Surely a convention-philosophy conflicting question:
One sad "There's no owner for this Dhamma." Can this be related to the Buddhas words as they are known from the Sublime Canon, or is it told different, or both, or neither?
If there is an owner of the Dhamma, what makes them rightly recognized as such?
[Note: This question is not given for trade, exchange or whatever wordily gain and bondage]
No owner of the Dhamma? If there are owner of the Dhamma, what makes them rightly recognized as such?
There are no owners of the Dhamma. The Dhamma is timeless, impersonal and cannot be owned by anyone. There are practitioners and teachers of the Dhamma.
Furthermore, the Dhamma is discovered. A fully enlightened Buddha discovers the Dhamma and teaches it.
In the Nagara Sutta, the Buddha teaches how he discovered an ancient Path, the Noble Eightfold Path, and by following it he came to experience the cessation of aging and death (conditioned reality).
"... So too, bhikkhus, I saw the ancient path, the ancient road travelled by the Perfectly Enlightened Ones of the past. And what is that ancient path, that ancient road? It is just this Noble Eightfold Path; that is, right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration. I followed that path and by doing so I have directly known aging-and-death, its origin, its cessation,and the way leading to its cessation ..."
-- SN 12.65: The City, p. 603, Bodhi transl.
Bhagava: (the only) one able to give (his own). Only an Araht is real owner of the Dhamma.
Who are the owner of the Dhamma? The Buddha and his Noble disciples, are the owner of the Dhamma, having seen it by themselves, made it their own. The first seven persons are particulary owner.
Faith and Dhamma-followers are those helping the owner to carry.
Those outside the Noble Domain are debters or even thieves, making use of it and it's lable.
On the conventional level the Savaka Sangha of the Buddhas monastic disciples is the owner and carrier. Althought there are many this days who actually steal their heritage for their lifelihood, and monks selling of the heritage, transgressing strongly and heavy in doing so, even when monks give away heavy possession, as the Buddha said, it still belongs to the Sangha.
That is why the wise old never keeped such in there houses but brought it quickly back to a good monastery so that it could benefit many for a long time.
Don't get involved in fencing! Be quick if realizing t9 be in the middle of a plunderer-crowd!
Don't forget "Namo..." if having borrowed for possible deliverance.
"It is in dependence on me as an admirable friend that beings subject to birth have gained release from birth, that beings subject to aging have gained release from aging, that beings subject to death have gained release from death, that beings subject to sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair have gained release from sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair. It is through this line of reasoning that one may know how admirable friendship, admirable companionship, admirable camaraderie is actually the whole of the holy life." the threefold refuge
People are shameless in times of plunderer, but the easy way to act common wrong does not prevent from the effects, and tears will not help once seeing that having act as the greatest thief of ones parents.
