Bu Pc 88. Truthfully announcing a superhuman quality
Pāli / Sanskrit:Bhūtārocana
A monk who tells an unordained person about his own profound spiritual attainment must confess the offense.
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The Bhūtārocana Sutta — An Exposition of the Vinaya
Background
The Bhūtārocana belongs to the Vinaya Piṭaka, specifically to the Bhikkhunī Pātimokkha (the code of rules for nuns), as rule 8. The Vinaya Piṭaka is the collection of training rules that the Blessed One Śākyamuni Buddha established for the community of monastics in order to preserve the purity of the Sangha.
The background of this rule arose from actual events that occurred among monastics in the early Buddhist community. During the Buddha's teaching ministry, there were monks or nuns who, having attained profound spiritual accomplishments, proudly proclaimed their wisdom and extraordinary abilities to those who had not gone forth into the homeless life. This conduct, though it may have arisen from a wish to share joy or to inspire confidence, violated the fundamental Buddhist principles of humility and integrity in the holy life.
Principal Content
The rule stipulates that: if a bhikkhunī or bhikkhu intentionally announces or proclaims his or her own spiritual attainments—whether meritorious qualities, wisdom, or extraordinary powers (abhiññā)—to any person who has not gone forth, that monastic must confess this offense.
"Bhūtā" means "truly" or "actually," and "arocana" means "announcing" or "proclaiming." Thus, Bhūtārocana refers to the act of truly proclaiming what one has attained.
This rule does not prohibit monastics from possessing spiritual attainments—for that is indeed the very aim of the holy life—but it prohibits the act of publicly declaring those attainments to outsiders. In particular, making such declarations to those who have not gone forth is liable to give rise to conceit, the seeking of gain or renown, and the weakening of the community's confidence.
The offense requiring correction is a Pācittiya (a confessable offense)—a level of transgression that requires public confession before the Sangha and is acknowledged through the witnessing of repentance by one's fellow monastics.
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