Ancient Buddhist Study System

There are three study types in alagaddūpama sutta.

The pali and it's sequence, of that sutta, same to kīṭāgirisutta, that I re-translated in this answer.

By kīṭāgirisutta, you must choose a right teacher, that I answered in this answer.

Also, there is a layman-beginner course, in this answer, too. But that course is what the skillful teacher, in this answer, will teach you, so you shouldn't do it yourself alone. Why? Because I have doing it for 10 years, but I still not even achieve appanā-jhānā. In comparison, my current teacher from pa-auk, who just started to study buddhism since 6 years ago. However, he is one of pa-auk teacher now, because he study buddhism from a professional teachers who have all qualities in this answer, from pa-auk.

Right way will give you a shortcut way.

taṇhā specify gender, then kamma make it.

You need to recite paṭiccasamuppāda-pāli & ariyasacca-pāli. Everything perfectly and completely taught in tipitaka.
Rebirth (jāti, upattibhava) depend on avijjā & taṇhā (upādāna) & kamma (3 saṅkhāra, kammabhava).
3 taṇhā = kāmataṇhā, bhavataṇhā, vibhavataṇhā (sacca-pabba).
Whatever is good kāma/bhava/vibhava (piyarupaṃ, sātarūpaṃ) such as beautiful nun, is what is attached by kāmataṇhā/bhavataṇhā/vibhavataṇhā such as you love to sense about nun/you love to be a nun/you love to leave your male faculties (purisindriya).
Bhavataṇhā cause of kamma, so the example cases are:

1. Your love (kāmataṇhā) to sense (kammabhava) about nun, will cause a male rebirth.
2. Your love (bhavataṇhā) to be (upattibhava) a nun, will cause a female rebirth.
3. you love (vibhavataṇhā) to leave (upattibhava that cause of the other difference kind of upattibhava) your male faculties, will cause a female rebirth, that is difference kind of male rebirth.

You can receive bad effects in every gender, so tipitaka and commentary never specify the gender as an effects of kamma, except when the gender is a very significant cause of good/bad effects, such as purisindriya/itthindriya. For the example, a woman must release blood every month, so a regular woman often week more than a regular man, in physical body. So in regular case, female rebirth is suffering more than male rebirth.
However, that example doesn't mean that tipitaka of commentary specify the gender as an effects of kamma. That example is just an effect of kamma-bhava that depend on taṇhā. So, if male in the example has an enough strong taṇhā, he will not rebirth as a woman, but he can rebirth as a bloody man instead.

How to find the right Dhamma teacher

I tried to follow everything from the nissayamuccaka-course which I described in this answer, when I was still in a monk-hood by myself; and I had a low-quality teacher for about five years; before I found a perfect teacher from pa-auk forest monastery (this monastery also published other English-language Dharma articles here) who have all of the qualities listed below, that were specified in the tipitaka and commentary.
I met the pa-auk teacher too late, so I am being a layman now. However, it was my previous effort and experience which gave me the confidence to choose pa-auk to be my kammaṭṭhāna teacher.
The qualities of a teacher, and the operating procedure to choose and to apply with the teacher, have been briefly described in Chapter 4 of the Path of Purification.
Furthermore, in my opinion, the significant quality of a teacher is paṭisambhidā: because all ariya must have paṭisambhidā, at least in his kammaṭṭhāna. So he should have these qualities:

1. His teacher descent, he must derived from a tipitaka memorizer (buddha-sāvaka, suta-buddha; V.N. Mahāvagga Nissayamuccnakathā).
2. His enlightenment, he must achieved at least upacāra-samādhi and balava-vipassanā (4 paṭisambhidā; V.N. Mahāvagga Nissayamuccnakathā).
3. His tipitaka memory, he must graduated through at least nissayamuccaka-course (V.N. Pācittiyakaṇḍa Ovādakasikkhāpada's commentary).
4. His tipitaka understanding, he must not cut tipitaka off or make tipitaka conflict each other. Because tipitaka was memorized by single commentary teacher group at 1st saṅgāyanā, so it must be a single package that compatibility with each other (pro in tipitaka relation, dhamma-paṭisambhida&attha-paṭisambhidā).
5. His pali skill, he must understand pali in advance (nirutti-paṭisambhidā).
6. He must be a genius one (paṭibhāna-paṭisambhidā).

Furthermore, in tipitaka and commentary tradition, since mahākhandhaka of vinaya mahāvagga is completed authored by upāli in 1st saṇgāyanā, all layman's teachers must have all of these qualities, that concluded by upāli in bhikkhunovādakasikkhāpada's commentary (which I translate below as follows):

Qualities of nissayamuccaka-bhikkhu (teaching lay people)

1. Proficient to recite pāṭimokkha-pāli and to understand it's commentary.
2. Proficient to recite and to understand 4 bhāṇavāra (~1,000 syllable) of sutta and their commentary, to teach laymen on uposatha day.
3. Proficient to recite and to understand sutta for bhikkhu's life such as andhakavindasutta, mahālahulovādasutta, ambaṭṭhasutta, etc.
4. Proficient to recite and to understand sutta for teaching in 3 chances: banquet for saṅgha by layman (nidhikaṇdasutta), funeral ceremony (tirokuṭṭasutta), and auspicious ceremony (maṅgalasutta).
5. Enough understand to judge/to decide about saṇgha's ceremony such as uposatha, pavāraṇā, etc.
6. Proficient to recite and to understand his kammaṭṭhānā throughout the nibbāna-course.
7. 5 years experience in monk hood as a monk.

Qualities of bhikkuparisūpaṭṭhāpaka-bhikkhu (teaching bikkhus)
If above layman's teachers want to teach bhikkhus (ūpajjhā-ācāriya, nissaya-ācāriya), they must increase their skill level to all of the following qualities.
These are for abhivinaya teaching:

1. Proficient to recite mahāvibhagha and bhikkhunivibhaṅga (first 3 books of thai 45 books pali-tipitaka) of vinaya-pitaka-pali. At least, he can relay with the other 3 bhikkhu. Proficient to understand it's commentary, too.
2. Proficient to recite all saṇgha's ceremony in vinaya-pitaka mahāvagga and julavagga.
3. Proficient to recite 14 vatta in vattakhandhaka.

These are for abhidhamma (kammaṭṭhāna) teaching:

4. Proficient to recite one of this suttanta-pali: mūlapaṇṇassa (1st/3 parts of M.N.) for student in M.N. faculty, mahāvagga (2nd/3 parts of D.N.) for student in D.N. faculty, sagāthavagga+nidānavagga+khandhavāravagga of S.N. or mahāvagga of S.N. for student in S.N. faculty, before half of A.N. or after half of A.N. or ekakanipāta+dukanipāta of A.N. for student in A.N. faculty, jātaka+commentary (because kammaṭṭhāna was described in commentary) for student in jātaka faculty.

Qualities of bhikkunovdaka-bhikkhu (teaching bhikkunīs)
If above layman's teachers want to teach bhikkhunī, they must increase their skill level to all of these qualities:

1. Proficient to recite whole tipitaka-pali and commentary-pali. Or at least, he still must recite whole tipitaka, but he can recite just one commentary of suttanta, first 4 parts of commentary of 7 parts of abhidhamma. However, vinaya-commentary is what he must recite it all.

Reference: tipitaka and commentary of vinaya pācittiyakaṇḍa bhikkhunovādakasikkhāpada and vinaya mahāvagga mahākhandhaka.

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(I still find it difficult to reference the tipitaka and commentary using english resources: there's no translation, very long pages, confused categories, cutting some parts off the tipitaka, cutting commentary off from pali canon, etc.)

Related topic: https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/questions/3163/should-lay-buddhists-teach-the-dhamma

Anicca, dukkha Vs Object of insight meditation Vs Anatta Vs Paññatti

Anicca, dukkha =whole 5 aggregates, both lokiya and lokuttara aggregates. Because they depend on many causes to arise.
Object of insight meditation=just 5 lokiya aggregate, except tanha. Because lokuttara aggregates can't not be attached by tanha, so practitioner must doesn't make vipassana on lokuttara. Another, tanha is samudayasacca, so practitioner must make tanha finish at all, not just make vipassana on tanha.
Anatta=everything and every objects=whole 5 aggregates, nibbana, and paññatti.
Paññatti=imagination (it is not reality, like a dream, never arise, no cause). Aatta (self) is one kind of paññatti, too.

See: abhidhammatthasangaha in 1st and 8th chapter.

What are the 5 cords of sensual pleasures?

The five kāmaguṇa are:

1. color
2. sound
3. smell
4. flavor
5. phoṭṭhabba (=temperature, matter, and vayo).

They tie the kāma-person to live in kāma-bhava.
kāma means "living in kāma loka"; and guṇa means "a binder".
So, the five kāmaguṇa are things that kāma-taṇha (addicting to drug), and bhava-taṇha (addicting to becoming, born to be, future birth).
See the first part of the mahadukkhakkhandhasutta for more information:

Now what, monks, is the allure of sensuality? These five strings of sensuality. Which five? Forms cognizable via the eye — agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, fostering desire, enticing. Sounds cognizable via the ear... Aromas cognizable via the nose... Flavors cognizable via the tongue... Tactile sensations cognizable via the body — agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, fostering desire, enticing. Now whatever pleasure or joy arises in dependence on these five strands of sensuality, that is the allure of sensuality.

Receive 6 profits by deny extreme ways and meditate middle way

1. Anti-rebirthist = sassatadiṭṭhi = one extreme.
2. Rebirth-lover = ucchedadiṭṭhi = another extreme.
3. Profit-follower = eightfold path = middle way.

1st and 2nd see brahmajālasutta.
3rd see dhammacakkappavaḍḍhanasutta. (I am in plan to re-translate this sutta, but I can't not done it now. So if something wrong, I am sorry. I can't not check it deeply now, because my english still not good enough.)

"There are these two extremes that are not to be indulged in by one who has gone forth. Which two? That which is devoted to sensual pleasure with reference to sensual objects: base, vulgar, common, ignoble, unprofitable; and that which is devoted to self-affliction: painful, ignoble, unprofitable. Avoiding both of these extremes, the middle way realized by the Tathagata — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding.
"And what is the middle way realized by the Tathagata that — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding? Precisely this Noble Eightfold Path: right view, right contemplate, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration. This is the middle way realized by the Tathagata that — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding.

What is profit?

6 profits: self profit, the others' profit, public's profit (common interest), this life's profit, next life's profit, and nibbāna-profit. (pali for search: attattha, parattha, attaparattha, ditthadhammika, samparāyika, and paramattha.)
Self profit, the others' profit, and public's profit (common interest) are done together by sati.

"Because of what I have said here, monks, you should train yourselves such that the gifts of those whose requisites we use — the robes, alms-bowl, chair, bed, and medicine as a support when sick — will have great fruits, great merits [for the people who give them], and our going forth will not be in vain, will be fruitful, will have a result. Thus should you train yourselves, thoroughly seeing that for your own benefit, monks, it is right to strive with heedfulness; thoroughly seeing that for the benefit of others, monks, it is right to strive with heedfulness; and thoroughly seeing that for the benefit of both, monks, it is right to strive with heedfulness."

This life's profit and next life's profit are done together by sati (appamāda). So, person who do just this life's profit or next life profit is pamāda person. see:
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/sn/sn03/sn03.017.than.html
Nibbāna profit can be accessed by practitioner after he perfect finished to meditate magga. And that magga can start to meditate after sīla is done.

SN 45.149 Just as, bhikkhus, whatever actions are to be performed with strength are all performed on dependence on the earth, supported by the earth; in the same way, bhikkhus, it is on dependence on virtue, supported by virtue, that a bhikkhu develops the noble eightfold path (magga), that he cultivates the noble eightfold path.

Above sīla give this life's profit and next life. See (1st-4th are this life's profit, 5th is next life's profit):

Mahāparinibbānasutta 24. "Five blessings, householders, accrue to the righteous man through his practice of virtue: great increase of wealth through his diligence; a favorable reputation; a confident deportment, without timidity, in every society, be it that of nobles, brahmans, householders, or ascetics; a serene death; and, at the breaking up of the body after death, rebirth in a happy state, in a heavenly world."

So, anti-rebirthist & rebirth-lover are pamādo (person who has not meditating mindfulness).
That is one of many reasons that why I, who have never seen any ghost or any spirit, am not deny next life.

"why" does the arising of the four paths endure for only one mind-moment, as in, how is this explained to occur?

To answer this topic: https://dhammawheel.com/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=30159&p=437230#p437230

Vipassanā (insight meditation) is magga (path), too. Because magga-bhāvanā (medittion/development) is sīla,samādhi, and bhāvanā. So, magga is not just one moment.

But one mind moment is ariya's comments about their enlightened moment. You can see in ādittapariyāya sutta, too.

"He grows disenchanted with the intellect, disenchanted with ideas, disenchanted with consciousness at the intellect, disenchanted with contact at the intellect. And whatever there is that arises in dependence on contact at the intellect, experienced as pleasure, pain or neither-pleasure-nor-pain: He grows disenchanted with that too. Disenchanted, he becomes dispassionate (virajjati[=no rāga=notaṇhā]/magga). Through dispassion, he is fully released (=vimutti[ta-suffix=past verb]/phala). With full release, there is the knowledge, 'Fully released ' (vimuttamīti ñāṇam hoti/paccavekkhṇañāṇaṃ). He discerns that 'Birth is ended, the holy life fulfilled, the task done. There is nothing further for this world.'"
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka ... .than.html

Practitioner practices lokiya-magga without any break to be an expert. So after his magga complete perfectly, practitioner, who become to be ariya (professor), must content ariya-skill in every moment of him. every thinking of him must has perfect sīla, perfect samādhi, and perfect paññā. However, we can destroy kilesa just one time per enlighten step (4 ariya). So magga can arise to destroy kilesa just one time per path. After that no that kilesa anymore. So magga have not arise anymore, too, because of nothing to do--no kilesa to destroy.

So, in sangaha wrote: https://ballwarapol.github.io/sangaha/c ... tm?#10-215

For the other references, (however I think that sutta that I quoted above is clear because all references wrote follow to above sutta):
~950th buddhist era:See 2 last chapters of visuddhimagga, especially sotāpannapuggalakathā in purification by Knowledge and Vision:
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/auth ... on2011.pdf

~230th buddhist era:
parihānikatha in kathavatthu-abhidhamma, because if kilesa of arahanta can arise again, so his magga can arise again, too, to destroy that rebirth kilesa.

Many references appear in commentary, too. But above reference is the most perfect.

What is required to achieve Nirvana in Buddhism? [kītāgirisutta]

Modified from http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.070.than.html

"Monks, I do not say that the attainment of gnosis is all at once. Rather, the attainment of gnosis is after respectively training, respectively action, respectively practice. And how is there the attainment of gnosis after respectively training, respectively action, respectively practice?

1. There is the case where, when conviction has arisen, one visits [a teacher].
2. Having visited, one request to be his attendant (see vinaya mahāvagga mahākhandhaka, and CH. III TAKING A MEDITATION SUBJECT of Visuddhimagga)
3. Having been attendant, one listen carefully.
4. Having listened carefully, one hears the Dhamma.
5. Having heard the Dhamma, one memorizes it (dhatā=sutadharo).
6. Having remembered by memorizing, one ponders the meaning of the teachings.
7. Having pondered the meaning, one comes to an agreement through pondering the teachings.
8. There being an agreement through pondering the teachings, wish-to-do arises.
9. When wishing-to-do has arisen, one exerts.
10. When one exerted (an effort), one meditates insight.
11. Having meditated insight, one dedicates his life.
12. Having dedicated his life, one realizes with the mind (discernment's body) the ultimate truth and, having penetrated, enlightened, it with discernment, sees it.

"Now, monks, there hasn't been that conviction, there hasn't been that visiting, there hasn't been that attending ... that listening carefully ... that hearing of the Dhamma ... that memorizing ... that penetration of the meaning of the teachings ... that agreement through pondering the teachings ... that wishing-to-do ... that effort ... that meditating insight ... that dedicating his life. You have lost the way, monks. You have gone the wrong way, monks. How far have you strayed, foolish men (moghapurisa), from this Dhamma & Discipline!

If there is no Self , what Self is there to be affected by the karma which non-Self now performs?

Self in Tipitaka is a general word, It means a wrong view just in no causes/wrong causes context.

Attā (self) can found in both wrong view ('eso me attā'ti), and right view (attāti attano nātho) context.
Context is the definition of the self-wrong view and self-right view.

So by the wrong view, self, manpower self, affects the other self, or is affected by the other self.

But by the right view, self, no manpower and various causes & effects, affect the other self, no manpower, and various causes & effects, or is affected by the other self, no manpower and various causes & effects.

Kamma is just one of many causes of effect.

Effect need more than one causes to arises.

So, perfect manpower self in only one person is not noble truth.

the difference between aggregate existent, nibbāna existent, and nonexistent (paññatti)

the difference between aggregate existent, nibbāna existent, and nonexistent (paññatti):

Nibbāna has no cause, because nibbāna never arise (every aggregate arisen by causes). Nibbāna is reality, existent, because nibbāna is the end of suffering (5 aggregates), the opposite side of suffering.

But paññatti, such as space, is not reality, not existent, although we can know it. Because paññatti has not any cause, too. And mainly, it is neither included in aggregate existent, nor included in nibbāna existent. It is not arises by causes like aggregate, and not opposite side of suffering like nibbāna. Paññatti is imagination that is imagined by consciousness. So we can imagine paññatti follow to aggregate, nibbāna, paññatti, or not follow to anything (=wrong view). That magination of consciousness never arise, but aggregate can arise even though without imagine. We can not called "is made by" because paññatti never is made by causes. It is just imagination.

So, arahanta-phalasamāpatti is difference of paññatti, because arahanta-phalasamāpatti completely abadon evey akusala, before arahanta can realise nibbāna. But everyone can realise, imagine, paññatti.

This reply may look like general sutta that described about nibbāna, because this topic is the deepest topic in buddhism. So it is very hard to describe.

The great commentary

At buddha generation, oral reciting&memorizing was the only one way to learn buddha's teaching. So this is the main cause to have commentary at that buddha generation.

Why?

Because Buddha taught each sutta for just students in front of him. So, when bh. ānanda, bh. sāriputta, and bh. upāli had learned oral teaching from buddha, then after buddha finished sutta, they must asked about state, situation, and meaning of each word in that sutta. This was called the great dhamma&vinaya commentary.

There are very less people in tipitaka who appear to be the most important commentators at buddha generation (A.N. Ekapuggala) : budhha, sāriputta (as dhamma teacher), upāli (as vinaya teacher). The others always listen&learned&asked from those important teachers.

The special teaching, about vinaya from buddha to upāli, were appear with upāli literature style in sikkhāpada-nidāna, sikkhāpada-vibhaṅga, parivāra, and the great vinaya commentary (vanished).

The special teaching, about dhamma from buddha to sāriputta, were appear with sāriputta literature style in abhidhamma-pitaka, K.N.Niddesa, K.N. Paṭisambhidāmagga, K.N. Buddhavaṃsa, K.N. Cariyāpitaka, and the great vinaya commentary (vanished).

Tipitaka strongly keep in pali language because of memorizing vinaya rule that force bhikkhu to memorize tipitaka before live alone or teach others.

But the great commentary didn't include in that vinaya rule, so when the time gone by, commentary loose pali form.

However, the great commentary translated to siṅhala after 3rd saṅgāyanā and translated back again (with extended comment from siṅhala-teachers) by buddhaghosa and many bhikkhus at 10th buddhist century.