Lzh Sarv Bu Vb Np 7Accepting Too Many Robes

Tatuttari Sutta: On Receiving Too Many Robes

Background

The Tatuttari Sutta is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Pāli Canon, in the section of regulations concerning the robes of bhikkhus. In the Buddha’s time, robes were not luxury goods but basic necessities used to cover the body and protect health during practice. However, accumulating clothing beyond actual need became an obstacle to the spirit of going forth and the practice of collectedness.

This text was established by the Buddha on the basis of specific situations that arose in the Sangha. Bhikkhus could easily take advantage of the generosity of laypeople in order to accumulate excessive robes, which then led to greed, anxiety over protecting possessions, and neglect of practice. This is precisely what the Buddha wished to prevent through the regulations concerning robes.

Main Content

The Tatuttari Sutta (Tatuttari meaning “beyond that” or “exceeding”) prescribes that a bhikkhu should not receive and accumulate more than three robes: the inner robe, the upper robe, and the outer robe. Each bhikkhu needs only enough robes to change, wash, and cover the body in daily activities.

If a bhikkhu receives additional robes beyond the prescribed number and does not handle them properly, for example by giving them to another bhikkhu or to a lay steward, that bhikkhu violates a Nissaggiya Pācittiya rule, an offense requiring confession and forfeiture. This emphasizes that holding excessive requisites is not only an unwise act, but also disobedience to the Vinaya.

The regulation also includes special cases: when bhikkhus receive robes from the Sangha or from individuals, they must deal with them within the prescribed time. If they do not, retaining them is considered a violation. The purpose of the rule is not harshness or lack of humanity, but the nurturing of a gentle and restrained mind, the reduction of ambition, and helping bhikkhus focus completely on virtue and meditation.