Lzh Sarv Bu Pm 2 Sk 63Round Mouthful

Round Mouthful (Parimaṇḍala)

Comparative Vinaya — Chinese | Number: Lzh Sarv Bu Pm 2 Sk 63
Sectarian Buddhist Canons · Comparative Tradition

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Source Status

The full source text of this rule has not yet been directly collated in the system. What can be determined from the descriptive information includes: the sectarian tradition, the name of the Vinaya collection, the sequence number of the rule, and the title in three languages. Therefore, the explanation below is not a translation of the full original scripture, but a presentation of context, the meaning of the term, and a direction for practice based on the available descriptive information. Readers should further consult the original Chinese text or comparative bilingual editions to have a more complete basis for study.

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Context

This rule belongs to the Comparative Vinaya — Chinese, within the Sectarian Buddhist Canons · Comparative tradition, reflecting the work of comparing Vinaya texts among different Buddhist schools preserved in Chinese. This is one of the important directions of comparative Buddhist studies, helping clarify similarities and differences in disciplinary rules among schools such as Dharmaguptaka (Four-Part Vinaya), Sarvāstivāda (Ten-Recitations Vinaya), Mahāsāṃghika, and others.

The code Lzh Sarv Bu Pm 2 Sk 63 shows that this rule belongs to the Sekhiya group (training rules, Sk), specifically the sixty-third rule in the second Sekhiya set of the Sarvāstivāda (Sarv) tradition, for bhikkhus (Bu — Bhikkhu). The Sekhiya rules prescribe deportment and conduct in the daily life of renunciants, especially concerning eating, walking, standing, speaking, and interacting in the community as well as before laypeople. The Sanskrit name Parimaṇḍala and the Vietnamese title Round Mouthful show that this rule relates to the manner of receiving and handling food in the bowl when eating.

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Content Determinable from the Descriptive Information

The term Parimaṇḍala in Sanskrit means "circular" or "evenly rounded." In the context of the Sekhiya discipline, this word commonly points to the rule requiring a renunciant to gather food into a round, mouth-sized, orderly portion before bringing it to the mouth. This is one of the eating deportments emphasized in the Vinayas of many schools, intended to express dignity, mindfulness, and non-indulgence while taking food.

In the Sarvāstivāda tradition represented by this Vinaya, the Sekhiya rules are often divided into thematic groups: deportment when wearing robes, deportment when entering a village, deportment when sitting to eat, deportment when receiving food, deportment when eating, and deportment when teaching the Dharma. Rule Sk 63 — Parimaṇḍala most likely belongs to the group of deportments directly related to handling food in the bowl, specifically rolling, gathering, or arranging a mouthful into an even round shape before eating. This action expresses discipline, orderliness, and freedom from haste, regardless of how the corresponding rule is worded in other schools.

Because this is a rule in the Chinese Comparative Vinaya, its content may reflect similarities or differences with corresponding Sekhiya rules in other Vinayas such as the Pāli Vinaya (Theravāda), the Four-Part Vinaya, or the Mahāsāṃghika Vinaya.

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Meaning for Practice

Though it is only a Sekhiya rule concerning outward form, Parimaṇḍala — Round Mouthful has deep meaning for practice in the life of a renunciant. In the Buddhist tradition, a meal is not merely a physiological act but a time for practicing mindfulness and contentment. Every movement while eating, from holding the bowl, receiving food, to bringing a mouthful to the mouth, is regulated in order to maintain a calm, undistracted, and non-heedless mind.

Gathering food into a round, moderate, orderly mouthful reflects the spirit of contentment (santuṭṭhi): being satisfied with what is enough, not greedily grasping, not rushing. At the same time, this deportment expresses respect for the donor making the offering, for the Dharma assembly eating together, and for the body being appropriately nourished in order to continue practice.

In the context of modern practice, this rule reminds practitioners that discipline is not only a fence preventing what is bad, but also a positive instrument for training body and mind. Each small rule in the Sekhiya contributes to building a complete life of brahmacharya, in which no action is meaningless or separate from the path of liberation.

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Comparative Note

Because the full source text has not yet been directly collated, researchers should consult the original Chinese text of the Sarvāstivāda Vinaya to verify the precise content of this Sk 63 rule. Comparing it with corresponding Sekhiya rules in other Vinayas will also help clarify the degree of agreement and difference among the schools concerning this specific rule of deportment, thereby deepening understanding of the formation and transmission of discipline in Buddhist history.