Miscellaneous Topics – 2463
wrong view. One clings tenaciously to oneself internally and to external sense
objects. Clinging is of four kinds:
1. Clinging to sense-pleasures (
kāmupādāna
).
2.
Clinging to wrong views (
diṭṭhupādāna
).
3.
Clinging to wrong practices as a means to purity (
sīlabbatupādāna
).
4.
Clinging to an illusory self (
atta-vādupādāna
).
1. Clinging to sense pleasures (
kāmupādāna
). It is the obsession with sense
objects of the six kinds which begins as craving and outgrows itself, like the
Myanmar saying: “When an iguana grows too big it becomes an alligator; when
a snake grows too big it becomes a serpent.” Clinging therefore is intensified
craving.
2. Clinging to wrong view (
diṭṭhupādāna
). Wrong views are of 62 kinds as
described by the Buddha in the Discourse on the Supreme Net (
Brahmajāla-sutta
,
DN 1). Tenacious belief in any wrong view is a form of clinging. The three
worst wrong views that send one down to the lower realms are included in the
62 kinds of wrong view mentioned in this verse.
3. Clinging to wrong practices as a means to purity (
sīlabbatupādāna
). Some
ascetics, during the Buddha’s time, resorted to behaving like cows or dogs in the
mistaken belief that such practices would purify their hearts and bring salvation.
Puṇṇa and Seniya are two ascetics who followed such practices (
Kukkura-
vatika-sutta
, MN 57).
The cow-practice (
go-vatika
) ascetics were those who believed that all past evil
could be obliterated if one took up a stringent ascetic life by living like a cow.
Their reasoning was this: Living a stringent life for the whole of the present life
makes retribution for all past evil deeds; the present life of asceticism also does
not involve any fresh evil deeds. Therefore, all past evil deeds and future evil
deeds are eliminated, and this brings eternal happiness. A follower of this creed
moves about on all fours like a cow, sleeps like a cow, eats like a cow, without
using the hands and generally imitates all bovine behaviour. Interestingly
enough one who takes up the bovine practice in a slack manner, will be reborn
as a cow; one who takes up the practice too stringently will go to hell after death.
The dog-practice (
kukkura-vatika
) ascetics were believers in the dog-practice.
They believed that, if one could adopt the life and habits of a dog, one would be