Bu Pc 6363. Reopening a settled legal issue
Pāli / Sanskrit:Ukkoṭana
A monk who tries to reopen an issue of monastic law that has been properly settled 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 containing living beings 63. Reopening a settled legal issue
Origin story
At one time the Buddha was staying at Sāvatthī in the Jeta Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s Monastery. At that time the monks from the group of six were reopening a legal issue that they knew had been legitimately settled, saying, “The legal procedure hasn’t been done;” “It’s been done badly;” “It should be done again;” “It hasn’t been settled;” “It’s been badly settled;” “It should be settled again.”
The monks of few desires complained and criticized them, “How can the monks from the group of six reopen a legal issue that they know has been legitimately settled?” … “Is it true, monks, that you’re doing 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 reopens a legal issue that he knows has been legitimately settled, 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 or the Sangha has told him. Legitimately: done according to the Teaching, according to the Monastic Law, according to the Teacher’s instruction—this is called “legitimately”. A legal issue: there are four kinds of legal issues: legal issues arising from disputes, legal issues arising from accusations, legal issues arising from offenses, legal issues arising from business.
Reopens: if he reopens it, saying, “The legal procedure hasn’t been done;” “It’s been done badly;” “It should be done again;” “It hasn’t been settled;” “It’s been badly settled;” “It should be settled again,” he commits an offense entailing confession.
Permutations
If it is a legitimate legal procedure, and he perceives it as such, and he reopens it, he commits an offense entailing confession. If it is a legitimate legal procedure, but he is unsure of it, and he reopens it, he commits an offense of wrong conduct. If it is a legitimate legal procedure, but he perceives it as illegitimate, and he reopens it, there is no offense.
If it is an illegitimate legal procedure, but he perceives it as legitimate, he commits an offense of wrong conduct. If it is an illegitimate legal procedure, but he is unsure of it, he commits an offense of wrong conduct. If it is an illegitimate legal procedure, and he perceives it as such, there is no offense.
Non-offenses
There is no offense: if he reopens it because he knows that the legal procedure was illegitimate, done by an incomplete assembly, or done against one who did not deserve it; if he is insane; if he is the first offender.
The training rule on reopening a settled legal issue, the third, 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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