Xct Mu Bi Pc 103Dismissing a Companion

The Dutiyikauyyojana Rule: Exposition of the Vinaya

Background

The Dutiyikauyyojana rule (Pāli: dutiyika = second, uyyojana = separation) belongs to the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Theravāda tradition, recording rules governing collective life in the Sangha. This rule is found in the Vinaya Piṭaka, where the Buddha and the elders of the Sangha established rules to maintain discipline, harmony, and diligence within the monastic community.

The background of this rule concerns problems arising among bhikkhus or bhikkhunīs living in the same monastery or practice group. When conflict, discord, or inappropriate behavior occurs, the Sangha needs a mechanism to maintain integrity and harmony. The Dutiyikauyyojana rule refers to a situation in which a bhikkhu is excluded or “separated” from the community, or to a second procedure in serious disciplinary cases.

Main Content

This rule records principles relating to the exclusion of a member from the monastic community when that person violates important rules or deliberately provokes division. “Separation” (uyyojana) is not an arbitrary punishment, but a final measure carried out by the Sangha after repeated admonitions.

According to the early Vinaya tradition, the exclusion of a bhikkhu must follow specific conditions. First, the Sangha must be clearly informed of that person’s faults, and that person must be given the opportunity to correct them and show remorse. If after the first warning (paṭhamuyyojana) and the second warning (dutiyikauyyojana) that person still stubbornly refuses to change, only then does the Sangha have the right to carry out a formal act of exclusion.

The rule states clearly that exclusion must be carried out openly, with the participation of all or the majority of the bhikkhus in the Sangha. It is not the decision of an individual or a small group, but the consensus of the community.