Mpt Ss 4Encouraging Someone to Serve One’s Desires
Pāli / Sanskrit:Attakāmpāricariya
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The Attakāmpāricariya Sutta: On Encouraging Service for Personal Desires
Background
The Attakāmpāricariya Sutta (Pāli: attakāma = personal desire; pāricariya = service, attendance) is part of the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda tradition, specifically the Pāli Canon. This is the sacred legal collection within the community of bhikkhus, bhikkhunīs, and the Sangha from the time of the Buddha Gotama down to the present day.
The content of this sutta revolves around a practical issue in the Sangha: when a bhikkhu should not encourage others, especially attendants and servants, to take part in activities serving his personal desires. This is part of the Suttavibhaṅga, the detailed exposition of the precepts, within Pātimokkhasaṁvara, the basic code of the Sangha.
The historical context shows that bhikkhus had attendants and household helpers. The legal question arose: may a bhikkhu lawfully encourage them to perform tasks for his personal benefit? This is a subtle matter of ethics and discipline in the monastic community.
Main Content
According to the spirit of the Vinaya Pitaka, this sutta teaches that a bhikkhu must not encourage, urge, or persuade others to serve his private desires. The phrase “attakāma” (personal desire) here does not refer only to sinful desires, but to personal needs that go beyond the requisites essential for the monastic life: food, clothing, lodging, and medicine.
The sutta teaches that encouraging others to serve one’s personal desires is a violation of a bhikkhu’s ethics. If a bhikkhu has a need, he should do it himself, or accept help calmly without encouraging or pressuring. The act of actively encouraging reveals a state of greed and failure to follow the principle of “fewness of desires” (appicchata), which the Buddha always emphasized.
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