Dear Lennart and others,

To me, both approaches has its value. Even going purely by Theravadin commentaries has its value. It depends on what we're seeking. If we want to understand Theravada, then it makes perfect sense to go by the Pali commentaries, which defines Theravada. If we want to understand early Buddhist teachings, and is concerned that our view might be distorted by sectarian views, than it makes perfect sense to avoid the commentaries of any tradition.

I know of someone who was new to Buddhism and wanted to study Buddhism in a university. His professor insisted that he study the Suttas ONLY. No commentaries, no modern treaties, no general books on Buddhism. Just the Nikayas in Pali. (I'm not sure if that included the later books of Khuddaka.) He told he was very grateful for that, and I can see why.

Having been through years of learning traditional Theravada, I sometimes get confused what's actually from the Suttas and what not. It has taken years to slowly sift the "Buddhism" in my memory. The need to be alert to check what is from actually where seems to have faded off as I've gotten to a clearer picture that gels well my practice in the Dhamma. But no regrets. I had to start somewhere. Besides, it's been a pretty fun process with my teacher, Ven Aggacitta. Having earlier spent 7 years living alone to study the Tipitaka and the Commentaries, he seemed to have a harder time than me sometimes, but his truth-seeking attitude won eventually.

Btw, wouldn't it be a good idea that we all be conscious of our state of mind as we write our emails? As my meditation teacher Sayadaw U Tejaniya once advised me, "Kumara, when the mind has anger, it's better not to speak. Otherwise, what we say will be unwise."

kb

Lennart Lopin wrote thus at 21:58 14/01/2012:

>Ven. Katukurunde Nyanananda's (Concept and Reality, Magic of the mind, Nibbana sermons) approach in this regard is also quite interesting. With a deep respect towards the commentarial tradition he still has no problem of pointing out when it is in conflict with the Dhamma & Vinaya and would explain by quoting the relevant passages.
>
>Karl Eugen Neumann translated ignoring the commentaries and felt that they did not help in understanding the suttas, especially when it came to the deeper implications of the suttas. A very interesting read on this topic is his introduction to his "Buddhistische Anthologie" and "Majjhimanikayo".
>
>Metta,
>Lennart
>
>On Jan 14, 2012, at 8:40 AM, Noah Yuttadhammo <yuttadhammo@...> wrote:
>
>> 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
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>> >
>> >
>> >
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>>
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