How necessary is it to read secondary literature like pic related to understand buddhism vs just reading the pali canon?
>>24795255isn't that mahavira?
>>24795263No idea, might find my copy to see what the cover is credited as later though
>>24795255Are you doing the practice? The practice requires the scripture and the scripture demands practice.
>>24795255Pali canon is only really for Theravada, so its like reading only Assyrian Christian texts to try and understand Christianity as a whole.
>>24795583Going to correct this with to understand abrahamic religions as a whole, as Buddhism is more diverse than Christianity.
>>24795583This may be true but the pali canon is the closest we have to wat the buddha actually taught
>>24795576What's the practice anon?
>>24795592I think you are misunderstanding Buddhism. What Siddhartha Gautama actually taught isn't necessarily what is important. It's not an Abraham religion.
>>24795592The Pali canon is like the Talmud. It was compiled after Buddhism had reached China and is a compilation of alleged oral traditions from one specific branch of a specific school. So outside of a Buddhist conception of "truth" it is also not necessarily reliable, being compiled half a millennium after the Buddha died.
