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two 
things about their dress —
modesty and cleanliness. 
• avoid childishness: those who 
play around, 
never take responsibility for 
anything and never 
taking anything seriously, will 
never succeed in 
becoming learned. 
C.2 Sense of Responsibility for 
others' Human 
Dignity 
Bias gives us negative attitudes 
which may reduce 
our chances of success in study. If 
we are able to 
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overcome these items of unfairness 
in the mind 
from the outset then the mind will 
be a much more 
fertile receptacle for knowledge: 
I. Learning based on Desire 
[chandAgati]: Desire 
doesn't need to be so strong that 
you are a Casanova. 
Such a person would have no 
chance of 
being a good student anyway. 
However, to a 
lesser degree even someone who is 
excessively 
fussy about what they do and what 
they wear 
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would be unlikely to succeed in 
their studies. 
Those who study simply because 
they would like 
to become famous will find it hard 
to succeed in 
study. If you see possessions as an 
end in themselves 
then we will have no incentive to 
study. 
2. Learning based on Hatred 
[dosAgati]: If you want 
to study successfully then you 
mustn't be someone 
who loses their temper easily. You 
must be 
able to accept criticism without 
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being scared of 
appearing foolish. Some people are 
angry only 
for an instant and then they recover 
quickly. Others 
are angry and it takes them a long 
time to get 
over it. They find it hard to 
forgive. Even later 
on, although they can't remember 
why they were 
angry with someone, they still feel 
angry with 
that person. They forget their 
respect for others. 
They think that they are superior to 
everyone 
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else. Thus they can never learn 
anything from 
anyone else. By meditating, such 
people can train 
themselves to be less impatient. If 
they also keep 
a baseline of morality such as 
avoiding killing 
animals and insulting then they 
will find it much 
easier to acquire wisdom. 
3. Learning based on Ignorance 
[mohAgati]: If you 
are still acting on your own 
ignorance instead of 
giving things careful consideration 
before you 
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do them, then you will find it hard 
acquire new 
knowledge. If your old ways of 
looking at the 
world are faulty then you need to 
let go of them 
before you can expect to acquire 
new ones. 
4. Learning based on Fear 
[bhayAgati]: Some people 
lack confidence in themselves and 
their own 
Blessing Seven: Artfulness in 
Knowledge 107 
knowledge. They are always afraid 
of the criticism 
of others. If you are afraid of 
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taking decisions 
yourself, then you will be destined 
to always 
be led by other people instead of 
standing 
on your own feet. You will have 
no creative or 
original thinking of your own. If 
even you don't 
trust your own knowledge then 
how can you 
expect to make anyone else 
confident. 
C.3 Sense of Responsibility for 
Economic Fairness 
In order for a student to protect 
society's sense of 
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human dignity, they must refrain 
from the Six Roads 
to Ruin: 
1. Drinking alcohol; 
2. Roaming the streets at unseemly 
hours; 
3. Frequenting shows; 
4. Gambling; 
5. Association with bad company; 
6. Laziness to work for a living. 
Furthermore a person who is 
obsessed with personal 
financial gain will find it hard to 
make 
progress in their studies. A person 
should not "worship 
money". Those who see that 
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material rewards 
are more valuable than wisdom 
will never go very 
far in acquiring wisdom. We don't 
overlook the 
importance of wealth — but on the 
way that it is 
best to apply one's wealth 
that 
will be the subject 
of Blessing Fifteen. 
D. THE LEARNING PROCESS 
D.1 Coming into contact with 
someone knowledgeable 
One of the hardest things is to find 
a teacher who 
will give the necessary 
encouragement to bring 
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one's studies to fruition. The 
Buddha taught in the 
SilgalovAda Sutta that successful 
studies are established 
on the base of reciprocal duties 
that a 
student practices towards his 
teacher and that a 
teacher practises towards their 
student (duties collectively 
referred to as duties to the 
Southern Quarter). 
If a student finds a teacher that 
they think 
they can learn something from, 
they should start 
to learn from them. The teacher 
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should practice 
the following five duties towards 
their pupil, by 
making sure: 
1. the student is well trained; 
2. that the student is taught in such 
a way that he 
understands and remembers well 
what he has 
learned; 
3. that the student is thoroughly 
instructed in the 
lore of every art without holding 
knowledge 
back; 
4. to give praise to the student 
which raises his esteem 
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amongst his peers; 
5. that the student's security and 
safety in every 
quarter (i.e. towards parents, wife, 
children, 
employees, friends and spiritual 
mentors) is ensured, 
while pointing out the loopholes 
and 
weaknesses present in any body of 
knowledge. 
Meanwhile the student should 
minister to his 
teacher by: 
1. rising to receive them; 
2. by serving them (in things 
which facilitate the 
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teacher's convenience) 
3. by obedience to the teachings or 
an eagerness to 
learn; 
4. by personal service 
5. by attentively and respectfully 
learning the arts 
and sciences 
If a student fails to fulfil their 
duties but the 
teacher does their part, the student 
is unworthy 
of the teacher — and it will be no 
surprise 
if the student can never become 
"skilled in 
knowledge" 
catastrophe will 
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await the student. 
If the teacher fails to fulfil their 
duties but the 
pupil does their part, then the 
teacher is unworthy 
of the student — and perhaps the 
student 
should look elsewhere for a better 
teacher 
— and catastrophe awaits the 
teacher. 
If neither the student nor the 
teacher fulfil 
their duties, catastrophe will await 
both student 
and teacher and their failing will 
have 
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unlikely ever to 
make a success of your career as a 
student. This 
applies both to the contact with 
your teacher and 
reading from the textbooks. It 
means questioning 
in order to further your 
knowledge.Whatever 
knowledge you learn, try to divide 
it up into these 
four aspects and study all four. 
Only then can you 
say that you have mastered that 
knowledge. Such 
an assessment of your own 
knowledge will prevent 
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you from slipping into the 
premature overestimation 
of the amount you know and give 
you the encouragement 
to keep listening to people of 
knowledge. 
1. Knowledge in Depth: You need 
to make sure 
that you understand deeply what 
you have 
learned. You need to know the 
roots and origins 
of everything you study (its past). 
If you are a 
doctor and you see a patient ill 
with certain 
symptoms by looking at their face 
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you can tell 
immediately about the prognosis of 
their illness 
right from ten or twenty years ago. 
Don't go believing 
things simply because they are 
traditional 
or customary without 
understanding the reasons 
for such belief. 
2. Knowledge in Breadth: You 
need to have a 
broad knowledge (the present) not 
only of your 
own narrow specialism but also 
about all the 
things that concern your everyday 
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life. Even if 
you study the arts, you still need to 
know the 
elements of electricity because you 
use electricity 
in your everyday life from the time 
you get 
up in the morning to the time you 
go to bed. If 
you have studied science, you still 
need to know 
about the arts otherwise you will 
not understand 
how to communicate emotions, 
feelings and 
ideas from one person to another in 
different 
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forms whether it may be written or 
visual. If you 
don't study then you can be the 
best engineer in 
the world but if you have no gift 
for communicating 
with people you will just be 
digging holes 
for the rest of your life. 
3. Thorough Knowledge: Not 
only will you know 
your own narrow subject but you 
will know the 
connections which it has with 
other issues as if 
you know the influences of that 
knowledge all 
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