Letting Go of Views & Opinions | SUTTA EXPLORATION | AN Tens #93 | Ajahn Dhammasiha

Ajahn Dhammasiha explores Anguttara Nikāya, Book of Tens, Sutta #93

(Numerical Discorses of the Buddha p. 1464)

One of the Great Lay Disciples of the Buddha, Anathapiṇḍika, famous as the donor of the Jetavana monastery, has a discussion with ascetics from a different religion on the subject of 'views'/'doctrine'.

The 'Wanderers' explain the various doctrines they are convinced of, like:

• "The universe is eternal"
• "The universe is not eternal"
• "The universe is finite"
• "The universe is infinite"
• and so on...
• Additionally, they always assert: "Only this is true, anything else is nonsense".

Anāthapiṇḍika shows that all these views are impemanent, intentionally thought out, conditioned, and therefore ultimately unsatisfactory. If one clings to any of them, one is simply clinging on to dukkha.

Then he expounds his own view, the understanding of a Noble Disciple, a Streamenterer who has the vision of Dhamma:

"Whatever has come into being and is conditioned, intentionally thought out, dependently originated, is impermanent. Whatever is impermanent is suffering. Whatever is suffering, that is not mine; that is not me; that is not my self."

We can immediately see that his 'doctrine' is not trying to establish some 'absolute' truth. Instead, his 'view' is simply a tool for letting go, a meditation theme aiming of extricating the heart from all clinging to any views (and any conditioned phenomena at all)

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