itslikethis-ajahn-chah

The Language of the DhammaAll languages come together in the language of the Dhamma. I’ll give you asimple example. When we boil water for tea so that it’s hot, the word “hot” inThai is rawn. In Isaan it’s hawn. In English, they say, hot. That’s the way it is.Languages are like that. Each person speaks in his or her own language,even though it’s all the same heat. If you want to find where all these languagescome together, the language of heat all comes together where we stick ourfinger into the tea. If you get a Chinese person to stick his finger into the tea,the heat is no different from when you get a Westerner or an English person tostick his finger into the tea. The only difference is in the language of the words.Heat is the same for everybody. When you know heat, it means that you knowhow it is for everyone.Open Your EyesPeople, if they don’t feel pain, don’t open their eyes. If they’re happy,everything shuts down and they get lazy. When suffering stabs you: That’s whatgets you thinking, and you can really expand your awareness. The greater thepain, the more you have to investigate it to see what causes it. You can’t just sitthere and let the pain go away on its own. Right now my arm feels heavy—why? Because I’ve picked up this glass. If I let it go, the glass won’t be heavy,or at least won’t be heavy on me, because I’m not connected with it.The same with stress and pain: Why is it heavy? Why is it painful?Because you’re holding onto it. But you don’t understand that it’s stressful.You think that it’s something special, something good. When you’re told to letit go, you can’t let it go. When you’re told to put it down, you can’t put it down.So you keep on being heavy, keep on suffering.