Lzh Mg Bu Pm Pc 80Entering a Village at the Wrong Time

Entering a Village at the Wrong Time

Vikālagāmappavisana — Lzh Mg Bu Pm Pc 80

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Source Status

This scriptural entry belongs to the Comparative Vinaya — Chinese Language collection, within the traditional subdivision Sectarian Scriptures · Comparative. Its locator reference is Lzh Mg Bu Pm Pc 80, indicating that this is the 80th rule in the Pācittiya (Pc) group for Bhikkhus (Bu), recorded according to the Chinese-language tradition (Lzh) within a cross-sectarian comparative framework (Mg).

The full source text in Chinese corresponding to this entry has not yet been directly collated in the existing database. Accordingly, this exposition is not a translation of an original scriptural text, but rather an analysis based on the descriptive information provided, combined with knowledge of the Buddhist sectarian Vinaya framework as it relates to a rule of the same name and subject matter.

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Context

In the Buddhist Vinaya tradition, the Pācittiya system is the category of training rules requiring confession and acknowledgment before the Sangha upon transgression. Unlike the more serious rules such as Pārājika or Saṅghādisesa, Pācittiya offenses are those that can be purified through sincere and proper confession. This group constitutes a substantial portion of the entire Bhikkhu Pātimokkha, encompassing detailed regulations regarding everyday conduct, comportment toward lay disciples, travel, the use of requisites, and the relationship between the Sangha and the community.

Training rule Pc 80, bearing the title Vikālagāmappavisana — literally "Entering a Village at the Wrong Time" — concerns the regulation of the appropriate time for a bhikkhu to enter inhabited areas. The English title Entering a Village at the Wrong Time confirms the core subject: a bhikkhu entering a village or inhabited area at an unpermitted time.

In the cross-sectarian comparative context (Mg), this training rule is examined in parallel across various Vinaya traditions such as Theravāda, Dharmaguptaka, Mūlasarvāstivāda, Mahāsāṅghika, and other related schools. This comparative study holds considerable scholarly value, facilitating the identification of similarities and differences in the way various traditions legislate and interpret the same conduct.

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Content Determinable from Descriptive Information

From the name Vikālagāmappavisana, the following analysis may be made:

– Vikāla (wrong time / outside the proper time): In the Vinaya context, vikāla generally refers to the period from after midday until the following dawn — that is, the time during which a bhikkhu may not eat, and during which certain activities involving travel are also restricted.

– Gāma (village / inhabited area): Refers to areas where lay people reside, market towns, or any place with permanent inhabitants.

– Pavisana (entry / the act of entering): Refers to the act of moving into such an area.

Taken together, this training rule prohibits or restricts a bhikkhu from entering a village of his own accord at the wrong time, without a legitimate reason or appropriate permission. In most Vinaya traditions, this regulation arises from the purpose of protecting the bhikkhu's virtue, avoiding suspicion on the part of lay people, and maintaining the purity of the renunciant's outward appearance and conduct.

The fact that this training rule is classified under Pācittiya — rather than a more serious category — indicates that this is an offense of carelessness or inattention, not necessarily reflecting malicious intent, yet still requiring confession in order to maintain the purity of one's precepts.

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Significance for Practice

The regulation concerning the appropriate time for entering a village reflects a principle of practice far deeper than mere adherence to a schedule: it is the principle of self-mastery and knowing what is timely and proper in the life of the holy life. One who has gone forth does not live according to personal preference or immediate need, but arranges conduct within an intentional framework, for the purpose of protecting both oneself and the Sangha's trustworthiness in the eyes of the community.

From the perspective of cross-sectarian comparison, the fact that many traditions record this training rule alike — even if the precise wording and degree of detail may differ — demonstrates that this is a rule grounded in practical concerns shared from the time of early Buddhism. This convergence lends greater credibility to the rule from the standpoint of historical transmission.

For students of the Dharma and scholars of the Vinaya, this training rule is also a reminder that the virtue of one who has gone forth is expressed not only through great acts, but through every small detail — including the hour at which one moves about during the day — and that this very attentiveness to small matters constitutes the whole of a life lived in accordance with the precepts.

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Comparative Notes

Since the full Chinese-language source text corresponding to the reference Lzh Mg Bu Pm Pc 80 has not yet been directly collated, researchers should consult the relevant Chinese-translated Vinaya texts from the schools preserved in the Chinese Buddhist Canon in order to verify the original text and the karmic background narrative of this training rule. The Pāli name Vikālagāmappavisana may be used as a key for comparison with parallel Vinaya traditions, so as to further clarify the content and spirit of this training rule within the multi-sectarian comparative context.