During class a week ago, the difference between the Visudhimagga and
the meditation instruction from the Pali canon came up. Although I
think when you really compare them side by side, this becomes extremely
apparent, this does not mean that I think either of them is necessarily a
bad or unbeneficial practice. The descriptions of jhana, mindfulness,
and concentration, do not line up at all in the paths. There are many
terms and practices mentioned in each path that are exclusive to that
path of practice. Also, whereas vipassana and samadhi are treated
integrally related in the sutras, the Visuddhismagga treats them as
different types of practices. Of course, there are also plenty of
cross-over points, and it is easy to see why they can be confused when
not giving a thorough read.
In modern traditions, we can
see the sutra path play out much more in the Thai forest tradition. But
for a long time in both Sri Lanka and Thailand, most monks only read
the Visudhimagga path of practice and never even bothered reading most
of the sutras. Although Thailand transitioned to a more sutra based
practice overall, Burma and Sri Lanka still more commonly use the
Visuddhimagga. In popular Western movements, we still see this influence
in the styles of the Mahasi tradition and Goenka's vipassana retreats.
There
are obviously many people who have benefited from those retreats, and I
think that's wonderful. Different ways work for different people.
However, I think the sutras are actually far more flexible in the ways
you can work with different approaches diepending upon the experience in
the moment. The visudhimagga presents a much more formalized
step-by-step procedure of specific experiences you should have before
moving on. Although, I find that specificity limiting, some people
find this specificity helpful and I respect that and with them well.
Likewise,
I think some of the different books on Buddhism and addiction recovery
present some very different paths. You can see the training of various
individuals really stand out in their writing and suggestions. But I
think this is actually a good thing. All people are conditioned in
different ways and addicted in different ways. To use the old Buddhist
analogy, we're not all at the same part of the shore, and thus,
different types of boats can be more or less useful to help get across.
Its good to have some variety out there so m=people can see what really
speaks to them - and what really helps them alleviate their own
suffering.
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