Lzh Mi Bi Pm Pd 8Asking for Meat

The Sutta on Asking for Meat (Maṁsaviññāpana)

Background

The Sutta on Asking for Meat (Maṁsaviññāpana) is part of the Vinaya Piṭaka in the early Buddhist tradition, especially related to the dietary rules of monks and nuns. It is not an independent discourse but a disciplinary rule (sutta) explaining meat and the conditions under which a bhikkhu or bhikkhunī may accept meat as food.

The historical background of this sutta reflects discussions in the Sangha from the Buddha’s time. The Buddha’s disciples raised the question: does eating meat violate the teaching or not? This was an important practical issue in monastic life, as monks and nuns depended on alms from laypeople and could not choose their contents.

Main Content

The Sutta on Asking for Meat states that a bhikkhu or bhikkhunī is permitted to accept meat under three specific conditions, called the “three conditions of not hearing, not seeing, and not suspecting” (ti-sutaṃ, ti-diṭṭhaṃ, ti-parisaṅkaṃ).

First, the monastic must not hear from the food donor that this meat was killed especially for that monastic. If this is heard, the meat may not be accepted because it is directly connected with the intentional act of killing.

Second, the monastic must not directly see the killing of the living being for that meat. If witnessed, the causal connection is clear and one becomes involved in the chain of killing.

Third, the monastic must not have suspicion that the meat was prepared especially for oneself. If there is reasonable suspicion, it should be avoided.

These conditions were developed based on the basic principle of avoiding direct or indirect causing of killing. In the early Buddhist context, completely rejecting meat was not obligatory, but purity of intention (cetanā) and non-involvement with the act of killing were core requirements.

Practical Meaning

The Sutta on Asking for Meat is not an absolute prohibition, but a guide to subtle ethics (sīla) in monastic life.