Lzh Mg Bi Pm Sk 29Not Noisy (2nd)

Sutta on Not Making Noise (Second Time)

Background

The Dutiyaappasadda Sutta is found in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Pāli Canon, representing the Theravāda Buddhist tradition. The Vinaya Piṭaka is a collection of training rules for monks and nuns — those who have gone forth into homelessness following the Buddha. Within it, discourses relating to conduct and daily habits are recorded in detail in order to help those who have renounced the world to maintain purity of body, speech, and mind.

This sutta belongs to the category of regulations concerning proper behavior within the monastery, particularly with regard to maintaining stillness and respecting shared space. The name "Not Making Noise (Second Time)" suggests that this is the second occasion on which the Buddha or the elders addressed this matter, perhaps with different details or circumstances from the first.

Principal Content

In the context of the Theravāda Vinaya, maintaining silence and stillness is an essential condition for the practice of samādhi (concentration) and vipassanā (insight). The Dutiyaappasadda Sutta emphasizes that monks and nuns should not create noisy disturbances within the monastery, especially during rest periods or at times set aside for formal practice.

Specific behaviors such as knocking loudly on doors, speaking in raised voices, or engaging in activities that produce noise are all considered violations of basic ethical standards. This is so not only for practical reasons — so as not to disturb others — but also because such behavior reflects upon one's spirit of practice: heedfulness (appamāda), loving-kindness (mettā), and compassion toward all those who dwell nearby.

By preserving stillness, monastics enact a form of meditation within the very fabric of their daily lives. This is a single note within the greater symphony of the Vinaya — a comprehensive system of training designed to discipline mind and conduct in order to lead one toward liberation (nirvāṇa).

Practical Significance

Although it is a rule established more than two thousand years ago, this sutta continues to carry profound meaning for contemporary Buddhist monastics and even for lay practitioners who wish to cultivate the path.