"I like the story about the daft boy who
was a superb meditator. But can you see
any benefits of intelligence to make the
smart ones here feel better
and prevent lobotomies?"
(laughter)
No, I can't. Look, in that book
'Opening the Door of Your Heart',
there was a poem in there which I got from
Su Tung-Po, the famous Chinese poet.
And if I remember as best I can, it was called
'On the Birth of my Son' that was the title.
And it went something like this:
"On the birth of a son
most parents want them to grow up intelligent.
But I hope my son turns out stupid
Because I, through intelligence, have wrecked my whole life.
If my son is stupid, then he'll have a
very tranquil life and complete his
peaceful existence by becoming a cabinet minister."
(laughter)
Because that's where most stupid people end up these days.
But it's very beautiful because sometimes intelligence,
you know we praise intelligence, but sometimes
it drives people crazy
because intelligence is not wisdom.
Intelligence means you're a very powerful thinker,
but you don't see the truth of anything.
That's why, sometimes, intelligence,
the way that we...look, I had a big degree
from a great university. And then went
over to Thailand and met someone like an
Ajahn Chah—four years at school.
And after a week staying with that monk, it was very clear
to me who was intelligent, who was stupid.
I was the stupid one.
And I thought: what is going on? All that hard
work at school at university and I was
nowhere near as intelligent as a fellow
just done four years at school.
That really made me doubt our system of
education. Yea, it teaches us to know a
lot of things but to understand very little.
It's the trouble with education.
You know, we just ... it's old people's knowledge
we're told what to believe,
and very rarely are we asked to challenge
anything and to enquire.
That's the way to be wise: to ask questions,
you challenge, challenge yourself as well,
ask the questions, see differently.
I often say that monks and bhikkhunis we can think
out of the box because we live out of the box,
you know, we're not in the normal way of living.
Sometimes it's very hard being
a monk because, for example, sometimes
to do something, you need proof of identity.
And proof of identity means, you know,
"Can we see your social security card?"
Don't have one. "Your marriage license?"
Don't have that. "Driving license?" No.
"Bank account details?" No. "Credit card?"
No. So as a monk in many systems,
same in the US I'd imagine, but certainly in Australia,
you don't exist; you're off the record.
I haven't got a tax file number
because I don't earn any money
so you don't have a tax file number.
So in many, many ways,
you just off the radar of the government;
you don't exist, which is very great
until, sometimes, you have to prove
evidence that you are who you are.
You know what I did once? I was checking in at
the airport and it was a domestic flight
so I didn't have enough ID.
So they said, "We can't let you on the flight."
But you know what I had? Had a copy of my book
and it had a photo of me. [laughter]
I said, "Look, see this is my book, this is me. See!" [laughter]
And that got me on the flight because its photo ID.
I was very fortunate
I was just carrying a couple of copies to give away
So sometimes that's what actually happens.
So, a lot of times, it's nice just being simple
because all intelligence does
it just thinks old thoughts,
carries on in old ways
You really have to think something different.
This is a deep simile.
Like, becoming enlightened...
you know that people strive for years
trying to get enlightened. But what it truly is
is like crossing the stream.
—that's how the Buddha used to describe it
crossing the stream.
And it's not a very wide stream
you can actually step over it.
The trouble is we always go in the same direction
going upstream or downstream,
upstream or downstream.
We never actually learn how to go in this other direction
just to cross.
And that crossing is just letting go
But we don't know how to let go.
We're always trying... you tell people to let go
and they try to let go.
"Come on, let go!
Come on, I'm going to let go now. I really am going to let go"
That's not letting go,
that's doing more things;
you're still going in the same direction
doing more of the same.
And that's the reason why people
don't get anywhere in their meditation; it's just more of the same
more of the same, more of the same.
More desire, more craving,
attaining more things, doing more things.
And the opposite direction is very radical:
sit here and doing absolutely nothing.
"I'll fall asleep!", "I'll go restless!",
"It'll get even worse!" Do it differently;
not more of the same; not just the way you
live your life: struggle, strive,
make it work, make it happen.
This is not a personal attainment; it's where you,
your ego, vanishes and disappears;
you're not there anymore. And that means that you
have to totally let go of this 'will', this 'doing'
Be still and see things disappear:
it's a different direction. And that's why
you have to, you know, live out the box,
think out of the box, do out of the box.
And your intelligence has actually got you
into a one track mind, only doing things
in a certain way. And to get that enlightenment
you have to put all that aside,
let it totally go, and do something
radical and different;
not to think like other people
not to imitate anybody, not even Ajahn Brahm,
If you try and do it my way;
no, it's just more doing. Totally let go;
abandon everything, vanish—that's how
enlightenment happens.
You feel like you've been going up the stream, down the stream,
never getting across. You just turn around
in a direction you've never gone before: perpendicular.
You just step over.
It is as simple as that. You realize that's letting go.
You're disappearing; no more ego, no more 'me'
"Is it okay to make a few notes of the talks?"