Mindfulness of body (kāyagatā-sati)
Includes tags: Mindfulness of body, Unattractiveness, Elements, Body scanning
7. “I’m a mother to four kids, one of whom has special needs. I’m lucky if I can meditate 10-15 minutes a day. Are there practices one can do when one is frequently around little ones?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Children ] [Meditation/General advice] // [Posture/Sitting] [Three Refuges] [Precepts] [Recollection/Virtue] [Recollection/Generosity] [Gladdening the mind] [Mindfulness of body] [Clear comprehension]
Commentary: Path of Purification by Bhikkhu Ñāṇamoli, p. 104: Forty subjects of meditation.
Sri Lankan Buddhists keep a book of good deeds which is read near the time of death. [Culture/Sri Lanka] [Merit] [Death]
Story: Debbie Stamp served as primary caregiver to her father during the pandemic. [Debbie Stamp] [Parents] [Pandemic]
4. “I have trouble maintaining wakefulness and alertness in the afternoon. What guidance would you give to cultivate more skillfulness?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sloth and torpor] [Devotion to wakefulness] // [Buddho mantra] [Recollection] [Unattractiveness] [Posture/Walking] [Posture/Standing]
15. “Any suggestions for managing dizziness or nausea from the energy on retreat? I’m feeling a little overwhelmed today.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Meditation retreats] [Health] // [Posture/Lying down] [Posture/Walking] [Goodwill] [Mindfulness of body]
18. “Can you talk about fear as a cause of dukkha and how to work with it?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Fear ] [Suffering] // [Unwholesome Roots] [Abhidhamma] [Delusion] [Mindfulness of body] [Continuity of mindfulness] [Biases]
Quote: “In terms of personality, [fear] was my go-to option.” [Ajahn Pasanno] [Personality]
5. “What would be your advice when young monks are wavering in their decision?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Monastic life/Motivation ] [Doubt] // [Fear] [Guilt/shame/inadequacy] [Noble Truth of Suffering] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Delusion] [Continuity of mindfulness] [Mindfulness of body]
Recurrent refrain in the Suttas: “I know you, Māra,” e. g. SN 4.1, SN 4.5. [Māra] [Sutta] [Knowing itself]
4. “How did Ajahn Chah speak about non-self and consciousness?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Chah] [Not-self] [Consciousness] // [Impermanence] [Doctrine-of-self clinging] [Language] [Thai ] [Pāli] [Sense bases] [Unestablished consciousness] [Knowing itself] [Cessation of Suffering]
Quote: “One of the beauties of the Thai language is that it is wonderfully imprecise. … It’s a feeling language.” [Thai ] [Proliferation]
Story: George Sharp asks Ajahn Chah why he teaches “Buddho” all the time. Ajahn Chah responds, “Namo viññāṇa dhātu” [Homage to the element of consciousness]. [George Sharp] [Buddho mantra] [Elements]
6. “What personal obstacles, either internal or external have you used as dhammas, stepping stones to lift yourself up and go beyond it?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Long-term practice] // [Fear ] [Ajahn Chah] [Impermanence] [Mindfulness of body] [Knowing itself]
Quote: “The anxious and fearful mind is always trying to find some certainty somewhere. And of course it isn’t anywhere at all except in this present moment and in the quality of awareness that we have. But the personality doesn’t believe that for a long time.” [Present moment awareness]
Quote: “Be careful of believing your mind because it’s a liar and a cheat.” — Ajahn Chah. [Nature of mind]
8. “When practicing to get out of the world, how does one avoid slipping into unhappiness with the world?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Escape] [Suffering] [Happiness] // [Saṃsāra] [Not-self] [Divine Abidings] [Unattractiveness] [Equanimity] [Gladdening the mind] [Concentration] [Knowledge and vision]
Sutta: MN 10.10: Contemplating the body as if it were a sack of grains. [Unattractiveness]
Suttas: AN 6.10, AN 10.2: Causal chains yielding gladness (pāmojja) with different starting points.
4. “The naming of proliferation—I’m getting to this idea that, okay now that I named it, it will stop now. I have this hope that I’ve found the key that’s gonna stop it all and then I get frustrated with myself because it’s still going on. Do I have to name it again? What do I do now?” Answered by Ajahn Amaro. [Noting] [Proliferation] // [Relinquishment] [Non-identification] [Mindfulness of body]
5. “It seems there are so many things to comment on it is kind of overwhelming. How to deal with that?” Answered by Ajahn Amaro. [Noting] // [Mindfulness of body] [Present moment awareness]
Story: “The body understands!” Told by Ajahn Pasanno. [Zen] [Koan] [Mindfulness of body]
6. “How are yoniso manasikāra and sati-sampajañña related?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Amaro. [Appropriate attention ] [Mindfulness] [Clear comprehension ] // [Conditionality] [Stream entry]
Sutta: MN 10.8: Clear comprension. [Mindfulness of body]
Sutta: AN 10.61: The support for sati-sampajañña is yoniso manasikāra.
Sutta: SN 55.5: Four factors for stream entry.
8. “Could you speak about world-weariness?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Disenchantment] // [Gratitude] [Suffering] [Skillful qualities] [Happiness]
Sutta: AN 11.1: Causal chain of well-being including disenchantment. [Conditionality]
Story: Ajahn Mahā Boowa reflects on the drawbacks of lust. [Ajahn Mahā Boowa] [Unattractiveness] [Sensual desire] [Drawbacks]
Note: The audio file ends mid-sentence.
5. “It seems like I’m using physical tension to block out emotion. When I try to put my attention on it, the mind goes blank or starts thinking about work. I don’t know what I’m avoiding. Any suggestions?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Pain] [Emotion ] // [Mindfulness of body] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Concentration] [Translation] [Spaciousness] [Body scanning]
15. “Is it ever acceptable to put a life out of suffering, for example when it’s dying and suffering slowly?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Euthanasia ] [Killing ] [Death] [Pain] [Animal] // [Compassion] [Unattractiveness]
Story: Ajahn Pasanno and others look after a Brahma bull that was attacked by a tiger until it dies. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Health care] [Dtao Dum]
3. “Intellectually I understand and can observe the illusion my eye presents, and I can detach from it. But at 3am, when I wake up and something comes into my mind, I really attach. It’s like everything I learned is out the window. I try to remind myself that it’s temporary and impermanent and try not to get involved. Any suggestions?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Self-identity view] [Clinging] // [Tranquility] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Relinquishment]
Follow-up: “Sometimes a thought will completely wipe out [my perception] of my whole body.” [Proliferation] [Mindfulness of body] [Goodwill]