From: https://youtube.com/watch?v=iI_stDfcOss

Context: Throughout this transcript, Bhante Vimalaramsi is the speaker unless otherwise indicated.

we've all read together

please sit with your back straight and

come here not by now repeat after me I

now take refuge in the Buddha the Buddha

find out to the group

I would take refuge in the Sun now

please read out loud do not just look at

it and say it is your mind

okay for the second time I take refuge

in the Buddha radiation never left for

the second time I take refuge in the

gamma radiation Adama for the second

time I take refuge in the Sun for the

third time I take refuge for the third

time I take refuge in the town for the

third time I take refuge in myself for

the time I take refuge in the Sun Mary

sets of my retreat will you

thank you please clear your mind and pay

close attention then repeat after me I

undertake to keep the precept to abstain

from killing or harming living beings on

purpose

I to keep the precept to abstain from

taking orders not given I am indeed the

precepts too much

you know I undertake to keep the preset

to abstain from all sexual activity

I am estate to be the receptor sexual

activity I undertake to keep the preset

to abstain from telling lives and our

speak I annotated he'd be sustaining

life and I undertake to the precept to

abstain from taking drugs and alcohol

pretty sister

I undertake to keep the precept to

abstain from eating solid food after the

noonday

I am eating the receptors

any solace

I undertake to keep the precept to

abstain from listening to music singing

dancing or beautifying my body with

makeup flowers or perfume

music

I undertake the precept to be loving and

kind to myself and all beings

now you've taken the three refuges and

the precepts taking this leads to

happiness and peace now let us read the

verses of the

together I lose the coroner of all evil

states my mind is cheap my mater height

the love speaks are actually because of

that suffering even as we oppose the

move all the drag bars mine is a

forerunner of all good states my name is

chief my mate early if one speaks or

acts in German because of that happiness

all US 17 ever days dismissed completely

defeated me he brought me in those who

harbor such a state written therapies

are usually

you Rodney Camilo's do not Harbor such

thoughts identities the apron is never

overcome by hatred in this world if

there is only over command of colonel in

the US and we imagine it official we

seize the essentials

the truth wow this is a 10-story

regardless of section what is

essentially our design essential anyone

who entertains a response will be Liza

to hear one to mind every crisis now and

in the future one rejoices in both

states the wealthy very delicious one

who is yours is a lot we see the cure

weed species and tell us one is happy

now

future in the old city then he had been

good in the past when I happy and the

person requests a protects but the

lesson accurately and give this person

is like counselors that no no share in

the priests number moldavite person

recites the sacred texts very little

acts in accordance with the changing you

give up lust hatred and delusion they

truly know what is good and this leads

to hide the history they claim is it

nothing here and in the future this

fruit

ok

it can't be stressed enough that taking

these precepts is not a game and it's

not a joke and it's not something just

to say well it's only the precepts it

doesn't matter it does matter very much

please follow those precepts as closely

as you possibly can if you break a

precept 12 you're on retreat come and

tell me and we'll take the precepts of

okay when you practice loving-kindness

meditation you first start by sending

loving and kind thoughts to yourself you

remember a time when you were happy when

that happy feeling arises it's a nice

glowing feeling in the center of your

chest when that feeling arises then you

make a wish for your own happiness

may I be happy my mind be peaceful and

calm may I be filled with joy whatever

wish you make for yourself you need to

feel that wish you know what it feels

like to be peaceful and calm then you

take that feeling and put it in your

heart and radiate that feeling to

yourself you know what it feels like to

be joyful then you take that feeling put

it in our heart and radiate that feeling

you can you can

make any wish that you feel is

appropriate if you're very restless then

you make a wish for peace and home if

your mind is upset about something then

you make a wish for acceptance

forgiveness

or peace and calm again

clarity there's another one that you can

make a wish for it whatever wish would

make you need to feel that way you know

what it feels like to have a clear open

night and put that feeling in your art

and radiate that feeling this is the

trick to loving kindness feeling the

wish and putting them in your heart and

sending them to yourself while you're

doing this your mind is going to think

about other things your mind will wander

and that's okay thoughts are not your

enemy to fight with as soon as you

recognize that your mind is distracted

even if you're in mid-sentence then

simply let go of that thought don't

continue thinking now every time a

distraction arises there is a tightness

that happens in your head and in your

body you need to relax that feeling when

you relax the tightness at you in your

head you'll feel animal your mind

becomes your your brain becomes more

open and more relaxed expand it a little

bit there's a membrane around your brain

and every time there is any kind of

thought or feeling or sensation then it

contracts a little bit

and when you let go and relax then it

goes back out the way it was it's very

necessary to be able to recognize this

and the let go of that tension and

tightness why because this is how

craving arises this tension and

tightness is how you can recognize the

craving

and every time you relax and let go of

that craving you are developing up your

mind okay so

you have a thought come up doesn't

matter what it is we don't care what the

content of the thought is it just

doesn't matter but as soon as you notice

then you let it go and you relax now

this is a smiling meditation put that

smile back in your on your face and in

your mind and heart

then bring up the feeling of loving

kindness make a wish for your happiness

feel that and stay with that for as long

as you can until your mind gets

distracted again if your mind wanders

for say 30 or 40 times and 30 or 40

times you notice that you let it go you

relax you smile you come back to your

object of meditation that is a good

meditation it's an active meditation to

be sure but that's okay a bad meditation

you have a thought arise and you think

it's so important that you keep thinking

it now you're not meditating at all

every time you let go of a distraction

and relax and smile and come back to

your meditation again that improves your

mindfulness

over a period of time that starts

building up and your mindfulness get

sharper so don't treat thoughts like

there's some kind of enemy that you're

supposed to beat it and make them go

away there are only thoughts it's okay

for them to be there it has to be okay

shows a truth is they're there that's

the Dhamma when you have a distracting

thought it's there that's the truth what

do you do with that dictates what

happens in the future for you if you

fight with the truth if you try to

control the truth if you try to make the

truth be the way it is or anything other

than it is then you're causing yourself

suffering

so our job is to lovingly accept

whatever distraction is there let it be

relax smile come back to your object of

meditation your object of meditation is

always the feeling of loving kindness

making a wish for your own happiness now

after about 10 minutes then you start

loving and kind thoughts to a spiritual

friend a spiritual friend is someone

that you very much respect that you like

very much and they are a person of the

same sex so women radiate loving

kindness to women men they radiate

loving kindness cement

don't choose a person of the opposite

sex don't choose a family member for

right now choose someone that you would

you think of them in their good

qualities you really like them you

really do sincerely wish them well so

the at first you're sending loving and

kind thoughts to yourself and then as I

feel this peace and calm maybe you have

this same feeling may you be peaceful

and calm now you start sending it to

your spiritual friend the same spiritual

friend all the time so choose well I

won't let you change

you don't go from one person to another

person to another person no you won't

you won't go very deep very quickly if

you do that you need to stay with the

same spiritual friend and wish them well

see them in your mind's eye the

visualization some people is very easy

to do other people is very difficult to

do doesn't matter some people when they

see they can see a picture just like

it's a photograph of their friend in

their mind other people their mind is

just blank but you have worse that you

use to visualize with so you can say

their name and that can bring them up

and then you'll feel their presence

that's enough okay

stay with your spiritual friend for the

rest of the city sit no less than 30

minutes now when you're sitting if you

start to feel sleepiness arising it is

because you're not taking enough

interest in your spiritual friend I'll

tell you how the sleepiness starts you

kind of slide off of your spiritual

friend and you just lightly start

thinking about this and that and then

you stink a little bit more and you

start slumping a little bit and now you

get very dreamy and before long Bobby

the reason that that happens is because

you didn't have enough interest in your

spiritual friend and then when you get

caught by sloth and torpor it's

difficult to let it go it's not easy

when you're practicing and you feel

sloth and torpor come on when you

straighten your back and come back to

your meditation straighten a little bit

more almost to the point of hurting not

quite but almost so you sit a little bit

straighter and then when your body when

you start slumping you'll be able to see

it and you can let go more quickly that

way you won't get caught with the lizard

head bobbing up and down

when you see your spiritual friend you

want to see them smiling and happy that

means that's a reminder for you to be

smiling and happy too this is a smiling

meditation now after a half an hour then

you can get up and start doing your

walking meditation if you want to walk

outside it's gorgeous out there I mean

I'm from Missouri it's cold this is

beautiful weather but pick a spot where

you walk back and forth maybe 40 feet 30

feet something like that keep your eyes

down not looking around because where

your eyes go there goes your mind and

then you're off a thousand miles away so

just keep your eyes lightly down and

stay with your spiritual friend stay

with that feeling of loving kindness

making a wish for your friend with that

loving kindness put your friend right in

the middle of your heart and surround

them with that feeling okay

now walking don't walk slowly walk at a

normal pace

if you have sloth and torpor when you do

you're walking meditation you walk to

the end of your walkway you stop you

don't turn around you walk backwards

staying with your spiritual friend then

when you get to the end of that you stop

and then you walk forwards you get to

the end and then you walk backwards you

just don't turn around that will pick up

your energy so that the slop and torpor

will go away stay with your spiritual

friend all of the time if you have to go

to the bathroom stay with your spiritual

friend and wish them happiness when you

take a shower stay with your friend in

this wish them happiness when you come

back to your city the first 10 minutes

you change back to yourself the rest of

the time while you're eating your meal I

don't care what else you're doing stay

with your spiritual friend and wish them

happiness keep smile on face

very important it helps your mind to be

uplifted and when your mind is uplifted

it's real easy to see when you're

getting serious and when you're serious

guess who has craving in their mind at

that time that's promise

you'll see very clearly that the more

you smile the easier it is to recognize

what your mind is

in the present moment it really works

this way so this is a smiling meditation

smile smile with your eyes a little

smile on your lips doesn't have to be

big it can be a little Buddha smile but

smile that's that's the one smile here

smile here this they did a touch test in

University of Minnesota the corners of

your mouth and they found out that when

the corners of your mouth go up just a

little bit so does your mental state and

when the corners of your mouth go down

just a little bit so does your mental

state so a little smile is all you need

and that will help keep your mind more

uplifted

when you're sitting is good and you

don't feel like breaking it at a half an

hour that keeps sitting

so you can sit for longer

sometimes you might sit for an hour the

next time you might only sit for a half

an hour that's okay but don't send any

less than 30 minutes now if you're going

to work the big challenge for you is to

be smiling all day smiles everyone you

talk to you get on the phone smile while

you're on the phone and you'll see that

everything becomes much easier when

you're smiling

ok

there any question

great picture

okay why don't we sit for half an hour

you