Lzh Mg Bi Pm Pj 7Conceal Offenses
Pāli / Sanskrit:Vajjappaṭicchādikā
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Sutta on Concealing Offenses (Vajjappaṭicchādikā)
Background
The Sutta on Concealing Offenses (Vajjappaṭicchādikā) is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda tradition, specifically within the Pātimokkha and the detailed regulations of the Bhikkhunīvibhaṅga. It is one of the prohibitions pertaining to the transgressive conduct of monastics.
The historical context of this sutta arises from actual situations within the early Saṅgha community, in which the Buddha and his disciples had to directly confront violations of the Vinaya occurring within the community itself. This sutta was recorded to guide monastics regarding the act of concealing or covering up their own offenses or those of others, particularly grave offenses (āpatti).
Main Content
The Sutta on Concealing Offenses makes clear that deliberately concealing one's own offense or that of another is a reprehensible act within the Saṅgha. Specifically, if a bhikkhu or bhikkhunī commits one of these offenses and then deliberately fails to confess it or conceals the truth, that person incurs an additional offense—namely, the offense of concealing a transgression (vajjappaṭicchāda-āpatti).
The fundamental principle in the Vinaya Piṭaka is transparency and truthfulness. Every monastic is encouraged to confess their offenses before the Saṅgha or before a trustworthy senior monastic, as part of the process of purification and ethical cultivation. Concealment not only harms one's personal purity but also undermines the trust of the monastic community.
The sutta indicates that acts of concealment include: denying the truth, fabricating false accounts to cover up the truth, exploiting the lack of information of others, or obstructing the fair investigation of the Saṅgha. All such acts are regarded as means of concealing offenses and are considered serious ethical violations.
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