Mindfulness meditation from the Theravada tradition for the spiritual development of people of all faiths & none. Online courses & support since 1997

All of Us Beset by birth, decay, and death Twelve Dhamma Talks On Practice

given on

Parappuduwa Nuns Island by

Sister Ayya Khema

Preface

This little volume is offered to all people everywhere, who know dukkha which is not only suffering, pain and grief, but all the unsatisfactoriness all of us experience during our lifetime.

It is that unfulfilled striving in heart and mind which keeps pushing us in so many directions to find the ultimate satisfaction.

When we have realized that all the avenues we have tried have brought us to a dead end, then the time has come to turn to Lord Buddha's teachings and see for ourselves whether his promise:

"There's only one thing I teach

That's suffering

And its end to reach"

As practice progresses, we will find that by letting go of our preconceived ideas on how and where dukkha can be avoided, we come upon uncharted landscapes within ourselves, which provide a totally new concept of life, its purpose, its value and its ultimate reality.

May there be many "with little dust in their eyes" who can turn the tide on dukkha and be liberated.

Sister Ayya Khema

Contents

Appreciation

My thanks go to all the nuns, anagarikas, laymen and women who have listened time and again to my expositions of the Buddha's teachings.

Without them, these talks would not have happened and this little booklet would not be possible.

A very special "thank you" to my friends, who have encouraged and supported my work and the publication of this book by their continued understanding and generosity.

Those who have typed the manuscript from tapes made during the talks, have given freely of their time, energy and love to the propagation of the Dhamma.

May everyone connected with this joint undertaking reap the excellent kamma caused by their gift.

Sister Ayya Khema

Parappuduwa Nuns Island

Dodanduwa, Sri Lanka

January 1, 1987

Copyright © 1988 Sister Ayya Khema. For free distribution only. You may print copies of this work for your personal use. You may re-format and redistribute this work for use on computers and computer networks, provided that you charge no fees for its distribution or use. Otherwise, all rights reserved. This electronic edition was originally transcribed from the print edition in 1994 by Maureen Riordan under the auspices of the DharmaNet Dharma Book Transcription Project, with the kind permission of the author.

Back to Ayya Khema index page