He assesses the student’s abilities and uses of repetition to promote retention.
“There were few of you, Bhaddāli, when I taught an exposition of the Dhamma through the simile of the young thoroughbred colt. Do you remember that, Bhaddāli?”
“No, venerable sir.”
“To what reason do you attribute that?”
“Venerable sir, I have long been one who did not fulfil the training in the Teacher’s Dispensation.”
“That is not the only cause or the only reason. But rather, by encompassing your mind with my mind, I have long known you thus: ‘When I am teaching the Dhamma, this misguided man does not heed it, does not give it attention, does not engage it with all his mind, does not hear the Dhamma with eager ears.’ Still, Bhaddāli, I will teach you an exposition of the Dhamma through the simile of the young thoroughbred colt. Listen and attend closely to what I shall say.” MN65
This sutta is basically saying don’t teach if your 'student’s don’t want to be your students.
It’s just as if a man were to pursue [a woman] who pulls away, or to embrace one who turns her back. I say that such a thing is an evil, greedy deed, for what can one person do for another?’…
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He should be criticized, saying, ‘You, venerable sir, have not attained the goal of the contemplative life for which one goes forth from the home life into homelessness. Not having attained that goal of the contemplative life, you teach your disciples, “This is for your welfare. This is for your happiness.” Your disciples don’t listen, don’t lend ear, don’t put forth an intent for gnosis and practice in a way deviating from the teacher’s instructions.
DN12 has some interesting teachings on teaching the Dhamma.
Iti84 shows how the Buddha was a teacher, and set up a system of teaching (ie his students became teachers in their own right …as did their students, in turn).
Today Ven Canda gave a wonderful dhamma talk on Mindfulness, and what really struck me as especially good was her ability to really (without stereotyping) give the Dhamma to kids and her communication ability in connecting with women in the group. It felt that if we didn’t have Bhikkhunis something would be fundamentally missing in the teaching structure, and that it has been missing for a long time. I don’t see how there would be a dispensation as that kind of effective communication and teaching is key to impart the teachings to 50% of the population.
I also noted an emphasis on joy, happiness and metta. Has the dhamma became stricter as something was lost along the way?
It’s a sequential process: mindfulness alone isn’t adequate. We must be mindful but also intelligently so. This is what I see as clear comprehension. The result of this is insight. Insight into drawbacks is samatha (observing the relationship to money - how does it make me happy/sad, for example - the object here is money in a day to day setting). Insight into lakkhana/characteristics of aggregates etc is EBT vipassana in a meditative setting of samadhi. Developing a conceptual Right view at the beginning by listening or reading the dhamma and wisely contemplating it, yonisomanasikara about these things facilitates, nay makes possible, the development of experiential insight (which leads to Release, vimutti, and Knowledge and Vision of Release).
“The Tathāgata directly awakens to that, breaks through to that. Directly awakening & breaking through to that, he declares it, teaches it, describes it, sets it forth. He reveals it, explains it, makes it plain: ‘All fabrications are inconstant.’ AN 3:137 Dhamma-niyāma Sutta | The Orderliness of the Dhamma
I get the impression the Buddha could be quite confronting sometimes. He could even refer to people in ways they may have found unpleasant. However, he did so for the best of reasons.
I have had wise and gifted teachers who were not backward in coming forward when there was a need.
We might have an idealised view of what a teacher or a ‘teaching’ looks like, what it feels like, what is appropriate or inappropriate in a particular situation. This can vary from person to person.
Some may receive a teaching poorly while others may be full of appreciation. Some may benefit greatly from a teaching while others are largely clueless about what was conveyed and, why?
“Person: I think it was “Blessed are the cheesemakers.”
Person: I think it was ‘Blessed are the cheesemakers.’
Mrs. Gregory: What’s so special about the cheesemakers?
Man: Well, obviously it’s not meant to be taken literally; it refers to any manufacturers of dairy products.” - Monty Python
‘Ajahn Nyanadhammo’ (AN) recalled how he was kicked-away by ‘Ajahn Chah’ (AC) while massaging his feet. AN had fallen into a pleasant-stupor when the chanting started in the meditation hall. AC gave him a quick teaching - a few words - that pointed directly to his mind. AN was very grateful!
“Whoever has ears, let them hear.” - Yeshua ben Yoseph
In AN 4.111, Kesi Sutta, the Tathagata speaks of three teaching approaches similar to the three approaches of the horse trainer: The Buddha sometimes teaches with gentleness, sometimes with harshness, and sometimes with both gentleness and harshness, depending on what the student needs.
“Kesi, I guide a person in training sometimes gently, sometimes harshly, and sometimes both gently and harshly. The gentle way is this: ‘This is good conduct by way of body, speech, and mind. This is the result of good conduct by way of body, speech, and mind. This is life as a god. This is life as a human.’ The harsh way is this: ‘This is bad conduct by way of body, speech, and mind. This is the result of bad conduct by way of body, speech, and mind. This is life in hell. This is life as an animal. This is life as a ghost.’
The both gentle and harsh way is this: ‘This is good conduct … this is bad conduct …’”
Thus, the Buddha uses similes here, and he also explains how he varies his teaching according to what is best for the student. Does anyone see any other didactic devices the Buddha uses in this sutta?
Thanks for the thought/insight provoking question Mat.
I don’t know about heaven and hell realms but it seems clear that we can make our lives and the lives of others hellish without kindness, clarity and insight. If a kind and insightful teacher and ‘teaching’ can help us to wake up then bring it on! Sometimes a serious problem requires a strong intervention to resolve the issue.
It explains how to constructively criticize actions rather than classes of people performing those acts, saying the truth only at the right time, not talking behind people’s backs, and being flexible in different settings.
When the relations between two people is good and stable, the teacher can say or do whatever to make the point clear.
And that goes also to oneself in daily practice, because one goes around teaching oneself actually - so if one’s relation with one’s own mind is good and stable, one doesn’t need anybody else, and in that milieu one can train oneself like being both teacher and student
This was said by the Lord…“Bhikkhus, as to those bhikkhus who excel in virtue, excel in concentration, excel in wisdom, excel in release, excel in the knowledge and vision of release, who are advisors, instructors, and demonstrators, who can exhort, inspire, and encourage, and who are competent teachers of the true Dhamma—seeing those bhikkhus is very helpful, I say; listening to those bhikkhus, approaching them, attending upon them, remembering them, and following their example in going forth into homelessness is very helpful, I say. For what reason?
“By following such bhikkhus, by associating with them and attending upon them, the aggregate of virtue as yet incomplete reaches completion of development, the aggregate of concentration, of wisdom, of release, and of knowledge and vision of release as yet incomplete reaches completion of development. Such bhikkhus as these are called teachers, caravan-leaders, fault-abandoners, dispellers of darkness, light-bringers, makers of radiance, luminaries, torch-bearers, bringers of illumination, noble ones, possessors of vision. SuttaCentral
“So this holy life, bhikkhus, does not have gain, honour, and renown for its benefit, or the attainment of virtue for its benefit, or the attainment of concentration for its benefit, or knowledge and vision for its benefit. But it is this unshakeable deliverance of mind that is the goal of this holy life, its heartwood, and its end.” MN29
True. Its helpful to give due credit, but also for the teacher to disregard fickle praise and equally fickle blame. Ultimately as you say for both teacher and student, what’s at the nub of it, is the release - not relationship, friendship, ownership, etc. But it is based on that very same connect between Kalyanamittas that enlightenment is gained especially before one is able to be independent in this Dhamma and vinaya, and dependence can sometime be lifelong, as in the case of Ven. Ananda!
In one sutta the teaching is compared to training horses. For the first type of horse a command is enough for it to obey. For another type it needs to see the shadow of the whip, Another type needs a slight touch of the whip, another a good whack of the whip and with the untamable horse it doesn’t matter how hard or often the whip is applied it still wont learn or obey.
Ven Channa worked in the Buddha’s palace before ordination and due to familiarity didn’t want to be instructed at all. Bhikkhus were asked to not speak to him and given a ‘punishment’. Later he becomes more amenable and asks for instructions.
