Lzh Sarv Bu Vb Sk 21Lowered Eyes
Pāli / Sanskrit:Okkhittacakkhu
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Sutra on Lowering the Eyes (Okkhittacakkhu)
Background
Okkhittacakkhu (Lowered Eyes) is part of the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Pāli Canon, belonging to the regulations on pure conduct for monastics. This sutra appears in the context of disputes in the early Buddhist community, when the Buddha needed to establish clear rules to protect practitioners from mistaken actions, especially matters related to character and attitude in daily life.
In the Theravāda tradition, the Vinaya Piṭaka is regarded as the foundation of monastic life. These rules are not meant to punish, but to nurture meditation, wakefulness, and respect. The regulation on "lowering the eyes" reflects the Buddhist philosophy of sense restraint, an essential element of the path of practice.
Main Content
The Sutra on Lowering the Eyes concerns the courteous and dignified conduct of a bhikkhu or bhikkhunī. Specifically, the sutra states that practitioners should lower their eyes, that is, limit their field of vision and not allow the eyes to wander everywhere. This is part of the practice of "indriya-samvara" (sense restraint).
Lowering the eyes is not merely a physical action. It symbolizes wakefulness, self-control, and relinquishment of heedless curiosity. When the eye is not led by external forms, consciousness is less scattered and can more easily abide steadily. Such courteous actions also show respect for those around one and create a pure environment for the community of practice.
This regulation is also related to avoiding forms of behavior that may create openings for fault or be misunderstood. Practitioners should not allow waywardness in their looking to become a cause for weakening the faith of others or creating needless concern.
Practical Meaning
The principle of "lowering the eyes" in Okkhittacakkhu has profound meaning for modern practitioners. In a society full of sensory stimuli, control of the gaze becomes even more necessary.
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