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12 EASTERN HORIZON | TEACHINGS

Attachment

By Ajahn Brahm

Ajahn Brahm (Ajahn Brahmavamso Probably the most misunderstood upādāna, literally meaning ‘a taking
Mahathera), born Peter Betts in term in Western Buddhist circles up’. It is commonly used indicating
London in 1951, is a Theravada is that usually translated as a ‘fuel’, which sustains a process,
Buddhist monk. Ajahn Brahm grew ‘attachment’. Too many have got it such as the oil in a lamp being
up in London and earned a degree in into their head that they shouldn’t the fuel/upādana for the flame. It
Theoretical Physics from Cambridge be attached to anything. Thus jokes is related to craving (taṇhā). For
University. Disillusioned with the abound such as the one on why example, craving is reaching out for
world of academe, he trained as the houses of Buddhists have dirt the delicious cup of coffee, upādāna
a monk in the jungles of Thailand in the corners - because they don’t is picking it up. Even though you
under Ajahn Chah. A monk for allow even their vacuum cleaner think that you can easily put the cup
over thirty years, Ajahn Brahm is any attachments. Some misguided of coffee down again, though your
a revered spiritual guide and the pseudo-Buddhists criticise those hand is not superglued to the cup, it
abbot of Bodhinyana Monastery, living a moral life as being attached is still upādāna. You have picked it
in Serpentine, Western Australia— to their precepts and thus praise up. You have grasped.
one of the largest monasteries immoral action as a sign of deep
in the southern hemisphere. He wisdom. Bah! Others in traditional Fortunately not all upādāna is un-
is also the Spiritual Director of Buddhist circles create fear of deep Buddhist. The Lord Buddha only
the Buddhist Society of Western meditation by incorrectly stating specified four groups of upādāna:
Australia, and spiritual adviser and that you will only get attached ‘taking up’ the five senses, ‘taking
inspiration for Buddhist centers to the jhānas. It all goes too far. up’ wrong views, ‘taking up’ the
throughout Asia and Australia. His Perhaps the pinnacle of mischievous idea that liberation may be attained
winning combination of wit and misinformation was said by simply through rites and initiations,
wisdom makes his books bestsellers Rajneesh who claimed “I am so and ‘taking up’ the view of a self.
in many languages, and on his detached, I am not even attached to There are many other things that
teaching tours Brahm regularly detachment” and thus conveniently one may ‘take up’ or grasp, but the
draws multinational audiences of excused all his excesses. point is that only these four groups
thousands. The Pāli word in question is lead to rebirth, only these four are