| Essay Four: An Explanation of the Sutta of the Kalama’s Dilemma |
| An Explanation of the Sutta of the Kalama’s Dilemma |
On Monday the 19th of June, 2006;
Ms. S, asked:
"How is one to know
which teaching and teacher to follow?"
Good Morning Ms. S, I am so pleased to read
of your interest in the Buddha’s path to Enlightenment.
In answer to your question,
let’s turn our attention to
the Sut-ta of “the Ka-la-ma’s Dilemma”
as recorded in the Di-gha Ni-ka-ya.
Perhaps you are familiar
with this the portion of the Pa-li text :
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“There are, sir, many different teachers
that come to Ke-sa-put-ta.
They illustrate and illuminate their own doctrines,
but the doctrines of others
they put down, revile,
disparage and cripple.
For us, sir, uncertainty arises, and doubt arise
concerning them:
Who indeed of these venerable teachers speak truly,
who speaks falsely?”
“It is indeed fitting, Ka-la-mas, to be uncertain,
it is fitting to doubt.
For in situations of uncertainty,
doubts surely arise.
You should decide, Ka-la-mas,
NOT by what you have heard,
NOT by following convention,
NOT by assuming it is so,
NOT by relying on the texts,
NOT because of reasoning,
NOT because of logic,
NOT by thinking about explanations,
NOT by acquiescing to the views that your prefer,
NOT because it appears likely,
and certainly NOT out of respect for a teacher.
“When you would know, Ka-la-mas,
for yourselves,
that ‘These things are UN-healthy,
these things, when entered upon and undertaken,
incline toward harm and suffering;’
then, Ka-la-mas, you should reject them.
“What do you think, Ka-la-mas?
When Greed, Hatred, or Delusion arise within a person,
does it arise for their welfare or their harm?”
“For their harm, sir.”
“And when a person has become
Greedy, Hateful, or Deluded,
their mind consumed by this greed, hatred or delusion,
Ka-la-mas, do they kill living creatures,
and take what has NOT been given,
and go to another’s spouse,
and speak what is false,
and induce others to undertake
what is, for a long time,
to their harm and suffering?”
“This is true, sir.”
“And what do you think, Ka-la-mas?
Are these things healthy or UN-healthy?
“UN-healthy, sir.”
“And when entered upon and undertaken,
do they incline toward harm and suffering or don’t they?”
“We agree, sir, that they do.”
“But when you would know, Ka-la-mas, for yourselves,
that ‘these things are healthy,
these things, when entered upon and undertaken,
incline toward welfare and happiness’…
then, Ka-la-mas, having come to them
you should stay with them.
What do you think, Ka-la-mas?
When NON-greed, NON-hatred, NON-delusion
arise within a person,
does it arise for their welfare or their harm?”
“For their welfare, sir.”
“And when a person has NOT become
Greedy, Hateful or Deluded,
their mind NOT consumed by this greed, hatred or delusion,
Ka-la-mas, do they NOT kill living creatures,
and NOT take what has not been given,
and NOT go to another’s spouse,
and NOT speak what is false,
and induce others to undertake, what is for a long time,
to their welfare and happiness?”
“This is true , sir.”
“And what do your think Ka-la-mas?
Are these things healthy or UN-healthy?”
“Healthy, sir.”
And when entered upon and undertaken,
do they incline toward welfare and happiness or don’t they?”
“We agree, sir, that they do.”
“That person, Ka-la-mas,
who is a follower of the noble path
is thus free of wanting, free of harming,
and without confusion.
Clearly conscious and mindful,
he or she abides having suffused
the first direction, then the second, then the third and fourth… and so above, below and across,
every where and in every way:
with a mind dedicated to Loving-kindness, Compassion,
Good-will and Equanimity
that is abundant, expansive, immeasurable, kindly
and free of harm.
And so, Ka-la-mas, the follower of the noble path
whose mind is thus kindly
and free of harming;
their mind is NOT defiled but purified.”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, that was lovely, wasn’t it?
Allow me, if you will,
to now retell the message of the Sutta of the Ka-la-ma’s Dilemma
in my own words.
One fine morning Lord Buddha and some of his disciples
were trucking on down the road,
just grooving on the glory of the present moment,
when the town fathers of the city of the Ka-la-mas flagged them down.
“Lord Buddha,” they explained, “we’s got a heap ‘a trouble!
So many teachers with so many teachings come through our town.
All the teachers are different and all the teachings are different
but they each have two things in common.
They each Praise themselves and their doctrines
and they each Denigrate all the other teachers and their teachings!
Who are we to rely upon?”
Buddha is so cool;
instead of merely giving them a quick, fortune-cookie answer
and toddling off into the horizon,
he made real sure they got it.
Before telling them how they would Know
which teacher and teaching to rely upon,
he first told them how they would NOT know
which teacher and teaching to rely upon.
Lord Buddha enumerated an extensive list, but I’ll just give it’s essence.
The Enlightened One explained that you would NOT be able to identify
the most trustworthy teacher and teaching by: fame, popularity, prestige,
logic, intuition, personal preference, or Convention.
Convention tells us that if we want to hire a personal assistant
we need put an ad in the paper, schedule three interviews,
and be quite meticulous to check
their Resume, Credentials and References.
But Lord Buddha, said that it was NOT wise to rely upon Convention!
How then shall we know, really know, whether or not a teacher and his teaching
could be effective at helping us to progress upon the path
of Compassion, Insight, Peace, Devotion, Bliss and Love?
Just as the British used to say, “the proof of the pudding is in the tasting,”
and Jesus taught “you shall know a tree by it’s fruit,”
Lord Buddha explained that is the Efficacy of the Teachings
that Validates of the Teacher
Rather than hide behind a “paper lion”
of resume, credentials, references and reputation
a true teacher will “put his money where his mouth is.”
So then what are a true teacher’s resume, credentials and references?
They are simply his Compassion and Insight
as reflected by the Power of his teachings
to heal the hearts of his students.
Does that mean we gotta run around collecting testimonials?
Nope!
You see, it’s simple! Find a teacher, attend him or her,
receive his blessings and instructions,
practice his instructions
and then accomplish his instructions!
After you have practiced his teachings,
with out: negotiating, diluting or “improving” them,
simply notice your results.
Are you more Compassionate, Insightful, Peaceful,
Devoted, Blissful and Loving?
Have you improved?
Did you stay the same?
Did you stagnate?
Or, did you get worse?
After one hundred days of practicing the teachings you have received
do you: dress in black, breath funny, carry a light saber
and do your friends call you, “Darth Vader?”
Come one now Lama Jigme,
how can you quantify spiritual growth?
Simple! First take a base-line reading.
You can do that right now!
And by the way this is one of the reasons
I am considered a “Controversial Teacher.”
Because instead of flaunting my Resume, Credentials and References,
I insist that all my students take a fearless personal self-inventory.
It is here, at this point, in my seminars,
when I insist that people take a good, sober look at themselves
that some folks actually get up and leave.
It is easy to feel good about ourselves
checking resumes, credentials and references,
but it takes a real commitment to true spiritual growth
to practice ruthless self-examination.
So let do this.
Right NOW please take out a blank sheet of paper.
In the upper right hand corner, please write today’s date.
On the left hand side of the sheet please print the word, “Fear.”
Below that, please print the word, “Aggression.”
Below that, please print the word, “Pride,” which of course is simply a blend
of selfishness, insensitivity and self-satisfaction.
Below that, please print the word, “Controlling.”
Below that, please draw a horizontal line across the sheet,
as if we were doing arithmetic.
Now, below that, please print the word, “Compassion.”
Below that, please print the word, “Insight.”
Below that, please print the word, “Peace.”
Below that please print the word, “Devotion.”
Below that please print the word, “Bliss.”
Below that please print the word, “Love.”
Now it gets really interesting!
Please turn you attention, back to the top of the list,
and rate the intensity of your current experience of that attribute
on a scale of zero to ten.
A rating of Zero would mean that “Fear,” for instance,
never occurs in your experience… yeah, right.
A rating of Ten would mean that you are utterly and completely
100% controlled by “Fear,” also unlikely.
Please resist the temptation to get neurotic.
Just trust your intuition and work your way down the list;
I’ll wait while you do that right now!
Back? Good! Please put the sheet in a safe place.
The next step is simple, just go to my web-site, www.LamaJigme.com
and make arrangements to learn from myself over the telephone .
So receive the Twelve lessons of the beginning series, and
learn “The Quick path to Happy Peace.”
Receiving my blessings and instructions is easy.
It even gets more fun when you do the homework, and start practicing it
twice a day, every day for at least one hundred consecutive days.
What do you do on day One hundred and One?
Simple! Just pull out that sheet of paper, and re-evaluate your self.
Only then will you know if this teacher is worth his salt.
Only then will you know these teachings are valid.
This is NOT the convenient path.
But it is the quick path to Happy Peace!
As the sight of Buddha of Compassion’s invocation
enters your eyes and fills your heart
may you deeply feel that all your confusion is as NON-grasp-able
as the infinite azure sky, on a beautiful, cloud-less day!
Om Ma-ni Pad-me Hum!
Lama Jigme Gyatso: Rime Manipa Tantrika
Ms. S, asked:
"How is one to know
which teaching and teacher to follow?"
Good Morning Ms. S, I am so pleased to read
of your interest in the Buddha’s path to Enlightenment.
In answer to your question,
let’s turn our attention to
the Sut-ta of “the Ka-la-ma’s Dilemma”
as recorded in the Di-gha Ni-ka-ya.
Perhaps you are familiar
with this the portion of the Pa-li text :
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“There are, sir, many different teachers
that come to Ke-sa-put-ta.
They illustrate and illuminate their own doctrines,
but the doctrines of others
they put down, revile,
disparage and cripple.
For us, sir, uncertainty arises, and doubt arise
concerning them:
Who indeed of these venerable teachers speak truly,
who speaks falsely?”
“It is indeed fitting, Ka-la-mas, to be uncertain,
it is fitting to doubt.
For in situations of uncertainty,
doubts surely arise.
You should decide, Ka-la-mas,
NOT by what you have heard,
NOT by following convention,
NOT by assuming it is so,
NOT by relying on the texts,
NOT because of reasoning,
NOT because of logic,
NOT by thinking about explanations,
NOT by acquiescing to the views that your prefer,
NOT because it appears likely,
and certainly NOT out of respect for a teacher.
“When you would know, Ka-la-mas,
for yourselves,
that ‘These things are UN-healthy,
these things, when entered upon and undertaken,
incline toward harm and suffering;’
then, Ka-la-mas, you should reject them.
“What do you think, Ka-la-mas?
When Greed, Hatred, or Delusion arise within a person,
does it arise for their welfare or their harm?”
“For their harm, sir.”
“And when a person has become
Greedy, Hateful, or Deluded,
their mind consumed by this greed, hatred or delusion,
Ka-la-mas, do they kill living creatures,
and take what has NOT been given,
and go to another’s spouse,
and speak what is false,
and induce others to undertake
what is, for a long time,
to their harm and suffering?”
“This is true, sir.”
“And what do you think, Ka-la-mas?
Are these things healthy or UN-healthy?
“UN-healthy, sir.”
“And when entered upon and undertaken,
do they incline toward harm and suffering or don’t they?”
“We agree, sir, that they do.”
“But when you would know, Ka-la-mas, for yourselves,
that ‘these things are healthy,
these things, when entered upon and undertaken,
incline toward welfare and happiness’…
then, Ka-la-mas, having come to them
you should stay with them.
What do you think, Ka-la-mas?
When NON-greed, NON-hatred, NON-delusion
arise within a person,
does it arise for their welfare or their harm?”
“For their welfare, sir.”
“And when a person has NOT become
Greedy, Hateful or Deluded,
their mind NOT consumed by this greed, hatred or delusion,
Ka-la-mas, do they NOT kill living creatures,
and NOT take what has not been given,
and NOT go to another’s spouse,
and NOT speak what is false,
and induce others to undertake, what is for a long time,
to their welfare and happiness?”
“This is true , sir.”
“And what do your think Ka-la-mas?
Are these things healthy or UN-healthy?”
“Healthy, sir.”
And when entered upon and undertaken,
do they incline toward welfare and happiness or don’t they?”
“We agree, sir, that they do.”
“That person, Ka-la-mas,
who is a follower of the noble path
is thus free of wanting, free of harming,
and without confusion.
Clearly conscious and mindful,
he or she abides having suffused
the first direction, then the second, then the third and fourth… and so above, below and across,
every where and in every way:
with a mind dedicated to Loving-kindness, Compassion,
Good-will and Equanimity
that is abundant, expansive, immeasurable, kindly
and free of harm.
And so, Ka-la-mas, the follower of the noble path
whose mind is thus kindly
and free of harming;
their mind is NOT defiled but purified.”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, that was lovely, wasn’t it?
Allow me, if you will,
to now retell the message of the Sutta of the Ka-la-ma’s Dilemma
in my own words.
One fine morning Lord Buddha and some of his disciples
were trucking on down the road,
just grooving on the glory of the present moment,
when the town fathers of the city of the Ka-la-mas flagged them down.
“Lord Buddha,” they explained, “we’s got a heap ‘a trouble!
So many teachers with so many teachings come through our town.
All the teachers are different and all the teachings are different
but they each have two things in common.
They each Praise themselves and their doctrines
and they each Denigrate all the other teachers and their teachings!
Who are we to rely upon?”
Buddha is so cool;
instead of merely giving them a quick, fortune-cookie answer
and toddling off into the horizon,
he made real sure they got it.
Before telling them how they would Know
which teacher and teaching to rely upon,
he first told them how they would NOT know
which teacher and teaching to rely upon.
Lord Buddha enumerated an extensive list, but I’ll just give it’s essence.
The Enlightened One explained that you would NOT be able to identify
the most trustworthy teacher and teaching by: fame, popularity, prestige,
logic, intuition, personal preference, or Convention.
Convention tells us that if we want to hire a personal assistant
we need put an ad in the paper, schedule three interviews,
and be quite meticulous to check
their Resume, Credentials and References.
But Lord Buddha, said that it was NOT wise to rely upon Convention!
How then shall we know, really know, whether or not a teacher and his teaching
could be effective at helping us to progress upon the path
of Compassion, Insight, Peace, Devotion, Bliss and Love?
Just as the British used to say, “the proof of the pudding is in the tasting,”
and Jesus taught “you shall know a tree by it’s fruit,”
Lord Buddha explained that is the Efficacy of the Teachings
that Validates of the Teacher
Rather than hide behind a “paper lion”
of resume, credentials, references and reputation
a true teacher will “put his money where his mouth is.”
So then what are a true teacher’s resume, credentials and references?
They are simply his Compassion and Insight
as reflected by the Power of his teachings
to heal the hearts of his students.
Does that mean we gotta run around collecting testimonials?
Nope!
You see, it’s simple! Find a teacher, attend him or her,
receive his blessings and instructions,
practice his instructions
and then accomplish his instructions!
After you have practiced his teachings,
with out: negotiating, diluting or “improving” them,
simply notice your results.
Are you more Compassionate, Insightful, Peaceful,
Devoted, Blissful and Loving?
Have you improved?
Did you stay the same?
Did you stagnate?
Or, did you get worse?
After one hundred days of practicing the teachings you have received
do you: dress in black, breath funny, carry a light saber
and do your friends call you, “Darth Vader?”
Come one now Lama Jigme,
how can you quantify spiritual growth?
Simple! First take a base-line reading.
You can do that right now!
And by the way this is one of the reasons
I am considered a “Controversial Teacher.”
Because instead of flaunting my Resume, Credentials and References,
I insist that all my students take a fearless personal self-inventory.
It is here, at this point, in my seminars,
when I insist that people take a good, sober look at themselves
that some folks actually get up and leave.
It is easy to feel good about ourselves
checking resumes, credentials and references,
but it takes a real commitment to true spiritual growth
to practice ruthless self-examination.
So let do this.
Right NOW please take out a blank sheet of paper.
In the upper right hand corner, please write today’s date.
On the left hand side of the sheet please print the word, “Fear.”
Below that, please print the word, “Aggression.”
Below that, please print the word, “Pride,” which of course is simply a blend
of selfishness, insensitivity and self-satisfaction.
Below that, please print the word, “Controlling.”
Below that, please draw a horizontal line across the sheet,
as if we were doing arithmetic.
Now, below that, please print the word, “Compassion.”
Below that, please print the word, “Insight.”
Below that, please print the word, “Peace.”
Below that please print the word, “Devotion.”
Below that please print the word, “Bliss.”
Below that please print the word, “Love.”
Now it gets really interesting!
Please turn you attention, back to the top of the list,
and rate the intensity of your current experience of that attribute
on a scale of zero to ten.
A rating of Zero would mean that “Fear,” for instance,
never occurs in your experience… yeah, right.
A rating of Ten would mean that you are utterly and completely
100% controlled by “Fear,” also unlikely.
Please resist the temptation to get neurotic.
Just trust your intuition and work your way down the list;
I’ll wait while you do that right now!
Back? Good! Please put the sheet in a safe place.
The next step is simple, just go to my web-site, www.LamaJigme.com
and make arrangements to learn from myself over the telephone .
So receive the Twelve lessons of the beginning series, and
learn “The Quick path to Happy Peace.”
Receiving my blessings and instructions is easy.
It even gets more fun when you do the homework, and start practicing it
twice a day, every day for at least one hundred consecutive days.
What do you do on day One hundred and One?
Simple! Just pull out that sheet of paper, and re-evaluate your self.
Only then will you know if this teacher is worth his salt.
Only then will you know these teachings are valid.
This is NOT the convenient path.
But it is the quick path to Happy Peace!
As the sight of Buddha of Compassion’s invocation
enters your eyes and fills your heart
may you deeply feel that all your confusion is as NON-grasp-able
as the infinite azure sky, on a beautiful, cloud-less day!
Om Ma-ni Pad-me Hum!
Lama Jigme Gyatso: Rime Manipa Tantrika
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