Bu Pc 2020. Pouring water with living beings in it
Pāli / Sanskrit:Sappāṇaka
A monk who pours water containing living beings onto the ground must confess the offense.
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Theravāda Collection on Monastic Law The Great Analysis
The chapter on offenses entailing confession The subchapter on plants 20. Pouring water with living beings in it
Origin story
At one time when the Buddha was staying at Āḷavī at the Aggāḷava Shrine, the monks there were doing building work. They poured water that they knew contained living beings onto grass and clay, and they had others do the same. The monks of few desires complained and criticized them, “How can the monks at Āḷavī pour water that they know contains living beings onto grass and clay, and have others do the same?”
After rebuking those monks in many ways, they told the Buddha. Soon afterwards he had the Sangha gathered and questioned the monks: “Is it true, monks, that you do this?”
“It’s true, sir.”
The Buddha rebuked them … “Foolish men, how can you do this? This will affect people’s confidence …” … “And, monks, this training rule should be recited like this:
Final ruling
‘If a monk pours water that he knows contains living beings onto grass or clay, or has it poured, he commits an offense entailing confession.’”
Definitions
A: whoever … Monk: …The monk who has been given the full ordination by a unanimous Sangha through a legal procedure consisting of one motion and three announcements that is irreversible and fit to stand—this sort of monk is meant in this case. He knows: he knows by himself or others have told him. Pours: if he pours it himself, he commits an offense entailing confession. Has poured: if he asks another, he commits an offense entailing confession. If he only asks once, then even if the other pours a lot, he commits one offense entailing confession.
Permutations
If it contains living beings, and he perceives it as such, and he pours it onto grass or clay, or he has it poured, he commits an offense entailing confession. If it contains living beings, but he is unsure of it, and he pours it onto grass or clay, or he has it poured, he commits an offense of wrong conduct. If it contains living beings, but he does not perceive it as such, and he pours it onto grass or clay, or he has it poured, there is no offense.
If it does not contain living beings, but he perceives it as such, he commits an offense of wrong conduct. If it does not contain living beings, but he is unsure of it, he commits an offense of wrong conduct. If it does not contain living beings, and he does not perceive it as such, there is no offense.
Non-offenses
There is no offense: if it is unintentional; if he is not mindful; if he does not know; if he is insane; if he is the first offender.
The training rule on pouring water with living beings in it, the tenth, is finished.
The second subchapter on plants is finished.
This is the summary:
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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