“Let’s develop mindfulness a lot, mentally repeat Buddho a lot, so our mind will experience greater lightness and comfort.”

“Let’s develop mindfulness a lot, mentally repeat Buddho a lot, so our mind will experience greater lightness and comfort.”

Our duty is to practise. If we want to pay respect to the Buddha, he taught us to show respect through our practice. Offering incense and flowers brings little benefit and little happiness. When we bow down to the Buddha, our heart is cool and comfortable, but then later when we encounter various issues and people outside the temple, our hearts immediately become agitated. However, if we pay homage to the Buddha by practising his Dhamma so that we gain mindfulness, concentration, and wisdom, then wherever we go and whatever we do, our mind will be composed all the time.

May we all set our minds on paying homage to the Buddha through our practice. Coming here today is one way of doing this. First we listen to a Dhamma talk, and then we take what we’ve learned and put it into practice. We practise generosity, maintain our virtue, and develop mindfulness. We control our thoughts, not allowing them to drift off. Try repeating Buddho, Buddho continuously. Do not think about other things. Then we will find that a change takes place in the mind.

The mind will be emptier, cooler, and more peaceful. It will become increasingly comfortable and light, because it is not burdened by anything.

When we think about various issues it is like we are hunched over, carrying them on our backs, but once we stop thinking, it is like we put these burdens down. We can lay them down by reciting Buddho, Buddho, and after that we can let them go by using wisdom to see that they are all impermanent, stressful, and not-self. We will then let go and not be burdened by anything. We will be intelligent and no longer deluded.

Why should we keep on carrying these things? What benefit is there in being burdened? Wouldn’t it be better not to be burdened by anything? So just let things be. There is no need to get involved. Whatever happens, let it go.

Actually, we like to be burdened. Whatever happens, we like get involved, wanting things to go this or that way, and then we complain about how awful the situation is.

But actually it was us who chose to become stressed, who got involved with it. We are unable to let go because we do not use Buddho to stop our thinking and desire.

So let’s develop mindfulness a lot, mentally repeat Buddho a lot, so our mind will experience greater lightness and comfort. We will soon begin to understand why we need to recite Buddho, why mindfulness is so important. Only by meditating will we be able to understand. If we do not meditate, no change will take place in the mind.

For there to be any changes, they must arise from our meditation, by controlling our thoughts, gradually reducing them until they eventually come to a full stop. After that we can teach our mind to think in the right way, to let things go, to see the truth of impermanence, stress, and not-self.

But in the beginning we cannot direct it in this way, so we have to stop our thoughts first. If we let our thoughts wander, we will not see things as impermanent, stressful, and not-self.

By Ajaan Suchart Abhijāto
www.phrasuchart.com

Youtube: Dhamma in English
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi_BnRZmNgECsJGS31F495g