Lzh Mu Bu Pm Pc 82Royal Compounds
Pāli / Sanskrit:Antepura
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The Antepura Sutta (Royal Inner Compounds)
Background
The Antepura Sutta is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda tradition, treating the rules of training for the community of monks and nuns. The word “Antepura” (anta + pura) refers to inner compounds, places where royal women lived under special conditions, separated from the public. This discourse appears in the context of the Buddha establishing precepts for bhikkhunīs when accepting them into the community of monks and nuns. The regulations related to royal inner compounds reflect the need for proper management in the environment of training, especially in matters of safety, discipline, and the propagation of the Teaching.
Buddhist history shows that female monastics from royal classes often faced particular challenges: the influence of former social status, power, and property. Therefore, the Buddha and the elder members of the community of monks and nuns constructed specific principles to protect the spirit of practice and maintain equality within the Sangha.
Main Content
The Antepura Sutta focuses on regulations related to bhikkhunīs who came from royal backgrounds or royal inner compounds. The specific content of this discourse has not been fully translated; however, according to the general context of the Theravāda Vinaya Piṭaka, these regulations usually include:
First, restrictions on using former status. A bhikkhunī who had once been a queen or princess was not permitted to rely on royal identity to demand privileges in the community of monks and nuns. This ensured that the Sangha maintained spiritual equality and was not affected by worldly structures of power.
Second, rules concerning communication and contact within the inner compound. For reasons of safety and conditions of practice, bhikkhunīs were not permitted to enter and leave royal inner compounds arbitrarily; or, if necessary business arose, they had to observe specific principles concerning witnesses and supervision.
Third, regulations concerning property and welfare.
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