From simplicity to oversimplification

In recent memory, the only person who, in my estimation excavated much of the essence of  the Buddha’s teaching as found in Pali Buddhism (i.e., Buddhism from the Pali canon); systematically putting it together for the general public, was George Grimm.  His main work, The Doctrine of the Buddha  which is rife with references from the Nikayas, is quite an astonishing work but mainly for its simplicity.  Grimm reminds us in the preface to The Doctrine of the Buddha that the Buddha could cast the highest truth in a form “that even a robber chief along with his band, even a leper” and “even a seven-year old boy” could comprehend “without more being added.”  Well, this is certainly not the case today nor was it the case with Buddhism after the Buddha’s passing over into parinirvana.  

As many will agree, much of Buddhism has gone beyond the message of its founder.  In Grimm’s opinion, Abhidhamma (the scholastic analysis of the Buddha’s teachings which was compiled successively between 250 and 50 B.C.) has contributed much to making unnecessary problems for original Buddhism; making Buddhism almost incomprehensible for the average person.

What we have today which is called “Buddhism” according to George Grimm “is as little the old Buddha-teaching as that any one of the present-day Christian sects represent the Christianity of Christ.”  I would go so far as to say that most Buddhist teachers (particularly in the West) are as far from the Buddha as Pat Robertson is from Jesus.  Among other things completely altered, the Buddha’s notion of the Sangha is not the same as today’s; nor did the Buddha demand that one needed to go to a certified master in order to confirm their awakening.  Grimm writes, “The Buddha, in fact, calls his teaching the dhamma anitiha, the truth that carries its confirmation within itself, stands in no need of external authorization.”  

Where this leads us is back to simplicity; but certainly not oversimplification believing, for example, that living in the secular here and the now is enlightenment, or in the words of Zen master Joko Beck, “If you live with a difficult person, that’s nirvana”!  I hasten to add that the original simplicity of Buddhism has nothing to do with secular Buddhism which, among other things, supports a kind of smorgasbord approach to Buddhism:  take what you like from the Buddhist canon (one or two Suttas or Sutras) and forget the rest.

 

Comments

[Paul]

Dear Sir “ekacitta”:

I received a message on one of your posts from “minx” and I don’t know if that is you. In any event, I’m remiss in being late to thank “minx” for the response with regards to the references of useful literature on Zen Buddhism. Two of them are now on order from Amazon.

This prompted me to remember that I was given an old book by a past martial arts instructor entitled: The Gospel of Buddha, by Paul Carus, 1894, The Open Court Publishing Co, Chicago.

I don’t know if you are familiar with it, but it’s sort of primer on the Buddha and Buddhism, and I am enjoying it.