Zen at the Sharp End

The troublesome self – with Bhante Vannyapamsa

Mark Westmoquette Season 1 Episode 11

Bhante Vannyapamsa grew up in Sri Lanka in a Catholic family. He was drawn to Buddhism in his teens after a poignant encounter with an enlightened monk. After becoming a monk himself in Burma, he moved to the UK to study for his masters in cognitive science and has since founded the Dhamma Center in Colchester, Essex.

In this episode he talks very lucidly about his personal experience with working with prisoners in India, Burma and the UK. He candidly discusses the difficult time he had when he first became a Buddhist monk, and how his Catholic upbringing caused some conflict in expectations since it was very different to the background of the other monks. He goes on to talk about the importance of not taking on or absorbing other peoples energy, especially when interacting with difficult or troubled people. And he also gives some very sound advice about self-reflection and realisation, coming to terms with the self, and living in the present moment.

Support the show

This podcast is sponsored by Zen Minded – an online lifestyle store offering you the very best of Japanese craft, incense & other Zen-inspired home-goods. Check it out at www.zenminded.uk
We’re also sponsored by BetterHelp. BetterHelp offers convenient and affordable therapy online, helping match you with the right therapist from their network. They’ve extended an offer of 10% off your first month of therapy if you sign up via https://betterhelp.com/zenatthesharpend

If you liked this podcast, consider:

www.markwestmoquette.co.uk

People on this episode