While I do not claim to an authority on the history of the sutra, I did take a course last year in the study of the Platform Sutra. I wasn��t aware of any scholars in particular who were questioning the historical authenticity of the sutra, but of course this doesn't mean that the sutra is 100% historically authentic.
In China, several versions of the Sutra were discovered at different places and dated at different times. The various versions do differ from each other, and so you can't expect all of them to be historically accurate. The Tun-huang manuscript, the earliest of all versions, is generally understood to be the most authentic among all. Now we must be aware of the fact that Hui-neng himself didn��t write the sutra. It is presumably written by one of his disciples, and so it faces the same questions that the Bible faces: How much of it are the original sayings of the master? And how much are the teachings of the later traditions put into the master��s mouth? I don't think there is an objective way to find out, and so maybe it��s better that we should leave it at that. Personally, I don't think the historical authenticity issue really matters. I think what matters is whether the teachings of the sutra are speaking to you. If it doesn't help you in any way, then I see no point of reading it. But for me, I really enjoy reading the sutra, and it has helped me in many ways, and that��s what I would like to share with others. When it comes to spiritual matters, I think it is more important to find out what works for you than to solely confine to a single tradition. When I was a teenager, I was a Christian for years. It took me a long time to find out that Christianity was not for me. I guess there is always this trial-and-error period. When I get older, I find out that Eastern religions are more appealing to me. The important thing is to understand yourself and to find out what suits your spiritual needs. I don't believe that is just one single path for everybody, just as I don't believe there is just one true religion. If you find that certain practices are helping you, then by all means you should stick to them. But if they don��t work for you, I suggest that you look for other alternatives. In regard to that person who claims to be the Buddha�K Well, I guess if you agree with the Platform Sutra that our true nature is Buddha nature, then you can say every person is in his deepest essence a Buddha. But anytime someone claims to be the forth incarnation of the historical Buddha, I think it is just a fraud. cheers, Garleon ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> In low income neighborhoods, 84% do not own computers. At Network for Good, help bridge the Digital Divide! http://us.click.yahoo.com/hjtSRD/3MnJAA/i1hLAA/S27xlB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Noble Eightfold Path: Right View, Right Intention, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right Concentration, Right Livelihood Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZenForum/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
