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reciting and chanting Pali phrases
upekka
Veteran
what is the use of them in Buddhist practise?
are they conducive to the ultimate goal of Buddhist practise?
0
Comments
There is more than one way to get to the ultimate goal. Just like there is more than one way to learn math. Whatever works to help you learn and move is what will help you get there.
I'm not sure which ones you might be referring to. I am a Tibetan practitioner, and a lot of the reason for chanting sutras is it is easier to memorize them. That is how monks learn to memorize so much. I don't personally believe chanting has any sort of magical properties or anything like that. But they are a little like singing, and I find the connection with others while doing so to be nice. Chanting them won't get you more points on your quest for enlightenment. But if they help you retain the teachings and put them into practice, then that's probably a good thing.
Must admit Pali is not my preferred language. I like Sanskrit. However ... chanting is mentally and physically calming. Such a base quality is required. Otherwise we lose concentration and the monkey mind goes for a gibber ...
http://opcoa.st/0vfPj
To focus the mind.....Without a focused mind , it can be a jungle in there...
I think they are like incense in that for some people they help set an environment.
At the Thai Forest group I used to attend we tried chanting both in Pali and in English. On balance I found the English chanting more meaningful.
Here is my page on mantra
http://opcoa.st/0vRP0
'In the beginning The Word was fishy and the word was Cod'
Lobster Genesis
OM MANI PADME SO HA LP
ME COD
Meditation is more effective, but chanting is more convenient for those with physical disabilities. As with walking/looking casual meditation, its a bit more difficult to reach calm than regular seated posture meditation.
In Theravada chanting Pali is not for mantra or meditation purposes, but for learning and remembrance.
I was actually going to just make a thread about this sort of, but then I saw this so I'll post it here.
The importance of the Nikayas, the oldest texts that predate theravada/mahayana, is that the teachings in writing provide a framework for understanding the practice.
I was a practitioner long before I knew much of what the Nikayas said. I had had experiences and insights, and didn't know much about them or how to "place" them in the scope of my practice. When I really delved into the suttas though, I started seeing the Buddha explain and teach things that fit with my own experience and insights. I had so many " AH HAH!" moments and each time my confidence in the teachings grew.
The Suttas provide a wonderful and fairly easy to understand framework for your experience, and are therefore very valuable and worth it in their own right. Now while I may be one of the few on here that will throw down a bunch of suttas in posts, I hope that I choose them wisely enough to go along with my written point so that they make sense, and are not just a block of text to everyone that does not help.
So for me I love to memorize certain parts of the suttas that have deep meaning for me. These can be repeated as remembrance, and as moral and confidence boosting. Now as a monk I have to memorize stuff I find silly, and that I'd never use for my own practice, but it's just one of those required things for when we chant for people who ask for rituals, but when I can truly take a piece of the wisdom of the buddha into my mind and heart, and know it is always there for me when I need it. It is of great benefit to my practice.