San Mu Bu Pm GBM 3 Ss 7Building a Dwelling
Pāli / Sanskrit:Vihārakāra
Save your scripture progress
Create a free account to save scriptures, track progress, and continue your daily learning path.
The Sūtra on Building a Monastic Dwelling (Vihārakāra)
Background
The Vihārakāra Sūtra (Building a Monastic Dwelling) is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda tradition, in the Pāli Canon, and is part of the detailed regulations for communal life among monks and nuns. This is not a sūtra expounding transcendent Dharma, but a legal regulation (Vinaya), rules established by the Buddha Śākyamuni to govern the Sangha, protect pure practice, and maintain harmony in the monastic community.
In the historical context of early Buddhism, monks and nuns needed residences for practicing the Dharma, especially during periods of rain and the rainy season. Thus, the construction of vihāras, monastic dwellings, became a practical need. However, the manner of construction, the use of communal property, and rules concerning fairness and discipline all had to be clearly regulated. The Vihārakāra Sūtra is this guidance.
Main Content
This sūtra governs the practical aspects of building and managing monastic dwellings in the Sangha. Specifically, it addresses principles for using communal property, the process of collective decision-making, and the responsibilities of those entrusted with managing construction.
According to the Vinaya tradition, any construction or repair of a monastic dwelling must be approved by the entire Sangha through a lawful act of authorization, ordination procedure, or proper Sangha meeting. No one, whether a respected monastic or a wealthy patron, has the right to decide exclusively.
The sūtra also regulates expenses, the selection of materials, and the treatment of those entrusted with managing the work. The final purpose is to ensure that all such activity serves common practice and does not turn into a tool for accumulating personal power or causing discord in the Sangha.
Practical Meaning
Although the Vihārakāra Sūtra is a specific legal regulation from the Buddha’s lifetime, its deeper meaning still applies to monastics and Buddhist communities today.
🌏 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.