Few indeed have the courage to acknowledge their flaws and admit their mistakes. Though I’m late, I want to commend Jittananto for doing so and also extend my sincere apology to him and everyone else in this thread—Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike. No matter how flawed someone else’s beliefs may appear to be, deprecating them with harsh words is never a noble deed. I, too, recognize that I’m not perfect and at times, I don’t realize that my spontaneity might negatively affect others. Having struggled with anger issues throughout my life, I’ve often found it difficult to tolerate environments or perspectives that I’ve perceived as “idiotic” or “nonsensical.” And I won’t deny that it used to be much worse before encountering the Dhamma. It has taken a lot of work for me to get to where I am but this is another sign that there’s a lot more to be done. I would like to make it known that I’ve had friends who are Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Agnostics, Mahayanists, and more, and have no intention in wishing or causing harm to any of them. We are all in this world together trying to figure out what it means to exist and our struggles are very real. The worst thing we can do is tear each other down.
I also want to address a possible misunderstanding. Some may have taken my words as criticism of Jethavanarama Monastery, but that was never my intent. I have personally spoken to the monks there and have nothing but respect for them and their dedication. They were the ones who taught me many fundamental concepts like cause and effect, pleasure and vexation, etc. that filled important gaps in my understanding. My comment was never meant to accuse them of sugarcoating the truth; it was simply an attempt at genuine critique. If my words gave the wrong impression, I deeply regret that.
“Bhikkhus, don’t get into arguments, such as:
“You don’t understand this teaching and training. I understand this teaching and training. What, you understand this teaching and training? You’re practicing wrong. I’m practicing right. I stay on topic, you don’t. You said last what you should have said first. You said first what you should have said last. What you’ve thought so much about has been disproved. Your doctrine is refuted. Go on, save your doctrine! You’re trapped; get yourself out of this—if you can!”
Why is that? Because those discussions aren’t beneficial or relevant to the fundamentals of the spiritual life. They don’t lead to disillusionment, dispassion, cessation, peace, insight, awakening, and extinguishment.”
“Even if low-down bandits were to sever you limb from limb with a two-handed saw, anyone who had a malevolent thought on that account would not be following my instructions. If that happens, you should train like this: ‘Our minds will not degenerate. We will utter no harsh words. We will remain full of sympathy, with a heart of love and no secret hate. We will meditate, spreading a heart of love to that person. And with them as a basis, we will meditate, spreading a heart full of love to everyone in the world—abundant, expansive, limitless, free of enmity and ill will.’ That’s how you should train.”
