Let's all hop in Ajahn Brahm’s time machine

 Ajahn Brahm’s time machine

In order for the EBT suttas to make sense, B. Buddhaghosa (author of Vism.), Ajahn Brahm, B. Sujato, and B. Analayo would need to hop in a time machine, go back to the Buddha’s time circa 450 BCE, and explain to each person, Buddhist and non-Buddhist, that when the Buddha uses the term ‘vitakka’ in the context of jhana, he’s using B. Buddhaghosa’s redefinition that came 1000 years after the Buddha.

Notable adventures in time

Notable cases where B. Sujato’s redefined vitakka, ‘placing the mind...’ renders EBT suttas incoherent.
🔗DN 21 source of desire 🔗SN 41.8 detailed analysis: Jain religion founder doesn’t believe second jhana is possible – implication is first jhana is possible for buddhists and non-buddhists alike. But if Jain founder subscribed to B. Sujato’s redefinition of vitakka, that would mean he doesn’t believe first jhana is possible either. Therefore he must understand vitakka the way ordinary people of that time understood the term: vitakka = thinking.