Buddhist Society of Western Australia

Ajahn Brahmali discusses the difference between common sensual pleasure and spiritual pleasure. Ajahn explains how sensual pleasure is fleeting and susceptible to many external conditions out of our control, while spiritual pleasure is longer lasting and is something we can directly affect.

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Having just been to Las Vegas Ajahn Brahm decides an appropriate subject to talk about is gambling. Ajahn explains the difference between gaming and gambling and recommends we game, not gamble that is go to have fun, not to win. Money is not the most important thing in life; people are, your health and your happiness are.

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Have you ever felt tired after a meditation? Venerable Hasapanna points out that one reason could be you are trying too hard to focus on the breath. Venerable explains how to train our mind gently.

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Venerable Hasapanna shares her experience of resentment and teaches that difficulties are opportunities to practice kindness. Venerable reflects on how the ego limits us from seeing what is really happening and why it is that when we do see our defilements we have difficulty accepting this.

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Ajahn Brahm offers an insightful teaching on how and why to practise Right Speech which is part of The Eightfold Path. Ajahn talks about how our unskillful speech is a key reason why our relationships with others and ourselves go wrong and Ajahn reveals the benefits and importance of cultivating good positive speech. 

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In this talk Ajahn Brahm takes a non-traditional approach in explaining kamma (actions and their results). The widespread idea that one's actions will result in punishment and retribution is too simplistic. So if you want to know more about kamma, listen on...

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Venerable Upasama gave us a dharma talk before meditation on dukkha and being happy.  Dukkha (Pāli - Sanskrit) is an important Buddhist concept, commonly translated as "suffering", "pain" or "unsatisfactoriness".

Following the dharma talk Venerable Upasama guided us through a meditation well suited to beginners and experienced meditators.  The meditation was different in that he guided us through the beginning with a story to trigger our imaginations.

Following the meditation Venerable opened the floor to questions on any
subject.  His answers were detailed in that he provided examples.

As a young British hitch-hiker, who was in search of happiness, fulfilment and the deeper meanings of life, Venerable Amaranatho embarked by chance on a 10-day meditation course in Perth, which helped set him off on his spiritual journey. In this talk, Venerable Amaranatho also talks about mindfulness, generosity, kindness and love. Then to conclude, he read two poems, one of which is a beautiful piece of Sufi poetry by Hafiz, called “It Felt Love”.

How did the rose ever open its heart and give to this world all its beauty?

It felt the encouragement of light against its being, otherwise, we all remain too frightened

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Responding to a request to talk about hypocrisy in the workplace. Ajahn Brahm talks about Hypocrisy in all parts of society i.e. religion, home, our family, with our friends and leaders. Ajahn reflects on what it means when people are not practising what they preach? And the effects of not living what you're preaching or walking the talk.

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Venerable Nirodha offers suggestions on getting less caught up in the disquieting intricacies of the sensory world, the craving for existence and the seductive pull of divisive politics. Simplicity of heart and mindfulness brings peace to both ourselves as well as our fellow human beings.

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Ajahn explains the importance of being relaxed, patient and enjoying yourself in meditation. Ajahn points out that being relaxed and patient is the opposite of the will of the mind, the doing activity of the mind and it is an aspect of letting go.

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You cannot change the world, it’s so hard to change the world, but you can certainly change your attitude towards it. And sometimes when you change your attitude, just the way you look it, the whole world changes with you – Ajahn Brahm.

Ajahn Brahm talks about people who get discriminated against and rejected. Ajahn teaches us how to lessen our suffering in life by learning how to not stigmatise things. Ajahn points out that stigmatising parts of our lives makes it much, much worse, but learning to not judge and to look at events in our lives differently makes life much easier.

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This is Venerable Seri’s tenth rains since she went forth as a nun or Bhikkhuni. In this talk Venerable Seri shares with us the confidence she has cultivated on the spiritual path, on the Eightfold Path. Venerable encourages us to continue to practise and cultivate the confidence of a spiritual warrior, so that we can achieve liberation, freedom, Nirvana.

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Being kind and caring is very important for Buddhists.  Ajahn Brahm stresses the importance of caring which brings much peace to our lives. Ajahn also explains how when making ethical decisions we should always look inside our heart to see what feels right.

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Ajahn Brahmali offers a practical approach to understanding the Buddha's teaching of non-self, and explains how to use this understanding in our Buddhist practice.

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How many times have you been unfairly blamed by others? How many times have you blamed others unfairly? There’s plenty of blame and judgment to go around – but if we listen carefully we can avoid finding fault and understand true intentions.

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Ajahn explains to us our compulsion to own everything.  We see the news, read the newspaper and engage in discussion, we involve ourselves so much that we own it.  We need to have the courage to say "this is not my business".  We need to leave it all behind before we meditate.

Ajahn then guided us through a 30 minute meditation well suited to beginners, encouriging us to free ourselves from the compulsion to "own it" with the small mantra of "this is none of my business".

Ajahn then gave us a dharma talk on love and kindness followed by a Q&A.

Venerable Hasapanna talks about how things going wrong in life is normal and it should not be a cause for suffering. Instead of fighting against it – we can let go and develop peace in the mind.

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Ajahn Brahm talks about being able to see the goodness in all situations. Ajahn helps us to understand what goodness is and to see the beauty of simple goodness in the world. Ajahn also reminds us of the joy one experiences from being kind, virtuous and trustworthy.

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Ajahn Sujato discusses the fundamental, essential teaching of the Buddha ‘The Noble Eightfold Path’. In this talk, Ajahn discusses not just what the Noble Eightfold Path comprises but also what is not in the Noble Eightfold Path such as rituals.

The Noble Eightfold Path (The Middle Way)

1. Right view
2. Right intention
3. Right speech
4. Right action
5. Right livelihood
6. Right effort
7. Right mindfulness
8. Right samadhi or concentration

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