Lzh Mg Bu Pm Sk 32Breaking Lumps
Pāli / Sanskrit:Kabaḷāvacchedaka
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Commentary on Kabaḷāvacchedaka (The Sutta on Dividing Food)
Background
Kabaḷāvacchedaka is a minor section within the Vinaya Piṭaka, in which the Blessed One Gotama established rules of virtuous conduct for the monastic community. This text belongs to the Mahāvagga (The Great Chapter) or the Bhikkhunīvibhaṅga (The Analysis of the Rules for Nuns), the most foundational legislative portions of the Vinaya (Sīla).
The circumstances giving rise to this text are connected to events commonly encountered in daily monastic life—the distribution of food, particularly rice and other soft foods. Disputes or breaches of decorum during the distribution of meals led to the intervention of the Blessed One Gotama, with the aim of maintaining harmony (samaggī) within the Sangha.
The recording of this text reflects the practical character of Theravāda Buddhism—not abstract theory, but concrete guidance enabling monks and nuns to live communally with discipline and mutual respect.
Principal Content
Kabaḷāvacchedaka (literally: kabaḷa = a lump of food, avacchedaka = the act of dividing, cutting apart) sets forth principles governing the distribution of food within the monastic community. The essential teaching is this: every bhikkhu and bhikkhunī must receive their portion of food equitably, without partiality, coercion, or offense.
This section of the text makes clear that when distributing food, the one who apportions must maintain an impartial mind, not granting preference or diminishing anyone on account of personal likes, dislikes, or self-interest. Should there be imbalance in the distribution of food, this gives rise to envy (issā) and resentment (issā) within the Sangha, causing the dissolution of meditative clarity and communal harmony.
The text also emphasizes the principle of "rightness" (sammā): every monastic practitioner must eat with right mindfulness, free from greed, understanding that food is medicine for sustaining the vitality needed for practice, and not a means of gratifying desire. The equitable distribution of food is itself a way of practicing right effort (sammāvāyāma), that is, effort that is wholesome and proper.
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