San Mu Bu Pm GBM 3 Ss 8Making a Groundless Accusation Out of Anger
Pāli / Sanskrit:Duṭṭhadosa
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Exposition of the Duṭṭhadosa Sūtra (A Groundless Accusation from Anger)
Background
The Duṭṭhadosa Sūtra lies within the Vinaya Piṭaka, the disciplinary section of the Theravāda Buddha Dharma. The Vinaya Piṭaka does not merely regulate specific conduct that monastics must follow, but also tells of concrete situations that occurred in the early Sangha, from which the Buddha established ethical standards.
This sūtra speaks of a case in which a monastic, full of anger and hatred, accused another monastic without evidence or real basis. This act reflects one of the serious ethical violations, not because of a direct evil act, but because of an evil motive and a distortion of truth. It is a lesson on the power of anger (dosa) and how it distorts perception, leading to actions that harm the Sangha.
Main Content
According to the context of the Vinaya Piṭaka, when a monastic is groundlessly accused by another member, this creates conflict and division in the Sangha. This sūtra points out that an accusation based on anger is not the execution of justice, but the expression of an impure mind.
The Buddha taught that there are three kinds of motives that cause people to accuse others: greed (lobha), hatred (dosa), and delusion (moha), the three basic poisons. When an accusation arises from hatred, the accuser has allowed anger to influence reason. Such a person does not seek the truth, but seeks revenge or the display of power.
Related teachings in the Vinaya Piṭaka emphasize that an accusation is valid only if it is made with proper motive, clear evidence, and a calm state of mind, not governed by greed, hatred, delusion, or fear. If an accusation is made from anger, even if it is true, it is still regarded as an ethical violation.
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