Ajahn Chah

Pain is not your home.

Pleasure and pain both decline and pass away.

The great teacher saw that all conditions are impermanent.

And so he taught us to let go of our attachment to them.

When we reach the end of our life, we'll have no choice anyway.

So we won't be able to take anything with us.

So wouldn't it be better to put things down before then?

They're just a heavy burden to carry around.

Why not throw off that load now?

Why bother to drag these things around?

Let go.

Relax.

And let your family look after you.

Those who nurse the sick grow in goodness and virtue.

The patient who is giving others that opportunity shouldn't make things difficult for them.

If there's pain or some problem or other, let them know and keep the mind in a wholesome state.

One who is nursing parents should fill his or her mind with warmth and kindness and not get caught up in aversion.

This is the one time you can repay your debt to them.

From your birth through your childhood, as you've grown up, you've been dependent on your parents.

That you are here today is because your mother and father have helped you in so many ways.