LP Tiradhammo and Venerable Pannya in Victoria May 2022
LP Tiradhammo and Ven Pannya attended the Grand Opening of the new Sala at Vimokkharam Forest Hermitage in Victoria. They also visited Ajahn Sudhammo at Nigrodharam Hermitage in Seymour. Photo Gallery: Victoria Visit May 2022
Meditation Retreat in Indonesia
Ajahn Khemavaro lead a 4-Day Meditation Retreat on Bangka Island in Indonesia from 6th to 9th May. Picture Gallery: Bangka Retreat
Upcoming Retreats
Queen’s Birthday
Long Weekend Retreat
with Ajahn Khemavaro
Friday 10th to Monday 13th June 2022
Long Weekend Retreat Registration
Fully Booked–Waiting List Open
Spiritual Indulgence Weekend Retreat
with Ajahn Khemavaro
Friday 8th to Sunday 10th July 2022
Weekend Retreat Registration
The Beauty of Simplicity and Silence
Weekend Retreat
with Ajahn Khemavaro
Friday 7th to Sunday 9th October 2022
Weekend Retreat Registration
To register for upcoming retreats, please register at Eventbrite or click on link attached to that retreat.
Rains Retreat 2022
14th July to 11th October
You are cordially invited to spend the
Rains Retreat at the Wat.
To serve and to deepen your practice.
Minimum stay of one month and priority will be given to those who can commit for the entire three months.
To register for the Rains retreat, please complete the application form on the WBD website.
For more info regarding the monastery, visit our website www.wbd.org.au. For further enquiries, please email wbdretreats@gmail.com or call the office at 0409-389-887 between 9 – 12 noon.
Recent Dhamma Talks on YouTube
Ajahn Chah’s Teachings: Meditation is a Way of Life
by Ajahn Tiradhammo
The Art of Letting Go
by Ajahn Tiradhammo
The Action of No Action
by Ajahn Tiradhammo
The Path of Practice
by Ajahn Khemavaro
What is True Happiness?
by Ajahn Khemavaro
Q & A with Ajahn Chah
Q: Does one have to practise and gain samadhi (concentration) before one can contemplate the Dhamma?
Ajahn Chah: We can say that’s correct from one point of view, but from the aspect of practice, panna has to come first. In conventional terms, it’s sila (virtue), samadhi (concentration), and then panna (wisdom), but if we are truly practising the Dhamma, then panna comes first. If panna is there from the beginning, it means that we know what is right and what is wrong; and we know the heart that is calm and the heart that is disturbed and agitated.
Talking from the scriptural basis, one has to say that the practice of restraint and composure will give rise to a sense of shame and fear of any form of wrong-doing that potentially may arise. Once one has established the fear of that which is wrong and on no longer acting or behaving wrongly, then that which is wrong will not be present within, this provides the conditions from which calm will arise in its place That calm forms a foundation from which samadhi will grow and develop over time.
When the heart is calm, that knowledge and understanding which arises from within that calm is called vipassana (clear seeing). This means that from moment to moment there is a knowing in accordance with the truth, and within this are contained different properties. If one was to set them down on paper they would be sila, samadhi and panna. Talking about them, one can bring them together and say that these three dhammas form one mass and are inseparable. But if one were to talk about them as different properties, then it would be correct to say sila, samadhi and panna.
However, if one was acting in an unwholesome way, it would be impossible for the heart to become calm. So it would be most accurate to see them as developing together, and it would be right to say that this is the way that the heart will become calm. Talking about the practice of samadhi; it involves preserving sila, which includes looking after the sphere of one’s bodily actions and speech, in order not to do anything which is unwholesome or would lead one to remorse or suffering. This provides the foundation for the practice of calm, and once one has a foundation in calm, this in turn provides a foundation which supports the arising of panna.
Excerpt from Recollections of Ajahn Chah: Chapter 8 Questions and Answers II
To download, click here: Recollections of Ajahn Chah
For more teachings from Ajahn Chah, please click here: Ajahn Chah Teachings