Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

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retrofuturist
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Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by retrofuturist »

Greetings all,

After being on haitus for a couple of years, the Dhamma Wheel Study Group will re-open and become active once more from Sunday, April 4th 2021.

Your Dhamma Study facilitator will be SDC, who will take you on a guided tour across the Sutta Pitaka and key themes and concepts therein.

I'll leave SDC to announce more details in due course, but for now, please keep an eye out for further announcements if you're interested in deepening your understanding of the Buddha's discourses.

:buddha1: :reading: :buddha1:

Metta,
Paul. :)
"Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
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bodom
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by bodom »

:thumbsup:

Thanks SDC!

:anjali:
Liberation is the inevitable fruit of the path and is bound to blossom forth when there is steady and persistent practice. The only requirements for reaching the final goal are two: to start and to continue. If these requirements are met there is no doubt the goal will be attained. This is the Dhamma, the undeviating law.

- BB
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Nicholas Weeks
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by Nicholas Weeks »

Wondering if SDC will use or consult any English translation of some introductory text that covers "key themes and concepts" in the Sutta Pitaka?
Good and evil have no fixed form. It's as easy to turn from doing bad to doing good as it is to flip over the hand from the back to the palm. It's simply up to us to do it. Master Hsuan Hua.
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Lucas Oliveira
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by Lucas Oliveira »

:woohoo:

Many thanks!

:anjali:
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Pulsar
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by Pulsar »

Dearest SDC and Dearest Retro: this is wonderful, sobering, joyful, and soothing news.
It is a challenge, and I was waiting to see who the hero would be, who would come forward
to carry out this much needed task.
I am sure the community is grateful to you SDC. Happy sutta hunting! and hopefully
in the spirit of the suttas these discussions will generate a great deal of good will, and harmony,
immersing us in the suttas, that speak of the wisdom of the
Buddha.
With much love :candle:
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SDC
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by SDC »

Nicholas Weeks wrote: Tue Mar 30, 2021 2:56 pm Wondering if SDC will use or consult any English translation of some introductory text that covers "key themes and concepts" in the Sutta Pitaka?
I’ve heard many a skilled translators and linguists say, in some form or another, that “translation is interpretation”. Now considering the additional scope that comes with the introduction of modern western concepts into an ancient context, I have found this sentiment to be quite true. So, while participants in the study group will be free to include relevant information from contemporary sources, as facilitator I only have plans to offer a limited amount of additional information. I have hard copies of most of the sutta piktaka and will be consulting the translator’s notes for each sutta we read, which will often include information about the translation process and key bits from the ancient commentaries. I also plan to include the definition and etymology for certain key terms to further assist in drawing out the meaning intended in the Pali.

Believe me, I could introduce layers of interpretive material for each sutta, but for now I would rather leave that choice to readers to pursue as they see fit. Although, this will be far from a raw, purely scriptural approach, which can be equally problematic. So with some help from the different translators, the Pali-English dictionaries, and the experiences of the readers, the texts can still do most of the talking.

This is not etched in stone, and as we proceed I will be open to suggestions.
“Life is swept along, short is the life span; no shelters exist for one who has reached old age. Seeing clearly this danger in death, a seeker of peace should drop the world’s bait.” SN 1.3
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SDC
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by SDC »

bodom wrote: Tue Mar 30, 2021 10:19 am :thumbsup:

Thanks SDC!

:anjali:
Lucas Oliveira wrote: Tue Mar 30, 2021 3:44 pm :woohoo:

Many thanks!

:anjali:
:thumbsup:
“Life is swept along, short is the life span; no shelters exist for one who has reached old age. Seeing clearly this danger in death, a seeker of peace should drop the world’s bait.” SN 1.3
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SDC
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by SDC »

Pulsar wrote: Tue Mar 30, 2021 5:24 pm Dearest SDC and Dearest Retro: this is wonderful, sobering, joyful, and soothing news.
It is a challenge, and I was waiting to see who the hero would be, who would come forward
to carry out this much needed task.
I am sure the community is grateful to you SDC. Happy sutta hunting! and hopefully
in the spirit of the suttas these discussions will generate a great deal of good will, and harmony,
immersing us in the suttas, that speak of the wisdom of the
Buddha.
With much love :candle:
You always offer the finest support, Pulsar. I look forward to your participation in the group.
“Life is swept along, short is the life span; no shelters exist for one who has reached old age. Seeing clearly this danger in death, a seeker of peace should drop the world’s bait.” SN 1.3
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Nicholas Weeks
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by Nicholas Weeks »

SDC wrote: Tue Mar 30, 2021 6:27 pm
Nicholas Weeks wrote: Tue Mar 30, 2021 2:56 pm Wondering if SDC will use or consult any English translation of some introductory text that covers "key themes and concepts" in the Sutta Pitaka?
I’ve heard many a skilled translators and linguists say, in some form or another, that “translation is interpretation”. Now considering the additional scope that comes with the introduction of modern western concepts into an ancient context, I have found this sentiment to be quite true. So, while participants in the study group will be free to include relevant information from contemporary sources, as facilitator I only have plans to offer a limited amount of additional information. I have hard copies of most of the sutta piktaka and will be consulting the translator’s notes for each sutta we read, which will often include information about the translation process and key bits from the ancient commentaries. I also plan to include the definition and etymology for certain key terms to further assist in drawing out the meaning intended in the Pali.

Believe me, I could introduce layers of interpretive material for each sutta, but for now I would rather leave that choice to readers to pursue as they see fit. Although, this will be far from a raw, purely scriptural approach, which can be equally problematic. So with some help from the different translators, the Pali-English dictionaries, and the experiences of the readers, the texts can still do most of the talking.

This is not etched in stone, and as we proceed I will be open to suggestions.
Sounds sensible. Will you hop from sutta to sutta within one Nikaya or do you have a thematic sequence outlined where excerpts from varied suttas that have the same theme will be followed?

Looking forward to the group study!
Good and evil have no fixed form. It's as easy to turn from doing bad to doing good as it is to flip over the hand from the back to the palm. It's simply up to us to do it. Master Hsuan Hua.
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SDC
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by SDC »

Nicholas Weeks wrote: Tue Mar 30, 2021 6:38 pm
“SDC” wrote: ...
This is not etched in stone, and as we proceed I will be open to suggestions.
Sounds sensible. Will you hop from sutta to sutta within one Nikaya or do you have a thematic sequence outlined where excerpts from varied suttas that have the same theme will be followed?

Looking forward to the group study!
So I’m still finalizing a few things, but in the coming days will give a better idea of how I plan to proceed. In a nutshell, it will be a nice mix of what Mike was doing along with some additional new ways of presenting. Stay tuned!
“Life is swept along, short is the life span; no shelters exist for one who has reached old age. Seeing clearly this danger in death, a seeker of peace should drop the world’s bait.” SN 1.3
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mikenz66
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by mikenz66 »

Looking forward to this. Thanks SDC!

:heart:
Mike
:reading:
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SDC
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by SDC »

mikenz66 wrote: Tue Mar 30, 2021 7:21 pm Looking forward to this. Thanks SDC!

:heart:
Mike
:reading:
I will do my best to fill the big shoes you left behind!
“Life is swept along, short is the life span; no shelters exist for one who has reached old age. Seeing clearly this danger in death, a seeker of peace should drop the world’s bait.” SN 1.3
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mikenz66
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by mikenz66 »

Hi SDC
SDC wrote: Wed Mar 31, 2021 3:54 pm
mikenz66 wrote: Tue Mar 30, 2021 7:21 pm Looking forward to this. Thanks SDC!

:heart:
Mike
:reading:
I will do my best to fill the big shoes you left behind!
I'm sure you'll do well!

The quality of sutta study groups, online or otherwise, comes down the contributions from the collective wisdom of the various participants. As long as they don't wander off into too much, they work well.

:heart:
Mike
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Ceisiwr
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by Ceisiwr »

Sounds good.
“Knowing that this body is just like foam,
understanding it has the nature of a mirage,
cutting off Māra’s flower-tipped arrows,
one should go beyond the King of Death’s sight.”
Pulsar
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Re: Dhamma Wheel Study Group returns on April 4th 2021

Post by Pulsar »

Dearest SDC: It is April the 1st,
but I am not fooling. Dying to see your first selection,
and everyone after that.
I hope it will be a grand surprise each and every time, presenting
the Dhamma in a myriad ways, sometimes like the blossoms
of the Kimsuka
tree.
With love :candle:
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