Lzh Mi Bi Vb Pc 209Casting Fortunes
Pāli / Sanskrit:Casting fortunes
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Explanation of the Casting Fortunes Sutta (Lzh Mi Bi Vb Pc 209)
Background
The Casting Fortunes Sutta (Lzh Mi Bi Vb Pc 209) belongs to the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda Buddhist tradition, where rules on the ethical conduct of bhikkhus and bhikkhunīs are recorded. The background for the arising of this rule comes from actions that disturbed the monastic community, when some bhikkhus became drawn into activities of predicting fate, telling fortunes, and calculating the future for laypeople.
The Buddha saw that such actions were unsuitable for one who had gone forth, because they expressed greed for gain, enchanted others, and diverted the main purpose of practice. Therefore, the Buddha established prohibitions to guide bhikkhus away from such conduct, including avoiding forecasts of the future, astrology, and calculating destiny.
Main Content
The Casting Fortunes Sutta is directly related to activities involving “prediction” or “guessing” the future. A bhikkhu is not permitted to take part in activities such as:
Predicting the fate and future of others through self-devised methods not based on the Buddha’s teaching.
Using instruments or skills to calculate, draw lots, or cast dice for the purpose of fortune-telling.
Providing prediction services in exchange for property, food, or other material benefits.
This rule is recorded as concerning conduct unsuitable for the life of practice of a bhikkhu. Its purpose is not punishment but education, helping those who have gone forth understand clearly that the Buddhist path of practice is directed toward inner liberation, not toward seeking external things or influencing the minds of others.
Practical Meaning
The Casting Fortunes Sutta teaches that one who has gone forth must preserve purity of mind and action.
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