San Mu Bu Pm GBM 3 Sk 1Evenly All Around
Pāli / Sanskrit:Parimaṇḍala
Save your scripture progress
Create a free account to save scriptures, track progress, and continue your daily learning path.
Explanation of the Parimaṇḍala Discourse
(The Discourse on the Complete Circle)
Background
The Parimaṇḍala discourse is found in the Vinaya Piṭaka, the collection of teachings that regulates the discipline of the Sangha in Theravāda Buddhism. The background of the discourse comes from the time when the Buddha was still living, when bhikkhus lived as a community practicing a shared path. The Vinaya Piṭaka is not an abstract exposition of doctrine, but consists of rules, specific events that arose, and the Buddha’s instructions for maintaining harmony, discipline, and spiritual practice in the Sangha.
The Parimaṇḍala discourse concerns the way work is organized and divided, and the management of communal property in the monastic community. The Pāli word “Parimaṇḍala” means circle, completeness, or being evenly divided on all sides. This reflects a basic principle of the Vinaya Piṭaka: everything in the Sangha must be arranged fairly, transparently, and openly.
Main Content
The Parimaṇḍala discourse addresses regulations concerning how communal property is divided, especially basic requisites, oil and wax, food, and other property of the Sangha. These regulations are not without basis, but arise from actual disputes that occurred among bhikkhus.
The main principle is “the complete circle,” meaning that every bhikkhu must be treated fairly, without discrimination or unjust preference. If communal property must be divided, it must be divided so that each person receives an equal share. The method of division must not be left for one or two people to decide, but must be carried out openly before the whole Sangha or those authorized by it.
The discourse also reflects upon the management of communal requisites and the principle that no one in the Sangha should receive unfair benefit from communal property. This is a concrete expression of Buddhist discipline aimed at avoiding disputes, jealousy, and disharmony in the monastic community.
🌏 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.