Dear PG,
As I often find Thanissaro's translation tedious reading, I have checked the
Pali myself and finally come up with a provisional translation. The Sutta's
meaning is much clearer now. Let me try to see if I can help you.
On 12/30/06, pgd2507 <pgd2507@...> wrote:
>
> 1.
> when Buddha talks about "what is in front and what is behind" is he
> referring to objects outside the body OR bodily sensations in front and
> on the back OR something else altogether?
>
> If he means outside objects, would it then imply that eyes be kept open?
>
The Sutta itself simply explains this phrase as follows:
"Here, bhikshus, *the perception of after and before* is well grasped by a
monk, well attended to mentalÂly, well borne in mind, well penetrated by
wisdom."
Pali: Idha bhikkhave bhikkhuno pacchaa,pure sa~n~naa suggahitaa hoti
sumanasikataa supadhaaritaa suppa.tividdhaa pa~n~naaya.
If we follow Bhikkhu Bodhi's explanation, this means making your meditation
thorough, in the beginning and in the ending. This may well be right, but
only part of the explanation.
Often in the Suttas, we see "pacchaa,pure" to mean the past (the back) and
the future (the front). This has two senses:
(1) keeping up the practice all the time, from beginning to end (similar to
Bodhi's expl);
(2) letting go of the past and the future: keeping one's mind firmly rooted
in the present as in the Bhaddeka,ratta Sutta, M 131-134).
> 2.
> what is meant by all these terms used in relation to perception:
> "well in hand", "well-attended to", "well-considered", "well-tuned
> ('penetrated')"
> how are these distinguished and distinctly attained?
> what are the pali words used for these phrases?
>
My own intuitive interpretations:
"well-grasped" (suggahitaa) = understood and learned well (his meditation
training).
"well attended to mentally" (su-manasikataa) = having paid wise attention
to.
"well borne in mind" (su-pa-dharitaa) = maintaining his mindfulness steady,
remembering.
"well penetrated" (su-p,pa.tividdhaa) = (1) constantly reflecting on
phenomena as "imperment, etc" (leading to streamwinning); (2) well
understood the true nature of phenomena, attained to arhathood.
> 3.
> what kind of discernment is intended in the phrase, "by means of
> discernment"?
> is it about seeing in everything the inescapable trio of anicca, dukkha
> and anatta?
>
> Would someone be so kind as to throw some light..
>
"Discernment" here is sa~n~naa, My preferred translation is "perception,"
imperfect as it is, it is better understood universally (even by those who
translate it otherwise). We define words, rather than words define us, or as
one might say, "the uposatha was made for man" :) "Discernment" is also
confusing: Peter Harvey (in "Selfless Mind", 1995) uses it for vi~n~aa.na!
Perception is (1) a class of meditation when a palpable (mentally or
physically) object is used for focussing the mind. Otherwise, (2) it can
refer to a "sign" (nimitta) that one experience in meditation, say about a
past event.
Sa~n~naa (perception) is used in the Sutta in connection with the following:
(1) perception of light (aaloka,sa~n~naa);
(2) the past and future (pacchaa,pure): letting for of the past and future;
closely watching the present moment.
Some translators try their best to find a unique word or term for every Pali
word or term, or try to introduce a neologism which further confounds the
situation. (In rare situations, a neologism may help, but has to be clearly
explained in a footnote, etc) But English is a living language and Pali a
scriptural language, both have their idioms. We translate meanings not
words. Moreover we can never find exact equivalent words between language,
as this would be against the law of non-self!
We are translating a living Dharma for personal liberation, not a technical
manual on science or computer language.
It's all right if the translator is a traitor to the word (tradittore
traduttore), but never a traitor to the sense.
[Sorry about the idiosyncratic fonts: I'm not sure how to change the fonts
in Gmail.]
Happy new year!
Piya Tan
The Minding Centre
http://dharmafarer.googlepages.com
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