Day 128/365: 30-Minute Meditation | Ajahn Brahm

Enjoy a 30-minute meditation with Ajahn Brahm. Ajahn Brahm is a popular Buddhist teacher to a growing international audience of people keen to learn meditation and develop a deeper spiritual understanding. He is also the founding father of an emergent Australian forest tradition of Buddhism.

Transcript

Now is the time for us to secrete all of our past, To put it in the bin or in the to-do box, And all the stuff which is already past, Put it in the out box, And between the out box of the past and the in box of the future lies the no box of meditation, A beautiful peace where we have nothing to do. So this is a time of learning how not to do nothing but nothing doing. So to be able to do that, Or rather to be able to allow that to happen, We close our eyes, Gently, With our eyes closed. We just feel this body which has carried us around all day. It's just like checking our vehicle. I did hear there was one vehicle whose lights were still on. Still got that? Yes. So I said that that car is probably from Victoria, It's left its headlights on, So either it's a big mistake or the car is enlightened. You will never be able to get back to Victoria tonight if you don't go and turn your lights off. So now we can get back all that, Close our eyes, And turn the lights up in our mind. First of all, Turning the headlights onto our body. How does the body feel? So we are being a state of peace to our body. Peace is always accompanied by kindness. The two of them dance together around the present moment. Peace, Kindness, Now we are being kind to our body. How are you sitting right now? With your eyes closed, You can become sensitive to the feelings in your body. When we are busy rushing around, When most of our attention is taken up by the sounds and the sights, It's so difficult to pay sufficient attention to our physical body to be able to listen to what it wants. Now you are free from rushing, Your eyes are closed. Ask your body, Can I make you more comfortable now? If so, How? Wherever your body responds, Then try and do that. Adjust the bottom, Adjust the legs, Adjust the back, The hands. Scratch the itches. I often say the reason why here we close our eyes before we start meditating is so that once the eyes are closed, You can scratch whatever part of your body you want and no one will see. Wherever your body responds, Then try and do that. Adjust the bottom, Adjust the back, The hands. When the body is relaxed, At ease, We can let go of the body and start focusing on the mind, Especially the way the mind is usually running around to the past and the future. We deliberately focus our attention in the present moment, Just now. As we focus on the present moment, It's as if we put two guards, Two guards on our mind. One faces the past and says, Now is not the time for thinking about you. Whatever has been done is finished. I will not look to the past for the next half hour. I am facing the opposite direction, Amongst the future. What is going to happen, We'll leave it to later. One of the best ways of preparing for the future is being alert in the present. So these two guards protect the present moment from interference. You deserve this time out from the demands of the past and the future, From negativity about what happened to fear about the future. So no worry, No memories can interfere with our peaceful time in the present. So just focus on the now, Keeping those two guards vigilant so we don't allow anything from the past, Anything from the future into our mind. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment, Just now. At first, It may not feel so comfortable in the present moment. But if you linger there long enough, The present moment changes to the pleasant moment. It's a very wonderful time called now. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. What's left, The remainder when the past and future are no longer there, Is what we call the present moment. No past, No future stay in this moment by deliberately rejecting all memories of what happened, Deliberately rejecting all plans for the future. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . When the mind is reasonably present, Doesn't need to be perfect, Then turn the two guards into protecting you from the inner speech, From the habit to describe this world in names and concepts. Instead of thinking, We listen, The same way that you can listen to the space between my words. So you listen to what comes before any thought, You listen to what happens after the thought ends, The silence which surrounds everything. When you hear that silence, It will grow, And you know what we mean by silent present moment awareness. Be still inside, No need to talk back. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Now coming close to the end of meditation, How do you feel? What changes have been in your mind over the last almost 30 minutes? This is where we use the insight to understand what peace truly means. At least to get some inkling into what peace is and how it can come from within your mind. So this simple practice we call meditation. . So I'm now going to ring the gong three times. When the last sound from the gong vanishes, That's the signal to come out of your meditation. So when we finish meditation, We always come out gradually here to the sound of the third ringing of the gong. . .

Reviews

Some of the best simple Buddhist practices from a kindfull monk. Thank you!