Confession 176

Origin Story

The Buddha was in Sāvatthī. At that time, Kāḷudāyī and Guttā bhikkhunī were old friends, who talked and did things together. According to the Mūlasarvāstivāda vinaya, Udāyī and Guttā were previously married. Cf. Mu bī np4.* Then Kāḷudāyī went wandering to another country for two months. When Guttā bhikkhunī heard it, she wasn’t happy. Kāḷudāyī wandered for two months and returned to Sāvatthī. When Guttā bhikkhunī heard it, she bathed, adorned her face and eyes, applied perfume and oil on her hair, put on a lightly dyed robe, and went to Kāḷudāyī. She paid respect with her head at his feet and sat in front of him. Then defiled attachment arose in Kāḷudāyī’s mind and he stared at her face. Defilements also arose in the bhikkhunī’s mind and she looked at the bhikkhu’s face. The bhikkhunī thought: “He looks at my face, and must have given rise to defiled attachment. Why don’t I get up and walk in front of him?” Then Kāḷudāyī was only wearing his lower robe. When they walked back and forth together, desire arose in his mind, and he feared to break the precepts. They didn’t dare touch each other, but when they stared at each others faces, he emitted semen. Withdrawing quickly from the heat, he returned to his previous seat. Guttā bhikkhunī knew that he had emitted semen, and said to Kāḷudāyī:

“Give me this robe, I’ll wash it.” Then he took off the robe and gave it to her. The bhikkhunī took this robe, stepped back a little to one side, and wrung out the robe. She took the liquid and divided it into two parts: she drank one part and inserted the other into her vagina. Then a meritorious being entered her womb. The bhikkhunī’s belly gradually grew, and the other bhikkhunīs said: “You’re someone who has had sexual intercourse. You’re expelled from the monastery.” The bhikkhunī said: “I haven’t engaged in sex.” She explained the reason as above. The bhikkhunīs didn’t know what to do.

They explained the matter to the Buddha in detail. The Buddha gathered both sanghas because of this matter. He knew, and intentionally asked that bhikkhunī: “Did you really do this?” She answered: “I really did this, World-honored One.” The Buddha told the bhikkhunīs: “Don’t say that this bhikkhunī has done this thing (i.e. had sex). She has become pregnant for the reason (she gave).” The Buddha criticized her with all kinds of reasons: “How can you be called a bhikkhunī when you drink semen?” Having criticized her with all kinds of reasons, he said to the bhikkhus: “For 10 benefits, I’ll lay down a precept for the bhikkhunīs. From now on, this precept should be recited thus:

Final Ruling

‘If a bhikkhunī drinks semen, it’s a pācittiya.’”

Explanations

“Pācittiya” means burn, cook, cover, obstruct. If she doesn’t confess the offense, it can obstruct the path.

Herein, this is an offense: If a bhikkhunī drinks a man’s semen, it’s a pācittiya. Whenever she drinks it, she incurs a pācittiya. (End of rule 176.)