Vinaya Pitaka (3): Khandhaka
by I. B. Horner | 2014 | 386,194 words | ISBN-13: 9781921842160
The English translation of the Khandhaka: the second book of the Pali Vinaya Pitaka, one of the three major ‘baskets’ of Therevada canonical literature. It is a collection of various narratives. The English translation of the Vinaya-pitaka (third part, khandhaka) contains many Pali original words, but transliterated using a system similar to the I...
Rejection of double-lined sandals
Kd.5.1.28 Then the Lord addressed the monks, saying: “Thus, monks, do young men of family declare profound knowledge. The goal is spoken of but the self is not obtruded. But then it seems to me that there are some foolish men here who declare profound knowledge for fun; these afterwards come to disaster.”[1]
Kd.5.1.29 Then the Lord addressed the venerable Soṇa, saying: “You, Soṇa, have been delicately nurtured. I allow for you, Soṇa, sandals with one lining.”
“But I, Lord, gave up eighty cartloads of gold[2] when I went forth from home into homelessness, and a herd of seven elephants.[3] Because of this there will be speakers against me, saying: ‘Soṇa Koḷivisa gave up eighty cartloads of gold when he went forth from home into homelessness, and a herd of seven elephants; and now this very (person) is clinging on to[4] sandals with one lining.’
Kd.5.1.30 “If the Lord will allow them to the Order of monks, I too will make use of them, but if the Lord will not allow them to the Order of monks, neither will I make use of them.” Then the Lord on this occasion, having given reasoned talk, addressed the monks, saying:
“Monks, I allow sandals with one lining. Monks, doubly lined[5] sandals should not be worn, trebly lined[6] sandals should BD.4.246 not be worn, sandals with many linings[7] should not be worn. Whoever should wear (any of these), there is an offence of wrong-doing.”
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
This paragraph occurs at AN.iii.359. Cf. AN.i.218; GS.i.198, n.2; MN.i.396. Vin-a.1083 explains “the goal is spoken of” by saying “if he is called an arahant, that is the goal spoken of. But properly (eva) it should be taken as ‘the meaning of a sutta from the explanation of a suttanta’” (attha means both goal and meaning). It explains “the self is not obtruded” as “if (the profound knowledge) is declared thus, ‘I am an arahant’, the self is not obtruded” (or mentioned or brought forward, na upanīta).
[2]:
Misprint at Vin.1.185 has been corrected at Vinaya Texts ii.13, n.3 to asītisakaṭavāhe hiraññaṃ.
[3]:
Vin-a.1083 says that here this herd (retinue, array, anīka) is called six cow-elephants and one bull-elephant.
[4]:
satto (with instrumental), or ‘is enamoured of’.
[5]:
diguṇa … tiguṇa.
[6]:
diguṇa … tiguṇa.
[7]:
gaṇaṃgaṇupāhanā: Vin-a.1083 says “sandals with upwards of four linings”.