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**fameintatenly** · 04-28-2012, 06:12 PM

dear Dhamma friends

i recall when i first learned in a buddhist tradition, listening to Bhikkhu Buddhadasa speak, he taught to free the mind from the perception of 'good' & 'evil', similar to as follows:

Those of you who are Christians or who have read the Bible will be familiar with the story of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil that appears at the beginning of Genesis. It tells how God forbade Adam and Eve to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He warned them that they would die if they did not obey. If you understand the meaning of this passage, you will understand the core of Buddhism. When there is no knowledge of good and evil, we can't attach to them, we're void and free of dukkha. Once we know about good and evil, we attach to them and must suffer dukkha. The fruit of that tree is this attachment to good and evil. This causes dukkha and dukkha is death, spiritual death.

Bhikkhu Buddhadasa now, i read the following verse, for the 1st time, which is similar to the Dhammapada verse:

This was said by the Blessed One, said by the Arahant, so I have heard: "The Tathagata — worthy & rightly self-awakened — has two Dhamma discourses given in sequence. Which two? 'See evil as evil.' This is the first Dhamma discourse. 'Having seen evil as evil, become disenchanted there, dispassionate there, released.' This is the second Dhamma discourse. These are the two Dhamma discourses that the Tathagata — worthy & rightly self-awakened — has given in sequence."

Iti 2.12 Those who imagine evil where there is none, and do not see evil where it is — upholding false views, they go to states of woe.

Those who discern the wrong as wrong and the right as right — upholding right views, they go to realms of bliss.

Dhammapada what do we think about this?

04-28-2012, 06:12 PM	#1
fameintatenly Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 520 Senior Member	"Seeing evil": a cause for vexation or a cause for freedom? dear Dhamma friends i recall when i first learned in a buddhist tradition, listening to Bhikkhu Buddhadasa speak, he taught to free the mind from the perception of 'good' & 'evil', similar to as follows: Those of you who are Christians or who have read the Bible will be familiar with the story of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil that appears at the beginning of Genesis. It tells how God forbade Adam and Eve to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He warned them that they would die if they did not obey. If you understand the meaning of this passage, you will understand the core of Buddhism. When there is no knowledge of good and evil, we can't attach to them, we're void and free of dukkha. Once we know about good and evil, we attach to them and must suffer dukkha. The fruit of that tree is this attachment to good and evil. This causes dukkha and dukkha is death, spiritual death. Bhikkhu Buddhadasa now, i read the following verse, for the 1st time, which is similar to the Dhammapada verse: This was said by the Blessed One, said by the Arahant, so I have heard: "The Tathagata — worthy & rightly self-awakened — has two Dhamma discourses given in sequence. Which two? 'See evil as evil.' This is the first Dhamma discourse. 'Having seen evil as evil, become disenchanted there, dispassionate there, released.' This is the second Dhamma discourse. These are the two Dhamma discourses that the Tathagata — worthy & rightly self-awakened — has given in sequence." Iti 2.12 Those who imagine evil where there is none, and do not see evil where it is — upholding false views, they go to states of woe. Those who discern the wrong as wrong and the right as right — upholding right views, they go to realms of bliss. Dhammapada what do we think about this?
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