[Buddha-l] Re: Mahayana taught by the Buddha?

[Richard P. Hayes]

On Tue, 2005-06-21 at 07:33 +0700, Randall Jones wrote:

> You can do quite a lot of mathematics without understanding it, just by 
> learning method. Is not something similar true in Buddhism?

If one does not understand the method of doing mathematics, one cannot
do it. What is not necessary in applied mathematics is an understanding
of pure mathematics. Buddhism, I would argue, does not have the same
distinction--the one between pure and applied--that we find in
mathematics. 

> Or, more generally, what level of understanding is "necessary" for a 
> Buddhist practice?

One must understand the method. There is nothing else in Buddhism to
understand. There's really not an awful lot of theory to worry one's
troubled head about.

-- 
Richard Hayes
http://www.unm.edu/~rhayes