Lzh Mu Bi Pm Sk 87Clasping Knees
Pāli / Sanskrit:Pallatthika
Save your scripture progress
Create a free account to save scriptures, track progress, and continue your daily learning path.
The Sutta on One Clasping the Knees — Pallatthika
Background
The Pallatthika Sutta (One Clasping the Knees) is a part of the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Pāli Canon, especially among the disciplinary rules (Vinaya) governing the lives of bhikkhus and bhikkhunīs. This context appears in the early period of the Buddhist Sangha, when the Buddha was still alive and directly guiding his disciples regarding what should be avoided in contemplative practice and spiritual discipline.
This sutta addresses a specific situation related to the conduct of those gone forth—a central theme of the Vinaya. The Vinaya Piṭaka is not only a collection of prohibitions, but a system intended to protect purity, maintain the integrity of the Sangha, and create favorable conditions for the practice leading to liberation.
Main Content
The action of “clasping the knees” (pallatthika) in the Vinaya context generally refers to postures or conduct connected with slackness of spirit, where the practitioner does not properly maintain alertness or control of the sense faculties. According to the Pāli Canon tradition, this may relate to occasions when a practitioner is not careful about the sitting posture during meditation, or in daily situations does not observe the bearing appropriate to one gone forth.
The Buddha taught that maintaining right view (sammādiṭṭhi) and right intention (sammāsaṅkalpa) begins with the smallest details of conduct. There is no division between “formal meditation” and “daily life”—the whole of life must be a step along the true Dharma. The Pallatthika Sutta reminds those who have gone forth that even bodily postures or actions that seem harmless should be carefully examined.
In the context of the Vinaya Piṭaka, the Buddha often derived specific rules from actual events. If certain bhikkhus did not observe proper deportment, the Buddha would establish an additional training rule (sikkhāpada) to guide monks and nuns. The purpose was not punishment, but education and protection.
🌏 The Buddhist canon is vast — some sūtras (such as comparative Vinaya across schools, or untranslated Tibetan-canon texts) have to this day NEVER been translated into Vietnamese or English by anyone, scholars included. Rather than leave it blank, Inti AI offers a FAITHFUL summary grounded in the tradition — from the sūtra's title, origin and essence — so you can still reach this rare part of the treasury. Whenever an original translation exists, the app shows the original first.
Translations belong to the translator/source credited above. The bilingual compilation, presentation, and AI translations compiled by Inti are © Inti Foundation. Please attribute when quoting; do not bulk-copy or use commercially without permission.