Interview, Aug. 6, 2026
Online from Clear Mountain Monastery Project in Seattle, Washington
14 excerpts, 39:41 total duration
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Ajahn Kovilo and Ajahn Nisabho interview Ajahn Pasanno about the lessons he gained from four decades of training monastics.
Original recordings available on www.youtube.com
1. [1:14] “What is the benefit of having more monks in the world?” // [Virtue] [Saṅgha] [Vinaya] [Culture/West] [Seclusion]
Reference: Recollection of the Saṅgha (Amaravati Chanting Book, p. 7). [Recollection/Saṅgha]
2. [6:01] “There are stories of you taking on people for training that on the surface seem very unsuitable, for example a heroin addict at Wat Pah Nanachat who eventually stayed in robes for 20 years. What made you stick with characters like that? How do you see the secret ingredient of what’s hiding below the surface?” // [Intuition]
3. [7:24] “What have you seen be the key difference between those who blossom and those who wilt [in monastic life]?” // [Truth] [Energy] [Patience]
Quote: “The quickest way to Awakening is to look straight at the heart, point right at it, [and say] ‘Liar!’” — Ajahn Chah. [Ajahn Chah] [Liberation]
4. [9:42] “There are certain monastic traditions, like the Pa Auk tradition, where monks will have an interview with their teacher every day to get meditation advice. You don’t do that; that’s not a characteristic of the Thai Forest Tradition. You mentioned that you led and trained others like a duck. Could you explain that metaphor?” [Pa Auk Sayadaw] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Similes] // [Questions] [Dhamma]
Simile from Ajahn Chah: I teach like a duck rather than teach like a chicken. [Ajahn Chah] [Teaching Dhamma]
Quote: “You have to learn to teach yourself.” [Self-reliance]
5. [13:58] “A lot of monks want to find ways to quantify their practice, count the number of hours they meditate or sleep or the number of spoonfuls they eat. And you don’t advocate that. How does one measure their practice if they’re not counting it in some way?” [Ajahn Kovilo] [Ajahn Pasanno] // [Skillful qualities] [Unskillful qualities]
6. [16:34] “What’s the biggest story you’ve had to work through yourself? Did you have any moments when you really had to step up?” [Ajahn Pasanno] // [Fear] [Ajahn Chah] [Delusion] [Admonishment/feedback]
Quote: “I want to live in a way that is exemplary and free. I don’t want to live under the tyranny of my own anxiety and delusions.” [Liberation]
7. [21:36] “Many people think monastic life is a training in meditation. You mentioned Ajahn Chah’s approach to training was trying to inculcate virtue and Right View. How do you teach these to others?” [Ajahn Chah] [Virtue] [Right View] [Teaching Dhamma] // [Happiness] [Contentment] [Gratitude] [Self-identity view] [Idealism] [Spaciousness] [Relinquishment]
8. [23:35] “When you hear about one of your students thinking of disrobing, how do you approach that?” [Disrobing ] // [Listening]
9. [25:54] “What do you think about the practice of a monk taking lifetime vows? It’s not required in our Thai tradition, but is expected in other traditions. Do you ever encourage this?” [Determination] [Culture/Thailand] // [Idealism]
10. [28:26] “If you had to choose between having an overly greedy monk disciple and an overly aversive monk disciple, which would you choose?” [Greed] [Aversion]
Follow-up: “If you had to choose between a monk who eats too much versus a monk who sleeps too much, what would be preferable?” [Moderation in eating] [Devotion to wakefulness]
Quote: “We’re never going to make Abhayagiri comfortable.” [Abhayagiri]
11. [31:15] “If you had to choose between having a monk who talks too much and a monk who doesn’t talk at all, which would you choose?” [Idle chatter]
12. [32:01] “If you had to choose between a monk who is overly attached to ritual versus a monk who is totally dismissive of ritual, which would you choose?” [Attachment to precepts and practices ] // [Views]
13. [33:46] “What should one do or contemplate when noticing a tendency for avoidance, distraction, and restlessness?” [Restlessness and worry] // [Aspects of Understanding] [Patience]
Sutta: SN 22.26: The Buddha describes his Awakening in terms of benefit, drawbacks, and escape. [Buddha/Biography] [Liberation]
14. [36:41] “Has Ajahn Chah ever used physical force to discipline his stubborn disciples out of kindness?” [Ajahn Chah] [Fierce/direct teaching] [Compassion] // [Ajahn Pasanno]
Story: Ajahn Chah kicks Ajahn Ñāṇadhammo in the chest. [Ajahn Ñāṇadhammo]