Lzh Sarv Bu Vb Np 6Asking an Unrelated Person for Robes
Pāli / Sanskrit:Aññātakaviññatti
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Aññātakaviññatti Sutta: Asking for Robes From an Unrelated Person
Background
This text is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka, specifically in the Pātimokkha Nuns’ Rules (Bhikkhunī Pātimokkha), among the rules concerning the requisites of bhikkhunīs. Its content relates to one of the most important regulations in Theravāda Buddhist discipline: the dignified management of material goods and robes by bhikkhus and bhikkhunīs.
The Vinaya background indicates that the Buddha observed that, within the community of renunciant disciples, the matter of asking for and receiving robes from those who were not relatives (aññātaka) gave rise to many issues of discipline and trust. The rule Aññātakaviññatti was therefore established to maintain the purity and ethical integrity of the Sangha.
Main Content
This rule prescribes that bhikkhunīs should not actively ask for robes from unrelated persons, meaning people who have no direct blood relationship or who have not been recognized as supporters of the monastic. Asking for robes indiscriminately may create suspicion, weaken the confidence of the Buddhist lay community in bhikkhunīs, and lead to unclear or inappropriate relationships.
Nevertheless, the rule also recognizes that in certain special cases, when a bhikkhunī truly has need, for example when her robe is old, torn, or insufficient, requesting a new robe from a supporter through an official and public manner is permitted. The important point is that the method must be carried out through proper forms of etiquette, not as a private or secret request.
This text also emphasizes that bhikkhunīs must always remember that robes are necessary requisites for practice, not objects for satisfying greed or building personal property. Every request for a robe must be carefully considered in the light of the Eight Right Factors and the Five Precepts.
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