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If it isn’t good, let it die. If it doesn’t die, make it good.

Ajahn Chah

See the world as a mirror. It is all a reflection of the mind. When you know this, you can grow in every moment, and every experience reveals truth and brings understanding.
AJAHN CHAH

Experience Mind Mirror Moment Reflection Reveal Truth Understanding
Don’t fall for it. Whenever the mind is happy or sad, don’t fall for it. Its all a deception.
AJAHN CHAH

Deception Fail Fall Happy Mind Sad
Things are simply the way they are. They don’t give us suffering. Like a thorn: Does a sharp thorn give us suffering?
AJAHN CHAH

Doe Giving Sharp Suffering Way
You should settle the issue right there. One who runs away from suffering out of fear is the most foolish person of all. He will simply increases his stupidity endlessly.
AJAHN CHAH

Endlessly Foolish Increase Issue Most One Right Settle Stupid Suffer
Better to begin practice without delay. I am like a good friend inviting you to go somewhere. Do not hesitate, just get going. You won’t regret it.
AJAHN CHAH

Better Delay Friend Going Good Hesitate Inviting Practice Regret Somewhere
The ultimate truth is like the flavour of an apple which you can’t see with the eye or hear with the ear.
AJAHN CHAH

Apple Ear Eye Flavour Hear Like Teaching Ultimate
If we want to really see the Buddha, we should observe his virtuous qualities.
AJAHN CHAH

Buddha Giving Need Observe Quality Up Virtue
When sitting in meditation, say, “That’s not my business!” with every thought that comes by.
AJAHN CHAH

Buddhist Business Inspirational Meditation Spiritual Thought
When nature finally calls, they have no idea where to go and are in a mess.
AJAHN CHAH

Call Finally Idea Mess Nature No
Try to be mindful, and let things take their natural course. Then your mind will become still in any surroundings, like a clear forest pool.
AJAHN CHAH

Animal Clear Course Forest Let Mind Mindful Natural Surround Thing Trying
When we sit in meditation and hear a sound, we think, ‘Oh, that sound’s bothering me.’ If we see it like this, we suffer. But if we investigate a little deeper,
AJAHN CHAH

Bother Deeper Hear Investigate Meditation Sound Suffer Think
A good practice is to ask yourself very sincerely, ‘Why was I born?’ Ask yourself this question in the morning, in the afternoon, and at night…every day.
AJAHN CHAH

Ask Born Day Every Good Morning Night Practice Question Sincerely Yourself
Mental activity is like a deadly poisonous cobra. If we don’t interfere with a cobra, how poisonous it may be, it simply goes its own away.
AJAHN CHAH

Activity Cobra Deadly Interface May Mental Own Poisonous Way
Happiness and suffering do not depend on being poor or rich, they depend on having the right or wrong understanding in our mind.
AJAHN CHAH

Depend Mind Poor Rich Suffer Understanding
If we only make merit but have not stopped doing bad things, then we will never have a day of completion. It is like an overturned bowl which is left outside in the rain.
AJAHN CHAH

Bad Bowl Completion Day Doing Make Merit Outside Overturn Rain Stop Thing
When we gain some understanding we need to chew on it again so that we see it for ourselves with certainty: paccattam.
AJAHN CHAH

Certainty Chew Need Ourselves Some Understanding
All religions are like different cars all moving in the same direction. People who don’t see it have no light in their hearts.
AJAHN CHAH

Car Different Direction Heart Light Moving Religion Same
Do everything with a mind that lets go. Do not expect praise or reward.
AJAHN CHAH

Everything Expectation Generosity Go Letting Mind Praise Reward
Wherever we start to think that things are certain, uncertainty is lurking right there. Heedlessness is just holding things as certain. It is grasping at certainty where there is no certainty and looking for truth in things that are not true. Be careful! They are likely to bite you sometime in the future!
AJAHN CHAH

Bite Careful Future Grasp Hold Lurk Sometimes Thing Think Truth Uncertainty
We should conquer ourselves, rather than conquer others. Whether coming or going, standing, sitting or lying down, our mind should be focused in this way.
AJAHN CHAH

Coming Conquer Down Focus Going Laying Ourselves Sitting Standing Way
If you let go completely you will have complete peace.
AJAHN CHAH

Complete Dharma Guy Ifs Let Go Peace
When one does not understand death, life can be very confusing.
AJAHN CHAH

Confuse Doe Life Death Understand
If we practise like this and develop mindfulness continuously, wisdom arises quickly and this is a fast way of practice.
AJAHN CHAH

Arise Continous Develop Fast Mindfulness Practice Quick Way Wisdom
People go through life blindly, ignoring death like revellers at a party feasting on fine foods. They ignore that later they will have to go to the toilet, so they do not bother to find out where there is one.
AJAHN CHAH

Blind Bother Death Feast Fine Food Idea Ignore Party People Toilet
To practice Dhamma means to observe and examine oneself.
AJAHN CHAH

Examine Mean One Oneself Practice
Read yourself, not books. Truth isn’t outside, that’s only memory, not wisdom. Memory without wisdom is like an empty thermos bottle – if you don’t fill it, it’s useless.
AJAHN CHAH

Book Bottle Memory Outside Read Wisdom Yourself
The Dharma Path is to keep walking forward. But the true Dharma has no going forward, no going backward, and no standing still.
AJAHN CHAH

Backward Forward Path Practice Standard Standing Still Walking

If it isn’t good, let it die. If it doesn’t die, make it good.

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If it isn’t good, let it die. If it doesn’t die, make it good.

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