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The Vision of Dhamma: Buddhist Writings of Nyanaponika Thera / Edited, with an Introduction by Bhikkhu Bodhi ; Foreword by Erich Fromm.-- 2Nd Ed., Enl

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The Vision of Dhamma: Buddhist Writings of Nyanaponika Thera / Edited, with an Introduction by Bhikkhu Bodhi ; Foreword by Erich Fromm.-- 2Nd Ed., Enl This eBook is offered freely. If you wish, you may donate and help us continue offering our services. May you be happy! To make a donation, please visit: www.pariyatti.org PARIYATTI 867 Larmon Road Onalaska, Washington 98570 USA 360.978.4998 www.pariyatti.org Pariyatti is a nonprofit organization dedicated to enriching the world by: v Disseminating the words of the Buddha v Providing sustenance for the seeker’s journey v Illuminating the meditator’s path The Vision of Dhamma The Vision of Dhamma Buddhist Writings of Nyanaponika Thera Edited, with an introduction by Bhikkhu Bodhi Foreword by Erich Fromm 2nd Edition, enlarged ! k First edition published by Rider & Co. Ltd., London, 1986 Second edition (enlarged) fi rst published by the Buddhist Publication Society, 1994 Copyright Nyanaponika Thera, 1986, 1994 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of BPS Pariyatti Editions, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Published by Buddhist Publication Society, Kandy, Sri Lanka, 1993,1994. Published with the consent of the original publisher, Buddhist Publication Society, Kandy, Sri Lanka. Copies of this book for sale in the Americas only. FIRST BPS PARIYATTI EDITION, 2000 09 08 07 06 05 04 03 02 01 5 4 3 2 1 Print ISBN : 978-1-928706-03-8 (print) PDF ISBN : 978-1-928706-51-9 (eBook 2011) ePub ISBN : 978-1-68172-003-6 (eBook 2015) Mobi ISBN : 978-1-68172-004-3 (eBook 2015) Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Nyanaponika, Thera, 1901 The vision of Dhamma: Buddhist writings of Nyanaponika Thera / edited, with an introduction by Bhikkhu Bodhi ; foreword by Erich Fromm.-- 2nd ed., enl. p. cm. 2nd ed. originally published: Kandy, Sri Lanka: Buddhist Publication Society, 1994. “First BPS Pariyatti edition”. T.p. verso Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 1-928706-03-7 (alk. paper) 1. Buddhism--Doctrines. I. Bodhi, Bhikkhu BQ4165 .N9 2000 294.3'42041--dc21 99-053425 Printed in Canada on acid-free paper Contents Foreword, by Erich Fromm ix A Note on Sources xiii Introduction, by Bhikkhu Bodhi xv THE WAY TO FREEDOM FROM SUFFERING 1 THE WORN-OUT SKIN 18 THE POWER OF MINDFULNESS 69 THE ROOTS OF GOOD AND EVIL 119 THE FIVE MENTAL HINDRANCES 182 THE FOUR NUTRIMENTS OF LIFE 212 THE THREEFOLD REFUGE 231 THE FOUR SUBLIME STATES 246 ANATT¾ AND NIBB¾NA 265 SHORTER ESSAYS 288 Seeing Things As They Are 289 Buddhism and the God-Idea 291 Devotion in Buddhism 297 Courageous Faith 303 Why End Suffering? 305 Kamma and Its Fruit 310 Contemplation of Feelings 317 Protection Through Right Mindfulness 323 Glossary 332 A Bibliography of Nyanaponika Thera’s Publications in English 337 Venerable Nyanaponika Thera (1901-1994) DEDICATION The second edition of The Vision of Dhamma was prepared in connection with the 93rd birthday of the Venerable Nyanaponika Thera on 21 July, 1994. The editor and publisher dedicate this current edition to the memory of the Venerable with grateful appreciation for his clear vision and compassionate guidance in a lifetime of selfl ess service to the Dhamma. The Venerable Nyanaponika Thera passed away on 19 October, 1994 at Forest Hermitage, near Kandy, Sri Lanka. Abbreviations AN Aªguttara Nik±ya Dhp. Dhammapada DN D²gha Nik±ya Itiv. Itivuttaka MN Majjhima Nik±ya SN Sa½yutta Nik±ya Snp. Sutta Nip±ta Vism. Visuddhimagga Foreword That in a world in which there are no values except success, no norms except the commandment to increase production and consumption endlessly, a society in which men change themselves completely to manipulated tastes and to public opin- ion—that in such a world a need arises to fi nd again a meaning to life and a longing becomes felt for some kind of religious renaissance, this is only too understandable. Christianity and Judaism today have little attraction for the young generation, perhaps because of their authoritarian and anti-rational ele- ments. The attraction of Far Eastern religions, especially of Buddhism and Zen Buddhism, and of Far Eastern techniques like Yoga and Meditation is considerably greater. Unfortunately, but not surprisingly, this interest is misused by cults which are not serious and partly even sheer swindle. These cults appeal to the same weakness that they promise to “cure”; instead of furthering a new development through insight and activity, they infl uence the average man by mass suggestion, by dependence on so-called masters, by stultifying methods of contemporary industrial and political propaganda. To “cure” becomes big business. Often it is enough to come from India in order to establish oneself as a guru and to gain infl uence over hundreds or thousands of people. It is against this background that one has to understand the signifi cance of the person and the work of Nyanaponika Thera. He is a scholar, a teacher, a helper—no guru, no “leader” and no seducer. As a scholar he is one of the most outstanding mem- bers of the Therav±da school in Sri Lanka, and his translations of classic works of Buddhism into German and English are a cultural achievement of great signifi cance. He himself has the traits of all great scholars in all cultures: he is objective, unfa- natical, reliable to the smallest detail, and modest. Important as his transmission of Buddhist texts into Western languages is, of even greater importance is his role as teacher and helper. The Vision of Dhamma I know of no other book about Buddhism comparable to The Heart of Buddhist Meditation in presenting with such lucidity the essential thoughts of this “atheistic religion” which appears so paradoxical to the Westerner. His style is always simple, but it is that simplicity which emanates only from a person who has mastered a complex subject so thoroughly that he can express it simply. The reader will do well if, as I have, he reads and rereads many paragraphs and passages again and again in order to understand the author fully. His style corresponds to another trait of his personality; he wants to convince without overpowering—his person disappears behind the logic of his argument. Those who want to subject themselves to a guru, who fi nd the truth in mystifi cation, will soon put aside his writings. Nyanaponika Thera—in this respect also a true pupil of the Buddha—does not only want to teach; he wants to help, to cure and to show the disciple the way to cure himself. Perhaps he would not have fulfi lled this task as adequately as he has done had he not—as a European born at the beginning of the twen- tieth century—acquired a deep knowledge of the psychological problems of contemporary man. So-called “religious problems” as such do not exist for him. They are the expression of human problems and on this level Nyanaponika Thera shows that he is a fi rst class psychologist or, to put it perhaps better, philosophi- cal anthropologist. He understands man—the basic condition of his existence, his passions and anxieties—so deeply, that he can present Buddhism as the answer to the spiritual needs of people of today—or perhaps even of tomorrow. Indeed, the writings of Nyanaponika Thera are a “Guide for the Perplexed” in the last quarter of this century. They are ex- actly the opposite of the popular cults. In his book on Buddhist meditation mentioned above, he has succeeded in describing the method of genuine meditation so clearly that it is accessible to anyone who is serious and does not shy away from the effort. But far beyond meditation, Nyanaponika Thera has emphasized those elements in Buddhism that appeal to the best qualities of contemporary sober, critical and yet longing man: rational- ity, independence, the giving up of illusions and submission Foreword to authorities, and the full grasp of inner reality. (Here is a point where Buddhists’ self-examination and psychoanalysis, as I understand it, touch each other.) Nyanaponika Thera, in contrast to so many false interpretations, has emphasized that peace and joy, not destruction and nihilism, are essential for the “feeling-world.” He has emphasized especially that Buddhism does not only want to help those who strive for the absolute goal—Nirv±na—(and even few of those reach it), but also those who (in his own words) strive to “know themselves, if but temporarily and partially, to be free from the slavery of passions and the blindness of self-deception; to be masters of themselves and to live and think in the light of knowledge.” This is not the place to present the picture of Buddhism as Nyanaponika Thera has given it. I also cannot pursue the thought to show on which points I differ from Buddhist doc- trine in its totality. Such a task would require a detailed analysis of the difference between the position of radical humanism and Buddhist teaching, a task which could only be solved in the frame of reference of a special book. I can only report that acquaintance with Nyana ponika Thera’s work has given me many signifi cant insights and that, of the people to whom I have recommended his books for study, quite a few have reported to me that these works were the beginning of a new orientation and a new practice. I am con vinced that Nyanaponika Thera’s work may become one of the most important contributions to the spiritual renewal of the West, if it can only reach the knowledge of a suffi cient number of people. ERICH FROMM This essay was originally published in German under the title “Die Bedeutung des Ehrwürdigen Nyanaponika Mah±thera für die westliche Welt” (“The Signifi cance of Nyanaponika Mah±thera for the West”) in Des Geistes Gleichmass.
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