Lzh Mu Bu Vb Sk 64Licking the Hands

Licking the Hands — Hatthanillehaka

Lzh Mu Bu Vb Sk 64 | Comparative Vinaya — Chinese | Sectarian Canon · Comparative

---

Source Status

The full source text of this item has not yet been directly collated in the current system. The explanation below is not a translation of the original scripture, but a general presentation based purely on the descriptive information provided, including: the tradition Sectarian Canon · Comparative, the collection Comparative Vinaya — Chinese, the sequence number Lzh Mu Bu Vb Sk 64, the Vietnamese title “Liếm Tay,” the English title “Licking the Hands,” and the Pāli/Sanskrit term Hatthanillehaka. Readers should consult the original Chinese source of this Vinaya directly in order to confirm the detailed content.

---

Background

This item belongs to the Comparative Vinaya — Chinese, a comparative collection that places in parallel disciplinary provisions from multiple ancient Indian Buddhist schools preserved in the Chinese canon. This is an important scholarly field in the study of sectarian Buddhism (nikāya or āgama studies), because it enables scholars to trace similarities and differences among the disciplinary systems of different schools, such as Theravāda, Dharmaguptaka, Mahāsāṃghika, Mūlasarvāstivāda, Sarvāstivāda, and others.

The designation Sk 64 in the sequence suggests that this is the sixty-fourth item in a section related to training rules or specific rules of conduct (sekhiya or an equivalent in the sectarian traditions). Items in this group usually regulate concrete behavior of bhikkhus or bhikkhunīs in daily life, especially concerning manners, deportment, and etiquette in the communal life of the Sangha.

---

Content Identifiable from the Descriptive Information

The title Hatthanillehaka in Pāli may be analyzed as follows: hattha means “hand,” and nillehaka or nillekhaka derives from the root lih-, meaning “to lick.” Thus, Hatthanillehaka literally means “the act of licking the hands,” referring to licking the fingers after eating. This is a training rule concerning proper deportment while eating.

In the context of Buddhist disciplinary rules, licking the hands during a meal is regarded as undignified and improper for one gone forth. Training rules in this group are not heavy offenses leading to forfeiture, but are usually rules of deportment, intended to cultivate self-control, refinement, and mindful awareness in even the smallest actions of Sangha life.

The Vietnamese title “Liếm Tay” and the English title “Licking the Hands” confirm that this is a training rule prohibiting or regulating the act of licking the hands after eating rice or taking a meal. This shows that the provision revolves around etiquette during the meal, one of the activities treated carefully by the discipline, because the meal is when a bhikkhu comes into direct contact with donors and the outside social community.

The comparative nature of this Vinaya means that the Hatthanillehaka provision may be compared in parallel with equivalent rules in other Vinayas, such as in the Pātimokkha of the Theravāda tradition or in the Prātimokṣa Sūtras of schools preserved in the Chinese canon. Such comparison helps scholars understand how each school received and transmitted the original Vinaya heritage.

---

Meaning for Study and Practice

Although it is a small provision in the system of disciplinary rules, Hatthanillehaka carries a profound message about the spirit of practice for one gone forth. Buddhism always emphasizes that no action is too small for the practice of mindfulness. Licking the hands after eating, though it may seem ordinary at first glance, reveals the practitioner’s degree of mindfulness and self-control.

Training rules on deportment while eating remind the practitioner that every gesture and every action is an expression of the inner mind. Greed for food, lack of self-control in eating, or any behavior showing the domination of desire over the body are all obstacles that must be observed and adjusted on the path of practice.

Furthermore, the fact that a school preserved and systematized such small rules in the Chinese canon reflects the seriousness of the Buddhist tradition in preserving the entire system of discipline as a living reality, not merely as text. The Sangha is maintained through shared agreement about each small detail in communal life.

For modern scholars and practitioners, provisions such as Hatthanillehaka are also a doorway into the way of life, culture, and thought of the ancient Indian Sangha, a highly precious heritage within the treasury of human Buddhist studies.

---

Comparative Note

Because the full Chinese source text of item Lzh Mu Bu Vb Sk 64 has not been directly collated in the system, all observations in this explanation are general and based on the title and the semantic meaning of the term. Researchers who wish to verify the precise content should directly consult the Chinese source text of the Comparative Vinaya mentioned, and compare it with related Prātimokṣa Sūtras preserved in the Chinese canon, in order to gain a comprehensive and accurate view of this provision in the context of sectarian studies.