Thai Forest Dhamma

in the tradition of Lungphu Mun Bhuridatto

and his western disciples

Dhamma Talks: Listen Online

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Dhamma talk given byAjahn Martin
TitleThe modern Gods of our World
Date3 Jan 2010
Languageen
LocationWat Pa Baan Taad
AudienceMeditators
Content / Description

Modern Gods: we don't believe in hell and heaven any more because we can't see them, now we have other gods: money, science. Death: nothing vanishes in this whole universe, how can we assume that we are annihilated. Explanation of the 4 Noble Truths. Dukkha: everyone experiences it daily. It is everywhere in the 36 realms of existence. “Angels don't need wings to fly! They only need their consciousness”. We are scared of hell because we have been there quite a few times. Explanation of the 5 precepts: the Lord Buddha gave us the 5 precepts to protect us from falling into hell. Heaven, hell, kamma and results of kamma: these are things you have to trust before you will see them for yourself. Kamma: our body, state of mind, skills, life length etc. are the result of our kamma. Law of kamma is like physics law. Example of Ajahn getting back bad kamma of harsh speech. Samadhi: capacity to stay on one point. 2 forces in our heart: lightness/Dhamma wants to meditate, darkness/avijja tries to convince us to stop meditating. Upacara samadhi: from there, you can visit the heaven and hell realms. Appana samadhi: a preview of Nibanna, it gives you a boost of confidence in the Lord Buddha's teaching.