Re: Kc 1

Dear Phra Yuttadhammo,

You wrote:
<< The story, said to have its source in the *Kaccaayanava.n.nanaa* of
Mahaavijitaavii Thera of Burma, goes that there was an old monk who had
studied meditation under the Lord Buddha and then went to sit under a Sal
tree at the edge of the pond Anodatara meditating on the arising and ceasing
of phenomena, but instead of repeating to himself "udaya-baya.m" (arising
and ceasing), he repeated, "udakabaka.m" (crane in the water)!  The Buddha
realized this was due to poor knowledge of the Pali language and remarked
that the meaning of a word is only to be known through the sounds that make
it up (attho akharasa~n~naato).  This is supposedly why Mahakaccaayana wrote
the Kaccaayanasutta, based on the Buddha's brief teaching. >>

I reproduce below the story in the Kaccāyanavaṇṇanā, p. 8:

      idaṃ suttaṃ kena vuttaṃ. bhagavatā vuttaṃ. kadā vuttanti.
yama-upalanāmakā dve brāhmaṇā khayavayakammaṭṭhānaṃ gahetvā gacchantā
naditīre khayavayaṃ khayavayanti kammaṭṭhāne kayiramāne eko udake
macchaṃ gaṇhituṃ carantaṃ bakaṃ disvā udakabakoti virajjhati. eko ghaṭe
paṭaṃ disvā ghaṭapaṭoti virajjhati. tadā bhagavā obhāsaṃ muñcitvā attho
bhikkhave akkharasaññātoti vākyaṃ thapeti. tesañca kammaṭṭhānaṃ
[pa]tiṭṭhati. tasmā bhagavatā vuttanti vuccati. taṃ ñatvā mahākaccāyano
bhagavantaṃ yācitvā himavantaṃ gatvā manosilātale dakkhiṇadisābhāgaṃ
sīsaṃ katvā puratthimadisābhimukho hutvā attho akkharasaññātotyādikaṃ
kaccāyanappakaraṇaṃ racitaṃ. tasmā pubbavākyanti vuttaṃ. paribhāsāsuttaṃ.
therena thapitattā paribhāsātipi vuttaṃ. vuttañca

pubbavākyantidaṃ suttaṃ vadantācariyāpare
suttanāmānurūpena paribhāsāti no matīti.

      anotattatīre sālarukkhamūle nisinnaṃ ekaṃ vuḍḍhapabbajitaṃ sandhāya
vuttantipi vadanti. ayamimassa atthuppatti.

The transcript is based on the Thai edition. The story relates to two
brahmins named Yama and Upala (Uppala in Tiwari's Indian edn.). Another
version of the story relating to an old monk seated under a Sal tree is
acknowledged at the end. The meditation subject is 'khayavayaṃ' and not
'udayavayaṃ'. I think 'racita.m' should probably be 'viraci' (he wrote) as
in Tiwari's edition.

Best wishes,
Jim