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pali primer for people with skin in the game: lesson 1

The main problem with most pali primers is they're boring, complicated, and they make you (short term) memorize a bunch of spiritually useless pali vocabulary that you have no interest in learning at the moment, in order to complete the boring pali grammar exercises in the lesson.

So here's my primer, which takes a totally different and pragmatic approach. This is for people with skin in the game.  You are fully invested in the Buddha, have total conviction in the Dharma, and this is a way of life and not an academic exercise or merely an interesting hobby. 

That being the case, there are important vocabulary words you'll need to learn and commit to memory.

You'll learn like kids learning languages naturally. By listening, memorizing what you hear, repeating it many times, thinking about it, and intuiting the grammar rules and conjugations from actively using it.

You won't regret memorizing any words in my pali primer.

Lesson #1. Memorize these short suttas and recite them every day at least once. As you recite each pali word, use V&V (vitakka and vicara, thinking and evaluation). 

Vitakka thinks about the quick superficial meaning of the pali word you're reciting, and knows (sampajano, lucid discerning)  to the extent you've accurately recalled from your memory (sati) that word you're reciting is accurate, not uncertain. 

Vicara thinks about the meaning of that word (or phrase) a little more deeply (cara, vi-cara means to explore, wander).

The Dhamma is to be learned and applied. People with skin in the game need to prioritize. You might die tomorrow. So getting the teaching, the meaning, and applying it, and committing it to memory (so if you die you can remember it in your next life) is of primary importance. The nitpicky grammar rules you'll be able to intuit and learn as needed. The vocabulary and meaning is the important part to get first.


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