Also a subtag of Right Concentration
72 excerpts, 5:05:08 total duration
2. Comment: This retreat feels like specializing in silence. [Meditation retreats] [Seclusion]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Community]
22. “I have a friend, a beloved aversive type, who has regular angry outbursts. I chalk it up to frustration, yet find myself floundering in how to respond. Should I try to practice metta and patience, limit my association? Any words would be appreciated.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Spiritual friendship] [Aversion] [Goodwill] [Patience] [Seclusion]
6. “What did the Buddha mean by delighting in seclusion? Was he not a people person?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion] [Community] // [Arahant] [Leadership]
Suttas: SN 45.11-12; SN 54.9; SN 54.11: The Buddha goes on retreat. [Buddha/Biography] [Meditation retreats]
10. “Is it really possible and/or realistic to keep people in your heart but not in your life?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Goodwill ] [Seclusion] // [Thai]
2. “We hear so much about being in saṅgha and with good friends such as we do on retreats sitting together, and yet in the suttas the Buddha often tells the bhikkhus to go sit in seclusion. Personally, I often prefer sitting alone than in a group. Could you say more about this?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Spiritual friendship] [Meditation retreats] [Sutta] [Seclusion] // [Monastic routine] [Community]
Sutta: SN 45.2: Half of the Holy Life. [Eightfold Path]
14. “Seclusion of the heart really interests me, especially because of a busy family atmosphere. Is a way to develop seclusion of the heart to work on not taking this personally, not letting the self-making perceptions insert themselves into the heart?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion] [Family] [Non-identification ] // [Self-identity view] [Similes]
Quote: “Not being caught by the gladness or the sadness of the mind.” — Ajahn Liem. [Ajahn Liem] [Happiness] [Suffering] [Dispassion]
14. “Could you please expand on compassionate seclusion in interactive daily life (both on and off retreat)?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Compassion] [Seclusion ] [Everyday life] // [Time management]
4. “What are the three kinds of seclusion? What is upadhiviveka?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion] // [Clinging] [Self-identity view] [Aggregates] [Becoming]
3. “In the reading there was a lot of emphasis on solitude. Here we have a lot of time for that especially right now with our Winter Retreat, but we also have a lot of responsibilities and engagement in community. How would you recommend us balancing the two or using them to help each other?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion] [Abhayagiri] [Community] [Work] [Personality] // [Culture/Thailand] [Culture/India] [Ajahn Chah] [Unwholesome Roots] [Discernment] [Generosity] [Culture/West] [Self-identity view]
6. “His monastery is quite loud, isn’t it?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Dune] [Wat Burapha] [Seclusion]
3. “In the jhāna formula, in what sense is the word ‘seclusion’ used?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion] [Jhāna] // [Hindrances]
4. “Why did you leave Wat Pah Pong to practice on your own?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Ajahn Pasanno] [Wat Pah Pong] [Seclusion] // [Ajahn Chah] [Wat Keuan] [Wat Tam Saeng Pet]
1. “Could you talk about how to integrate interaction and physical seclusion to develop citta viveka - mental seclusion?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion ] [Community] // [Concentration] [Continuity of mindfulness] [Relinquishment] [Happiness] [Contact] [Proliferation]
Quote: “Cittaviveka is essentially samādhi.” [Seclusion ]
2. “What is the difference between upadhi viveka and citta viveka?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion ] [Concentration] [Discernment] // [Relinquishment] [Aggregates] [Characteristics of existence]
Quote: “Upadi viveka is more transportable. You can carry it with you.” [Seclusion ]
Sutta: SN 22.22: The Burden (Chanting Book translation).
3. “Will practice as a group help us in solitude?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion] [Meditation/General advice] [Community] [Monastic life] [Saṅgha]
4. “How do we balance solitude and communal aspects of practice?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion] [Community] [Meditation/General advice] [Monastic life] [Saṅgha] // [Ajahn Pasanno]
17. “Abhayagiri’s daily and yearly schedule provide a good balance of individual and communal practice. How did this happen?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Abhayagiri] [Ajahn Pasanno] [Ajahn Amaro] [Seclusion] [Monastic life] [Saṅgha] // [History/Western Buddhist monasticism]
5. “Is there a sutta about preferring the [forest] to the village, and then the bare earth, becoming more and more simple?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Sutta] [Seclusion] [Simplicity] // [Emptiness] [Elements] [Relinquishment] [Generosity] [Goodwill]
Sutta: MN 121: The Lesser Discourse on Emptiness
2. “I’m so grateful that a weekly meditation group emerged from last year’s retreat with you. This year, we were set to retreat together again, but at the last moment, my friend said they would be unable to prioritize the retreat. Next time, should I go solo to deepen my sitting practice or invite my dear friends again?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Gratitude] [Meditation groups] [Spiritual friendship] [Seclusion]
4. “Can you talk about how to balance the Pāli Canon’s emphasis on seclusion (e.g. Snp 1.3: A Rhinoceros) and practicing for one’s own benefit with having a relationship with the world? You gave a talk called ‘It’s About More Than Just Us.’” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion] [Community] [Selfishness] // [Culture/West] [Culture/India]
Teaching from Ajahn Chah: It’s like people are walking along a road, When they go off to the left, I say, “Go right, go right!” When they go off to the right, I say, “Go left, go left!” [Ajahn Chah] [Middle Path] [Jack Kornfield]
Sutta: SN 45.2: Half of the Holy Life. [Spiritual friendship]
Quote: “How do we not suffer in any circumstance?” [Cessation of Suffering]
3. “When the Buddha says don’t completely isolate yourself (in AN 7.61), does that mean you can’t be a hermit and complete the path?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Seclusion] // [Community] [Mutual lay/Saṅgha support] [Great disciples] [Ajahn Mun]
Sutta: SN 45.12: The Buddha goes on retreat.
5. When we live in community, in vihāras, seclusion (at least kāyaviveka) is not so available … Comment by Anagārikā Deepa. [Saṅgha] [Seclusion]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Idle chatter] [Ajahn Sumedho] [Chithurst]
11. Comment: I’m struck that very often in the sutras, the Buddha himself does not speak. A question arises, someone else answers it, and at the end he just says, ‘Yes, that’s how it is.’ [Sutta] [Buddha/Biography] [Questions] [Seclusion]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Personality] [Concentration]
13. “Could you talk about what to do with disenchantment? You may feel that you’re being lazy by not engaging with the world. …” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Disenchantment] [Seclusion] // [Spiritual friendship] [Amaravati] [Abhayagiri] [Dhamma online]
Sutta: SN 45.2: Half of the Holy Life.
12. “We’ve already talked about the quote from the Buddha, ‘Spiritual companionship is the whole of the Holy Life (SN 45.2).’ Someone asked you a question about that, and you said, ‘Living with other people—it’s horrible!’ And then you laughed a huge Luang Por Pasanno laugh. Could you talk about the paradox that living with other people is half the Holy Life and it’s dukkha? You didn’t have to be an abbot. You could have lived a hermit’s life. Any insights into balancing that?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Spiritual friendship] [Community] [Seclusion] [Suffering] // [Patience] [Compassion]