Xct Mu Bi Np 16Bribing Weavers
Pāli / Sanskrit:Mahāpesakāra
Save your scripture progress
Create a free account to save scriptures, track progress, and continue your daily learning path.
Exposition of the Mahāpesakāra Rule (Weavers Who Offer Bribes)
Background
The Mahāpesakāra rule is found in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Pāli Canon, especially in the section prescribing offenses for bhikkhus. It is an important part of the disciplinary code, in which the Blessed Buddha established precepts to protect harmony within the Sangha and maintain the pure way of life of his disciples.
In the social context of ancient India, weavers (pesakāra) were skilled craftsmen. This account reflects real situations encountered by the Blessed Buddha and the bhikkhus while living among lay communities. The Vinaya was established not for absolute punishment, but to guide conduct according to ethical principles, so as to preserve purity and internal discipline.
Main Content
The Mahāpesakāra rule records an incident involving weavers who tried to “bribe” or encourage bhikkhus so that they might gain certain benefits or influence their decisions. This conduct reflects a basic ethical problem: the intrusion of worldly motives into the pure environment of renunciant practice.
When the Blessed Buddha learned of this situation, he made clear that such conduct was not appropriate to the way of life of a bhikkhu. This rule not only warns bhikkhus about external temptations, but also clearly establishes principles for refusing or dealing with such inducements.
Through this rule, the Blessed Buddha emphasized that bhikkhus must maintain independence in their decisions and must not allow themselves to be influenced by material benefits or ambiguous personal relationships. This relates directly to observance of the first five training precepts (pañcasīla) and the higher principles of Buddhist ethics.
Practical Meaning
The Mahāpesakāra rule offers profound lessons for the monastic community and also for lay Buddhists.
🌏 The Buddhist canon is vast — some sūtras (such as comparative Vinaya across schools, or untranslated Tibetan-canon texts) have to this day NEVER been translated into Vietnamese or English by anyone, scholars included. Rather than leave it blank, Inti AI offers a FAITHFUL summary grounded in the tradition — from the sūtra's title, origin and essence — so you can still reach this rare part of the treasury. Whenever an original translation exists, the app shows the original first.
Translations belong to the translator/source credited above. The bilingual compilation, presentation, and AI translations compiled by Inti are © Inti Foundation. Please attribute when quoting; do not bulk-copy or use commercially without permission.