Thanissaro Bhikkhu on Karma & Rebirth

"The same goes for our actions: We’re not really paying attention to what we’re doing because we’re often thinking about what we’re going to do next. Or we think about what we want to get out of the action and we’re not really looking at what we’re doing. As for the results, again, sometimes we don’t like the results of our actions, so we close our eyes. This is why there’s so much delusion in our lives. When you first look at these three stages of action, it’s pretty disconcerting. You see all the different things in your mind that you really don’t like — all the unskillful voices, all the unskillful motives. This is why you want to get the breath as comfortable as possible so that you can put yourself in a good mood, feeling settled, at ease, so that you can see the mind’s negative states without getting sucked into them, without getting depressed by them, without getting upset: simply, “Oh, yes, there’s that, too.” " ~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Dealing with Confusion"

"We live in a world where there are lots of influences around us: people, places. Of course, we were the ones who wanted to come here. I think I’ve told you the story about the nurse who was a victim of a lot of gossip in her workplace. One day when she was feeling especially oppressed by all this, she came to meditate with Ajaan Fuang. She had a vision in her meditation of being in a hall of mirrors: looking in one direction and seeing herself reflected back, back, back, back, back; looking in the other direction and seeing herself reflected back, back, back, back. The vision hinted that she’d probably been the victim of this sort of suffering many, many lifetimes. It made her feel even more oppressed. So she left meditation and talked to Ajaan Fuang about this, hoping that she’d get some comfort from him. Instead, he said, “Well, you were the one who wanted to be born as a human being in the first place.” It was like a slap in the face. But that’s the case. Each of us wanted to...

"We live in a society where people tend to take things for granted. It’s one of the drawbacks of having a lot of creature comforts to the point where they seem normal and we don’t notice them anymore. This taking things for granted tends to grow into a sense of entitlement. Not only do we have good things, but we feel that we should have good things and we get upset when we don’t. Some people have begun realizing the problem here, recommending that we cultivate gratitude for the things we have. But they’re not talking about gratitude for the things, but gratitude to the things. You’re grateful to your house for sheltering you; you’re grateful to your bed for supporting you, for giving you comfort. I’ve seen many articles written on the topic and have heard people talking about this many, many times, that we should be grateful to the things that provide us with comfort. But that’s not the Buddha’s take. Gratitude, he says, is not to things, it’s to people, to beings who’ve made ...

"Because interconnectedness through kamma is not very reassuring on the one hand, and very demanding on the other, it’s easy to see the appeal of a notion of Oneness benevolently designed to take care of us all in spite of our actions. And why that notion can appear to be a more compassionate teaching than interconnectedness through action, in that it provides a more comforting vision of the world and is more forgiving around the precepts. But actually, the principle of interconnectedness through our actions is the more compassionate teaching of the two — both in showing more compassion to the people to whom it’s taught and in giving them better reasons to act toward others in compassionate ways." ~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "We Are Not One"

"There are some things you can control. You can exert some control over what you do and you say and you think. This is one of the reasons why we meditate: to gain some control. Because where do our actions come from? They come from our intentions. Where are you going to see your intentions in action so that you can straighten them out? While you’re meditating. Just the simple act of noticing when the mind has wandered off and you bring it back; the simple act of noticing, “How can I breathe in a way that gives my mind a sense of comfort so that it wants to stay here”: All these simple acts help put you more in control of the mind, the area where you are responsible and the area where you can be in charge. There’s nobody in charge outside, but you can be in charge inside your mind. That’s where you can find your refuge. So do your best to make this refuge strong. Because otherwise, you’ll have nothing to hold onto." ~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Owners of Our Actions"

"It’s often the case that when we’re disappointed outside, it’s not just the case that we simply suffer. We can also lash out at what we don’t like — out of disappointment, out of a sense of being treated unjustly. That often creates more problems, just more bad karma. So this practice we do is not only for our own good in the sense of finding a reliable sense of comfort inside, but also it means that we can become more reliable in our actions — the things we do and say and think. In that way, regardless of what’s happening outside, we can behave in a responsible manner, a harmless manner." ~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Inner Refuge"