Lzh Sarv Upali 15Questions on Robes

Sūtra of Questions on Robes (Cīvarapucchā)

Background

This sūtra is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Pāli Canon, a collection of rules for the Sangha and for nuns. Specifically, Cīvarapucchā is found in the Upali-paripucchā, the section of questions and answers initiated by Venerable Upali, an important part of the Vinaya Piṭaka that records Upali’s questions, as a monk beloved by the Buddha, concerning unclear points of the discipline.

This setting reflects a period after the Buddha’s nirvana, when the Sangha community needed to clarify the regulations taught by the Buddha. The question of monastic robes (cīvara) is not a trivial matter. The robe is one of the basic requisites (paccaya), a symbol of going forth and humility, and it is directly connected with purity of discipline and integrity in the true Dharma.

Main Content

Although the specific content of this sūtra has not yet been fully translated, based on its title and the context of the Theravāda Vinaya Piṭaka, Cīvarapucchā focuses on detailed questions about the use, preservation, and handling of monastic robes according to the rules of Vinaya discipline.

Typical questions in this section concern the regulations on how many robes a monastic may possess, how robes are to be made and repaired, situations in which exchanging or receiving robes from laypeople is permitted or forbidden, and the offenses that may arise. The Buddha teaches that robes are not for adornment or sensual desire, but for covering the body, protection against cold, and expressing freedom from ordinary attachment.

The Buddha’s answers in the Upali-paripucchā always contain wisdom: at times considering the context and the circumstances of each individual or community, and at times distinguishing between grave offenses (pārājika, pācittiya) and minor offenses. This shows that the Vinaya is not a set of heartless rigid laws, but flexible guidance intended to protect the settled mind of practice.