Greetings fellow practitioners,

In this talk that was given on the last day of an intensive meditation retreat I address the subject of 'voidness' or 'emptiness.' The supremely radiant and exceptionally peaceful experience of mind while glimpsing or realising the deeper nature of life, experience and conditions. It is important to understand the actual goal of practice ultimately, in order to have confidence in it and to give rise to the energy needed to practice towards it. In a world so bound up with concepts of self and other, past and future, it can be difficult to even imagine a truly boundless, spacious mental experience not tied down by deluded and constricting ways of grasping. And yet this is the result of sincere and concerted practice. Unbridled and unshakeable Peace.

I spend a few minutes comparing Venerable Sariputtas description of his meditation abiding in voidness - 'sunnyata vihara' and compare this with Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattvas description of the perfection of wisdom in the famous 'Heart Sutra' a Mahayana Sutta. It should not surprise us that the Arahant foremost in wisdom describing his experience of voidness has remarkeable similiarity to an advanced Bodhisattvas description of the perfection of wisdom. Whether one believes in Mahayana suttas or not – this is Interesting!

​The talk starts with these profound considerations and moves into the area of practical suggestions for taking steady steps towards realising the goal.

I sincerely hope that something in this talk is helpful or encouraging to you wherever you find yourself now.

With Loving-Kindness

Greetings Fellow Practitioners,

Please excuse my recent absence. I've been quite busy here at Anandagiri with our Chedi Project which is now reaching a critical point approaching the final stages where care and attention are greatly needed. This included a recent trip to the Kathmandu valley to study similar structures in the historical town of Bhaktapur… figuring out exactly how to taper of Chedi spire elegantly. (I've not done this before this lifetime.) Even so, I do have a good number of things in the pipeline that I am looking forward to sharing with you all in the coming months. Follow up Compassion meditations as well as some more Journal Writing form a recent pilgrimage to the Buddhist Holy Sites in India and related slideshow. But on this occasion I decided to share a classic formal teaching instead that was given in Malaysia last year. (There are five ore talks and two meditations from the retreat in Malaysia which I plan to share throughout the year)

Although The Fire Sermon, the 3rd of the 'Three Cardinal Suttas' and commentary can already be found on my website in at least two other places, I have decided to share yet another version, why? Basically every time that I give a commentary upon this central teaching I will give a different introduction and commentary, and so revisits can be very helpful. I hope that I am getting better at presenting these things over the years as well. In any case, the central and basic Teachings are always relevant, especially this sutta which aided in liberating 1000 fire worshipping ascetics all in one go back in ancient India! I have added an entertaining preface as a way to make the teaching more relatable to us doubting and scattered modern folks. I gave these teachings in a retreat which I taught in the Cameron Highlands back in December last year. 

The true goal of Buddhist practice and the actual process of mental purification is often misunderstood even by Buddhists. These are subtle matters. This central Teaching of the Buddha helps in orienting us correctly. I have endeavoured to present it as clearly and simply as possible.
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I hope that some of the content is helpful to you and your practice.

With metta and every good wish

Greetings fellow practitioners,

This is part two of our thorough exploration of the subject of Cultivating Compassion. Challenging
our limitations and encouraging practitioners to increase our abilities, seeing the tremendous 
value and benefit that can be derived from it's cultivation and practice.

I had very much hoped to be able to send along the intermediate meditation practice as well at this
time. But editing the meditations is a delicate task that I prefer to take great care with. Chedi 
ceremonies, building projects, and a recuperating yet 'out of action' second monk requiring a lot of 
care, as well as preparations for a 3 week Pilgrimage leading 40 people in India have kept me from 
this task. I am sure you will understand.

I will be in India when you receive this subscriber update. Your good wishes for the safety of myself
and the other pilgrims as well as the success of the Pilgrimage would be appreciated.

Hoping the content of the talk is helpful to you - and with every good wish!

With metta

Greetings fellow practitioners,

I am happy to share with you on this occasion the final of my Bodhgaya Intensive Meditation Retreat Journals.

Here we explore some very interesting themes such as… 

- Finding or generating good energy when there simply doesn't seem to be any available.
- Acknowledging fault and asking forgiveness as a way to train ourselves and also lessen negative kamma and obstructions.
- Setting clear goals for future practice.
- Ending important occasions graciously and beautifully.
- Including others in your own achievements as a source of heart opening joy
- Practicing with the pain of saying goodbye to that which is loved.

​I hope that some of the content of these journal entries and Dhamma reflections has been interesting and useful to you wherever you are now.

With kind regards

Hoping that some of the words contained within these pages may prove to be educational, inspiring, encouraging and also pleasantly engaging.

​With Loving-Kindness    ​

Dear fellow practitioners, greetings.

As promised a fortnight ago, here is a link to the first instalment of my…

'Bodhgaya Intensive Meditation Retreat Journals'

I have shared a lot of audio files on the Peace Beyond Suffering website, and lots of lovely pictures. But as yet have not shared very much writing. I originally shared these journal entries with a small group of students and friends on an email list. The response was largely appreciative, which encouraged me to share the writing more broadly.

While these journals, which I wrote mostly during my most recent and final Intensive Meditation Retreat in Bodhgaya are semi-autobiographical. They also contain a lot of wisdom reflections, and are written in a very interesting context. Bodhgaya is an intense and fascinating place of immense spiritual importance.

This instalment has a Foreword and contains the first four of twenty chapters.

There will be four more instalments over the coming weeks.

As usual, I hope that something contained within the writing may prove to be useful and encouraging to you, wherever you find yourself now.

With Loving-Kindness

On this most recent intensive retreat in Bodhgaya, although I had not ever clearly intended to do so, on Day 11 of 45 days, I suddenly felt very inspired to start writing. Perhaps because it was the final in a series of retreats that spanned over a ten year period, there was a natural sense of reviewing occurring in the mind. I was considering deeply… What have I been doing here?... What's it all really about?... What have I gained and learned?... and what still needs to be learned? Perhaps there was also the awareness that something which has been very important in my monk's life was coming to an end, and I might appreciate a way to recollect it in the future.

In any event, write I did! So that by the end of the retreat my Journal entries filled 75 full pages! I originally shared them as 19 separate parts on an email list with a group of close friends and students, as a way of letting our friends now how we were all doing over there. A good number of these people then prompted me to consider sharing the journals with more people as a Dhamma book. Re-reading them recently I can see that much of what I wrote is in fact quite interesting and also relevant to anyone who is engaging the spiritual path sincerely. Bodhgaya is also a fascinating place, as were many of the people who I shared life with during these periods. 
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So I have decided to share the Journals in five 20 or so page instalments. One per week as of the 1st of May. They will be in a PDF format and will be located in the READING section of the Peace Beyond Suffering website. As subscribers you will receive and update with a direct link whenever a new instalment has been added. I hope that something in these may prove to be spiritually nourishing to you wherever you are.

May you be Well and Happy

Greetings fellow practitioners,

I am happy to share with you on this occasion the final two talks from my 'The Buddha's Life' series that were given on pilgrimage in India. It is in fact one long reading and talk that has now been split into two more easily taken in sized talks. The events leading up to the momentous occasion of the Mahaparinibbana, the actual occasion and the things that happened afterwards are all very interesting indeed. Historically, culturally and most important – spiritually.

The body which Lord Buddha had in his last life is understood to be the result of past clinging (specifically his utterly wholesome attachment to the well-being of others.) Once the Buddha had realised Nibbana however, a state that he often described as the 'Deathless' state, there was no more clinging to, or personal identification with anything at all. Yet the Buddha's mind abided in a state of realisation that was unshakeably peaceful. The unconditioned… the undying… the nibbana dhatu… the purified mind which was not a soul or a self. 

Lord Buddha explained that his teachings were neither eternalistic or nihilisistic. Because once the mind is liberated – there is 'no-self' that experiences unending peace… and yet something remains. The purified mind is not a cessation of all experience. Greed, Hatred and Delusion are extinguished – but the purified and liberated mind then experiences great peace. Being a subtle yet 'beyond concepts' state, Lord Buddha would not answer whether nibbana existed in or outside of the world, and yet it certainly exists.

I believe that these subtle contemplations are truly valuable in helping us to understand our goal and what the final result will be.

After an impeccable final life which brought great benefit to millions, and which continues to bring benefits to hundreds of millions, Lord Buddha was able to put down what remained of conditions, and then abide completely in the unconditioned and liberated state. Those with loving attachment cried!... while those who had uprooted attachment understood… "All that is of the nature to arise… is of the nature to cease." Apparently all of the devas with right view from 10 world systems filled all of the sky for 12 leagues to witness the occasion too! Those with attachment cried! Yet the truly wise ones looked on with respect and perfect equipoise.
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I hope that something in these talks may prove to be interesting and useful to you.

With Loving-Kindness

Greetings fellow practitioners,

In this talk that was given on retreat to long-term practicing Buddhists, I am relaying some
stories from biographies of great meditation masters that seem to illustrate the seeming
'matter of fact-ness' of the existence of past lives. I also explain why and how I feel that 'taking on' this aspect of the Buddhist World View can be nourishing to our spiritual practice and aspirations. 

The second half of the talk is more practical, encouraging and helpful advice pertaining
to 'getting some space' from, and learning how to 'Let Go' and overcome common phenomena that can obstruct peace in the mind. The Five Hindrances are hindrances if they are not recognised with mindfulness and clear comprehension. Once they are recognised for what they are, with consistency and persistence the mind can find a place of clarity in which to rest.

I hope that something I have shared here may be useful to you.

With Loving-Kindness

Greetings fellow practitioners,

On the last 9 day retreat that I led, rather than simply give a reading and commentary on the First Sermon (Dhammacakkapavattana sutta – Turning of the Wheel of Dhamma) as I usually do, I decided to try and give a more thorough talk with both a broader and also more relevant context. And so, this is a rather thorough and educative talk. I am pleased that I managed to squeeze it all into just 45 minutes though!

We start with the Bodhisattvas practice before he discovered the Middle Way, as this helps us to see what an incredible discovery that it was. And also leads to the arising of the useful and wholesome emotions of gratitude and respect. The 'Middle Way' is also an important principle that we need to learn to apply in many areas of our life.

After considering the discovery of the Middle Way, there is a reading and commentary on the First Sutta, which describes the profound insights into the Four Noble Truths and subsequent Liberation and Enlightenment that diligently practicing the Middle Way, now spelled out more clearly as The Eightfold Path, led to / leads to.

Lastly, I have also tried to describe how we practice mindfulness and meditation in accordance with the Middle Way, trying to develop both mindfulness and samadhi (concentration) according to our own level of ability in this current age.

I trust that something in this talk might may be useful to you.

With Loving – Kindness

Greetings fellow sensitive humans,

Now this is an interesting Dhamma offering!

When taking a longer period of time for inner reflection and increased meditation as I recently have, I sometimes have an inspired creative idea with regards Dhamma material that I might like to share. This new talk is the result of one of those inspirations!

I think that if we are honest we will admit that we have all had something of a broken heart at some point in our lives. In fact, most people have had several. We get separated from our loved ones and loved things… plans don't go as we hope… conflicts occur… people change… we drift apart. There are any number of reasons and ways in which our hopes get dashed or those around us can disappoint. Sometimes we ourselves keep letting ourselves down and can literally break our own hearts, when our bad habits keep getting the better of us.

We would all like to have developed tremendous Insight and great Mindfulness so that we could see all phenomena as 'not-self'. But what do you do if something has tripped you up and your practice has fallen away?... Or the 'not-self' teachings and concepts seem abstract and cold? What can we do when the heart feels bruised or torn or is experiencing tremendous disappointment or grief?

This talk explores attitudes and practices that have helped me through difficult situations and times. (Yes even monks have broken hearts at times! – not usually for romantic reasons, but people are people and people let each other down, and things can change in ways that one does not like.) Re-establishing well-being is important for continuing in the process of developing wisdom and insight.

This talk is one that will either seem relevant or not… if not… then never mind… but you may be able to recommend it to a friend.

I hope that something here is useful,

With Loving-Kindness

Greetings fellow practitioners,

While teaching intensive meditation retreats I will usually go through several of the most central suttas covering subjects such as the contemplation of Not-Self. I will often read from the experience of contemporary masters who had great insights while contemplating/meditating along these themes. I may lead guided meditations where we look at the body as made up of parts, and meditate upon these parts as being composed of the four elements. There will also be fairly consistent encouragement to 'drop the story'… and just see a thought as a thought… the past as already gone… the future as not certain – etc.

For people often coming from busy city lives, these retreats can be quite hard core and hard work! So if the yogis have been practicing very hard, and I have a sense that they may need a little wholesome distraction or light entertainment, I may tell a few 'interesting' personal stories. It can be a nice way of communicating the fact that the Ajahn is still developing along this 'way' engaging these practices as a 'conventional being' on the way to realising 'not-self.' Just like my students.

So these stories were offered later in a retreat taught near Melbourne, after people had practiced hard and well. They start as mildly interesting… but soon become 'quite interesting!' I like to tell stories that allude to what I consider to be a fact… that benevolent beings in parallel realms like to encourage people who are growing in virtue and wisdom. And that these practices that we are all doing - lead to having quite remarkable abilities eventually, as illustrated by stories about my teachers.

I chose the picture above, of Ajahn Achalo on top of the Maha Bodhi Temple with his prayer beads draped over the gold plated spire (absorbing blessings!) Because I am sharing a stash of special little jewels with you all here. I hope that they contain some special Blessings too!

May these stories inspire interest and energy in your mind for further cultivation. 

If not – then never mind.

In Kindness

Greetings fellow practitioners,

I actually really enjoyed editing and revisiting this talk. Given around half way through a three week Pilgrimage to the Buddhist Holy Sites of India, this talk is a very 'rich' one, covering many interesting subjects and concepts. I think a combination of the power of the Holy Sites, my own love and appreciation of Lord Buddha and ever-deepening appreciation of his life and teachings, as well as the sincere faith, interest and commitment of the pilgrims, inspired a very interesting and compelling reflection. Being in the places where many teachings were given and doing many of the practices he had taught is no doubt a great way to bring it all to life!

The talk, interspersed with readings, touches on themes such as The Life of the Buddha… His central Teachings… The manner of practicing those teachings… The results of Practicing the teachings… What Enlightenment actually is… What is uprooted from a mind in the process of Enlightenment… and what might remain after Enlightenment. 

All rather interesting material for aspirants both finding and cultivating the 'Way.'

I hope that this talk may prove to be educational, interesting and useful.

With Loving-Kindness

Dear fellow practitioners, greetings
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I was absent from your inboxes some months earlier this year, due to projects in the monastery as well as the Pilgrimage practices elsewhere. The Peace Beyond Suffering website was a little neglected too. It seems I am making up for lost time now though. I am currently on intensive solo meditation retreat actually… doing 8 sessions of meditation per day… and enjoying it tremendously. Yet it is precisely because I have a break from my usual duties as abbot, (/ Building project manager!) and much more time to meditate, that I also have some time and energy to give to something else which I love. That is to say, sharing the gift of Dhamma that has been so generously shared with me.

Neil the webmaster and I have been updating and re-organising a little… and on this occasion I am sharing three new items with you! Largely because the themes contained herein have quite a lot of overlap. Last months' update was I would say 'very Theravadan' in its content, being a commentary upon two suttas on the theme of contemplating Not Self. Those listening to the teachings in those suttas all became Arahants by the end of the teaching!

On this occasion there is both a Theravadan and Mahayana theme. Because you see I now have many students from many different countries, coming to my teachings with equally different backgrounds. It seems that it is part of my kamma to try and help different types of Buddhists, to understand their aspiration and Buddhist practice more clearly, and to commit to it deeply with confidence and understanding. It is an honour and I am trying my best.

I have curious kamma it seems… for although I have a large Caucasian body and was born in Australia, I've now spent most of my adult life living in Thailand. I eat much more Asian food than western food and speak Thai at least as much as I do English on any normal day. On top of this, whenever I find myself traveling specifically to teach in English, when I look at the faces of the sincere people gathered before me, there are usually around 90% Asians attending! To make matters even more interesting… there is always a combination of Theravada / Mahayana practitioners in any group that I teach or go on pilgrimage with. I have come to understand that I have rather deep kamma with Buddhism and with Asia, and that I have lived and practiced in both Theravada and Mahayana countries. (Gifted masters have also told me as much) So the current melting pot of mixed kammas is not so surprising I guess.

I love being a Theravadan Bhikkhu. The emphasis upon the Four Noble Truths, cultivation of the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, and the 'squeaky clean' immaculate adherence to the Buddha's Monastic Code are cornerstones that I am honoured to live in reference and deference to. At the same time I cannot deny that I love the Bodhisattvas, and the practice of Devanussati, which is so uplifting and brightening for the mind in these somewhat depressing times. You know something else that is interesting is that whenever I attend the Dalai Lama's teachings, he always greets me by saying "My old friend… my long-time friend."!  If that is true I wish I had more to show for it! But in any case…

So here we have a Talk - that is aimed at helping people understand the difference between the Arahants and a Buddha, something that seems to be terribly misunderstood in the Mahayana, unfortunately. And to help people to get clearer about their particular aspiration if they can, and then practice accordingly with great sincerity.

There is also a Guided Meditation – Perhaps for those with more of a Bodhisatta inclination, which I led for a group of Chinese Malaysian students when we were on Pilgrimage in China. A practice of 'Devanussati' – recollecting celestial beings as a samatha (calming) practice that brightens the mind and helps it to resonate with divine qualities such as Loving-Kindness and Compassion.

And then we have the last of my Chants with Soundscape, a remix that has a curious fusion of Western elements such as piano, accompanying a traditional Tibetan chant. This is actually one of my all-time favourite chants, which is why I have liaised with Chris Conway to co-produce several versions.  The meaning of the first few lines are something like…

"Homage to the Three Jewels… Homage to Noble Wisdom… Homage to Vairochana… Homage to the Tathagathas… the Arahants and the Samma-Sambuddhas! Then Homage to Avalokiteshvara with Truly Vast Compassion"

It covers everything Noble really! And this version is East meets West and Past meets Now. Just like this western monk teaching Asians and Westerners via the internet!

May we all make the most of our current opportunities and Grow in Dhamma!

As always - I sincerely hope that something I have shared here is useful to you.

With Loving-Kindness