Dear Rett,
op 20-01-2004 10:12 schreef rett op rett@...:

>
>Nina said: you can fare safely with Buddhaghosa!
>

Rett:

> It is important to be careful even with Buddhaghosa. There are places
> where his interpretation is clearly wrong. That is not to diminish
> the great value of his commentaries.

N: I am glad you see the great value.
I have some thoughts about this: some people have lost contact with the
Abhidhamma, and when Buddhaghosa explains or implies the Abhidhamma, this
may be misunderstood. When I say Abhidhamma I do not mean a textbook to be
memorized, but the Abhidhamma alive, to be verified and as a guide for
awareness in daily life. And also: Abhidhamma is closely connected with the
Suttanta, and Vinaya.
I have not read many co in Pali, some in English and Thai. I read in Pali
and translated the whole Co to the Mahaaraahulovaadasutta, and here I could
not possibly find anything wrong or contradictory to the Suttanta, on the
contrary, most helpful. But there are Abhidhamma passages which may be
misunderstood by some people. Actually, without Yong Peng asking me I would
not have translated this line by line from the beginning, but it proved
quite an experience to me.
Take alone the beginning with many similes (the Buddha as a swan, tiger,
moon, etc). People may not appreciate this. But all the time we should
return to the time of the ancient teachers: what was their intention, what
is the essence they explained? Here is explained what we find in many
suttas: expression of confidence and devotion that is the fruit of a deep
understanding of the teachings. Such as we read in Chapter XI 55.
Sotaapattisamyutta Connected Discourses on Stream Entry (Transl by Bhikkhu
Bodhi):
2 (2) Grounded
"Bhikkhus, a noble disciple who possesses four things is a stream-
enterer, no longer bound to the nether world, fixed in destiny, with
enlightenment as his destination. [n. 322]
"What four? Here, bhikkhus, a noble disciple possesses confirmed
confidence in the Buddha thus: "The Blessed One is an arahant,
perfectly enlightened, accomplished in true knowledge and conduct,
fortunate, knower of the world, unsurpassed leader of persons to be
tamed, teacher of devas and humans, the Enlightened One, the Blessed
One.'
I think when people do not immediately understand a Co phrase, they may
think that the Co is wrong, but why is the fault with the Co? When they look
again they see that there was no problem, as you just noticed for yourself
in this short phrase you quoted. We can discover that the Co explanation is
very clear and to the point. When we then go back to the Sutta, which we
should do all the time, we see that the message of the Sutta stands out much
more clearly.
Here is not the place for a long debate that could go on endlessly. See
Dhamma Study Group in the archives under Buddhaghosa! Let us enjoy
Kaccayaana and other texts, we have our hands full.
Nina.