Episodes

Ajahn Brahm elaborates on a saying of the Buddha inscribed on a statue outside of the Dhammaloka Buddhist Centre: “To do that which is good, to refrain from that which is bad, and to develop the mind. That is the teaching of all the buddhas.” This seems simple and even obvious. But sometimes it can ...

In this episode of the Forest Path Podcast I’ll be completing the narration of the teaching “Only the world ends” by forest meditation master Venerable Ajahn Tate. This is part two of two episodes. Stay tuned to listen to the concluding part of this teaching by a true meditition master of the Thai F...

Have you ever noticed that people are always arguing about who has the right religion, politics, fashion, and basically everything? So how do we work out who is right and who is wrong? Ajahn Brahm doesn’t tell you who is right and who is wrong, but he does give wise guidance on how to work out who i...

In this episode of the Forest Path Podcast I’ll be narrating an extended Dhamma teaching by the great forest meditation master Venerable Ajahn Tate. It is titled “Only the world ends”. It’s a very well rounded teaching and goes in to some depth about samadhi. Because it is so long, I’ll be breaking ...

Sometimes we have the right intention to do good things and make positive changes in our lives but we just can’t figure out how to actually do it! Ajahn Brahm explains that self-discipline isn’t about using willpower or force in order to effect positive change, but rather through using wise strategi...

This episode is a narration of the 38th Sutta of the Middle Discourses of the Buddha, The Mahātaṇhāsaṅkhaya Sutta, which translates as “the Longer Discourse on the Ending of Craving”. In this discourse the Buddha teaches dependent origination, showing that consciousness arises dependent on condition...

Ajahn Brahm gives a talk on how to deal with physical pain. — This dhamma talk was originally recorded using a low quality MP3 to save on file size (because internet connections were slow back then – remember dialup?) on 9th July 2004. It has now been remastered and published by the Everyday Dhamma ...

This episode is a talk given by the Thai forest meditation master Ajahn Maha Boowa and is titled “Kammaṭṭhāna”. It was first publish as part of the book “kammaṭṭhāna - the basis of practice” which was translated by monks at Wat Pah Ban Taad. The Pali work kammaṭṭhāna literally means “the pl...

From the very beginning Buddhism extended its moral ethics not only to humans, but also to animals (and all sentient beings). Ajahn Brahm explains how Buddhism thinks about ethics when it comes to how we treat animals. — This dhamma talk was originally recorded using a low quality MP3 to save on fil...

This episode is a narration of the 37th Sutta of the Middle Discourses of the Buddha, The Cūḷataṇhāsaṅkhaya Sutta, which translates as “the Longer Discourse on the Ending of Craving”. In this discourse one of the Buddha’s chief disciples, Venerable Maha Moggallāna visits the heaven of Sakka, the lor...

Ajahn Brahm got a request for talk but he couldn’t remember what it was, so he decided to talk about something that he wanted to talk about - dependent origination. Even though it’s a very deep and complicated topic, Ajahn Brahm makes this topic about the fundamental nature of reality easy to unders...

Ajahn Brahm talks about reincarnation … again! And helps us all get a sense of perspective about the meaning of our lives. — This dhamma talk was originally recorded using a low quality MP3 to save on file size (because internet connections were slow back then – remember dialup?) on 18th June 2004. ...

This episode is a talk given by the Thai forest meditation master Ajahn Chah and is titled “Making the Heart Good”. This talk was first publish as part of the book “The Collected Teachings of Ajahn Chah” which is made available by Aruna Publications. You can find links to the original text in the de...

This episode is a narration of the 36th Sutta of the Middle Discourses of the Buddha, The Mahasaccaka Sutta, which translates as “the Longer Discourse with Saccaka”. In this discourse the Buddha and Saccaka discuss the difference between physical and mental development. The Buddha gives a long accou...

Responding to a request from the audience, Ajahn Brahm talks about free will. What is free will? What is freedom? What is the will? When one starts meditating and looking closely at the mind things are not quite as they seem. Ajahn Brahm offers a very different perspective on the topic of free will....

An online listener from the United States contacted Ajahn Brahm to ask about the many ways in which there are multiple ecological threats - like global warming, habitat and species loss - that could spell doom for humanity. What should we do about all these imminent threats to our existence? Ajahn B...

This episode is a talk given by the Thai forest meditation master Ajahn Fuang Jotiko and is titled “Listen Well”. This talk isn’t just about listening the teachings, but also about developing our meditation so that we can develop our minds and achieve Awakening.It was first published on the website ...

Ajahn Brahm responds to a query from the online audience about “how can we have our cake and eat it too?” — This dhamma talk was originally recorded using a low quality MP3 to save on file size (because internet connections were slow back then – remember dialup?) on 14th May 2004. It has now been re...

This episode is a narration of the 35th Sutta of the Middle Discourses of the Buddha, The Cūḷasaccaka Sutta, which translates as “the Shorter Discourse with Saccaka”. In this sutta the Buddha is challenged by a debater named Saccaka who challenges the Buddha to a contest. Despite Saccaka’s bragging ...

Responding to an request from the audience, Ajahn Brahm talks about the origins of self-hate, its symptoms, and how to overcome self-hate. When we are free from self-hate we are able to overcome many of the obstacles we put in our own path and experience a greater sense of freedom. — This dhamma tal...

This episode is a talk given by the Thai forest meditation master Ajahn Maha Boowa and is titled “The Marvel of the Dhamma”. It was first publish as part of the book “Straight from the Heart” which was translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu. Copyright © Venerable Ācariya Mahā Boowa Ñāṇasampanno 1987 This ...

Ajahn Brahm talks about all the problems that can arise from making assumptions, how they can be wrong and why they are wrong. And of course, such a topic gives lots of opportunities for funny stories and jokes. — This dhamma talk was originally recorded using a low quality MP3 to save on file size ...

Ajahn Brahm talks about the values of Buddhism. — This dhamma talk was originally recorded using a low quality MP3 to save on file size (because internet connections were slow back then – remember dialup?) on 23rd April 2004. It has now been remastered and published by the Everyday Dhamma Network, a...

This episode is a narration of the 34th Sutta of the Middle Discourses of the Buddha, The Cūḷagopālaka Sutta, which translates as “the Shorter Discourse on the Cowherd”. In this sutta the Buddha draws parallels between a cowherd guiding his herd across a dangerous river and crossing over to Awakenin...

Using similes and stories, Ajahn Brahm tried to put a fresh perspective on the praise and blame that we receive in life with the aim of guiding us towards having a more balanced and contented perspective regardless of what life may throw at us. — This dhamma talk was originally recorded using a low ...

This episode is a talk given by the Thai forest meditation master Ajahn Chah and is titled “One Word Is Enough” . It was first publish as part of the book “The Collected Teachings of Ajahn Chah” which is made available by Aruna Publications. You can find links to the original text in the description...

This episode is a narration of the 33rd Sutta of the Majjhima Nikaya, The Mahāgopālaka Sutta, which translates as “the longer discourse on the cowherd”. In this sutta the Buddha enumerates eleven reasons a cowherd is not able to properly look after a herd. The Buddha then compares this to the spirit...

This talk by Ajahn Brahm is about Buddhism and the body, because our bodies can cause us a lot of trouble and problems. So what is the meaning of our body? And from a Buddhist perspective how can we understand and view the nature of the body and its problems. Finally, Ajahn Brahm will touch on the r...

This episode is a talk given by the Thai forest meditation master Ajahn Lee Dhammadharo and is titled “Consciousness” . Less than a year before Ajaan Lee's death, some of his students began tape-recording his Dhamma talks. The following talk is one of the nine for which we have transcripts from the ...

Impatience causes a lot of difficulties and problems in life. And the remedy for impatience is patience. Having patience can be of great value and benefit for us in our day to day lives. However, the Buddha praised patience as being one of the foremost qualities needed to attain Enlightenment. So ho...