AN 6.46 : atthapadaṃ = merely intellectual?

[Senryu]

@sujato to address another point in your post:

@sujato

This refers to the distinction between those who emphasize tranquillity in meditation, and those who emphasize wisdom. As I argued extensively in A Swift Pair of Messengers, this is meant solely by way of emphasis, not exclusion. Every realized practitioner has both wisdom and samādhi.

This distinction is recognized in many places in the suttas, with such pairs as the saddhānusāri and dhammānusāri (“faith-follower” and “dhamma-follower”), the kāyasakkhi and paññāvimutta (“direct witness” and “wisdom-freed”), etc.

These latter two are combined in the ubhatobhāgavimutta, whose mastery of both these aspects is described in familiar terms as:

I am currently reading MN 70. We have all 4 characters here in this sutta.

And what person is a follower of the teachings?
Katamo ca, bhikkhave, puggalo dhammānusārī?

It’s a person who doesn’t have direct meditative experience of the peaceful liberations that are formless, transcending form. Nevertheless, having seen with wisdom, some of their defilements have come to an end.

Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco puggalo ye te santā vimokkhā atikkamma rūpe āruppā te na kāyena phusitvā viharati, paññāya cassa disvā ekacce āsavā parikkhīṇā honti,

Up to hear this is common also to the:
diṭṭhippatto
saddhāvimutto
dhammānusārī
saddhānusārī

What follows is that which is the special characteristic of the dhammānusāri:

And they accept the teachings proclaimed by the Realized One after considering them with a degree of wisdom. And they have the following qualities:

tathāgatappaveditā cassa dhammā paññāya mattaso nijjhānaṃ khamanti, api cassa ime dhammā honti, seyyathidaṃ—

the faculties of faith, energy, mindfulness, immersion, and wisdom.
saddhindriyaṃ, vīriyindriyaṃ, satindriyaṃ, samādhindriyaṃ, paññindriyaṃ.

This person is called a follower of the teachings.
Ayaṃ vuccati, bhikkhave, puggalo dhammānusārī.

I say that this mendicant also still has work to do with diligence.
Imassapi kho ahaṃ, bhikkhave, bhikkhuno ‘appamādena karaṇīyan’ti vadāmi.

So their foremost characteristic is not them ‘having seen with wisdom’, but rather that “they accept the teachings proclaimed by the Realized One after considering them with a degree of wisdom”. And the only specific mention of meditation practice here is to say that they don’t do it.

Of course I am not saying that in reality, some people do more than one of the other - although of course also in reality some don’t meditate at all, let alone acheive jhāna.

But my point is that this sutta seems to specifically and deliberately link - nay, define, the dhammānusāri as being one who accepts the teachings (dhamma) which have been taught by the Buddha (tathāgatappaveditā cassa dhammā paññāya mattaso nijjhānaṃ khamanti). And have considered them.

If I was following you correctly, you were saying that dhamma dhammānusāri doesn’t mean teachings, and that strenghtens the case for dhamma in dhammayoga also not meaning teachings. But does not the above demonstrate that it is likely, or in fact perhaps does seem to be, refering to teachings in dhammānusāri, and therefore strenghtening the case also for dhammayoga?
And that not only strengthens the case for dhamma meaning teachings in the context of dhammayoga