Perhaps the issue here is partly one of English style. The expression
'capable of' means in this context 'susceptible or admitting of'; so it
is simply a slightly more stylistic way of referring to something that
can be divided. I would understand vibhāga as referrring to the act of
dividing rather than to a part or section.
Lance Cousins
> Dear Petra,
>
> I received the following interesting remark to add to the discussion from Ma
> Vajira offlist:
>
> << The sense of "capable of analysis" comes from the literal meaning of
> vibhaaga, which is something which can be analyzed or divided. In practice
> this means "division" or "section." (I would have to check a Pali-English
> dictionary to be sure, but this is how I understand the word from the
> Burmese). The passage from the Tika starts out by saying that "a clear
> explanation of something having sections exists only by virtue of showing
> its sections, therefore he said..." At least this is how I understand it.
> >>
>
> Ma Vajira is an American Buddhist nun in Yangon who teaches Burmese nuns and
> is the only Westerner to have passed the Dhammacariya exams in Myanmar.
>
> Best wishes,
> Jim
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "petra kieffer-Pülz"<kiepue@...>
> To:<palistudy@yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Thursday, October 28, 2010 6:02 AM
> Subject: Re: [palistudy] Sv I 2 with two .tiikaas (1)
>
>
> Dear Jim,
>
> since I did not know what they took as a base for "capable of" I did
> not take it over in my translation. I do not think that there is some
> base for it in Paa.ninian suutras. Ole Pind (Kacc 370, which
> corresponds to your 368) refers to Pa.n V 2.95 which also does not
> include it.
>
> Best,
> Petra