The Objectification Conundrum
Ajahn Kaccana
Ajahn Kaccāna spells out the necessity of living in a world that consists of objects, but explains how this objectification can be held in a detached and skillful manner. He recounts an experience in his own past in which he held on tightly and suffered as a result, and relates two humorous examples in the life of Luang Por Liem, when Luang Por manifested a wise and skillful equanimity.
Internal, External, and Beyond
Ajahn Sucitto
Luang Por Sucitto elucidates on the monastic training rules, showing how they can help to cultivate both internal and external development. In a world obsessed with material trappings and personal gain, Luang Por reveals an alternate path, and declares that the sign of a samana is a true blessing.
Mindfulness of Death
Ajahn Kaccana
Ajahn Kaccana reflects on the charnel ground contemplations as a way to develop detachment from the body, and points out the value of maranasati in a culture that is uncomfortable with the examination of death.
The Builder of This House
Ajahn Cittapala
Ajahn Cittapala likens meditation to sawing a log, and explains how difficulties can arise if one’s attention is too rigid. By maintaining a wider awareness, she shows how the process of becoming is seen for what it is, and not mistaken to be a house building self.
To Face the Dukkha of Life
Ajahn Karuniko
Ajahn Karuniko warns of the dangers in leading a life of sensuality and lays out the foundation of mindfulness based in the body as a way to develop healthier habit patterns and freedom from dukkha.
The Endlessness of Suffering
Ajahn Karunadhammo
Ajahn Karunadhammo recalls the First and Second Watches of the night of the Buddha’s enlightenment, in which the Buddha saw his own endless wanderings through samsara, and other beings’ arising and passing through various states of woe. He then describes the Buddha’s enlightenment in the Third Watch, in which the Buddha realized The Four Noble Truths, and the practice of mindfulness immersed in the body as a way to liberation.
A Sense of Urgency
Ajahn Ahimsako
On the opening day of Cittaviveka’s Group Practice Week, Ajahn Ahimsako urges the resident community to maximize the precious opportunity that is available. He warns that merely developing a sense of peacefulness, while pleasant and desirable, is not sufficient, and that this calm state of mind should be used as a foundation for investigation into Dhamma and the discernment of wisdom.
The Noble Eightfold Path
Ajahn Ahimsako
Ajahn Ahimsako speaks on his own personal mode of practising with the traditional monastic chanting, and offers encouragement in putting forth effort to use the classical Canonical teachings found in these chants for reflection. Using the example of the chant on the Noble Eightfold Path, he walks through the eight factors, and shows how this teaching can become accessible and more easily brought into consciousness in our day to day lives.