重治毗尼事義集要

I. THE PRACTICE OF DEPENDENCE

The second part[1] explains:

At that time, there were newly ordained bhikkhus whose preceptors had passed away and who had no one to instruct them. Consequently, they did not know how to maintain proper deportment... and so forth, and behaved like a gathering of brahmins.

The bhikkhus reported this to the Buddha. The Buddha permitted those in such circumstances to request an acarya, as explained under the matter of the “Preceptor.” The request should be made as follows:

“May the Venerable One be mindful of me! I, the bhikkhu named..., now request the Venerable One to be my teacher of dependence. May the Venerable One grant me dependence. I shall live in dependence upon the Venerable One.” (Repeat three times.)

The one being requested says:

“Very well, I permit you to depend upon me. Do not be heedless.”

If a newly ordained bhikkhu wishes to dwell in a secluded place, he is permitted to maintain dependence elsewhere, provided that he can return within the same day.

One should not appoint someone else to receive dependence or to grant dependence on one’s behalf.

One should not fail to examine either the person receiving dependence or the person granting dependence.

One who is ill or caring for the ill may dwell separately without dependence.

The Mahasanghika Vinaya explains:

There are five qualities involved in requesting dependence:

1) Affection.

2) Respect.

3) A sense of moral shame.

4) A sense of moral dread.

5) A desire to live together.

There are four kinds of acarya:

1) One who provides neither sustenance nor instruction in the true Dharma. There is no need to inform such a person; one may simply leave.

2) One who provides sustenance but does not give instruction in the true Dharma. One should inform such a person before leaving.

3) One who does not provide sustenance but gives instruction in the teachings. Although life with such a person may be difficult, one should never leave for the rest of one’s life.

4) One who both provides sustenance and gives instruction in the teachings. Even if such a person drives one away, one should never leave for the rest of one’s life.

If a disciple does not heed instruction, the person responsible for beds and bedding should be told not to provide him with them, and the duty officer should be told not to allocate him a portion of food. If that person is fierce and powerful and might cause harm, the preceptor should withdraw. The teacher of dependence should place his robes and bowl outside the boundary for one night; this terminates the dependence of the person who does not heed instruction.

If a preceptor or acarya is at fault, the disciple should admonish him, but should not use harsh words in doing so. In accordance with the Dharma of instruction, he should speak courteously so that the teacher will refrain from that act. It is well if the teacher listens and complies. If, on the contrary, the teacher commits further offenses, reproaches the disciple, and rejects the admonition, the disciple should keep his distance. If the person is an acarya, the disciple should take his robes and bowl outside the boundary, stay there for one night, and then return to take dependence upon another... If that person is powerful, the disciple should keep far away from him.

When one is dependent upon a virtuous person, if that preceptor dies, renounces the monastic life, is suspended for an offense, or sleeps outside the boundary, or if the disciple himself sleeps outside the boundary, this is called being without dependence.

The same applies if the acarya dies, renounces the monastic life, is suspended for an offense, or sleeps outside the boundary, or if the disciple sleeps outside the boundary.

If one has completed five rains retreats and clearly understands the Dharma and the Vinaya, one is permitted to leave dependence; this is called relinquishing dependence.

If a bhikkhu does not clearly understand the Dharma, does not understand the Vinaya, cannot establish himself, and cannot guide others, he may never live apart from dependence for the rest of his life.

If one has completed ten rains retreats, clearly understands the Dharma and the Vinaya, is able to establish himself, and is able to establish others, such a bhikkhu may accept others in dependence.

The Mahisasaka Vinaya explains:

One is permitted to remain without taking dependence for up to six nights.

When a disciple wishes to go elsewhere, it is essential that he inform his teacher two or three days before departing. The teacher should ascertain whether there is someone at the place to which the disciple wishes to move upon whom he may depend; only then should he allow him to go.

Whenever one arrives at a residence, one must first pay homage to the stupa and then to the senior bhikkhu. Next, one should request lodging, and only afterward seek dependence. The person asked to grant dependence should inquire: “Who are your two teachers—your preceptor and your acarya?

Where did you formerly reside? Which sutras do you ordinarily recite?” If the person seeking dependence answers in accordance with the Dharma, he should be accepted into dependence. If he does not answer in accordance with the Dharma, he should be told: “You do not know me, and I do not know you.

You should approach someone acquainted with you and request dependence from him.” If there is doubt, he should be told to wait for a period of time. He may wait for up to six nights while being observed. If he proves agreeable, he should be granted dependence.

If he does not, he should be answered as explained above.

One should not take dependence upon the Sangha or a stupa, but upon a senior, a bhikkhu who practices in accordance with the Dharma and is capable of giving instruction.

The Sarvastivada Vinaya explains:

One must possess five qualities and have completed five rains retreats to be exempt from seeking dependence. These five qualities are:

1) Knowing what constitutes an offense.

2) Knowing what does not constitute an offense.

3) Knowing minor offenses.

4) Knowing grave offenses.

5) Reciting the Pratimoksha, being widely learned, and speaking skillfully.

If one has long been ordained as a bhikkhu but does not know the above five qualities, one should remain dependent upon another for the rest of one’s life.

A senior bhikkhu should also seek and receive dependence from a junior bhikkhu if he does not yet possess the above five qualities. In such a case, he must still attend upon and make offerings to the junior bhikkhu, except for making prostrations.

One is permitted to remain without dependence for five or six nights without committing an offense. If there is a good teacher of dependence available, yet one does not take dependence, then even remaining so for a single night constitutes a duskrta offense; one may not even use the Sangha’s water for washing feet.

In a time of famine, if possible, one should visit the preceptor every day and may remain there. If this is not possible, one should visit once every five days. If one cannot visit every five days, one must come at the time of the Uposatha. If one cannot come for the Uposatha because the distance is as great as two and a half yojanas, one should still visit the preceptor on the day of the Pavarana.

The Mulasarvastivada Nidana explains:

If one has not completed five rains retreats, then even if one possesses the five qualities, is thoroughly versed in the Tripitaka, has fully realized the Three Knowledges, and has eliminated the three defilements, one must still remain in dependence. If one has completed five rains retreats, one is permitted to leave dependence and travel about teaching, but wherever one goes, one must take dependence.

If one has the intention to seek a teacher of dependence, one may remain apart from dependence for five nights. If one has no intention to seek a teacher of dependence, one may not remain apart from dependence for even a single night.

If one dwells among the Sangha without dependence and partakes of food and drink... none of this is permissible. This applies throughout one’s first ten rains retreats.

The Ekasatakarman explains:

Even if one has been ordained as a bhikkhu for sixty rains retreats and is eighty years of age, if one has never read or recited the Pratimoksha Sutra and does not understand its meaning, one must still depend upon an elder. If there is no elder, one may depend upon a young bhikkhu. In such a case, apart from making prostrations, one must perform all other services as a pupil does for his teacher. Such a person should be called an old bhikkhu who is still a child.

The Ksudrakavastu says:

If circumstances require one to travel far away temporarily, but one will certainly return, one should mentally maintain dependence upon one’s former teacher, without needing to take dependence again.

Both the dependence teacher and the teacher who instructs one in recitation must be honored, attended upon, and provided for. If both fall ill, one should care for both if able. If unable, one should provide for the dependence teacher.

If there is no teacher to instruct one in recitation, one may, according to circumstances, stay there temporarily. But it is not valid to stay temporarily without a dependence teacher. There was a bhiksu who, at one residence, served as dependence teacher for many disciples.

When that bhiksu passed away, there was no one upon whom they could depend. The Buddha said: “Seek a virtuous person. He should be provided with good lodging, exempted from duties, honored and attended upon, and fully supplied with bedding and requisites, lacking nothing.

If there is no such person, one may not remain there beyond the second Posadha.”

Again, if the dependence teacher passes into nirvana before the rains retreat, the Buddha said that one must seek a dependence teacher as in the case above. If none is available, one should go to another residence to seek a dependence teacher and then undertake the later rains retreat.

If, during the later rains retreat, the teacher dies, the Buddha said that throughout the rainy-season months the bhiksus should watch over and admonish one another, and carefully dwell together. After the rainy season, they should obtain someone upon whom to depend and provide him fully with everything as explained above. If no such person is available, they may not remain beyond the second Purification Ceremony.

They may go to other residences to seek a dependence teacher. If the original preceptor passes into nirvana, and so forth, the matter should likewise be handled as above.

The Vinaya-matrka Sutra clearly states:

After undertaking dependence, if one requests permission to leave the boundary for seven days and returns to the monastery within the full seven days, the dependence is not lost.

II. QUALIFICATIONS OF A TEACHER

The second section[2] explains:

Venerable Hòa-tiên, who had only two rains of seniority, brought a disciple with one rain of seniority before the Blessed One. Although the Blessed One already knew, he pointed to the disciple and asked:

“Who is this bhiksu?”

Venerable Hòa-tiên replied:

“He is my disciple.”

The Buddha asked Venerable Hòa-tiên:

“How many rains of seniority do you presently have?”

Venerable Hòa-tiên replied:

“I have two rains.”

The Buddha again asked:

“How many rains does your disciple have?”

Venerable Hòa-tiên replied:

“My disciple has one rain.”

The Blessed One then rebuked him in every way:

“What you have done is wrong. It is not proper deportment, not the Dharma of a sramana, not pure conduct, and not conduct in accordance with the Way. You have done what ought not to be done. Hòa-tiên! You have not yet ceased suckling milk, yet you undertake to instruct another. How can you teach him?

“From now on, I permit only a wise bhiksu who has completed ten rains to confer the full ordination upon another and to grant dependence. The duties of a preceptor and an acarya must be carried out as follows:

“If the Sangha performs upon one’s disciple a karman of censure, expulsion, dependence, prohibition from entering laypeople’s homes, suspension for refusing to acknowledge an offense, suspension for refusing to repent, or suspension for refusing to relinquish a wrong view, the preceptor should handle the matter in accordance with the Dharma, or by some means cause the Sangha not to perform that karman upon the disciple. If the Sangha does perform it, he should see that the matter is handled legally and in accordance with the Dharma, teaching his disciple to comply with the Sangha without opposition, and to seek the removal of his fault so that the Sangha may promptly rescind the karman.

“If the disciple commits a Sanghavasesa offense, the preceptor should handle the matter in accordance with the Dharma. As appropriate, he should impose parivasa, treatment from the beginning, manatta, or rehabilitation from the offense.

“Furthermore, if the disciple falls ill, the preceptor should care for him or appoint someone to care for him until he recovers or dies.

“If the disciple is unhappy practicing in that place, the preceptor should either take him elsewhere himself or ask another person to take him.

“If the disciple has doubts, the preceptor should resolve them in accordance with the Dharma, the Vinaya, the Buddha’s teaching, and proper procedure.”

The Karman Manual compiled by Master Đàm-đế[3] clearly states:

– DHARMA: There are only five practices of distancing oneself:

1) Renunciation, not worldly ways.

2) Transcending attachment, not accepting and clinging.

3) Freedom from desire, not possession of desire.

4) Freedom from fetters, not possession of fetters.

5) Not drawing near to birth and death, rather than drawing near to them.

– VINAYA: These are the five essential practices of deliverance:

1) Few desires, not many desires.

2) Contentment, not insatiability.

3) Easy to protect, not difficult to protect.

4) Easy to support, not difficult to support.

5) Wisdom, not delusion.

– THE BUDDHA’S TEACHING: These are the five practices of instruction:

1) Prohibit what is blameworthy.

2) Permit what is blameless.

3) Whether prohibited or permitted, if a Dharma is deficient, point it out in accordance with the Dharma.

4) Subdue and admonish those who repeatedly transgress.

5) Lovingly remember and praise genuine virtue.

(Provisional translation:

Dharma is that which guides us out of the suffering of the world, beyond the matter of grasping and appropriation, free from sensual desire and free from bondage.

Vinaya is the method for escaping samsara: one must have few desires, be content, cultivate disenchantment, maintain restraint, and live by exceedingly simple and easy means; one must possess wisdom in order to discern and select.

The Buddha’s teachings are these: What is wrong is prohibited; what is beneficial and harmless is permitted. To do what is prohibited is an offense, and to fail to do what is permitted is an offense: “To act when told to desist is an offense; to desist when told to act is an offense.” Those who transgress repeatedly must be compelled to establish mindfulness. Genuine virtue should be praised.)[4]

If one’s disciple gives rise to a wrong view, one must instruct him to relinquish the wrong view and abide in right view. One must support and protect him with the Dharma, robes, and food, teaching him the higher morality, higher mind, and higher wisdom. One must teach him to study and recite the sutras. According to one’s ability, one must provide him with robes and food, bedding, and medicines.

There are five ways to reprimand a disciple:

1) Tell him, “Go away” (go wherever you wish).

2) “Do not enter my room.”

3) “Do not attend upon me any longer.”

4) “Do not come to me.”

5) “I will no longer speak with you.”

(If the teacher is an acarya, the fourth is changed to: “Do not depend upon me any longer.”)

A disciple should be reprimanded for five matters:

1) Having no sense of shame.

2) Having no sense of moral dread.

3) Refusing instruction.

4) Lacking proper deportment.

5) Being disrespectful.

There are another five matters for which reprimand is necessary:

1) Having no sense of shame.

2) Having no sense of moral dread.

3) Not listening when spoken to, that is, not heeding instruction.

4) Delighting in associating with evil persons.

5) Delighting in visiting the houses of prostitutes.

Also, delighting in visiting women’s houses, the houses of unmarried girls, the houses of eunuchs, bhiksuni monasteries, the monasteries of siksamanas or sramaneris, and places of prostitution—such conduct should be reprimanded.

– One should not reprimand continually.

– One should not reprimand immediately after the rains retreat.

– One should not reprimand someone while he is ill.

– One should not reprimand someone in his absence.

– One should not reprimand without clearly stating the offense.

– Having reprimanded him, one should not immediately accept his service or command him. One should not grant him dependence.

– Another person may be permitted to guide him, so that, before both teachers, he may repent in accordance with the Dharma and harmony may be restored.

– One should not entice away another person’s disciple and take him under one’s own care.

– If, however, both of that disciple’s teachers have broken the precepts and so forth, one may do so with this thought: “I shall lead their disciple away so that the Dharma of the sramana may increase and flourish,” thereby awakening and admonishing both of his teachers.

– When a disciple repents in accordance with the Dharma, the teacher should accept his repentance.

– When a disciple asks permission from both teachers to travel afar, they should ask: “For what purpose are you going? Who will be your companion? Where are you going?” If they perceive anything unwholesome in the matter, they should prevent him and not permit him to go.

The fourth section[5] states:

One may not maintain two sramaneras. If, however, one is able to instruct them in discipline, the higher mind, higher wisdom, higher learning, and chanting and recitation, one is permitted to maintain them.

The Mahasanghika Vinaya states:

One should not think of keeping a novice so that he may serve oneself. One should think that one is guiding him so that, through relying upon oneself, he may cultivate wholesome dharmas and attain the fruit of the path.

It is impossible for one who cannot subdue oneself to subdue others.

It is impossible for one who cannot discipline oneself to discipline others; for one who cannot deliver oneself to deliver others; or for one who has not yet attained liberation to liberate others. None of these things is possible.

One must fulfill the following ten qualities before one may admit another to the homeless life and confer the Full Ordination:

1) Observing the precepts.

2) Having studied many treatises and thoroughly comprehended them.

3) Having extensively studied and thoroughly comprehended the Vinaya.

4) Having studied the precept rules.

5) Having studied meditative concentration.

6) Having studied wisdom.

7) Being able to absolve offenses and to teach others how to absolve offenses.

8) Being able to care for the sick and to teach others how to care for the sick.

9) When a disciple encounters difficulties, being able to resolve those difficulties swiftly and to enable that person to attain liberation swiftly.

10) Having completed ten rains retreats. One who has just completed ten rains retreats but knows both divisions of the Vinaya may also admit others to the homeless life. The same applies to accepting persons into dependence.

One should not keep many novices. One should keep no more than three novices. If a bhikkhu of great virtue is revered by many people who request to practice under him, he should say to another venerable elder: “I know that there are people who wish only to live near the master so that they may study the scriptures and Dharma and thereby advance their cultivation of the path.” Only then should he personally instruct them.

The Compendium of Vinaya says:

One who has completed ten rains retreats holds the position of a teacher, but must also fulfill five qualities:

1) Knowing what constitutes an offense.

2) Knowing what does not constitute an offense.

3) Knowing what constitutes a minor offense.

4) Knowing what constitutes a grave offense.

5) Thoroughly understanding the profound meaning of the Pratimoksha Sutra; clearly understanding the conditions that occasioned the establishment of each rule in the training precepts and the circumstances under which dispensations were subsequently permitted; and knowing how to apply them when other adverse circumstances arise. He regularly recites the Pratimoksha and can resolve the doubts of others. He understands much concerning the precepts and Vinaya, benefiting both himself and others.

His deportment and observances never violate the rules. One fully endowed with such virtue is called a preceptor. Only by relying upon a preceptor can one be taught the Dharma of emancipation.

Although one may be a bhikkhu, if one does not know which training precepts are grave and which are light, then even after sixty rains retreats one must still live in dependence upon a wise and virtuous master. If that wise and virtuous master is younger, one is exempt only from bowing to him but must serve him in all other matters. Such a person is called an elderly junior bhikkhu and may not admit another to the homeless life or confer the Full Ordination.

It would be better to become a butcher who creates the karma of killing than to admit someone to the homeless life as a bhikkhu and then abandon him without instruction, thereby causing My True Dharma to perish prematurely.

If one fails to reprimand someone who deserves reprimand or reprimands someone who does not; if one fails to forgive someone who should be forgiven or forgives someone who should not, one commits an evil offense in every case.

If a person who has received Full Ordination as a bhikkhu does not practice respect and will not heed instruction, one should give him the six requisites—the three robes, bowl, sitting and bedding cloth, and water-straining bag—and expel him, telling him to go elsewhere. If he is a novice, one should give him two robes—the lower robe and the robe worn over the left shoulder—and likewise expel him, telling him to go wherever he wishes.

If faithful parents bring their young child to a bhikkhu, the bhikkhu should accept the child. If they later ask for the child back, he should return the child to them. If they accept money, the bhikkhu may give them whatever amount is appropriate, whether much or little, without committing an offense. While the child stays with the bhikkhu, the bhikkhu should wrap a strip of kasaya cloth around the child’s neck and raise and instruct the child as appropriate. After the child has matured, if the parents, thinking to repay the kindness, bring offerings, the bhikkhu may accept them at his discretion.

The Five-Part Vinaya says:

When admitting someone to the homeless life, one should ask: “For what reason do you seek to go forth?” If he says, “For food and clothing,” one should not admit him. If he says, “To seek the wholesome Dharma, being weary of birth, death, aging, sickness, sorrow, lamentation, suffering, and distress,” one should admit him.

The Mulasarvastivada Ksudrakavastu says:

Before admitting someone to the homeless life, one must first prepare the six requisites: the three robes, bedding, bowl, and water-straining bag.

The Nidana says:

When admitting a novice, one should also provide him with an alms bowl, a small bowl, and a complete set of utensils, allowing nothing to be lacking.

The Vinaya-Matrka Sutra says:

After conferring the Full Ordination, one should spend one year teaching the ordinand everything a bhikkhu must do. Thereafter, when another person requests the Full Ordination, one may confer it. Before the completion of that year, one should not consent to confer it. After a novice has received the Great Ordination, he may accept another novice as a disciple. With regard to dependence, it is likewise only after one year that he may accept another person into dependence. One may not accept two persons into dependence at the same time.

The Samantapasadika says:

In the language of the Han, the term “Upadhyaya” is rendered as: One who knows what constitutes an offense and what does not constitute an offense is called an Upadhyaya.

The Sarvastivada Treatise says:

Before conferring the precepts, one must first expound the Dharma, guiding the candidate’s mind so that he understands clearly and causing him to give rise to compassion for all sentient beings. When he has attained the higher mind, he attains the higher precepts.

(This “guidance of the ordination candidate” should be conducted skillfully before he ascends the ordination platform, with the primary aim of enabling him to understand clearly. How could it be permissible to wait until the Sangha—the “Ten Masters”—has assembled and is about to perform the karman, and only then read aloud a long written text? The assembly becomes weary from sitting for so long, while the ordination candidate, prostrate in worship, remains bewildered and understands nothing, rendering the entire exercise meaningless.)

The Record of the Buddhist Religion as Practised in India and the Malay Archipelago says:

A layman who comes to the dwelling of a bhikkhu, devotes himself to reciting the Buddha’s scriptures, shaves off his beard and hair, and wears a coarse brown robe is called a youth. One who seeks to study non-Buddhist texts and has no aspiration for emancipation is called a student. Both kinds of persons must provide for themselves.

The Noble Teaching wholly forbids them from using the permanent property of the Sangha. If they perform services for the Sangha, however, they may receive provisions in proportion to their work. They may also partake without concern of regular meals or of food that donors have previously intended for them.

In the Sangha monasteries of the Western Regions, many students come to the Sangha to study non-Buddhist texts. First, they can be assigned miscellaneous tasks by the Sangha; second, they may be taught to arouse wholesome intentions. Since supporting them benefits both oneself and others, there is no harm in doing so.

An alms bowl of food is, in principle, not burdensome; and if they provide even a little service, their presence is also useful. If one asks them to bring a single tooth-stick and then provides them with timely food and drink, this does no injury to the path of compassion.

The Sutra of the Bodhisattva’s Wholesome Precepts says:

From candalas to butchers, although they engage in evil karma, if they do not destroy the Tathagata’s True Dharma, they will not necessarily fall into the evil destinies. But a teacher who is unable to instruct and admonish his disciples thereby destroys the Buddha’s Dharma and will certainly fall into hell.

The Sutra on the Upasaka Precepts says:

It would be better to undertake evil precepts and sever the life faculties of innumerable beings in a single day than to keep corrupt and evil disciples who cannot be disciplined. Why is this so? Evil discipline harms only oneself, whereas keeping evil disciples whom one cannot instruct causes innumerable sentient beings to commit evil. They may slander innumerable sublime and wondrous teachings, disrupt the harmony of the Sangha, and cause many sentient beings to commit the five heinous offenses. Therefore, its harm is greater than that of evil discipline.

III. THE DISCIPLE’S DHARMA OF ATTENDING UPON THE TEACHER

The third section of the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya says:

Upadhyaya: The teacher from whom we receive the precepts.

Those Equal in Rank to the Upadhyaya: Teachers who, for the most part, have completed ten rains retreats.

There are five kinds of acarya[6]:

1) The Going-Forth Acarya is the teacher upon whom we rely in order to go forth.

2) The Ordination (karman) Acarya is the teacher who performs the karman procedure at the time of ordination.

3) The Instructing Acarya is the teacher who teaches deportment, precepts, and conduct.

4) The Scripture-Receiving Acarya is the teacher from whom we learn the sutras and their meanings.

5) The Reliance Acarya is the teacher upon whom we rely in order to live the life of religious practice, even if only for one night.

Such Acaryas have generally completed more than five rains retreats.

The second part[7] explains:

When the Sangha performs a karman procedure against one's teacher... the disciple should handle the matter in accordance with the Dharma, causing the teacher to comply with the Sangha, seek the complete removal of his offense, and quickly obtain release from the karman procedure.

If the teacher commits a sanghavasesa offense, or is ill, or does not wish to remain at that dwelling place, or if some doubtful matter arises, all should be handled as stated in the rules concerning service to a teacher. If the teacher gives rise to wrong views, he should be urged to abandon them. He should be supported and cared for in two respects—Dharma and material necessities—just as stated in the rules concerning service to a teacher.

Without informing the teacher, the disciple may not enter a village, enter another person's house, accompany other bhiksus, or associate with other bhiksus. He may neither give nor receive anything, neither assist others in their tasks nor accept assistance from others in any task. He may not shave another person's head or ask another person to shave his head. He may not enter the bathhouse, rub or massage another person's body, or accept rubbing or massage from another person. During the day, he may not go to another room within the dwelling place, go to a cemetery, pass beyond the boundary, or travel to another region.

Early each morning, he should enter his teacher's room to inquire about the meanings of the scriptures and empty the vessel used for urine. At the time for washing the hands, he must inform the teacher and provide bean powder, ashes, and the like for the teacher to wash with. If there is a food portion for the teacher, he should receive it. Whatever offerings the Sangha has that constitute the teacher's share, he should receive them.

He should ask the teacher: “Is it necessary to enter the village to receive alms?” If the teacher says, “It is not necessary,” he should ask: “Where should the food be received?” If the teacher indicates a place, he should go there to receive it.

If the teacher needs to enter the village, the disciple should wash his hands thoroughly, take down the antarvasa, belt, samkaksika, and uttarasanga from the bamboo pole, shake them clean, and hand them to the teacher. He should drape the sanghati over his own shoulder. Next, he should take the alms bowl, the bowl bag, and the shoulder covering and give them to the teacher. He should also take the foot-washing implements and the woolen sleeping cloth and give them to the teacher. When the teacher sets out, he should carry the teacher's traveling sandals and shoes. Upon leaving the room, he must look back to see whether the door has been closed and test it to ensure that it is secure. If it is not secure, he must close it again and keep the key in a concealed place.

While traveling, the teacher should walk ahead. If they meet acquaintances on the road, the disciple should speak skillfully and maintain mindfulness well. While walking, he should keep out of the way of other travelers.

When they are about to enter the village, he should stand by the roadside, set the bowl to one side, and give the sanghati to the teacher. If there is a guesthouse, shop, workshop, or similar place outside the village, he should leave the traveling sandals and shoes there for safekeeping. He should ask the teacher: “May I accompany you?” If the teacher says, “You may,” he should follow.

If the teacher says, “There is no need for you to follow... wait at such-and-such a place,” he should wait at the place designated by the teacher. After leaving the village, he should retrieve the sandals and shoes, set the bowl by the roadside, take back the sanghati, and drape it over his shoulder. Upon reaching the place where the teacher will take his meal, he should sweep it clean, spread out a sitting cloth, and prepare a vessel of pure water, bathing implements, and food containers.

He should also set out a bathing stool, a foot-washing stone, a foot towel, and the like. When he sees the teacher approaching, he should immediately rise to welcome him, receive the alms bowl from the teacher's hands and place it carefully, and fold the sanghati without allowing it to become soiled. If it is soiled, he must wash it clean.

After the teacher has washed his feet, the disciple must discard the dirty water from the basin, put away the foot-washing stone, and return the foot towel to its original place. He should then wash his own hands thoroughly and offer the teacher clean water for washing his hands. Whatever food he has, he should offer it to the teacher, saying: “This is my portion of food; may the teacher partake of it.” Whatever the teacher needs, he should provide.

While the teacher eats, he should stand in attendance and provide whatever is required. If noon is about to pass, he should eat together with the teacher. When the teacher has finished eating, he should receive the bowl from the teacher's hands and offer him water for rinsing his mouth.

After the disciple himself has finished eating, any remaining food should be given to a person or a nonhuman being, or poured onto ground where there is no grass, or into water where there are no living creatures. He should wash the food containers thoroughly and return them to their original places; fold the sitting cloth; put away the foot-washing implements; return the vessel of clean water and the mouth-rinsing vessel to their original places; and sweep clean the ground where the meal was eaten.

He should then enter the teacher's room and, if it is dirty, sweep it; he should return the rope bed, floor coverings, and robes to their original places. After he has finished wiping and sweeping, when disposing of the dust and refuse swept from the teacher's room, he must carefully inspect it. If there are needles, thread, small knives, or even one or two medicinal pills, he should pick them up and put them in a conspicuous place so that their owner may see and reclaim them.

He should also inspect the robe rack, clothes hooks, and every part of the room for damage, cavities, or rat holes. Wherever plastering is needed, he should plaster; wherever pounding is needed, he should pound; wherever leveling is needed, he should level, making everything as clean as possible. If the stool is not properly aligned, he must set it straight.

If everything was already arranged properly, he should return each object to its proper place exactly as before. He should then sweep away any dust from the courtyard. When the washing-water vessel is empty, he should draw fresh clean water and return the vessel to its original place.

He should do the same with the drinking water and the bathhouse water. If the teacher needs to bathe, he should go to inspect the bathhouse. If it needs wiping, he should wipe it; if it needs sweeping, he should sweep it; if the water needs changing, he should change it; if firewood needs splitting, he should split it; and if bathwater needs heating, he should heat it.

He should prepare everything required for bathing. Before heating the water, he should inform the teacher, and when it is ready, he should again inform him. If the teacher is infirm and needs assistance entering the bathhouse, he should support him.

If the teacher needs his body rubbed, scrubbed, or his back washed, the disciple should rub, scrub, and wash his back, but must stand behind the teacher. If the disciple needs to ask someone else to wash his back, or needs to wash another person's back, he must first inform the teacher. After the teacher has finished bathing, the disciple should wash himself clean.

If the teacher is infirm because of old age and needs help leaving the bathhouse, the disciple should support him. After accompanying him back to his room, the disciple should return to the bathhouse, inspect every part of it, and return everything that needs to be put away to its original place. Each day, morning, noon, and evening, he should visit the teacher and inquire after him.

He should perform for his teacher the two arduous services and must not refuse. These two are repairing the room and washing and mending the robes.

Whatever the teacher instructs in accordance with the Dharma must be respectfully carried out, and the disciple may not refuse any instruction given. After being scolded or reprimanded, he should approach the teacher and ask to repent.

The method of repentance is as follows: bare the right shoulder, remove one's sandals, kneel, join one's palms, and say:

“Venerable teacher! I now ask to repent; I dare not commit the offense again.”

If the teacher permits the repentance, that is good. If he does not permit it, the disciple must remain gentle and compliant and skillfully find a way to explain the matter of the offense.

If the teacher commits five unlawful acts, the disciple should repent and depart.[8] He should present these five matters to the teacher:

1) I live in accordance with the Dharma, but the teacher does not know it.

2) I live contrary to the Dharma, but the teacher also does not know it.

3) I commit an offense, but the teacher neither reproves nor instructs me.

4) I commit an offense, but the teacher does not know it.

5) I commit an offense and repent, but the teacher does not know it.

The Mulasarvastivada Vinaya Ksudrakavastu explains:

There are those who take refuge in a teacher, go forth in the Buddha’s teaching, shave off their hair and beard, don the Buddha’s Dharma robes, and possess a pure heart replete with faith. This is called going forth in accordance with the Dharma. Even if such a person makes offerings of the four requisites to the teacher throughout the remainder of his life, he still cannot fully repay the teacher’s kindness.

The Vinaya Saṃgraha says:

In the case of one’s parents and two teachers—the preceptor and the acarya—even if these four persons have broken the precepts, one should still make offerings to them and should not treat them with contempt.

The Shan-jian Vinaya explains:

When a wise person comes into the presence of a venerable elder of lofty virtue and great esteem, he should avoid six improper positions before sitting down:

1) Too far away.

2) Too close.

3) Upwind.

4) In a higher place.

5) Directly in front.

6) Behind the elder’s back.

If a disciple attending upon his teacher encounters a Dharma discourse along the way and, out of eagerness to hear the Dharma, listens throughout the night until the signs of daylight appear the following morning, he does not commit the offense of separating from his teacher, because he had no intention of abandoning his teacher.

EXPLANATION:

Question: Among the five kinds of acarya, four are necessarily senior monks; only the one who teaches and instructs in recitation may sometimes be a junior monk. In that case, how should one attend upon and serve him?

Answer: Apart from bowing in homage, one should serve the teacher in every other respect according to the Dharma.

Question: A bhikkhu’s leftover food should be given to a person or a nonhuman being,

or placed upon clean ground for birds, or poured into water as an offering to fish and loaches. Why, then, is it said here that it should be poured into water free of living creatures?

Answer: The Mahasanghika Vinaya says: “The creatures referred to are not fish or loaches, but a kind of extremely minute aquatic organism. Because they are so small, it is feared that salt and impurities in the food could harm their lives.”

IV. THE DHARMA FOR SENIOR MONKS

The Vibhasa Treatise explains:

There are three kinds of senior monks:

1) A senior by years, whose precept age is the highest.

2) A worldly senior: one of great merit and great wisdom who, though only twenty years old, should be mutually esteemed and elevated to the rank of senior monk.

3) A senior by Dharma-nature, namely an arhat.

The Sanskrit term is Sthavira, translated into Chinese as “senior monk” and also as “superior person.” One who benefits neither himself nor others is called an inferior person. One who benefits only himself is called an intermediate person. One who benefits both himself and others is called a superior person.

EXPLANATION:

Question: A newly ordained bhikkhu, though well versed in sutras and treatises, must remain under dependence for five rains if he has not yet mastered the Vinaya. Though he may possess

great merit and great wisdom, why should he be elevated to the rank of senior monk rather than remain under dependence for five rains?

Answer: He is elevated to the rank of senior monk with respect to expounding sutras and treatises and promoting meritorious deeds;

this does not mean that he is released from dependence.

The Matrka Vinaya Sutra explains:

From zero to nine rains, one is called a junior monk. From ten to nineteen rains, one is called an intermediate monk. From twenty to forty-nine rains, one is called a senior monk. From fifty rains onward, one is called a long-standing elder.

The fourth section of the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya says:

The Buddha taught the bhikkhus: Suppose there are senior monks who neither study the precepts nor praise them. Although there are bhikkhus who delight in studying and praising the precepts, those senior monks never encourage or commend them. Such senior monks should not be approached, nor should their manner of life be followed. If one follows such a way of life, one will undergo suffering for many lifetimes.

The Sarvastivada Vinaya explains:

There are five factors that cause the True Dharma to perish and disappear:

1) Not delighting in the state of nirvana, which is freedom from desire.

2) Having dull faculties.

3) Reading and reciting without receiving the teachings correctly,

and without enabling others to understand them clearly.

4) Being unable to ensure that those who receive the teachings maintain dignified conduct and reverence; neither expounding the Dharma nor being capable of instructing others in accordance with the Dharma.

5) Quarreling with one another, neither dwelling in an aranya

nor loving and respecting those who dwell in an aranya.

When the opposite of these five factors is present, the True Dharma does not perish or disappear.

There are also five factors that cause the True Dharma to perish and disappear:

1) Not teaching according to the True Dharma, but teaching according to

what is contrary to the Dharma.

2) Not following the Dharma of patience, but following the way of

impatience.

3) Failing to respect senior monks and lacking

dignified conduct.

4) Senior monks failing to instruct others by means of the True Dharma.

5) When senior monks expound the Dharma, they become distressed, thereby preventing

later generations from receiving and studying the Tripitaka. After such negligent bhikkhus die, others study what is contrary to the Dharma and lose all wholesome qualities.

When the opposite of these five factors is present, the True Dharma does not perish or disappear.

There are also seven factors that cause the True Dharma to perish and disappear:

1) Lacking right faith.

2) Being indolent.

3) Having no sense of moral shame.

4) Having no fear of wrongdoing.

5) Being forgetful.

6) Lacking concentration.

7) Having little wisdom.

When the age of the True Dharma has ended and the age of the Semblance Dharma appears, five unlawful conditions arise:

1) Some bhikkhus attain a small measure of concentration and immediately declare that they have attained the noble Dharma.

2) Laypeople are reborn in the heavenly realms, while those who have gone forth fall into the evil destinies.

3) Some abandon secular life to go forth,

yet then break the precepts.

4) In some cases, those who break the precepts have many supporters, while those who uphold the precepts have no one to assist them.

5) Practitioners are reviled; even

arhats are reviled.

The Buddha told Upali: In the future there will be five fearful matters that have not yet arisen at present. You should know them and seek ways to eliminate them:

1) There will be bhikkhus who have not cultivated the body, morality, mind, or wisdom, yet admit others into the going forth and confer ordination upon them. They will be unable to teach their communities to cultivate the body, morality, mind, and wisdom. This is the first fearful matter.

2) and 3) There will be bhikkhus who have not cultivated the body, morality, mind, or wisdom, yet allow others to live in dependence upon them. They will keep samaneras but be unable to teach them to cultivate the body, morality, mind, and wisdom. These are the second and third fearful matters.

4) There will be bhikkhus who have not cultivated the body, morality, mind, or wisdom, yet allow monastery attendants and samaneras to remain close to them, without understanding the three matters: digging the earth, cutting down trees, and using water containing living creatures for sprinkling or washing. This is the fourth fearful matter.

5) There will be bhikkhus who have not cultivated the body, morality, mind, or wisdom, yet recite together the Sutra, Vinaya, and Abhidharma, placing the beginning and end in the middle and the middle at the beginning or end, and being unable to discern the manifest pure Dharma or whether an offense has or has not been committed. This is the fifth fearful matter.

There are also five fearful matters that do not exist at present but will arise in the future. One should know them and skillfully seek ways to eliminate them:

1) Bhikkhus of the future will not cultivate the body, morality, mind, or wisdom. They will not delight in the state of nirvana, which is freedom from desire; their faculties will be dull; and although they recite the words and their meanings, they will not receive them correctly. This is the first fearful matter.

2) There will be bhikkhus who have not cultivated the body, morality, mind, or wisdom, yet allow bhikkhunis to remain close to them; they may then commit a grave offense or renounce the precepts and return to lay life. This is the second fearful matter.

3) There are bhikkhus who do not cultivate the body, morality, mind, and wisdom as taught by the Tathagata. They are incapable of believing in, delighting in, accepting, and upholding such teachings as the profound sutras, emptiness, signlessness, wishlessness, the twelve links of dependent origination, and the profound and essential Dharma teachings. Even if they accept and uphold them, they are incapable of thoroughly understanding them.

When it is necessary to speak or instruct others, they have no compassionate heart and no loving, joyful heart. They delight in composing literary verses, embellishing phrases and passages, and worldly teachings; they desire what the world desires. When worldly teachings are spoken, they believe in and delight in them, and their hearts yearn for them.

Therefore, the teachings proclaimed by the Tathagata—such as the profound sutras, emptiness, signlessness, wishlessness, the twelve links of dependent origination, and the profound and essential Dharma teachings—will all perish. This is the third fearful matter.

4 and 5) There are bhikkhus who do not cultivate the body, morality, mind, and wisdom. For the sake of clothing and food, they abandon the aranya and the life beneath trees in the forest and enter villages. For the sake of clothing and food, they seek everywhere; and once they begin seeking, they cause disturbance. These are the fourth and fifth fearful kinds.

(This teaching concerning fearful matters is the responsibility of senior members; therefore, it is recorded here as a reminder and warning.)

V. DHARMA FOR FELLOW PRACTITIONERS

The fourth section[9] explains:

A bhikkhu possessing five qualities should not be taken as an intimate companion.

1) One who delights in contention.

2) One who delights in undertaking activities.

3) One who delights in quarreling to prove himself superior to others.

4) One who delights in wandering here and there.

5) One who neither teaches the Dharma to others nor instructs them in what is wholesome

and right.

There are also five qualities of one who should not be chosen as a traveling companion[10]:

1) One who likes to walk too far ahead.

2) One who likes to walk too far behind.

3) One who likes to mimic the speech of other people.

4) One who does not distinguish good words from bad words, does not praise

good words, but instead praises bad words.

5) When he receives lawful offerings, he does not allow the other person to partake of them at the proper time.

The Mulasarvastivada Miscellaneous Matters states:

Venerable Ananda asked the Buddha: “Is a spiritual friend only half of the holy life?” The Buddha told Venerable Ananda: “A spiritual friend is the whole of the holy life, not merely half of it.”

The Mahasanghika Vinaya explains:

A bhikkhu has ten behaviors that cause others to dislike him:

1) He does not associate closely with others.

2) He treats close association lightly.

3) He associates with others for gain.

4) He dislikes those who deserve to be liked.

5) He likes those who do not deserve to be liked.

6) He does not like to believe truthful words.

7) He likes to interfere in other people’s affairs.

8) Though he truly possesses no dignified virtue, he still wishes to enjoy offerings.

9) He likes to conceal his private affairs.

10) He has many desires.

A bhikkhu dwelling in an aranya should not disparage a bhikkhu dwelling in a settlement by saying: “Here you savor every flavor; what could you possibly lack?” Instead, he should praise him, saying: “You dwell in a settlement to teach the Dharma, guide beings, safeguard the True Dharma, and act on our behalf.”

A bhikkhu dwelling in a settlement should not disparage a bhikkhu dwelling in an aranya by saying: “You dwell in this aranya in hopes of fame and gain. Birds and beasts also dwell in this aranya. You merely pass the days and months here!” Instead, he should praise him, saying: “You remain far from settlements, peacefully and quietly contemplate, and honor the higher practices. This is difficult to do. You dwell here to bring the deluded mind to an end. There is no disputing with one another to contend for superiority.”

VI. DHARMA OF REVERENTIAL SALUTATION

The Vinaya Compendium explains:

There are four kinds of persons to whom one should bow:

1) The Tathagata, to whom all humans and devas should offer wholehearted

reverential salutations.

2) A renunciant does not bow to a layperson. A renunciant

is worthy of reverential salutations.

3) One should bow to those who received full ordination earlier, except fully

ordained bhikkhunis.

4) Those who have not received full ordination should bow to those who have.

There are ten kinds of persons to whom one should not bow: four kinds of persons undergoing separate residence; a person undergoing training; three kinds of persons who have been set aside; laypeople; and those who have not received full ordination.

There are two different forms of reverential salutation:

1) Prostrating with the five parts of the body touching the ground.

2) Placing one’s head and face at the other person’s feet.

One says aloud: “Vande 畔睇.” (Vande is a term expressing supreme reverence in India; no translation has been found. It may be a corrupted pronunciation of “Pan-nami” or “Pan-dam” as “He-nam,” translated as: “I bow in homage.”)

If one knows that another person’s body is defiled yet bows to that person, or if one’s own body is defiled yet one bows to another, one commits an offense of wrongdoing.

There are two kinds of defilement:

1) Having eaten but not yet rinsed one’s mouth.

2) Having defecated or urinated but not yet washed oneself clean.

When paying homage in a dark place, one should not bow all the way to the ground. One should say aloud: “Vande,” signifying wholehearted reverence.

The fourth section (the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya) explains:

There are ten circumstances in which one should not bow to a bhikkhu: while he is defecating; while he is urinating; before he has dressed; while he is shaving his head; while he is teaching the Dharma; while he is cleaning his teeth; while he is rinsing his mouth; while he is drinking; while he is eating a meal; and while he is chewing fruit.

The Mulasarvastivada Miscellaneous Matters states:

One should not bow to another while wearing only one robe, nor should one receive another’s bow while wearing only one robe.

VII. DHARMA OF FILIAL REVERENCE TOWARD PARENTS

The Mahisasaka Vinaya explains:

Venerable Pilindavatsa’s parents were impoverished. He wished to give them a robe but did not dare to do so. He reported this matter to the Buddha. The Buddha taught:

“Bhikkhus! Suppose that for a full one hundred years a person carried his father on his right shoulder and his mother on his left shoulder. His parents continually defecated and urinated upon his shoulders, and he provided them with every kind of finest food and clothing. Even with such filial devotion, he would still be unable to repay his parents’ kindness, even that shown during a single brief moment. From now on, bhikkhus are permitted to make wholehearted offerings to their parents throughout their lives. If they do not support them, they commit a very grave offense.”

The Mulasarvastivada Nidana states:

Parents undertake arduous tasks and bear suffering for the sake of their children. Even after going forth, one should still provide for one’s parents. Apart from one’s robe and bowl, all other possessions may be used to support them. If one has nothing else, one may go to a donor’s home and request something according to the circumstances. If it is difficult to obtain anything by asking, one should use the provisions ordinarily received from the Sangha; one should take half of the food allotted to oneself by the Sangha and use it to relieve and support one’s parents. Alternatively, from food obtained on almsround, one should set aside half of one’s portion to support one’s parents.

VIII. DHARMA OF THE RAINS RETREAT[11]

One should not spend the entire year traveling among the people to teach and guide them. During the three months of summer, one is permitted and required to enter the rains retreat. One should address one’s dependence teacher concerning the place of retreat as follows:

“Venerable, please be mindful of me! I, the bhikkhu named..., shall depend upon the settlement named..., or the monastery named..., or room number..., and enter the earlier three-month summer rains retreat. If the dwelling is damaged, may I be permitted to repair it.” (Making this declaration three times completes the rite for entering the rains retreat.)

The procedure for entering the later rains retreat is the same; one merely replaces the word “earlier” with “later.” If there is no dependence teacher, one mentally resolves to enter the rains retreat. If one has come for the purpose of the rains retreat, one thereby enters the retreat.

Once the rains retreat has begun, if a visiting bhikkhu arrives, one should neither move to another place nor leave.

If one wishes to enter the rains retreat, one should first go personally to inspect the dwellings and bedding, and only afterward undertake the retreat.

A motion followed by one proclamation should be made to appoint a person to distribute the dwellings and bedding. The appointed person should calculate how many bhikkhus there are, how many rooms, how many sets of bedding, and how many persons possess greater or lesser merit, and so forth. After arranging everything, he should approach the senior elder and say:

“Venerable Senior Elder, there are now this many dwellings and this many sets of bedding. Whichever room and bedding the Senior Elder requires, please choose freely.” (After distributing them to the senior elders, he should next distribute them to those of intermediate seniority, and then successively to the junior members.)

After receiving a room, one should repair, arrange, and adorn it according to one’s ability.

The distribution should not be conducted by assembling the Sangha in one place.

If one wishes to observe the rains retreat in a certain place, one must first mark it; upon leaving, one must erase the mark before departing.

One should not move beds, mattresses, or bedding from one room to another. If necessary, one must inform the resident bhikshu of long standing, and only then may they be moved. Before departing, they must be returned to their original place. If a dwelling is damaged, they should be moved to another room and, after the repairs are completed, returned as before. The same applies to other monasteries. If there are movable requisites, including staffs, fans, and so forth, they should be distributed to rooms that lack them. If there are surplus items, they should be redistributed beginning with the senior-most elder and proceeding downward.

There is an earlier rains retreat and a later rains retreat. Whether earlier or later, a full three months must be completed. Those observing the later rains retreat are also permitted to participate in the Invitation Ceremony. They are permitted to receive offerings and bedding and other requisites donated by faithful donors during the rains retreat. One should not count an additional year of seniority before completing the full three months; one must wait until the three months have been completed.

One may not observe the rains retreat in the open air. It is permitted to observe it beneath a tree, in a small room, in a mountain cave, or beneath the sheltering shade of a tree.

During the rains retreat, if a legitimate matter arises, one is permitted to request seven days' leave. One must return within seven days. If the business remains unfinished after seven days, one must perform a motion and seconding karman to request permission to be absent for more than seven days, or for half a month or one month, and then return.

If there is danger to life or danger to the holy life, one should depart to avoid it. If there is a case of schism in the Sangha, one should depart to avoid it. If one's purpose is to prevent a schism in the Sangha, one should go. If it concerns restoring harmony to the Sangha at the residence, one should go.

If one has received permission to leave the boundary for seven days but is detained by danger and cannot return in time, one does not lose the rains retreat.

If one begins the earlier rains retreat at this residence, hears that abundant offerings are being received at another residence, and goes there, one may not count the rains-retreat seniority on the basis of the former residence; acting contrary to the fundamental rule constitutes an offense. Likewise, if one leaves without a legitimate matter, or receives permission to leave the boundary for seven days but remains away beyond seven days, acting contrary to the fundamental rule constitutes an offense. If one returns within seven days, there is no offense. At the end of the retreat, if one receives permission to leave the boundary for seven days, whether one returns or does not return, there is no offense. The same applies to the later rains retreat.

If one has accepted another person's invitation to observe the rains retreat but danger to life or danger to the holy life arises, one should go and inform the donor before moving elsewhere. If the donor agrees, that is good; if the donor does not agree, one should still leave.

The Dharmaguptaka Vinaya explains:

If one observes the rains retreat at this residence, hears that the Sangha at another residence has received many robes and requisites, and then abandons this residence and goes there, one thereby loses the rains-retreat observance at this residence. If one remains at the other residence for only a short time and then returns to this residence, one also loses the rains-retreat observance at the other residence.

The Mahasanghika Vinaya explains:

If, while traveling on the path, the day for beginning the rains retreat arrives before one has reached a residence, one should stay beside the road, beneath a tree, or by a vehicle, and undertake the rains retreat there. Only when the sign of dawn appears should one proceed to the residence. On the day of the later rains retreat, one should bare one shoulder, kneel, join one's palms, and say:

– Venerable sir, please be mindful of me. I, the bhikshu named ..., request to observe the latter three-month rains retreat in this Sangharama. (Repeat three times.) (The summer months are also called the rainy season; hence it is called the rains retreat.)

If a traveling bhikshu does not undertake the earlier rains retreat, he commits a vinaya-transgression offense. Upon reaching a residence, if he does not undertake the later rains retreat, he commits two vinaya-transgression offenses. Such a person has broken the rains retreat and may not receive the robes offered to the Sangha during the rains retreat.

In spring and winter, after lodgings have been assigned, if a senior elder arrives, the assignments should be rearranged according to seniority. However, once the rains retreat has begun and the lodgings have already been assigned, if a senior elder arrives, the assignments of those already placed should not be changed; that is, even if accommodation is required, the arrangement is not remade according to seniority. If, during the rains retreat, one drives another person out of a room, one commits a vinaya-transgression offense.

It is not permitted for the residents to refrain from speaking with one another and remain mutually silent. If they wish to devise a means to reduce wasted time and prevent the many matters that might arise, they are permitted, for up to half a month, not to converse with one another. But on the Uposatha day, they must speak with one another, communicate together, and offer prayers and blessings to one another. After the Uposatha day has passed, they may return to the former practice.

The Mahishasaka Vinaya says:

It is permitted to observe the rains retreat in a place just large enough to sit cross-legged and to keep one's robe and bowl where the rain cannot leak upon them.

If there is no pressing matter, one should undertake the earlier rains retreat. If there is a pressing matter, one is permitted to undertake the later rains retreat.

Before undertaking the rains retreat, one must first consider whether or not there are dangers in that place.

There was a bhikshu observing the rains retreat who could not obtain enough food to be satisfied, even food of inferior quality and coarse fare. The Buddha permitted that, in such a case, breaking the rains retreat entails no offense. The same applies when there is danger to the holy life or danger to life.

The Sarvastivada Vinaya says:

A senior elder undertaking the later rains retreat should not use the lodging or bedding of a senior elder undertaking the earlier rains retreat. If the senior elder undertaking the earlier rains retreat has two shares of bedding, one share should be assigned to the senior elder undertaking the later rains retreat.

For the procedure of requesting to leave the greater boundary for up to seven days, one must make the request and receive permission from a member of one of the five assemblies; one may not make the request by mental resolve alone, except when a bhikshu dwells alone in an aranya.

One may not observe the rains retreat aboard a boat anchored in flowing water if it drifts upstream and downstream. If it is securely fastened and does not move, one may do so.

If one wishes to observe the rains retreat, one must first determine whether that residence is safe and peaceful and whether there are good companions there. One should also determine whether provisions are available for meditation, Dharma teaching, food and drink, medicines, and so forth. Only afterward should one undertake the rains retreat. Unless there is a circumstance permitted by the Buddha, one may not sleep outside the boundary even for a single night.

If one undertakes the practice of silence[12], one commits a sthulatyaya offense. Refusing to speak with one another is a practice of non-Buddhist ascetics.

The Mulasarvastivada Karman explains:

When circumstances require, one may request leave for one to seven days by informing one person. If the absence exceeds seven days, up to forty days, one should request permission before the Sangha. If it exceeds forty days, one loses the rains retreat. If there are dangerous circumstances, however, it is not considered a loss of the rains retreat.

EXPLANATION:

Question: One who undertakes the later rains retreat has not completed three months and therefore may not count a year of rains-retreat seniority. Only when one has received permission to leave the boundary for seven days, is detained by danger, and cannot return is it said that one does not lose the rains retreat. Nowadays, if someone does not undertake the rains retreat, or deliberately breaks it, may that person count a year of rains-retreat seniority?

If the year is not counted, can instability between those ordained earlier and those ordained later be avoided? Furthermore, the Mahasanghika Vinaya says: “If one does not undertake the rains retreat on the day for beginning the earlier rains retreat, one commits one vinaya-transgression offense.” The other Vinaya traditions do not mention this, meaning they do not establish such an offense. Which tradition should now be followed?

Answer: Establishing and observing the rains retreat is an essential matter for a bhikshu. If one acts contrary to the Vinaya regulations, one loses many benefits.

When circumstances require, one is permitted to establish the later rains retreat. When there is no such circumstance, one must undertake the earlier rains retreat. The Mahasanghika Vinaya's establishment of an offense is intended to correct transgressions in the Dharma-ending age; in truth, it does not greatly conflict with the other Vinaya traditions.

However, to say that one loses the rains retreat means only that one may not receive robes offered during the rains retreat and may not serve as custodian of the robe of merit. Moreover, until one has completed ten rains retreats, one may not serve as a preceptor, and so forth. It does not mean that one who was ordained earlier must now be demoted in the order and made junior.

This matter has already been clearly explained in the biographical account in the opening section.

IX. THE INVITATION CEREMONY[13]

There was a community of bhikshus dwelling at another residence who entered the rains retreat together and established among themselves a rule that they would not speak, pay respects, or inquire after one another. Each person went for alms whenever he wished, whether earlier or later. If anything was needed, they communicated by hand gestures rather than speech. Because they did not speak to one another in this way, they passed the three months of the retreat in peace. When the retreat was over, they went to the Buddha. After the Buddha had inquired after them and offered words of comfort, they reported to him the rule they had observed together. The Buddha taught:

– You are foolish men. You regard this as good, but in truth it is exceedingly bad. You foolish men dwelt together like enemies, like white goats. In many ways I have taught you: “Bhikshus should instruct one another, converse with one another, and help one another attain awakening.” You foolish men behaved like non-Buddhist ascetics, accepting and practicing the rule of silence by not speaking to one another.

At that time, having heard this, the Group of Six Bhikshus began to accuse blameless bhikshus of offenses. The Buddha taught: “If one wishes to accuse a bhikshu of an offense, one must first request permission to be heard.” The Group of Six Bhikshus bore resentment toward the blameless bhikshus and frequently approached them to request permission to accuse them of offenses.

The Buddha taught that one must possess five qualities before requesting permission to be heard:

1) One raises the accusation at the proper time, not at an improper time.

2) It accords with the truth and is not false.

3) It brings benefit and is not unprofitable.

4) One speaks gently and not harshly.

5) One acts entirely with loving-kindness and not out of anger.

By nature, the Group of Six Bhikshus did not possess these five qualities, whereas the other bhikshus did. When bhikshus possessing the five qualities came to request permission to be heard, the Group of Six refused permission and would not consent to the accusation.

The Buddha taught:

– From now on, after completing the rains retreat, you should hold the Pravāraṇā. For the Pravāraṇā ceremony, there is no need to request permission to be heard. Why is this? Pravāraṇā itself constitutes permission to be heard.

The entire assembly should not perform Pravāraṇā simultaneously; rather, each person should perform it individually. One should not perform Pravāraṇā according to one’s own preference, but in due order, beginning with the senior elder and proceeding downward. It is permitted to appoint a person to receive the Pravāraṇā. The person receiving the Pravāraṇā must possess five virtues: freedom from partiality, anger, fear, and delusion, and knowledge of who has and has not performed Pravāraṇā.

The motion and second-act karman for appointing the person who receives the Pravāraṇā is as

follows:

“Venerable Sangha, please listen! If the time is appropriate for the Sangha, the Sangha appoints the bhikshu named... as the person to receive the Pravāraṇā. This is the motion.”

The officiant should perform the karman according to the prescribed procedure.

One should not remain seated upon one’s seat while performing Pravāraṇā. When the senior elder leaves his seat and kneels, the entire Sangha must leave their seats and kneel to perform Pravāraṇā. After performing Pravāraṇā, they should sit again in their original places. Pravāraṇā should be performed clearly and unhurriedly, and the declaration should be made three times. With the right shoulder bare, one should kneel, join one’s palms, and say:

“Venerable Sir, today the Sangha performs Pravāraṇā. I, the bhikshu named..., also perform Pravāraṇā. If any offense of mine has been seen, heard, or suspected, may the Venerable Sir (Elder), out of compassion, instruct me. If I recognize that I have committed an offense, I shall confess and repent in accordance with the Dharma.” (Say this three times.)

The person appointed to receive the Pravāraṇā should first make the following motion and then receive each person’s Pravāraṇā:

“Venerable Sangha, please listen! Today the Sangha performs Pravāraṇā. If the time is appropriate for the Sangha, may the Sangha approve and perform Pravāraṇā in harmony. This is the motion.”

One should not perform Pravāraṇā as an unlawful separate assembly, an unlawful united assembly, or a lawful separate assembly; one should perform Pravāraṇā as a lawful and harmonious assembly.

It is permitted to perform Pravāraṇā in the hall for reciting the precepts.

If, while traveling, the day of Pravāraṇā arrives, it is best for the entire community to assemble harmoniously and perform Pravāraṇā together. If the entire community cannot assemble harmoniously, those companions who are in agreement should move to another place, establish a minor boundary, and perform Pravāraṇā. After performing Pravāraṇā, they should dissolve the boundary before continuing their journey.

If a bhikshu is dwelling alone, on the day of Pravāraṇā he should go to the place where the precepts are recited, sweep and clean it, and make all necessary preparations, including carrying out the distribution of Śalākā 舍羅 tallies to count the members of the Sangha, and then wait for visiting bhikshus to arrive. If five or more bhikshus are present, they should appoint a person to receive the Pravāraṇā. If four or fewer are present, they should perform Pravāraṇā face-to-face with one another. The declaration for face-to-face Pravāraṇā is as follows:

“Today the Sangha performs Pravāraṇā. I, the bhikshu named..., being pure, also perform Pravāraṇā.” (Say this three times. If no one arrives, he should resolve it mentally and also recite the foregoing words aloud three times.)

If someone has entrusted a matter to another person and the person receiving the instruction must attend to something else, he should transfer that instruction to another person. When his business is finished, he should return in person.

If any of the eight calamities or other unforeseen circumstances suddenly arise, an abbreviated Pravāraṇā should be performed. An abbreviated Pravāraṇā may be performed by making the declaration twice or once instead of three times. Alternatively, everyone may recite it together as an assembly three times, twice, or once. Or they may recite it while dispersing, according to whether the danger is near or far.

If, on the day of Pravāraṇā, a dispute arises or a schism in the Sangha may occur, Pravāraṇā should not be performed immediately. It should be postponed until stability has been restored.

If a person obstructing the Pravāraṇā is impure in the three modes of action, and so forth, the procedures set forth in the section on the Uposatha should be applied. The same applies in cases of illness.

If the community of bhikshus feels that its practice is proceeding with ease and tends toward higher attainment and realization, and fears that performing Pravāraṇā today—the full-moon day of the seventh lunar month—would prevent it from continuing to enjoy that benefit, a motion should be made before the Sangha to extend the period before Pravāraṇā, so that Pravāraṇā will be performed upon completion of four full months, on the full-moon day of the eighth lunar month.

Or if bhikshus from another residence who are not in harmony wish to come and perform Pravāraṇā at this residence, everything should be handled as explained in the section on the Uposatha. According to the spirit of the Daśabhāṇavāra Vinaya, if the visiting bhikshus still refuse to leave by the eighth month, one should not perform Pravāraṇā but should depart instead; one should not contend with them in words.

One should not perform the Pravāraṇā karman in the presence of bhikshunis or persons who have not received full ordination.

One should not perform Pravāraṇā and then recite the precepts. Pravāraṇā itself constitutes the recitation of the precepts.

The Daśabhāṇavāra Vinaya explains:

After performing Pravāraṇā, one should go before the senior elder and announce:

“The Sangha, united in mind, has completed the Pravāraṇā.”

The Mahāsāṃghika Vinaya says:

If, among the community observing the rains retreat, one person entered the earlier retreat, then on the full-moon day of the seventh month the entire community should perform Pravāraṇā together with that person who entered the earlier retreat. After performing Pravāraṇā, they must remain until the full-moon day of the eighth month before ending the retreat. If everyone entered the later retreat, all should wait until the full-moon day of the eighth month to perform Pravāraṇā. If bhikshus observing the retreat in a village hear that on the day of Pravāraṇā there will be many offerings in the city and a Dharma teaching at night, and the community wishes to go there, they should perform Pravāraṇā on the fourteenth day before departing.

Regarding those who receive the Pravāraṇā, one or two persons should be appointed, but not more. If two persons are appointed to receive the Pravāraṇā, one should receive it from the senior elder, while the other goes before the next-ranking elder. After the senior elder has spoken, the next-ranking elder should speak his Pravāraṇā declaration, and they should proceed in this order until all have finished. When one’s turn comes, one must perform Pravāraṇā; one should not wait until the Sangha has finished and only then perform it.

The Mahīśāsaka Vinaya explains:

It is permitted for the eight senior elders to perform Pravāraṇā individually, one after another. Those below them who have the same number of rains may perform Pravāraṇā together, three persons at a time.

The Vinaya-mātṛkā Sūtra explains:

If there is anyone in the assembly who is not pure, the proceedings should be suspended, and the Invitation should not be held. The karman for suspending the Invitation should be performed. The matter of impurity should be investigated.

If it concerns a grave offense, the offender should be expelled; if it is a minor offense, the offender should be made to confess and repent. Only afterward should the Invitation be held. If that impure person relies upon his own intelligence and extensive knowledge, upon having many followers, or upon the power of the king or high ministers, so that he cannot be expelled, the Sangha should wait until the later Invitation (the full-moon day of the eighth lunar month).

If, when the later Invitation arrives, that person still refuses to leave, the Sangha may go outside the boundary and hold the Invitation; this is regarded as purity.

The Record of the Buddhist Religion as Practised in India and the Malay Archipelago says:

The Sanskrit pronunciation is Pravarana, translated as “invitation.” This means inviting others, according to their judgment, to raise any matter concerning the three things—what they have seen, heard, or suspected. It means disclosing one’s faults in order to remove one’s offenses. The earlier translation was “Self-Invitation,” rendered according to its meaning.

The ceremony proceeds as follows:

On the evening of the fourteenth, a scripture master should be invited to ascend the Dharma seat and recite sutras. At the same time, monks, nuns, and lay devotees assemble, lamps are kept burning throughout the night, and incense and flowers are offered. The following morning, they process around the town.

Each person, with utmost sincerity, pays homage to the stupas and to carts and palanquins bearing sacred images. Drums and music resound, while banners, pennants, and jeweled canopies surround them, shading the entire sky. After circumambulating throughout the district, they return to the monastery.

At noon, a great vegetarian feast is arranged, and after noon they assemble again to perform the ceremony of invitation, or Pravarana. First the bhiksus perform the Invitation, followed by the bhiksunis and then the three lower assemblies. If the assembly is large and there is concern that the proceedings will take too long, several persons should be appointed to receive the Invitations.

If another person accuses someone of an offense, that person should explain the matter in accordance with the Dharma so that the offense may be removed. If, during the Invitation, donors make offerings, or if the Sangha needs to distribute articles, those articles should be brought before the assembly. A person endowed with the five virtues approaches the senior elder and asks:

– May these articles be used as gifts for the Invitation ceremony and distributed among the Sangha?

The senior elder replies:

– They may.

Articles such as robes, small knives, needles and thread, brushes, and ink are received and distributed equally. When the Invitation ceremony is finished, everyone returns to their respective monastery. One who speaks of his own offenses intends to disclose them, stating that he has repented of his previous faults and resolving not to commit them again.

Accepting responsibility in this way with complete sincerity, on every fortnightly Uposatha day one should recollect the offenses one has committed each day. If one has committed an offense in the first division, it cannot be remedied through confession and repentance. If one has committed an offense in the second division, an assembly of twenty is required to absolve it.

If one has committed lighter offenses, one should confess and repent according to the appropriate procedure in order to regain purity. In adjudicating offenses, each division must be clearly distinguished before there can be hope of eliminating the offense. To speak only in general terms, without clarity or precision, is contrary to the disciplinary regulations.

NOTES:

Question: The Mahasanghika Vinaya says that no more than two receivers of the Invitation may be appointed. The Record of the Buddhist Religion as Practised in India and the Malay Archipelago permits several persons to be appointed. Both the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya and the Mahasanghika Vinaya state that the Invitation is to be made one person at a time. The Mahisasaka Vinaya, however, says that apart from the eight senior elders, all those of the same rains-retreat seniority may perform the Invitation collectively. Which rule should be followed?

Answer: If too many receivers of the Invitation are appointed, it is difficult

to avoid clamor and disorder. Therefore, the Mahasanghika Vinaya should be followed. However, if the Invitation is performed one person at a time, a large assembly will require a prolonged period. Therefore, the Mahisasaka Vinaya should be followed.

X. THE KATHINA ROBE[14]

After completing the rains retreat and the Invitation, a community of bhiksus went to pay their respects to the Blessed One. On the way, they were caught in the rain, and all their robes became wet. The bhiksus were exhausted because their sanghati robes were too heavy. The Buddha told the bhiksus:

– After the rains retreat, there are four matters to be carried out:

1) Perform the Invitation.

2) Dissolve the boundary.

3) Establish the boundary.

4) Receive the robe of merit.

NOTES:

If the boundary is to be reestablished, whether larger or smaller, the old boundary must first be dissolved before the new boundary is established. If there is no need to establish it anew, the old boundary need not be dissolved. Thus, only two matters remain to be carried out: performing the Invitation and receiving the robe of merit, that is, the Kathina robe.

After receiving the robe of merit, one enjoys five benefits:

1) One may keep extra robes in addition to the three robes.

2) One may sleep apart from one’s robes.

3) One may eat separately from the assembly.

4) One may eat repeatedly within the permitted hours.

5) Before or after a meal, when one needs to enter a village, one need not inform another bhiksu.

How is the robe of merit validly accomplished?

It may be made from new cloth, cloth offered by a donor, or refuse-rag cloth, that is, a robe sewn from pieces of cloth that have been gathered.

It may be a new robe or an old robe. If the material is new, it must be made allowable by marking it. Alternatively, it may be washed; washing it and then sewing it constitutes making it allowable.

The robe must not have been obtained through wrong livelihood, through devious means, through interpreting signs, or through hints. It must not have been kept overnight. It must not be a robe purified after being forfeited for an offense entailing forfeiture.

It is in accordance with the Dharma if it is brought on that very day. Its four edges must be hemmed. A five-strip robe should have ten divisions; a robe with a greater number of strips is also permissible.

One must personally wash and dye it, stretch it out for sewing, and make it into a Dharma robe. It is to be received in the presence of the Sangha. The motion is made as follows:

“Venerable Sangha, please listen! Today the Sangha will receive the robe of merit. If the time is appropriate for the Sangha, may the Sangha consent. In harmony, the Sangha receives the robe of merit. This is the motion.”

Then one should ask: “Who is able to keep the robe of merit?” If someone replies, “I am able to keep it,” that person should be appointed by a karman consisting of one motion and one resolution. The text of the motion is as follows:

“Venerable Sangha, please listen! If the time is appropriate for the Sangha, may the Sangha consent. The Sangha appoints the bhiksu named .... to keep the robe of merit on behalf of the Sangha. This is the motion.”

The officiant should perform the karman in accordance with the Dharma. Next, through a karman consisting of one motion and one resolution, the robe is entrusted to the appointed keeper. The text of the karman motion is:

“Venerable Sangha, please listen! At this dwelling place, distributable robe material has been received and should be distributed to the Sangha present. If the time is appropriate for the Sangha, may the Sangha consent. The Sangha entrusts this robe to the bhiksu named .... This bhiksu should keep this robe, receive it as the robe of merit on behalf of the Sangha, and retain it at this dwelling place. This is the motion.”

The officiant should perform the karman in accordance with the Dharma. The bhiksu who keeps the robe should rise, take the robe, and go to a place where each bhiksu can reach out and touch it. He should clearly state the robe’s defining characteristics and then proclaim as follows:

“This robe the Sangha will receive as the robe of merit; this robe the Sangha now receives as the robe of merit; this robe the Sangha has received as the robe of merit.”

He says this three times. The bhiksus should say:

“The recipient has received it well. Whatever benefits are obtained herein, I have a share in them.”

The keeper of the robe should reply: “So it is!”

This is done successively down to the most junior monk.

If cloth is obtained but has not yet been made into a robe, the Sangha should perform a karman appointing a bhiksu to sew it. Once it has been sewn, it should be received in accordance with the Dharma.

At the end of winter, the Sangha should perform the ceremony of relinquishing the robe of merit.

Procedure for relinquishing the robe of merit:

The Sangha assembles and asks: “Is the assembly in harmony? Have those who have not received full ordination left the ceremonial boundary? Have absent bhiksus conveyed their consent? For what purpose has the Sangha now assembled in harmony?”

The director of duties replies: “To relinquish the robe of merit.”

The motion is as follows:

“Venerable Sangha, please listen! Today the Sangha relinquishes the robe of merit. If the time is appropriate for the Sangha, may the Sangha consent. The Sangha, now assembled in harmony, relinquishes the robe of merit. This is the motion.”

If it is not relinquished, and the period for the robe of merit is exceeded (upon reaching the fifteenth day of the twelfth month, one commits a dushkrita offense).

The Mahasanghika Vinaya says:

If one person performs it alone, then upon receiving the cloth he should say: “This is the kathina robe that will be cut; I now receive it.” He should say this three times. When cutting and sewing it, he should say: “This is the kathina robe that I shall receive.” When sewing, washing (dyeing), marking, and performing purification by the knife,[15] he should likewise say the above. When it has been completed, he should reflect in his mind and say aloud: “I, the bhikshu named..., receive this robe of merit.” He should say this three times.

There are ten cases in which the kathina robe is relinquished:

1) Relinquishment upon completion of the robe—Upon receiving the robe, one says: “I have finished receiving the robe!” The kathina robe thereupon ceases to be effective for that person.

2) Relinquishment upon receiving—When receiving the robe, if a person thinks that the robe has been received, it is thereby relinquished.

3) Relinquishment upon completion of the period—If one thinks that the permitted period allows one to relinquish it, the robe is thereby relinquished.

4) Relinquishment upon hearing—If one thinks: “I have heard the two teachers relinquish it,” the robe is thereby relinquished.

5) Relinquishment upon giving away—If one thinks: “I have given my robe to another person,” the robe is thereby relinquished.

6) Relinquishment by renunciation—After receiving the kathina robe, if at some time

one says: “I now relinquish the robe,” the robe is thereby relinquished.

7) Relinquishment through loss—If one thinks: “The robe has been ruined and lost; it no longer exists,” the robe is thereby relinquished.

8) Relinquishment upon departure—If one thinks: “I shall depart from this place,” the robe is thereby relinquished.

9) Relinquishment upon expiration of the period—If it has not been relinquished by the fifteenth day of the twelfth month, then on the sixteenth day of the twelfth month the robe is thereby relinquished. One commits a vinaya-transgression offense.

10) Relinquishment at the end of the term—On the fifteenth day of the twelfth month, a member of the Sangha makes the proclamation for relinquishment.[16]

The Mahishasaka Vinaya explains:

If the washing, dyeing, ironing, or sewing is not done in accordance with the Dharma; if the robe is made of brocade or silk; if it is received before the Pavarana; if it is done out of greed for material gain; or if there is a deliberate intention to relinquish it—under any of these five circumstances, the reception is invalid.

There are thirty days during which the robe of merit may be received, and also thirty days during which the robe of merit may be relinquished. If one entered the earlier rains retreat and receives it on the sixteenth day of the seventh month, it is relinquished on the fifteenth day of the eleventh month. If it is received on the seventeenth day of the seventh month, it is relinquished on the sixteenth day of the eleventh month. Thus, if it is received as late as the sixteenth day of the eighth month, it is relinquished on the fifteenth day of the twelfth month.

The Sarvastivada Vinaya says:

There are five classes of bhikshus who may not serve as custodian of the kathina robe:

– One who has no rains-retreat seniority.

– One who has broken the rains retreat.

– One who entered the later rains retreat.

– One who has been expelled.

– One who is undergoing separate residence.

EXPLANATION:

Question: After the Pavarana, the Buddha permitted the reception of the robe of merit, which was to be relinquished by the fifteenth day of the twelfth month. Nowadays, however, a robe of merit is made and worn on ordinary days, without any seasonal restriction or fixed term whatsoever. Moreover, some maintain that all three robes should be offered together at one time. Is this correct or incorrect?

Answer: This matter originated when, after the Sangha had performed the Pavarana, the monks brought robes to pay their respects to the Buddha. They encountered rain, and their robes became wet, causing them hardship. The Buddha therefore permitted the reception of the robe of merit, together with five attendant benefits. The final permitted limit is the end of winter; to go beyond that period incurs an offense. Furthermore, after the Sangha proclaims its reception, it is carefully stored in a chest and is fundamentally not an article intended to be worn. A robe with five panels and ten divisions resembles an antarvasa; how could it appropriately be used as an offering? The custom transmitted among monastics and laity alike is truly an exceedingly grave error!

Question: The Mahishasaka Vinaya permits those who entered the later rains retreat to receive the robe of merit as late as the sixteenth day of the eighth month. The Sarvastivada Vinaya, however, does not permit a bhikshu who entered the later rains retreat to serve as custodian of the robe of merit. Which Vinaya should be followed?

Answer: According to the Mahasanghika Vinaya, even if only one person entered the earlier rains retreat, the entire assembly performs the earlier Pavarana together with that person, but they must then wait until the full three months have elapsed before emerging from the retreat. It should therefore be understood that although those who entered the later rains retreat participate in the earlier Pavarana together with the others, they have not yet completed their rains-retreat seniority.

This is why they are not permitted to serve as custodians of the robe of merit. If the entire assembly entered the later rains retreat, then on the fifteenth day of the eighth month they complete the retreat and perform the Pavarana, and on the sixteenth day they receive the kathina robe—what fault could there be in that?

ESSENTIAL COMPENDIUM OF THE MEANINGS OF VINAYA MATTERS, REVISED

END OF VOLUME TWELVE

Notes:

1 Dharmaguptaka Vinaya 34, Part Two, Ordination Skandhaka, p. 803a, Taisho 22, no. 1428.

2 Dharmaguptaka Vinaya 33, Part Two, Ordination Skandhaka, p. 800a12, Taisho 22, no. 1428.

3 Karman Procedure (1 fascicle), p. 1064a07, Taisho 22, no. 1433.

4 The passage in parentheses is an explanation by the translator.

5 It is not in Part Four; Master Zhixu cited it incorrectly (Essential Compendium of the Meanings of Vinaya Matters, Revised 12, p. 441a15, Manji 40, no. 719). Dharmaguptaka Vinaya 34, Part Two, Ordination Skandhaka, p. 811a07, Taisho 22, no. 1428.

6 Mahishasaka Vinaya 16, p. 113a07, Taisho 22, no. 1421.

7 Dharmaguptaka Vinaya 33, Part Two, Ordination Skandhaka, p. 801b11, Taisho 22, no. 1428.

8 Dharmaguptaka Vinaya 59, Part Four, Incremental Vinaya, p. 1004b10, Taisho 22, no. 1428.

9 Dharmaguptaka Vinaya 59, Part Four, Incremental Vinaya, p. 1006b17, Taisho 22, no. 1428.

10 Dharmaguptaka Vinaya 59, p. 1006c14, Taisho 22, no. 1428.

11 Dharmaguptaka Vinaya 27, Part Two, Rains Retreat Skandhaka, p. 830c05, Taisho 22, no. 1428.

12 Sarvastivada Vinaya 23, p. 165b11, Taisho 23, no. 1435. Mahasanghika Vinaya 27, p. 451a26, Taisho 22, no. 1425: “...At that time, Aniruddha, Kimbila, and Bhaddiya spent the rains retreat at Mount Stupa. When the rains retreat was over, they returned to the city of Shravasti to visit the Buddha. The Buddha questioned them and learned that they had dwelt silently and at ease for three months without speaking to one another. The Buddha reproached them: This is an improper practice, like enemies dwelling together.

13 Dharmaguptaka Vinaya 37, Part Two, Pavarana Skandhaka, p. 835c, Taisho 22, no. 1428.

14 Dharmaguptaka Vinaya 43, Part Three, Kathina-Robe Skandhaka, p. 877c, Taisho 22, no. 1428.

15 Mahasanghika Vinaya 27, p. 452a29, Taisho 22, no. 1425: Purification by marking means placing a dot at a corner to make the cloth permissible. Purification by the knife means using a knife to make three cuts, severing three threads, about four finger-widths from the tip of the cloth’s corner. This is called purification by the knife.

16 Dharmaguptaka Vinaya 43, Part Three, Kathina-Robe Skandhaka, p. 878c28, Taisho 22, no. 1428: There are eight causes for relinquishing the robe of merit: departure, completion of the robe, noncompletion of the robe, loss of the robe, loss of expectation, hearing of the relinquishment, departure beyond the great boundary, and communal relinquishment.