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Thank you, Dosakkhayo, for bringin up this issue.
– Don’t hesitate to comment/ask questions. It is good to look at issues from different angles.Dosakkhayo asked: ” Does jīva mean life-stream? Or just life in the sense of ‘being’?”
Whether jīva means just “this life” or a “lifestream” depends on the type of the wrong view.
– Those with uccheda diṭṭhi believe that life (jīva) is associated with the physical body (sarīra) in this life. When the body dies, that is the end of jīva.
– Those with sassata diṭṭhi refer to jīva as a “lifestream that continues without end” because it has a permanent entity (ātman) associated with it.I have added a bit more — including the above — to the post:
Misconceptions on the Topics the Buddha “Refused to Answer”Dosakkhaya wrote: “I think that “Sassato loko and asassato loko” means “not to have the remotest idea of paticca samuppada”
1. That is correct since “loka” means the five aggregates in Buddha Dhamma.
– Those with “Sassata ditthi” have the wrong that there is something in the five aggregates that can and will continue perpetually.
– Others with “asassata/uccheda ditthi” have the wrong view that the five aggregates started at birth (in this life) and will end with the body’s death.But five aggregates will continue to grow until the root causes for its continuance (i.e., arising of hadaya vatthu/pasada rupa) are stopped.
– That happens via PS.
– P.S. Of course, there are many ways to express the above. The main thing is to realize that as long as one has the wrong view that worldly things are of value (i.e., do not comprehend the anicca nature), there is no end to suffering. Anicca nature inevitably leads to dukkha (suffering), and one will end up without refuge (anatta). Human birth is when one can use the opportunity to “seek refuge” in Buddha Dhamma and get to the refuge (Nibbana).2. On the other hand, scientists consider the physical world out there (cosmos) as the “world” or “loka.”
– Even if an infinite number of beings attain Nibbana and dissociate with their “lokas” there will be an infinite number left to sustain the cosmos.I have re-written the post to address your valid questions. It is getting late here, so I just finished a rough draft. Please feel to ask questions so that I can add to that post.
“Misconceptions on the Topics the Buddha ‘Refused to Answer’“Jorg wrote: “Maybe I could provide some more useful input then.”
Please do. Thanks for the other comments too.
– Yes. VPN can additionally slow down website loading.Seng Kiat Ng has created a free website with the “Pure Dhamma ebook published as web pages”:
“Pure Dhamma: A Quest to Recover Buddha’s True Teachings”
As you may know, Seng Kiat maintains an eBook in pdf format, which is updated regularly as posts are updated:
“Pure Dhamma Essays in Book Format”
– It can be read with eBook readers like the Kindle.Much merits to Seng Kiat and his family for all his efforts!
Ayubowan…Tobi
(“Ayubowan” in the Sinhala language means “long life to you.”)Thank you for all your suggestions.
Regarding the technical stuff, we know them and have done our best. But thanks for pointing them out. The need to use plugins is good and bad.
“I was wondering: How do you think the Buddha would have created a website?”
– I don’t think he would get involved in such tasks. There would be many lay people doing such tasks in the time of a Buddha.“After starting the website, a cookie query with the option to set it to Beginners, Sōtapanna, Anāgāmi and Monks maybe.”
– Yes. That would be equivalent to displaying a few appropriate sub-menus on the home page.“1. A classification as is customary in
Home // Forum // Members Area // Video………………………………Search function
The Practice of the Dhamma // Abhidhamma // Dhamma and Science // Meditation // Tables and Summaries
Something like that, that’s just an example of a directory structure/folder structure.”– I think each post page has breadcrumbs showing exactly that.
If breadcrumbs do not show up on pages, please let me know.
For example, “Home » Historical Background » Key Problems with Mahāyāna Teachings” should show up on top of the post “Key Problems with Mahāyāna Teachings.”
– Breadcrumbs indicate the root sections and subsections for a given post.
– P.S. Thanks to Dosakkhayo for the suggestion to revise that post. I have re-written that old post.P.S. I have been making some adjustments to the menu bar. While doing a few other changes, I also included a “slider” to adjust the level of “Dark Mode.” But I think the “on/off Half Moon” at the bottom of the page may be better. The slider would not show up on Mobile.
Thank you, LayDhammaFollower.
We can keep the main menu if the website loading is acceptable/fast enough.
– But we will keep thinking/working on other possible improvements (two websites, arranging menus in order of difficulty, etc).If anyone finds loading too slow, please comment here or email me at [email protected].
– Please mention the device (desktop or mobile).Occasionally, the website could be slow due to a temporary issue (normally lasting less than 30 minutes). Please disregard those.
Thank you for the suggestions, LayDhammaFollower.
Yes. Some kind of classification could be helpful.
We have been using CDN for a long time. It is just that when a website has over 700 posts, it takes time to load the menu.
– Another possibility is to have only the main sections listed on the menu on the home page. Then the reader can select a section of interest.I believe the load time is still not too bad. It would be useful to get input from you all on whether it is too slow, acceptable, or fast enough. Usually, mobile devices are slower than desktop or laptop computers.
Thank you for your suggestions, Dosakkhayo.
“I am trying to be able to speak English like a native speaker. But it is likely to take quite a long time. I hope there is someone who could help me with polishing my writing.”
Your writing is good and getting better. I see worse writing from some English speakers.
– There are mainly two ways to improve writing skills: (i) write frequently, (ii) read English texts (books, websites, etc.)
– If you have English-speaking friends, conversing in English with them frequently will help with speaking.Looking forward to reading your essay.
Thank you, Lang. You are doing a great service to that person.
I worry about this issue. Someone who may not have much exposure to Buddha Dhamma/Buddhism may be confused when first clicking on this website. Many posts are on advanced concepts.
– Furthermore, the website is getting big and taking time to load. Seng Kiat and I have been looking for ways to speed up the site.
– Another idea that came to my mind yesterday is whether we should start another website for beginners. I own the puredhamma.info registration.
– Some posts, including the “Moral Living and Fundamentals” section, can be moved to that new website.
– Furthermore, WordPress websites are a bit difficult to manage. It could be a good idea to start the new website on the new platform, Ghost CMS. I did some research yesterday (YouTube is a great resource for that), and the Ghost platform seems simple and easy to manage.
– Comments/suggestions are appreciated.We have to be very careful about initiating “new” approaches. The Mahayanists tried that 2000 years ago, leading to disastrous outcomes. That led to the disappearance of all types of Buddhism in India. The effects are still felt in many other countries.
– Of course, you are not talking about changing foundational aspects. But still, we need to be careful that “new approaches” do not lead to unexpected consequences.
– I would be happy to look at your drawings.
– I also like to hear from others in the forum. I can also be contacted at: [email protected].I listened to the discourse. Let me summarize.
1. There are many things in this world that average humans cannot perceive. There are unseen beings living among us (gandhbbas and some petas) that we cannot see, but those with iddhi powers can see.
2. @29 minutes, the Thero discusses the following account:
“The Siberian Hell Sounds”
– The Thero says he has heard similar “hellish sounds,” while being in samadhi a couple of times, but he did not want to hear them again.3. @35 minutes, reference is made to the following video (I believe):
– There is a book, “23 Minutes In Hell: One Man’s Story About What He Saw, Heard, and Felt in that Place of Torment” by that person, Bill Wiese.
4. I have discussed some of these in the post “Does the Hell (Niraya) Exist?”
– I need to include Waharaka Thero’s experience (in #2 above) in #4 of that post. I was skeptical about that sound record when I wrote that post.5. Many suttas describe the propensity to be born in an apaya. There is a series of about 30 suttas starting with the “Manussacutiniraya Sutta (SN 56.102).”
– According to those suttas, most of those at the end of their human or Deva bhava are reborn in an apaya.I think the title you selected is good.
Top-down and bottom-up approaches can mean different things in different situations. So let me explain what I had in mind regarding learning/practicing Buddha Dhamma.
1. Top-down approach is to start with Abhidhammic analysis, the theoretical framework. One could learn about the world in terms of its building blocks: citta, cetasika, and rupa.
– One would learn about 81 (121) types of citta, 54 types of cetasika, and 28 types of rupa.
– How the fundamental units of rupa (suddhatthaka) arise in javana citta, and how some incorporate kammic energy to create the basis of life: hadaya vatthu and a set of pasada rupa (version of namarupa).
– When a purified mind stops making such “life-creating” namarupa, one attains Arahanthood.
– One may be able to grasp that lobha, dosa, and moha (and the mundane versions of alobha, adosa, and amoha) are the main defilements that can give rise to such namarupa.2. Bottom-up approach is to start with learning about dasa akusala, kamma, kamma vipaka, rebirth, etc. I started learning those even before starting school. In Sri Lanka, those concepts are taught from primary school through high school. In addition, we used to go temple often and listen to discourses by bhikkhus, making offerings to them regularly (the local community sustains temples).
– That approach is a combination of learning and practice. We were taught to obey the five precepts and took the eight precepts on “Poya days.”
– One could proceed to Arahanthood that way. The “Abhidhamma analysis” (as we call Abhidhamma today) was not there during the time of the Buddha. As I have explained, Buddha taught Ven. Sariputta the framework of that analysis, and Ven. Sariputta only got started on it with his students. That analysis was finalized only by the Second Buddhist Council held 200 years after the Parinibbana of the Buddha.
– See “Abhidhamma – Introduction” for details.3. I don’t think one can proceed to Arahanthood strictly by approach #1. That is what I was trying to say.
– Of course, one is likely to start “practicing” (i.e., living by five/eight precepts first and then making that a deeper practice via comprehending the Noble Truths/Paticca Samuppada/Tilakkhana) when it becomes clear of the importance of “living by Dhamma” as one learns Abhidhamma.4. I think a combination of #1 and #2 would be the best if one can tackle it. That may be Dosakkhayo’s approach.
– It is impossible for me or anyone else (unless it is Buddha) to recommend a specific way. Each person needs to find their way.
– Furthermore, I have no idea about anyone’s state of understanding. I can see that some people are likely to have made progress, and I am delighted. When I started the website, I was unsure whether there would be much interest. I thought that my efforts would not have gone to waste even if one person attained the Sotapanna stage. So, it makes me happy to see many people are making progress.5. I think hojanyun (Ja-nyun Kim) and Tobias Große are doing a great service through their Korean and German puredhamma websites. Seng Kiat has been involved from the beginning and has done much work to maintain the English website. Many people contribute by commenting on the forum. I hope we all can try our best to spread the correct teachings of the Buddha. Of course, we should give priority to making progress ourselves.
P.S.
6. There is another angle to this. We all have been exposed to Buddha Dhamma (by many previous Buddhas) in this rebirth process with no discernible beginning. Thus, some people have practiced in previous lives and have achieved a significant level of progress. It could be easier for them to “catch up” without much effort.
– A similar situation is there in the cultivation of jhanas. It is relatively easy for some people to attain anariya jhanas. I have discussed that.P.P.S.
7. Dosakkhayo wrote: “I would like to deliver to everyone else what I got. From now, I’m starting to write a column that I planned before. I’ll write it down in Korean for now, but I plan on drawing it into comics.”
– That sentence didn’t register in my mind while reading your comment earlier.
– That is an extremely bad idea. Buddha Dhamma is to be treated with respect. I don’t want to have any association with this kind of stuff.
