Useless questions. III

Unanswered questions or useless questions, avyakata(Pali, Sanskrit Avyakrita) - metaphysical questions in Buddhism, in response to which the Buddha kept a “noble silence” or explained why he refused to answer them.

Description [ | ]

According to the Chulamalunkya Sutra, the monk Malunkyaputta, who was doing meditation practice, asked himself the following questions:

1. Is the universe eternal?
2. Or is it not eternal?
3. Is the universe finite?
4. Is the universe infinite?
5. Are the jiva and the body the same thing?
6. Or is jiva one thing and the body another?
7. Does the Tathagata exist after death?
8. Or does he not exist after death?
9. Or does he simultaneously exist and not exist after death?
10. Or does he both neither exist nor not exist after death?

The monk decided that if he did not receive an answer to these questions from the Buddha, he would return to the life of a layman. After this, Malunkyaputta came to the Buddha and asked him these questions, also saying that he did not like the fact that the teacher avoided these questions.

In response to this, Gautama Buddha pointed out that he did not promise to clarify these matters, and Malunkyaputta did not promise that the Buddha would clarify these matters after practicing the Dharma. The Buddha also gives the following analogy for Malunkyaputta's decision to leave the monks and leave the teaching if he does not know the answer:

This is like, O Malunkyaputta, a man who, being wounded by a poisoned arrow, and to whom his relatives and friends have brought a doctor, will say: “I will not allow this arrow to be pulled out until I know who wounded me: whether it is a kshatriya, a brahmana, a vaishya or a sudra.” ? Then he will say: “I will not allow this arrow to be pulled out until I find out who wounded me, what is his name, what family is he from?”<…>Then he will say: “I will not allow this arrow to be pulled out until I know whether it was an ordinary arrow or some kind of unusual one?”

After this, the Buddha says that "living according to the Dharma, O Malunkyaputta, does not depend on the opinion that the Universe is eternal" and lists those issues that he has not explained, and concludes by saying that the reason for the lack of explanations is the lack of benefit from such explanations .

The total number of questions called “avyakrita”, according to various sources, varied from four to sixteen. Ten questions are considered traditional.

Interpretation [ | ]

After analyzing the Buddha's answers to such questions, Lysenko identified five options for the Buddha's answers.

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Useless questions

I. INTRODUCTION

The USELESS_FAQ community is intended solely to satisfy pure, unadulterated curiosity and that's all. Here you can set useless questions , such as "How to make striped toothpaste?", "How does a tram switch work?", "What does a crocodile eat at lunch?", etc, etc. The community languages ​​are Russian and English.

III. WISHES TO BE FULFILLED

1. Moderators consider it an axiom that a question is asked in order to find out the answer to it . Questions that do not require an answer and comments that are not related to the question violate these rules.


2. Try don't express in your messages negative emotions and bad mood.


3. Humor in the community : a joke in a comment is acceptable only if there is an answer along with the joke; a joke without an answer is a violation (due to III.1).


4. "Useless Polls" (same as) are considered a violation community rules. The decision whether a post is a "useless poll" is made by the moderator and cannot be disputed. Available for surveys useless_poll .


5. Try formulate clearly and correctly your questions. Examples incorrect wording, and. Examples correct wording, and.


6. Write correctly . Deliberately mangling the language is considered a violation of community rules, not just grammar.


7. Before posting a question in the community use search:
   A post with a question that is found using a search or, especially, in the FAQ is considered a violation. If the answers found by the search did not satisfy your curiosity, then it would not be a violation of the rules to ask the question again, Necessarily by providing links to previous discussions.


8. About, in which cases costs ask directly Wikipedia" Yu, Yandex "s and others Google "s, and when it’s worth going to the community, it’s written.


9. Try do not post links to questions , located in other magazines or communities. If you are interested, ask it in the community in text. Links explaining the origin of the question are welcome.


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11. It is strongly recommended to follow the rule "one post - one question" . If you have accumulated several useless questions, ask them in several posts.


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IV. MODERATOR

1. Community creators are Sunny Cat And XiaMa .
   Current moderators: langsamer , _bepa , sunnycat , tumbochka , toomany , netp_npokon ,

“Chulamalunkya Sutta” (M. 1, 426-432).

Venue: vihara (habitat of monks during the rainy season), founded by Anathapindika in Jetha Park, near the city of Sa-vatthi. One day, the monk Malunkyaputta, who was meditating alone; The thought came to mind: “Is the Universe eternal or non-eternal? (1-2) Does the Universe have a limit or is it infinite? (3-4) Is the animating principle (jiva) the same as the body or something different? (5-6) Does the Tathagata exist after death or does the Tathagata not exist after death? (7-8) Does the Tathagata exist after death and does not exist? (9) Or does he not exist and does not exist? (10) The Blessed One does not explain these questions, leaves them aside, rejects them. I don't like the fact that he doesn't explain them. I can't come to terms with this. I will go to the Blessed One and ask him about this. If he explains to me whether the Universe is eternal or non-eternal, whether it has a limit or is limitless... (the remaining questions are repeated - 5.77.), I will begin to practice the Dharma under the guidance of the Blessed One. If he doesn’t explain to me whether the Universe is eternal or non-eternal (...), I will leave the path of a monk and return to worldly life.”

In the afternoon, leaving the secluded place of his meditation, Malunkhyaputta went to the Blessed One. Approaching, he gave the Blessed One all the necessary honors, then sat down diagonally from him [a respectful manner of sitting down for a discussion or conversation - V.L.] and said: “O Blessed One, when I was meditating alone, this thought came to my mind: “The Universe - is it eternal or impermanent? Does the Universe have a limit or is it infinite?(...). The Blessed One does not explain these questions, leaves them aside, rejects them. I don't like the fact that he doesn't explain them. ...If he does not explain to me, I will leave the path of a monk and return to worldly life.

O Blessed One, if the Blessed One knows that the Universe is eternal, let him tell me so. If the Blessed One knows that the Universe is not eternal, let him tell me so. If the Blessed One does not know whether the Universe is eternal or non-eternal, let him tell me so, because if someone does not know something, someone does not see something, he must honestly say: “>? I don’t know, I don’t see "". (The same thing is repeated for other questions).

Buddha: “O Malunkyaputta, did I ever say: “Malunkyaputta, practice the Dharma under my guidance and I will explain whether the Universe is eternal or impermanent” (...)?”

M.: “No, Blessed One.”

B.: “Then, O Malunkyaputta, did you once promise me: “I will practice the Dharma under the guidance of the Blessed One, and the Blessed One will explain to me whether the Universe is eternal or non-eternal” (...)”

M.: “No, Blessed One.”

B.: “Thus, O Malunkyaputta, I did not promise you: “Practice the Dharma under my guidance and I will explain whether the Universe is eternal or impermanent (...).” But you did not promise me: and I will practice the Dharma under the guidance of the Blessed One, and the Blessed One will explain to me whether the Universe is eternal or non-eternal (...)". In this case, oh foolish man, what are you rejecting? If someone says: “I will not practice the Dharma under the guidance of the Blessed One until he explains to me whether the Universe is eternal or non-eternal (...),” then the questioner may die without waiting for the Tathagata’s answer. This is like, O Malunkyaputta, a man who, having been wounded by a poisoned arrow, and to whom his relatives and friends have brought a doctor, will say: “I will not allow this arrow to be pulled out until I know who wounded me: whether it is a kshatriya, a brahmana, a vaishya or a sudra.” ?" Then he will say: “I will not allow this arrow to be pulled out until I find out who wounded me, what is his name, what family is he from?” Then he will say: “I will not allow this arrow to be pulled out until I know what color the person who wounded me is: black, brown, or gold?” Then he will say: “I will not allow this arrow to be pulled out until I find out where this man is from, who wounded me: from which village, from which city, from which region?” Then he will say: “I will not allow you to pull out this arrow until I find out what kind of bow they shot at me with? Was it a crossbow or another type of bow?” Then he will say: “I will not allow this arrow to be pulled out until I find out what kind of string was on this bow - from a hyup, from a hyup, from reeds, from sinew, from hemp, or from something else?” Then he will say: “I will not allow this arrow to be pulled out until I find out what the tip of this arrow is made of - iron or something else?” Then he will say: "I will not allow this arrow to be pulled out,

until I find out what kind of feathers were used for the arrow - the feathers of a vulture, a heron, a peacock or another bird?" Then he will say: “Shall I allow this arrow to be pulled out until I find out what kind of tendons were used - a cow, a bull, a deer or a monkey?" Then he will say: “I will not allow this arrow to be pulled out until I find out whether it was an ordinary arrow or some kind of unusual one?”

This man, O Malunkyaputta, will die without knowing all this. Likewise, if someone says: “I will not practice the Dharma under the guidance of the Blessed One until he explains to me whether the Universe is eternal or non-eternal (...),” he will die without receiving an answer to these questions from the Tathagata. Living according to Dharma, O Malunkyaputta, does not depend on the opinion that the Universe is eternal. Living in accordance with the Dharma, O Malunkyaputta, does not depend on the opinion that the Universe is not eternal. Although there is an opinion that the Universe is eternal and an opinion that the Universe is not eternal, but first of all there is birth, old age, death, illness, complaints, pain, hardships, disorders. I teach the cessation of all this in this life (the same is repeated in relation to other issues).

Because of all this, O Malunkyaputta, imprint in your thoughts what I have explained as explicable, and what I have not explained as inexplicable. What are the things that I haven't explained? I have not explained whether this Universe is eternal or non-eternal, I have not explained whether it has a limit or is infinite. I have not explained whether the body is the same, that the animating principle or the animating principle is one thing and the body another. I have not explained whether the Tathagata exists after death or the Tathagata does not exist after death. I have not explained whether the Tathagata exists or does not exist after death. I have not explained whether the Tathagata does not or does not exist after death. Why didn't I explain this? Because it will not bring any benefit - that which is not essentially connected with Dharma does not lead to aversion from the worldly, renunciation, cessation of suffering, inner peace, deep concentration, complete realization, to Nibbana. This is what I am explaining. Therefore, O Malunkyaputta, imprint in your thoughts everything that I have explained as explainable, and everything that I have not explained as inexplicable.”

In the Buddhist tradition, “useless” questions are united by the category of avyakata (Pali, Sanskrit avyakrita) - “left unanswered,” “having no answer.” Their number ranges from 4 to 16. The classic list of 10 questions is preceded by the formula: “All these opinions (ditthis) were not explained and ... were set aside and rejected by Bhagavan >. The Buddha's refusal to answer such questions - sometimes explained by him in one way or another, and sometimes expressed -

living in silence (the famous “noble silence of the Buddha”) - challenged both followers and researchers of Buddhism. Supporters different directions sought to give the Buddha's silence the character of approval of the position of their schools. And researchers - each in their own way - tried to make it a powerful argument in favor of their own interpretation.

February 21, 2013 --- Anna |

After thinking a little, looking at my life and that of my friends, I compiled a rating The most useless questions in life and in psychotherapy.

5th place. "And do you love me?"

The question is useless because the answer cannot be applied. If he loved, the person himself would say or let him feel. If he doesn’t love you and stays close, he’s unlikely to respond as is!

And the opposite: if you are not able to feel “loves or not” - maybe it’s not a matter of “loves”, but of you? At least to some extent...

4th place. "Everything is fine?"

In general, the expression “everything is fine” (“everything will be fine, you’ll see”) is used when you tightly fence yourself off from a person with his problems and experiences. It can be translated as “your problems have given in to me” or “well, stop worrying already!”

The question “is everything okay?” we actually hope that we will not have to invest much effort or somehow participate in other people's affairs or even troubles. Essentially a useless question. If you don't want to, don't participate. If you can’t, don’t try to participate, don’t reassure the person. If you want, take part in things, whatever they may be.

3rd place. "When we get married?"

And also “when will you act”, “when will you come to your senses” and “when will everything get better with us”. In all of the listed states (and this is not the finish line “I did, I did, and I did,” “I got married, I got married, and I got married”) it is useless to ask. At a minimum, it is worth acting, investing your efforts in making the event happen.

Tugging at a person “well, when, when” is something from childhood experience. “Mom, when are we going to go to the store for a toy? When?"
This is about helplessness and even powerlessness to change something on your part.

2nd place. “Well, how many times do I have to repeat this?”

Sheldon Cooper would answer this - “three more times and I’ll probably remember.” It’s still better to give a second chance, and to many people. If a person didn’t hear the second time, apparently it’s useless to repeat?

And finally, our winner... (drum roll)

1st place among useless questions: “What should I do?”

Everyone, every person on average asks this question to others several times a year.

This question often comes up in psychotherapy.

When a client realizes that a problematic situation is the result of his own actions, he often asks the therapist: “What should I do about it?” When old patterns don’t work – “what should I do?”

Most.

The most useless question, both in life and in psychotherapy.

After it, it’s best to ask: “What do you want to do?” Because there is more than enough in everyone's life. But if I want to wash the dishes, this is much better than “should”.

However, people continue to ask, asking them to decide for them, to choose, to suggest what is best.

The best thing you can give a person at this moment is detailed map, and not lead by hand to a certain place. For example, tell him about the possibilities, that it happens this way and that, and what consequences accompany each choice. After this, a person feels that he is armed with knowledge, and he chooses the direction himself.

And this is the most valuable thing in psychotherapy and in life - to embody your ideas, ideas and projects yourself.

For some reason, many questions are not asked. And if they ask, it’s somehow very shy. Because if there is silence, if there is silence, then everyone probably already knows the answers, and only I somehow accidentally missed it? - this is what the person who asked this question thinks. Well, of course, everyone has long discussed this and forgotten! - answers the one to whom this question has not occurred to him, but who is uncomfortable seeming like a lesser expert than all the other pique vests. It is on this shaky ground of mutual distrust that the silence rests. Well, what’s more, there’s so much going on all the time! - either the air conditioner will explode, or the Boeing will be dropped - there’s no time to stop and think. But the questions don’t go away.

Well, here's an example. Why is it that in our hyper-information and space age, with all the possibilities of satellite surveillance, there is still not a single real and concrete evidence of military assistance to the militia from Russia? That is, the slightest shift of Russian troops near the Ukrainian border - and the State Department is hysterical and waving satellite images. And a convoy of forty Kamaz trucks passed by - no pictures. The Buk complex is running back and forth - and again they couldn’t detect it. Tanks are being transported in columns from Crimea to Donbass - but for some reason there is only talk about this, but no documentary evidence - and here they somehow managed to slip past all seeing eye. But any such proven fact, and - the Kremlin can be put in an uncomfortable position and abused in every way. However, instead of facts there are only unfounded accusations.

Conclusions arise. Either official Moscow is really not helping the militia, and everything that is happening is really amateurish activity, at most with the support of financial and intelligence services (which, at the level of gentlemanly concepts, is essentially almost inaction). Or - everything is exactly as it should be, as it is, and the States (first of all) are vitally interested in the continuation and escalation of the conflict, and therefore turn a blind eye to Moscow’s tricks and don’t take them by the hand, although they shout about Russian aggression at every corner.

By the way, an additional question - why doesn’t Moscow push the topic of lack of evidence? - gives these conclusions additional piquancy.

There is also a question for the valiant liberators of Novorossiya. Here are all these prisoners who are captured by the militia, and then distributed to their mothers or to some unknown place - why is this so? That is, PR is PR, this is understandable, but why aren’t prisoners exchanged for all those pro-Russian activists who are now hanging around Ukrainian prisons? There are over three hundred in Kharkov. In the Dnieper it exceeded four hundred. And this is only official data. Of the Donetsk activists, only a few people were released, in the only known exchange of servicemen for Gubarev. There is no exact information about Odessa, but there are clearly a lot of them in jail too. There are also arrestees in Zaporozhye. The militia doesn’t care at all about like-minded people? The militia does not consider them like-minded people? For the curators of the militia, for one reason or another, is this public superfluous and undesirable?

Or is everything different, and Kyiv is not willing to exchange? - but then why is this fact not inflated in any way? Moreover, why is the topic of numerous political prisoners in Ukraine practically not used by Moscow propaganda? Or does this preserve a potential fifth column that will be used in further expansion?

All the questions turn out delicious, don’t you think?

There are simpler questions, but also without even the slightest chance of getting an answer. Right now the entire progressive world, led by the UN, is collectively mourning the three hundred victims of the Boeing crash. Peaceful people who are not involved in business, and then suddenly! - and came under attack in someone else’s war. Tragedy? A tragedy, no doubt. But - and all the civilians of Donbass who died during the ATO - were they not subject to distribution? Isn't their death a tragedy? But during all this time there are clearly more of them in number than Boeing passengers.

So where then is the grief for my fellow countrymen? Moreover, it is still unclear who shot down the Boeing, the air conditioning is in in this case It turns out to be some kind of unclear design, but who killed my compatriots is more than known: the valiant Ukrainian army. Maybe the residents of Donbass, unlike the residents of the Netherlands, are of some kind of wrong sort?

No, I understand, of course, that there are always our own dead and strangers. But there is one delicate point here - our own and others’ dead in this case were localized in the same time and place (on that day in Lugansk alone, 16 people died under artillery shelling). Accordingly, in such circumstances, dividing the dead into “a horrifying tragedy” and “statistical figures” is already some kind of extreme cynicism.

By the way, gentlemen Ukrainians who are striving for Europe, it wouldn’t hurt you to note this fact either. Because you may think that you are somehow different from the Colorados. But for Europeans there is no such difference. For them, “females of colorados” and “dill ovaries” are all one thing - Ukrainians, residents of Ukraine. And they have just demonstrated to you exactly how they treat you - like a doormat on which you can wipe your feet without any restrictions. Don't believe me? And you will review the UN meeting again. And note that in the midst of all this Yaroslavny crying about the horrific tragedy, at least one bastard remembered the people dying every day in the Donbass. Well, at least I would just mention it between words. At least one. Horseradish.

That’s how these dead people were strangers to me then. If my compatriots and countrymen are just numbers from statistics for the world community, then for me all these dead are nothing more than statistics from a special operation. Females, males, embryos - these, what's their name, "Europads" - really, it's a funny pun?