[Bondjrno]

I think one has to look at each passage and analyse what is the main message, this is something we all learn to do at high school when we have to study works like shakespeare etc. We learn to look at the text objectively, determine what are the main themes, the main message and interpret the detail supporting the main message based on that.

For example if we took the Buddhas teaching as a whole would anyone say it was about proving the existences of devas? No, therefore it doesn't really matter how references to devas are interwoven into the teachings and whether we believe they are real or metaphorical because I think you'll find each mention is just a small part of a teaching about a Dhammic principle.

Through our Judeo Christian background however we think we shouldn't treat religious texts in the same way, we feel we must be very literal and it shows a lack of faith if we don't take things at face value, I don't think this is how we should approach Buddhist scripture.

Another thing that the Buddha was apt to do is take common phrases or words of the day and twist their meaning to teach a principle, so it's often worth investigating what we can of the pre-Buddhist world in which he was teaching to find shades of meaning.