Here’s a 67-min recorded video Dhamma Talk (157MB .mp4).

Topics:

  • An attitude of competitiveness, nit-pickiness, balancing praise with blame, holding relationships together, spiritual friendship, assessment of spiritual attainment, the fetter of Conceit, long-term behaviour, mannerisms, arahants, liberation, “Mentality of Measurement”, not being too lazy with no measurement at all, being mindful enough, always having to put in some effort for mindfulness, but ideally it requires only a minimal amount, the “stickiness” of the left hemisphere of the brain, the peacefulness of the right hemisphere of the brain


Dhamma References:

  • SNp IV “The Chapter of the Octads” - Sutta 5 “The Octad on the Supreme” (Paramaṭṭhaka Sutta). “The Suttanipāta: An Ancient Collection of the Buddha’s Discourses” - copyrighted by Wisdom Publications. Used for educational purposes. Verse 799:

    ‘One should not take oneself as “equal” or think of oneself as “inferior” or “superior.”’

  • Simile of the cowherd, where his job is much easier - once the crop of corn has been removed - and now the cows are far less motivated to cause trouble: “Two Kinds of Thought” (simile of the cowherd): MN 19

  • Simile of the man whose hands and feet are cut off, being like an arahant: MN 76: Sandaka-sutta

    “But Master Ānanda, when a mendicant is perfected, would the knowledge and vision that their defilements are ended be constantly and continually present to them, while walking, standing, sleeping, and waking?”

    “Well then, Sandaka, I shall give you a simile. For by means of a simile some sensible people understand the meaning of what is said. Suppose there was a person whose hands and feet had been amputated. Would they be aware that their hands and feet had been amputated constantly and continually, while walking, standing, sleeping, and waking? Or would they be aware of it only when they checked it?”

    “They wouldn’t be aware of it constantly, only when they checked it.”

    “In the same way, when a mendicant is perfected, the knowledge and vision that their defilements are ended is not constantly and continually present to them, while walking, standing, sleeping, and waking. Rather, they are aware of it only when they checked it.”

  • A sutta where even the Buddha admits he needs to observe someone for a long time - as in, for years, in many different situations - before concluding they are an Arahant. (A King has his spies walk past, who are temporarily disguised as Holy men).

  • …but then the Buddha knew that Bahiya had attained arahantship in a short time, after observing his death. From the “Bāhiya Sutta”: Ud 1.10

  • In another sutta, the Buddha reviews how four monks meditate. The two monks with sufficient urgency towards mindfulness don’t lose their mindfulness for longer than it takes to chew and swallow one mouthful of food.

Other References:

  • Iain McGilchrist speaks of the “stickiness” of the left brain hemisphere, in his book “The Master and his Emissary”. It seems as though mindfulness, as taught by the Buddha, is the way to continually counter this left-brain “stickiness”.

  • Youtube’s ads have become much more aggressive lately. A Canadian friend I was talking to expressed his frustration in the pattern he sees now, of ads interjected loudly in the middle of Dhamma Talks, with some time being unskippable:

    How do you feel about Youtube putting ads in the middle of Dhamma Talks?

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