San Mu Bu Pm GBM 3 Ss 12Corrupters of Families
Pāli / Sanskrit:Kuladūsaka
Save your scripture progress
Create a free account to save scriptures, track progress, and continue your daily learning path.
KULADŪSAKA SŪTRA: CORRUPTERS OF FAMILIES
Background
The Kuladūsaka Sūtra (those who ruin families) is found in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda tradition of the Buddha Dharma, reflecting the relationship between the Buddhist monastic order and lay society. During the Buddha’s lifetime, the issue of conduct by monks and nuns that was not in accord with the ethics of renunciants became a matter of grave concern. This sūtra was recorded as guidance for the monastic order to regulate itself, protect the honor of the religious community, and observe the disciplinary precepts.
In ancient Indian society, the family was the basic social unit. When monks or nuns violated the precepts, especially in matters related to sexual misconduct or improper behavior, this not only harmed personal honor but also destroyed the trust of families and villages in the Three Jewels. For this reason, rules concerning "those who ruin families" were established to protect the purity of the monastic order and maintain a harmonious relationship between monks and nuns and the lay community.
Main Content
The Kuladūsaka Sūtra refers to conduct by monks and nuns that violates prohibitions and causes families to be harmed and lose trust. Specifically, the sūtra points to monks and nuns who behave wrongly, such as lying, causing discord between householders and servants, abusing a family’s trust, or engaging in improper conduct connected with sexual misconduct.
Such people are called "Kuladūsaka," those who bring dishonor upon families. The sūtra emphasizes that their conduct not only violates the Patimokkha (227 rules for bhikkhus or 311 rules for bhikkhunīs), but also violates the spirit of the Buddhist life of practice: living simply, truthfully, and respectfully toward the householders who offer support.
The sūtra also records penalties and procedures for handling such cases within the monastic order. When a monk or nun is found to have conduct that ruins families, they must go through a process of bringing forward their wrongful action, acknowledging the fault, and accepting criticism from the monastic order.
🌏 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.