Dear John,

many thanks for the swift answer.
I also considered "mataa" as "measure", but must admit that still it is not clear to me what in this context does it mean "to know the measure of the gift". For example, although I expound wrong Dhamma, I probably believe it is a good Dhamma and thus maybe overestimate the gift I'm giving.

Obviously I miss the point of this passage. Could you please elaborate a little bit.

Metta,
Branko


John Kelly <palistudent@...> wrote: Dear Branko,

I agree, it does seem a little obscure. However, here I would
translate 'matta' as 'measure' rather than 'moderation' and it becomes
a little clearer. Thus:

314. Bhikkhus, with a badly expounded Dhamma and discipline, the
measure of a gift should be known by the giver, not by the recipient.
For what reason? Because of the badly expounded nature of this Dhamma.
315. Bhikkhus, with a well expounded Dhamma and discipline, the
measure of a gift should be known by the recipient, not by the giver.
For what reason? Because of the well-expounded nature of this Dhamma.

Here is the full Pali too (since you left some out):
314. Durakkhaate, bhikkhave, dhammavinaye daayakena mattaa
jaanitabbaa, no pa.tiggaahakena. Ta.m kissa hetu? Durakkhaatattaa,
bhikkhave, dhammassaa ti.
315. Svaakkhaate, bhikkhave, dhammavinaye pa.tiggaahakena mattaa
jaanitabbaa, no daayakena. Ta.m kissa hetu? Svaakkhaatattaa,
bhikkhave, dhammassaa ti.

With metta,
John








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