San Mu Bu Pm GBM 3 Sk 107On Plants
Pāli / Sanskrit:Hariteuccāra
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THE DISCOURSE ON PLANTS - HARITEUCCĀRA
Background
The “On Plants” discourse (Hariteuccāra) is found in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Pāli Canon, the section of discipline governing the lives of monastics in the Sangha community. This discourse belongs to the detailed regulations concerning actions and daily practices that monks and nuns must observe in order to maintain purity of conduct.
The background of the discourse comes from the process of the Buddha and his disciples practicing in different regions and in different seasons. During this process, specific situations arose concerning interaction with plants and grasses in nature. The Buddha, with profound understanding of cause and effect (kamma) and respect for all life, instructed his disciples in specific rules intended to avoid unnecessary harm.
The word “Hariteuccāra” in Pāli is divided into “harita,” grass, greenery, and “uccāra,” removing or cutting off, reflecting content related to how plants are handled in daily life.
Main Content
The specific content of this discourse lies in the rules governing how monks and nuns should not carelessly destroy, cut, or damage plants. The discourse teaches that although plants do not have consciousness like animals, the act of cutting, crushing, or destroying them still reflects a careless state of mind lacking respect for life.
According to the Theravāda viewpoint, this rule is not an absolute prohibition. Monks and nuns may still use plants when necessary for survival, such as taking leaves for a bed or wood to build a hut or monastery. However, unnecessary destruction, careless destruction, or destruction through negligence are actions to be avoided.
This discourse is also connected with the broader Buddhist principle of “non-harming” (ahiṃsā), the first of the Five Precepts. Although plants are not “life” in the full sense, since they lack clear consciousness, respecting them reflects an attitude of compassion, carefulness, and avoidance of violence in every action.
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