Manual of Vinaya - Reading Five: A General Description of the Vows, Part Two
The following selection consists of the third major section of Daymaker (Nyinbyed), composed by Master Ngulchu Dharma Bhadra (1772-1851) as a commentary to the Essence of the Ocean of Discipline (‘Dul-ba rgya-mtso’i snyingpo), a summary of the vinaya teachings by Je Tsongkapa (1357-1419). Please note that the portions of the English translation marked with (. . .) deal with specific vows and have been deleted, since this cannot be taught to persons without the proper ordination.
The Vows of an Intermediate Nun
The identification of the vows of an intermediate nun vow has two points: an identification of the intermediate nun’s vows, and an description of the rules for intermediate nuns. The identification of these vows is given in the following lines of the root text:
The intermediate nun’s vows consist
Of giving up the basic six parts
As well as the ancillary six,
Subsequent to receiving the novice vow.
The vows of an intermediate nun are taken subsequent to receiving a pure form of the female novice vows explained earlier. They must be taken with a motivation of renunciation, from a female preceptor and a female master of ceremony before a quorum of the ordained.
These intermediate nun’s vows consist of agreeing to give up twelve things for the length of two years. Here first are six basic—that is, elemental—parts or actions to give up, such as walking down a street without a proper companion. Next are the six ancillary or incidental parts, such as taking possession of money. The description of the vows is expressed in these lines:
(. . .)
By keeping the following rules, one gives up the primary six things that work against the vows of an intermediate nun:
(. . .)
By keeping the following rules, one gives up the ancillary six things that work against the vows of an intermediate nun:
(. . .) Most of the text of the verses at this point can be found in the Assortment of Scripture and its commentary. A few apparent discrepancies in the wording can probably be attributed to differences in the translation from Sanskrit.
The fifth section concerns the identification of the vows of a full nun. The root text on this point reads as follows:
The vows of a full nun consist of giving up
Three hundred and sixty-four different things:
The eight defeats and twenty remainders,
Thirty-three downfalls of release,
A hundred and eighty simple downfalls,
Eleven deeds for individual confession,
And a hundred and twelve offenses.
The vows of a full nun consist of giving up three hundred and sixty-four different things, or downfalls. These downfalls are divided into the following groups:
(. . .)
One agrees to give up the above downfalls, and pledges to adhere to this code of behavior for the length of one’s entire life. This is done through a ceremony involving four different requests, in the presence of a [[[Wikipedia:female|female]]] preceptor, a [[[Wikipedia:female|female]]] master of ceremony, and two groups of the ordained, each constituting the necessary quorum. One takes the vows out of a motivation of renunciation.
The sixth section is an identification of the vows of a full monk, and is presented in the following lines:
The vows of a full monk consist of giving up
Two hundred and fifty-three different things:
The sum of four defeats and thirteen remainders,
Thirty downfalls of release,
Ninety different simple downfalls,
Four deeds for individual confession,
And a hundred and twelve offenses.
The vows of a full monk are or consist of giving up two hundred and fifty-three different things, or observing a code of this many rules. The things that you give up consist of the sum total of the following groups:
(. . .)
One agrees to give up the above downfalls, and pledges to adhere to this code of behavior for the length of one’s entire life. This is done through a full ordination ceremony of current times which is complete and without fault, performed in the presence of a preceptor, a master of ceremony, and a quorum of the ordained. One takes the vows out of a motivation of renunciation.
Here finally is a literal explanation of the names of the different offenses and downfalls. The word “root” is used to describe those ultimate wrong actions which function to damage one’s vows. “Defeats” are so named because, in committing them, one has been defeated by the enemy; that is, by mental afflictions and the things they involve. “Remainders” take their name from the fact that, if you perform one of them, there is nonetheless the slightest bit of a vow remaining that can be restored.
“Downfalls of release” are spoken of this way because, in order to repair them, one must first release some object. “Downfalls” are so called because they make a person who commits them fall down into the lower births. “Deeds for individual confession” are types of wrong actions that must be confessed by each full monk individually first. “Offenses” or bad deeds are so called because one has done something which was not good. “Obstacles” take their name from the fact that they present an obstacle to the further development of one’s good qualities.
“Non-virtues” [literally "deeds that we are threatened against"] derive their name from the fact that they give unpleasant consequences. “Wrong deeds” [literally "unspeakable acts"] are so called because they are actions which in the presence of holy beings we would feel unable to admit we had done.
See also
- Manual of Vinaya - Reading One: Je Tsongkapa’s Epistle on Ethics
- Manual of Vinaya - Reading Two: Outline of the Sutra on Discipline (Vinaya Sutra)
- Manual of Vinaya - Reading Three: Introduction to the Vows of Individual Freedom
- Manual of Vinaya - Reading Four: A General Description of the Vows, Part One
- Manual of Vinaya - Reading Five: A General Description of the Vows, Part Two
- Manual of Vinaya - Reading Six: Taking and Keeping the Vows
- Manual of Vinaya - Reading Seven: The Ten Non-Virtues, and their Karmic Results
- Manual of Vinaya - Reading Eight: Introduction to the Steps of the Path
- Manual of Vinaya - Reading Nine: Description of the Lesser Capacity
- Manual of Vinaya - Reading Ten: Description of the Medium and Greater Capacities
- Manual of Vinaya - CLASS NOTES part 1
- Manual of Vinaya - CLASS NOTES part 2
