Traditional Theravada: the world is NOT factually burning embers

[Dogen]

@yeshe.tenley

thistle, do you agree that the world’s pretty things aren’t sensual pleasures or how is the above understood by you? What was the point the Teacher was trying to make when he said the world’s pretty things aren’t sensual pleasures?

I’ve posted my reply to this here, as to not derail this thread:

AN 6.63 & Citrani

@yeshe.tenley set me off another rabbit hole with Bhante @sujato’s translation here: I’ve seen this sutta in such a translation (Ajahn Thanissaro has a similar translation), but it makes little sense to me. Who decides what a pretty thing is? I find the sight of a cat pretty. Someone else finds it terrifying. Thus “World’s pretty things” sounds like a weird teaching to me. I think this verse is better explained by Rhys Davids in Kv 8.4: “The manifold of objects in the world— This in itself…