Xct Mu Bi Ss 13Renouncing the Training

The Discourse on Renouncing the Training

Sikkhaṁpaccācikkhaṇa

Background

The Sikkhaṁpaccācikkhaṇa discourse (Renouncing the Training) belongs to the Vinaya Piṭaka, the collection of training rules and discipline in the traditional Buddhist Sangha. This discourse records the Buddha's instructions concerning the process by which one gone forth (bhikkhu, bhikkhunī) may formally relinquish the vows and training they had promised to keep.

In the context of Early Buddhist practice, going forth is a solemn commitment to the Pañcasīla (the five basic precepts) and higher disciplines such as the Dasa Sīla (ten precepts). However, the Buddha also understood that the path of practice is not always suitable for everyone, and coercion does not lead to liberation. Therefore, this discourse prescribes a transparent and lawful process by which a bhikkhu or bhikkhunī may renounce the training if they feel they are no longer able to maintain it or see that it is not their path.

Main Content

The Sikkhaṁpaccācikkhaṇa discourse states clearly that renouncing the training is not an arbitrary or secret act. The one gone forth must publicly declare the decision before the Sangha or before the ācariyas (monastic teachers). This expresses a basic principle of the Vinaya Piṭaka: all important actions must be carried out transparently, with witnesses, and in proper order.

The declaration must be expressed clearly in speech (vacī), not through implicit action. The person must say clearly, "I renounce the training," or similar words before the teachers or the Sangha. When the declaration has been fully spoken, the person's status as one gone forth ends, and they are no longer bound by the training they had promised.

The discourse also implies that this renunciation is not punitive or shameful. It is a right recognized by the Buddha, expressing respect for the individual's free choice in whether to continue on the path of practice.