Dear Jou Smith

How are you?

The following is the result of your message to BuddhistWellnessGroup.

If you would like to discuss the issues further with me, you are
welcome to do so off-list.

With regards,

Suan Lu Zaw

www.bodhiology.org



-------------------------------------------------------


Dear Dr Des

How are you?

I saw Jou Smith's message for moderation.

His message is misleading, and not a product of well-researched
effort.

Although I could point out his mistakes, I have been having many
diversions for some time, so I am not in the mood for academic
debate.

As an example of his mistake, here is what he wrote:

" - not listening to words of disciples, as this is a cause for loss
of"
the teaching [S 20.7 : S ii 266-7 -

I have checked the original Pali text, its commentary, and its
subcommentary.

It turned out that words of disciples did not refer to those of the
Buddha's disciples. The term "disciples" refers to disciples of the
the teachers outside the Buddha's Saasanaa.

Here is the commentary Pali.

"Baahirakaati saasanato bahibhuutaa. Saavakabhaasitaati tesam
tesam saavakehi bhaasitaa."

The translation he quoted was as follows.

"the work of outsiders, words of disciples -- are recited."

The correct translation would be "the work of outsider-teachers, the
words of their disciples".

That is to say, the Pali terms "Baahirakaa" and "Saavakabhaasitaa"
go together.

So the translation he used is misleading.

So you could either reject the whole message or edit out his
comments that are misleading.

With regards,

Suan


PS...

By the way, Dr Des is the owner of BuddhistWellnessGroup.




--- In Pali@yahoogroups.com, "Norman Joseph [Jou] Smith"
<josmith.1@...> wrote:

> Dear Sir or Madam
>

In the book I try to show how popular ideas of Gotama Buddha's
teaching would be misconceptions by referencing mainly the Paali
[Indian] texts.

> Some of these ideas are:
>
> The Buddha taught:
> - there was no God
> - the is no self
> - there is no soul
> - the First Noble Truth is "Life is suffering" or "There is

suffering"

> - the Second Noble Truth is "Desire is the cause of suffering".
> - the Fourth Noble Truth is the Noble Eightfold Path starting with

Right

> View.
>
> For the first three of these ideas, I don't simply argue the

opposite,

> that there is a God, a self, or a soul, as I see both sides as

dogma.

> The Buddha supposedly said he didn't teach dogma. [S 12.15 : S ii

17-8]

>
> There seems to be advice the Buddha gave for studying his teaching

that

> I don't hear people talk of, much less follow. I have tried to

follow

> this advice with amazing results:
>
> - making a thorough investigation
> [M 56 : M i 379]

>

- not listening to words of disciples, as this is a cause for loss of
the teaching [S 20.7 : S ii 266-7 -
http://accesstoinsight.org/canon/sutta/samyutta/sn20-007.html%5d