Buddhist Romanticism

meaning of this?’ They make open what isn’t open, make plain what isn’t
plain, dispel doubt on its various doubtful points.”
He taught people in this way so that they could clearly understand what
they were supposed to do. To treat such teachings as poetry encourages a
hazier notion of the Dhamma, and deprives the “supposed to do” of much
of its force. Passages that challenge the reader’s habits and views can more
easily be dismissed—and important lessons are lost.
At the same time, treating the Buddha’s words as poetry encourages a
certain looseness in quoting and translating them. Many Buddhist
Romantic writers exhibit this looseness—as in the above quote citing the
Buddha to the effect that precepts are not necessary for a person established
in awareness, something he never said. In treating the Buddha’s words
loosely, these writers harm both the Buddha, by slandering him, and the
reader, by denying him or her the chance to benefit from the Buddha’s
precise experience in the path and skill in pointing out how to practice it.
b) Because the Buddha was teaching a particular path of action, the
Romantic reasons for refusing to grant him authority do not apply. It’s true
that no one person can have the last word on universal Oneness, but it is
possible for one person to have developed full expertise in a skill—and in
some cases, to develop an expertise on which no one else can improve.
Seeing the Buddha’s teachings in this light enables us to understand the
nature of his authority as presented in the Pāli suttas. He speaks, not with
the authority of a creator, but with the authority of an expert. Only in the
disciplinary rules in the Vinaya does he assume the added authority of a
lawgiver. In the suttas, he calls himself a doctor; a trainer; an admirable,
experienced friend who has mastered a specific skill: putting an end to
suffering. He provides explicit recommendations on how to act, speak, and
think to bring about that result; instructions on how to develop qualities of
mind that allow you to assess your actions accurately; and questions to ask
yourself in measuring your progress along the way.
As for the possible harm that might come from giving the Buddha
authority in these areas, Buddhist Romantics who describe the dangers of
following a particular Buddhist teaching usually deal in caricatures. For
instance, one teacher warns of the dangers of wanting to follow a path that
leads to a transcendent, once-and-for-all goal as follows:
“The linear path holds up an idealistic vision of the perfected
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