Getting a daily dose of Bhikkhu Samahita's dhamma mailings, the question
suddenly occurred to me how often does the exclamation point appear in the
pali suttas, and who put it there? Since the pali suttas were originally an
oral tradition, at what point and how did the exclamation point make it in
the pali canon?
Off hand, I can't even recall in B.Bodhi's translation of the Majjhima for
example any case of exclamation points appearing. At the very end of MN 1,
where "those bhikkhus did not delight in the Blessed One's words", no
exaclamation. When the arahants declare, "birth is destroyed...", no
exclamation.
In Bhikkhu Samahita's translations of pali excerpts, he makes frequent and
liberal use of the exclamation, even adding (!!) double and sometimes (!!!)
triple for emphasis.
I wonder how often the exclamation point occurs in the bible and quoran? I
was browsing through a version of the old testament online, it seems when
god is on a big killing spree he does so calmly and without exclamation
point, but when he calls Moses to him, he says something like, "Come no
closer! You're not allowed to see my face!!"