[Buddha-l] Re: Diversions, distractions and off-topic discussions

[Joy Vriens]

Thank you Lance for pointing this out. I didn't know about the added 
sentence, but I am very glad that I sometimes manage to recognize later 
add-ons that look like warts. At other times they appear to be warts 
that were already there originally. :-)

> True but note that it is precisely the last phrase which is missing in 
> the alternative version found in the adjacent sutta.
> 
> Also, it actually says:
> "... your splendour (teja) would outshine even that of the sun & moon, 
> so mighty, so powerful -- to say nothing of that of wanderers of other 
> sects".
> It is far from obvious what this actually means.

I interpreted it as having an ethical speech, the splendour of which 
outshines even that of the sun & moon, not to mention the "splendour" of 
other sects of wanderers. The last sentence was totally unnecessary, 
especially considering the whole paragraph was on right speech.

> To me the argument presented here is very clear. If I am doing a lot of 
> meditation, I can see that discussions of the first kind are mostly 
> based on defilements. If one engages in them (except sometimes for 
> teaching purposes), you have a lot of extra work to do when you go back 
> to meditate. Conversely topics of the second kind become more 
> interesting and can further meditation.

Yes the first kind are polemical topics or topics of which the truth 
can't be verified, and which therefore are wholly or partially made up 
of speculations or opinions.

> But I have no idea how you convince people of this, if they have not 
> experienced it or have forgotten their past experience of that.

I though the sutta was a good attempt, except for the last line, which 
was indulging in an opinion, mainly based on personal judgement.

Joy