Lzh Mu Bi Pm Pc 180Jewellery

THE SUTTA ON JEWELRY - ITTHĀLAṄKĀRA

Background

The Sutta on Jewelry (Itthālaṅkāra) is a regulation recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda tradition, specifically in the Pācittiya section, rules for training the minds of bhikkhunīs. This regulation arose from the context of managing the community of monks and nuns in the days when the Buddha was still present in the world, when the Buddha needed to establish clear principles to protect ethical purity and maintain discipline in the Saṅgha.

Itthālaṅkāra (from itthā, woman, and alaṅkāra, ornament) clearly indicates forms of bodily adornment and ornamentation that improve outward appearance and that bhikkhunīs must avoid. This context is not unreasonable or overly severe, but an expression of a fundamental principle in Buddhist practice: relinquishing factors that distract the mind and gradually completing the path of liberation.

Main Content

This regulation forbids bhikkhunīs from using jewelry such as bracelets, anklets, necklaces, earrings, or ornaments intended to beautify the outward body. The prohibition also includes painting the nails, whitening the skin, cosmetic oils, and similar actions meant to enhance natural beauty.

The deeper reason for these prohibitions lies in psychology. In Theravāda Buddhism, attachment to jewelry is seen as a form of greed (lobha) and conceit (māna), things that extinguish spiritual development. When the mind is submerged in outward beauty, it cannot rise to higher levels of wisdom (paññā) and concentration (samādhi).

This regulation was established by the Buddha after observing bhikkhunīs using jewelry to attract attention or to take pride in their appearance. Such conduct directly contradicts the ideal of going forth: renouncing the world, abandoning attachment to sensual form and outward adornment. Violation of this rule is regarded as a pācittiya offense, a fault that must be confessed and repented.