Why Study the Sutras

This is a great quote from the book River of Fire, River of Water:

One of the primary functions of Buddhist scriptures [the sutras], thus, is to bring to light the hidden aspects of the reader that is not readily recognized. The repeated reading of scripture, however, sooner or later opens up intimate truths about the reader that have been previously unknown. This sets the stage for knowing as becoming. When one begins to read scriptures in this way, one can also read everyday experiences as instructive and enlightening.

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The Buddhist sutras are a vast collection of scriptures across many generations, all purporting to be words of Shakyamuni Buddha, and cover a wide variety of topics. Some are very short and terse, others are volumes long. It is not possible to read all the sutras, and it’s not expected that one do so.

Instead, a particular Buddhist tradition will center its teachings around a particular sutra or set of sutras.

Some sutras are pretty straightforward and give practical advice about practice and such, while others can be pretty cryptic as they cover deeper subjects that would not be understood by newer students. It’s perfectly fine to read such sutras, but they may seem strange, and their meaning may not be clear. For such sutras, you may want to revisit them later, when you have more experience, and then the meaning will become clearer.

But what Dr Unno says is certainly true, based on personal experience: if you study the sutras, they become a part of you, then in time they reveal wonderful bits of wisdom. The Dharma is one flavor, like rain, but everyone approaches it a bit different according to their circumstances, and thus different sutras resonate at different times.

And of course, nothing beats real world experience.

Namu Shakamuni Butsu