Clear Mountain Monastery Project

A conversation with Debbie Stamp, upāsaka steward and founding force of Abhayagiri Forest Monastery (www.abhayagiri.org)

00:00:00 Welcome and Introduction

00:02:36 Debbie's Role at Abhayagiri

00:03:13 Moments of Faith Leading to Monastery Life

00:06:29 Early Faith Experience in Catholicism

00:07:38 Transition from England to Rural California

00:09:22 Meeting and Connecting with Luang Por Pasanno

00:15:37 Navigating the Space Between Monastery and Lay Life

00:18:10 Working Internally with Belonging and Suffering

00:25:05 Advice for Women Considering Ordination

00:27:23 Understanding What It Means to Follow the Heart

00:39:27 Working with Anger and Perspective Shifts

00:41:46 Thriving as a Female Layperson in a Male Monastic Space

00:48:08 Personal Relationship to the Triple Gem

00:51:29 Meaning and Reflection on "Anicca Vata Saṅkhāra"

00:54:23 Influential Teachers and Expressions of Gratitude

00:58:15 The Dhamma of Caregiving and Family End-of-Life Support

01:07:10 Gratitude and Reflections on 30 Years of Abhayagiri

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Tune in with fellow practitioners for Clear Mountain’s weekly online and hybrid events!

- Wednesday Evening Teaching & Discussion (6:00 – 7:30 pm PT, YouTube then Zoom)

- Saturday Morning Meditation, Teaching, & Coffee Social (9:30 - 11 am PT, Online & In-Person)

- Sunday Evening “Mission Majjhima!” Sutta Teaching & Discussion (5:00 - 6 pm PT, Online)

See https://www.clearmountainmonastery.org/ or visit https://linktr.ee/clear_mountain_monastery for details. Welcome!

In this Q&A session, Ajahn Sona speaks about how to hold the fraught political landscape of the present, the significance of our daily actions and intentions as "political" acts, the karma of voting (or not!), the cultivation of deep concentration, and more. For more information about Ajahn Sona and Birken Forest Monastery, visit: https://birken.ca/

Ajahn Sona Biography:

Ajahn Sona is a first-wave Western Theravada-ordained monk and the Abbot of Birken Forest Buddhist Monastery (‘Birken’). With over thirty years in the robes, he is now referred to as ‘Luang Por’ (‘Venerable Father’) by his closest disciples – a traditional honorific for senior monks of the Thai Forest Tradition.

After several years of practice as a lay hermit, the young Bhikkhu Sona took full monastic ordination in 1989 with Bhante Henepola Gunaratana Mahathera at the first Theravada forest monastery in the United States (The Bhavana Society, West Virginia). He later switched to the Thai Forest Tradition and trained at Ajahn Chah’s monasteries in northeastern Thailand for several years. Ajahn Sona now draws on both the Sri Lankan and Thai scholastic and meditative traditions in his teachings, in addition to his modern western sensibilities. His pre-monastic education in philosophy, humanities, and classical Western music have aided him in understanding the Western psyche and in establishing paradigm bridges between East and West.

Ajahn Sona is also deeply interested in the ecological movements of this environmentally critical time, both at the practical and philosophical levels. The off-grid monastery, which he has carefully curated over the last two decades, employs the latest in green design technologies and principles

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Tune in with fellow practitioners for Clear Mountain’s weekly online and hybrid events!

- Wednesday Evening Teaching & Discussion (6:00 – 7:30 pm PT, YouTube then Zoom)

- Saturday Morning Meditation, Teaching, & Coffee Social (9:30 - 11 am PT, Online & In-Person)

- Sunday Evening “Mission Majjhima!” Sutta Teaching & Discussion (5:00 - 6 pm PT, Online)

See https://www.clearmountainmonastery.org/ or visit https://linktr.ee/clear_mountain_monastery for details. Welcome!

In this Q&A, done with the Pali Canon - Majjhima Nikaya - Book Club (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69n9ObQ6zIo), Ajahn Nisabho answers questions regarding truth as revealed in three Suttas, the Cāṅki Sutta (MN 95), the Subha Sutta (MN 99), and the Dhammacetiya Sutta (MN 89). Using the three discourses as a framework, we see how the Buddha taught us to protect, realize, and honor truth. To find out more about the Pali Canon - Majjhima Nikaya - Book Club, visit https://majjhima.club/en/.

- Cāṅki Sutta (MN 95): https://suttacentral.net/mn95/en/bodhi?lang=en&reference=none&highlight=false

- Subha Sutta (MN 99): https://suttacentral.net/mn99/en/sujato?lang=en&layout=plain&reference=none&notes=asterisk&highlight=false&script=latin

- Dhammacetiya Sutta (MN 89): https://suttacentral.net/mn89/en/sujato?lang=en&layout=plain&reference=none&notes=asterisk&highlight=false&script=latin

You can find summaries of these Suttas, and more, on Clear Mountain's Mission Majjhima Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLomY-Sp4p5YsIVG0DmvJhUcR6YaXR_3wf

Chapters

00:00 - Introduction & Ordination Story

07:47 - Living a Life Worthy of Death

11:44 - Why the Majjhima Nikaya?

14:46 - MN 95: Epistemic Humility & Knowing the Truth

44:20 - MN 99: Intention & Lay Practice

54:40 - MN 89: King Pasenadi & Monuments to the Dhamma

58:34 - Q&A: Do You Need Jhanas for Enlightenment?

01:04:40 - Q&A: Navigating Difficult Sutta Passages

01:08:58 - The Rare Opportunity of the Dhamma & Closing Blessing

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Tune in with fellow practitioners for Clear Mountain’s weekly online and hybrid events!

- Wednesday Evening Teaching & Discussion (6:00 – 7:30 pm PT, YouTube then Zoom)

- Saturday Morning Meditation, Teaching, & Coffee Social (9:30 - 11 am PT, Online & In-Person)

- Sunday Evening “Mission Majjhima!” Sutta Teaching & Discussion (5:00 - 6 pm PT, Online)

See https://www.clearmountainmonastery.org/ or visit https://linktr.ee/clear_mountain_monastery for details. Welcome!

A conversation with Venerable Robina Courtin (https://robinacourtin.com/):

00:00:00 Introduction

00:02:13 Meaning of the saying "Everything exists on the tip of a wish."

00:03:08 Wish that brought Venerable Robina into robes

00:05:52 Inspirations that sparked faith in Lama Yeshe and Lama Zopa

00:08:10 Concept of the guru as a fourth jewel in Tibetan Buddhism

00:08:52 Reasons for feeling safe with two male Tibetan teachers

00:12:08 Evolution and deepening of the relationship with teachers over decades

00:17:15 Origins and physical experience of prostration practice

00:21:55 Recitations/commitments accompanying prostrations in different traditions

00:22:54 Working with inmates through the Liberation Prison Project

00:28:48 Parallels between incarcerated individuals and the four heavenly messengers

00:30:42 Transitioning from feminism into a male-dominated monastic hierarchy

00:31:09 Navigating monasticism and advice for women entering spiritual traditions

00:36:20 Differences between ordination and lay life across Buddhist schools

00:40:09 Central role of karma and addressing concerns about victim blaming

00:43:34 Explaining karma in relation to innocent suffering and everyday good fortune

00:45:40 "Hinayāna"?

00:46:24 Comparing the scope and levels of different Buddhist Vehicles

00:52:14 Nature and reality of deities, Bodhisattvas, and Green Tara

00:57:11 Relating to diverse, wrathful, and peaceful deity manifestations

00:59:24 Meaning, mechanics, and karmic benefits behind water bowl offerings

01:02:29 Applying Dharma to world news without falling into depression or panic

01:05:25 Practical morning intentions and simple daily vows for lay practitioners

Biography of Venerable Robina Courtin:

Ordained since the late 1970s, Ven. Robina has worked full time since then for Lama Thubten Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT). Over the years she has served as editorial director of Wisdom Publications, editor of Mandala Magazine, executive director of Liberation Prison Project, and as a touring teacher of Buddhism. Her life and work with prisoners have been featured in the documentary films Chasing Buddha and Key to Freedom.

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The link to the 7:00-7:45 pm Zoom session following the livestream may be found on the event listing at https://www.clearmountainmonastery.org/events/wednesday/.

Tune in with fellow practitioners for Clear Mountain’s weekly online and hybrid events!

- Wednesday Evening Teaching & Discussion (6:00 - 7:45 pm PT, YouTube then Zoom)

- Saturday Morning Meditation, Teaching, & Coffee Social (9:30 - 11:00 am PT, Online & In-Person)

- Sunday Evening “Mission Majjhima!” Sutta Teaching & Discussion (5:00 - 6:00 pm PT, Online)

See https://www.clearmountainmonastery.org/ or visit https://linktr.ee/clear_mountain_monastery for details. Welcome!

In this talk, Bhante Rāhula, visiting from Paññabhumi Monastery in Jalisco, Mexico, speaks about the danger of expectation, and how attachment to our desires inevitably leads to suffering. By seeing this dynamic with wisdom, replacing expectation with aspiration, and cultivating gratitude, we can escape from the vicious cycle. Sadhu! Visit https://www.bhanterahula.com/ or https://dhamma-pb.org/en to learn more.

Bio

Bhante Rāhula, born in Mexico, has spent the last 22 years in Asia in various periods, where he has practiced and studied the Dhamma.He was ordained in Myanmar by Sayadaw Dr. Nandamālābhivaṃsa, who is his preceptor. Since 2004 he has received meditation guidance from Sayadaw U Tejaniya. For 6 years, Bhante studied Suttas and Abhidhamma with Sayadaw Dr. Ukkamsacara in Macau. In 2019, he completed a course on Buddhist scriptures from Harvard University. He underwent monastic Vinaya training for 2 years in Sasanarakkha Buddhist Sanctuary in Malaysia under the guidance of Ven. Ariyadhammika, where he also led retreats and Dhamma activities for the local community. Currently, Bhante is constructing the Mexican Buddhist Center (Paññābhūmi) to introduce and propagate the Buddha’s teaching in South America. He is also actively involved in diverse programs to aid parts of the society in overcoming drug addiction and alcoholism, as well as supporting educational campaigns for children and teens to prevent such problem in this region. Visit bhanterahula.com or https://dhamma-pb.org/en to learn more.

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Tune in with fellow practitioners for Clear Mountain’s weekly online and hybrid events!

- Wednesday Evening Teaching & Discussion (6:00 – 7:45 pm PT, YouTube then Zoom)

- Saturday Morning Meditation, Teaching, & Coffee Social (9:30 - 11 am PT, Online & In-Person)

- Sunday Evening “Mission Majjhima!” Sutta Teaching & Discussion (5:00 - 6 pm PT, Online)

See https://www.clearmountainmonastery.org/ or visit https://linktr.ee/clear_mountain_monastery for details. Welcome!