Dear Yong Peng,

thank you very much.

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82-91. Aniccasa~n~na.m bhaveti... anattasa~n~na.m bhaveti...
mara.nasa~n~na.m bhaveti... aahaare pa.tikuulasa~n~na.m bhaveti...
sabbaloke anabhiratisa~n~na.m bhaveti... a.t.thikasa~n~na.m
bhaveti... pu.lavakasa~n~na.m bhaveti... viniilakasa~n~na.m
bhaveti... vicchiddakasa~n~na.m bhaveti... uddhumaatakasa~n~na.m
bhaveti... .
["O monks, if a monk,] developed the discernment of impermanence
(discernment of non-self, awareness of death, awareness of impurity
in food, awareness of dissatisfaction in all worlds, recognition of
a skeleton,

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N: sabbaloke: is singular. In the whole world. Meant is; all
conditioned dhammas, or the five khandhas.

recognition of a skeleton: perception or awareness of a skeleton: it
is a meditation subject.

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92-101. ... upasamaanussati.m bhaveti... .

develops recollection of the virtues of calmness), [even for the
duration of a finger-snap..."]
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N: By this is meant nibbaana, and usually it is translated as peace.

I read this in the Visuddhimagga.

It sounds strange: the virtues of nibbaana.

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Aya.m vuccati, bhikkhave - 'bhikkhu arittajjhaano viharati
satthusaasanakaro ovaadapatikaro, amogha.m ra.t.thapi.n.da.m
bhu~njati'.
Monks, such is said - 'The monk, engaged in (the practice of) jhana
(he) lives, complying with the Buddha's teachings and heeding the
advice, (he) eats the people's almsfood not given in vain'.
------

N: aya.m: this is said, such sounds somewhat strange to me.

as to: �not given in vain�: we discussed this before. PTS has: he
eats it to some purpose. I see it from the monk�s side. How virtuous
is he?

The Visuddhimagga Ch I, 127,128 speaks about the use of the
requisites: <Although given by the laity, they actually belong to the
Blessed One, because it is by the Blessed One that they are
permitted. > they can be used as master (by the arahat), as
inheritance (by ariyans who are not arahats), use as a debt which is
not allowable, and use as theft which is very wrong. That is when he
is not virtuous. It all depends on the virtues or absence of virtues
of the bhikkhu who receives them.

******

Nina.




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