Lay followers correcting venerables

A discussion on all aspects of Theravāda Buddhism
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karuna_murti
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Re: Lay followers correcting venerables

Post by karuna_murti »

How about that Samanera that told Ven. Sariputta about his robe?
vitellius
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Re: Lay followers correcting venerables

Post by vitellius »

Do we have any words of the Buddha on the subject?
Here a layman corrected a monk, and Buddha on this occasion said only that both opinions are true:
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka ... .than.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Individual
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Re: Lay followers correcting venerables

Post by Individual »

pink_trike wrote:It's good to remember that we're honoring the robe, not the body/personality in the robe. Anything can be said as long the robe and what it represents is respected.
Dhammapada 9-10
He who is stained (with defilements) without self-control and truthfulness, is not worthy of wearing the yellow robes.

He who is purged of all stain, is well-established in morals and endowed with self-control and truthfulness, is indeed worthy of the yellow robe.
What is more important is whether the person correcting is in the right. If they are rightly correcting a monk, that's a good thing and the monk should be grateful. But they might also simply be arrogant and unduly critical. In that case, one should remember...

Dhammapada 158
Let one first establish oneself in what is proper, and then instruct others.
The best things in life aren't things.

The Diamond Sutra
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salmon
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Re: Lay followers correcting venerables

Post by salmon »

Individual wrote:
pink_trike wrote: He who is purged of all stain, is well-established in morals and endowed with self-control and truthfulness, is indeed worthy of the yellow robe.
What is more important is whether the person correcting is in the right. If they are rightly correcting a monk, that's a good thing and the monk should be grateful. But they might also simply be arrogant and unduly critical. In that case, one should remember...
May I also add (or rather simplify) that one should be watching one's ego before correcting a Venerable. We need to make sure we are not trying to prove anything before we open our mouths.
~ swimming upstream is tough work! ~
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