San Mg Bu Pm Np 25Rainy-Season Robes
Pāli / Sanskrit:Vassikasāṭika
Save your scripture progress
Create a free account to save scriptures, track progress, and continue your daily learning path.
THE VASSIKASĀṬIKA SCRIPTURE - THE RAINY-SEASON SKIRT-CLOTH
Background
Vassikasāṭika, provisionally translated as “Rainy-Season Skirt-Cloth,” is a pericope in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda Buddhist tradition. This code records the regulations that the Buddha laid down for the Bhikkhusaṃgha in order to maintain discipline and harmony within the community of renunciants. The Vassikasāṭika scripture specifically concerns the regulation on wearing robes during the rainy season, an important period in the Buddhist calendar of Southeast Asia, when monastics settle in one place for the rains retreat (Vassa).
In the historical context, the rainy season was a difficult period for travel and caused small living beings to proliferate. Therefore, the Buddha encouraged bhikkhus to remain in one place for three months during this season in order to concentrate on practice, study the Dharma, and observe the Sangha discipline. The regulation on the rainy-season skirt-cloth is part of the Vinaya system intended to protect the body, maintain health, and practice austerity (tapa).
Main Content
The Vassikasāṭika scripture prescribes that bhikkhus should prepare or receive a special robe for the rainy season (vassikasāṭika). This regulation is not only practical but also bears profound meaning in practice.
According to the Vinaya Piṭaka, each bhikkhu is permitted to possess three robes (Tassa navaratanāni, that is, the three minimal robes): the upper robe (uttarāsaṅga), the outer robe (saṅghāṭī), and the inner robe (antaravāsaka). The rainy-season skirt-cloth is an additional item, issued to protect against dampness and illness. Its distribution follows the republican principle, without enticement or discrimination among bhikkhus.
The scripture clearly records the conditions for distribution: the appropriate time, usually at the beginning of the rainy season, the public procedure before the Sangha, and the consent of the whole assembly. In particular, the Vinaya Piṭaka also states the responsibility of bhikkhus who are able to support other bhikkhus or new bhikkhus with few possessions.
🌏 The Buddhist canon is vast — some sūtras (such as comparative Vinaya across schools, or untranslated Tibetan-canon texts) have to this day NEVER been translated into Vietnamese or English by anyone, scholars included. Rather than leave it blank, Inti AI offers a FAITHFUL summary grounded in the tradition — from the sūtra's title, origin and essence — so you can still reach this rare part of the treasury. Whenever an original translation exists, the app shows the original first.
Translations belong to the translator/source credited above. The bilingual compilation, presentation, and AI translations compiled by Inti are © Inti Foundation. Please attribute when quoting; do not bulk-copy or use commercially without permission.