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This afternoon we held another meditation retreat at ABMT. We started with chanting (evening chanting & Dhammajakkappavattanasutta), then did 25 minutes of meditation. We concluded with a Dhamma talk.
Everyone is welcome to join us for these Saturday afternoon retreats from 2-4 PM.
"If we identify with the body or the mind, we must necessarily suffer some underlying anxiety, because we know that we cannot completely control either of them. Our body will fall sick, it is getting older all the time and eventually it will die. The mind is even more unreliable; we don't even know what we will be thinking or feeling in two minutes' time. And eventually the mind as we know it will also disintegrate. Our experiences, even those we wish to have, are not under our control either; they are changing, unreliable. So if we think these are the only possibilities we have, we are engaged in a constant effort to keep things under control to at least the extent that we feel is good enough. And if everything we do not identify as ourselves is the world out there, we are constantly having to negotiate a precarious relationship to it. We are never quite one with it or truly separate from it, so we can never merge with and keep the 'good stuff' or feel safe from the 'bad stuff'. But we keep on trying. There is no peace in doing so, and yet this seems to be the basic underlying structure that informs the way we create or interpret our realities."
Ajahn Abhinando, from the article "Awareness and Desire"
"When you understand your own mind, that, in and of itself, will make you understand everything else."
-Luang Pu Dune (From "Gifts He Left Behind: The Dhamma Legacy of Phra Ajaan Dune Atulo")
Although there were only two of us present for this afternoon's meditation program at ABMT, it was a beneficial period of formal Buddhist practice.
It began with a discussion of some of the Buddhist discourses then we chanted several of them. We began with a reflection on the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha, then we chanted the Buddha's first discourse, which is particularly important as it introduced the Four Noble Truths to the world. Afterward we chanted a contemplation on the parts of the body, and another chant reflecting on aging, illness, death, separation, and the nature of cause and effect. At the end, we chanted a dedication of merit for the skillful deed we'd done in practicing the Buddhist path.
After the chanting, which lasted perhaps 45 minutes, we had a period of sitting meditation for approximately 25 minutes. Practicing sitting meditation at the temple tends to be a very peaceful experience, with little in the way of noisy distractions. It is an ideal place to sit quietly and observe the activities of the mind.
By the end of the sitting meditation period, we were approaching the end of the session and so we chatted briefly about practice-related subjects, wished each other well, and then concluded for the day.
It seems likely that these Saturday afternoon meditation programs will continue (from 2-4 PM) through at least the summer, depending on community interest.
The following events are being offered at ABMT over the next month:
-May 5 (2-4 PM): Buddhist chanting, sitting & walking meditation, Dhamma (Dharma) talk, and Q&A with Ajahn Khamjan
-May 12 (2-4 PM): Buddhist chanting, sitting & walking meditation, Dhamma talk, and Q&A with Ajahn Khamjan
-May 19 (2-4 PM): Buddhist chanting, and sitting & walking meditation
-May 26 (2-4 PM): Buddhist chanting, and sitting & walking meditation
-June 2 (2-4 PM): Buddhist chanting, sitting & walking meditation, Dhamma talk, and Q&A with Ajahn Khamjan
-June 3 (10-12 PM): Visak Puja ceremony (also called Buddha Day, this important occasion commemorates the birth, enlightenment, and death of the Buddha)
All events will be held at American Buddhist Meditation Temple (1251 Orchid Drive, Santa Barbara, CA). Events are free and everyone is welcome.
In the book "The Way It Is," there is a reflection by Ajahn Sumedho about how we tend to "want the world to align itself with [our] dreams and ideals and, when it doesn't, [we] don't want it anymore. But rather than make things the way [we] want them, the Buddha way is to notice the way things are. And it's a great relief when [we] accept the way it is, even if it's not very nice; because the only real misery is not wanting it to be like that."
-Venerable Mahasi Sayadaw
(Discourse on the Ariyavasa Sutta)
"...only self-conquest in moderation leads to the ultimate goal--Nibbana or Nirvana."
From "An Introduction to Buddhism" by Ven. Dr. Saddhatissa, M.A. Ph.D. D.Litt.
"The only thing that serves your own true purpose is release from suffering."
-Luang Pu Dune ("Gifts He Left Behind: The Dhamma Legacy of Phra Ajaan Dune Atulo")
"Admirable friends are to be recognized both by what they say and by what they do."
-Thanissaro Bhikkhu ("Into the Stream")
"If you have time to breathe, you have time to meditate."
-Luang Pu Dune (From "Gifts He Left Behind: The Dhamma Legacy of Phra Ajaan Dune Atulo")
Luang Pu Dune was giving advice to one of his students regarding the study of the Dhamma-Vinaya. He said:
"In the area of the Vinaya, you should study the texts until you correctly understand each and every rule to the point where you can put them into practice without error. As for the Dhamma, if you read a lot you'll speculate a lot, so you don't have to read that at all. Be intent solely on the practice, and that will be enough."
(From "Gifts He Left Behind: The Dhamma Legacy of Phra Ajaan Dune Atulo")
"The world always has things that come in pairs, but the Dhamma is one thing all the way through."
-Luang Pu Dune ("Gifts He Left Behind: The Dhamma Legacy of Phra Ajaan Dune Atulo")
"When the mind's not still, have it know that it's not still. It's because you want so much for it to be still that it's not still. Just keep at your meditation in a calm way, and the day will come it'll grow still in line with your wishes."
-Luang Pu Dune ("Gifts He Left Behind: The Dhamma Legacy of Phra Ajaan Dune Atulo")
"Greatly increasing is the glory of him who exerts himself, is thoughtful, pure in character, analytical, self-restrained, vigilant, and lives according to the Dhamma."
-Dhammapada 24
"Atha kho Bhagava udanam udanesi, 'Aññasi vata bho Kondañño, Aññasi vata bho Kondaññoti.'
"Then the Blessed One exclaimed: 'So you really know, Kondañña? So you really know?'"
-Dhamma-cakkappavattana Sutta
In "Help! Kalama Sutta, Help!", Buddhadasa Bhikkhu wrote that "the Kalama Sutta requires us to develop wisdom before faith."
This is important, as it cautions us to see something's meaning, understand the benefits that will come from believing in it, and then practice accordingly, before we accept as true that which we've been told.
"With patience he trains his mind so difficult to bring under control and with patience he notes the gradual relaxation of the defilements."
From "With Robes and Bowl: Glimpses of the Thudong Bhikkhu Life" by Bhikkhu Khantipalo
"As Ajaan Mun once said, 'Logs have never gotten into people's eyes, but fine sawdust can--and it can blind you.' In other words, people rarely get into trouble for breaking the major rules; it's the tendency to dismiss minor rules that keeps people blind to their own defilements."
-Thanissaro Bhikkhu ("The Question of Bhikkhuni Ordination")
No mud no lotus
-Thich Nhat Hanh
1251 Orchid Dr.,Santa Barbara,CA 93111