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Vinaya Piṭaka - Monastic Rules

Bhikkhu Vibhaṅga - Pācittiya 50: Not to witness military activities.

Origin story

1On one occasion when the Buddha was staying at Sāvatthī in Anāthapiṇḍika’s Monastery, the monks from the group of six were staying with the army for two or three nights. They went to see battles, troop reviews, the massing of the army, and troop inspections. One of the monks who went to a battle was struck by an arrow. People teased him:

“We hope you had a good battle, Venerable. How many targets did you hit?”

And because they teased him, he felt humiliated.

People complained and criticized those monks:

“How can the Sakyan monastics go to see a battle? It’s our misfortune that we must go to battles for the sake of our livelihoods and because of our wives and children.”

2The monks heard the complaints of those people, and the monks of few desires complained and criticized those monks, “How could the monks from the group of six go to see a battle?” …

“Is it true, monks, that you did this?”


“It’s true, Sir.”

The Buddha rebuked them … “Foolish men, how could you do this? This will affect people’s confidence …” … “And, monks, this training rule should be recited like this:

Final ruling

3‘If a monk who is staying with an army for two or three nights goes to a battle, a troop review, a massing of the army, or a troop inspection, he commits an offense entailing confession.’”

Definitions

4If a monk who is staying with an army for two or three nights: he is staying for two or for three nights.


5A battle: wherever fighting is seen.

6A troop review: so many elephants, so many horses, so many chariots, so much infantry.


7A massing of the army: the elephants should set out from here; the horses should set out from here; the chariots should set out from here; the infantry should set out from here.

8A troop: An elephant troop, a horse troop, a chariot troop, an infantry troop. The smallest troop of elephants is three elephants; the smallest troop of horses is three horses; the smallest troop of chariots is three chariots; the smallest troop of infantry is four men with arrows in hand.

If he is on his way to see it, he commits an offense of wrong conduct. Wherever he stands to see it, he commits an offense entailing confession. Every time he goes beyond the range of sight and then sees it again, he commits an offense entailing confession.

Permutations

9If he is on his way to see one division of a fourfold army, he commits an offense of wrong conduct. Wherever he stands to see it, he commits an offense of wrong conduct. Every time he goes beyond the range of sight and then sees it again, he commits an offense of wrong conduct.

Non-offenses

10There is no offense: if he sees it while standing in a monastery; if the army comes to where the monk is standing, sitting, or lying down, and he then sees fighting; if he sees it while walking in the opposite direction; if he goes because there is something to be done, and he then sees it; if there is an emergency; if he is insane; if he is the first offender.

11The training rule on battles, the tenth, is finished.
The fifth sub-chapter on naked ascetics is finished.

12This is the summary:

13“Pastry, talking, three on Upananda,
And indeed supporting;
Mahānāma, Pasenadi,
Army, and struck: those are the ten.”

 

1p_2V_1005, msdiv322Tena samayena buddho bhagavā sāvatthiyaṁ viharati jetavane anāthapiṇḍikassa ārāme. Tena kho pana samayena chabbaggiyā bhikkhū dirattatirattaṁ senāya vasamānā uyyodhikampi balaggampi senābyūhampi anīkadassanampi gacchanti. Aññataropi chabbaggiyo bhikkhu uyyodhikaṁ gantvā kaṇḍena paṭividdho hoti. Manussā taṁ bhikkhuṁ uppaṇḍesuṁ—

"Kacci, bhante, suyuddhaṁ ahosi, kati te lakkhāni laddhānī"ti?

So bhikkhu tehi manussehi uppaṇḍiyamāno maṅku ahosi.

Manussā ujjhāyanti khiyyanti vipācenti:

"Kathañhi nāma samaṇā sakyaputtiyā uyyodhikaṁ dassanāya āgacchissanti. Amhākampi alābhā, amhākampi dulladdhaṁ, ye mayaṁ ājīvassa hetu puttadārassa kāraṇā uyyodhikaṁ āgacchāmā"ti.

2p_2V_1006Assosuṁ kho bhikkhū tesaṁ manussānaṁ ujjhāyantānaṁ khiyyantānaṁ vipācentānaṁ. Ye te bhikkhū appicchā … pe … te ujjhāyanti khiyyanti vipācenti: "Kathañhi nāma chabbaggiyā bhikkhū uyyodhikaṁ dassanāya gacchissantī"ti … pe …

"Saccaṁ kira tumhe, bhikkhave, uyyodhikaṁ dassanāya gacchathā"ti?


"Saccaṁ, bhagavā"ti.

Vigarahi buddho bhagavā … pe … kathañhi nāma tumhe, moghapurisā, uyyodhikaṁ dassanāya gacchissatha. Netaṁ, moghapurisā, appasannānaṁ vā pasādāya … pe … evañca pana, bhikkhave, imaṁ sikkhāpadaṁ uddiseyyātha—


3p_2V_1007, msdiv323"Dirattatirattañce bhikkhu senāya vasamāno uyyodhikaṁ vā balaggaṁ vā senābyūhaṁ vā anīkadassanaṁ vā gaccheyya, pācittiyan"ti.

 

4p_2V_1008, msdiv324Dirattatirattañce bhikkhu senāya vasamāno'ti dvetisso rattiyo vasamāno.


5p_2V_1009Uyyodhikaṁ nāma yattha sampahāro dissati.

6p_2V_1010Balaggaṁ nāma ettakā hatthī, ettakā assā, ettakā rathā, ettakā pattī.


7p_2V_1011Senābyūhaṁ nāma ito hatthī hontu, ito assā hontu, ito rathā hontu, ito pattikā hontu.

8p_2V_1012Anīkaṁ nāma hatthānīkaṁ, assānīkaṁ, rathānīkaṁ, pattānīkaṁ. Tayo hatthī pacchimaṁ hatthānīkaṁ, tayo assā pacchimaṁ assānīkaṁ, tayo rathā pacchimaṁ rathānīkaṁ, cattāro purisā sarahatthā pattī pacchimaṁ pattānīkaṁ.

Dassanāya gacchati, āpatti dukkaṭassa. Yattha ṭhito passati, āpatti pācittiyassa. Dassanūpacāraṁ vijahitvā punappunaṁ passati, āpatti pācittiyassa.

 

9p_2V_1013Ekamekaṁ dassanāya gacchati, āpatti dukkaṭassa. Yattha ṭhito passati, āpatti dukkaṭassa. Dassanūpacāraṁ vijahitvā punappunaṁ passati, āpatti dukkaṭassa.

 

10p_2V_1014, msdiv325Anāpatti— ārāme ṭhito passati, bhikkhussa ṭhitokāsaṁ vā nisinnokāsaṁ vā nipannokāsaṁ vā āgantvā sampahāro dissati, paṭipathaṁ gacchanto passati, sati karaṇīye gantvā passati, āpadāsu, ummattakassa, ādikammikassāti.

11p_2V_1015Uyyodhikasikkhāpadaṁ niṭṭhitaṁ dasamaṁ.
Acelakavaggo pañcamo.

12p_2V_1016Tassuddānaṁ

13p_2V_1017Pūvaṁ kathopanandassa,
tayaṁpaṭṭhākameva ca;
Mahānāmo pasenadi,
senāviddho ime dasāti.