Digital Dictionary of Buddhism

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戒律

Pronunciations

Basic Meaning: moral restraints and rules of discipline

Senses:

  • A broad term for the set of rules and disciplines observed by Buddhist practitioners, whether they be monks 比丘, nuns 比丘尼 or householders, the application and interpretation of which varies widely among the various branches of Buddhism. Often the components of this compound, 戒 and 律 are used interchangeably, and usually together. When they are distinguished, they refer to the two Sanskrit terms śīla 戒 and vinaya 律 (Tib. 'dul ba). In this case the former refer more specifically to the moral practices—many observed by both lay practitioners and monk—such as not killing, not stealing, not lying etc. The rules of discipline are more associated with structuring the behavior of monastic dwellers—, how they should live, what they should eat, what they can own, and so forth. The observance of these rules prevents dissipation, allowing the practitioner to have the spiritual energy to pursue the path to enlightenment.

    The householder practitioner, declaring his/her faith in the Three Treasures, receives a set of five precepts 五戒 from the monks and nuns. Before the age of 20, if a person wants to begin the process of becoming a member of the order, they choose a preceptor of the same schools, and from that preceptor, receive initiation into the ten precepts 十戒. If, after the age of 20, one wants to become a full-fledged member of the saṃgha, his/her application will be examined by a committee of elder monks. If one is accepted, one is then initiated into the full set of precepts 具足戒, which usually number about 250 for men and 350 for women.

    While the Vinaya are an integral part of every branch of Buddhism, as Buddhism worked its way into East Asia, certain groups of monks became specialists in the study, interpretation and implementation of Vinaya, to the extent that 'vinaya schools' were formed. Thus, in China, Korea and Japan, some monks are listed as being members of the Vinaya school 戒律宗.

    [Charles Muller; source(s): Nakamura, Hirakawa, JEBD, Yokoi, Iwanami]
  • The vinaya has been taught in East Asian primarily through the translations of the four comprehensive Hīnayāna vinaya texts 大廣律:
    1. the Sarvâstivāda Vinaya (Shisong lü; Ten Recitations Vinaya; Tib. gZhi thams cad yod par smra ba) 十誦律 (T 1435); this is the main Vinaya text followed in Tibet.
    2. the Dharmagupta Vinaya (Sifen lü; Four Part Vinaya; Tib. Chos srung sde) 四分律 (T 1428); this text was influential in East Asia.
    3. the Mahīśāsaka Vinaya (Wufen lü; Five Part Vinaya) 五分律 (T 1421)
    4. the Mahāsāṃghika-vinaya 摩訶僧祇律 (T 1425; K 889).
    The Southeast Asian tradition follows the Theravāda Vinaya (Tib. gNas brtan sde pa), which is the only complete extant Vinaya in an Indic language.

    However, due to various differences in society, as well as the lay-centered approach of Mahāyāna Buddhism, a new Mahāyāna vinaya was developed in East Asia, based primarily on the second fascicle of the Brahmāʼs Net Sutra 梵網經, which details the ten grave precepts 十重戒 and the forty-eight minor precepts 四十八輕戒 for bodhisattva practitioners.

    [Charles Muller]
  • The precepts used by Chinese Buddhists in the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties were the ones most influential on Japanese Zen. They were based on the Four Part Vinaya 四分律, and were prescribed in the Rules of Purity for Zen Monasteries 禪苑淸規, compiled in 1103. The major sets of precepts found in those sources are: the ten precepts 十戒 binding on novice monks 沙彌 who have entered the Buddhist order by 'going forth from home'  出家; the full precepts 具足戒 undertaken by full-fledged monks and nuns 大僧; the five precepts 五戒 for Buddhist lay people; and the bodhisattva precepts 菩薩戒, which both monks and lay people can receive to affirm their commitment to the ideals of the Mahāyāna. The novice precepts are crucial, for they mark the divide between householders and monastics who 'leave home.' As explained in the Four Part Vinaya novice monks undertake the following ten vows: (1) not to take life, (2) not to steal, (3) not to engage in sexual activity, (4) not to speak falsely, (5) not to drink alcohol, (6) not to adorn the body with flowers, headdresses, or perfumes, (7) not to sing, dance, or perform as an entertainer, and not to go to see or hear such things, (8) not to sit on high, magnificent couches, (9) not to eat at improper times, and (10) not to handle gold and silver, money, or valuables. The five precepts for the Buddhist laity are the same as the first five of the ten novice precepts, with the exception that only improper sexual activity (as opposed to all sexual activity) is proscribed. The full precepts comprise 250 rules for individual monks which are grouped according to the seriousness of the offenses and the means of expiating them. For example, the four most serious transgressions (sexual intercourse, theft, killing a human being, and falsely claiming superhuman faculties) are classed as offenses requiring expulsion from the saṃgha. The next most serious class of transgressions are offenses requiring probation and temporary exclusion from the saṃgha. The least serious offenses are ones that can be atoned by simply confessing them and transgressions of minor etiquette for which there are no explicit sanctions. [Griffith Foulk]
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    [Dictionary References]

    Bukkyō jiten (Ui) 130

    Bulgyo sajeon 43a

    Zengaku daijiten (Komazawa U.) 147a

    Iwanami bukkyō jiten 107

    Japanese-English Buddhist Dictionary (Daitō shuppansha) 157a/173

    Japanese-English Zen Buddhist Dictionary (Yokoi) 324

    Bukkyōgo daijiten (Nakamura) 165d

    Fo Guang Dictionary 2909

    Ding Fubao

    Buddhist Chinese-Sanskrit Dictionary (Hirakawa) 0521

    Bukkyō daijiten (Mochizuki) (v.9-10)87a,1133a

    Bukkyō daijiten (Oda) 172-1

    Copyright provisions

    The rights to textual segments (nodes) of the DDB are owned by the author indicated in the brackets next to each segment. For rights regarding the compilation as a whole, please contact Charles Muller. Please do not reproduce without permission. And please do not copy into Wikipedia without proper citation!

    Entry created: 2001-09-08

    Updated: 2013-04-17