Relinquishment With Confession 26

The 26th training precept: Supplementing one’s food with offerings intended for a robe from several people.

Origin Story

Location as before. Thullanandā bhikkhunī put on old, damaged robes, took her bowl, entered the city, and walked around among the houses of brahmin householders to speak on the essentials of the dhamma. Lay people asked her: “Noble one, why do you wear these tattered robes?” The bhikkhunī said: “How could I have a husband, sons and daughters, or male and female slaves to give me clothes? If you provide donations, I’ll be able to replace them.” The lay people replied: “We’ll donate to the noble one according to each one’s means.” Some gave thread, some gave a robe fund, some gave a fund for sewing the robes, some gave a fund for dyeing. When the bhikkhunī had obtained all these goods, she used them to supplement her food. As before, she put on old, torn robes and went to the houses of the householders to speak on the essentials of dhamma. The female householders asked: “Noble one, why did you return wearing tattered robes?” The bhikkhunī answered as explained in detail above, down to the lay people being upset. The bhikkhunīs told the bhikkhus, and the bhikkhus told the Buddha. The Buddha gathered the bhikkhunīs for this reason as before, asked if it was true, and criticized her, (down to:) “I’ll lay down another training precept. You should recite it like this:

Final Ruling

‘If a bhikkhunī obtains offerings from several people intended for a robe and uses them to supplement her food, it’s a nissaggiya pācittiya.’”

Explanations

“A bhikkhunī” means Thullanandā, or any other bhikkhunī.

“Obtaining offerings from several people intended for a robe” means obtaining separate donations from several people.

“Using them to supplement her food” means selling them and supplementing her food and edibles.

The explanations of the rule factors etc. are as explained above.