Ha ha, mostly having some alone time, yes. Also down with COVID. But yeah, just dabbling on this little essay for a while too.
How? The meaning of the cited verse is clear. It’s talking about someone who has attained the dimension of nothingness, and has been reborn in that state, and asking whether they will be freed in that dimension. This is, indeed, the same situation as envisaged in the last line of the sutta you quote, to wit:
It’s a great poem, but I’m not sure how it is relevant here?
I think so yes. If I understand you correctly, instrumentalism is the idea that knowledge serves a purpose? So knowledge isn’t evaluated by its theoretical perfection, but by its success in achieving its function? If so them yes, I think that’s a pretty good description of the Dhamma.
We can never know “all things” directly (unless we limit it to the “all” of what we experience). But this is where inference comes into play.
Ha ha, right!
Direct knowledge and inference both play a part. For example, past and future can only ever be known from inference.
But this is where the instrumental aspect comes into play. Dhamma knowledge is really true, not because it satisfies some abstract requirement, but because we let go and do not suffer.