San Mg Bu Pm Pc 55Seeing a Mobilized Army
Pāli / Sanskrit:Uyyuttasenā
Save your scripture progress
Create a free account to save scriptures, track progress, and continue your daily learning path.
THE DISCOURSE ON SEEING A MOBILIZED ARMY (UYYUTTASENĀ)
Background
The Discourse on Seeing a Mobilized Army (Uyyuttasenā) is recorded as San Mg Bu Pm Pc 55 in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda Buddhist tradition. This discourse arises from the Buddha's teachings concerning the discipline (Vinaya) for the monastic community (Bhikkhu Sangha).
According to the traditional background, this situation concerns a bhikkhu witnessing an army marching past a place of practice, or a scene connected with social disturbance. This is one of the specific situations the Buddha used to teach about the limitations of the monastic life and the principles of conduct for bhikkhus.
The Vinaya Piṭaka is not merely a collection of peculiar rules, but practical guidance that deeply reflects how a practitioner should live in society responsibly, carefully, and mindfully.
Main Content
In this discourse, the Buddha or his disciples gave guidance on how to conduct oneself when witnessing events of a disturbing or divisive nature. Specifically, when seeing a mobilized army, a bhikkhu should be aware of the following aspects:
First, mindfulness of the impermanent nature (anicca) of all phenomena, including the formation and decline of military forces. An army, however powerful it may appear, cannot escape the natural law of arising and passing away.
Second, a bhikkhu practicing rightly according to the Dharma should avoid attention to, or attachment toward, worldly events that are not directly related to the Buddha's path. The attitude of "non-attachment" is central to practice.
Third, certain disciplinary rules may relate to the fact that a bhikkhu should not participate in activities that cause violence or are connected with the military, thereby maintaining the purity of the place of practice.
This discourse may also relate to the principle of "mindfulness in action" and to the distinction between living in the worldly realm while still preserving the purity of the mind in the Dharma.
🌏 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.