Search results for: "Kamma"
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- Stop & Think… Sometimes when people would die, their relatives would go see Ajaan Chah and ask him: “Why did so-and-so have to die?” He’d say, “Because they were born.” Did he mention bad kamma from the past? Well, there’s kamma enough simply in being born. Once you’ve made the choice to be born, you’re going to die. And there’s …
- Mindfulness as Refuge… After all, even though you’re on the path, creating good kamma in the way you act, speak, and think, nobody knows what kamma you have in your past, so you want to be prepared for anything. And these are the qualities that allow you to be prepared, so that no matter what comes up, no matter how good or bad things may be …
- Breathing Skillfully… What comes to us through sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and tactile sensations is the result of old kamma. What we do with these things is new kamma. You can’t change your old kamma, but you can change your new. Again, it’s like being a cook. You open the refrigerator today and there may not be all that much in the fridge. But …
- Clinging, Addictions, Obsessions… Where are they now?” They’re totally gone; but you are left with the kamma. If you don’t believe in kamma, just look at the habits you’ve developed. You get into these old ruts: these old ways of thinking, these old ways of behaving. The more you indulge them, the harder they are to get out of. That’s what you’re …
- The Buddha’s Shoulds… Right view starts with conviction in the principle of kamma, that there are good and bad actions that give good and bad results — not only in this lifetime but also in future lifetimes — and that there are people who really know these things from direct experience. It’s not just a theory. What’s interesting here is that when the Buddha presents this introduction …
- Refuge… Then the reflection on kamma: That’s the way out. But it’s a warning as well. That reflection is meant to give rise to heedfulness, because our actions really do make a difference, the choices you make, make a difference. Still, the teaching on kamma is also a source of confidence that it is within your power to find true happiness. You don …
- Beyond Nature… It’s a suffering that leads to the end of suffering, the kamma that leads to the end of kamma. There’s still going to be a subtle level of suffering in the breath even when you’re concentrated on it. The breath can get very subtle and very pleasant, even rapturous, but there’s still an element of stress there. But for the …
- The Gift of Spiritual Materialism… As the result of the good kamma of generosity, the good kamma of virtue, you’ll be reborn in really nice places and have a really good situation in life. But if you don’t have discernment, you can abuse that goodness. Discernment is what helps you see that even the goodness that comes from virtue and generosity is not enough. You need more …
- Respect, Confidence, & Patience… The principle of kamma means that sometimes our actions bear immediate results and sometimes they take time. In light of that fact, we have to bring not only an attitude of respect and confidence to the practice, but also one of patience. We’re here to learn, and it may take time to learn. So when things aren’t going well, remind yourself that …
- Spread Goodness Around… This relates to his teachings on kamma, that we do have freedom of choice in the present moment. The people who said that there was no worth in giving said, “Well, if everybody’s predetermined to do whatever they’re going to do, then those who give and those who don’t give: it’s simply a matter of the stars or the creator …
- Look at Yourself… It’s a gift to yourself in the sense that you’re not creating the kind of kamma that’s going to lead to suffering down the line. It’s a gift to others in that you’re not harassing them. You don’t present them any danger. Also, as you practice the precepts, you begin to learn mindfulness, alertness, and ardency. In other …
- The Buddha’s Narratives & Yours… Why not look directly at actions? Actions that are skillful, actions that are unskillful—in ways that you can get past those categories of skillful and unskillful—in other words, to get to the kind of kamma that leads to the end of kamma. You do that not by thinking about who you were or who was guilty or who was innocent or who …
- Blowing Bubbles… That’s an important lesson in kamma right there. There are lots of different potentials that could come up at any moment, and you have the ability to choose which ones you’re going to emphasize. So that’s an insight: Just because a thought has come into the mind doesn’t mean that you have to live with it; you can pull out …
- What’s Real… Some people have the kamma to experience only a natural world; other people have the kamma to experience a lot of supernatural things. But both kinds of people suffer, and this is what Buddhism is all about: teaching us how to not suffer. The problem is not with the worlds out there. It’s what’s in our minds. The world may be real …
- In the Driver’s Seat… No matter how bad your kamma is, there must be some place in the body that’s reasonably comfortable. After all, as Ajaan Lee points out, if there were nothing but pain in your body, you’d die. Now, the comfortable places may not be all that impressive, but that’s simply a matter of giving them some time and some space. Let them …
- Tap, Tap, Tap… In the second knowledge of the night, he saw how beings died and passed away and then were reborn in line with their kamma. As he later said, he wasn’t the first to have seen this, but he saw it in a lot more detail than anybody else—partly because he saw so many more lifetimes, but partly because he looked more carefully …
- You Can’t Relax Your Way to Awakening… The fact that you’re born as a human being means that you have some bad kamma. Because the human realm is a place where people with mixed kamma go, we’re bound to meet up with difficulties. So see them as training. The pain of having mosquitoes bite you is nothing compared to the pain that’s going to happen as you approach …
- Life in the Context of the Practice… Do I want that kind of kamma? Should I give in to that pressure?” This relates to the other chant that we do every night, which is the chant about the requisites. A lot of the pressure we get in our lives, especially when working for a corporation or any kind of organization, is to make more money so that we can have more …
- Goodwill Starts with Gratitude… When the Buddha talked about kamma, gratitude was one of the first topics he mentioned as being relevant to the fact of kamma. He said that there are people for whom we should be grateful because they had the choice to help us or not to help us, but they chose to help us. And so you want to feel some special goodwill for …
- No One in Charge… You’ve got the choice of how you’re going to look for happiness, with the realization that, in line with the principle of kamma, the quality of your intentions, the quality of your decisions, will determine whether you actually find happiness or not, and what kind of happiness it’ll be: a happiness that just gets thrown away or a happiness that stays …
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