Sir Lal : That is not correct. Only a Buddha can discover the ultimate truth, and we have discussed this in many posts: “pubbe ananussutesu Dhammsu” or “previously unknown teachings.”
Again, I am not sure what the objective of the discourse was. It may have been for beginners to the Buddha’s teachings.
- He gave this talk to help Christians and Muslims in the audience feel more comfortable. While it is impossible to attain Nibbana outside of the Buddha Dhamma, a sufficiently experienced ariya can recognize elements of the Dhamma in other sacred texts and share this understanding with others. If these individuals possess the necessary merits, they may achieve Nibbana by associating with a disciple of Lord Buddha. If not, they can cultivate additional merit and attain Nibbana later on.
- A perfect example is Venerable Bhante Maitri (Daniel St). Like me, he comes from a very Christian background. He has also had the fortune of encountering the Buddha Dhamma. We discuss these topics regularly, and he tells me that his relatives are increasingly interested in the Buddha Dhamma. He uses passages from the Bible to teach them, as he is not yet able to reference the Tipitaka directly. We need to be compassionate and recognize that not everyone shares the same level of understanding as we do. The best approach to teaching is to communicate in a way that resonates with their level of comprehension.
- Now, let’s consider how I could become your student in advanced mathematics, Sir Lal. I must be alert and ready to learn. While I know how to count and calculate, that alone is not sufficient. You would need to evaluate my calculation skills, right? You would likely introduce me to increasingly complex calculations, taking familiar examples and expanding upon them with more complicated ones. This is a methodical process. In your class, some students may progress faster than I do and might not require additional examples, while others may take longer. As a teacher, you would want us all to succeed, adapting your teaching to each student’s abilities.
- This approach is similar to teaching the Buddha Dhamma. Consider Brahmāyu the Brahmin and compare him to Venerable Arahant Bahiya. Brahmāyu had faith in Lord Buddha because of the Vedās, and Lord Buddha strengthened that foundation before he make him a sotāpanna. In contrast, Venerable Bahiya needed no such reinforcement or sacred text; he attained arahantship on the spot. For most people, Lord Buddha begins with moral teachings, guiding them towards rebirth in a deva or Brahma realm, and finally towards Nibbāna. They became sotāpanna. However, Venerable Bahiya did not require this foundational teaching.
See Brahmāyusutta
He had mastered the three Vedas, together with their vocabularies and ritual performance, their phonology and word classification, and the testaments as fifth. He knew them word-by-word, and their grammar……
Then the Buddha taught him step by step, with
Atha kho bhagavā brahmāyussa brāhmaṇassa anupubbiṁ kathaṁ kathesi, seyyathidaṁ—
a talk on giving, ethical conduct, and heaven.
dānakathaṁ, sīlakathaṁ, saggakathaṁ;
He explained the drawbacks of sensual pleasures, so sordid and corrupt, and the benefit of renunciation.
kāmānaṁ ādīnavaṁ okāraṁ saṅkilesaṁ nekkhamme ānisaṁsaṁ pakāsesi.
And when the Buddha knew that Divinityyu’s mind was ready, pliable, rid of hindrances, elated, and confident he explained the special teaching of the Buddhas:
Yadā bhagavā aññāsi brahmāyuṁ brāhmaṇaṁ kallacittaṁ muducittaṁ vinīvaraṇacittaṁ udaggacittaṁ pasannacittaṁ, atha yā buddhānaṁ sāmukkaṁsikā dhammadesanā taṁ pakāsesi—
suffering, its origin, its cessation, and the path.
dukkhaṁ, samudayaṁ, nirodhaṁ, maggaṁ.
Just as a clean cloth rid of stains would properly absorb dye,
in that very seat the stainless, immaculate vision of the Dhamma arose in the brahmin Brahmāyu:
evameva brahmāyussa brāhmaṇassa tasmiṁyeva āsane virajaṁ vītamalaṁ dhammacakkhuṁ udapādi:
“Everything that has a beginning has an end.”
“yaṁ kiñci samudayadhammaṁ sabbaṁ taṁ nirodhadhamman”ti.
Let the Blessed One teach me the Dhamma! Let the Holy One teach me the Dhamma!
Desetu me, bhante, bhagavā dhammaṁ;
That would be for my lasting welfare and happiness.”
desetu sugato dhammaṁ, yaṁ mamassa dīgharattaṁ hitāya sukhāyā”ti.
“In that case, Bāhiya, you should train like this:
“Tasmātiha te, bāhiya, evaṁ sikkhitabbaṁ:
‘In the seen will be merely the seen; in the heard will be merely the heard; in the thought will be merely the thought; in the known will be merely the known.’
‘diṭṭhe diṭṭhamattaṁ bhavissati, sute sutamattaṁ bhavissati, mute mutamattaṁ bhavissati, viññāte viññātamattaṁ bhavissatī’ti.
That’s how you should train.
Evañhi te, bāhiya, sikkhitabbaṁ.
When you have trained in this way,
Yato kho te, bāhiya, diṭṭhe diṭṭhamattaṁ bhavissati, sute sutamattaṁ bhavissati, mute mutamattaṁ bhavissati, viññāte viññātamattaṁ bhavissati,
you won’t be ‘by that’.
tato tvaṁ, bāhiya, na tena.
When you’re not ‘by that’,
Yato tvaṁ, bāhiya, na tena;
you won’t be ‘in that’.
tato tvaṁ, bāhiya, na tattha.
When you’re not ‘in that’,
Yato tvaṁ, bāhiya, na tattha,
you won’t be in this world or the world beyond or between the two.
tato tvaṁ, bāhiya, nevidha na huraṁ na ubhayamantarena.
Just this is the end of suffering.”
Esevanto dukkhassā”ti.
Then, due to this brief Dhamma teaching of the Buddha, Bāhiya’s mind was right away freed from defilements by not grasping.
Atha kho bāhiyassa dārucīriyassa bhagavato imāya saṅkhittāya dhammadesanāya tāvadeva anupādāya āsavehi cittaṁ vimucci.
- Not everyone learns in the same way. Only a Lord Buddha knows perfectly how to teach a being every time. Lord Buddha is constantly in the 4 Brahma viharas, which is also why beings feel peaceful in his presence. If we give the Dhamma without having this in mind, others will not be mentally incomfortable. Being compassionate and benevolent means taking into account the mental predispositions of others. Of course, we can make mistakes about what to do. Only a Lord Buddha does not make mistakes. The monastery tries its best to make the audience comfortable regardless of each person’s religion. The goal is to show them the ultimate truth and this can never be done without compassion.