Dhammagiri Buddhist Podcasts – Détails, épisodes et analyse

Ajahn Dhammasiha leads a guided meditation on Mettā, Loving Kindness, cultivating the intention of unconditional good will to all beings without distinction.

In particular, he encourages us to 'get the feeling going, i.e. to not just 'think' about loving kindness, but to recognize and nurture the ulifting, joyful emotion we feel while practising mettā.

He also points out how important it is to develop loving kindness to ourselves.

Finally, he shares some reflections on cultivating mettā while walking, and on maintaining the intention of good will to everyone throughout once daily life.

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Question & Answer session with Ajahn Amaro on the occasion of his first Australia visit at Dhammagiri Forest Hermitage, Queensland, Brisbane.

Ajahn Amaro is the abbot of Amaravati Buddhist Monastery near London, UK.

Born in England in 1956, Ven. Ajahn Amaro received a BSc. in Psychology and Physiology from the University of London. Spiritual searching led him to Thailand, where he went to Wat Pah Nanachat, a Forest Tradition monastery established for Western disciples of Thai meditation master Ajahn Chah, who ordained him as a bhikkhu in 1979. Soon afterwards he returned to England and joined Ajahn Sumedho at the newly established Chithurst Monastery. He resided for many years at Amaravati Buddhist Monastery, making trips to California every year during the 1990s.

In June 1996 he established Abhayagiri Monastery in Redwood Valley, California, where he was co-Abbot with Ajahn Pasanno until 2010.

He then returned to Amaravati to become Abbot of this large monastic community.

PHOTOS OF AJAHN AMARO AT DHAMMAGIRI

Pics of Ajahn's visit at Dhammagiri can be seen here:

https://www.dhammagiri.net/ajahnamaro

and here:

https://latest-pics.dhammagiri.net/

MORE INFORMATION

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A short Guided Meditation by Ajahn Amaro during his stay at Dhammagiri Forest Hermitage, Brisbane, Australia.

Ajahn Amaro is the abbot of Amaravati Buddhist Monastery near London, UK, the largest Western monastery in the lineage of Ajahn Chah.

Born in England in 1956, Ven. Ajahn Amaro received a BSc. in Psychology and Physiology from the University of London. Spiritual searching led him to Thailand, where he went to Wat Pah Nanachat, a Forest Tradition monastery established for Western disciples of Thai meditation master Ajahn Chah, who ordained him as a bhikkhu in 1979. Soon afterwards he returned to England and joined Ajahn Sumedho at the newly established Chithurst Monastery. He resided for many years at Amaravati Buddhist Monastery, making trips to California every year during the 1990s.

In June 1996 he established Abhayagiri Monastery in Redwood Valley, California, where he was co-Abbot with Ajahn Pasanno until 2010.

In 2010, he was invited to return to Amaravati, to become the successor of Luang Por Sumedho as abbot of this large monastic community. He was appointed an official 'Upajjhāya' (preceptor), with the authority to formally ordain Buddhist monks, and has since ordained and trained a large group of monks and nuns as his direct disciples.

⁠Pictures of Ajahn Amaro's visit at Dhammagiri⁠

⁠Website of Ajahn's monastery, Amaravati⁠

⁠Website of Dhammagiri Forest Hermitage⁠

⁠Dhammagiri Youtube Channel

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This is a new stereo recording of the chanting we do at the end of every Sunday afternoon session at 5.00 pm, called "Verses of Sharing and Aspiration"

You can find it in the Amaravati Chaning Book on page 33:

"Through the Goodness that arises from my practice..."

We chanting an English translation of the traditional Pali chant known as "Uddissanādhiṭṭhāna-Gāthā" ("Iminā Puññakammena..."), used to share whatever good karma one has generated in the preceding meditation/puja/Dhamma reflections.

We're actually playing the Amaravati version in the background on loudspeaker, to make the sound a bit fuller.

We have also included the traditional Pali verses recited when bowing to the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha at the very end of the session.

English Text:

"Now let us chant the verses of sharing and aspiration!

Through the goodness that arises from my practice,
May my spiritual teachers and guides of great virtue,
My mother, my father, and my relatives,
The Sun and the Moon, and all virtuous leaders of the world,
May the highest gods and evil forces,
Celestial beings, guardian spirits of the Earth, and the Lord of Death,
May those who are friendly, indifferent or hostile,
May all beings receive the blessings of my life.
May they soon attain the threefold bliss, and realize the Deathless.

Through the goodness that arises from my practice,
And through this act of sharing,
May all desires and attachments quickly cease
And all harmful states of mind.
Until I realize Nibbāna,
In every kind of birth, may I have an upright mind,
With mindfulness and wisdom, austerity and vigour.
May the forces of delusion not take hold, nor weaken my resolve.

The Buddha is my excellent refuge,
Unsurpassed is the protection of the Dhamma,
The Solitary Buddha is my noble guide,
The Saṅgha is my supreme support.
Through the supreme power of all these,
May darkness and delusion be dispelled."

"(Arahaṃ) Sammāsambuddho Bhagavā
Buddhaṃ bhagavantaṃ abhivādemi - [bow]

(Svākkhāto) Bhagavatā Dhammo
Dhammaṃ namassāmi - [bow]

(Supaṭipanno) Bhagavato Sāvakasaṅgho
Saṅghaṃ namāmi - [bow]"

Amaravati Chanting Book is available here:
https://cdn.amaravati.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/30/Chanting-Book-Vol-1-Web.pdf

https://www.dhammagiri.net

The Buddha's teaching on Anattā (Non-Self) is not meant to establish a doctrine or philosophy. It's not meant for mental gymnastics, to think about it in a purley intellectual manner, or to argue about it. Instead, it's meant as a meditation object, a tool to be used for contemplation, in order to free our hearts from identification, attachment and suffering. When we contemplate form, feeling, perception, intention and consciousness as:

"This is not mine, this is not me, this is not my Self",

then we weeken identification and ultimately completely disengage from these five groups of clinging. It's not so much about trying to determine in an 'objective' manner whether anything is me, mine or self. Ownership and identification is not objectively existing, but it is projection of our own mind. We create and project the illusion of self, ownership and 'I' & 'Me' onto these conditioned phenomena. The question is simply whether doing such projection, creating such an illusion, is beneficial for us, or not.

As the phenomena we regard as self and me and mine are constantly changing, and therefore inherently unable to ever give as lasting fulfillment, it's apparent that the self-delusion is NOT beneficial, but ultimately always leads us into suffering. Thus, the Buddha recommends not to regard anything as self, me and mine, so that we don't experience suffering.

Regarding is something subjective, it's up to us how we prefer to regard: as self/me, or as not-self/not me. We've got the choice, but we have to bear the consequences of that choice ;

Regarding anything as me/mine/self, we will continue to experience disappointment and suffering.

Regarding everything as not-me/not-mine/not-self, we make an end to disappointment and suffering.

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Anattā / Not-Self is one of the more difficult, even challenging aspects of the Dhamma. Even long term Buddhists often feel uncertain or even confused what exactly is meant by anattā. If there's uncertainty on profound aspects of Dhamma, a wise approach is to go back to what exactly the Buddha has said himself about the topic. In the 'Anatta-lakkhaṇa-sutta' (Discourse on the Characteristic of Not-Self) we can find his own extensive elaboration. Ajahn Dhammasiha guides us through essential passages of this discourse.

He explains the diffence between 'No Self', which the Buddha actually never taught, and 'Not-Self', which the Buddha frequently taught.

Our Podcast on our own Dhammagiri Website, no need for any special app, just listen in any browser:

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Ajahn Dhammasiha points out the benefits of developing all four 'Brahmavihāras':

1. Mettā = Loving Kindness 2. Karuṇā = Compassion 3. Muditā = Sympathetic Joy 4. Upekkhā = Equanimity Developed togther, these four 'Appamañña-Vihāras' (= Limitless/Boundless/Infinite Abidings) support each other and provide many synergies. Ajahn explains which of the 4 to use depending on either the external situation, or depending on the internal defilements that we wish to counter.

Listen to our Podcast on our own Dhammagiri Website, no need for any special app, just listen in any browser:

https://www.dhammagiri.net/podcast

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Our email Newsletter:

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Our Podcasts on Apple/itunes:

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Mettā is unconditional, non-judgemental friendliness to all beings. Without distinction or discrimination, without any expectations or demands, without any preconditions:

• Whether they like us or hate us

• Whether they respond to our mettā or not

• Whether they are cute or ugly

• Whether they or of similar background as we ourselves or of a different race, colour, class, nationality, language...

We strive to make our loving kindless limitless, boundless, without any difference to absolutely everyone.

Listen to our Podcast on our own Dhammagiri Website, no need for any special app, just listen in any browser:

https://www.dhammagiri.net/podcast

More about Dhammagiri Forest Hermitage:

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Our Youtube Channel:

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Our email Newsletter:

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Our Podcasts on Spotify:

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Our Podcasts on Apple/itunes:

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Meditators often complain that they just can't stop thinking in their meditation. However, thoughts are not really the problem. The problem is only unwholesome or sensual thoughts. We first have to learn to think only good, beneficial, wholesome thoughts, like Loving Kindness, before we can stop thinking. Learning to think more wholesome is the basic practice we have to start with. Only once we're thinking mostly wholesome thoughts thoughout the whole day, can we succeed to completely calm down thinking in our formal meditation.

Our Podcast on our own Dhammagiri Website, no need for any special app, just listen in any browser:

https://www.dhammagiri.net/podcast

More about Dhammagiri Forest Hermitage:

https://www.dhammagiri.net/news

Our Youtube Channel:

https://www.youtube.com/@dhammatalksatdhammagiri8724

Our email Newsletter:

https://tinyletter.com/dhammagiri/archive

Our Podcasts on Spotify:

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Our Podcasts on Apple/itunes:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dhammagiri-buddhist-podcasts/id1534539834

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We all know that the Buddha teaches Karma and Rebirth. However, unless we have special psychic powers, we have to admit that we do not know for sure what happens after death. We take it on faith in the Buddha that consciousness continues after death, and attaches to a new body in a new rebirth according to our karma. But we usually do not know it from our own experince, as we usually can't remember past lives. The Buddha actually fully acknowledges that fact. He admits that life after death is a matter of faith for someone without any psychic powers like past life memory. However, the Buddha suggests that we're better off assuming that rebirth and karma are for real. The potential risks and rewards are just too great:

• If we assume rebirth is not for real, we may end up making lots of bad karma, and we're really in big trouble, if it actually turns out to be real.

• If we assume karma and rebirth are for real, we will lead a good life, not harm other beings, and try to make lots of good karma. If then it turms out to really be real, we're enjoying millions of years in great happiness in heavenly world.

• On the other hand, if it turned out that rebirth is not real, there would simply be nothing after death. No big difference in outcome, then, whether we believed in it or not.

There are actually many indications that rebirth and karma are for real! Ajahn Dhammasiha brings up quite a few in this talk:

• Someone shares their past life memories, and later details of their memories are verified in the real world.

• Children remember a previous life, and researchers like Dr Ian Stevenson succeed in finding the previous family of the child, and the child can even identify previous relatives on first encounter.

• Near Death Experience (NDE). While they are 'clinically dead', someone sees a beautiful light their floating towards, or meets deceased loved ones, or observes their dead body from above. After successful medical resuscitation, they remember and share this experience. Sometimes, details of their experience can be verified in the real world.

• Strange preferences in food, music and so on. Someone really likes the food, music, or culture of a foreign country they have no connection with in this life. But due to past life in that country/culture, they just really like it, and it feels very familiar to them even on first encounter.

• Some people we meet we immediately get on with, like we know them already for a long time, although we just met them now. But due to past life association, we're very familiar.

• and so on ...

Our Podcast on our own Dhammagiri Website, no need for any special app, just listen in any browser:

https://www.dhammagiri.net/podcast

More about Dhammagiri Forest Hermitage:

https://www.dhammagiri.net/news

Our Youtube Channel:

https://www.youtube.com/@dhammatalksatdhammagiri8724

Our email Newsletter:

https://tinyletter.com/dhammagiri/archive

Our Podcasts on Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/show/0SHWfWEGkO8OAtSWNJlqyD

Our Podcasts on Apple/itunes:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dhammagiri-buddhist-podcasts/id1534539834

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