Lzh Mg Bu Pm Np 18Money
Pāli / Sanskrit:Rūpiya
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COMMENTARY ON THE MONEY SUTTA (Rūpiya Sutta)
Background
The Money Sutta is part of the Vinaya Piṭaka, found specifically within the regulations governing the management of material possessions by monks and nuns. In the Theravāda tradition, the Vinaya Piṭaka is not merely a code of restrictions but also an instrument for mental training, helping practitioners to skillfully cultivate restraint of the faculties (indriya saṃvara).
The Buddha promulgated these rules upon recognizing the habitual tendencies and faults of his disciples. Each regulation has a specific reason, reflecting the Blessed One's wisdom in guiding practitioners step by step along the path of purity. The Money Sutta addresses the matter of money and material possessions—an important topic concerning ethical conduct and the relinquishment of defilements and desires.
Main Content
According to the Theravāda tradition, monks are forbidden from directly receiving, holding, or making use of money (rūpiya). This regulation is intended to prevent such conduct as: accumulating wealth, engaging in trade and commerce, or forming worldly entanglements that might cloud the mind and obstruct the progress of practice.
Money is regarded as an instrument that gives rise to sensual desires: greed, envy, self-interest, and other forms of the view of self (atta-vāda). When a practitioner is governed by these desires, the mind becomes turbid, lacking in concentration, and unable to attain the deep states of meditative absorption (samādhi) necessary to penetrate the impermanent, suffering, and selfless nature of phenomena.
Rather than engaging directly in monetary transactions, monks are encouraged to live by means of the alms round (piṇḍapāta), receiving requisites from those who have faith and who support the Sangha. This not only safeguards the moral integrity of the practitioner but also helps them to continually bear in mind the interdependence and impermanence of all material things.
Practical Significance
The Money Sutta preserves for us a profound lesson on the relationship between material possessions and the cultivation of the mind.
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