Buddhist Society of Western Australia

Ajahn Brahm gives a talk on the practice and benefits of meditation at Staten Island Buddhist Vihara, USA. Date unknown. Talk starts around 50 seconds into the recording. 

Teaching retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=709&v=AsY9DE2T7q8 (YouTube Channel: MOM I Love You)

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Recording from Ajahn Brahm’s One-Day Meditation Retreat on the 18th of October 2014 at the Halton Peel Buddhist Society, Mississauga, Ontario Canada.

The first talk was an introduction to meditation with an emphasis on the initial preparation. The second recording, ‘The Symbol of the Lotus Flower’, expanded on the topic of meditation. The third recording is questions and answers.

This fourth recording is a Dhamma talk on ‘What is Right Livelihood.’

Teaching retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZX18H8nw8JE (YouTube Channel: urbanbuddhistmonk)

Please support the BSWA in making teachings available for free online via Patreon.

Recording from Ajahn Brahm’s One-Day Meditation Retreat on the 18th of October 2014 at the Halton Peel Buddhist Society, Mississauga, Ontario Canada.

The first talk was an introduction to meditation with an emphasis on the initial preparation. The second recording, ‘The Symbol of the Lotus Flower’, expanded on the topic of meditation.

This third recording is questions and answers. Ajahn answers questions about body-scanning (awareness of feelings in the body), letting go of oneself, and a question about attachment arising "naturally" (which Ajahn argues, is actually unnatural). The fourth recording is a Dhamma talk on ‘What is Right Livelihood.’ 

Teaching retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZ1dx5T2P24 (YouTube Channel: urbanbuddhistmonk)

Please support the BSWA in making teachings available for free online via Patreon.

Recording from Ajahn Brahm’s One-Day Meditation Retreat on the 18th of October 2014 at the Halton Peel Buddhist Society, Mississauga, Ontario Canada.

The first talk was an introduction to meditation with an emphasis on the initial preparation. This second recording, ‘The Symbol of the Lotus Flower’, expands on the topic of meditation. The third recording is questions and answers. The fourth recording is a Dhamma talk on ‘What is Right Livelihood.’ 

Teaching retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZ1dx5T2P24 (YouTube Channel: urbanbuddhistmonk)

Please support the BSWA in making teachings available for free online via Patreon.

Please support the BSWA in making teachings available for free online via Patreon.

Recording from Ajahn Brahm’s One-Day Meditation Retreat on the 18th of October 2014 at the Halton Peel Buddhist Society, Mississauga, Ontario Canada. 

This first talk is an introduction to meditation with an emphasis on the initial preparation. The second recording, ‘The Symbol of the Lotus Flower’, expands on the topic of meditation. The third recording is questions and answers. The fourth recording is a Dhamma talk on ‘What is Right Livelihood.’ 

Some highlights of Ajahn's teachings:
1. The heart of the Teachings is the same attitude towards meditation and life.
2. Samatha and Vipassana are both sides of the same coin. Ajahn tells the story of Sam and Vi up Meditation Mountain, with their dog Metta.
3. The two different types of meditation are Second Noble Truth (craving leads to suffering) meditation and Third Noble Truth (letting go of desire leads to stillness of the mind) meditation. "If you're suffering during meditation, you're wanting something." "We meditate to let go, not to attain something."

Teaching retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMF9LRKQg8g (YouTube Channel: urbanbuddhistmonk)

Please support the BSWA in making teachings available for free online via Patreon.

Ajahn Brahm gives meditation instructions for about 1 half hours and then guides a meditation for approximately half an hour at the end (from around 1:28:48). This recording is from the first day of a meditation retreat held at the West End Buddhist Temple & Meditation Center in Toronto.

Ajahn starts by talking about how meditation is "never about concentration" but about stillness. Ajahn mentions how the Chinese translation of samadhi is stillness, not concentration. Concentration implies force, which means one never gets stillness at all. Ajahn then demonstrates with the glass of water, which is best stilled by letting it go: just watch and be still.

Teaching retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOPk1BKXEaI (YouTube Channel: urbanbuddhistmonk)

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Ajahn Brahm conducts an intermediate/ advanced meditation class for approximately one hour. Recorded at Dhammaloka Buddhist Centre, Perth, Western Australia. 

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Ajahn Brahm gave this public talk at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, near Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on 17^th of November 2005. Teaching retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9C09V9hdyYo (YouTube Channel: Spiritual Health Meditation).

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We are delighted to have guest speakers  Len Warren and Sue Lee from the Hayagriva Buddhist Centre during the rains retreat for 2018. Len started by guiding a meditation and then giving a Dhamma talk on 'Healing a Relationship by Completing Unfinished Business' ( starting at 15:55 into the recording). Next Sue Lee discussed the Pure Land Centre Project, which is about joining palliative care and spirituality (starting at 45:55 into the recording).  

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Ajahn's talk starts from 5:50mins. Ajahn opens by talking about his unique position as an ex-theoretical physicist who still keeps up with physics, as well as a Buddhist monk with actual experience with the deeper states of mind. Ajahn then talks about the interface between Buddhism, psychology and science.   Ajahn shares that real science is about making a hypothesis and trying "(one's) damnest" to disprove a hypothesis. Modern science, instead, focuses on finding evidence in support of the hypothesis; this is driven by the need for grants: Ajahn uses the example of the Higgs Boson, which, in Ajahn's view, is not definitively proved but is still very tentative. But the pressure to justify the expenditure has warped perceptions of the scientists involved.   Ajahn points out that in modern society, the burden of proof on religion is much higher than the burden of proof in modern science. Ajahn also points out the problem of peer review, which does not provide rigorous review.   Ajahn emphasises the importance of challenging the status quo in search of the truth, in both real religion and in real science. Ajahn emphasises that the intersection of real Buddhism, psychology and real science is when there is space to question.   Ajahn also mentions that secular mindfulness has a limitation: it does not include compassion. Ajahn illustrates the limitation of bare awareness with a parable of a guard who was mindful of the burglars. "Mindfulness (alone) is not enough. Mindfulness and kindness is enough."

Ajahn Brahm gave this public talk on "Buddhism and Science" at the University of Toronto on November 7, 2012. Teaching retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoUMLb8es4A (YouTube Channel: urbanbuddhistmonk)

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Ajahn Cittapalo guides an intermeditate/ advanced meditation class for approximately one hour. Recorded at Dhammaloka Buddhist Centre, Perth, Western Australia. 

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Are Samatha and Vipassana different methods or two aspects of the same technique? Ajahn emphasises that there is no difference between samatha and vipassana, and that focusing on the difference causes people to miss out on the pleasures of meditation. Ajahn explains stillness arises from letting go, rather than being a control freak: "meditation is nothing to do with concentration; it's about stillness."

Public talk given by Ajahn Brahm on the first day of a meditation retreat at the West End Buddhist Temple and Meditation Center in Toronto, in 2012. Teaching retrieved from (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjeFZoQYTPs (YouTube Channel: urbanbuddhistmonk)

Please support the BSWA in making teachings available for free online via Patreon.

From February 15th to 24th 2015, Ajahn Brahm offered this San Francisco Bay Area speaking tour in support of the Dhammadharini’s Sangha new bhikkhuni monastery. Founded by Ayya Tathaaloka, the Dhammadharini women’s monastic community was the first bhikkhuni Sangha of the Theravadan forest tradition in North America, and one of the few places in the West that women can become fully ordained Buddhist monastics. Dhammadharini's Aranya Bodhi Hermitage and temporary vihara are led by fully ordained female monastics (bhikkhunis), the type of monastic life and ordination established by the Buddha 2,500 years ago.

In this talk, Ajahn Brahm talks about the importance of taking refuge not in specific teachers, but in the Dhamma. Ajahn also urges listeners to question monastics and have candid but respectful discussions. Ajahn describes the differences between a monastic (who has taken vows of renunciation) vs. a layperson is largely the degree of renunciation. Ajahn also talks about how we make the choice whether to be angry or not, and how choosing to perceive things differently (e.g. perceiving snoring as modern music) helps one to overcome ill-will: "it's not the sound that disturbs you, it's you who disturbs the noise."

Teaching retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPkD03I8sKA (YouTube Channel: Ajahn Brahm's Benefit Talks for Dhammadharini)

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Ajahn Brahm shares his classic simile of the cup to illustrate how to still the mind in meditation.

Ajahn Brahm gives a wide ranging talk offering a Buddhist perspective on the problems in our modern world.

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We are delighted to have guest speaker Dr Geoff Gallop during the rains retreat for 2018. Dr Geoff Gallop is a former Premier of WA and patron of Jhana Grove Retreat Centre. He is currently a professor and director of Government at the University of Sydney.

Please support the BSWA in making teachings available for free online via Patreon.

From February 15th to 24th 2015, Ajahn Brahm offered this San Francisco Bay Area speaking tour in support of the Dhammadharini’s sangha new bhikkhuni monastery. Founded by Ayya Tathaaloka, the Dhammadharini women’s monastic community was the first bhikkhuni sangha of the Theravadan forest tradition in North America, and one of the few places in the West that women can become fully ordained Buddhist monastics.

Ajahn's talk begins from around 15 minutes. Ajahn talked about the essence of Buddhism ("The essence of Buddhism is suffering, and suffering is asking from this world what it cannot give you.") and giving 100% to everything you've got to the job at hand ("If you're going to sweep, give it everything you've got".)

Teaching retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5CB-T8PS0I (YouTube Channel: Ajahn Brahm's Benefit Talks for Dhammadharini)

Please support the BSWA in making teachings available for free online via Patreon.

This talk was at the Google Campus on 2015 February 23rd. Ajahn Brahm toured the San Francisco Bay Area to raise funds to establish a Buddhist convent for the nuns of Dhammadharini.

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Ajahn Brahm gives a talk about how developing stillness of the mind can not only lead to insight, but resolve so many of the problems in our lives.

Please support the BSWA in making teachings available for free online via Patreon.