Would a Sotapana give up his life to help another person?

The Teaching of Ajahn Suchart

Question:  Would a Sotapana give up his life to help another person?

Than Ajahn:  I am not sure whether he would do it or not, but I guess it depends on the situation. His goal is more for himself than for other people; his goal is to liberate himself from suffering, he wants to go to nibbana. It depends on the situation whether he really has to do it or not. But basically he knows that he doesn’t need to do it, because he knows that the person is going to die anyway, right? So, he’d think, ‘Why should I sacrifice my life for you? You will die anyway, right? 

I have to keep my life because I still need to work, I need to practice to get to nibbāna.’ So, I don’t think he will sacrifice his life for other people.

"Dhamma in English, Dec 15, 2020."

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Question:  Would a Theravada Buddhist sacrifice his life to save another person’s life out of love and compassion?

Than Ajahn:  It depends on that individual. The person doesn’t have to be a Buddhist.

If he loves someone bad enough and is willing to give up his own life, then he would do it. So, it doesn’t have anything to do with Buddhism.

Question:  For example, would a Buddhist save a child drowning in a river while risking his own life?

Sometimes people say that so-called Mahayana Buddhism has more compassion, whereas the Theravada school is more selfish, and only concerns with his own escape from saṁsāra. Is this a misunderstanding?

Than Ajahn:  Yes, because in Theravada, we use reasons.

We use rationality more than our emotions. Why give up your life to save someone else’s life when you have to use your own life to save your own life, to salvage yourself from saṁsāra?

If you give up your life, then you miss a great opportunity to save yourself from saṁsāra.

The goal of Theravada Buddhism is to save ourselves first before we save other people. You might call this selfish but it’s the truth. If you cannot save yourself, how could you save other people?

If the Buddha did not save himself first, how could he save so many of us now? The Buddha had to become enlightened first then he could teach other people to become enlightened. If he was not enlightened and he kept teaching people, he would not be able to teach others to become enlighten because he himself had not become enlightened yet.

Question:  The very fact that Ajahn is teaching others implies compassion.

Than Ajahn:  Yes, it’s compassion with rationality. Before I started teaching, I had spent all my time teaching myself first. Once I've finished teaching myself, then I could devote the rest of my time teaching other people. If I could not teach myself first, how could I teach other people?

“Dhamma in English, Jan 30, 2021.”

By Ajahn Suchart Abhijāto
www.phrasuchart.com

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