Xct Mu Bi Pm Pc 81Not Ordaining Trainees After She Follows
Pāli / Sanskrit:Anubandha-sikkhamānana-vuṭṭhāpana
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The Vinaya on Not Receiving Trainees After a Bhikkhunī Has Renounced
Background
This text belongs to the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda Buddhist tradition, situated within the Pātimokkha section pertaining to bhikkhunīs. The appearance of this rule records an actual situation that arose within the female monastic community during the time of the Buddha: the question of the responsibility of a bhikkhunī who serves as instructor to female probationers (sikkhamānās) when she herself decides to abandon the training.
In the Theravāda tradition, a sikkhamānā is not a novice nun (sāmanerī), but rather an intermediate stage of training in which she observes eight precepts. The preceptress-instructor (ācārinī) bears the responsibility of teaching and guiding these women until they receive full bhikkhunī ordination. This text establishes a clear boundary regarding what is not permitted in such circumstances.
Main Content
The rule of Anubandha-sikkhamānana-vuṭṭhāpana stipulates: a bhikkhunī is not permitted to continue instructing or formally receiving sikkhamānās if she herself has relinquished the precepts—that is, if she has abandoned her own training. The term "anubandha" carries the meaning of "following after" or "continuing in succession," indicating the legal and spiritual bond between teacher and student. When that relationship is severed because she has herself renounced the precepts, her authority to guide others automatically ceases to be in effect.
This rule is not merely administrative in nature; it carries profound ethical significance. One who no longer upholds the precepts purely does not possess sufficient meditative composure (sammā-samādhi) or wisdom (sammā-paññā) to guide others on the path of practice. Buddhist education rests upon the radiant example of the teacher; if that radiant example is extinguished, the student will be left in obscurity.
This rule also serves to protect sikkhamānās from losing their faith in the Saṅgha, the Jewel of the Community.
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