Re: pa.tipatti

dear amara and tadao,

>
> Dear Tadao,
>
> Would that be even before he enlightened the pancavaggiya or his
> family?  What do you think, Gayan?
>

well the sri lankan chronicles say that Buddha came 3 times to sri lanka.

1. to calm a dispute between different tribesmen which happened in
'Mahiangana', (an area to the center of SL)
2. to calm another dispute between different tribesmen which happened in
'Nagadipa' ( North of SL)
3. By invitation of a tribal king , in 'Kelaniya' (near the west coast, near
Colombo)

All three of these locations have stupas built.

Well according to the chronicles these happened much after the initial
roaming of Buddha.

On one of these journeys Buddha has set his SriPaada foot print in Mount
Samanala.
(Another print was set in Saudi Arabia, in Mecca, where now Islamics
worship, but I dont remember the full story)

But these informations do not come in Tipitaka.
And of course, theres no rule that tipitaka should contain 'everything' that
happened.

But personally I give the Uppermost position to tipitaka, and what is
outside of it gets a lower position.
I know that it is the same with you amara.

> Oh, yes, Tadao, may I introduce my young friend Gayan from Sri Lanka!

hi Tadao!

>  Gayan, Tadao teaches at the University of Victoria, in Canada, was
> ordained in Thailand some thirty years ago;
>and also stayed in Ceylon
> for a time.  As I remember you once said you were interested in
> ordination, perhaps you would like to ask Tadao about his experiences,
> and about his lay life afterwards.
>

of course , that would be very helpful.( provided that you like to share
,Tadao)

> To go back to our discussion, I must confess that the idea of the
> Buddha flying to different areas of future Buddhist countries, in most
> of which he left footprints, somehow pleases my imagination; it would
> be in keeping with all Buddha having special trees, geographical
> locations, the moon, footprints and stones, to remind people of the
> Dhamma and all the beneficence of Buddhahood.

my imagination too!
Well he is the most worthy role model for any being.
I remember , may be a year back, in India a place or a building was
discovered where the Buddha's body was cremated.
With Caskets of Dhatus which were exactly like the ones which were described
in chronicles.(outward appearence)
It was again a strange but pleasant feeling to get to know again and again
that this great 'helper' was a reality.
Buddha himself has said the places where a buddhist can visit and feel
'pahan samvega'.

>   Yet these seemingly
> 'valueless' reminders transcend all else in their qualities of evoking
> the memory or even awareness of the Dhamma, as well as represent the
> greatest teacher that ever walked the earth.
>

exactly

> Just my opinion, my friends,

looks like mine too,
>


regards
gayan