Lzh Mu Bu Pm Pd 2Letting a Nun Order Food
Pāli / Sanskrit:Dutiyapāṭidesanīya
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SUTTA ON LETTING A NUN ORDER FOOD
Background
The Dutiyapāṭidesanīya Sutta (the Second Public Declaration) is an important part of the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Pāli Canon, specifically found in the Bhikkhunī Vibhaṅga, the analysis concerning nuns. This discourse relates to a special regulation on delicate conduct between bhikkhus and bhikkhunīs.
The background of the discourse arose when the Buddha admitted nuns and established the true Dharma (Sāsana) for the female renunciant community. In this process, many practical issues of monastic communal life needed regulation. The Dutiyapāṭidesanīya Sutta records a specific situation: the issue of a nun asking a bhikkhu to buy food for her. At first glance, this seems ordinary, but it contains risks concerning discipline and the abuse of power in the monastic community.
Main Content
In the situation described, a nun asked a bhikkhu to buy or order food for her. At first hearing, this action appears harmless, an act of mutual assistance. However, the Buddha and his Blessed arahants recognized that without clear regulations, this situation could easily be abused. A nun might take advantage of it to ask for things beyond basic needs, or male bhikkhus might be placed in a difficult position, regarded as serving or favoring particular nuns.
Therefore, the Buddha set forth a Pāṭidesanīya, a public declaration, requiring that a nun should not ask a bhikkhu to buy or order food for her. If the nun violates this, she must publicly declare the violation before the bhikkhunī community. Similarly, a bhikkhu should not actively buy food at a nun’s request in this way.
This regulation is a “declaration” (pāṭidesanīya), not a Pārājika (defeat offense) or Saṅghādisesa (an offense requiring communal consideration). This means that the violation is not among the gravest offenses, but still requires public acknowledgment and correction of conduct.
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