Ka Bu Pm Pc 24Teaching Nuns for Profit
Pāli / Sanskrit:Āmisa
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THE DISCOURSE ON TEACHING FOR WORLDLY GAIN (Āmisa)
Background
The Āmisa discourse belongs to the Vinaya Piṭaka, specifically the Pātimokkha section of the Bhikkhunī Vibhaṅga, the discipline for bhikkhunīs. The context of this discourse is connected with issues concerning motivation in teaching within the community of bhikkhunīs. In the Buddha’s time, there were female monastics whose motives were not pure when teaching the Dharma to others: they taught not from the wish to help practitioners attain liberation, but for material benefits or reputation (āmisa).
Āmisa in Theravāda Buddhism refers to worldly gains bound to saṃsāra, including money, food, clothing, lodging, fame, and respect. This discourse therefore teaches that a bhikkhunī should not teach the Dharma for the purpose of obtaining these benefits, but must teach with compassion and with the aim of liberation for the listener.
Main Content
The Āmisa discourse warns bhikkhunīs that if they teach the Dharma only for gain, whether to receive offerings, to be honored, or to be flattered by others, that action violates the spirit of the path of practice. This motivation is regarded as one of the causes by which practice deteriorates and the spiritual life becomes defiled.
The discourse emphasizes that the Dharma is a priceless treasure and cannot be measured by money or worldly fame. When one teaches with a mind of self-interest, a bhikkhunī not only diminishes the quality of the teaching but also thereby diminishes true happiness, namely purity of mind and progress on the path. Conversely, those who teach the Dharma with a pure mind, who truly wish to help others awaken, will receive immeasurable merit.
Practical Meaning
For modern practitioners, the Āmisa discourse carries a profound lesson about examining the motivation for practice. Whenever we perform a wholesome action, whether teaching, doing charity, or propagating the Dharma, we should ask ourselves: “Is my motivation from love and the wish to help others?”
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