You Ask For it

You Ask For it


Taking the cue from 'I Don't Know', I would like to make some changes to the ending.

Enjoy!


Once, a learned 'buddhist', highly respected, highly admired, highly recognised and certified, 'fully' endowed with superior knowledge of the scriptures, came and spoke to Maitreya.

Scholar : Do you know the XXX sutta?

Maitreya : No, I don't.

Eyeing Maitreya suspiciously and with doubt, the scholar continued,

"Do you know the XXX sutra under the Mahayana discipline, then?"

Maitreya : Nope, I don't know that either.

Getting impatient and visibly irritated, but trying to stay calm and maintain his image, the learned 'buddhist' asked again -

This time in a stern loud and authoratative tone : "Do you know the teaching by the renowned guru XX - the "living buddha" ?"

Maitreya : I don't know that one either - Never heard of it.

Flabbergasted, his face flushed red hot with anger, the 'buddhist' screamed at Maitreya,

"What then do you know?!"

Maitreya looked at the scholar and replied matter-of-factly,

"I only know YOU are going to die, and ALL that you've studied CAN'T help you."




"You are called a Maha ( i.e. Great, or one who can read Pali, scriptural language )

But where is the knowledge you studied from the scriptures now?

What is it doing that you cannot call it to your rescue?

What a waste of time and effort for that title of Maha you've got!

You are going to die and all that knowledge which you took so much time to gain cannot be called on to help you .......

It seems the more you learn, the WEAKER you become, weaker even than an uneducated woman."

- Venerable Ajahn Mun

( Taken from the book, "The Venerable Phra Acharn Mun Bhuridatta Thera - Meditation Master", written by Venerable Ajahn Maha Boowa, page 194 )




"No matter how much of the Dhamma you've studied,

It will serve NO purpose other than simply being an obstacle to your Meditation ( and Practice )."

- Venerable Ajahn Mun




"Anybody can learn and memorise the names and symbols of Dhamma because they are things which anybody should be able to memorise.

But the important thing is the TRUE Dhamma whose name and symbols one has naturally in oneself without having to learn it by repetition and memorising -

And this kind of Dhamma is Difficult to practise, Difficult to see and Difficult to KNOW."

- Venerable Ajahn Mun