On 01/15/2012 01:00 PM, Peter Tomlinson wrote:

> yes, except Ven. Nanavira claimed to be Sotapanna, which means the arising of the Dhamma eye, not a matter of commentary, see what I mean? He "saw" Dhamma,

A true follower of the Buddha should have few desires. He should be
content with what he has and he should try to lessen his
defilements. He should have little desire for material possessions
or attendants. He should not want to speak of his accomplishments in
the study of scriptures or in the practice of meditation. He should
keep the depth of his learning or his spiritual attainments to
himself. A true noble one does not reveal his spiritual insight
although he wants to share it with other people. It is only the
religious impostor who calls himself a noble one or an Arahant.

-- Mahasi Sayadaw, "On the Sallekha Sutta"

But, if we're keeping score, Buddhaghosa is understood to have been an
arahant, contrary to what Nyanavira et al have claimed:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhaghosa#Critics
http://www.dhammawheel.com/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=2774&start=20#p39669

> see what Ajahn Chah says on the score of the commentaries being chicken shit instead of the eggs!
> Pete Tomlinson

I believe you are thinking of the story regarding a woman who studied
the abhidhamma, and when asked whether she practised accordingly, she
said no. Ajaan Chah replied, quite aptly, “Madam, you are like a woman
who keeps chickens in her yard and goes around picking up the chicken
shit instead of the eggs.”

source:
http://books.google.lk/books?id=cAJDRQkkTdIC&pg=PT231&lpg=PT231&dq=ajahn+chah+chicken+shit&source=bl&ots=p-IpQkM1yW&sig=e7DesppozJ6GfqtCPtbfN-_cRx8&hl=en&sa=X&ei=H7oST8GWAdDOrQeD5ZmBAg&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=ajahn%20chah%20chicken%20shit&f=false

I can't believe such a reverend monk would call the commentaries chicken
shit, but if you have a quote, I'd be happy to change my mind (about his
reverence, of course :P )

Also, the Thai word is kii kai, which just means chicken droppings and
has none of the bad connotations of the word "shit" in the English
language; it seems that his students have been using the word for shock
value, none of which is obtained in the original Thai.

Blessings,

Yuttadhammo

>
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: Noah Yuttadhammo<yuttadhammo@...>
> To: Pali@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Saturday, January 14, 2012 7:40 AM
> Subject: Re: [Pali] Translating by the views of Theravadin commentaries
>
>
>
> What if Nyanavira got it wrong? we're all commentators, after all...
> whatever works, I say.
> On Jan 14, 2012 3:29 PM, "Peter Tomlinson"<gnanayasa@...> wrote:
>
>> Well, that's the crux of the issue for some of us and for Nanavira Thera,
>> see Notes on Dhamma if you wish a full exegesis on that score
>> Pete Tomlinson
>>
>>
>>
>> ________________________________
>> From: Kumara Bhikkhu<kumara.bhikkhu@...>
>> To: Pali@yahoogroups.com
>> Cc: Pali@yahoogroups.com
>> Sent: Tuesday, January 10, 2012 9:50 PM
>> Subject: Re: [Pali] Translating by the views of Theravadin commentaries
>>
>>
>>
>> Nina van Gorkom wrote thus at 18:37 10/01/2012:
>>> The main thing is understanding the
>>> characteristics of those realities. The commentaries use similes to
>>> explain their subtle differences and I think that these are helpful.
>> What if the commentaries got it wrong?
>>
>> kb
>>
>>
>>
>>
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