What I remember is that he says it is this “upadana” that should not be given up. It would be like rowing a boat and suddenly throwing away the paddles before having reached the shore. That would be unwise. Only when one fully reaches the shore (become an arahant) one lets go. What we first need to give up is the upadana for apunna abhisankhara.
A Quest to Recover Buddha's True Teachings