Confession 136

The 136th training precept: Being stingy with the dhamma.

Origin Story

Location as before. Then the bhikkhunīs said to Thullanandā bhikkhunī: “Noble one, please teach us to recite suttas etc.” When she had heard this, the bhikkhunīs came at the time of instruction, and she made them all do chores: Some were sent to heat up a cloth to warm her back; some brought her an eye medication box, some were made to sweep her room, some were made to draw water, and some laid out the bedding and sunned her clothes. In this way, she sent them all to do all kinds of work. The bhikkhunīs thought: “Now this noble one is stingy with the dhamma towards us and doesn’t teach us, but she turns us into workers. It’s appropriate that we ask her together.” Then they asked her: “Why don’t you teach us?” Thullā bhikkhunī said: “Are you saying that the dhamma can easily be sought? I spent much time, went through much hardship, and exerted myself day and night to serve my eminent teachers. In this way, only after a long time did I obtain what I was seeking.” In the end, she didn’t teach them. The bhikkhunīs told the bhikkhus, and the bhikkhus told the Buddha. The Buddha asked and criticized her, and he told the bhikkhunīs: “Someone who is stingy with the dhamma will incur five kinds of faults: 1) They’ll be born blind. 2) And without wisdom. 3) And far from the Buddha’s dhamma. 4) In their home there will be enemies. 5) They won’t enter the ranks of the noble ones. When the body breaks up and life is exhausted, they fall into hell.” To be explained in detail, down to: “I’ll lay down another training precept. You should recite it like this:

Final Ruling

‘If a bhikkhunī is stingy with the dhamma, it’s a pācittiya.’”

Explanations

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

“Being stingy with the dhamma” means not teaching and instructing.

The explanations of the rule factors etc. are as explained in detail before.