Lzh Mi Bi Pm Ss 13Difficult to Correct

Difficult to Correct (Dubbaca)

Lzh Mi Bi Pm Ss 13 · Comparative Vinaya — Chinese · Sectarian Canonical Tradition

---

Source Status

The original text of this scripture entry belongs to the Comparative Vinaya — Chinese, designated Lzh Mi Bi Pm Ss 13, and has not yet been fully collated in the available database. The explanation below is not a translation from the original canonical text, but a contextual explanation and analysis constructed entirely on the basis of the supplied descriptive information, including the tradition name, collection name, sequence number, Vietnamese title, English title, and the original Pāli title Dubbaca. Readers should note that any more detailed content concerning the specific rule, narrative circumstances, persons involved, or exact teaching in the original text has not yet been verified and therefore is not presented here.

---

Background

This scripture entry is found in the Comparative Vinaya — Chinese, a scholarly tool that compares disciplinary rules across various Buddhist sectarian traditions. This collection belongs to the category of the Sectarian Canons, reflecting the historical period in Buddhism when the Sangha had differentiated into various schools with distinct systems of discipline, such as the Pāli Vinaya (Theravāda), the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya, the Mahīśāsaka Vinaya, the Sarvāstivāda Vinaya, and the Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya.

The designation Lzh Mi Bi Pm Ss suggests that this is a rule belonging to the group for bhikkhunīs, specifically in the Pācittiya section or an equivalent class of training rules in the bhikkhunī discipline, sequence number 13. The name Dubbaca in Pāli means "difficult to speak to," "difficult to correct," or "hard to receive admonition," a negative quality that early Buddhism lists as a major obstacle in the communal holy life.

---

Content That Can Be Determined from the Descriptive Information

Based on the title Difficult to Correct (Dubbaca), it can be determined that this rule concerns behavior that refuses to receive reminders, admonition, or correction from other members of the Sangha. In Buddhist teaching and discipline generally, dubbaca is one of the most strongly criticized traits in the monastic life, because it breaks the foundation of collective practice and obstructs spiritual maturation.

In many sectarian traditions, the rule related to dubbaca commonly states that when a bhikkhu or bhikkhunī is correctly admonished by a fellow practitioner in accordance with the Dharma, but responds by denial, refusal, or angry contradiction, that person commits this training offense. The purpose of the rule is to protect a healthy culture of admonition (sahadhammika) in the Sangha, ensuring that each member is able and willing to receive sincere reminders from those who practice together.

However, because the complete text of the rule in the Chinese version of this comparative collection has not been accessed, specific details, such as the conditions for committing the offense, the degree of the offense, the method of confession, or differences among schools in defining dubbaca behavior, cannot yet be precisely determined here.

---

Meaning for Practice

Even without access to the full text, the title Dubbaca, Difficult to Correct, already carries a deep and universal message for Buddhist practice.

First, being "easy to admonish" (suvaca) is regarded as an essential virtue of one gone forth. A person easy to admonish is one who opens the heart to receive feedback, does not rigidly defend the self, and does not react with anger or irrational justification when faults are pointed out. Conversely, a dubbaca person, one difficult to correct, no matter how much knowledge or practice that person may have, is still nourishing conceit and obstinacy, two great obstacles on the path to liberation.

Second, in the context of Sangha life, this rule reminds us that practice is not merely an individual matter. The Sangha functions as a mutually supportive community, in which each member has the responsibility both to look back at himself or herself and to admonish others in a spirit of compassion and wisdom. If one member closes off and refuses to receive correction, that bond is interrupted, and the entire community of practice is harmed.

Third, on the inner level, the quality of dubbaca reflects attachment to one’s own views (diṭṭhi) and fear of being judged, two deep obstructions. A practitioner who recognizes this quality in himself or herself will see it as an opportunity to practice humility, patience, and right view, core virtues leading to liberation.

---

Comparative Note

Because the full Chinese comparative text of rule Lzh Mi Bi Pm Ss 13 has not yet been accessed, it is not possible to determine in detail the similarities or differences among the schools in how they regulate dubbaca behavior. Readers and practitioners who wish to study further should consult directly the disciplinary texts of the corresponding schools through scholarly editions with full comparative notes, in order to gain a complete and accurate understanding of this rule in each specific tradition.