Lzh Mu Bi Vb Np 17Taking Back Robe-Cloth
Pāli / Sanskrit:Cīvaraacchindana
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SUTTA ON TAKING BACK ROBE-CLOTH
Background
The Cīvaraacchindana text, in Vietnamese "the taking back of robe-cloth," is part of the Vinaya Piṭaka in the Early Buddhist tradition of the Buddha-Dharma. It is a legal provision regulating the use and management of the basic possessions of bhikkhus, the requisites for practice that they are permitted to own.
In the monastic life established by the Buddha, the robe (Pāli: cīvara) is one of the four essential requisites of a monastic, alongside food, lodging, and medicine. This robe is not only for covering the body but also a symbol of renunciation and ascetic practice. Because of this importance, the Buddha laid down detailed rules about how robe-cloth may be owned, used, and, when necessary, taken back.
This text belongs to the Nissaggiya Pācittiya section, offenses requiring relinquishment and confession, of the Vinaya Piṭaka, showing the seriousness with which the Buddha-Dharma treats the matter of material goods and purity in practice.
Main Content
The rule concerning taking back robe-cloth (cīvaraacchindana) prescribes that when a bhikkhu gives robe-cloth to another person, whether another bhikkhu or an ordinary person, that monastic may not arbitrarily take it back without informing or asking permission. If the bhikkhu gave the robe with the intention of giving it permanently, then taking it back without the recipient’s consent is considered a grave fault.
However, the Vinaya also allows exceptional cases. If the recipient of the robe does not intend to return it and the bhikkhu has a genuine need, or if there was a prior agreement, then taking back the robe is in accordance with the Vinaya. What is important is honesty, clarity, and mutual respect among the parties involved.
This text reflects a basic principle of the Vinaya Piṭaka: there is no private ownership in the ordinary sense, but rather the sharing and communal management of property. All objects are regarded as tools supporting practice, not wealth to be accumulated or a source of personal security.
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