Who is stupid/fool in Buddhism?

[samuthemold]

I am reading this now.
“Not to fraternize with fools,but to fraternize with the wise,and honoring those worthy of honor:this is the highest blessing.” and I realized that it is not the first time that someone is called a fool. Who is this?

[BethL]

Hi, this is a good thread to look at some previous thoughts on this. You will have to read through several posts.

Dhammapada chapter 5: The Fool

A series of posts for my draft translation of the Dhammapada, for feedback and discussion. Final version will be on SuttaCentral. Long is the night for the wakeful; long is the league for the weary. Long transmigrate the fools who don’t understand the true teaching. If while wandering you find no partner equal or better than yourself, then firmly resolve to wander alone— there’s no fellowship with fools. The fool worries, thinking: “Sons are mine, wealth is mine.” But you can’t even…

[Adutiya]

In the suttas, the difference between a wise person and a foolish person is that the wise person speaks and acts in ways that leads to happiness and the cessation of dukkha for themselves and others and the foolish person does not.

Most of this sutta is describing “the wise” or “those worthy of honor”. If you want to know what this sutta means by a “fool” just read each attribute of the wise and turn it into it’s opposite.

I hope that helps!

[Snowbird]

You can also explore more suttas about fools here: Comprehensive Index of Pāli Suttas

[Adarsh]

Hi, I think fool is a very broad and comparative term. By standards of an Ariya all worldlings can be called fools as worldlings have not fully comprehended the four noble truths. However a person who has faith in the triple gem, has right views, and is practicing the noble eightfold path to one day attain enlightenment can be called wise compared to those who hold wrong views. I think generally speaking, as is relevant for most of us, a foolish person is one who holds wrong views, is immoral and heedless. For a young person, for example, a foolish friend is one who does not respect their parents, does not value education, and engages in drinking, gambling, stealing etc.

There is a sutta where the Buddha says that a truly foolish person is one who is foolish and still does not realise and accept that he is indeed foolish. So this is another way of defining a foolish person as such a person will always remain foolish unless they are willing to seek advice from a wise person.

[samuthemold]

Thank you all, community

[BetterThanMostBogdan]

The Buddha said in SN 11.24 that there are two kinds of fools. The fool who doesn’t see his own transgressions as transgressions, and the fool who doesn’t forgive someone who is genuinely sorry.

[Dan]

@samuthemold

Who is this?

I sometimes feel called out by the Buddha