Lzh Mi Bi Pm Pc 34Living With an Ejected Monastic
Pāli / Sanskrit:Ukkhittasambhoga
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Explanation of the Ukkhittasambhoga Sutta (Living Together With One Who Has Been Expelled)
Background
The Ukkhittasambhoga Sutta (Living together with one who has been expelled) belongs to the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda tradition and is an indispensable part of the rules governing communal monastic practice. In the early period of the Teaching, the Buddha established disciplinary rules to maintain the clarity and harmony of the monastic community. One of the serious penalties was ukkhepana (temporary expulsion) or nikkhepana (permanent expulsion), applied to monks or nuns who deliberately violated the discipline and refused to amend themselves.
This sutta especially discusses the issue of living together with a monastic who has been expelled. This is a complex practical case, for it concerns daily interaction and the difficulties of enforcing the community’s disciplinary decision. The Ukkhittasambhoga Sutta therefore provides specific guidance on the proper attitude and conduct that other monastics should maintain in this situation.
Main Content
According to the Vinaya Piṭaka, when a monastic is expelled, their status is no longer recognized within the formal community. Yet because of the practical requirements of monastic life, they may still live geographically alongside the community, staying in the same area and using the same resources. This sutta establishes clear principles for how to deal with such a situation.
The main principle is this: monastics who have not been expelled must not regard the expelled person as a full member of the monastic community. This means not performing communal rites together, not sharing privileges (such as meditation courses or collective practice activities), and maintaining separation. Yet this discipline is not hostility or cruelty; it is a structural measure intended to encourage the offender to make amends and return to the right path.
The detailed regulations include: not sharing seats or sandals, not eating together at one table on formal occasions, and not taking part in major community meetings. In particular, an expelled person must actively apologize and request readmission after correcting their offense.
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