Lzh Mu Bi Pm Pc 70Sitting Mats
Pāli / Sanskrit:Nisīdana
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EXPLANATION OF THE NI-SI-DA-NA SUTTA (SITTING MAT)
Background
The Nisīdana Sutta is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka, specifically in the Pātimokkha of the Theravāda tradition. It is not a discourse of Dharma teaching, but a disciplinary rule concerning the daily life of those gone forth. It speaks of sitting mats, mats or seats used for meditation or for mindful activities of the Sangha.
In the Buddha’s time, bhikkhus had to observe rules concerning property and its use. The sitting mat (nisīdana) was one of the basic requisites allotted to each monk to support meditation practice and daily living. The regulations concerning sitting mats are an expression of the management of common property, ensuring that renunciants do not fall into attachments or special fondness for personal belongings.
Main Content
The Nisīdana Sutta provides that bhikkhus may possess only a certain number of sitting mats, in keeping with the spirit of mendicancy. These mats are standardized in size, material, and use. Their main purpose is to give the monks a clean and wholesome place to sit when practicing meditation or when needed in communal activities.
The rule concerning sitting mats also relates to cleaning and maintaining these items. A monk should care for his mat carefully, without display or developing a habit of cherishing material things. When a mat becomes damaged or unusable, it should be reused or disposed of properly, in accordance with the principle of non-waste.
These rules reflect a profound principle: mendicant practice is not a set of restrictions meant to cause suffering, but supports that free the mind from entanglements in ownership and accumulation. By observing these regulations, monks cultivate renunciation (nekkhamma) and wisdom in the use of property.
Practical Meaning
The Nisīdana Sutta teaches that even the smallest details of one’s way of life have deep significance for practice.
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