Meditation Talks by Ajahn Chah, Read by Luang Por Pasanno

Luang Por Pasanno reads two talks from volume two of the Collected Teachings of Ajahn Chah. In “Tranquility and Insight” Ajahn Chah describes finding balance in breath meditation, noting the breath at the nose tip, chest and abdomen, the five factors of the first absorption, and two routes to peace, through samadhi or through wisdom. In “Detachment within Activity” he tells of Sariputta saying he does not yet believe a teaching, a brahmin who clung to his own view, and the Buddha’s search through teachers and austerities. He explains how wanting the mind to be still adds suffering to its natural movement, and closes with advice on keeping the practice steady through the rains retreat. Pasanno then takes a few questions, among them how to keep interest rather than strain in breath practice and how to render terms such as equanimity. The questions are hard to hear.