On Thu, Oct 29, 2009 at 12:22 PM, frank <fcckuan@...> wrote:
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> From: Pali@yahoogroups.com <Pali%40yahoogroups.com> [mailto:
> Pali@yahoogroups.com <Pali%40yahoogroups.com>] On Behalf Of Kum�ra
> Bhikkhu.
> [snip]
> Hmm.... never thought of that before. I wonder if elements of that could
> have infiltrated into the suttas. I personally find it odd that in one
> sutta
> the Buddha claims that the khattiya/Kshatriya is the best of all clans.
>
> Greetings Venerable Kumara,
>
> I heard a talk from a monk last year that explained this in a way that made
> a great deal of sense to me. I will relate what I heard but be warned it is
> embellished with many of my own opinions which may be completely erroneous.
>
> If the Buddha is enlightened, by definition they are beyond identifying
> with
> any clan, political affiliation, class, race, country, etc. Nor would they
> praise warriors for killing their enemies. The only killing that
> enlightened
> beings endorse are the metaphorical �killing� of one�s own delusions and
> defilements (one sutta the Buddha praised the killing of anger for
> example).
> The Buddha proclaimed the warrior class as the best (as opposed to Brahmins
> or other castes) because the warrior is trained and accustomed to dealing
> with extreme adversity and finding a way to overcome whatever obstacles and
> difficulties that arise. For context, consider all the difficulties that
> arise in meditation. The hindrances, boredom, agitation from facing the
> demons of one�s mind would lead to excuses by most castes (including
> Brahmins) to stop meditating. In stark contrast, the warrior sits as long
> as
> it takes, enduring physical pain, mental agony, patiently fighting through
> it all until they triumph and attain whatever can be attained by manly
> strength, manly energy. Perhaps the Buddha saw some of the Brahmins in his
> day who were intellectually gifted and could give brilliant sermons and
> debate with impressive flair and confidence, but did not have the
> attainments to back up the talk, whereas the warrior didn�t waste time
> talking and would just get things done that needed to be done. It makes
> complete sense to me why the Buddha praised certain qualities of the
> warrior. The dedication required to steadfastly adhere to the 4 foundations
> of mindfulness at all times, it takes a warrior spirit. In the suttas, you
> can see the monks never give in to sleep without a fight. When they engage
> in activities such as eating which is perilously close to the 5 cords of
> sensual pleasure, with the warrior spirit they vigilantly guard every
> moment
> against delighting in taste and hankering for the continuation of
> stimulating taste, knowing that failure to do so leads to their defilements
> exponentially increasing and compounding over time like credit card debt
> that quickly compounds and spirals into bankruptcy. The factor of right
> effort, persistence, energy, expressed by the pali word Viriya, has the
> root
> meaning �hero� or �warrior�. The pali word Tapas(?) which frequently is
> translated as �ardent�, occurring frequently in the 4 foundations of
> mindfulness sutta, also brings to mind the heroic effort required to
> maintain mindfulness. One commentator wrote that �ardent� was too mild of a
> translation, that failed to capture the power behind the word. The
> Visuddhimagga I believe used the simile of Tapas being like the intense
> heat
> of the sun (mindfulness) that can incinerate all defilements. Such is the
> extraordinary power of mindfulness done with heroic warrior spirit.
>
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