Lzh Mi Bi Vb Np 12Offerings Intended for the Sangha
Pāli / Sanskrit:Pariṇata
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The Sutta on Diverting Offerings Intended for the Sangha
Background
The Pariṇata Sutta (Diverting) is found in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda Buddhist tradition, specifically in the Nissaggiya Pācittiya section, offenses requiring declaration and forfeiture. These disciplinary texts were recorded from decisions made by the Buddha when specific situations arose in the community of monks and nuns, in order to protect the purity of the Sangha and maintain spiritual discipline.
The Pariṇata Sutta deals with a subtle issue in the ethics of giving: when laypeople offer valuable items to the Sangha as a whole, may individual monastics possess them privately, or how should they be handled? This is a matter that may seem simple but contains deep subtleties concerning intention, community, and steadfastness in wholesome action.
Main Content
The Pariṇata rule states that when laypeople give precious items, such as robes, medicines, or food, with the intention that they are for the whole Sangha, a monastic is not permitted to appropriate or use those items privately without distribution or approval from the community. If that monastic takes his own share before the Sangha has had a full opportunity to receive it, or if he regards these gains as intended for a smaller part of the community, this is considered a Nissaggiya Pācittiya offense, that is, an offense requiring public declaration before the Sangha and complete forfeiture of the item.
The spirit of this rule is not to forbid monastics from possessing necessary material goods, but to encourage a spirit of selflessness (parinirvana bhavana) and trust within the community. It reminds us that offerings from devoted laypeople are acts of dedication to the Sangha, the community of monks and nuns regarded as the Dharma body of the Buddha, not to each individual monk.
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