Lzh Mg Bi Pm Sk 21Lifted Robe
Pāli / Sanskrit:Ukkhittaka
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COMMENTARY ON THE UKKHITTAKA SUTTA (THE SUTTA OF THE LIFTED ROBE)
Background
The Ukkhittaka Sutta belongs to the Vinaya Piṭaka within the Pāli Canon — the collection of regulations governing the discipline of the Sangha. This is not a doctrinal discourse in the manner of the suttas found in the Sutta Piṭaka, but rather a set of training rules promulgated by the Buddha to govern the communal life of monks and nuns. The Vinaya Piṭaka is divided into several sections, among them the Mahāvagga, the Bhikkhuṇīvagga, and other parts that set forth in detail the proper conduct, the wearing of robes, and other matters of significance in the life of one who has gone forth.
The Ukkhittaka Sutta concerns the situation of lifting or raising the monastic robe in the context of practice. The regulations pertaining to the dress of monks and nuns are by no means a minor matter; they are symbolic of reverence for the Dharma, of self-restraint, and of the cultivation befitting one who has renounced the household life. Every gesture, every detail in the manner of wearing the robe, carries ethical significance.
Principal Content
The Ukkhittaka Sutta centers on the situation in which a monk or nun lifts or tilts the robe — ukkhittaka denoting the form of the robe when raised up, no longer covering the entire body as is customary. The Buddha observed that certain monks and nuns were lifting their robes too high while walking or going about their duties, resulting in excessive exposure, the loss of dignified bearing, and the potential to arouse those who had not taken up the practice.
The Buddha accordingly promulgated a Pātimokkha rule: monks and nuns must not raise the robe so high as to leave the whole body uncovered as it ought to be. To lift the robe and expose a part of the body that should not be exposed constitutes a transgression. This is not a matter of pride or of controlling practitioners, but of self-respect and of reverence toward the Dharma that one is cultivating.
This regulation is likewise connected to a psychological attitude: lifting the robe or exposing the body may give rise to a mind of sensual desire, a mind wishing to impress others, or a mind of conceit. So small an act can become the first step toward those aspects of decline in one's practice.
Practical Significance
Although this sutta speaks of clothing, its deeper lesson lies in the cultivation of mindfulness with regard to each and every action of one's own body.
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