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| The fruit of being a Buddhist nun is attainment. |
(Part 1) Beth Upton no longer thinks in terms of “Should I ordain or not ordain?” Rather, her goal is understanding the Four Noble Truths at deeper levels, which she can do as a Buddhist nun or layperson.
In fact, she realizes now that while her time in robes was extremely valuable, her monastic experiences limited her to some degree.
The conversation moves to a discussion of the Abhidhamma or "Higher Doctrine." The Thai Forest Tradition tends to dismiss it as not an authentic teaching, but it is central as commentary to many Dharma teachings and practices in Burma.
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| Pa Auk Sayadaw: Abhidhamma (Sayalay Susila) |
She thinks that someday, if she “gets a minute,” she might even write a book about it.
Initially somewhat fearful of taking up a teaching role, it developed naturally starting in the gypsy caves of southern Spain. She spoke with Pa Auk Sayadaw about her inclination to teach in the West, and he has been encouraging. He noted that other Western students of his, such as Shaila Catherine, teach his method in the West, putting their own spin on it.
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| When one sees for oneself, one knows. |
So he encouraged her to go with the flow and teach from the heart, which provides more flexibility. In that spirit, she bases her teaching on the method she succeeded with alongside Pa Auk Sayadaw and tailors her instruction to individual meditators.
She also works strictly on a dana (donation) basis. She says, “I made the determination if anybody asks me to teach, I will say ‘yes.’ And so I've just gone with that since then. I started leading retreats and seeing people benefit.
“Only recently I started to get a growing confidence with it more and enjoy it. I really delight in seeing people's understanding of the Dharma grow.”
To learn more about Beth Upton’s teachings, visit her website (bethupton.com).
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