Ontheway wrote: ↑Sat Apr 23, 2022 2:56 pm
ontheway, on this forum admits since suttas are not clear to the fools or the less wise, Abhidhamma came up with a sophisticated means of conveying the truth.
Does that make sense?
Well, firstly, don't twist the words and Suttas aren't for fools or less wise. But indeed now many online people with modern interpretations or "latest understanding" claimed to be wise ones. But they are not.
Suttanta is delivered by the Teacher aiming at certain group of people or a particular person. It was never intended for everyone most of the time. The Blessed One knows the listener's nature, mind inclination, behaviour, interest, etc....and from here He will expound the suitable teaching layer by layer, step by step. Just like a doctor knows what medicine is suitable for a certain disease. So too, the Blessed One knows what is best for the listener. And people of those days are with Paramis (that's why they born during the age of Buddha).
Inevitably, many Suttas may appear vague and difficult to understand for many people since further explanation is often required. The teaching is indeed complete, but the information contained in Suttanta is not complete. That's a fact. And this is why Abhidhamma Pitaka and Atthakatha are important.
Like I posted before, there are nine aspects of the teaching:
1-the-origin-evolution-and-meaning-of-tipitaka-11-320.jpg
And Sutta (discourse) is only one of them, and Abhidhamma is grouped under Veyyakarana (explanation). Hence, it is misleading to say Suttanta is the only one to follow and others should be rejected.
Abhidhamma was delivered for all Devas from all different realms (making Māyādevaputta as the chief receiver of the teachings), and let Arahant Sariputta Thera, the General of Dhamma disperses it in human realm, in which Venerable Ananda Thera comes to learn it as well, which is why he said he remembered 84,000 dhammakkhandhas in Theragatha.
Bahiranidana chapter of Samantapasadika:
Thus, this word of the Buddha which is uniform in sentiment taken as a whole (without division), and consists of such divisions as the Dhamma and the Vinaya in the divisions such as those into two and so forth, has been laid down as, “This is the Dhamma and this is the Vinaya, these are the first, intermediate, and final sayings of the Buddha, these are the Vinaya, Sutta, and Abhidhamma Pitakas, these are the Nikayas from Digha to Khuddaka, these are the nine angas commencing with sutta and these are the 84,000 Units of the Dhamma,” was rehearsed together by the assembly of self-controlled monks with Mahakassapa as their leader verily observing this distinction.
“And not only this, but other divers distinctions in compilation to be met in the three Pitakas, such as the stanzas containing lists of contents, the arrangement into chapters, noting down the repetitions, and the classification into kindred sections of ones, twos, and so forth, that into groups of kindred topics, and into group of fifties and so forth, have been determined when it was rehearsed together in seven months…”
And the orthodox tradition told us very frankly, though the original rehearsed scriptures in total 84,000 since First council and Second council, then when comes to the Third Council, Arahant Moggaliputta Tissa established Kathavathu in full length based on the Matika given in the scriptures, as he refuted every heretical schools of so-called 'Early Buddhism'. Thus in this way, Arahant Moggaliputta Tissa Thera protected the pure Sasana and the content of debate was arranged into the book of Kathavathu. And Kathavathu later be known as orthodox and this is not contradicting the sutta:
Uttaravipattisuttaṃ (Aṅguttaranikāya)
“It’s astounding and amazing, Bhante, how well you stated this: ‘Whatever is well spoken is all the word of the Blessed One, the Arahant, the Perfectly Enlightened One. I myself and others derive our good words from him.’
From this Third Council, the seed of Dhamma was planted in Sri Lanka and many other places, and the entire Pāli Tipitaka rehearsed in the past councils along with commentaries brought to Sri Lanka, where Arahant Mahinda Thera founded Mahavihara. And that is a golden age where there were lots of living Arahants, all equipped with Patisambhida and Iddhi in Sri Lanka. And from Mahavihara, Dhamma was spread out all over Sri Lanka. Eventually, the entire Pāli Tipitaka (not Dipitaka) was written down on Ola leaves during the Fourth Council at Aluvihara. Since then, the scriptures were preserved till present day.
And yes, Abhidhamma can actually makes doctrine easier to understand, to clarify some difficult points in the Dhamma. One such topic is Sakkāyadiṭṭhi. People of EBT group or Secular Buddhism group, often arguing with one another for Sakkāyadiṭṭhi meaning, and thinking that the meaning of this term is decided on consensus. End up with more confusion and papanca. While in Abhidhamma Pitaka - Dhammasangani, a concise answer has been given and all confusion vanished at once.
However, easy or difficult, it is not about the scriptures but depends on the reader's ability of understand. Unlike EBT leader such as Ajahn Brahm who got the guts to say Dhamma is simple, the classical Theravada tradition never hold Dhamma as something easy to be grasped.
Ayacana Suttanta:
This Dhamma that I have attained is deep, hard to see, hard to realize, peaceful, refined, beyond the scope of conjecture, subtle, to-be-experienced by the wise. But this generation delights in attachment, is excited by attachment, enjoys attachment. For a generation delighting in attachment, excited by attachment, enjoying attachment, this/that conditionality and dependent co-arising are hard to see.
Visuddhimagga:
And it is inherently difficult to comment on the dependent origination, as the Ancients said:
The truth, a being, rebirth-linking,
And the structure of conditions,
Are four things very hard to see
And likewise difficult to teach.
Suttanta and Abhidhamma are to be accepted as
Dhamma. Suttanta teachings are often using Sammuti concept while Abhidhamma is using Paramattha concept. This is why it was called "Abhidhamma" because the teaching pattern is beyond Sammuti concept. And Abhidhamma teachings, especially Paṭṭhāna, is the proof why Lord Buddha is having sabbaññuta ñāna. Without accepting Abhidhamma, a student is prone to confusion on important Dhamma points due to his/her insufficient understanding (Paññā).