Re: avagamana

Dear Jim, Bryan

<<I agree that the commentaries are interpretations but I don't agree with
your conclusion that they therefore have no value.>>

I am genuinely sorry, Jim, As usual, I have not made myself clear. Let me please explain.

My objective is, if possible, to find out the intended meaning of the words of Lord Buddha. From that perspective, Pali commentaries are of no value to me.

From a Buddhist perspective, it is of utmost importance and of the highest value to Theravada Buddhists.

With regard to the Pali commentaries, there is no difference between our understanding.However, I like to make some observations,

It is difficult to date the origin of Pali commentaries. I think it is between the First Council and Second Council,

The commentaries, "brought" to Sri Lanka by Mahinda were after the third council.

These commentaries would have been in a laguage spoken in Anuradhapura at that time. Could have been an early form of Sihala.

Buddhaghosa translated the version that was with Mahavihara. (As far as I can remember, there were other versions),

According to historians, Sihala atthakatha were burnt.

Only the Pali commentaries remained. It could not be understood by the sinhala speaking people of this country. In other words, the commentaries were the norm or scriptures.

What is your opinion, on my comments above?

Kind regards,

D.C.

On Sat, Dec 6, 2014 at 10:02 PM, 'Jim Anderson' jimanderson.on@... [palistudy] <palistudy@yahoogroups.com> wrote:

Dear D.C.

I'd like to comment on this statement of yours:

"For me commentaries are interpretations. So they have no value." taken from
the following :

<< 2. However, I found the word in the Commentaries. For me commentaries are
interpretations. So they have no value. But more importantly, we have no
way of giving them a meaning. I give below three instances of aveti in the
commentaries.>>

I agree that the commentaries are interpretations but I don't agree with
your conclusion that they therefore have no value. The commntaries
(aṭṭhakathās) were around long before Mahinda brought them to Sri Lanka and
rendered them into Old Sinhalase and afterwards restored to their Pali
originals by Buddhaghosa. They represent a time-honoured and widely-accepted
interpretation of what the Buddha and his disciples once said long long ago.
In my view, the commentaries have immense value.

You aren't the only one to dismiss the value of the commentaries. I once
knew a Sinhalese bhikkhu, a former head of the Toronto Mahavihara, who
rejected the commentaries as well as the Abhidhammapiṭaka. My view is that
any text that is written in reasonably good Pali is worthy of consideration.
They all have something of value to offer.

Best wishes,

Jim

----- Original Message -----
From: "Dc Wijeratna dcwijeratna@... [palistudy]"
<palistudy@yahoogroups.com>
To: <palistudy@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: December 5, 2014 10:50 AM
Subject: Re: [palistudy] avagamana

Dear Bryan, Ven. Bodhi, and Jim

*Avecca, Acala and Aveti*

My comments are as follows:

1. To start with I must make a confession. I don’t know Sanskrit; I don’t
know Pali (language) either.

2. I accept only the words attributed to Lord Buddha (Bhagavā Buddho,
usually shortened Bhagavā in the Suttas.) as the vocabulary of the Teaching
of the Buddha; not Buddhism.

------------------------------------
Posted by: "Jim Anderson" <jimanderson.on@...>
------------------------------------

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