Lzh Sarv Bi Vb Np 20Sharing Out-of-Season Robe Cloth

Sutra on Sharing Out-of-Season Robe Cloth (Akālacīvara)

Background

The Sutra on Sharing Out-of-Season Robe Cloth belongs to the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Pāli Canon, specifically in the Pātimokkha Nuns' Rules (Bhikkhunī Pātimokkha), the rules for female monastics (bhikkhunīs). The content of this sutra is directly connected with the management and sharing of necessary monastic requisites, especially robe cloth used outside the prescribed season.

In the Theravāda tradition, the Vinaya Piṭaka was developed to maintain discipline in the monastic community and to guard against actions that could weaken the Dharma. Each rule arose from specific situations during the Buddha's teaching, when disciples acted improperly and the Buddha laid down rules to guide correct conduct.

Main Content

The Akālacīvara Sutra revolves around the issue of using robe cloth (cīvara) at a time not in accordance with the rule. According to the Sangha's discipline, nuns are permitted to use robe cloth only in certain seasons, in order to guard against greed and protect simplicity. Outside these permitted periods, possessing or using robe cloth is regarded as a violation.

The sutra states clearly that if a nun shares or receives robe cloth outside the prescribed season without a legitimate reason, both giver and receiver violate the rule. This regulation is not meant to restrict mutual care within the community, but to prevent the accumulation of property, thereby protecting the spirit of practice: freedom from attachment to material conditioned forms.

However, the sutra also recognizes that there are reasonable exceptions: when a nun has a legitimate need (illness, severe weather), she may be permitted to use robe cloth out of season with the approval of the monastic community (Saṅgha). This shows the flexibility of the rule, which is not rigid but still protects the core principle.