Re: Re:

  Dear George,
I, and also other Western monks, have found it quite helpful to memorise
Pali texts for learning Pali. I immediately can know how words occur in
different contexts and can compare grammatical constructions, etc. One
doesn't have to consult dictionaries, etc, so much.
There are some monks, especially in Thailand, who have learnt texts, for
example the Patimokkha, without knowing any Pali. They just do it by
sound and rhythm.  But if one knows what one chants, like I do, then it
is of great help in terms of understanding the Dhamma.

It will be best to start memorizing by learning verse texts such as the
Dhammapada or Sutta Nipata, because they are for reciting, or list texts
such as the Sangiti Sutta or Dasuttara Sutta of the Digha Nikaya, which
are quite helpful in terms of giving an overview of the Dhamma.

Best wishes,
                          Bh N



> Perhaps the following impertinent observation may be permitted.
>
> I have never tried to memorize Pali, but when I was a student (some 50
> years
> back) I memorized several stanzas of Pushkin's Evgeni Onegin in
> Russian. I can
> still recite those stanzas and occasionally do to impress casual
> acquaintances.
> But they didn't really help me to learn Russian, and I no longer
> remember what
> the stanzas mean.
> * * * * *
> George Bedell
> 230/5 Suan Lanna Village, Huay Kaew Road,
> t. Chang Phuak, a. Muang
> Chiang Mai 50300, Thailand
> +66-53-414100
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>



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