Lzh Mg Bu Vb Pc 44Sending a Monastic Back from Almsround

– MAHĀSĀṂGHIKA VINAYA

– PĀCITTIYA OFFENSES

– EXPLAINING THE SIXTH SECTION OF THE 92 SINGLE EXPIATION RULES.

44. RULE: CONSENTING AND THEN RETRACTING

When the Buddha was residing in the city of Sāvatthī — as described at length above. At that time, the community of bhikkhus had assembled intending to perform a formal act (kammavācā), but Upananda did not come. A messenger then went and called out: "Venerable, the Sangha has assembled to perform a formal act; I have come to summon you." Upananda, being well-versed in the rules of discipline, sent his consent to the formal act through the messenger.

After the consent had been sent, the bhikkhu receiving the consent said: "You have already sent your consent; afterward, do not say otherwise." Thereupon, the Sangha performed a formal act censuring a disciple who was close to Upananda. After being censured by the Sangha through this formal act, that disciple went to his preceptor (Upananda) and spoke as follows:

—Why did the Venerable consent in this matter?

—What has happened?

—The Sangha has performed a formal act censuring me.

—I did not know about this.

Having heard his disciple speak, the elder went to the one to whom he had sent his consent and said: "Venerable, I did not send my consent for such an unfavorable matter as this; that formal act is not valid. I did not send my consent for this formal act."

At that time, the bhikkhus who heard this were ashamed and displeased, and they went to report the matter to the Blessed One. The Buddha then had Upananda summoned. When he arrived, the Buddha said: "…This is a wrong thing. Why did you send your consent and then say you had not sent it, claiming the formal act is not valid and that you had not sent consent of that sort? Why did you not first inquire and then send your consent? From now on, I do not permit a bhikkhu to send consent without first clearly inquiring into the matter." The Buddha then commanded all the bhikkhus residing in Sāvatthī to assemble, and for ten reasons he laid down a rule for the bhikkhus — even those who have already heard it must hear it again:

—If a bhikkhu, having sent his consent, afterward becomes angry and displeased and says: "I did not send consent for this unfavorable matter; that formal act is not valid; I did not send my consent in this case," he commits a pācittiya offense.

Explanation

Bhikkhu: As explained above.

Sending consent: There are two cases: sending consent after inquiring, and sending consent without inquiring.

Sending consent after inquiring: This means asking the one receiving the consent: "What matter is this for?" The person then replies: "It is for a formal act of admonition (tajjanīyakamma)." In that case, one sends consent for a formal act of admonition; likewise for a "formal act of censure (ukkhepanīyakamma)," one sends consent for a formal act of censure. In this way, for each and every type of formal act, one inquires first and then sends consent. This is called sending consent after inquiring.

Sending consent without inquiring: As in saying: "I send my consent for the formal act." Saying this three times in such manner. This is considered sending consent for all formal acts in general, except for the Invitation ceremony (Pavāraṇā) and Kathina. This is called sending consent without inquiring.

Thereafter, having completed the formal act, one becomes angry and displeased. Anger and displeasure refer to the nine kinds of affliction and anger that arise in the wrong manner. The tenth kind of anger is one that even an ordinary person who is still in training may fall into; even an arahant may experience displeasure. Then one says: "I did not send my consent for this unfavorable matter; that formal act is not valid; I did not send consent of that kind" — this constitutes a pācittiya offense.

Pācittiya: As explained above.

When the community of bhikkhus assembles to perform a formal act, all members must be present in full. If there is a circumstance such as seasoning a bowl, dyeing a robe, illness, or being occupied with affairs relating to a stūpa or the Sangha, then one must send one's consent at that time. However, one must not, having sent consent, afterward say: "From what I have heard others say, that matter should not be done in such a way." If one has previously sent consent for a formal act, one must afterward rejoice in accordance with it. If one has sent consent in the midst of the Sangha and afterward acts in contradiction to it, one commits a pācittiya offense.

If in the presence of many people, or before a senior bhikkhu, or before one's preceptor or teacher, one has sent consent and afterward acts in contradiction to it, one commits a dukkhaṭa (Vinaya transgression) offense. Therefore it is said (as above).

Vietnamese translation: Thích Phước Sơn. MAHĀSĀṂGHIKA VINAYA

Chinese translation: THE TRIPIṬAKA MASTER BUDDHABHADRA OF INDIA

TOGETHER WITH THE ŚRAMAṆA FAXIAN, TRANSLATED DURING THE EASTERN JIN DYNASTY

DOCTRINAL VERIFICATION: THÍCH ĐỖNG MINH