San Sarv Bu Pm Finot Ss 10Causing Schism in the Saṅgha
Pāli / Sanskrit:Saṅghabheda
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The Sutta on Causing Division in the Sangha (Saṅghabheda)
Background
The Saṅghabheda Sutta is found in the Vinaya Piṭaka, a core part of the traditional Theravada Pāli Canon. The Vinaya Pitaka is the collection of regulations on monastic discipline, intended to maintain the peace and purity of the Sangha, the community of practice.
This text addresses one of the gravest faults in collective practice: causing division in the Sangha (saṅghabheda). Division in the Sangha is not ordinary disagreement, but the deliberate act of breaking the consensus and unity of the monastic community. This is an offense against the highest level of ethical integrity and is regarded as one of the gravest sins (mahāpāpaka) in the bhikkhu Vinaya.
Openly causing division in the Sangha, especially through doctrinal disputes or uncooperative attitudes, is regarded as equivalent to creating a “wound” in the body of the Buddha Dharma. Buddhist history records major schisms, such as the division caused by Devadatta, a relative of the Buddha who attempted to establish a separate Sangha.
Main Content
The Saṅghabheda Sutta in the Vinaya Pitaka outlines the conditions and actions that lead to division in the Sangha. Its specific content focuses on deliberate efforts to separate members from the community or to cause conflict between groups of bhikkhus.
According to the Theravada tradition, division in the Sangha occurs when a person, usually an influential bhikkhu, persistently teaches doctrines different from what the Buddha and the elders have established. In particular, if that person intentionally attracts followers or other members to their own views, creating a split within the Sangha, then this is the act of causing division.
The criteria for determining division in the Sangha include: (1) the physical or mental separation of groups of monastics; (2) difference in fundamental doctrinal views; (3) refusal to follow the common regulations of the Sangha; and (4) the intentional character of the action.
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