שלום.नमस्ते.สมาธ.Pax.سلام.Peace.साटीनाम.صلح.Kwey.Amani.Udo.Barış.ειρήνη.Pace.Paz.Paix.Fred.
Frieden.Vrede.Siochana.мир.امن.和平.平和.평화.Ingatka.Wominjeka.Aloha.
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ૐ.אמן
Holy
Scriptures Study, Week 49 Ki Teitzei; 119.1.1
Torah
Devarim 21:10 – 25:19
“When you go to war against your enemies, Adonai will help you defeat
them, and you will take many prisoners. If you find a beautiful woman
among the captives and are attracted to her, you may marry her. When you
bring her home, she must shave off the hair on her head and cut her
fingernails. Then she must change her foreign clothing and remain in your
home, mourning for her father and mother for a full month. After that you
may marry her and make her your wife.” (v10-13).
“This is the law when a man has two wives, one whom he loves and one
whom he dislikes, and both wives, the loved one and the unloved one, have given
birth to sons, but the first-born is the son of the unloved wife. When
the man divides his property, he must not give the son of the beloved wife more
(than) the first-born son of the unloved wife.
“He must give the son of the hated wife a double portion of all his
property because he is the first-born and it is his legal right.”
(v15-17).
Capital punishment is deemed for an unruly son.
“If a person is legally sentenced to death, you must hang him from a
tree. You must not allow his body to hand on the tree overnight, but you
must bury him on the same day. A person who has been hanged is an insult
to Adonai, and you must not let it desecrate the land Adonai is giving you as a
heritage.” (v22-23).
“If you see an ox or a sheep wandering around lost, you must not ignore
it. You must return it to the owner.
“If the owner is not nearby, or if you do not know who the owner is, you
must take the animal to your own farm. You must care for it until the
owner claims it, and then you must return it to him.
“You must do the same in the case of any animal, or an article of
clothing, or anything else that someone loses and you find. You must hold
it for the owner.” (v1-3).
“No woman shall dress in men’s clothing, and no man shall dress in
women’s clothing. Adonai hates cross-dressing behaviour.”
(v5).
“You must not plant two types of crops in your vineyard. If you
do, it is forbidden to eat the yield of the grapes you planted and the fruit
from the second crop.” (v9).
“You must not plow with an ox and a donkey in the same team.
You must not wear clothing in which wool and linen are woven together in the
same garment.” (v10-11).
“You must sew tassels on the four corners of the garments that you
wear.” (v12).
Rules regarding divorce, claims and slander regarding unchastity, are
described.
“If a man is found sleeping with someone else’s wife, both the woman and
the man lying with her shall be put to death. You must rid Israel of
evil.”
When a man has sex with a woman engaged to be married, capital
punishment is prescribed for both (including the woman because she abstains
from screaming for help; except when in the field, where there is an
absence of help).
“If a man meets a virgin girl who is not engaged, and he is caught
raping her, the rapist must give the girl’s father fifty silver shekels.
He must marry the girl that he raped, and he cannot divorce her as long as he
lives.” (v28-29).
“A son must not marry his father’s wife. This would shame his
father.” (v1).
Additional prohibitions regarding marriage are provided.
“You must not hate the Edomite, because he is your relative. You
must not hate the Egyptian, because you were once a stranger in his land.
Therefore, the grandchildren of the Egyptians who left Egypt with you may
convert in the third generation and marry Israelites.” (v8-9).
Rules regarding cleanliness within a camp, particularly during war, are
provided.
“If a slave escapes from his master, you must not force him to return.
“You must allow him to live alongside you in your cities wherever he
chooses, and you must not discriminate against him. You must do nothing
to hurt his feelings.” (v16-17).
Prostitution is prohibited.
“You must deduct advance interest from loans made to an Israelite,
whether for money or for food or for anything else for which interest is
normally taken.
“You may take interest from a foreigner, but you must not do so from an
Israelite. If you observe this rule, Adonai will bless you in all your
undertakings in the Promised Land that you are going to occupy.”
(v20-21).
“When you make a sacred pledge to Adonai, pay it on time, because Adonai
demands that you honor all your promises. It is not a sin to avoid making
plesges. But if you make a sacred pledge, be sure to keep your promise to
Adonai.” (v22-24).
“If you enter your neighbor’s vineyard and you are hungry, you may eat
as many grapes as you desire, but you are not permitted to take bunches of
grapes home with you.
“It is the same when you are in your neighbor’s field of grain.
You may pick and eat the grain with your hand, but you are not allowed to cut
the stalks with a sickle and take them with you.” (v25-26).
Rules regarding divorce are prescribed.
“A newly married man must not be drafted for military service of forced
into any other type of service. He must be allowed to remain with his
bride for one year, so that he can be happy with his bride.” (v5).
“You must not take an upper or lower millstone as a pledge for a loan
because the owner makes his living by grinding grain into flour.” (v6).
“If a man kidnaps a fellow Israelite, and forces him into slavery and
then sells him, the kidnapper shall be put to death. You must rid yourself
of such evildoers in your community.” (v7).
“When you make a loan of any kind to your neighbour, you must not go
into his house to take something as security.
“You must stand outside, and the man who owes you the money will bring
the security item outside to you.
“If the man is poor and has only a coat to pledge, you must not keep the
poor person’s warm coat overnight as security.
“You must return his coat to him at sundown, so that he will be able to
sleep in his warm garment, and he will bless you for it. Then you will
have performed a righteous deed.” (v10-13).
“You must not withhold the wages that are due your poor labourer,
whether he is an Israelite or a foreigner living in your land. You must
pay him on the same day, before the sun goes down. He is a poor man, and
he needs his daily wages because his family depends on the money.
“Do not give him a reason to complain to Adonai, because you will be
guilty of sin.” (v14-15).
“You must not deny justice to the foreigner or the orphan. You
must not take a widow’s clothing as a pledge for a loan.” (v17).
“Always remember that you were a poor slave in Egypt, and Adonai freed
you. That is why I am commanding you to observe these rules.”
(v18).
“When there is a problem between people, the judges will decide who is
guilty and who is innocent.” (v1).
Rules regarding a brother marrying his deceased brother’s wife and
raising children for him, are prescribed.
“You must not cheat by using two different weights, one heavy and one
light. You must not cheat by using two different measures, one long and
one short.
“You must have accurate weights and accurate measures. If you do
this, you will enjoy a long life in the land that Adonai is giving you.
Using dishonest weights and measures is repugnant to Adonai.” (v13-16).
--
What is the context of the rules regarding marrying a captive foreign
woman? What is the propensity of this allowance or rule towards
motivating Israelis towards invading additional nations simply to attain
additional wives? Is there any limit to prevent such from
happening? What are additional precepts that govern righteous interaction
between foreigners? How does this compare with the respective teachings within
additional traditions?
What are additional, traditional rules regarding an Israeli man having
multiple wives, including throughout the historic tradition since the
conveyance of the Torah to Moshe? How do these practises compare and
contrast within those found within the Koran, as well as within the historic
tradition of Islam, as well as that of Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, and
additionally?
Why is capital punishment prescribed when an impaled (hanged) body is
abhorred by Adonai?
How does the alTruistic mitzvah, shared within the opening of Chapter
22, fit within the context of the previously described mitzvot regarding
captives and capital punishment?
Do the prohibitions regarding the mixture of crops and fabrics have any
implications regarding the interaction between Israelis and additional
nations? What are appropriate applications, and what are inappropriate
applications? And what implication do these applications have regarding
the current Diaspora of Judaism and the substantial history of intermarriage
and miscegenation within Judaism?
What is the nature of the righteousness within the prohibition of
charging interest towards other Israelis; and what is the nature of the
contradiction within the permission of charging interest towards
foreigners? How does this also compare with similar dichotomies of
treatment towards Israelis and foreigners? What is an appropriate balance
of treatment towards all people? Is this even an appropriate
consideration? How do the respective teachings of equanimity, within
Hinduism and Buddhism, compare with this distinction? How does this also
compare with the teachings of compassion (and the benevolent Samaritan) that
Jesus provides? And how does this compare with appropriate teachings from
the Koran and Islam? Do we each have a unique responsibility towards our
respective, immediate kindred, and families, and if so, how do we appropriately
balance such responsibilities with the responsibilities that we maintain
towards all humans, and indeed, all beings? What is the appropriate line
of distinction between how we treat foreigners and how we treat family?
--
Bhagavad Gita
Chapter 13
“The body is called a field, Arjuna; he who knows it is called the
Knower of the field. This is the knowledge of those who know.
“I am the Knower of the field in everyone, Arjuna. Knowledge of
the field and its Knower is (True) knowledge.
“Listen and I will explain the nature of the field and how change takes
place within it. I will also describe the Knower of the field and his
power.” (v1-3).
Manas, buddhi, and ahamkara are 3 parts of mind, with 5 senses of
perception, 5 elements, 5 sense organs, and 5 organs of action.
“Those who know (Truly) are free from pride and deceit. They are
gentle, forgiving, upright, and pure, devoted to their spiritual teacher,
filled with inner strength, and self-controlled.
“Detached from sense objects and self-will, they have learned the
painful lesson of separate birth and suffering, old age, disease, and
death.” (v7-8).
“Free from selfish attachment, they do not get compulsively entangled
even in home and family. They are even-minded through (benevolent)
fortune and bad.” (v9).
“I will tell you of the wisdom that leads to immortality: the
beginningless Brahman, which can be called neither being nor nonbeing.
“It dwells in all, in every hand and foot and head, in every mouth and
eye and ear in the universe.” (v12-13).
“In its subtlety it is beyond comprehension. It is indivisible,
yet appears divided in separate creatures. Know it to be the creator, the
preserver, and the destroyer.” (v16).
“Some (Realise) the Self within them through the practice of meditation,
some by the path of wisdom, and others by selfless service.
“Others may not know these paths; but hearing and following the
instructions of an illumined teacher, they too go beyond death.”
(v24-25).
“He alone sees (Truly) who sees the Lord the same in every creature, who
sees the Deathless in the hearts of all that die.
“Seeing the same Lord everywhere, he does not harm himself or
others. Thus he attains the supreme goal.” (v27-28).
--
Bhagavad Gita
Chapters 13
“The body is called a field, Arjuna; (That) who knows it is called
the Knower of the field. This is knowledge of those who know.
“I am the Knower of the field in everyone, Arjuna. Knowledge of
the field and its Knower is (True) knowledge.” (v1-2).
“The field, Arjuna, is made up of the following five areas of sense
perception; the five elements; the five sense organs and the five
organs of action; the three components of the mind: manas, buddhi,
and ahamkara; and the undifferentiated energy from which all these
evolved.
“In this field arise desire and aversion, pleasure and pain, the body,
intelligence, and will.” (v5-6).
“Those who know (Truly) are free from pride and deceit. They are
gentle, forgiving, upright, and pure, devoted to their spiritual teacher,
filled with inner strength, and self-controlled.
“Detached from sense objects and self-will, they have learned the
painful lesson of separate birth and suffering, old age, disease, and
death.” (v7-8).
“Free from selfish attachment, they do not get compulsively entangled
even in home and family. They are even-minded through (benevolent)
fortune and bad.
“Their devotion to (Me) is undivided. Enjoying solitude and not
following the crowd, they (search for) only (Me).
“This is (True) knowledge, to (search for) the Self as the (True) end of
wisdom always. To (search for) anything else is ignorance.”
(v10-11).
“I will tell you of the wisdom that leads to immortality: the
beginningless Brahman, which can be called neither being nor nonbeing.
“It dwells in all, in every hand and foot and head, in every mouth and
eye and ear in the universe.
“Without senses (Itself), (It) shines through the functioning of the
senses. Completely independent, (It) supports all things. Beyond
the gunas, (It) enjoys their play.” (v12-14).
“It is both near and far, both within and without every creature;
(It) moves and is unmoving.
“In (Its) subtlety (It) is beyond comprehension. It is
indivisible, yet appears divided in separate creatures. Know it to be the
creator, the preserver, and the destroyer.” (v15-16).
“Dwelling in every heart, (It) is beyond darkness. It is called
the light of lights, the object and goal of knowledge, and knowledge
itself.” (v17).
“Know that prakriti and Purusha are both without beginning, and that
from prakriti come the gunas and all that changes.
“Prakriti is the agent, cause, and effect of every action, but it is
Purusha that seems to experience pleasure and pain.
“Purusha, resting in prakriti, witnesses the play of the gunas born of
prakriti. But attachment to the gunas leads a person to be born for
(benevolence) or evil.” (v19-21).
“Some (Realise) the Self within them through the practice of meditation,
some by the path of wisdom, and others by selfless service.
“Others may not know these paths; but hearing and following the
instructions of an illumined teacher, they too go beyond death.”
(v24-25).
“He alone sees (Truly) who sees the Lord the same in every creature, who
sees the Deathless in the hearts of all that die.
“Seeing the same Lord everywhere, he does not harm himself or
others. Thus he attains the supreme goal.” (v27-28).
--
Discussion Questions From Chapters 13 – 14
What are the 5 areas of sense perception, 5 elements, 5 sense organs,
and 5 organs of action? What are the natures, dynamics, and metaphysics
of each of these, with the 3 parts of the mind?
What may be further considerations, implications, and applications
regarding: “relying upon this wisdom”?
--
Discussion Questions From Chapters 13 – 14
What are the actual details and the comprehensive nature of the
metaphysics that are introduced within the opening of Chapter 13? How
does this metaphysical Theology confluence with the teachings of detachment and
equanimity; as well as with the pragmatic necessities for sustaining
life?
How can the notion of Brahman simultaneously existing in everyone be
distinguished from the criticisms applied towards pantheism? The
aggregate of the respective material and spiritual being of each of us exists
beyond the sum of our respective parts: how does this notion better
explain the phenomenon of Brahman existing within and beyond each of us, and
even beyond existence? How does (and can) the phenomenon of our aggregate
existence “being larger than the sum of our parts” encourage us to abstain from
transgressive competition against each other for temporal phenomena that
appears to sustain our respective existence, and to encourage to better
perceive and manifest the intrinsic potentiality that exists within our
proficient cooperation with each other? How do we appropriate tend to our
respective temporal needs whilst expanding the experience of being larger than
our respective parts?
How does “It” compare with the description of the Holy Spirit within the
Gospels and tradition of Christianity? How does this compare with the
description of the actual teachings of the Buddha? Are there any similar
comparisons within Judaism and Islam?
What is the intentionality within the reference to “the creator, the
preserver, and the destroyer”? What are the Theological implications
within the suggestion of the unity of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva?
What is the nature of the apparent distinction between Sri Krishna and
Brahman, as communicated within verse 26? How does this compare with the
dialogue amongst the angels and Avraham; with the revelation of the Koran
to Muhammad (PBUH); with Jesus’s proclamations of proximity with
Deus; and with the Buddha’s teachings regarding Nirvana? Within
each of these examples, what is the intrinsic nature and role of the respective
Prophet who receives (and conveys) the message, with the nature of the source
(Brahman, Adonai, Allah, Deus, Nirvana) of the message, and the apparent
conduit (Sri Krishna, Angels, revelation, the Enlightenment of self, and/or
additionally) of the message to the respective Prophet?
--
Digha Nikaya
Dasuttara Suttanta
“Thus have I heard:
“The Exalted One was once staying at Campa, on the banks of Lak Gaggara,
with a great company of the brethren, about five hundred in number. There
the venerable Sariputta addressed them, saying, ‘Friends, brethren!’
‘Yes, friend,’ responded the brethren. And the venerable Sariputta spake
thus:--
“In groups from one to ten will I declare
“The (Dharma), that so ye may Nibbana win,
“That ye may make an end of ill and pain,
“That ye may be from every bond set free.” (v1).
“There is One thing, friends, that helpeth much, One thing that is to be
developed, One that is to be understood, One that is to be eliminated, One that
belongs to disaster, One that leads to distinction, One that is hard to
penetrate, One that is to be brought to pass, One that is to be thoroughly
learnt, One that is to be (Realised).” (v2).
The responses to each of these categories respectively are:
1.) zeal in things that are benevolent; 2.) mindfulness
amidst body and feelings; 3.) contact as a condition of intoxicants
and grasping; 4.) conceit of “I am;” 5.) disorderly
thinking; 6.) orderly thinking; 7.) immediacy of
succession in mental concentration; 8.) sure and unshakeable
knowledge; 9.) all beings are maintained by causes;
10.) sure and unshakeable emancipation of mind.
The 2’s are: 1.) mindfulness and deliberation;
2.) calm and insight; 3.) mind and body; 4.)
ignorance and the craving for rebirth; 5.) contumacy and friendship
with evil; 6.) suavity and friendship with benevolence;
7.) that which is the cause, condition of the corruption of beings, and
that which is the cause, condition of the purification of beings;
8.) insight into extinction, and insight into not coming to be;
9.) 2 elements: the conditioned and the unconditioned;
10.) supernormal knowledge and emancipation.
The 3’s are: 1.) intercourse with noble-minded persons,
hearing the Dharma, and progress in the Dharma and the minor doctrines;
2.) the 3 modes of concentrative thought: mental application after
sustained thought, sustained thought without mental application, and
concetrative thought without either; 3.) 3 feelings:
pleasure, pain, and neutral; 4.) 3 cravings: sensual,
rebirth, and ending life; 5.) 3 roots of demerit: greed,
hate, illusion; 6.) 3 roots of merit: disinterestedness,
love, intelligence; 7.) 3 elements of deliverance:
renunciation (escape from desires), immaterial (escape from materiality),
conditioned (cessation from becoming); 8.) 3 knowledges: of
the past, future, and present; 9.) 3 elements: of sensuous
desires, of Rupa, of Arupa; 10.) 3 branches of wisdom:
intuition of former births, intuition of the deceases and rebirths of beings,
and intuition of the extinction of the intoxicants.
The 4’s are: 1.) 4 wheels: orbit of a favourable place
of residence, orbit of association with benevolence, perfect adjustment of
one’s self, and the cycle of merit wrought in the past; 2.) 4
applications of mindfulness regarding: body, feelings, thought, and
ideas; 3.) 4 nutriments: solid nutriment, contact, purposes of the
mind, and (rebirth) consciousness; 4.) 4 floods: sensuous
desire, rebecoming, erroneous opinions, and ignorance; 5.) four
bonds: sensuous desire, rebecoming, erroneous opinions, and
ignorance; 6.) 4 detachments from the 4 bonds; 7.) 4
concentrations: leading to decline, leading to maintenance, leading to
distinction, leading to Nirvana; 8.) 4 knowledges: of the
Dharma, of the corollaries of the Dharma, of another’s consciousness, and
popular knowledge; 9.) 4-Fold Ariyan Truth regarding: ill,
genesis of ill, cessation of ill, and the path to the cessation of ill;
10.) 4 fruits of the life of a recluse: fruit of each path of
stream-winning, of once-returning, of never-returning, and of Arahantship.
The 5’s are: 1.) 5 factors in spiritual wrestling:
confidence in Faith, beneficial health, honesty, energy, and insight;
2.) 5 factors of perfect concentration: suffusion of rapture,
suffusion of easeful bliss, suffusion of telepathic consciousness, suffusion of
light, and images for retrospective thought; 3.) 5 aggregates of
grasping: material qualities, feeling, perception, volitional and other
complexes, and consciousness; 4.) 5 Hindrances: sensuality,
malevolence, sloth and torpor, excitement and worry, and doubt; 5.)
5 spiritual barrennesses: doubt within the Buddha, within the Dharma,
within the Sangha, within the discipline, and mutual discord; 6.) 5
spiritual faculties: Faith, energy, mindfulness, concentration, and
insight; 7.) 5 elements favourable towards deliverance:
detachment from sensuous desires, ill will, cruelty, external objects, and
individuality; 8.) 5-fold intuition of concentration: rapture
is both present happiness and future happiness, rapture is Ariyan/unworldly,
rapture only pursued by noble men, rapture is benevolent, rapture is personally
attained; 9.) 5 occasions of emancipation: from hearing the
Dharma from a Buddha or fellow disciple, from teaching the Dharma, from
reciting the Dharma, from meditating upon the Dharma, from understanding the
Dharma; 10.) 5 bodies of doctrine: ethics, concetrative
exercise, ingihts, emancipation, and knowledge and insight required for
emancipation.
The 6’s are: 1.) 6 occasions of fraternal living;
2.) 6 matters for recollection; 3.) 6 organs of sense;
4.) 6 groups of cravings; 5.) 6 forms of irreverence;
6.) 6 forms of reverence; 7.) 6 elements tending to deliverance;
8.) 6 chronic states; 9.) 6 unsurpassable experiences;
10.) 6 super knowledges.
The 7’s are: 1.) 7 treasures; 2.) 7 factors of
enlightenment; 3.) 7 stations of consciousness; 4.) 7
forms of latent bias; 5.) 7 vicious qualities; 6.) 7
virtuous qualities; 7.) 7 qualities of the benevolent; 8.)
7 perceptions; 9.) 7 bases of Arahantship; and,
10.) 7 powers of the Arahant.
--
Digha Nikaya
Dasuttara Suttanta (Chapters 8 – 10)
“There are Eight Things that help much…that must be (Realised).”
(v1).
“Eight that help much:--the eight conditions, the eight causes which
conduce to attaining that wisdom in those fundamentals of religious life which
have not been attained, to multiplying, expanding, developing, perfecting those
that have been attained. Herein, friends, 1.) one dwells near the
Master, or near a fellow-disciple occupying the place of teacher, whereby he is
strongly established in conscientiousness, prudence, love, and respect.
2.) Under such circumstances he approaches his teachers from time to time
and asks and considers, saying: ‘(Leader), how is this? What does
this mean?’ And to him those reverend ones reveal what is hidden, make
plain what is obscure, and dispel any doubts in perplexing matters.
3.) When he has heard their doctrine, he succeeds in obtaining a
double serenity, that of body and of mind. 4.) Moreover, friends, a
brother, virtuous, habitually self-restrained with the self-restraint of the
Canon law, proficient in behaviour and propriety, seeing danger in the smallest
offence, undertakes to train himself in the stages of the training. This
is the fourth… 5.) Moreover, friends, a brother having learnt much,
bears what he has heard in mind and stores it up. And whatever doctrines,
lovely in the beginning, in the middle, at the end, both in the letter and in
the spirit, commend a religious life that is absolutely fulfilled and made
quite pure, those doctrines are by such a brother much learnt,
remembered, treasured by repetition, pondered in mind, well penetrated by
intuition. This is the fifth… 6.) Moreover, friends, a
brother is habitually stirring up energy for the elimination of bad qualities,
the evoking of (benevolent) qualities, indomitable, strongly progressing and
never shirking with respect to what is (benevolent). That is the
sixth… 7.) Moreover, friends, he is clear-minded, supremely heedful
and discriminating, noting and remembering what has long since been done and
spoken. This is the seventh… 8.) Moreover, friends, a brother
is habitually contemplating the rise and passing away of the five aggregates of
grasping, to wit: ‘Such is the material aggregate, such its cause, its
cessation.’ Similarly for the four mental aggregates. This is the
eighth condition, the eighth cause of such as conduce to attaining that wisdom
in the fundamentals of religious life which have not been attained, to
multiplying, expanding, developing, perfecting those that have been
attained.’” (v1).
2.) 8 to be developed: Aryan 8-Fold Path: Right
Belief, Right Aspiration, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right
Effort, Right Thought, Right Meditation.
3.) 8 to be understood: 8 matters of Worldly concerns
(previously referenced within the Sangiti Sutta).
4.) 8 to be eliminated: 8 wrong factors of character and
conduct (previously referenced within the Sangiti Sutta).
5.) 8 belonging to decline: 8 bases of slackness (previously
referenced within the Sangiti Sutta).
6.) 8 belonging to distinction: 8 bases of setting afoot an
undertaking (previously referenced within the Sangiti Sutta).
7.) 8 hard to penetrate: 8 unseasonable intervals for life
in a religious order (previously referenced within the Sangiti Sutta)
8.) 8 to be brought to pass: the eight thoughts of a
superman.
“There are Nine Things that help much…that must be (Realised).”
(v1).
1.) 9 that help much: 9 states of mind and body which are
rooted in orderly thinking.
2.) 9 to be developed: 9 factors in wrestling for utter
purity.
3.) 9 to be understood: 9 spheres inhabited by beings.
4.) 9 to be eliminated: 9 things springing from craving.
5.) 9 belonging to decline: 9 bases of quarrelling.
6.) 9 belonging to distinction: 9 suppressions of
quarrelling.
7.) 9 hard to penetrate: 9 differences.
8.) 9 to be brought to pass: 9 perceptions.
9.) 9 to be thoroughly learnt: 9 successional states.
10.) 9 to be (Realised): 9 successional cessations.
“There are Ten Things that help much…that must be (Realised).)
(v3).
1.) 10 that help much: 10 doctrines conferring protection.
2.) 10 that must be developed: 10 objects for self-hypnosis.
3.) 10 that must be understood: 10 areas of sense contact.
4.) 10 that must be eliminated: 10 wrong factors.
5.) 10 belonging to decline: 10 bad channels.
6.) 10 belonging to distinction: 10 benevolent channels of
action.
7.) 10 hard to penetrate: 10 Ariyan methods of living.
8.) 10 that must be brought to pass: 10 perceptions.
9.) 10 to be thoroughly learnt: 10 causes of wearing away
10.) 10 to be (Realised): 10 qualities of the adept.
--
How do these numerical teachings compare with the previous numerical
teachings within the Sangiti Sutta, as well as the additional Buddhist Dharma
and the additional numerical teachings therein? How does these compare
and contrast within similar and additional numerical teachings and emphases
within Judaism, Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam?
What is the actual/intentional significance within the distinctions
between the 10 different categories framing these numerical teachings?
Amidst the 1st iteration of the 4’s, what is the nature
of the “4 wheels” (residence, community, self, and past)? What is the
nature of the “wheel” and the “orbit” within each of these phenomena, and are
there additional phenomena that may be included within this consideration?
What is the nature of the 4 nutriments?
What does “decline” mean within the “4 concentrations”?
Why is the 4-Fold Noble Truth listed as #9 amongst the “4’s”?
How do the 5 occasions of emancipation facilitate the benefit that is
described therein? What is the intrinsic similarity amongst the 5
occasions of emancipation; and what some distinguishing
characteristics? Are there any additional, distinct processes that may be
added to these 5 occasions of emancipation?
--
Why do some of the Pali Text Society translations of the Digha Nikaya so
frequently resort to abbreviated representations of the original Digha Nikaya
texts (particularly amidst the propensity of duplication through contemporary
practises)? What does this reveal about the discipline and patience that
is maintained for the Pali Canon, and the unique type of discourse within
Therevadan Buddhism? How does this compare with the literary tradition of
the Torah and Talmud, within Judaism, as well as within the respective
traditions within additional religions? What challenges do such canons
provide towards Western intellect and pragmatism?
What is the exponential base of the “numbered doctrine,” and what is the
nature of the confluence of the respective numbered doctrines with each
other? How does this compare with the numerological practises within
Judaism, Hinduism, and perhaps within Christianity and Islam, as well?
--
Gospels
John 16
“I have said all this to you to keep you from
falling away. They will put you out of
the synagogues; indeed, the hour is
coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God.” (v1-2).
“I have yet many things to say to you, but you
cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of
(Truth) comes, he will guide you into all the (Truth); for he will not speak on his own authority,
but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that
are to come.” (v12-13).
--
Gospels
John 16
“I have said all this to you to keep you from falling away. They
will put you out of the synagogues; indeed, the hour is coming when
whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. And they will
do this because they have not known the (Creator), nor me. But I have
said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I
told you of them.” (1-4).
“I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was
with you. But now I am going to (Deus) who sent me; yet none of you
asks me, ‘Where are you going?’” (v4-6).
“I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them
now. When the spirit of (Truth) comes, (the Spirit) will not speak on
(the Spirit’s) own authority, but whatever (the Spirit) hears (the Spirit) will
speak, and (the Spirit) will declare to you the things that are to come.” (v12-13).
“I have said this to you in figures; the hour is coming when I
shall no longer speak to you in figures but tell you plainly of the
(Creator).” (v25).
“I have said this to you, that in me you may have peace. In the
world you have tribulation; but be of (benevoelt) cheer, I have overcome
the world.” (v33).
--
Discussion Questions From Chapters 14 – 21
What is the nature of the Holy Spirit as Jesus describes this?
What is the nature of the friendship that Jesus describes?
What is the nature and the purpose of the antagonism that Jesus
describes between his disciples and “the world”?
What may exist within the teachings that Jesus abstains from explicitly
sharing with his disciples?
What is the nature of the distinction that Jesus describes between those
who are of Jesus and the rest of the World?
--
Koran
Sura 90: Al Balad: The City
Sura 91: Al Shams: The Sun
Sura 92: Al Lail: The Night
Sura 93: Al Duha: The Brightness of the Day
Sura 94: Al Inshurah: The Expansion
Sura 95: Al Tin: The Fig
“Nay, I call to witness this City!
“And thou wilt be made free from obligation in this City—
“And the begetter and he whom he begot!
“We have certainly created man to face difficulties.
“Does he think that no one has power over him?
“He will say: I have wasted much wealth.
“Does he think that no one sees him?” (v1-7).
“Have We not given him two eyes,
“And a tongue and two lips,
“And pointed out to him the two conspicuous ways?
“But he attempts not the uphill road;
“And what will make thee comprehend what the uphill road is?
“It is to free a slave,
“Or to feed in a day of hunger
“An orphan nearly related,
“Or the poor man lying in the dust.
“Then he is of those who believe and exhort one another to patience, and
exhort one another to mercy.
“These are the people of the right hand.
“And those who disbelieve in our messages, they are the people of the
left hand.
“On them is Fire closed over.” (v8-20).
“By the sun and his brightness!
“And the moon when she borrows light from him!
“And the day when it exposes it to view!
“And the night when it draws a veil over it!
“And the heaven and its make!
“And the earth and its extension!
“And the soul and its perfection!—
“So (Allah) reveals to it its way of evil and its way of
(benevolence).” (v1-8).
“By the night when it draws a veil!
“And the day when it shines!
“And the creating of the male and the female!—
“Your striving is surely for diverse ends.
“Then as for him who gives and keeps his duty,
“And accepts what is (benevolent)—
“We facilitate for him the way to ease.” (v1-7).
“By the brightness of the day!
“And the night when it is still!
“Thy Lord has not forsaken thee, nor is (Allah) displeased.
“And surely the latter state is better for thee than the former.
“And soon will thy Lord give thee so that thou wilt be well pleased.
“Did (Allah) not find thee an orphan and give thee shelter?
“And find thee groping, so (Allah) showed the way?
“And find thee in want, so (Allah) enriched thee?
“Therefore the orphan, oppress not.
“And him who asks, chide not.
“And the favour of thy Lord, proclaim.” (v1-11).
“Have We not expanded for thee thy breast,
“And removed from thee thy burden,
“Which weighed down thy back,
“And exalted for thee thy mention?
“Surely with difficulty is ease,
“With difficulty is surely ease.
“So when thou art free (from anxiety), work hard,
“And make thy Lord thy exclusive object.” (v1-8).
“By the fig and the olive!
“And mount Sinai!
“And this city made secure!—
“Certainly We created man in the best make.
“Then We render him the lowest of the low,
“Except those who believe and do (benevolence); so there is a
reward never to be cut off.
“So who can give the lie to thee after this about the Judgment?
“Is not Allah the Best of the Judges?” (v1-8).
--
Koran
Sura 96: Al Alaq: The Clot
Sura 97: Al Qadr: The Majesty
Sura 98: Al Bayyinah: The Clear Evidence
“Read in the name of thy Lord Who creates—
“Creates man from a clot,
“Read and thy Lord is Most Generous,
“Who taught by the pen,
“Taught man what he knew not.
“Nay, man is surely inordinate,
“Because he looks upon himself as self-sufficient.” (v1-7).
“Surely We revealed it on the Night of Majesty—
“And what will make thee comprehend what the Night of Majesty is?
“The Night of Majesty is better than a thousand months.
“The angels and the Spirit descend in it by the permission of their
Lord—for every affair—
“Peace! It is till the rising of the morning.” (v1-5).
“Those who disbelieve from among the People of the Book and the
idolaters could not have been freed till clear evidence came to them—
“A Messenger from Allah, reciting pure pages,
“Wherein are all right books.” (v1-3).
“Nor did those to whom the Book was given become divided till clear
evidence came to them.
“And they are enjoined naught but to serve Allah, being sincere to
(Allah) in obedience, upright, and to keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, and
that is the right religion.” (v4-5).
“Those who believe and do (benevolence), they are the best of creatures.
“Their reward is with their Lord: Gardens of perpetuity wherein
flow rivers, abiding therein forever. Allah is well pleased with them and
they are well pleased with (Allah). That is for him who fears his
Lord.” (v7-8).
--
Discussion Questions From Sura 89 Al Fajr (The Daybreak), Sura 90 Al
Balad (The City), Sura 91 Al Shams (The Sun), Sura 92 Al Lail (The Night), Sura
93 Al Duha (The Brightness of the Day), Sura 94 Al Inshurah (The
Expansion), And Sura 95 Al Tin (The Fig)
Within what chronological sequence are the concluding Suras of the Koran
initially revealed to the Prophet Muhammad, PBUH? And what is the
reasoning for concluding the Koran with such brief Suras? What influence
may these Suras have when placed within the chronological sequence next to
additional, comparatively larger Suras? What is the distinction within
the revelations provided from the Koran to the reader and the audience, when
these Suras are listed within such a chronological order?
What is meant by, “soul at rest”? How does this compare with the
Bhagavad Gita’s description of the Atman?
How does the verse regarding man being created to “face difficulties”
compare and contrast with the Buddha’s 1st of the 4-Fold Noble
Truth regarding Dukkha? How does the proceeding verse, regarding power,
also compare and contrast with the Buddha’s teachings regarding Dependent
Origination? How do the aggregate of these respective doctrines and
teachings (from both the Koran and the Buddha) compare and contrast with each
other? Is there a singular line of doctrine that can be genuinely
extrapolated from both of these?
What is to be appropriately understood from the personification and the
genderising of the Sun and the Moon?
--
Discussion Questions From Sura 96: Al Alaq: The Clot
Sura 97: Al Qadr: The Majesty
Sura 98 Al Bayyinah (The Clear Evidence), Sura 99 Al Zilzal (The
Shaking), Sura 100 Al Adiyat (The Assaulters), Sura 101 Al Qariah (The
Calamity), Sura 102 Al Takathur (The Abundance of Wealth), Sura 103 Al Asr (The
Time), Sura 104 Al Humazah (The Slanderer), Sura 105 Al Fil (The Elephant),
Sura 106 Al Quraish (The Quraish), Sura 107 Al Maun (Acts of Kindness), Sura 108
Al Kauthar (The Abundance of [Benevolence]), Sura 109 Al Kafirun (The
Disbelievers), Sura 110 Al Nasr (The Help)
What connexion does Sura Al Alaq have with Prophet Muhammad’s, PBUH,
initial interaction with the Angel, Gabriel (Jibril), and the command that the
Angel directs towards Muhammad, PBUH, to read?
What is the significance, reasoning, and implications of referring to
Allah in the third-person, singular, masculine form (as is similarly done
within Judaism and Christianity, and additional religious traditions, including
to some extent, perceivably, Hinduism)? Does a man’s recognition of a
“deity” with a masculine identity serve the person of the man directly and
conscientiously submitting his ego (and coincidingly, his masculinity) to
another authority? Do the group dynamics of social religion, and the
shared submission of men within a religious order, have some factor within
this? Does this also have some confluence with a man recognising the
intrinsic authority of his own far (father) and necessarily submitting to this
in some manner? And how does the nature of that relationship influence
the manner in which men often, within a number of religious traditions, refer
to the Highest Authority, as a far (father)?
Within matters of Faith, is it possible to have “clear evidence”?
Or does “clear evidence” actually exist beyond the temporal Realm, and is
simply “sensed” beyond the senses?
What are the implications of having abyss as a mor (within Verse
9)? Whilst this exists within context of reactionary punishment (and
perhaps the absence of nurturing, along with the standard suffering experienced
when one’s mor is admonished), the notion of the abyss as one’s mor suggests
that one is exactly created from the abyss, and thus seems to absolve the
individual from responsibility for any of the transgressions the individual
commits (as the individual is inevitably created within the benevolent
nurturing of a mor); is there any relevance within this
observation? And how might the parable be actually intended (as a
distinguished nuance from other descriptions of the consequences of malevolence
within this temporal Realm)?
How does “abundance averts you” compare with Jesus’s teaching regarding
the camel and the eye of the needle?
Within Muhammad’s, PBUH, revelation of the Koran, there are specific
warnings for Muhammad’s, PBUH, audience to live righteously; yet, for the
warnings to be productive, there must be some compulsion or force with the
warnings (a revelation of Truth, a physical imposition, or something
else); what is the nature of force that exists within the warnings of the
Koran that compel (inspire) adherence? Is it the example of righteousness
that Muhammad, PBUH, provides? Why is the warning frequently repeated in
a comparatively ambiguous and ubiquitous manner?
How do the teachings within Sura Al Maun compare with the Dhammapada’s
teachings regarding many wise words without corresponding deeds, and also with
Jesus’s criticism of the leaders of society wearing impiously long
phylacraties, but abstaining from practising similar extents of righteousness?
--
May Love, Peace, And Blessings Of The Highest Authority We Respectively
Recognise, Known By Many Names, Including God, El Shaddai, Eloheinu, Elohim,
Adonai, Hashem, Brahman, Nirvana, Dharma, Karma, Tao, Gud, Dieu, Deus, Dios,
Dominus, Jah, Jehovah, Allah, Ahura Mazda, Vaya Guru, The Divine, Infinity,
Logic, Wakan Tanka, And Additionally Be Upon The Rishis, Moshe, The Buddha,
Jesus, Muhammad, Baha’u’llah, Guru Nanak, Zarathustra, Avraham, Yitzak, Yaakov,
Confucius, Lao Tzu, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Black Elk, Martin Luther,
Gandhi, Bob Marley, The Respective Indigenous Of Taínoterranea, Asia, Europe,
Mediterranea, Africa, The Earth, Galaxy, Universe, Our Families, Friends, And
The Universe. Om. Shanti.
Shanti. Shantihi. Amen.
שלום.नमस्ते.สมาธ.Pax.سلام.Peace.साटीनाम.صلح.Kwey.Amani.Udo.Barış.ειρήνη.Pace.Paz.Paix.Fred.
Frieden.Vrede.Siochana.мир.امن.和平.平和.평화.Ingatka.Wominjeka.Aloha.
.
.
.
...
ૐ.אמן
Shalom(Hebrew).Namaste(Sanskrit).Samadhi(Thai/Pali).Pax(Latin).Salaam(Arabic).Peace(English).
SatNam(Punjabi).Solh(Persian).Kwey(Algonquin).Amani(Swahili).Udo(Ibo).Barish(Turkish).Erieni(Greek).Pache(Italiano).Paz(Espanol).Paix(Francais).
Fred(Scandinavian).Frieden(Deutsch).Siochana(Irish).Mir(Russian).Amin(Urdu).Heping(Mandarin).Heiwa(Japanese).Pyeonghwa(Korean).
Ingatka(Tagolog).Wominjeka(Wurundjeri).Aloha(Hawai’ian).Peace(Common
Symbol).Peace(Common Sign).Peace(American Sign).Peace(American Braille).
Om. Amen.
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