Bi Pc 2525. Borrowing a robe
Pāli / Sanskrit:Cīvarasaṅkamanīya
A nun who wears a borrowed robe without the permission of the owner must confess the offense.
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Theravāda Collection on Monastic Law The Nuns’ Analysis
The chapter on offenses entailing confession The subchapter on nakedness 25. Borrowing a robe
Origin story
At one time when the Buddha was staying at Sāvatthī in Anāthapiṇḍika’s Monastery, there was a nun who, after walking for almsfood, spread out her damp robe and entered her dwelling. Another nun put on that robe and went to the village for alms. Soon afterwards the first nun came out and asked the nuns, “Venerables, have you seen my robe?” The nuns told her what had happened. She then complained and criticized the other nun, “How could a nun put on my robe without asking permission?”
She told the nuns what had happened, and the nuns of few desires complained and criticized her, “How could a nun put on another nun’s robe without asking permission?” … “Is it true, monks, that a nun did this?”
“It’s true, sir.”
The Buddha rebuked her … “How could a nun do this? This will affect people’s confidence …” … “And, monks, the nuns should recite this training rule like this:
Final ruling
‘If a nun wears a robe taken on loan, she commits an offense entailing confession.’”
Definitions
A: whoever … Nun: … The nun who has been given the full ordination in unanimity by both Sanghas through a legal procedure consisting of one motion and three announcements that is irreversible and fit to stand—this sort of nun is meant in this case. A robe taken on loan: if she wears any of the five robes belonging to a fully ordained nun, and it has not been given to her, nor has she asked permission to use it, she commits an offense entailing confession.
Permutations
If the other person is fully ordained, and she perceives her as such, and she takes on loan a robe belonging to her and then wears it, she commits an offense entailing confession. If the other person is fully ordained, but she is unsure of it, and she takes on loan a robe belonging to her and then wears it, she commits an offense entailing confession. If the other person is fully ordained, but she does not perceive her as such, and she takes on loan a robe belonging to her and then wears it, she commits an offense entailing confession.
If the other person is not fully ordained, and she takes on loan a robe belonging to her and then wears it, she commits an offense of wrong conduct. If the other person is not fully ordained, but she perceives her as such, she commits an offense of wrong conduct. If the other person is not fully ordained, but she is unsure of it, she commits an offense of wrong conduct. If the other person is not fully ordained, and she does not perceive her as such, she commits an offense of wrong conduct.
Non-offenses
There is no offense: if the robe has been given to her; if she wears it after asking permission; if her own robe has been stolen; if her own robe has been lost; if there is an emergency; if she is insane; if she is the first offender.
The fifth training rule is finished.
The “…” is an abbreviation carried over from the Pāli original itself, called peyyāla. The early canon was memorized and recited, so passages repeated verbatim from a preceding discourse were commonly contracted to an elision mark rather than written out in full. Venerable Thích Minh Châu's translation preserves this convention. Some texts therefore look short — but that is the canonical form, not missing content or a truncated translation. The elided passages can be read in full in the preceding discourses of the same chapter.
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