Bi Pc 4343. Spinning yarn
Pāli / Sanskrit:Suttakantana
A nun who spins yarn must confess the offense.
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Suttakantana (Nuns' Pc 43): On the Offense Concerning Thread-Spinning
Background
The Suttakantana is found within the Bhikkhunī Pātimokkha (the rule code for nuns), specifically in the Pācittiya section — those actions that constitute offenses requiring confession. These rules are more subtle than the heavier offenses such as Pārājika or Saṅghādisesa, yet they still require a nun to confess before the community when transgressed.
Theravāda Buddhism holds in great esteem the purity of monastic discipline within the Saṅgha, particularly with regard to nuns. These regulations are not arbitrary restrictions, but rather are intended to protect the stillness of mind and to create conditions conducive to practice. The Suttakantana addresses an action that may appear ordinary yet carries deep implications for spiritual cultivation.
Main Content
Suttakantana means "thread-spinning" or "the spinning of thread" (sutta = thread, kantana = the motion of spinning). This rule stipulates that if a nun spins thread with her own hands or participates in the process of spinning thread for personal purposes — that is, not out of necessity for the Saṅgha or the essential work of the monastery — she must confess this offense.
What is the reason underlying this rule? During the time the Buddha lived, nuns were permitted to produce items necessary for the monastery, such as robes and blankets. However, if they were to begin spinning thread or sewing in order to produce unnecessary articles, or moreover to engage in trade and accumulate personal wealth, this would deviate from the spirit of renunciation (nekkhamma) proper to the monastic life.
Prolonged engagement in thread-spinning could give rise to ambition, accumulation, and attachment to worldly work. It also distracts the mind in its cultivation away from meditation and the study of the Dhamma. Therefore, if a nun genuinely engages in the work of thread-spinning for personal purposes without the approval of the Saṅgha or a legitimate reason, she must sincerely confess this conduct.
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