Enhancing Our Dhamma Practice during Rains Retreat | Ajahn Dhammasiha | Dhammagiri

The annual three months 'Rains Retreat' period ('Vassa') abserved by the monks and nuns is also an excellent opportunity for the lay community to enhance their level of effort and commitment in their Dhamma practice. Ajahn Dhammasiha discusses a wide range of options to increase one's 'bhāvanā' (mental cultivation), e.g.: - Coming more regurlarly to the monastery - Offering food, other requisites, or financial donations - Staying as guest in the monastery on retreat - Purifying one's observance of the 5 precepts - Doing one day a month (usually around full moon) on 8 precepts, or perhaps even one day a week - Determining to do regular evening/morning chanting - Learning chanting by heart, at least parts, in Pāli or English - Perhaps even studying Pali - Studying the Suttas, the original teachings of the Buddha (in translation) - Listening more regualrly to Dhamma Talks on Youtube, Spotify and so on. - Making a resolution to sit formal meditation at least 30 min every day, or perhaps even one hour, or two hours (depending how much one is already regularly doing) - Doing lots of walking meditation - Determining: for these three months, whatever happens, whatever anyone may do, or not do, or say or write to me, I will not get angry. And even if I get angry, I will not speak any angry words... Our Podcast on our own Dhammagiri Website, no need for any special app, just listen in any browser: https://www.dhammagiri.net/podcast More about Dhammagiri Forest Hermitage: https://www.dhammagiri.net/news Our Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@dhammatalksatdhammagiri8724 Our email Newsletter: https://tinyletter.com/dhammagiri/archive Our Podcasts on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0SHWfWEGkO8OAtSWNJlqyD Our Podcasts on Apple/itunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dhammagiri-buddhist-podcasts/id1534539834 .