Lzh Sarv Bi Pm Ss 8Ordaining a Criminal

Ordaining a Criminal

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Source Status

The full source text of this Vinaya item has not yet been directly collated in the database currently being used. The interpretation below is built entirely from the provided descriptive information, including the Vietnamese title, English title, and original Pāli/Sanskrit title, together with general knowledge of comparative sectarian Vinaya traditions. This is not a translation of the original scripture and does not replace direct consultation of the Chinese canonical text of the Sarvāstivāda tradition. Readers should keep this in mind to avoid misunderstanding.

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Background

This Vinaya item belongs to the Comparative Vinaya — Chinese, within the category of comparative sectarian Vinaya, and is connected with the Sarvāstivāda tradition, one of the important schools of Sectarian Buddhism whose Vinaya system has been fully preserved in Chinese.

The original title Corīvuṭṭhāpikā has a Pāli/Sanskrit origin. In it, corī (also written corī or caura) denotes a thief, robber, criminal, or one who has committed an offense against secular law; while vuṭṭhāpikā (equivalent to Sanskrit vyutthāpikā or utsthāpikā) means "ordination," "causing to stand up" — that is, the act of granting the status of renunciation or full ordination. Taken together, the title means: the rule concerning granting full ordination to one who was a criminal or an offender against secular law.

In the general context of the Vinaya, the issue of who is permitted to receive full ordination (upasampadā) is one of the key points of Sangha life. Not everyone may receive full ordination and become a monk or nun. The Vinayas of many schools list classes of people who are excluded from the right to ordination, among them those who have committed serious crimes under worldly law or who are being pursued by the court or the king.

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Content Identifiable from the Descriptive Information

Based on the title "Ordaining a Criminal" and the original title Corīvuṭṭhāpikā, it can be determined that this Vinaya item regulates the full ordination of a person regarded as a criminal, including those being prosecuted by the state, those already convicted, or those fleeing from secular law.

In the Vinaya traditions of the schools, ordaining such people is generally regarded as invalid or as an offense by the ordaining teacher, because:

1. Danger to the Sangha: Admitting criminals into the Sangha may cause the court to suspect the Sangha and may harm the harmony between the Sangha and secular society.

2. Violation of the principle of purity of the Sangha: The Vinaya places high requirements on the background and character of one receiving ordination, in order to protect the dignity and reputation of the monastic community.

3. Responsibility of the teacher: The preceptor (upajjhāya) and the Sangha are responsible for carefully examining the background of the applicant before carrying out the ceremony.

This Vinaya item, with its position as number 8 in the relevant section, may specify the conditions, legal Vinaya consequences, or required procedures in this special case, but its detailed content cannot be confirmed without the original text.

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Meaning for Study and Practice

This Vinaya item evokes an important lesson about balancing compassion and wisdom in guiding those who enter the renunciant life.

From the standpoint of compassion, Buddhism does not discriminate by class or background when receiving those who renounce: everyone has Buddha-nature and the capacity for liberation. However, wisdom and skillful means require the Sangha to consider the actual context: the safety of the community, the harmonious relationship between the Sangha and society, and the genuine inner qualities of the person wishing to renounce.

This is also a reminder of the responsibility of the one who confers ordination: not merely to perform the ceremony as a formality, but to examine carefully, with responsibility before the Sangha and before the path of practice of the one receiving ordination.

For students of Vinaya, studying items such as Corīvuṭṭhāpikā helps one understand that the Vinaya Piṭaka is not a collection of rigid rules, but a system of profound situational analysis, reflecting the Buddha's and the early Sangha's wisdom concerning human life and society.

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Comparative Note

Because the full original Chinese text of the Vinaya item Lzh Sarv Bi Pm Ss 8 has not been directly collated in the preparation of this interpretation, all specific details concerning the content, provisions, form of judgment, or special exceptions need to be verified against the original Chinese Vinaya text of the Sarvāstivāda tradition. Researchers should consult the Chinese Vinaya text of this school directly in order to gain an accurate and comprehensive view of the rule in question.