Xct Mu Bi Pd 1Asking for Milk
Pāli / Sanskrit:Khīraviññāpana
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Sutra on Asking for Milk (Khīraviññāpana)
Background
The Sutra on Asking for Milk is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka of the Pāli Canon, reflecting an event related to the management of the monastic community in the Buddha's time. This is not a theoretical legal sutra but a practical record of how ordinary issues in the common life of the Sangha were handled.
The Vinaya Piṭaka is regarded as the ethical and disciplinary foundation of the Theravāda Buddhist community, developed from the principles laid down by the Buddha to protect harmony and purity in the monastic community. The regulations in the Vinaya Piṭaka are not rigid commands but practical instructions, built upon loving-kindness and profound understanding of human nature.
Main Content
The specific content of the Khīraviññāpana Sutra has not been fully translated in this material; however, based on the context of the Vinaya Piṭaka and the nature of the issue, this sutra concerns monastics (bhikkhu/bhikkhunī) asking for milk or essential requisites for the life of practice.
In the Theravāda tradition, regulations concerning requests for material things reflect the principle of balance between self-sufficiency and economic independence. When the Buddha and his disciples were living, the Sangha depended on offerings from lay Buddhist devotees (upāsaka/upāsikā). However, asking had to follow certain principles: it should not be abused, it had to be sincere, and it had to be consistent with the minimalist life that monastics pursue.
The regulations in the Vinaya concerning this issue remind us that, although living under the support of the community, monastics must maintain the spirit of non-attachment, freedom from greed, and never abuse the trust of donors. This reflects a distinctive feature of the Buddhadharma: practice is never separated from real life and one's relationship with society.
Practical Meaning
The Sutra on Asking for Milk teaches us that in daily life, even small matters such as asking for milk or minimal requisites need to be handled with mindfulness and ethics.
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