San Sarv Bu Pm Tf 11 Ss 3Indecent Speech

Duṭṭhullavācā Sutta - Indecent Speech

Context

The Duṭṭhullavācā Sutta (Indecent Speech) is found in the Pātimokkha, the fundamental ethical rules of the Vinaya Piṭaka in the Theravāda tradition. It is one of the teachings related to the training rules (Sikkhāpada) of the Buddhist monastic community.

In the Vinaya context, this teaching was given when the Buddha discovered monks behaving in ways inconsistent with the dignity proper to one gone forth. Specifically, the Buddha witnessed monks using crude speech, insults, or provocative words that caused mental injury to others both within the religious community and in society at large.

The Vinaya Piṭaka is a collection of detailed regulations concerning the discipline and ethics of the monastic community, established by the Buddha to protect the harmony, respect, and spirit of practice of that community. Each rule has a specific origin story, recorded in the Sutta-vibhaṅga, the section giving detailed explanation of the rules.

Main Content

The rule concerning Duṭṭhullavācā emphasizes that monks should not use coarse, vulgar, or offensive speech. “Duṭṭhu” in Pāli means “coarse, vulgar,” while “vācā” means “speech.” Thus this text prohibits disrespectful, provocative, or ignoble language contrary to the noble nature of Buddhism.

The act of speaking coarse words is regarded as a violation of the Dhamma, the teaching. It not only hurts the listener but also reflects the mental state of the speaker: a mind still filled with greed, hatred, and delusion, and lacking loving-kindness (mettā). This rule applies to all monks, regardless of seniority or position, because respect and humaneness are foundations of practice.

This text also suggests that the speech of renunciants should accord with the Buddha’s teaching: it should be truthful, beneficial, comfortable, arising from a wholesome heart, and spoken with compassionate intention. Such speech is called “Subhāsitavācā,” speech worthy of being spoken.