Lzh Mu Bu Pm Pd 4Receiving Food in a Dangerous Region
Pāli / Sanskrit:Catutthapāṭidesanīya
Save your scripture progress
Create a free account to save scriptures, track progress, and continue your daily learning path.
THE CATUTTHAPĀṬIDESANĪYA SUTTA
Vinaya Piṭaka - Theravāda Buddhist Tradition
Background
Catutthapāṭidesanīya (the Fourth Declaration) is a rule in the Pātimokkha, the rule of life for monks and nuns who submit to the Buddha. This discourse records a practical situation that arose in the monastic community when they traveled through dangerous regions, places where there were people dissatisfied with Buddhism or hostile toward bhikkhus.
The Buddha witnessed the difficulties his disciples encountered when seeking food in these localities. Some local people took advantage of the situation to damage the reputation of the Sangha or deliberately create difficulties for renunciants. To protect his disciples and maintain the pure virtue of monks and nuns, the Buddha gave this specific rule, considered the “fourth declaration” because it had been proclaimed three times before, and the fourth time was the final and official one.
Main Content
Catutthapāṭidesanīya states that bhikkhus and bhikkhunīs are not permitted to accept food from people living in regions regarded as dangerous or unfavorable. More specifically, this rule concerns receiving food in circumstances where acceptance may produce negative consequences for the reputation of the Sangha or cause misunderstandings in society.
The basic principle is that monks and nuns must be careful in choosing places of residence and those who provide food. If a region has people who frequently obstruct the Sangha or have bad intentions toward it, bhikkhus should stay away and should not carelessly receive food from those people.
The special feature of this rule is that it is not an absolute taboo, but a cautious guideline. Bhikkhus are advised to use wisdom and discernment to assess the situation and then decide whether to accept food. This is a method of practice called “paññatti,” careful consideration of specific circumstances.
🌏 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.