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depths of the Dharma speak few words of praise. They understand the true wisdom of enlightenment. Such wisdom is profound, sublime,
and marvelous. It transcends all ordinary thoughts and words.
“Bhikkhus, there are countless philosophies, doctrines, and theories in this world. People criticize each other and argue endlessly over
their theories. According to my investigation, there are sixty-two main theories which underlie the thousands of philosophies and religions
current in our world. Looked at from the Way of Enlightenment and Emancipation, all sixty-two of these theories contain errors and create
obstacles.”
The Buddha proceeded to explain the sixty-two theories and expose their errors. He spoke on the eighteen theories concerning the past
—four theories of eternalism, four theories of partial eternalism, four theories on the finitude and infinity of the world, four theories of
endless equivocation, and two theories that claim that causality does not exist. He spoke about the forty-four theories that concern the
future—sixteen that allege the soul lives on after death, eight that say there is no soul after death, eight that posit there is neither a soul that
continues after death nor ceases to continue after death, seven annihilistic theories, and five theories that say that the present is already
Nirvana. After exposing all the errors contained in these theories, the Buddha said, “A good fisherman places his net in the water and
catches all the shrimp and fish he can. As he watches the creatures try to leap out of the net, he tells them, ‘No matter how high you jump,
you will only land in the net again.’ He is correct. The thousands of beliefs flourishing at present can all be found in the net of these sixty-two
theories. Bhikkhus, don’t fall into that bewitching net. You will only waste time and lose your chance to practice the Way of Enlightenment.
Don’t fall into the net of mere speculation.
“Bhikkhus, all these beliefs and doctrines have arisen because people have been led astray by their perceptions and feelings. When
mindfulness is not practiced, it is impossible to see the true nature of perceptions and feelings. When you can penetrate the roots and see
into the true nature of your perceptions and feelings, you will see the impermanent and interdependent nature of all dharmas. You will no
longer be caught in the net of desire, anxiety, and fear, or the net of the sixty-two false theories.”
After the Dharma talk, Venerable Ananda took a walk and focused his attention on recalling every word the Buddha spoke. He thought,
“This is an important sutra. I will call it the Brahmajala Sutra, the Sutra of the Great Net. This net collects all the false theories and
dogmas of this world.”