because this causes a stable but not rigid centre to open and lighten up.

Ajahn models some key elements of walking meditation.

The Buddha taught the end of suffering. It is also called “regaining the centre”.

Ajahn provides a way to hold and use precepts

Retreat practices mean using receptivity, our most fundamental quality.

Ajahn reviews key retreat elements: name, form, consciousness and contact – sanya, vedena

Q1 In samadhi, kāyasankhāra unifies with cittasankhāra. In this state what does the citta feel like? 16:25 Q2 Having associated wanting with a negative connotation I have been habitually suppressing my wants/ desires so sometimes it is hard to know what I want when it comes to important decisions. 31:41 Q3 During meditation is it OK to let my body move back and forth as I feel being pulled by a subtle energy flow. 33:00 Q4 Regarding death practice, do you have any advice? 39:52 Q5 When one becomes too comfortable in walking it becomes monotonous and the mind becomes dull but that’s not what we want, right? Any suggestions? 43:07 Q6 How do we practice dhamma in our daily life, especially in a hectic environment?

Q1 Can you explain more about patiggha phassa / impact on consciousness. 17:50 Q2 How do we link contact, impact and impression to cause and effect and the action we then take? 24:18 Q3 How do you know if a spiritual teacher is best for an individual? 29:11 Q4 I notice a good amount that you’ve taught us (like QiGong) is not dhamma but corroborates with Taoism and other traditions I may not be familiar with. How can we be sure to tell true dhamma from false dhamma. 37:30 Q5 How can we spread positive energy in a toxic environment? 43:11 Is it normal to feel wobbly / unbalanced during walking meditation?

Q1 You mentioned there are also other bodies such as the energy and emotional body and others. Could you elaborate please? 22:02 Q2 How does a sotapanna / stream enterer still have conceit as a fetter if they have uprooted self view? 36:11 Q3 It seems there is a very strong “not enough” mind. Not still enough, not calm enough, not practicing enough. How can I shift this negativity to a more positive chanda / motivation? 41:41 Q4 How can we measure our spiritual progress?

Q1 Can you expand on your ideas about effort and energy? Does the same standard of 70-75% apply to normal life? 12:09 Q2 I find it difficult to still well with eyes half open. 15:55 Q3 Can you give advice on sense restraint please? 31:54 Q4 How should one guide the mind from over indulging in socializing? 39:23 Q5 I saw the 5 khandhā / aggregates dissolve when I was sitting at home, not meditating. It was disorienting and seeing I had no identity was scary. What is your advice when I feel anxious during this experience? 49:58 Q6 Cittas arise all over us. What is it that that observes the cittas?

Q1: Can you say more about the air and water elements. I am confused. 04:20 Q2 How can we observe our citta? I read there are 52 states of citta. Can you explain further? 10:43 Q3 I’m used to watching the breath as an object but with too many instructions I get distracted. What is your advice? 15:49 Q4 I’ve had pain for three years, back etc. It seems pain is teaching me about impermanence and uncontrolability. 25:55 Q5 You mentioned the sankhara get less as we cultivate wholesome deeds. What about wholesome sankhara? Can you expand please? 39:39 Q6 You said meditation can cause some people to go crazy. How do we prevent this? 42:06 Q7 Can you explain sati and sampajanna again please? 52:10 Q8 How to support a fortunate rebirth for my pet chicken?

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00:06 Why did the Buddha teach lying down meditation? 20:33 What does not using “a high and luxurious bed” mean? 21:48 Could you speak about the different types of mind and emotions? 35:51 When we project outside / externally the same as perception in nama? 43:37 At nighttime the mind runs amok in my dream and I cannot stop the thoughts and emotions. What is happening here?

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00:00 Q1 When we're doing sitting meditation are we to be mindful of feelings inside the whole body as we breathe in and out? When anybody sensations or pain arises are we to contemplate them with loving kindness? 10:55 Q2 Is it okay to use the mantra Bhudo for sitting meditation? 11:58 Q3 Are there different realities of truth? For example historical, scientific, personal? Ultimate reality? Everything is what it should be, no good no bad. 17:07 Q4 How can the dhamma help two people in a relationship resolve an indiscretion of the moral code? How does the dhamma guide one to accept responsibility for actions that harm another? 20:23 Q5 Citta - is it a harmony between the brain and the heart? Does it include all levels of consciousness? 31:36 Q6 At the point of death what do we do when we're overwhelmed with pain? If the mind is too weak to maintain equanimity? What happens if one dies totally consumed by pain? 41:09 Q7 Could QiGong help me to be more balanced in body and mind?

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On retreat we experience the mental restlessness resulting from sense restraint. “Stopping my mind” is not an effective strategy to handle it. Instead, look for a place of harmony with what the mind is doing. Some standing meditation at the end

Bringing up a sound through the body, we listen and harmonize with others. The citta seeks that harmony to feel comfortable in its environment.

Questions are précised: 00:10 Q1 Can you clarify the analogy of dhammas you gave using the orange. 07:16 Q2 Can you speak more about the desires tanha and chanda? 21:46 Q3 Regarding breath meditation, should one focus on breathing sensations rather than the subtle body? 27:51 Q4 When the mind becomes unified, do I stay and let go of the breathing as the mind unifies, or should I watch the breathing in the background? 32:46 Q5 Sometimes I reach an awareness that feels so alien that I pull back. 34:09 Q6 How does one forgive oneself and handle regrets? 42:14 Q6 When helping others how do we decide when to stop helping? 44:24 Q7 How can we handle feeling inferior? What leads to the sense of unworthiness? 49:34 Q8 My body has pain in every position and it’s hard to meditate. What can you suggest?

Questions are précised: 00:00 Q1 Can you please distinguish between citta anupassana and dhamma anupassana. Which frame of reference should one apply to such contemplation? 28:43 Q2 During mindfulness of breathing, I find vichara (sensing and evaluating) to be an issue. How can I strengthen vichara? 35:47 Q3 I am a project manager, and there is a lot of planning and decision making. Is this a sankara? How to do so wisely and skillfully?

Questions are précised - 00:22 Q1 How to practice mindfulness of death? 16:27 Q2 We take in the world through the five senses. If we do not hear or see any news does that mean things, like the war in Gaza, are not really happening? 28:07 Q3 How do we know whether a kalyanamitta (spiritual friend) is trustworthy? 29:44 Q4 I get tension and constrictions in the chest and other places. I often get frustrated with this. Perhaps I am too preoccupied with it? 37:23 Q5 I am eager to understand imbalances – like jealousy and comparison - and to break through them quickly. What is your advice? 44:01 Q6 How can one influence or talk to other people about other views, like politics for example?

Vedana/ feeling is a primary source of intelligence, where things first impact. By knowing what penetrates and moves you, you can understand the mainspring of motivations and reflexes.

00:13 Q1 Sense restraint and diligence in daily life: I'm motivated to practice when there's suffering, when life is fine I slacken off and indulge in sense pleasures. Please advise. 28: 14 Q2 Questions on sleepiness: How to deal with sleepiness on waking up in the morning? I take a lot of caffeine to avoid sleepiness. Is there an alternative? How can I be mindful all the time? 40:46 Q3 When I sit the body collapses and the energy required to straighten the body makes it hard to feel relax. Any advice? 44:44 Q4 I have a compulsive need to feel liked and even try and force people to like me. What can I do? 52:55 Q5 Nama rupa vinayana (name form and consciousness). Can you explain more about this please?

The teachings reiterate cultivating the knowing of contact – that Is, what is felt internally, externally and as the internal and external worlds meet.

Moving into a new day, puja creates openness and sanctuary, recollecting the meaning of ‘Buddha’.

Puja/ honouring the sacred creates conditions for awakening. The group effort adds enormously, focusing on values and liberation, offering the opportunity to share an ongoing and ancient transmission.

A retreat is a training for life. It’s simple but hinges on careful sustained attention on useful frames of reference. What is worth giving prolonged attention to?

Dhamma teaching is never completed because it has to be right at the right time. It points to something; it never describes or defines. This allows the mind to decompress and get free from the conditioning forces of data and the pressure to make things happen.

When the citta is out of touch with Dhamma, reactive tendencies arise and we start responding to the designating and naming that the mind creates, thereby destroying the freshness of our experience.

Excellent resource in the current news environment

On retreat we can develop a frame of reference which becomes a reliable way of filtering – not controlling – experience. Retreat structure, silence and participation are key ingredients.

Steady the citta by replenishing it with good food. These include the fruits of friendliness, goodwill, ethical sensitivity, stability, and a steady resolve. These become a drip feed.

Signs / nimittas are significant. Ajahn examines what is meant by these words.

With integrity as a basis for mindfulness, we can go beyond calming down in sports, the office or even the army. Through meditation we see there is something deeper in the heart that needs to be unpacked.

Effort: taking an overview, we can recognize the first effort is to generate right view, to note the conditionalities in which we find ourselves. We see which ones lead to stress, and which allow it to cease.

We use retreat to learn how to soften and loosen the worldly ways of stimulation and action, and to enter the space and silence of our temple.

Teachings from the last week of the vassa. Description pending.

Finding a place to begin can’t come from history. Intuitive faith / saddha is useful to distinguish the mundane from the place where truth, the unconditioned, can be revealed.

Participant questions are précised and read into the file. The reading does not communicate the emotion that was frequently beautifully present: 00:08 Q1: I started listening to your recordings maybe in 2020 and it just really resonates with me the way you explain the citta. I just have never heard it described in quite the way you do, it all makes sense. So just to say thank you for this. 01:11 Q2: Could you speak about the bowing - what you are doing and how to do it. 05:56 Q3: I don’t have words to express my heart but thanks. The silence this morning … there’s something about it … The process is so intriguing, so beautiful, so thank you all everybody. 06:22 Q4 I so appreciate your clarity. You have helped me to understand things that I touched into years ago. And I went down cul-de-sacs not understanding. I am so grateful to have come into contact with you. 08:32 Q5 It’s been a difficult year for me and with your teaching I feel like an instrument that has been retuned. I feel I can play now or sing. 08:49 Q6 I want to say I am very grateful to be here and it seems that I have probably done some wholesome actions along the way. Sometimes when I look at my life I look at the difficult things that have happened to me and now I see I need to also look at the beautiful things. 09:21 Q7 For the last 10 years I have been struggling with daily practice and now I see better that practice is not just for half an hour but it’s 24/7 and I have to do my best. 11:15 Q8 You’ve talked about practicing with the paramis. I don’t know what they are. Is there a text you could recommend on this? 11:59 Q9 I just wanted to thank you and everyone for the silent presence and especially to thank you for how you led us into silence. 12:17 Q10 I just want to add that the QiGong was really special and added a lot. Thank you for that. 12:35 Q11 Who is your teacher in QiGong?

A Dhamma session is special, a form that is unlike the form in which most people live. But as we return to the helter-skelter of city life, it offers certain things to bear in mind.

Meditation is part of the eight-fold path. We see there are no such things as objects just many, many subjects – and they all experience themselves as subjects.

An examination of the operating system that gets set up with life and the program “I am a separate being.”

Dependent arising is accompanied by dependent ceasing. Is mindfulness enough? The dhammas involved are potent and need persistent attention to a multiplicity of factors.