Bi Pc 5555. Being stingy with families
Pāli / Sanskrit:Kulamaccharinī
A nun who tries to keep her supporters from supporting others must confess the offense.
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Commentary on Bhikkhunī Pācittiya 55: Stinginess with Families
Background
This is recorded in the Pātimokkha — the code of ethical rules for bhikkhunīs (nuns). The Pātimokkha is the foundation of the Vinaya Piṭaka, recited by the community of nuns at regular intervals to enumerate offenses and the manner of their confession.
Kulamaccharinī (stinginess with families) is an offense belonging to the category of Pācittiya — offenses requiring confession. Offenses of this type are less grave than the more serious transgressions, yet they still require open acknowledgment before the Saṅgha.
This offense arises from a mind of stinginess and selfishness, one of the greatest obstacles on the path of practice. In the Theravāda tradition, the purity of the Saṅgha depends upon the generosity and open-heartedness of each of its members.
Principal Content
According to Bhikkhunī Pācittiya 55, if a nun deliberately prevents her own supporters (upāsakas or upāsikās) from offering support to others — whether nuns, monks, or any other worthy recipients — that nun commits a Pācittiya offense and must confess it.
Such conduct includes ways such as: persuading laypeople not to provide food, robes, or requisites to others; using words of rebuke or criticism; or even uttering threats and warnings with the aim of monopolizing support. The essence of the offense is the intention to claim exclusive possession of material goods and the veneration of others.
The act of confession (appachāyana) is performed by acknowledging the offense before another bhikkhunī or before the Saṅgha, according to the gravity of the conduct. The nun must be genuinely remorseful, commit to not repeating the offense, and turn her mind back toward purity.
Practical Significance
Bhikkhunī Pācittiya 55 is not merely an administrative rule; it reflects a profound principle: within the Saṅgha, no one has the right to monopolize material goods or the goodwill of others. This stinginess — macchariya (Pāli) — is a powerful form of greed (lobha), one of the three poisons (tīṇi akusalamūlāni) that give rise to suffering.
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