San Mu Bu Pm GBM 2 Pc 33Accepting Two or Three Bowls Full

Explanation of the Dvittipattapūrapaṭiggahaṇa Sutta

Accepting Two or Three Bowls Full

Background

This sutta is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda tradition and reflects detailed regulations on monastic discipline. In the early Buddhist period, when the Sangha had just been established, the Buddha issued restraints (Pātimokkha) to protect internal harmony and maintain meditative concentration in practice.

Issues related to eating habits and the receiving of requisites by bhikkhus are not trivial matters. They reflect the balance between the actual needs of the body and the absolute spirit of non-greed and non-indulgence. This sutta deals with a specific situation: whether a bhikkhu may accept two or three full bowls of food, and how this affects the settled mind of practice.

Main Content

According to the basic principle of the Vinaya Piṭaka, bhikkhus eat only one meal in the morning, from before dawn until noon, depending on the locality. Food is usually provided through almsround (piṇḍapāta), or by lay supporters.

The sutta records a strict prohibition: a bhikkhu should not accept two or three full bowls at one almsround or one offering. The basic reason is that if a bhikkhu accepts too much food, this may lead to three immediate consequences:

First, greed will arise in the mind. When one accepts more food than the body actually needs, the mind is drawn by desire, thereby weakening the spirit of renunciation.

Second, overindulgence in food may cause physical illness: an overfull belly, a confused mind, drowsiness, and difficulty concentrating in meditation (bhāvanā).

Third, this action causes laypeople to lose faith. If a bhikkhu keeps being greedy for food, those who offer may wonder whether Buddhism is truly a path of release from craving.