The Teachings of Ajahn Chah A collection of Ajahn Chah’s Dhamma talks Copyright 2007, The Sangha, Wat Nong Pah Pong. For free distribution “It is the spirit of dana¯ , freely offered generosity, which has kept the entire Buddhist tradi- tion alive for more than 2,500 years.” Sabbadana¯ m˙ dhammadana ¯ m˙ jinati¯ ‘The gift of Dhamma excels all gifts’ This computer edition of ‘The Teachings of Ajahn Chah’ may be freely copied and redis- tributed electronically, provided that the file contents (including this agreement) are not altered in any way and that it is distributed at no cost to the recipient. You may make printed copies of this work for your personal use; further distribution of printed copies requires permission from the copyright holder. Permission to reprint this book for free distribution may be obtained upon notification. Any reproduction (in whole or part, in any form) for sale, profit or material gain is prohibited. The Abbot Wat Nong Pah Pong Tambon Non Peung Ampher Warin Chamrab Ubon Rachathani 34190 Thailand website: www.watnongpahpong.org This edition: 4.3 - june 2007. A pdf, html and lit version are available for download at www.ajahnchah.org. Future editions will include new translations of Ajahn Chah’s Dhamma talks, if available. Preface HE FOLLOWING DHAMMA BOOKS of Ajahn Chah have been in- T cluded in this collection of Ajahn Chah’s Dhamma talks: • Bodhinyana (1982) • A Taste of Freedom (fifth impression – 2002) • Living Dhamma (1992) • Food for the Heart (1992) • The Path to Peace (1996) • Clarity of Insight (2000) • Unshakeable Peace (2003) • Everything is Teaching Us (2004) The formatting used in these books varies, so some changes were nec- essary to make the formatting more uniform. Also an effort has been made to find and correct mistakes in the text. The first chapter of ‘A Taste of Freedom’ (Training this Mind) has been newly translated. Of some talks1 in the book ‘Everything is Teaching Us’ the original, more complete translation was preferred above the published, edited version. Also two talks2 which were left out of ‘Everything is Teaching Us’ in a 1Namely; ‘Knowing the World’, ‘Understanding Dukkha’ and ‘Monastery of Con- fusion’ 2Namely; ‘Right Restraint’ and ‘Even One Word is Enough’ i PREFACE ii previous printing have now again been included. The book ‘The Key to Liberation’ is not included in this collection; in its place ‘Unshakeable Peace’ was chosen to be included, being an alternative translation of the talk previously translated as ‘The Key to Liberation’. We hope our efforts in compiling this collection of Dhamma talks of Ajahn Chah will bring benefits to the readers. The compilers and editors (Bhikkhus Dhammajoti and Gavesako) A Note on Translation Most of the talks in this collection were originally taken from old cas- sette tape recordings of Venerable Ajahn Chah, some in Thai and some in the North-Eastern Dialect, most recorded on poor quality equipment under less than optimum conditions. This presented some difficulty in the work of translation, which was overcome by occasionally omitting very unclear passages and at other times asking for advice from other listeners more familiar with those languages. As regards the translations, the various translators have tried to be as exact as possible with the content of the teachings but have omit- ted much of the repetition inevitably arising in oral instruction. Pali¯ words absorbed into the Thai language have, in the course of time, ac- quired additional meanings: e.g., the Thai “arome” refers to the Pali ¯ “aramman¯ . a” – sense object or mental impression, but its common mean- ing is “mood” or “emotion”. The Venerable Ajahn uses these words in both ways and we have translated accordingly. Pali¯ words have occasionally been left as they are, in other cases translated. The criteria here has been readability. Those Pali¯ words which were considered short enough or familiar enough to the reader already conversant with Buddhist terminology have generally been left untranslated. This should present no difficulty, as they are generally ex- plained by the Venerable Ajahn Chah in the course of the talk. Longer words, or words considered to be probably unfamiliar to the average reader, have been translated. Of these, there are two which are particu- larly noteworthy. They are Kamasukhallik¯ anuyogo¯ and Attakilamatha¯- nuyogo, which have been translated as “Indulgence in Pleasure” and iii A NOTE ON TRANSLATION iv “Indulgence in Pain” respectively. These two words occur in no less than five of the talks included in this book, and although the transla- tions provided here are not those generally used for the words, they are nevertheless in keeping with the Venerable Ajahn’s use of them. Finding the middle way between a dull, over-literal approach and a more flowing, but less precise rendering hasn’t always been easy. Each of the various translators has compromised in different ways. Hopefully we have managed to bring out both the clear simplicity, the directness and the humor of these talks on the one hand, and at the same time, the profundity that underlies and inspires them. Venerable Ajahn Chah always gave his talks in simple, everyday language. His objective was to clarify the Dhamma, not to confuse his listeners with an overload of information. The aim of the translators has been to present Ajahn Chah’s teaching in both the spirit and the letter; consequently the talks presented here have been rendered into correspondingly simple English. We trust that this material will pro- vide nourishing contemplation for the growing number of meditators. The translators would like to apologize for any passages which remain unclear, or for clumsiness of style. May all beings be free from suffering. – The Sangha, Wat Pah Nanachat – About Teachings for Monks NE OF THE MOST NOTABLE FEATURES of Venerable Ajahn Chah’s O teaching was the emphasis he gave to the Sangha, the monastic order, and its use as a vehicle for Dhamma practice. This is not to deny his unique gift for teaching lay people, which enabled him to communi- cate brilliantly with people from all walks of life, be they simple farm- ers or University professors. But the results he obtained with teaching and creating solid Sangha communities are plainly visible in the many monasteries which grew up around him, both within Thailand and, later, in England, Australia, Europe and elsewhere. Ajahn Chah foresaw the necessity of establishing the Sangha in the West if long-term results were to be realized. This book is a collection of talks he gave to both laypeople and monks1. The talks he gave to monks are exhortations given to the com- munities of bhikkhus, or Buddhist monks, at his own monastery, Wat Nong Pah Pong, and some of its branches in both Thailand and the West. This fact should be borne in mind by the lay reader reading those talks. These talks to monks are not intended to, and indeed cannot, serve as an introduction to Buddhism and meditation practice. They are monastic teachings, addressed primarily to the lifestyle and prob- lems particular to that situation. A knowledge of the basics of Bud- dhism on the part of the listener was assumed. Many of these talks will thus seem strange and even daunting to the lay reader, with their emphasis on conformity and renunciation. 1Most talks have a footnote on the first page, giving some information on the au- dience and the occasion for the talk to be given. v ABOUT TEACHINGS FOR MONKS vi For the lay reader reading the talks Ajahn Chah gave to monks in Thailand, then, it is essential to bear in mind the environment within which these talks were given – the rugged, austere, poverty-stricken North-East corner of Thailand, birth place of most of Thailand’s great meditation teachers and almost its entire forest monastic tradition. The people of the North-East are honed by this environment to a rugged simplicity and gentle patience which make them ideal candidates for the forest monk’s lifestyle. Within this environment, in small halls dimly lit by paraffin lamps, surrounded by the assembly of monks, Ajahn Chah gave his teachings. Exhortations by the master occurred typically at the end of the fort- nightly recitation of the patimokkha¯. , the monks’ code of discipline. Their content would be decided by the current situation – slackness in the practice, confusion about the rules, or just plain “unenlightenment.” In a lifestyle characterized by simplicity and contentment with little, complacency is an ongoing tendency, so that talks for arousing diligent effort were a regular occurrence. The talks themselves are spontaneous reflections and exhortations rather than systematic teachings as most Westerners would know them. The listener was required to give full attention in the present moment and to reflect back on his own practice accordingly, rather than to mem- orize the teachings by rote or analyze them in terms of logic. In this way he could become aware of his own shortcomings and learn how to best put into effect the skillful means offered by the teacher. Although meant primarily for a monastic resident – be one a monk, nun or novice – the interested lay reader will no doubt obtain many in- sights into Buddhist practice from these talks. At the very least there are the numerous anecdotes of the Venerable Ajahn’s own practice which abound throughout them; these can be read simply as biographical ma- terial or as instruction for mind training. From the contents of these talks, it will be seen that the training of the mind is not, as many believe, simply a matter of sitting with the eyes closed or perfecting a meditation technique, but is, as Ajahn Chah would say, a great renunciation.