When I was in the hospital and had anesthesia, I did NOT have consciousness for the duration of it. That doesn't establish anything. There are people who have claimed that they were conscious while under anesthesia. There are also people who have claimed that they were conscious during cardiac arre...

I hope it is possible to follow N8P without having to believe in rebirth, etc. I would suggest exploring what it's like to feel comfortable (or uncomfortable) with uncertainty. And also what it's like to question your own assumptions and premises. This is another area where working with a teacher c...

Just because you may not personally know something doesn't mean that it is unknowable. And how exactly is it known? How can one know that one is not merely hallucinating, dreaming, or imagining something? In this case, by correctly following the noble eightfold path to it's conclusion. That is, thr...

Faith is belief in something that has no sufficient evidence. If there was evidence, you wouldn't need to have faith - you would know. Just because you may not personally know something doesn't mean that it is unknowable. But until it is known, seen, understood, realized, and contacted with discern...

Belief in rebirth provides an additional layer of meaning and purpose to our lives, motivates us to practice, and is an inextricable part of what the Buddha taught. The Buddha also taught the importance of critical thinking, which, when applied, can cast doubt on the literal existence of rebirth. F...

He combines vipassanā through its meaning of contemplation. To see (contemplate) the object is not necessarily vipassanā. For best vipassanā, conditionality, impermanence, not-self, etc, of the object/s are seen. You sure seem to have a lot of qualms.... Anyway, contemplation (anupassanā) is closel...

mikenz66 wrote:Have you read the article? Kosuta does seem to acknowledge the differences that you mention.

Yes, I read through it. The differences are significant and I don't see any meaningful parallels.

Thank you. This is a handy quote, as it shows a history of commentarial thought. But it only describes concentration , it does not include vipassana, i.e., kaya sankhara . The same section goes on to include both samatha & vipassanā: He combines samatha through its meaning of non-distraction. He co...

In the Chinese Agama parallel to anapana 16 steps, they are much more explicit in step 3 of anapanassati, "sabba kaaya patisamvedi", "experiencing the whole [anatomical] body". In the Pali, such an interpretation does not arise. The Paṭisambhidāmagga Ānāpānassatikathā includes both the mental body ...

Theravada Emptiness: The Abhidhammic theory of Ajaan Sujin Boriharnwanaket – Matthew Kosuta (2007) Ajaan Sujin, a prominent Thai lay teacher of Theravada Buddhism, interprets abhidhammic theory in a manner that, in my view, approaches the teachings of Emptiness as presented in the Prajñā-paramitā-s...

But the belief (intuitively or by experience) in rebirth is not inappropriate. These two (attention and belief) are different things. Yes. More specifically, the assertion that discernment is only developed through meditation (bhāvanā) fails to account for the developmental process by which discern...

Taking refuge in the triple gem isn''t about blindly accepting doctrine. Developing faith based upon the Buddha's teaching isn't blind. Belief in rebirth is as much a wrong view as disbelief in rebirth. No it isn't. Until we develop knowledge via penetrative insight, then any discussion of what occ...

So what do you have confidence in? I am confident that this pillory is off-topic. You brought up the issues of authority and Nikāya interpretation here: I seem able to trace it back to which texts (written and spoken) are taken as authoritative. For example, the first thread of this name having bee...

However, looking for consistency with abhidhammas & commentaries is doing it backwards, as I see it. It's prudent to consult the earliest relevant stratas of commentary when attempting to interpret a given sutta passage. Not doing so can result in all kinds of interpretive nonsense, as I see it. It...

why there are diametrically opposed approaches to this question. I seem able to trace it back to which texts (written and spoken) are taken as authoritative. For example, the first thread of this name having been posted in the Classical section showcases what that point of view requires in terms of...