Lzh Mu Bi Pm Pc 13Evasive Speech

Scripture on Speaking Otherwise (Aññavādaka Pācittiya)

Background

This scripture is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka, specifically in the Pācittiya section, the code dealing with offenses that require confession. In the context of the monastic community, these rules were established to protect purity, trust, and order within the Buddhist community.

Aññavādaka, from “añña,” meaning “other,” and “vādaka,” meaning “speaker” or “arguer,” refers to the conduct of a monk or nun who contradicts, denies, or speaks otherwise, especially when confronted with faults or breaches of discipline that they themselves have committed. This is a relatively subtle action, not a blatant lie, but the deliberate undermining of truth through misquotation, evasive argument, or an insincere declaration that one does not have or has never done something.

The establishment of this rule reflects the deep concern of the Buddha and the monastic community for maintaining truthfulness in internal communication. This is the foundation of trust and voluntary discipline in the community of practice.

Main Content

According to Pācittiya 13, if a monk or nun has committed a fault, whether great or small, and afterward uses contrary arguments, roundabout speech, or distorted expressions to deny or conceal the truth, that person commits a pācittiya offense. Specifically, this is the act of “saying other things” (aññavāda) in order to escape responsibility or to unsettle the verification of witnesses.

An important distinction should be noted: if the person truly has no fault and truthfully says that they did not do it, that is not a violation. But if the person clearly knows that they committed the fault and deliberately uses verbal strategies to distort the truth, that is precisely aññavādaka.

This rule is not merely about ordinary honesty, but also concerns accepting responsibility and the willingness to correct one’s conduct.