SN 1.76 Najīrati: Does Not Decay

Where we gather to focus on a single discourse or thematic collection from the Sutta Piṭaka (new selection every two weeks)
yikeren
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Joined: Tue Dec 10, 2013 2:27 am

Re: SN 1.76 Najīrati: Does Not Decay

Post by yikeren »

My sincere apologies for negligence when I posted my initial enquiry on name and clan as I should have included the whole sentence which is
The physical form of mortals decays,
Their name and clan does not decay.
Doing so, would have highlighted the reason for the Buddha saying that name and clan does not decay i.e. the Buddha was talking about us, as worldlings or mortals, who cannot rid of our views of self as represented by our names and clans.
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mikenz66
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Joined: Sat Jan 10, 2009 7:37 am
Location: Aotearoa, New Zealand

Re: SN 1.76 Najīrati: Does Not Decay

Post by mikenz66 »

Thanks yikeren, that's a nice way of expressing it.

:anjali:
Mike
Bakmoon
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Joined: Sat Mar 10, 2012 3:14 pm

Re: SN 1.76 Najīrati: Does Not Decay

Post by Bakmoon »

plwk wrote:Women are the stain of the holy life:
Here’s where menfolk are enmeshed.


:coffee:
This is a figure of speech called metonymy. Metonymy is a type of figurative language in which you poetically refer to something by explicitly using the wording of something related to it. For example, often times journalists will say something like "The White House responded by issuing a response saying..." in which case the term White House is used as a stand in for the office of the President and his staff.

Similarly, when the Buddha here says that women are the stain of the holy life, he is using metonymy. His particular audience here was primarily heterosexual men whose object of sexual desire is women, and so he uses the term women as a metonymn for sexual desire. As Santa100 has already pointed out, you can reverse it and it keeps its meaning.
The non-doing of any evil,
The performance of what's skillful,
The cleansing of one's own mind:
This is the Buddhas' teaching.
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Mkoll
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Location: USA

Re: SN 1.76 Najīrati: Does Not Decay

Post by Mkoll »

Bakmoon wrote:
plwk wrote:Women are the stain of the holy life:
Here’s where menfolk are enmeshed.


:coffee:
This is a figure of speech called metonymy. Metonymy is a type of figurative language in which you poetically refer to something by explicitly using the wording of something related to it. For example, often times journalists will say something like "The White House responded by issuing a response saying..." in which case the term White House is used as a stand in for the office of the President and his staff.

Similarly, when the Buddha here says that women are the stain of the holy life, he is using metonymy. His particular audience here was primarily heterosexual men whose object of sexual desire is women, and so he uses the term women as a metonymn for sexual desire. As Santa100 has already pointed out, you can reverse it and it keeps its meaning.
Learn something new every day! Thanks Bakmoon.

:thanks:
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
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