Language opens doors

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SilenceMonkey
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Joined: Mon Jul 23, 2018 9:54 am

Language opens doors

Post by SilenceMonkey »

I was told by a number of practitioners that learning language will open many doors for you. It was my personal mythology for years, and I found it to be true in so many ways.

I’m wondering... for those of you who have learned language, what kind of doors has it opened for you in your journey to seek the Dharma?
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明安 Myoan
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Re: Language opens doors

Post by 明安 Myoan »

I learned French in high school and have kept it up as best I could. I also speak Esperanto.
Aside from the general benefits of learning a foreign language, some have been Dharma specific.

I translated the Shorter Sutra on Amitayus into Esperanto, as well as some shorter writings by Honen Shonin and a few other Pure Land teachers. I worked on a Vikipedio article or two about Pure Land Buddhism, also.

One thing translation does is you begin to explore and understand the meanings of terms and ideas, how the nuances can or can't be expressed in the target language.

For instance, the term "Threefold Devotional Heart" took me some time to think over, since "heart" has very many contexts in English. And "devotional" in what way? "Threefold" how, as in tripled or divided into three?

So rearranging ideas and images into a second language is a good way to spend more time with those ideas and images. And do a bit of research reading.

Likewise, I've started reading the Three Pure Land Sutras and Honen's Senchakushu in French.
In some ways, it's like reading them for the first time. They have a certain freshness. And the word choices of the translators can themselves be surprising or helpful on occasion.

A fun bonus has been this French edition of the Senchakushu has a very interesting foreword, and footnotes with info and references I've never seen before.

I'm also trying to learn Japanese, so that I can engage with my Japanese teacher and Pure Land school more directly.
There was a long conversation in Japanese at an online event I attended recently. I wanted to understand what the senseis were saying :smile:
Japanese so far is proving a lot more effortful than French or Esperanto. I think it'll take me a long time.
Namu Amida Butsu
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