The Teaching of Ajahn Suchart.
25 September 2024“Each Sutta has different instruction. Each Sutta is for a different purpose.”
Question: There are so many Suttas. Is there any certain Sutta you would recommend?”
Than Ajahn: If you want to use it as an exercise of the mind, you can use any Sutta. They are the same, to get rid of restlessness of the mind. But if you want to have right understanding, then you have to choose the proper sutta. If you want to understand about meditation method, you use the Four Foundations of Mindfulness.
If you want to understand the Noble Eightfold Path, you have to recite Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta. You can use Mangala Sutta which tells you the 38 steps to enlightenment, ‘Asevana ca balanaṅ. Panditanaṅ ca sevana.’ (Associate with the wise, stay away from the foolish.)’ These are the instructions that the Buddha taught us. Each Sutta has different instruction. Each Sutta is for a different purpose.
You can choose whatever Sutta you want. It depends on what you want to learn, what you want to know. If you just want to get rid of the mental restlessness, then you can use any Sutta or any regular chanting. This is the way calming down the mind. Because in your daily life, you might be using the mind to think when you are working, so it’s still very active. And when you want to sit and meditate, you cannot meditate because your mind is still thinking about what you did, so you use chanting to slow it down. After you chant for a while, the mind will become calmer. You will then be able to concentrate on your meditation object.
Question (F): I found Mettā Sutta can calm me.
Than Ajahn: Ok. Mettā Sutta can also calm your mind, especially if you have problems with people, if you hate people or you are angry at people. You can use Mettā Sutta to calm you down.
When I first started to practice, I used the Four Foundations of Mindfulness (Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta). When I first started to sit and focus on the breath, I found it not easy, so I just recited the whole sutta. It took about 40 minutes.
Monk: Did you use the long version?
Than Ajahn: I’m not sure whether it was the long or short version, but it was in English. I used the translation version, because I can then also understand what I recite.
The Four Foundations of Mindfulness, Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta, tells you how to meditate, how to develop mindfulness and how to contemplate on the nature of the body, the feelings, and the mind.
Monk: So, it’s not important to chant in Pāli?
Than Ajahn: No, because the Suttas are teachings. You have to understand what you listen to. It’s so dumb if you listen to something you don’t understand. You’re wasting your time. If I talk in Thai language to you, will you be able to understand?
Monk: Very little.
Than Ajahn: That’s why we have to speak the same language. The Buddha taught in Pāli because people at that time listened to Pāli. They could only understand Pāli. But we keep using this language, even we don’t understand it. Fortunately, we have translation. If we don’t have translation, we won’t be able to understand what the Buddha taught us. So, if you want to have understanding, you have to listen or read the language that you can understand. The reason why we preserve the Pāli is because they want to preserve the original.
You can choose whatever Sutta you want. It depends on what you want to learn, what you want to know. If you just want to get rid of the mental restlessness, then you can use any Sutta or any regular chanting. This is the way calming down the mind. Because in your daily life, you might be using the mind to think when you are working, so it’s still very active. And when you want to sit and meditate, you cannot meditate because your mind is still thinking about what you did, so you use chanting to slow it down. After you chant for a while, the mind will become calmer. You will then be able to concentrate on your meditation object.
Question (F): I found Mettā Sutta can calm me.
Than Ajahn: Ok. Mettā Sutta can also calm your mind, especially if you have problems with people, if you hate people or you are angry at people. You can use Mettā Sutta to calm you down.
When I first started to practice, I used the Four Foundations of Mindfulness (Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta). When I first started to sit and focus on the breath, I found it not easy, so I just recited the whole sutta. It took about 40 minutes.
Monk: Did you use the long version?
Than Ajahn: I’m not sure whether it was the long or short version, but it was in English. I used the translation version, because I can then also understand what I recite.
The Four Foundations of Mindfulness, Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta, tells you how to meditate, how to develop mindfulness and how to contemplate on the nature of the body, the feelings, and the mind.
Monk: So, it’s not important to chant in Pāli?
Than Ajahn: No, because the Suttas are teachings. You have to understand what you listen to. It’s so dumb if you listen to something you don’t understand. You’re wasting your time. If I talk in Thai language to you, will you be able to understand?
Monk: Very little.
Than Ajahn: That’s why we have to speak the same language. The Buddha taught in Pāli because people at that time listened to Pāli. They could only understand Pāli. But we keep using this language, even we don’t understand it. Fortunately, we have translation. If we don’t have translation, we won’t be able to understand what the Buddha taught us. So, if you want to have understanding, you have to listen or read the language that you can understand. The reason why we preserve the Pāli is because they want to preserve the original.
They’re afraid that things can get lost in translation later on. So, they want to preserve it. But when you study, you want to study in the language that you can understand.
Dhamma in English,
Monks and laypeople from Australia.
Feb 6, 2017.
By Ajahn Suchart Abhijāto
www.phrasuchart.com
Latest Dhamma talks on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi_BnRZmNgECsJGS31F495g
Monks and laypeople from Australia.
Feb 6, 2017.
By Ajahn Suchart Abhijāto
www.phrasuchart.com
Latest Dhamma talks on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi_BnRZmNgECsJGS31F495g
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