u/titikshakshanti

A question on a teaching from Sister Medhini’s article

> “Regardless of everything else – the specific situation, the immediate or superficial outcome, and whether people approve of it or not – an action motivated by greed cannot be harmless or blameless. The same applies to any action motivated by aversion (which includes fear, irritation, impatience and so on, as well as outright anger). And the same also applies to whatever is motivated by sheer carelessness or disregard.”

Why is it easy to apply this teaching on anger and difficult to apply on other states like irritation,fear, impatience, carelessness, etc? I find that such unwholesome states have grades and some are easy to discern while some are difficult to discern as underlying motivations. Any pointers or help in this direction will be welcome. How to work on seeing each of these motivations when you lack self-transparency? How to be less delusional in regards to these motivations than you already are?

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u/titikshakshanti — 12 days ago

Anupubbi-katha (gradual instruction): books, resources, and sutta-anthologies

Anupubbi-katha is the Buddha's progressive teaching that he used to prepare a listener's mind for ore advanced spiritual teachings. The teaching typically unfolds in five distinct stages:

  • Talk on Giving (Dāna): Cultivating generosity and letting go to loosen attachment.
  • Talk on Virtue (Sīla): Establishing basic morality and ethical behavior.
  • Talk on the Heavens (Sagga): Explaining the rewards of virtue and the nature of celestial realms.
  • Dangers of Sensual Pleasures (Ādīnava): Highlighting the impermanence and drawbacks of worldly attachments.
  • Blessings of Renunciation (Nekkkhamma): Realizing the value and peace of letting go of worldly desires.

The Four Noble Truths: Once the mind is receptive, the core teaching particular to Buddhas is introduced: suffering, its cause, its cessation, and the path.

...

I do not find any reasonable resources on Anupubbi-katha on the internet. Just like anupubbasikkhā (gradual training), I see a great value in anupubbakatha (gradual discourse/instructions). But, unlike anupubbasikkhā, I don't even find sutta's that go into the details of anupubbakatha instead of just giving the list of the topics Buddha used in his anupubbakatha. Are there suttas that go into the details of anupubbakatha? If not, was it a deliberate idea to not list the actual instructions of anupubbakatha beyond just naming the themes? Even if this is the case, still an anthology of whatever is available on the topic in suttas will be highly valuable.

Also, just like HH's detailed videos and writing on anupubbasikkhā (gradual training), I see a great value in their teaching along the lines of anupubbakatha (gradual discourse/instructions).

If you any suggested reading lists and resources around this topic, please share them.

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u/titikshakshanti — 21 days ago

Can not doing an action be a violation of precepts?

Let’s take few examples.

If a question is asked and I don’t reply fearing that truth will offend the people around, saying silent is equivalent to telling lie.

If someone leaves something in my room and I don’t return it, it amounts to stealing.

If a situation puts me in danger of violating celibacy and I don’t leave, the inaction amounts to violating the precept.

Not saving a bug lying on my stove that eventually dies burning itself can be seen as killing it.

Different examples may bring up different aspects of the problem. But, the central problem I am facing is this. Inaction is also a kind of action and I am equally responsible for it. But, this idea gets complicated if developed further. Refraining from breaking a precept is straightforward. Refraining from inaction means taking an action to protect a precept and it’s not so straightforward. Otherwise, precepts wouldn’t be presented as negative statements. So, I can’t make such positive actions a rule yet not doing so has obvious pitfalls as illustrated by the examples above. What is the solution?

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u/titikshakshanti — 25 days ago