Lzh Sarv Bi Vb Pc 112Ordaining Trained Unmarried Girls Without Approval

Teaching on an Unapproved Candidate for Bhikkhunī Ordination

Background

This rule is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka, specifically in the Bhikkhunī Vibhaṅga, the section of discipline reserved for bhikkhunīs. This sutta concerns one of the most sensitive issues in the history of the Buddhist community: the procedure for the ordination of female practitioners.

In the Buddha’s time, ordaining bhikkhunīs followed very careful regulations. One important condition was approval (sammata) from the bhikkhu community or from those with authority. The community of bhikkhunīs had to be legally recognized; one was not received into the vocation merely by private will or manipulation.

This sutta deals with a specific case: when a girl has been thoroughly trained (sikkhita), is of suitable age (kumāribhūta, proper maidenhood), but is ordained WITHOUT approval (asammata) from the Sangha. This is a procedural lapse in Vinaya law.

Main Content

According to the Theravāda tradition, ordaining a woman into the bhikkhunī community requires three steps: first, she must be accepted by the existing bhikkhunīs; second, there must be recognition from the bhikkhu assembly; and finally, there must be confirmation by the elders. If any step is missing, the ordination is considered invalid (asaṃvuta).

This sutta states that if a girl, though well trained (paripuṇṇa, complete and whole), though twenty years of age (vīsativassa), though qualified and virtuous (sikkhita), is ordained without the community’s approval, then that ordination is not lawful. A bhikkhunī ordained in this way is regarded as not truly received into the Sangha, and her performance of bhikkhunī duties lacks valid religious force.

This is not meant to create difficulty for female practitioners, but to protect the integrity of the Buddhist community.