Shadowing Practice: Basking in the Buddhas Metta on Vesak | Ajahn Canda | 2nd May 2026 - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Fantastic!
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So now it is time to soften our minds to whatever we feel,
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not to gain a particular feeling but just to be with ourselves in a kind
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and gentle way and we can start by doing whatever we need to do to just settle in.
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So for me that's usually having another sip of hot water, for you might be the same.
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Having a stretch and purposely giving yourself the message to,
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or let's say the invitation to slow down.
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As though you have all the time in the world for yourself just to be here without any pressure.
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Ajahn Brahm often says the effort stops once you reach the meditation cushion.
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So you've done the effort in your daily lives and
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if you're living virtuous lives prioritizing the Dhamma and the practice in your life,
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no matter what you feel, no matter how rushed you are, how busy you are, how sad you feel.
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You're prioritizing the Dhamma by being here so you have done 99 % of the work
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and today I wanted to emphasize the idea of receiving loving kindness, so being even more passive with our practice.
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And I thought I'd bring in some inspiring reflections on the Buddha
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because this is the month of Vesak and it really is a whole month of Vaisak this year.
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Vaisak is the celebration of the Buddha's birthday, enlightenment day and final passing into Parinibbana day.
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So all three in one and there were two full moons in one as well.
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So first full moon was yesterday, the next full moon will be on the 31st of May.
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So Buddhist communities around the world are celebrating one or the other
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or perhaps both and
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so it feels like the whole month is a celebration of the Buddha's life
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and more than that who the Buddha was as a person.
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He was a human being, not a god, not a deva.
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He was in fact the teacher of gods and devas
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as well as human beings and he was obviously from another time but essentially like us.
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He struggled, He had doubts, he had despair, he had relationships,
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he had a lot of wealth and also a lot of suffering and that made him turn towards a spiritual search.
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And yesterday we were talking about ways to observe the Uposata days
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which are the full moon days
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and one of those ways is to reflect on who the Buddha was
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and what he taught and in that particular sutta
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that we looked at if anyone's interested it's Anguttwinikaya chapter 3 verse 70 the Buddha says
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that by reflecting on his qualities on the Dhamma
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and also on the Sangha the people who are practicing even into the present day our mind becomes placid
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which means calm and tranquil, it becomes joyful and the defilements of the mind which means the greed,
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hate and delusion, all those mental afflictions that cause suffering for ourselves disappear,
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they are abandoned by these reflections and one of the reflections
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that came through very strongly yesterday in what we appreciate about the Buddha and his teachings was the Brahma Viharas,
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his compassion, his incredible loving kindness for all beings, not for some beings, not for particular beings, but for all beings in every direction,
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as far as time and space actually go.
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And just this incredible quality of loving kindness and compassion that even transcended generations.
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And I was saying, you know, that one of the most remarkable things
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that stands out for me as an expression of his kindness
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and compassion is the fact
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that he was establishing the teachings for the sake of future
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generations in other words for the sake of Oz right and
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that is why he established a fourfold assembly or a universal assembly
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which means people in every sector of society let's say whatever
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gender whatever race whatever background at all sexual orientation etc he wanted people to be enlightened before he passed away.
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so that the Dhamma would last for a very long time.
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And he did all of this for us.
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And just to really contemplate that and reflect on that, it brings goosebumps.
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It brings a lot of joy to me because I realised that he knew there would be people like us practicing.
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Maybe not on Zoom, but somehow or the other we would be trying to practice, trying to find our own way out of suffering
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and following his teachings even today and here we are doing just
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that and so just to try and contact some of
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that compassion that a buddha has for us that love
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that unconditional love sometimes it can be easy to feel a little bit of unconditional love for people
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we know for people we're invested in for people
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we like the buddha didn't know us
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he didn't know who we are what we might be like
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he could very well imagine the whole scope of emotions that might be going to our minds, the kind of mistakes we might make,
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all our weaknesses, and still he spent his whole life teaching for our sake.
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That is really impressive.
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The Buddha and anyone who walks on this path, especially to extreme winning and above, knows that we all have the potential for full awakening.
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It's not a theory, it's not a belief.
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They know that because they know that they were ordinary people too, with all the same Stravas that we have,
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and if they can do it, so can we.
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So I'd like to invite us today in the Metta Practice to see
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if we can connect with this incredible loving kindness and compassion that is here through the Buddha, but also through so many people in our lives,
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and just relax and see if we can receive some loving kindness.
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So when you're ready, please get even more comfortable and find all the cushions you need,
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find the best posture for yourself at this time and if you're comfortable to do so you can gently close your eyes.
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And at least one person is meditating outdoors with the sun on their face, you can see that.
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You can already imagine receiving love and kindness through the warmth of the sun.
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And for the rest of us we can imagine the light and warmth of the sun symbolizing mindfulness co -joined with kindness.
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Mindfulness is like the light of the sun and kindness is the warmth it follows the light,
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cannot be separated from the light of the Sun.
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In the same way, let's just gently establish mindfulness and kindness together and allow that awareness,
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that kindfulness to soak through our bodies from the top of your head, through all the muscles in the face.
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Just imagine any tension melting away either way.
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Tension does seem to melt when we bask in the sun and holiday.
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And kindfulness is doing the work for us, we just need to receive to open up to it.
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Relaxing your brow, your jaw, soaking through your neck, your shoulders.
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feeling that warm on your shoulders, melting any tension or tightness away.
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noticing your arms, allowing them to fill up with kindfulness,
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perhaps noticing tingling sensations, warmth,
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coolness, softness, whatever sensations arise for you.
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Bathing them in kindness.
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Down your arms, your lower arms to your hands, arms and each and every finger and fingertip.
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Letting your arms and hands relax as you would on a deck chair,
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maybe in a warm bath.
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Receiving kindfulness through your chest as though soaking up the rays of the sun,
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allowing them to penetrate right through your chest to the organs, lungs, the heart.
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Feeling that gentle rise and fall in your chest and abdomen.
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Letting everything be soft.
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Kindness means allowing things to be, so just giving things space,
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especially any tension, any emotions.
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What can be felt perhaps as fluttering sensations or contraction,
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giving them space, letting them be.
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Imagine them too basking in the sunshine,
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the warmth, kindness, the light of kindfulness.
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And soaking down your back, spreading to each and every part of your back.
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Soaking through as deep as it will, into the spinal cord, ribcage,
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kidneys, down to your hips and buttocks.
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So the whole upper body, from the top of the head down your arms right through the trunk,
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is soaked with kindfulness.
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You're just receiving any sensations you notice.
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feeling all the sensations in your buttocks,
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maybe pressure, weight, creaking sensations,
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heaviness, softness, you can still adjust if your buttocks are uncomfortable and down through your thighs,
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from the skin right into the flesh,
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as though the sun were just bleeding down, being absorbed through your thighs.
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Spending some time with your knees,
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inviting any tension, tightness, strain to loosen and relax.
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and through your lower legs.
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Noticing any sensations in your calves, your shins, down to your ankles.
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Again making your ankles comfortable if anything.
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too constricted.
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If your ankle's fessing into the floor, you can just adjust it slightly.
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as part of being kind to your ankles and feet.
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Feeling into the soles of the feet, the bridge of your feet, and each and every toe.
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Imagine your toes relaxing one by one.
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So the whole body from the top of your head to the tips of the toes,
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the tips of the fingers, is bathed in kindfulness.
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And if you wish you can just continue this way
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Or if you prefer, you can come along with me in a little visualization,
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imagination, to bring to mind the Buddha,
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the presence of the Buddha, as though he were right here with us now.
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Imagine that we're sitting together with the Buddha,
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this extraordinary being fully awakened an anahat.
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No more greed, no more hatred,
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no more delusion, just immense wisdom,
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a loving kindness and compassion.
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It comes from a heart that is free.
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Imagine the power of such a being.
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so immense, yes so gentle.
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You can almost feel, maybe you can feel,
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a loving -kindness emanating from this person's being.
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And knowing that this person practiced for us, for you,
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So we, so you could hear the Dhamma.
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So many thousands of years later.
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the Dhamma that teaches homelessness,
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kindness, compassion, Sympathetic joy or rejoicing joy.
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The Buddha would be rejoicing with us now. And equanimity.
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Recognizing that everything that arises passes away.
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Our only job is to hold everything with kindness, gentleness, understanding and trust.
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Imagine how it feels how it would feel to be with the Buddha right now.
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A being with unconditional love.
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Where you're safe, you're protected, you're totally unjudged.
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And all you need to do is relax and receive this love and kindness.
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Perhaps you can sense the Buddha's good wishes for you,
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his wish for your liberation, your peace.
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As the Buddha was saying may you be free. May you be happy.
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May you be fully at peace.
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And you start to resonate with these wishes,
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these incredibly powerful intentions of the Buddha.
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The Buddha who knows you can be free.
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Thank you.
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can not only receive but start to send that metta to yourself,
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wishing the same for yourself that the Buddha would wish.
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The Buddha spent his whole life teaching so that you could experience the blessings,
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the liberating power of the Dhamma that's there for us all.
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So just allow yourself to receive and imbibe the highest blessings for yourself.
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Using phrases if you wish,
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using imagery or imagination to connect with what any enlightened being would wish for you and knows it's possible.
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You just have to trust.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Now gently bringing to mind everyone else in this room,
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the Zoom room and here at Tanukampa Grove and recognizing that all of us are included,
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are sitting together in the vicinity of the Buddha,
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receiving his compassionate, loving, benevolent gaze.
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His love is no different for each one of us.
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and we rejoice in that
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as we sit and receive the immense power of a Buddha's loving kindness and compassion.
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All of us regarded with kindly eyes Thank you.
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And the more this loving kindness spreads the more powerful it becomes.
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We realize that all beings, whether here right now or further away,
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all beings are held in that same loving kindness and compassion no matter who they are or what they've done.
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Imagine the immense loving kindness of a Buddha spreading into the areas where you live.
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to the human beings, to the animals, to the insects and birds,
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even to the plants and trees.
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And just as the Buddha in his lifetime used to survey the world and see where people were suffering,
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people needed the teachings the most, imagine that loving -kindness flowing into the hospitals,
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to the homes where there may be arguments,
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to the teenagers who are going through puberty and exams.
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The Buddha's compassion knows no bounds.
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It even spreads to those places where there's war, genocide, huge political unrest.
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It's as though The further this loving kindness and compassion spread, the stronger they become, the more powerful,
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all -pervasive, all -inclusive, spreading to where it's needed the most.
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Now like a very powerful radiant light,
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carrying a message of peace, of goodwill, of love.
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and recognizing that all beings are included and we are one among all beings.
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Allowing our minds to delight in this concept that all beings are now receiving love.
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Imagine how that feels.
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All beings everywhere remembering their potential to be free.
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All of us regarded with the same compassion, the same loving kindness.
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No discrimination, no barriers.
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Boundless, unconditional love.
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Thank you.
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Even the tiniest beings, little insects,
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even mosquitoes, large animals, beings we may think are dangerous just going about their day.
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Tigers, snakes, birds,
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fish and any invisible beings all included in this vast field of love.
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Beings in the heavenly realms.
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Buddha regards them just the same,
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without judgment, with true love and kindness for their full freedom from suffering, in any realm.
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May all beings in the deva realms, the heavenly realms also receive this compassion, this wisdom.
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who wants them to be free.
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All beings in the ghost realms,
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the realms where there's confusion and fear.
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Reaching down into the lower realms,
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the hell realms where people are living in pain, distress, torment.
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The Buddha's loving kindness and compassion reaches there too.
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May they also be free from all suffering and remember their capacity for full liberation.
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Imagine all beings in every realm,
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human, animal, ghosts, devas and beings in hell,
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all receiving this incredible loving kindness,
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a loving kindness of a Buddha that is available right now.
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Thank you.
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And we realise this loving kindness, this capacity for compassion is universal.
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It doesn't even belong to the Buddha or any individual being.
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It can be practised, can be developed and fulfilled by any living being, any human being.
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And many, many beings are doing that right now.
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Sending loving kindness, receiving loving and kindness.
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And we are part of that.
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Sabe Sata Sabe Pana Sabe Bhuta
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Sabe Pugala Sabe Atabawa Pariapanah
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Sabe Itiyo Sabe Pugala Sabe aria
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Sabe anaria Sabe dewa Sabe munusa
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Sabe Winipadika Aweva Hontu Abyapajahontu
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Aniga Hontu Sugiyatanamparihalantu Dukamujantu
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Yadalada Sampadito Mawekejantu Kamasaka
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and just absorbing the blessings which come in the Buddha's own words,
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as they matter to all beings everywhere.
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May all beings be free from enmity, free from fear, free from ill will.
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May they experience the highest peace, the highest happiness of Nibbāna.
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So when you're ready, you can open your eyes, hopefully with a smile.
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It's also an act of compassion.
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And we can do the Sri Vig -sādhu, which means well done, well said.
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And people in the Buddha's day said this too so we're very good disciples if we do this with gusto excellent
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so how was that for you
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Can you imagine the compassion and loving kindness of a Buddha?
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Can you feel a little bit of it in yourself?
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Any feedback or any questions or complaints,
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queries, Anything else beginning with quack or cuff?
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Compassion.
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Uplifted and more calm, lovely.
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I had a real warm fuzzy feeling come over me at some time, at some point.
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It's really nice to feel that I don't have to do it.
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I can just receive it.
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Oh it's satisfying.
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Healing energy, grateful and Karma.
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We have a bit longer so if anyone wants to share anything, be wonderful.
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Thank you so much, thank you too.
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It's really powerful when people practice together in a group,
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I love this idea that you know we're all like under the same benevolent gaze of our Buddha.
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I mean even if you don't have this sense of a Buddha right, as a person, I mean the Buddha's not here anymore,
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let's be clear, but the same compassion and loving kindness, that depth of it is still available.
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We can actually experience that as practitioners.
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Just so strong and mature a feeling, excellent.
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That was beautiful, thank you for feeling peaceful.
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Tensions in the body released, immediate softness and a pleasant tiredness settled in.
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Fantastic.
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Concrete results, tangible results.
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Concrete's a funny word because it's soft right?
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Couldn't help but feel immense gratitude for all teachers and friends out there.
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Oh I feel relaxed and uplifted.
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Such a lovely spacious practice.
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Thank you.
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Mega method to everyone.
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Large knot in your stomach, loosened and relaxed.
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Thank you everyone.
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Excellent.
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And now maybe Geoff, you can have some more sleep, I don't know.
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No, you're gonna start your day with a loose, a loosened knot.
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I love meditating together.
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Also the thought that the Buddha loved without discrimination was powerful today.
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Yeah, that's an inspiration isn't it, Formalist?
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I was thinking of the Buddha having loving kindness for the whole world, for, for the world leaders at the moment.
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Yeah that's right, my goodness he'd have a lot of compassion for some of them, really, really.
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You can imagine him crying tears of tender concern and the heart just melting with compassion.
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Yeah, some people are going really in the wrong direction and it's inspiring isn't it to think that the Buddha wouldn't judge,
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you know, but he would actually have compassion and probably know,
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not in every case, but somehow he would try to reach those people.
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He wouldn't be afraid, whether it's effective or not.
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Even a Buddha can't affect everyone, you know, he couldn't help his own cousin who had to go down to the lower realms.
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But eventually, eventually, they say that even Devadatta will become I think a Buddha right?
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Fully enlightened, Pateka Buddha.
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Yeah, enlightened on their own.
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Thank you very much Ajahn, I really felt it and the thoughts.
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on the Buddha and his loving kindness felt wonderful.
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Yeah, I think it's wonderful.
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I mean, we can focus on his wisdom, which is a part of that, but to me, the wisdom expresses itself as loving kindness and compassion.
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It's something real that we can understand.
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And, um, wow, maybe we can make this month of May, since there were two Vesachs,
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a month of really connecting with those qualities that he exemplified.
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And yeah, whichever qualities inspire you the most, but certainly um loving kindness and compassion are powerful
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and remember the mudita right the loving kindness
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and joy for other people who are happy and doing well don't forget
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that because we can get fixated on the people doing bad in the world
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but there's a lot of goodness a hell of a lot of goodness
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I don't know what kind of jobs you will have I mean I kind of do know some of you
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counsellors helping people through domestic abuse
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and goodness knows what else um yeah uploading videos on YouTube so that people can hear the Dharma,
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that's a really powerful thing to do.
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Yeah, it's, there's a lot of kindness and compassion in this community.
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So inspiring and heartwarming, excellent.
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Any questions or comments?
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I just would love to hear any voices really, other than my own, but no pressure if you don't feel like speaking it's okay as well.
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Anything here?
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When I think about the Buddha, like when you ask, like,
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he's in front of you or something, I kind of teleport myself to there.
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So I'm there and you kind of, the smells, the flowers, the incense, the purple,
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the Buddha so then kind of feel like it's a huge thing
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that oh gosh it is easy to get all those feelings into yeah beautiful did you hear
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that about how yeah no um so she was saying
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that um you know
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when we imagine the buddha being present with us like she feels teleported to
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that time and place and smells the incense and feels the feeling.
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They're not coming here.
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Yeah you're going there to the Buddha.
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Change of time.
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Yeah change of time yeah
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and it's interesting especially for anyone who is um from an Asian culture
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or who's lived a long time in Asia
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or any amount of time really even visited India
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or any place where there's still that sort of uh echo of the Buddha
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and his teachings you really can imagine it you know you really can imagine how
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that would be
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and maybe some of us have been there you know in our previous lives maybe
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we were the naughty non -or monk
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who didn't really listen properly or or maybe not maybe we were really good practitioners
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and we're doing our anapana meditation our sadhapattana meditation but we didn't get enlightened yet
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you know many many of us
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i think have a sense about how it may have been uh in the time of the buddha
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and yeah i mean i lived in india for 15 years learning my amma with my preceptor
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and I had a very strong feeling that first vasa that I spent with my preceptor in Burma that it was
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just like it would have been in the Buddha's day.
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You know just the silhouettes of the monks in the first
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evening talking about where we would go for the alms round during
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that retreat and oh and the sort of just the simplicity of it,
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the heat as well, but the simplicity,
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the dust and just everything being stripped back to practice and living an arms -rending life was very, very powerful.
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It's happening now, it's happening now in Buddhist countries and it's happening here to some extent.
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You know, all of us are practicing, we're continuing that heritage, that legacy that the Buddha imagined and knew actually that he,
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we would be doing and that is what he taught, you know, he taught for the sake of future generations out of compassion for us.
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So yeah, I also feel really inspired and grateful and like don't want to let that one go,
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make best use of our lives however we can.
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Yeah, great.
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So thank you for your practice, it's time to go.
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We usually put a few links in the chat about how you can be involved
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and find out what we're doing and how to support us here.
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These days not many people are coming to the monastery actually to to bring food
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so I don't know most of you are not local but if you are please come along, share a meal,
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if you are further afield you can still contribute vegetables and shopping and things like that and be part of this community.
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We are very well fed, we just don't see a lot of people recently at least at Dana time so,
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but we're very well fed so be involved and yeah continue to develop community wherever you are.
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Take care everybody, you can unmute yourselves now
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if you wish to wave goodbye and if anyone in here wants to come away goodbye to this community you're also welcome.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Basking in the Buddhas Metta on Vesak”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: buddha, kindness, loving, compassion, imagine. This video has 373 sentences and 4016 words to shadow. The speech runs for 55:12. The speaker talks slowly, about 73 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. Only 80% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| kindness noun | /ˈkaɪnd.nəs/ | The state of being kind. |
| compassion noun | /kəmˈpæʃ.ən/ | Deep awareness of the suffering of others that people have to the point of them being motivated to relieve such states. |
| relax verb | /ɹɪˈlæks/ | To make something loose. |
| sensation noun | /sɛnˈseɪʃən/ | A physical feeling or perception from something that comes into contact with the body; something sensed. |
| tension noun | /ˈtɛnʃən/ | The condition of being held in a state between two or more forces, which are acting in opposition to each other. |
| immense adjective | /ɪˈmɛns/ | Huge, gigantic, very large. |
| warmth noun | /wɔɹmθ/ | A moderate degree of heat; the sensation of being warm. |
| sake noun | /ˈseɪ̯k/ | Cause, interest or account. |
| wisdom noun | /ˈwɪzdəm/ | An element of personal character that enables one to distinguish the wise from the unwise. |
| goodness noun | /ˈɡʊdnəs/ | The state or characteristic of being good. |
| inspire verb | /ɪnˈspaɪə(ɹ)/ | To infuse into the mind; to communicate to the spirit; to convey, as by a divine or supernatural influence; to disclose preternaturally; to produce in, as by… |
| melt verb | /mɛlt/ | To change (or to be changed) from a solid state to a liquid state, usually by a gradual heat. |
| soak verb | /soʊk/ | To be saturated with liquid by being immersed in it. |
| reflect verb | /ɹɪˈflɛkt/ | To bend back (light, etc.) from a surface. |
| connect verb | /kəˈnɛkt/ | To join (to another object): to attach, or to be intended to attach or capable of attaching, to another object. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| pass away verb | To die. |
| come along verb | To accompany. |
| come away verb | To become separated from something. |
| come over verb | To affect in a sudden, unprecedented or surprising manner; to overwhelm a person's ordinarily contrary impulse. |
| come through verb | To come into a room or other space through a door or passageway. |
| find out verb | To discover, as by asking or investigating. |
| go through verb | To travel from one end of something to the other. |
| slow down verb | To decelerate. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- You're just receiving any sensations you notice.
- Where you're safe, you're protected, you're totally unjudged.
- Can you feel a little bit of it in yourself?
- Concrete's a funny word because it's soft right?
- It's something real that we can understand.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | are abandoned · be enlightened · cannot be separated |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | people who are · mind which means · anyone who walks |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | you've done · have done · they've done |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 49 contractions and reduced forms, such as you're, don't, we're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: warmth /wɔɹmθ/, thigh /θaɪ/, bath /bɑːθ/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: compassion /kəmˈpæʃ.ən/, sensation /sɛnˈseɪʃən/, tension /ˈtɛnʃən/, reflection /ɹɪˈflɛkʃən/, meditation /mɛdɪˈteɪʃn̩/
- Long words — get the stress right: universal /ˌjunəˈvɜɹs(ə)l/, discrimination /dɪskɹɪmɪˈneɪʃən/, celebration /ˌsɛl.ɪˈbɹeɪ.ʃən/, imagination /ɪˌmæd͡ʒəˈneɪʃən/, liberation /ˌlɪbəˈɹeɪʃən/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like kindness, compassion, relax.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.