Pācittiya Pāḷi

The Pācittiya Pāḷi, which is the second book of the Vinaya Piṭaka, deals with the remaining sets of rules for the bhikkhus, namely, the pācittiya, the pāṭidesanīya, the sekhiya, the adhikaraṇasamatha and the corresponding disciplinary rules for the bhikkhunis. Although it is called in Pāḷi just pācittiya, it has the distinctive name of suddha pācittiya (ordinary pācittiya), to distinguish it from nissaggiya pācittiya, described above.

Ninety-two Pācittiya Offences and Penalties

There are ninety-two rules under this class of offences classified into nine sections. A few examples of this type of offence are:

(1) Telling a lie deliberately.
(2) A bhikkhu who sleeps under the same roof and within the same walls as a woman commits a pācittiya offence.
(3) A bhikkhu who digs the ground or causes it to be dug commits a pācittiya offence.
A pācittiya offence is remedied merely by admission of the offence to a bhikkhu.

Four Pāṭidesanīya Offences and Penalties

There are four offences under this classification and they all deal with the bhikkhu’s conduct in accepting and eating alms-food offered to him. The bhikkhu breaking any of these rules must use a special formula stating the nature of his fault when admitting his offence.

The first rule of pāṭidesanīya offence reads: "Should a bhikkhu eat hard food or soft food having accepted it with his own hand from a bhikkhuni who is not his relation and who has gone among the houses for alms-food this should be admitted to another bhikkhu by the bhikkhu saying: ‘Friend, I have done a censurable thing which is unbecoming and which should be admitted. I admit having committed a pāṭidesanīya offence.’ "

The events that led to the laying down of this rule happened in Sāvatthi, where one morning bhikkhus and bhikkhunis were going for alms-food. A certain bhikkhuni offered the food she had received to a certain bhikkhu who took away all that was in her bowl. The bhikkhuni had to go without any food for the day. Three days in succession she offered to give her alms-food to the same bhikkhu who on all the three days deprived her of her entire food. Consequently she became famished. On the fourth day while going on her alms round she fainted and fell down through weakness. When the Buddha came to hear about this he censured the bhikkhu who was guilty of the wrong deed and laid down the above rule.

Seventy-five Sekhiya Rules of Polite Behaviour

These seventy-five rules laid down originally for the proper behaviour of bhikkhus also apply to novices who seek admission to the order. Most of these rules were laid down at Sāvatthi as a result of undisciplined behaviour by a group of six bhikkhus. The rules can be divided into four groups. The first group of twenty-six rules is concerned with good conduct and behaviour when going into towns and villages. The second group of thirty rules deals with polite manners when accepting alms-food and when eating meals. The third group of sixteen rules contains rules which prohibit teaching of the Dhamma to disrespectful people. The fourth group of three rules relates to unbecoming ways of answering the calls of nature and of spitting.

Seven Ways of Settling Disputes (Adhikaraṇasamatha)

Pācittiya Pāḷi concludes the disciplinary rules for bhikkhus with a chapter on seven ways of settling disputes (adhikaraṇasamatha).

Four kinds of cases are listed:

(1) Vivādādhikaraṇa-disputes as to what is Dhamma, what is not Dhamma; what is Vinaya, what is not Vinaya; what the Buddha said, what the Buddha did not say; what constitutes an offence and what is not an offence.
(2) Anuvādādhikaraṇa-accusations and disputes arising out of them concerning the virtue, practice, views and way of living of a bhikkhu.
(3) Āpattādhikaraṇa-infringement of any disciplinary rule.
(4) Kiccādhikaraṇa-formal meeting or decisions made by the Sangha.

For settlement of disputes that may arise from time to time amongst the order, precise and detailed methods are prescribed under seven headings:

(1) Sammukhā vinaya-before coming to a decision conducting an enquiry in the presence of both parties in accordance with the rules of Vinaya.
(2) Sati vinaya-making a declaration by the Sangha of the innocence of an arahat against whom some allegations have been made after asking him if he remembers having committed the offence.
(3) Amūḷha vinaya-making a declaration by the Sangha when the accused is found to be insane.
(4) Patiññatta karaṇa-making a decision after admission by the party concerned.
(5) Yebhuyyasika kamma-making a decision in accordance with the majority vote.
(6) Tassapāpiyasika kamma-a declaration by the Sangha when the accused proves to be unreliable, making admissions only to retract them, evading questions and telling lies.
(7) Taṇivatthāraka kamma-"The act of covering up the grass"-exonerating all offences except the offences of pārājika, saṅghādisesa and those in connection with laymen and laywomen when the disputing parties are asked to reconcile by the Sangha.

Rules of Discipline for the Bhikkhunis

The concluding chapters in the Pācittiya Pāḷi are devoted to the rules of discipline for the bhikkhunis. The list of rules for the bhikkhunis is longer than that for the bhikkhus. The bhikkhunis rules were drawn up on exactly the same lines as those for the bhikkhus with the exception of the two aniyata rules which are not laid down for the bhikkhuni order.

The eight categories of disciplinary rules for bhikkhus and bhikkhunis of the order are treated in detail in the first two books of the Vinaya Piṭaka. For each rule an historical account is given as to how it came to be laid down followed by an exhortation of the Buddha ending with "This offence does not lead to a rousing of faith in those who are not convinced of the teaching, nor to an increase of faith in those who are convinced." After the exhortation comes the particular rule laid down by the Buddha followed by word for word commentary on the rule.

Bhikkhu Bhikkhuni
(1) Pārājika                     4     8
(2) Saṅghādisesa           13   17
(3) Aniyata                      2     0
(4) Nissaggiya pācittiya  30   30
(5) Suddha pācittiya       92 166
(6) Pāṭidesanīya               4     8
(7) Sekhiya                    75   75
(8) Adhikaraṇasamatha    7     7
                                  ____ ____
                                    227  311