The Conceit of Thought and the Opening of the Heart
Thinking often leads to unskillfulness, but the heart leads to generosity, gratitude, joy and compassion. Ajahn Viradhammo encourages us to follow the heart.… Read the rest
The Island Is Not Thought
At an Ottawa day of Mindfulness, Ajahn Viradhammo offers a short talk and reviews again the quote from the Saṁyutta Nikāya on Nibbāna. He explains preoccupation and how we wake up to the present moment without being the thinker.… Read the rest
Choosing a Skillful Model
In this answer to a question about handling suffering, Ajahn Virahdammo speaks about the importance of staying with a skillful model of practice that relieves suffering rather than mixing models which can cause confusion. Ultimately, we need to examine the spiritual model we are using and see for ourselves whether it is working.… Read the rest
Is Harmony Reliable? (Partial Talk)
This is the last 20 minutes of a talk given by Ajahn Vīradhammo. He speaks about harmony and what it is we can rely on and answers questions about stillness and observing objects of beauty.… Read the rest
Coming Home: A Guided Meditation
Ajahn Viradhammo offers a short reflection, the first of four reflections from a Day of Mindfulness in Ottawa. He explains how he returns to his center, the present moment and reads from a Saṁyutta NIkāya Sutta describing NIbbāna. He then goes on to lead a 15 minute guided mediation.… Read the rest
The Unformed, the Unconditioned, the End
At an Ottawa Day of Mindfulness, Ajahn Viradhammo explores the nature of the unconditioned using a quote from the Saṁyutta Nikāya, verse 43.1-44. He then goes on to answer questions from the group.… Read the rest
The Learner’s Mind
At the Ottawa Buddhist Society’s Friday night teaching, Ajahn Vīradhammo speaks about training the mind with an attitude that is open to the process of learning. Ajahn uses the analogy of carpentry and explains how the mind is able to best learn a new craft.… Read the rest
Making the Rocks Smooth – Ajahn Jayanto
The day before Venerable Khema’s ordination, Ajahn Jayanto gave the following words of advice: When we take up the path of practice in a monastery, we learn to both examine and use the communal life to train our minds. We deal with varied views and opinions and learn to take the self and the mind less personally, finding contentment with what is.… Read the rest
Ramana Maharishi and Buddhism: Q & A
Ajahn Viradhammo fields questions from guests at Tisarana and speaks about various topics.… Read the rest
The Mood of the Mind
Ajahn Vīradhammo gives a talk to the Noble Eightfold Path Study Group giving examples of how we can succumb to the moods of our minds when we attach to circumstances and conditions that are out of our control. Instead we can reflect on how the moods of the mind change (the impermanent quality of these moods), and allow ourselves to witness the experience of change rather become swept up by it.… Read the rest