Wednesday, August 3, 2016

Every religion's problem.......?


     "Even during the Buddha's lifetime, there were people such as the monk Arittha, who misunderstood the Buddha's teachings and conveyed them incorrectly.  It is also apparent that some of the monks who memorized the sutras over the centuries did not understand their deepest meanings, or at the very least, they forgot or changed some words.  As a result, some of the Buddha's teachings were distorted even before they were written down." 

A solution?

     "Often, we need to study several discourses and compare them in order to understand which is the true teaching of the Buddha.  It is like stringing precious jewels together to make a necklace.  If we see each sutra in light of the overall body of teaching, we will not be attached to any one teaching."

-both excerpts from Thich Nhat Hanh,  The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching:  Transforming Suffering into Peace, Joy, and Liberation

No comments:

Post a Comment