Actors go to Hell?

[chownah]

From a doctrinal Buddhist standpoint, there are only three actions that guarantee a rebirth in hell: killing one's parents, killing an arahant, and injuring the Buddha.

Ok then....being an actor does not QUARANTEE that you will go to hell......but then being a killer does not guarantee it either....I guess....don't know for sure......
chownah

I think those 3 most evil actions waterchan listed guarantee a trip to hell in the next life. But if one doesn't do such things, then the next life's destination is less clear. What is clear is that doing evil things does sow the seeds for poor destinations in some future life, just not necessarily the next one.

6. "Ananda, there are four kinds of persons existing in the world. What four?

(i) "Here some person kills living beings, takes what is not given, misconducts himself in sexual desires, speaks falsehood, speaks maliciously, speaks harshly, gossips, is covetous, is ill-willed, and has wrong view.[4] On the dissolution of the body, after death, he reappears in the states of deprivation, in an unhappy destination, in perdition, in hell.

(ii) "But here some person kills living beings... and has wrong view. On the dissolution of the body, after death, he reappears in a happy destination, in the heavenly world.

(iii) "Here some person abstains from killing living beings, from taking what is not given, from misconduct in sexual desires, from false speech, from malicious speech, from harsh speech, from gossip, he is not covetous, is not ill-willed, and has right view.[5] On the dissolution of the body, after death, he reappears in a happy destination, in the heavenly world".

(iv) "But here some person abstains from killing living beings... and has right view. On the dissolution of the body, after death, he reappears in the states of deprivation, in an unhappy destination, in perdition, in hell.

You have presented only the very beginning part of this teaching. I think that considering this part in isolation might give a false view of what is being taught. The explanation of this part is contained in the following passages which are not included here. When I read the rest of the sutta it seems to me that your view on how the kamma plays our is incorrect. It seems to me that the Buddha's exposition on kamma does not specifically say that hell is the destination but only that "he will feel the result of that here and now, or in his next rebirth, or in some subsequent existence."
chownah

[Mkoll]

You have presented only the very beginning part of this teaching. I think that considering this part in isolation might give a false view of what is being taught. The explanation of this part is contained in the following passages which are not included here. When I read the rest of the sutta it seems to me that your view on how the kamma plays our is incorrect. It seems to me that the Buddha's exposition on kamma does not specifically say that hell is the destination but only that "he will feel the result of that here and now, or in his next rebirth, or in some subsequent existence."
chownah

What about my explanation is incorrect?

EDIT: I use the word "explanation" because you're jumping to conclusions if you think you know my view of kamma based on reading three sentences I wrote about it.

[chownah]

Results might be felt in the here and now.
chownah

[Mkoll]

Results might be felt in the here and now.
chownah

I never said anything to the contrary. Again, I don't get what you're on about. Should I be sorry that I didn't write a full exegesis on kamma in three sentences?

When you take a look at the subject of this thread, maybe you'll see that my explanation makes sense in the context of what we're talking about. Or maybe not, I don't know.

[Modus.Ponens]

I'm not sure of what you're trying to say.

Anyway, I have strong faith in the triple gem. That doesn't mean I have strong faith in texts that are meant to represent teachings that were heard 450 years before they were written down. Such texts have been around for 2050 years. Since we've seen what happened to Milindapaña in the Burmese canon, for no valid reason, what makes me sure that some politician with power wouldn't like to put comedians in order? Authority has never dealt well with comedy.

I was trying to help people to free from holding wrong view, i.e. the view that actors go to hell, which comes from misunderstanding of the sutta. So far there are a few people who didn't misunderstand the sutta: Jechbi, robertk, mikenz66.

I was referring to the sutta in question, i.e. Talaputa Sutta, SN 42.2, a sutta from Samyutta Nikaya. I didn't mean to say ALL suttas including commentaries. I personally believe only in four main Nikayas, i.e. DN, MN, SN, AN, and Milindapana is not part of them. (btw that's my personal belief and I don't expect anyone to follow or agree with)
clw_uk questioned the authenticity of a sutta from a most regarded authentic sutta collection. In that case, the authenticity of such sutta depends on the one's conviction in triple gems.

Thank you for clarifying.

[chownah]

Results might be felt in the here and now.
chownah

I never said anything to the contrary. Again, I don't get what you're on about. Should I be sorry that I didn't write a full exegesis on kamma in three sentences?

When you take a look at the subject of this thread, maybe you'll see that my explanation makes sense in the context of what we're talking about. Or maybe not, I don't know.

I thought you were saying that evil deeds invariably create results in future lives.......whereas the sutta indicates that they may come to fruition in the present life.
Where I come from to say that someone is "on about" as you have used it is a mild rebuke. Is this your intent?
You ask if you should be sorry. Do you think I am trying to make you feel sorry?
Are you upset with me?
chownah

[Bhikkhu Pesala]

From other sources, it seems that those who are born in the four lower realms are many, while those born in the fortunate human or celestial realms are few. I think the Talaputa Sutta is authentic, and I see no reason to suppose that encouraging greed, hatred, and delusion in others would be anything other than unwholesome kamma. It is hard to escape from samsāra, and even reading Dhamma books or discussing the Dhamma on forums doesn't lead to nibbāna. All too often, discussing the Dhamma seems to lead to arguments, wrong speech, defending wrong views, and other unwholesome kamma, which might also lead to hell (q.v. the Apannaka Sutta).

The Way Down to Hell is Easy

“The way down to Hell is easy.
The gates of black Dis¹ stand open night and day.
But to retrace one’s steps and escape to the upper air —
that is toil, that is labour.” (Virgil, the Aeneid)¹

¹ Black Dis is the Guardian of Hell. (Virgil, the Aeneid, Penguin Hutchinson Reference)

[DNS]

I think the Talaputa Sutta is authentic, and I see no reason to suppose that encouraging greed, hatred, and delusion in others would be anything other than unwholesome kamma.

Hi Ven.,

What about actors who do not encourage greed, hatred, and delusion in others? For example, an actor in a wholesome movie, showing the fruits of wholesome practices or an actor in a movie about the life of Buddha, etc.

[santa100]

Conversation with Gagan Malik (actor who played the Prince in "Sri Siddhartha Gautama")

[Mkoll]

Results might be felt in the here and now.
chownah

I never said anything to the contrary. Again, I don't get what you're on about. Should I be sorry that I didn't write a full exegesis on kamma in three sentences?

When you take a look at the subject of this thread, maybe you'll see that my explanation makes sense in the context of what we're talking about. Or maybe not, I don't know.

I thought you were saying that evil deeds invariably create results in future lives.......whereas the sutta indicates that they may come to fruition in the present life.
Where I come from to say that someone is "on about" as you have used it is a mild rebuke. Is this your intent?
You ask if you should be sorry. Do you think I am trying to make you feel sorry?
Are you upset with me?
chownah

Yes, no, and no.

Again, this thread is about actors going to hell, i.e. kamma and future lives. That's what we're talking about.

It's like we're talking about spreadsheets and I say one can use a computer to make spreadsheets. Then you start arguing about how computers can make spreadsheets and documents. That's true, but we're not talking about documents. We're talking about spreadsheets.

[Ananda Thera]

Only the five major crimes guarantee a rebirth to hell in the immediate next life. Other actions produce seeds for an unfavorable rebirth in the future. It all depends on ones kamma. This can be very complicated to explain here. It also depends on ones last moments before dying. Even an aggressive person can be reborn as a human or deva if he has complete pleasant thoughts before death. One of the countless reasons that make unskillful people more likely to be reborn in an unfavorable realm is that their habitual kamma may cause them to act or think like the way they lived and create some unpleasant moments before death. For example, a butcher may remember the cries of innocent animals and the killing, a housewife may recall her experiences with children and her quarrels with her husband, etc. Before death, the kamma that is likely or will determine the rebirth in the next life will most often manifest as an image, symbol, or memory. Also, when a rebirth determining kamma has appeared before death, an obstructive kamma, which itself cannot control the rebirth of a being can come in and obstruct the functioning of the original rebirth determining kamma. For example, if a kamma is to bring one to be reborn to hell, a good obstructive kamma from the past may hinder its functions and make one avoid the fate of hell and make him be reborn in the animal realm instead.

As for the actors going to hell idea, I want to remark that the Buddha said this around 2500 years ago, their culture is different from ours. Indeed, there are good actors and insane ones who just care about fame and beauty. Given the fact that more people get reborn in the four realms of woe than the blissful realms, and that human and deva rebirths are rare, we can just take a wild guess about the destiny of most actors, especially those in America, based on their lifestyle. But as I said, kamma and rebirth can be very complicated, and we never know for sure.


With Metta

[Rakkhita]

Actors and actresses who act on the basis of true events will not fall into hell if they act on the basis of true events and create a sense of liberation in the mind of the audience and lead the mind of the audience towards the path of liberation from suffering. For example, if one acts according to the Buddha's teachings, he will not end up in hell. But an actor-actress does not only do Buddha movies, she also does many other dramas or movies based on common fabricated lies and laughs, jokes, exaggerated falsehoods to carry on her life. So if the actor does only one true movie and then acts in a hundred fake movies then he must go to hell.

[justindesilva]

Actors and actresses who act on the basis of true events will not fall into hell if they act on the basis of true events and create a sense of liberation in the mind of the audience and lead the mind of the audience towards the path of liberation from suffering. For example, if one acts according to the Buddha's teachings, he will not end up in hell. But an actor-actress does not only do Buddha movies, she also does many other dramas or movies based on common fabricated lies and laughs, jokes, exaggerated falsehoods to carry on her life. So if the actor does only one true movie and then acts in a hundred fake movies then he must go to hell.

Let me highlight what is on this post
Talaputa sutta SN 42.2 addressed to a chief actor by lord budda that acting encourages others to be heedless and averted , while it leads the actor to hell.
Not commenting more , good friends may download and read the Talaputa sutta .SN 42.2
With metta .