Lzh Sarv Bu Pm 2 Pc 79Drinking Alcohol

Source Status

This item has been regenerated as an AI interpretation based on the descriptive information: item number Lzh Sarv Bu Pm 2 Pc 79, Vietnamese title “Drinking Alcohol,” English title “Drinking Alcohol,” Pali title “Surāpāna,” belonging to the Vinaya Parallels — Chinese in the tradition of Sectarian Canon · Parallels. The truncated ending of the Vietnamese text indicates that the content is discussing alcohol as a factor that diminishes clarity, makes a practitioner prone to violate other rules, obscures wisdom, and nourishes greed, hatred, and delusion. The full source text has not been compared within the scope of the data, so details of the circumstances of the rule, persons involved, degree of sanction, or the way different intoxicants are distinguished in the original cannot be affirmed.

Context

In Buddhist teaching, wakefulness is the foundation of ethical life. An action may be considered not only by its external form, but also by its effect on mindfulness, wisdom, and self-mastery. Alcohol and intoxicants are seen from this perspective: they cause the mind to lose its clarity, make the body and speech more likely to fall into heedlessness, and make it difficult for a practitioner to recognize their own limits before it is too late.

For a renunciant, sobriety is not only for maintaining a dignified appearance. It is the condition for practicing discipline, samādhi, and wisdom. When the mind is obscured, the power of observation weakens, shame and fear of wrongdoing diminish, and unwholesome tendencies easily arise. Therefore, a rule concerning drinking alcohol can be understood as protecting the first gate of practice: keeping the mind bright enough to know what should be done and what should be avoided.

Content Identifiable from the Descriptive Information

From the title “Drinking Alcohol” and “Surāpāna,” the focus can be identified as the use of alcohol or intoxicating drink. The ending indicates that the interpretation emphasized the ethical consequence: when mental clarity is lost, a practitioner easily violates other training rules such as killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, or false speech. This presentation accords with the broader Buddhist principle that intoxication is not merely an isolated fault, but an opening for many other faults.

The truncated passage also describes alcohol as an enemy of the peaceful mind, like clouds or mist covering the light of wisdom. This is an interpretive image and should not be treated as the original wording before the source is compared. Nevertheless, the identifiable meaning is that alcohol weakens upasama, or calm, and increases the danger of greed, hatred, and delusion. In the life of the Sangha, this harms not only the individual but also the dignity of deportment, the faith of laypeople, and common harmony.

The ending also extends the meaning to those who keep the Five Precepts or the Eight Precepts. This may be retained as a universal practical understanding, but the scope of renunciant discipline should not be equated with lay precepts unless there is a specific source comparison.

Meaning for Practice and Study

The training rule on not drinking alcohol reminds the practitioner to return to the value of a bright mind. Many errors begin not from powerful evil intent, but from a moment of lacking awareness. When the mind is stimulated or dulled, one easily says what should not be said, does what should not be done, and later bears the fruit of one moment of negligence. Thus, avoiding alcohol is not a harsh attitude toward the body, but compassion toward oneself and others.

In modern practice, this meaning extends to every substance or habit that diminishes mindfulness. A practitioner needs to ask: does this make my mind clearer or more clouded, does it help me know body and mind more clearly or cause me to escape, does it increase inner freedom or dependence on stimulation? Such questions help keep discipline not merely as a prohibition, but as a method for protecting the quality of wakefulness.

Not drinking alcohol is also a practice of truth. A drunken person often does not clearly see that they are drunk; a heedless person often assumes they are still in control. Keeping discipline helps us avoid bargaining with that self-deception. Once one has decided not to enter the zone that darkens the mind, one creates fewer conditions for later regret.

For the community, a person who preserves sobriety is a person who can be trusted. They are present with clear speech, dignified conduct, and the capacity to take responsibility. This is a quiet offering to the assembly: not bringing into communal life the instability caused by intoxication.

Comparative Notes

The full source text has not been compared in this data. The content above is based on the descriptive information and truncated Vietnamese text, so statements about alcohol, intoxicants, their effects on other precepts, and their practical meaning should be understood as cautious interpretation. When the source is available, the way the Vinaya text defines the act of drinking, the applicable subject, any exceptional cases, and the degree of sanction should be checked. Until comparison is made, this should not be regarded as a verbatim translation or a complete description of the entire rule.