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for a debate 
For participants in a Dhamma 
Discussion who are 
unrelated, any mutually 
appropriate time is acceptable. 
For families, particular advice 
(given below see 
§D.4). Just like listening to 
Dhamma teachings, the 
practice of Dhamma discussions 
should be regular 
(weekly, monthly) or might be on 
the occasion of a 
particular calendar event with an 
appropriately 
related topic 
e.g. for New Year, 
it might be a discussion 
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about one's good resolutions for 
the New 
Year. 
C.5 Conclusion: By Dhamma, for 
Dhamma 
In conclusion, there are three 
governing principles 
to discussing the Dhamma: 
Blessing Thirty: Regular 
Discussion of the Dhamma 337 
I. Discuss within the scope of 
Dhamma: The subject 
of discussion must remain within 
the scope 
of the Dhamma. If you want to talk 
about virtues, 
don't let the discussion overlap 
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into boasting 
about virtues. If you want to speak 
on protecting 
yourself from vices, don't let the 
discussion 
run over into gossipping about 
others' ills; 
2. Discuss by means of Dhamma: 
Those participating 
in the discussion must not behave 
out of 
keeping with the Dhamma. 
Respect should be 
given to others where it is due —
rather than 
looking down on the other 
participants you assume 
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know less than you. You should 
speak 
politely with artful speech. Praise 
those who 
speak correctly 
and be polite if 
occasion arises 
to point out the faults in another's 
argument 
(rather than insulting them 
personally). If you 
make a mistake yourself, apologise 
rather than 
letting your defilements dominate 
the conversation; 
3. Discuss for Dhamma: Those 
who discuss must 
share the goal of furthering their 
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knowledge of 
Dhamma through conversation 
rather than 
showing off what they already 
know. In expressing 
your knowledge, it should be with 
the aim 
of facilitating others to share their 
knowledge 
with you! 
D. DHAMMA DISCUSSION IN 
EVERYDAY 
LIFE 
D.1 Dhamma Discussion in the 
time of the 
Buddha: 
In the time of the Buddha, even 
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though arahants 
had already freed themselves of all 
defilements, 
they would hold discussions of the 
Dhamma to 
sharpen their knowledge 
not to 
speak of the less 
`enlightened'. Discussion of the 
Dhamma was like 
the national pastime of that age 
with debate on spiritual 
and philosophical matters to be 
found in 
groups on every street corner. 
D.2 Old tradition in Buddhist 
society 
In the olden days, in the countries 
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of Southeast Asia, 
any village where the mayor was 
interested in the 
Dhamma, would hold a public 
Dhamma discussion 
every full-moon night. The 
discussion would have 
very simple rules so that 
everybody could have the 
chance to join in — for example, 
each villager took 
it in turn to talk about the best 
good habit they had 
— something even the village thief 
could manage! 
D.3 Role of the Older Generation 
in Dhamma 
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Discussion 
In Asian Buddhist society of old, 
when all the family 
lived together, the young and 
middle-aged 
adults would all go to work the 
fields. The old folks 
and would stay at home with the 
children. Usually 
the old folks would make baskets 
or do other sedentary 
tasks, but often they would tell 
tales to the 
children playing nearby — often 
cautionary tales 
from the JAtakas (birth stories of 
the previous lifetimes 
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of the Buddha). The young 
children would 
have a lot of questions for the 
old-folks and by questions 
and answers, before long there 
would be a 
conversation set up on the subject 
of the Dhamma. 
As the result of such 
conversations, the children 
would learn the foundations of 
moral behaviour 
from a very early age. 
D.4 Dhamma Discussion around 
the dining 
table 
(see also Bl.12 ,sCB3.1, heading 3.2) 
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These days the opportunity 
to discuss Dhamma en famille is 
becoming 
scarcer because the family tends to 
centre itself 
more on the TV than Dhamma 
wisdom. However 
anyone who values the future of 
their children 
should realize that the TV is 
robbing them of the 
opportunity to instil their children 
with virtue. It 
can be predicted that any family 
which cannot manage 
to come together for at least one 
communal meal 
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per day will have a sorry future for 
its children.The 
extra money parents can earn for 
their children by 
working late (but missing the 
family mealtime) is 
no substitute for the time they will 
miss teaching 
virtue to their children — guidance 
without which 
the children can ruin their future. 
For Dhamma 
Discussions within the family, 
finding an appropriate 
time is more complex. Whether 
you are the 
leader of a family yet or not you 
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need to consider 
being responsible for the real 
education of your 
child. Nowadays, we no longer 
have grandparents 
at home to look after the children's 
morality. The 
338 A Manual of Peace: 38 Steps 
towards Enlightened Living 
form of the discussion is usually a 
parent giving 
advice to his children and asking 
for their opinions 
on certain things concerning the 
childrens' own 
behaviour. The parent will speak 
for 80% of the time 
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and the child speaks for 20% of the 
time — no more 
than that — otherwise it will end 
up with the child 
teaching the parent instead! 
D.5 Twin pulpits & Tibetan 
debate 
Between monks in the present time 
in the 
TheravAda tradition, there is still 
the tradition of 
giving a sermon `from two pulpits' 
— that is two 
monks with expertise in a subject 
will discuss that 
subject in front of an audience —
maybe the ancient 
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equivalent of today's televised 
panel discussion? 
In the Tibetan tradition, there is 
alse the tradition 
of debating for students and 
teachers to 
hone their wits and mastery of 
scriptural material. 
D.6 More than just talking about 
it — practise! 
It should never be forgotten that 
whether knowledge 
gained comes from a sermon or a 
discussion, 
it can be of no use to anyone if we 
don't 
practice it for ourselves as the 
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result 
as the 
Buddha mentions in addition to the 
criteria for 
subject of discussion (see §C.3 
above) that the most 
praiseworthy topics of discussion 
are those where 
the debators not only talk about it, 
but also practice 
it too (A.v.129). 
E. ILLUSTRATIVE 
EXAMPLES 
E.1 Metaphor: Conferences for 
academics 
Just as the sharing exchange of 
ideas at conferences 
helps to foster academic progress, 
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regular discussion 
of the Dhamma will bring wisdom, 
the pathway 
to the liberation of suffering. 
E.2 Metaphor: Shadow-boxing 
The people of old compared 
talking to `shadow 
boxing'. They compared listening 
to others like 
punching a sandbag. However, 
discussions with 
others are the hardest of all (like 
boxing in the ring). 
E.3 Ex. EkuddAna Thera 
(DhA.iii.38411) 
There was once the son of a 
wealthy brahmin of 
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SAvatthi who entered the Buddhist 
order. He 
dwelled in the forest fulfilling his 
noviciate and 
came to the Buddha to receive a 
subject of meditation 
from him. Seeing that SAriputta 
was otherwise 
occupied, the Buddha gave the 
novice a short teaching 
himself to the effect: 
"There is no sorrow for the monk 
of transcendental 
thoughts" 
The novice learned this verse by 
heart and returned 
to the forest to reflect on it. 
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Although he didn't know 
any other verses of Dhamma, he 
understood this 
one thoroughly and eventually 
became an arahant 
by contemplation of it. Later he 
came to be known 
as "one exclamation" [ekuddAna] 
he would exhort 
others to listen to the Dhamma, 
and he would recite 
this only verse he knew. Every 
time he had finished 
his recitation, the guardian spirits 
[deva s] of 
the forest rejoiced in his merit 
resoundingly. On one 
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occasion two learned monks who 
were well-versed 
in the TipiEaka, each accompanied 
by a group of 
500 monks came to his dwelling 
place. EkuddAna 
invited the two monks to preach 
the Dhamma. They 
enquired if there were many who 
wished to listen 
to the Dhamma in such a remote 
area. EkuddAna 
told them that even the guardian 
spirits of the forests 
would rejoice at the end of each 
discourse. Thus 
reassured, the two learned monks 
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took turns to 
preach the Dhamma, but when 
their discourses 
ended, there was no rejoicing from 
the guardian 
spirits of the forests. The learned 
monks were puzzled 
and they doubted the words of 
EkuddAna —
but he insisted that the guardian 
spirits always rejoiced 
at the end of each discourse. The 
two learned 
monks then requested him to do 
the preaching. 
EkuddAna recited his usual verse. 
At the end of 
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