Four ways of preaching
four ways of preaching
[四悉檀] (Jpn shi-shitsudan )
Also, four ways of teaching.
Four ways in which Buddhas expound their teachings, explained in The Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom by Nagarjuna (c. 150-250).
They are:
(1) to teach Buddhism in secular terms, explaining to people that it will fulfill their desires, thus arousing their willingness to take faith;
(2) to teach according to people's respective capacities, thus enabling them to increase their store of good karma;
(3) to help people abandon their illusions and free themselves from the three poisons of greed, anger, and foolishness. This is done by teaching those caught up in greed to recognize the impurity of their attachments, those dominated by anger to practice compassionate acts, and those blinded by the poison of foolishness to perceive the causal law; and
(4) to reveal the ultimate truth directly, causing people to realize it.
Compared to this way of teaching, the first three are regarded as temporary means.
