Finding Your Nirvana: Dhamma Talk By Luang Por Pramote Pamojjo (Translated By Jess Koffman And Read By Nicolle Kopping-Pavars)

Dhamma talk Luang Pa promote Pamojo recorded on the 25th of October 2020.

It's getting cool by the temple here now.

This morning it was 21 degrees.

It's probably cooler than it is in Bangkok.

There are a lot of roosters here crowing in all directions.

We're in nature here by the forest.

Actually this really is a forest.

There are a lot of animals and it's quiet and peaceful.

We are two kilometers from the village.

It's appropriate for forest monks to be two kilometers from civilization and away from the noise.

That's how it was in the old days.

These days loudspeakers can still be heard from the village.

When I first arrived in this area in the evenings the sound of insects and birds filled the air.

The sky was full of stars.

Not like Bangkok.

You don't see that there.

It was quiet and peaceful here.

After a little while more and more people started moving to the area.

The peace dwindled.

That's the way of the world.

It's hard to find a place that's truly quiet and peaceful.

There are too many people so they are on top of each other and get in each other's way.

If you watch the news there's nothing but animosity.

Us practitioners understand that this is how the world is.

Among worldly beings conflict is ordinary but normal.

It's not possible for things to be consistently comfortable.

If our mind resists change it will suffer.

If at first our practice isn't strong and we consider ourselves the point of origin.

When we look out at the world we'll see the world is full of suffering and animosity.

To look harsh and heavy with issues that weigh down our head,

Our brain and our heart.

The world is heavy and our mind shifts and struggles wanting to be free from all these difficulties and wanting to dwell in good spaces.

It's just lots of wanting.

The mind shifts and wants to be free of all bad things.

But it can't be.

We can run from it for a while but the negative feelings or bad moods follow us wherever we go.

In Bangkok it's not comfortable.

Traffic is terrible so we might move.

Then wherever we move traffic begins to accumulate as well.

Those that don't practice Dharma will blame others and other things thinking these things are bringing me suffering.

We reject all these unfavourable things and we want only good things.

As such the mind is heavy and irritable.

So keep practicing.

When our mind sees the truth and our heart arrives at true Dharma we'll discover that the outside world is truly empty.

It's our heart that's chaotic.

If we don't understand the practice then we'll blame everything else for creating chaos.

But if we're skilled practitioners we'll see that it's us that creates the suffering and chaos right in our own heart.

The outside world is just forms that we see,

Sounds that we hear,

Scents that we smell,

Flavours that we taste.

Heat,

Cold,

Hardness,

Softness,

Tension and relaxation that the body feels.

The outside world is just matter,

Sights,

Sounds,

Scents,

Flavours and objects felt by the body.

Their nature is to change and move continuously.

No one can stop that.

As we continue our practice,

When the eyes see forms the mind shifts and moves,

Liking sometimes and disliking at others.

When there's a form that pleases us,

Liking arises.

When the form displeases us,

Disliking arises.

The mind that likes and dislikes is wavering and moving.

If we act we'll see the outside world is empty.

It has no weight to it.

Take a look at the Buddha image behind me.

Is it heavy?

It isn't.

It has no weight to it.

The outside world is just exactly how it is.

It has no weight.

The mind that goes to pick it up is heavy.

When I used to stay at Suan Foh,

At first it was a rice field.

When you looked out you could see for dozens of kilometres.

You could also see three mountains in the distance.

There was a pretty range.

From where I stood the three mountains looked equal in height.

From closer angles it wasn't as pretty.

The mountains were ugly.

When they were at equal distance from each other it was a beautiful sight.

When I first moved there I was practicing very diligently.

When I looked at the mountains I noticed that none of the mountains had any weight to them.

They were just light that was contacting the eye and light reflecting.

The mountains weren't making contact with me.

I wasn't carrying them and they weren't heavy.

It's our heart that gets heavy.

The world is empty but our heart is not.

That's where the problem is.

That's what makes us suffer.

The sounds outside are merely vibrations in the air.

But once you receive them,

We like some,

We dislike others and the heart gets heavy.

The pretty sounds make the mind move and the unpleasant sounds make the heart move too.

Liking makes the heart move and so does disliking.

Sound is just sound but our heart doesn't react equivalently to each.

The mind moves and shifts.

It's the same with scents,

Flavors and textures.

Keep looking and you'll see the world isn't a problem.

The world is as it is.

People are in conflict but it has nothing to do with us.

People fighting isn't our affair.

So if we pick up,

If we pick a side and we hate the other side then our mind wavers.

Liking and disliking occur.

When you see the truth like this,

We can observe our own mind.

When the eyes see a form,

The mind will be pleased or displeased.

Liking or disliking occur and the mind starts to shift and move.

If it likes the form,

Then it wants to keep the sense object for a long time.

If it doesn't feel pleased,

Then it wants that sight,

Scent,

Flavor or tactile object to go away quickly.

If we are pleased and liking,

Then wanting arises.

We want the thing we like to remain.

When it disappears,

We want it back.

When it doesn't come back,

We want it to come quickly.

When we encounter something we don't like,

We want it to go away quickly.

When it's gone,

We don't want it back.

So the mind has nothing but wanting and not wanting,

Cycling in that way,

Following liking and disliking.

Our mind not yet seeing the truth that the world just is the world,

Forms are just forms,

Sounds are just sounds,

And flavors are just flavors and textures are just textures.

These are just things that make contact with the body.

They're just normal attributes of the outside world.

They don't bring troubles to our heart.

When our heart suffers,

It's our own mind that isn't intelligent.

It's gotten lost in loving and hating things.

When we practice,

We'll see.

When the mind makes contact with forms,

The mind is neutral.

Then there's interpretation.

This form is a thing.

That other form is a person.

This person is nice.

That one is pretty.

We are pleased and then liking arises.

Once there's liking,

Then we want that person to be with us.

We'll surely be happy if we get this person.

But the truth is,

Happiness is never permanent.

Just happy when we think about it.

Pleasing objects.

When we think about something else,

The happiness from the original thing or person isn't real.

Unhappiness is the same.

It comes from our thoughts,

That's all.

A broken heart,

For example.

Many of us have experienced that.

When we're broken hearted,

We don't feel it all day and all night.

Only when we think of the other.

If we think of something else,

We're not broken hearted.

The suffering from it is just coming from our thoughts,

Not from the other person.

When we watch conflicts in the world and we're not involved and don't pick a side,

We don't suffer from it.

People fighting are just forms that we see.

It's like watching TV or a movie.

It has nothing to do with us.

If we're just watching a movie,

It isn't reality,

But we get into it and our mind shifts and moves.

We can even cry from watching movies or laugh,

Depending on what they depict.

Even though they're just forms that the eyes are seeing and just sounds that the ears are hearing,

Like hearing other people telling us a story,

The vibrations are received by the ears.

Nothing happens at that point.

But once we interpret it,

We hear it and laugh,

Feel sad,

Feel angry.

It all just comes from our own heart.

So try study within your own mind.

The eyes contact forms,

The mind likes,

Dislikes and feels pleased or displeased and wanting occurs.

First attachment arises,

Then struggle,

Then suffering.

Wanting is craving.

When there's strong wanting,

There's attachment.

That's clinging.

Then there's the movement or struggle.

That's becoming.

Then a self or a birth occurs.

Then suffering follows.

There's wanting and clinging,

Then movement or struggle.

And then there's a self and the resulting suffering.

So the suffering in our heart is an internal process.

Other things or other people can create problems in our life.

Like losing a job is a problem.

A broken heart is a problem.

Needing to get somewhere and there's traffic making it impossible.

That's a problem.

But those things aren't suffering.

The suffering has to pass through a process happening in our own heart first.

We like this object.

We dislike that object.

Wanting,

Clinging,

Becoming and fabricating occurs.

Then a self thinking.

How will this affect me?

We're not going to make our meeting.

We're stuck in traffic.

And then we suffer.

So suffering is really just a process that our own mind is fabricating.

The outside world just has problems.

But problems and suffering are two different things.

Problems occur all the time.

If you've ever read about ancient Chinese kings,

The book begins by talking about how China was first happy and then turbulent.

There would be peace and then war.

Neither was sustained.

And that's not only true of China.

Everywhere is like that.

Thailand is peaceful for a few years.

Then there's trouble again.

The trouble lasts a while and then peace returns.

It's always like that.

The world moves and shifts in that way.

But whether our heart is suffering or not along with it is up to us.

So try to learn the truth and see that all things we make contact with are just temporary things.

Our heart that makes contact with the outside object is temporary.

Can't last long and is uncontrollable.

Just like the outside world.

If we keep practicing,

At one point our mind will relax out of this.

It won't suffer from it because it's not attached to things.

There's suffering because of attachment.

Without attachment,

There's no suffering.

So how do we not suffer?

Keep practicing and observe in this heart of ours.

When the eyes,

Ears,

Nose,

Tongue or body make contact with the world,

Then there is interpretation.

Then liking or disliking will occur.

No so when it does.

If we know that liking occurs when we are pleased with an object or disliking occurs when we're displeased with an object,

Just watching the liking or disliking is enough to free the mind from suffering.

I say that loudly out of confidence.

Just watch the mind that's liking and disliking.

The mind makes contact with this object and likes it.

The mind makes contact with that object and dislikes it.

It hears this sound and likes it.

It hears that sound and dislikes it.

Keep watching and you'll see.

Liking doesn't last.

Disliking doesn't last.

When we see this,

The liking and disliking will start to dissipate.

We love this body of ours,

But it's something that is observed.

We don't have to look at the outside world.

We can just look at this body.

When this body is sick,

Who is sick?

The sickness dwells in the body.

Why is the mind suffering?

The body is a material thing.

It doesn't really feel pain.

All the physical sensations are strange things that enter the body.

They're not the body.

Our body is sitting here.

After a while,

It will get achy.

The aches in the body are two different things.

The body was sitting here and at first it wasn't in pain.

The pain arose later.

The body and the pain are two separate things.

Take a look and see.

It's similar to the outside world.

We like this object and don't like that object.

In the body,

The pain arises and the heart doesn't like it.

The body has never complained about it.

The mind complains.

But who's in pain?

The body's in pain.

The mind isn't in pain,

But it complains.

Take a look.

When the body is comfortable,

The mind is the one enjoying it.

Who here has enjoyed eating?

Raise your hand.

When you eat and feel happy,

Are you entertained?

Who's eating?

The body is eating,

But the mind is entertained.

The mind gets caught up in everything.

We not only get caught up in the outside world,

But in our own body as well.

We get caught in the different feelings that happen in the body and in our own thoughts,

Fabricating good and bad stories.

So this mind of ours really is a nuisance,

A busy body.

So keep seeing.

If the mind is liking,

Know so.

If the mind is disliking,

Know so.

If there's happiness,

We like it.

If there isn't happiness,

We don't like it.

There's wanting.

The mind wants this and wants that.

Once wanting occurs,

The mind starts to move and cling.

The more we cling,

The more we struggle.

The less clinging,

The less struggle.

Suppose our parents are dying and we're very attached to them.

We don't want them to die.

We'll do anything to keep them alive,

Grasping at whatever we can.

We want them to live long and we forget the fact that maybe they don't want to.

If they're in terrible pain,

It's possible they don't want to live anymore,

But our heart wants them to.

The more that we want,

The more we grasp.

The less wanting,

The less grasping.

With less grasping,

There's less suffering.

It suffers because it's moving.

So if we're very ill and want to feel better,

It's very painful.

But if we don't have wanting the body to be around for 100 or 120 years and we just think,

Okay,

However long I live is fine,

Then the mind won't struggle as much and won't suffer as much.

Whatever we love so much is what we cling to,

Grasp,

And then we suffer.

Whatever we love less,

We grasp less,

Cling to less,

And we suffer less.

If there isn't much concern or attachment,

There isn't so much struggle and suffering.

The struggle will end when we see the truth.

See the truth of the body and mind.

What are we so in love with?

This body and good feelings?

What do we hate?

We hate when the body is disappointing,

When it's old,

Ill,

And dying.

We don't like it.

We'll see the body is moving and changing according to its nature.

It gets old,

Ill,

And dies.

When the mind sees the truth and accepts that all things arise,

Sustain,

And fall away,

Then the mind will no longer struggle once it accepts its truth and no longer resists it.

It won't struggle or suffer anymore.

When the truth like being ill arises,

We just know it's a normal and natural phenomenon.

We won't be craving for comfort.

Without wanting,

There's no attachment,

Struggle,

Or suffering anymore.

The body is the way it has to be,

Then eventually it will disintegrate.

The heart has no dealings with it.

Feelings in our heart are similar creatures.

Happy,

Unhappy,

Wholesome,

And unwholesome states of mind.

We need mindfulness to see them,

And we'll see that they all come and go.

Nothing is consistent.

Happiness is inconsistent.

Unhappiness or neutral feelings aren't consistent.

All the good states aren't consistent.

All the good and wholesome states can't consistently improve.

The mind will be good for a while,

And then it will dissipate.

Unwholesome states aren't consistent.

There will be more of them,

Less of them,

And none of them.

Keep seeing the changes in our own heart.

Happy,

Unhappy,

Good,

Bad,

Greed,

Anger,

Delusion.

Keep watching until you see the truth that this is normal and natural.

This is the way it is.

It's normal.

It has to be this way.

It's how things are naturally.

It's how they are born.

Nature is about things that can be born.

Dharma is something that never dies.

It's the truth.

So when we observe the body,

It's natural.

It has to be born,

Get old,

Ill,

And die.

The feeling in our heart,

Happy,

Unhappy,

Good and bad,

Are natural.

They have to be born and they have to die.

We keep watching until we can accept the ordinariness of the body,

Which has the nature to rise and fall.

It's impermanent,

Suffering,

And not a self.

The ordinariness of the mind is the rising and falling.

It's impermanent,

Suffering,

And not a self.

Keep studying the things that don't last and are uncertain.

See that they're natural and normal.

That which is Dharma doesn't die.

The truth doesn't die.

So whether or not there was a Buddha that enlightened,

The truth still remains.

After the Buddha enlightened,

The truth still remained.

Truth remains.

See the truth of everything arising and falling until we understand the truth and accept it.

Once it is accepted,

The mind has arrived at a truth or Dharma,

The end of struggle,

And the end of concern regarding things that don't last.

At that point,

It doesn't matter what happens in the world,

In the body,

In the mind,

Or the heart.

The heart doesn't attach to it or struggle.

We'll discover that once we practice until the end,

Our heart and the outside world are equivalent.

The outside world is empty.

It's spacious,

And so is the heart.

In the past,

Our heart wasn't empty because we were stupid.

We didn't understand the truth or Dharma of natural phenomena.

So we have to escort this mind to see the truth of the body and mind through these normal,

Natural things that are born and die.

Dharma has no birth and death.

We study until we see the nature of the body,

And now,

Okay,

It has to be born,

Get old,

Ill,

And die.

Then there's no struggle with it.

We'll understand the feelings and thoughts in our mind,

And we know,

Okay,

Whatever arises has to.

It also has to pass away,

And the mind doesn't struggle.

Everything is completely flat and smooth,

Like the surface of a mirror.

The outside world is most certainly empty,

But the mind moves out and clings to it.

It attaches to the inner world inside our mind and then becomes heavy because of its attachment to things.

When it sees the truth of the body and mind and sees the truth of all that is natural,

Of the world.

When we study this within this heart until it is crystal clear,

We'll understand the truth of the entire world.

In Buddhist chanting,

Lokavidu is understanding the world with crystal clarity because they're one and the same.

Our body is the property of the world,

Right?

Can we sense that?

It's material.

Did we construct this material on our own?

We can't,

But our heart attaches to this body and is troubled by it,

By its aging,

Its sickness,

And its death.

The mind and all its thoughts and feelings are just thoughts and feelings like a dream.

Then they disappear when it's time.

When attached,

We suffer.

Learn the truth within physicality and mentality until we see this is just ordinary.

This is just the way nature works.

It's all impermanent,

Suffering,

And non-self.

When the heart understands,

Then there's no more attachment.

When we practice and see that this body is impermanent,

Suffering,

And non-self,

Then it gets go.

The mind releases the body.

We're not attached to the body.

It doesn't suffer because of the body again.

Now,

Can the body still feel pain?

Yes,

It gets old and it dies.

That's natural.

But the mind that has arrived at Dharma understands that this is so ordinary.

Dharma means ordinary.

What is ordinary about the body is it has to age,

Fall ill,

And die.

It's normal.

The mind doesn't suffer in the face of it.

When the different thoughts and feelings pass by,

When happiness passes by,

We know it,

That it's just ordinary.

It's disappearing.

There's no wavering or being deluded or entertained by it.

Suffering is ordinary.

It's normal for it to disappear.

The mind isn't averse or disgusted by it.

The mind is even killed with everything.

When it's even killed,

It doesn't move,

Struggle,

Or fabricate.

It's liberated from suffering and will discover the mind has no weight.

The outside world has no weight and the heart is also weightless.

Nature and natural has many meanings from this body to the outside world.

They're all natural.

The mind and nature,

The outside,

Are one and the same.

They're equally empty.

Neither of them are a self or have an owner.

When we arrived at this understanding,

There is an incomparable happiness.

Nirvana is Brahma Sukha and Brahma Sanyata,

Which is the highest happiness and the highest emptiness.

Nirvana isn't a place we go to after we die.

Nirvana is available now.

The mind that has been freed from craving arrives at Nirvana right then,

Freed from wanting,

Clinging,

Moving,

And fabricating.

It arrives at Nirvana.

Is that too difficult?

Just learn nature until you see the ordinariness of nature.

The body is nature.

It's ordinary for it to get old,

Ill,

And die.

The different feelings and thoughts are nature.

They all arise and have to fall.

This can't be controlled.

The mind that sees the truth of the body and mind over and over again will release them.

If we can't get that far,

Take a look at the world.

If people that we don't know die,

Are we shaken by it?

How about those that we love?

They're all people,

But why in one case are we shaken?

It's because we assign different values to them.

So there's nothing really to this world.

The body is just a part of this world,

And when we die,

It's just like somebody else does,

Like a stranger.

We are indifferent to their passing.

The mind will not be perturbed.

It's happy and peaceful.

We don't have to try and find peace in the world.

It doesn't exist because the world is moving and shaking all the time.

Peace can only arise in our heart.

Begging and pleading for peace will not make it itself.

The more that we want,

The less peace there will be.

It's only when wanting is gone that we will find peace.

Keep practicing,

And one day you will see something truly special,

Truly good.

The pathway that the Buddha taught occurs very rarely in this universe.

It's rare that a Buddha is present to teach,

And an era when there isn't a Buddha is a truly lust and lonely period,

According to those masters who can recall their past lives.

With no Buddha,

There can still be goodness because the minds can be accustomed to being good and won't do evil.

There can still be morality.

Morality was around long before the Buddha was.

Philosophers can think up morality.

Meditation was available before the Buddha.

What is missing is wisdom,

To see the truth of nature,

And the way to do so is vipassana.

If there's no Buddha,

Then there's no teaching on vipassana.

We have a lot of merit,

And because we're born in a time,

Then we can listen to the Buddha's Dharma before it disappears from the earth.

So let's not be careless,

And let's quickly practice and learn.

If we listen,

Listening once isn't enough.

Listening to my teachings on YouTube again and again,

We'll slowly understand.

Hurry it up.

We shouldn't be naive and believe that Thailand will have Buddhism forever.

In modern days,

Religion takes a backseat.

People don't see its value,

And one day it might be gone.

So I teach the Chinese and others,

Hoping that Dharma will spread.

One day the trees in this forest will be gone,

But we can collect seeds to plant elsewhere.

Dharma might be somewhere else one day.

It's much harder for Thai people to have to learn Dharma from another country.

Just the language is difficult.

At first,

When the Chinese came here to learn,

Many of them couldn't understand the language.

But now many of them can.

They're practicing,

And many of them are improving as well.

They're starting to understand.

I'm hoping that one day they can go back to China and share the Dharma in case it can be preserved.

It can't be preserved in Thailand.

Thai kids these days aren't interested in Dharma.

They aren't really interested in much.

They just trust their friends,

Which is normal for kids.

They talk to each other on Facebook and Instagram,

Whatever it is,

And believe what each other writes.

But really,

They know nothing.

They aren't studying books so much,

And they don't have any real knowledge.

They can be easily persuaded and aren't fit to stabilize a country.

Their minds are low quality.

They don't understand cause and effect.

Our religion will disappear one day,

So we have to learn today.

Hurry it up.

Understand at a minimum enough to achieve stream entry.

The stream enterer sees the truth that there's no self.

This body is not us.

The mind is not us,

And nothing anywhere is us.

Learn within this body and mind continuously,

Seeing that it's working on its own,

That it's not us,

And attain Dharma.

Then once we die,

We won't be born many more times.

It's almost done then.

It's like the mind has entered a moving stream.

It will arrive at the ocean soon enough.

If we're still stuck up in the mountains,

We are far from the ocean indeed.

We're impoverished.

Keep learning until we understand.

If we have a wife,

Then tell her about it.

If we have a husband,

Tell him.

If we have kids,

Let's teach them,

But don't teach our kids to believe us.

Practice yourself and let them see the results.

If we still lash out at them,

Drink,

Gamble,

Or cheat,

Then they won't believe us if we teach them.

So train yourself well for them to see.

Become a role model and then share the Dharma.

My one intention is that the Dharma does not end with me.

I must transmit it to others.

I have a team that helps me to share the Dharma.

We work together.

The community does live streams,

CDs,

And books.

That's enough for today.

Try hard.

Don't waste time.

Student number three.

I've been listening to you for three years.

Last month,

I came to the temple and you said,

You can't just listen.

You have to practice if you want to be free of the mind from suffering.

You have to practice hard.

So I've been practicing meditation and daily mindfulness.

I think my mind has changed.

May I have some suggestions?

Long pro promote.

You look better.

Keep trying.

When the mind gets lost,

Know so.

When the mind is holding and making the mind stressed,

Know so.

Know the body and the mind as they are continuously.

Don't force them and don't forget about them.

Practicing like that,

There will be improvement.

Now,

Can you sense that the mind is more comfortable and relieved?

Keep practicing,

But don't practice to make the mind comfortable.

The comfort is an after effect from having the wisdom,

From seeing the truth of the body and mind.

Happiness is a result,

Not a goal.

So practice until you see the truth and then there is release.

The more we're attached,

The more we suffer.

The less we attach,

The less we suffer.

No more attachment,

No more suffering.

That's all.

Keep it up.

Student number 13.

Lately there is delusion and aversion.

I meditate and chant before bed.

The mind gets busy and frustrated.

I've been chanting since I was a child,

But I can't remember the chant.

Lung po promote.

What chant is that?

It's probably too long.

If you can't remember long chants,

Then just remember a short one.

Budo,

Damo,

Sango.

Just that is enough.

Keep chanting.

Chant it all day.

When the mind is busy,

Know so.

When the mind is peaceful,

Know so.

Just do it.

Budo,

Damo,

Sango.

While thinking budo,

Damo,

Sango,

You won't get angry.

You'll have to get lost or wonder first before you get angry.

Think of the short chant all day.

If you can't chant long,

Chant short.

That's no problem.

The mind has a home base,

Which is the chanting.

And when the mind wanders off,

Know so.

When the mind is back,

Know so.

When the mind is tight and tense,

Know so.

When the mind is comfortable,

Know so.

Practice in that way and all will be good.

Student.

Am I practicing on the path?

Lung po promote.

Yes,

It's better.

Keep practicing,

As I said,

Using the chant and keep seeing the changes of the mind.

Budo,

Damo,

Sango.

When you feel happy,

Know so.

Unhappy,

Know so.

Peaceful or restless,

Know so.

No need to search to see is there peaceful now or not.

Am I happy or not?

Don't try to find it.

Just let it be prominent.

It'll know on its own.

That's the right way to practice.

Student 46.

This is my first report.

I practice by watching my mind during the day.

When I'm angry,

I know so.

When I'm liking,

I know so.

When I'm disliking,

I know so.

But sometimes I have expectations regarding the people around me and it makes me suffer.

Lung po promote.

You're attached to the people around you,

So you're suffering because of them.

Keep watching.

We want them to be this way or that way.

We want them to do this and not do that.

They are as they are.

They aren't as we want.

Keep watching and noticing that we aren't how we want either.

When we understand that,

Wanting and attachment to others will dissipate.

It's not easy,

I know,

To let others be,

But we are suffering for no reason.

There's nothing useful about it.

We don't want them to do evil.

We know that the mind is worrying and there will be mindfulness and the worry will disappear.

There will be wisdom to know how we should behave with them.

The harsher we are with them,

The less useful it is.

Forcing them and pushing them doesn't work.

Like women often are prone to complaining.

Although these days men do so too because men's genetics are changing.

The chromosomes are dissipating and they have more female chromosomes,

They complain more.

Women who weren't pleased with their situation couldn't fight or combat their situation in the old days.

These days women are stronger,

But they couldn't do anything so they would just complain and complain.

Now these days,

Men are weakening so they're becoming prone to complaint as well.

They're getting sulky.

Keep observing.

When the mind is comfortable and peaceful,

We'll be able to know how to solve the problems.

We'll know what we can solve and what we can't.

We'll see the steps.

We'll know we can't fix everything,

But we'll know what we can adjust slightly.

Like if someone around us drinks every day,

What do we do?

We can say,

Oh,

No need to drink outside the house.

It's dangerous with COVID.

Why don't you drink here?

Gradually fueling them to be better.

Gradually correcting their behavior.

Teaching those around us is the second hardest group to teach.

Teaching ourselves is the hardest.

Then those around us come second.

It's easiest to teach others.

People teach others all the time,

Commenting on what the president should be doing and saying.

Of course,

If the person commenting became the president,

The country would collapse,

But it's easy to teach others,

Isn't it?

Practice calming in your own mind first and then you'll have more wisdom with regards how to solve the problems around you and when to do it.

Student number 78.

I've been practicing according to your teachings for almost three years,

Being with the breath,

Watching the body and mind.

In the first year,

I saw defilements arising from the center of the chest.

I could sense I was trapped.

I'm addicted to being good and over focusing.

When I asked about over focusing,

You said that it will go away one day.

I've been observing the wanting to be good.

I saw the mean defilements deep inside.

I got lost often and see the anger in the mind moving and changing.

Please advise.

Long pour promote.

Seeing the defilements is correct,

But you're not accepting.

See phenomena and if the mind is displeased,

Not liking,

Then know so.

Sometimes you practice and we want to be over with quickly.

So know the wanting.

See the defilements and wanting them to be gone,

Released.

See that wanting.

See the phenomena with an impartial mind.

Have you seen the moving at the chest happens when the eye sees a fall or the ears hear a sound or the nose smells something,

The tongue tastes something or the body feels something?

The mind thinks something and the movement of the chest occurs.

If there's unhappiness,

It moves.

If there is happiness,

It moves.

If there's unhappiness,

It moves.

If there's nice,

It moves.

If there's mean,

It moves.

If we observe that,

We'll see that there really isn't anything good about life.

There's just burden.

There are just heavy things.

At first when you're watching the mind,

You won't like it.

Know that there's disliking.

Once the mind is impartial,

We can see it working.

Do you see the moving in the chest often?

Do you know yet that it arises out of contact with objects?

The eyes,

Ears,

Nose,

Tongue,

Body and mind contact things and the movement happens.

The movement is the fabrication that's happy at times,

Unhappy at times,

Nice or mean at times.

It arises from there.

Everything arises on its own and we can't stop it or control it.

But the mind isn't impartial.

It doesn't like it and it wants it to be free.

So the defilements are fooling you.

You've been practicing well.

Keep at it.

Student number 85.

This is the first time reporting.

My mind is really restless.

I try to have mindfulness knowing the body and mind.

I think the mind strays easily and often and I can't remain with an object for long.

I get lost in thought.

May I have some recommendations?

Long promote.

At first,

The mind is accustomed to being lost so it gets lost.

You can't stop that.

Have a meditation object like repeating budo,

Damo,

Sango or breathing in bud and breathing out do.

Keep going and the mind gets lost in thought for long periods of time.

And as we improve,

Just breathing one or two times is enough to calm the mind.

It's just about putting in the time and putting in the practice.

It doesn't matter how badly you want the mind to be peaceful or gain wisdom.

It won't be the way we want it to be.

Your mind is curious now.

Do you see that?

Curiosity arises.

Just know so.

Whatever feeling has come up,

Just know so.

Be with your meditation object and know whatever feeling arises,

You'll see everything arises and falls.

If we want to be skilled quickly,

We won't be.

We need to watch with the mind that is relaxed with the meditation object.

The mind strays for a while and after a while,

We know so.

Then come back to the object.

It goes off again and we know again and repeat that.

We'll slowly start to be aware faster.

Eventually,

The mind will just move slightly and we'll see it.

It's all about continuing to train.

Your practice is fine.

Just don't be too hasty.

Luang Por Pah Mote,

Number 115,

Where are you?

Student number 115.

Once I saw a rising and falling of a phenomenon as you taught,

I saw the process,

But sometimes it's as if I don't know anything.

Luang Por Pah Mote,

Can you read that again?

Student number 115.

Once I saw phenomena rising and falling,

Following the steps as you teach,

Step by step,

But it's like I don't know anything.

Luang Por Pah Mote.

If you see a phenomenon,

But you don't know what it is,

That's not a problem.

The stories that we know are just conceptual.

Just see the actual phenomena.

Something arose and then something fell away.

Then a new thing comes up and that falls away.

Just observing that is sufficient.

You just don't have to know the stories.

That's not important.

What's important is sensing the actual phenomenon.

Like now the mind is wandering off.

Do you see that?

The problem now is you don't have somebody.

It's not enough.

The mind is not rooted in awareness.

It's out and floating around.

It will be empty and there will be nothing to see.

Breathe,

But don't pull the mind in.

Breathe in good,

Breathe out though.

When the mind becomes aware,

You'll be able to continue practicing.

When the mind is stuck floating outside,

You won't get anywhere.

I used to have that problem.

Luang Pah Maha Bua fixed it for me.

I meditated on my breath and then was able to see a rising and falling again.

Otherwise,

The mind will just be empty and there will be nothing to see.

Relax and breathe or repeat Budo.

The mind will come back and you'll be able to continue your development.

Student 133.

I'd like to ask for forgiveness from Buddha,

Dharma,

Sangha and Luang Pah.

These days I practice repeating Budo and observe the breath.

I do walking meditation and then the day when I remember to I breathe in bud and breathe out though.

Do I need to adjust anything?

May I have some suggestions?

Luang Pah promotes,

You're practicing correctly.

Breathe in good and breathe out though.

When the mind gets lost,

Know so.

Breathe in good,

Breathe out though.

And if the mind is focusing and tight,

Then know so.

When walking in the mind gets lost,

Then know so.

When walking in the mind focuses on the body and it's tight,

Know so.

Just know the body and mind as they work.

Don't get lost and don't focus.

That's all.

Your mind is still very busy so you need to practice more formally.

When you need to calm the mind,

Forget about the wisdom practice and walk and see the body walking and the mind is the observer.

Just be with the one object,

The walking.

Once the mind has some energy to it,

Then you can develop wisdom.

Right now,

There isn't enough energy.

If you're sitting,

Then breathe in good and breathe out though.

Don't be concerned about wisdom.

Recharge the mind.

The mind is too soft and floaty now.

Student 158.

I use Budo as my home base.

I see the mind knowing Budo,

Thinking,

Complaining.

Should I continue with repeating Budo?

Luang Pah promote.

Yes,

You should.

If you use Budo and you can see phenomena,

Then use it.

Budo means the knower.

Can you see that on all phenomena are things that are known?

Complaining is known.

Happy,

Unhappy,

Etc are known.

And they're all equivalent in the sense that they all come and they all go.

If the knower itself arises and falls and becomes the thinker and the focuser.

So in this body and mind,

All there is are things that change all the time.

It's the mind.

It's the mind is knower that changes too.

What you're practicing is correct.

Do it a lot in the mind will have more momentum.

It's better now,

But not good enough.

Has your mind strayed yet?

When your mind strays know so your mind is lost in thought.

No,

So your mind is holding focus.

No,

So know it as it is when it's focusing,

It gets tight.

Just keep knowing Budo,

Budo and knowing the mind is at it is it's good enough.

Keep practicing.

Is that all?

Okay,

You're welcome to go home.