Like a flag on the end of a pole

Knowing the mind

One of my favourite Dharma books is entitled Being Dharma.  It is by the wonderful Thai master Ajahn Chah, a master of many westerners who teach Dharma today. He speaks to our experience, to both our mind and our heart, and is so clear and incisive. I don’t read the book from the beginning to the end, rather I pick it up and open a page here and there until I alight on a passage that resonates. And then I stay with that, and I read it over and over until something settles. I find it so reassuring to find the same truths in all Buddhist traditions – his being the Theravada tradition and mine being Tibetan Buddhism. These are the core truths that the Buddha taught.

I would like to share one passage with you on the mind. I find the images he uses very evocative. They express qualities and a feel that cannot be put into words. This understanding of mind comes about as a result of mindfulness practice and personal reflection. In Theravada, mindfulness is very special. Mindfulness of body, f…