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Sujato's translation of dhamma as 'thought', is (was) wrong (manasā dhammaṁ viññāya)


In the context of 6 sense organs coming into contact with 6 objects that senses can know,
Sujato (in 2018 edition) translations had the wrong translation dhamma = 'thought'.

The reason that is wrong,
is because the objects coming into the 6 sense faculties are raw sensory data.
"thought", is most commonly understood to be verbal, linguistic, mentally recited words used in the oral tradition to encode the Buddha's Dhamma instructions.

You can see that B. Bodhi's translation of 'dhamma' as mental phenomena preserves that raw sensory data.
So does Thanissaro's , dhamma = idea.

I see that in 2025, sometime after 2018 Sujato corrected his translation and interpretation of 'dhamma' in this context to 'idea', same as Thanissaro.


 
B. Bodhi has (AN 4.14)

(1) “And what, bhikkhus, is striving by restraint?
Here, having seen a form with the eye, a bhikkhu does not grasp its marks and features.
Since, if he left the eye faculty unrestrained, bad unwholesome states of longing and dejection might invade him, he practices restraint over it, he guards the eye faculty, he undertakes the restraint of the eye faculty.
Having heard a sound with the ear … Having smelled an odor with the nose … Having tasted a taste with the tongue … Having felt a tactile object with the body … Having cognized a mental phenomenon with the mind, a bhikkhu does not grasp its marks and features.
Since, if he left the mind faculty unrestrained, bad unwholesome states of longing and dejection might invade him, he practices restraint over it, he guards the mind faculty, he undertakes the restraint of the mind faculty.
This is called striving by restraint.




Thanissaro has (SN 35.95)


“What do you think, Māluṅkyaputta? The forms cognizable via the eye that are unseen by you—that you have never before seen, that you don’t see, and that are not to be seen by you: Do you have any desire or passion or love there?”

“No, lord.”1

“The sounds cognizable via the ear…

“The aromas cognizable via the nose…

“The flavors cognizable via the tongue…

“The tactile sensations cognizable via the body…

“The ideas cognizable via the intellect that are uncognized by you–the you have never before cognized, that you don’t cognize, and that are not to be cognized by you: Do you have any desire or passion or love there?”



Sujato (AN 4.14 in 2025 edition)


When a mendicant sees a sight with their eyes, they don’t get caught up in the features and details.Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu cakkhunā rūpaṁ disvā na nimittaggāhī hoti nānubyañjanaggāhī.If the faculty of sight were left unrestrained, bad unskillful qualities of covetousness and displeasure would become overwhelming. For this reason, they practice restraint, protecting the faculty of sight, and achieving its restraint.Yatvādhikaraṇamenaṁ cakkhundriyaṁ asaṁvutaṁ viharantaṁ abhijjhādomanassā pāpakā akusalā dhammā anvāssaveyyuṁ, tassa saṁvarāya paṭipajjati, rakkhati cakkhundriyaṁ, cakkhundriye saṁvaraṁ āpajjati.When they hear a sound with their ears …Sotena saddaṁ sutvā …When they smell an odor with their nose …ghānena gandhaṁ ghāyitvā …When they taste a flavor with their tongue …jivhāya rasaṁ sāyitvā …When they feel a touch with their body …kāyena phoṭṭhabbaṁ phusitvā …When they know an idea with their mind, they don’t get caught up in the features and details.manasā dhammaṁ viññāya na nimittaggāhī hoti nānubyañjanaggāhī,








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