Skill in questions

Studying Thanissaro’s teaching “skill in questions” first off it’s very good, but I wanted to get some input on his idea that The Buddha taught to look at things in order of the four noble truths and not the three characteristics. As new as I am to the practice I actually understand what he’s getting at. Using the 3 characteristics or 3 perceptions only to develop dispassion. And apply the four noble truths to everything else you may be doing unskillfully, But is this a Thai Forrest thing and do other Pali centric teachers have a different approach or is this the teaching across the board in teaching the suttas.

Hello Joel. The Thai Forest Tradition does not share a similar doctrine. Its only similarity is living in the forest. Therefore, Bhikkhu Thanissaro is well-known for his unique, often novel, personal idiosyncratic views.

The four noble truths is a more useful teaching for beginners & early stagers of the Path because it divides dhammas into unwholesome & wholesome. Beginners & early stagers need to know exactly what the unwholesome things are they need to learn to prevent & abandon. The three characteristics is a higher level teaching, thus often (but not always) associated with arahants.

In Majhima Nikaya 19 the Buddha recounts the mental process employed to achieve his awakening. Impermanence is not mentioned, but investigating the second and third noble truths (the noble truths are not yet formulated) comprises his means of moving forward, making progress. This by discerning the effects of two different types of thought on his own wellbeing and that of others, and whether they contribute to the future goal of awakening or not. This is internal work. The truth of suffering was realized in the initial stage of the seeing of the three divine messengers, where impermanence is also markedly evident, so it remains the foundation. This is an external realization.

“In this way he remains focused internally on mental qualities in & of themselves, or externally on mental qualities in & of themselves, or both internally & externally on mental qualities in & of themselves.”—Majhima Nikaya 10

1 Like

As far as I know, they are termed as perceptions and not characteristics. And the four noble truths are like the elephant’s footprints.

[Ven. Sariputta:] "Friends, just as the footprints of all legged animals are encompassed by the footprint of the elephant, and the elephant’s footprint is reckoned the foremost among them in terms of size; in the same way, all skillful qualities are gathered under the four noble truths. Under which four? Under the noble truth of stress, under the noble truth of the origination of stress, under the noble truth of the cessation of stress, and under the noble truth of the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.-MN 28

Also the Buddha reminds the monks duty is to contemplate the four noble truths.

"And what have I taught? ‘This is stress… This is the origination of stress… This is the cessation of stress… This is the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.’ This is what I have taught. And why have I taught these things? Because they are connected with the goal, relate to the rudiments of the holy life, and lead to disenchantment, to dispassion, to cessation, to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding. This is why I have taught them.

“Therefore your duty is the contemplation, ‘This is stress… This is the origination of stress… This is the cessation of stress… This is the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.’”-Simsapa Sutta

But AN 3.136 does not seem to support the above. AN 3.136 says they are fixed law regardless of perception.

Yes you are certainly right about this. I had the Sañña Sutta(AN 7.46) in mind.