Dear Michael,
to recapitulate: from Milinda's questions: >>> The king said: "Venerable
Nagasena, for whom is the greater demerit, one who knowingly does evil, or
one who does evil unknowingly?>
Nagasena's answer was one who does evil unknowingly.

op 01-11-2003 17:45 schreef Michael Beisert op mbeisert@...:

>
> On the surface this seems like a very easy question but in fact it is very
> complex. ..... the answer to your question is no, someone who has not heard

the

> Dhamma and commits an akusala deed is in a better position than someone who
> knows the Dhamma....

N: It is complex. Let us go to the roots of all akusala. There are three
akusala hetus or roots which are the foundation of akusala citta. I do not
know the Portuguese word for root, in French it is racine. In Pali the tersm
hetu and muula are used. The three are: lobha (greed) dosa (aversion or
hate) and moha (ignorance or delusion). Another word for moha is avijjaa.
There are akusala cittas rooted in moha and lobha, rooted in moha and dosa
and rooted in moha alone. But all akusala cittas have moha as their root.
Dhammapada vs 251: <...there is no net like delusion>, and in the Ch on
taints, vs. 243:... <and a worse taint than these is ignorance, the greatest
taint.>
We become entangled in ignorance, it is like a net.
Ignorance is not knowing realities as they are, not knowing what is kusala,
what is akusala, not knowing the four noble Truths. It is like blindness,
like darkness.
There are different intensities, degrees of the akusala hetus. When the
degree of moha is stronger, there is a higher degree of akusala. The
akusala hetu that arises together with the citta conditions the accompanying
mental factors (cetasikas) and the citta. It motivates different degrees of
unwholesome deeds.
I could recommend the Wheel, no 251-253, by Ven. Nyanaponika: "the Roots of
Good and Evil ".

M: we should remember

> that the workings of kamma can be very complex and just as a reminder look
> at the Lonaphala Sutta (AN III.99).

N: Yes, only a Buddha thoroughly penetrates the workings of kamma and
result.
This sutta is very complex, but does not contradict the fact that more
ignorance conditions the akusala to be more intense. Decisive here is
leading the holy life. The Buddha teaches here about being in the cycle and
going out of the cycle, the commentary states.
M: Now the question becomes really complex when you throw in the skilful

> means’ so highly praised in the Mahayana tradition. And using a skilful
> means interpretation of a certain deed, what apparently would be an akusala
> deed could be regarded as kusala. And this really opens the door for any
> actions to be interpreted anyway you want and to atribute any kamma
> consequences you want.

N: Then there is more and more ignorance, as I see it. Metta is always
kusala, violence is always akusala. Nobody in the world can change akusala
into kusala. The three beautiful roots are: alobha, adosa and amoha or
pa~n~naa.
Nina.