Lzh Mi Bi Vb Np 10Bribing Weavers

Bribing Weavers (Mahāpesakāra)

Comparative Vinaya — Chinese | Lzh Mi Bi Vb Np 10
AI Exposition — Inti Dharma

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Source Status

This is an AI exposition prepared entirely on the basis of the available descriptive information, not a translation from the original scripture. The corresponding full Chinese source text for this entry was not directly collated in the process of preparing this document. Therefore, no specific words of the Buddha, detailed narrative, or analysis of individual clauses is quoted or reproduced in this exposition. All content presented below is based on the title, Pāli terminology, and the context of this type of training rule in the Comparative Vinaya — Chinese as supplied by the descriptive information.

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Background

This entry belongs to the Comparative Vinaya — Chinese, within the division of Sectarian Scriptures — Comparative, reflecting the method of comparative study of Vinaya traditions among different Buddhist schools through texts preserved in Chinese. The designation Vb Np 10 shows that this entry belongs to the Nissaggiya Pācittiya group, that is, the group of rules concerning an object that must be forfeited together with confession, and that this is the tenth rule in that subsection, for bhikkhunīs (Mi Bi, that is, Bhikkhunī).

The Nissaggiya Pācittiya rules, often called the rules of "forfeiture and confession," concern the acquisition or use of goods, robes, or requisites in ways that do not accord with the rules. One who commits such an offense has the duty to forfeit the related object before the Sangha and perform confession; only then is the offense purified. This is one of the kinds of rules that most clearly expresses the spirit of few wishes, contentment, and transparency in the material life of one gone forth.

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Content Determinable From the Descriptive Information

The Vietnamese title "Hối Lộ Thợ Dệt" and the English title "Bribing Weavers," together with the Pāli name Mahāpesakāra (literally, "great weaver" or "renowned weaver"), suggest the core content of this rule: a bhikkhunī must not use goods, benefits, or any form of bribery to influence weavers, artisans who work with cloth, in order to gain private advantage for herself, such as asking them to weave better cloth, more cloth, or cloth according to special requirements beyond what is permitted to be received under the Vinaya.

In Indian society during the Buddha’s time, weavers (pesakāra) were an important and common profession. Clothing, especially the kāṣāya robe, was one of the basic essential requisites of one gone forth. The Vinaya traditions contain many careful provisions regulating how a bhikkhu or bhikkhunī may request, receive, or be involved in the making and weaving of robes, in order to avoid abuse, self-interest, or the creation of inequality within the Sangha.

"Bribing" a weaver, whether with money, goods, or favors, in order to obtain robe cloth better than what is permitted violates the principle of few wishes and contentment, and at the same time creates an unhealthy material bond between one gone forth and laypeople. This may also harm the image and reputation of the Sangha in the eyes of the community.

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Meaning for Study and Practice

This rule carries several practical layers of meaning for those who study and practice:

First, it reminds one gone forth, especially the bhikkhunī, of the principle of contentment (santuṭṭhi): being satisfied with what is lawfully offered, without seeking to go beyond the portion one is permitted to receive. Dissatisfaction with what one has and the wish for more are seeds of suffering and impurity.

Second, it clarifies the healthy relationship between one gone forth and the laity. One gone forth must not exploit or create material dependency with laypeople in a way contrary to the precepts. All receiving must be pure, transparent, and in keeping with the spirit of voluntary offering.

Third, this rule reflects the Vinaya’s concern for equality within the Sangha. When one member uses manipulation to gain private benefit, this breaks the harmony and fairness of communal practice.

Fourth, from the perspective of inner practice, this rule helps practitioners recognize and abandon subtle forms of craving, especially desire for material things in the form of robes and bodily comfort. Though such desires may not be as heavy as coarse craving, they can still draw the mind away from the path of liberation.

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Comparative Note

Because the original Chinese text corresponding to Lzh Mi Bi Vb Np 10 has not yet been fully collated in the preparation of this exposition, researchers who wish to understand it more deeply should consult the original Chinese Vinaya texts preserved in the Buddhist canon and compare them with equivalent Vinaya collections in the Pāli, Sanskrit, or Tibetan traditions, in order to gain a complete and accurate view of this rule. All specific details concerning narrative, persons, conditions for an offense, and method of confession should be verified from the original text before being used in teaching or practice.