Lal:
I myself had made reference to that Sutta (AN 9.12) in the post ‘Sotapanna information from the Sutta-pitaka’ in the Sotapanna Forum (18 Oct) having come across it myself 9 MONTHS after Sybe quoted AN 3.87 in the same context (of the 3 types of Sotapannas) back on 24 Jan.
Although we had discussed this, I now find that one point I missed ,and a very significant one, was the very last verse:
‘Na tāvāyaṃ, sāriputta, dhammapariyāyo paṭibhāsi bhikkhūnaṃ bhikkhunīnaṃ upāsakānaṃ upāsikānaṃ. Taṃ kissa hetu? Māyimaṃ dhammapariyāyaṃ sutvā pamādaṃ āhariṃsūti. Api ca mayā, sāriputta, dhammapariyāyo pañhādhippāyena bhāsito”ti.’
‘Sāriputta, this discourse should not be taught to bhikkhus, bhikkhunis, lay male disciples and female disciples until such time. What is the reason? May they be not negligent hearing this discourse. Yet I teach it to those who are wise’
Meaning, to my mind, that when one knows that one is free from the apayas, the tendency to stop striving creeps in UNLESS one also has the wisdom to see the consequences of that and strives first against that. Because it says: ‘It should not be taught to Bhikkhus…etc’ yet the Buddha Himself is teaching it here. But His intention is that it reaches, and be of benefit to, those with wisdom. The rest had better not know about it. For the teaching Bhikkhus cannot tell who has wisdom and who has not. But teach they must. How it affects the listeners will depend on their having or not having wisdom.
How do you see this?
Thank you