San Lo Bi Vb Pc 126Scents and Colors

The Scents and Colors Sutta (Gandhavaṇṇaka)

Background

The Scents and Colors Sutta belongs to the Vinaya of the Pāli Canon, in the Patimokkha Samvarāya section, the detailed discipline of monks. The issue addressed by this sutta concerns the use of fragrances and coloring substances in the life of practice, a theme suited to the climate of ancient India, where the venerable teachers had to live in a land of much sun and warmth.

In the early period of the Buddhist Dharma, monks and nuns needed to observe disciplinary rules (Vinaya) in order to preserve spiritual purity. Regulations concerning personal aesthetics, such as the use of fragrance or coloring substances, were regarded as addressing means that could easily arouse craving, pride in appearance, or attention to bodily beauty, matters opposed to the liberated way of life of the practitioner.

Main Content

The Scents and Colors Sutta specifically deals with matters concerning a monk’s use of fragrances (gandha) and coloring pigments (vaṇṇa) on the body. According to the Theravāda Vinaya, using these substances for adornment or beautification of oneself is considered a violation of a particular rule in the Patimokkha. Specifically, this rule belongs to the Pācittiya class, an offense entailing confession, one of the lighter types of violation requiring public confession before the Sangha.

The law is established not because the material nature of fragrance or color is “bad” in itself, but because they are often used as expressions of personal craving, attachment to sensuality, or the wish to attract attention from others. These factors become obstacles on the path toward nirvana (Nibbāna). The sutta teaches that a practitioner needs to preserve simplicity and avoid every form of “adorning” or “decorating” oneself in order to attract.

However, the Vinaya also acknowledges reasonable exceptions.