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These go to eleven: the significance of the number 11 in the EBT


* it's an oral tradition, you memorize everything important. You number things as a check to make sure you're not missing anything in a piece of memorized Dhamma.
* you have 10 fingers, a universal counting device
* Anguttara Nikaya goes to 11, not 12, not 10.
* The famous anatta-lakkhana sutta passage has 11 ways of examining 5uk. So the number 11 may have significance as indicating comprehensive coverage, of knowing something fully and completely with no omission and gap.
* STED 11ada: all the suttas matching aniccato dukkh... : This scheme also is numbered to 11. Like the above, it's closely associated with realization of arahantship. But unlike the above, which is comprehensive in scope of input objects to examine, this set of 11 is an expansion on anicca, dukkha, anatta.

11 comprehensive ways of examining 5uk

These 11 criteria seem to be comprehensive. Past, present, future, gross, subtle, etc. It seems to say there is no phenomena or experience that falls outside this. Interestingly, Mahayana comes along hundreds of years later, and part of their marketing campaign to show they're better than Hinayana, is to say the Hinayanists understanding of emptiness and notself is incomplete, that it doesn't include all dhammas. It's hard to fathom what they mean, and how these 11 ways don't cover everything.

SN 22.59 An-atta-lakkhaį¹‡a-sutta

1. Form

yaį¹ƒ kiƱci rÅ«paį¹ƒ
any such form,
atÄ«tā-(a)n-āgata-paccuppannaį¹ƒ
[whether] past, -not-arrived-yet, (or) -present;
ajjhattaį¹ƒ vā bahiddhā vā
internal or external **;
oįø·Ärikaį¹ƒ vā sukhumaį¹ƒ vā
blatant or subtle **;
hÄ«naį¹ƒ vā paį¹‡Ä«taį¹ƒ vā
inferior or sublime;
yaį¹ƒ dÅ«re santike vā,
whatever distant (or) near **:
sabbaį¹ƒ rÅ«paį¹ƒ:
every form [is to be realized as]:
‘n’etaį¹ƒ mama,
'this (is) {not} mine,
n'eso-'ham-asmi,
this I am {not},
na meso attā’ti
this (is) {not} {my} self.’
evametaį¹ƒ yathā-bhÅ«taį¹ƒ
Thus as-(it)-actually-is,
sammap-paƱƱāya daį¹­į¹­habbaį¹ƒ.
(with)-right-wisdom (one)-must-see-(it).
That same passage also appears in these suttas:


alagaddÅ«pamasuttaį¹ƒ (MN 22.1), — sabbaį¹ƒ rÅ«paį¹ƒ ‘netaį¹ƒ mama,...
cÅ«įø·asaccakasuttaį¹ƒ (MN 35.1),
mahārāhulovādasuttaį¹ƒ (MN 62.1),
mahāpuį¹‡į¹‡amasuttaį¹ƒ (MN 109.1),

susimasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 12.70),
anusayasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 18.13),
apagatasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 18.14),
khandhasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 22.48),
soį¹‡asuttaį¹ƒ (SN 22.49),
anattalakkhaį¹‡asuttaį¹ƒ (SN 22.59),
rādhasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 22.71),
surādhasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 22.72),
khajjanÄ«yasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 22.79),
puį¹‡į¹‡amasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 22.82),
rāhulasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 22.91),
dutiyarāhulasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 22.92),
kappasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 22.124),
dutiyakappasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 22.125),
navātasuttaį¹ƒ (SN 24.31),
adukkhamasukhÄ«suttaį¹ƒ (SN 24.32)


yodhājÄ«vasuttaį¹ƒ (AN 3.134)
yodhājÄ«vasuttaį¹ƒ (AN 4.181),
sāįø·hasuttaį¹ƒ (AN 4.196),

KN Paį¹­is, 1. mahāvaggo, 1. Ʊāį¹‡akathā, 5. sammasanaƱāį¹‡aniddeso, para. 2 ⇒

yaį¹ƒ kiƱci rÅ«paį¹ƒ atÄ«tānāgatapaccuppannaį¹ƒ ajjhattaį¹ƒ vā bahiddhā vā oįø·Ärikaį¹ƒ vā sukhumaį¹ƒ vā hÄ«naį¹ƒ vā paį¹‡Ä«taį¹ƒ vā yaį¹ƒ dÅ«re santike vā, sabbaį¹ƒ rÅ«paį¹ƒ aniccato vavattheti ekaį¹ƒ sammasanaį¹ƒ, dukkhato vavattheti ekaį¹ƒ sammasanaį¹ƒ, anattato vavattheti ekaį¹ƒ sammasanaį¹ƒ.

KN Paį¹­is, 1. mahāvaggo, 1. Ʊāį¹‡akathā, 5. sammasanaƱāį¹‡aniddeso, para. 3 ⇒

yā kāci vedanā . pe . yā kāci saƱƱā. ye keci saį¹…khārā. yaį¹ƒ kiƱci viƱƱāį¹‡aį¹ƒ atÄ«tānāgatapaccuppannaį¹ƒ ajjhattaį¹ƒ vā bahiddhā vā oįø·Ärikaį¹ƒ vā sukhumaį¹ƒ vā hÄ«naį¹ƒ vā paį¹‡Ä«taį¹ƒ vā yaį¹ƒ dÅ«re santike vā, sabbaį¹ƒ viƱƱāį¹‡aį¹ƒ aniccato vavattheti ekaį¹ƒ sammasanaį¹ƒ, dukkhato vavattheti ekaį¹ƒ sammasanaį¹ƒ, anattato vavattheti ekaį¹ƒ sammasanaį¹ƒ.

KN Paį¹­is, 3. paƱƱāvaggo, 1. mahāpaƱƱākathā, 1. soįø·asapaƱƱāniddeso, para. 20 ⇒

7. javanapaƱƱatāya saį¹ƒvattantÄ«ti katamā javanapaƱƱā? yaį¹ƒ kiƱci rÅ«paį¹ƒ atÄ«tānāgatapaccuppannaį¹ƒ ajjhattaį¹ƒ vā bahiddhā vā oįø·Ärikaį¹ƒ vā sukhumaį¹ƒ vā hÄ«naį¹ƒ vā paį¹‡Ä«taį¹ƒ vā yaį¹ƒ dÅ«re santike vā, sabbaį¹ƒ rÅ«paį¹ƒ aniccato khippaį¹ƒ javatÄ«ti — javanapaƱƱā. dukkhato khippaį¹ƒ javatÄ«ti — javanapaƱƱā. anattato khippaį¹ƒ javatÄ«ti — javanapaƱƱā. yā kāci vedanā . pe . yā kāci saƱƱā. ye keci saį¹…khārā. yaį¹ƒ kiƱci viƱƱāį¹‡aį¹ƒ atÄ«tānāgatapaccuppannaį¹ƒ ajjhattaį¹ƒ vā bahiddhā vā oįø·Ärikaį¹ƒ vā sukhumaį¹ƒ vā hÄ«naį¹ƒ vā paį¹‡Ä«taį¹ƒ vā yaį¹ƒ dÅ«re santike vā, sabbaį¹ƒ viƱƱāį¹‡aį¹ƒ aniccato khippaį¹ƒ javatÄ«ti — javanapaƱƱā. dukkhato khippaį¹ƒ javatÄ«ti — javanapaƱƱā. anattato khippaį¹ƒ javatÄ«ti — javanapaƱƱā. cakkhu . pe . jarāmaraį¹‡aį¹ƒ atÄ«tānāgatapaccuppannaį¹ƒ aniccato khippaį¹ƒ javatÄ«ti — javanapaƱƱā. dukkhato khippaį¹ƒ javatÄ«ti — javanapaƱƱā . anattato khippaį¹ƒ javatÄ«ti — javanapaƱƱā.







Re: These go to eleven: the significance of the number 11 in the EBT

Post by Dhammanando » Sat Apr 27, 2019 1:23 am
MN 33

"... possessed of eleven qualities, [a bhikkhu] cannot become one to reach growth, increase and maturity in this Dhamma and Discipline."

references


http://lucid24.org/sted/index.html

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