Ajahn Brahmali: Day 5 Morning Session Dhamma Talk & Meditation 20.05.21
Channel: Anukampa Bhikkhuni Project
Date: 2021-05-20

Looking at AN 10.2 "Making A Wish", Ajahn Brahmali discusses the relationship between causal links which inevitably produce corresponding results. This sequence begins with ethics or ethical/moral conduct  which is a cause and condition for the next to arise. Ajahn remarks at the fact that particular teachings, such as that of Dependent Origination, which appear frequently in the suttas, are to be considered most important over less frequently appearing teachings and/or teachings in verse. Dependent Origination appears some 20-30 times in the discourses and it is closely related to the Recollections of Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha, the 7 Factors of Awakening, the 37 Aids to Awakening mentioned by the Buddha in the Mahaparanibbana Sutta. Here, Ajahn explains that ethical conduct as a foundation leads from one causal structure to the next, it also becomes part of one's habit and character: "it cannot be done by an act of will, in other words, this is a natural process occurring according to natural principles (cause and effect)". Letting go is the key to these things arising. By reviewing our own 'sila' (ethical conduct), we should try to find a solution to character flaws in ourselves, through patience and perseverance which at times may even prove difficult to address. The aim is to be build up our own moral fabric. By having Right View, our values are shaped by it and we work out what to avoid and where to find real satisfaction, that is to say, relying less on the external world, which is inherently dukkha and unreliable and placing more importance on our internal values as a secure place of refuge. Meditation then really takes off. It is also grounds for a lack of remorse in one's life, which can tend to bring down the buoyancy of the mind to a certain degree. 

This teaching is part of a special 8-day online retreat called “Why We Suffer & How We Get Free,” given by Ajahn Brahmali and Ven Canda in support of Anukampa Bhikkhuni Project. The teachings explore two of the Buddha’s famous causal sequences, Dependent Origination and Dependent Liberation, which together reveal the entire course of human experience, through this world and beyond to Nibbana. 
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