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MN 142PTS MN 3.2537 min read

The Analysis of Religious Donations

Dakkhiṇāvibhaṅgasutta

When his step-mother Mahāpajāpatī wishes to offer him a robe for his personal use, the Buddha encourages her to offer it to the entire Saṅgha instead. He goes on to explain that the best kind of offering to the Saṅgha is one given to the dual community of monks and nuns, headed by the Buddha.

Translated by Bhikkhu Sujato · Pāli: Mahāsaṅgīti Tipiṭaka · Public domain (CC0) via SuttaCentral

  • 0.1Majjhima Nikāya 142Middle Discourses 142

0.2DakkhiṇāvibhaṅgasuttaThe Analysis of Religious Donations

1.1PTS 3.253Evaṁ me sutaṁ—So I have heard.1.2ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā sakkesu viharati kapilavatthusmiṁ nigrodhārāme.At one time the Buddha was staying in the land of the Sakyans, near Kapilavatthu in the Banyan Tree Monastery.

2.1Atha kho mahāpajāpati gotamī navaṁ dussayugaṁ ādāya yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṁ abhivādetvā ekamantaṁ nisīdi. Ekamantaṁ nisinnā kho mahāpajāpati gotamī bhagavantaṁ etadavoca:Then Mahāpajāpati Gotamī approached the Buddha bringing a new pair of garments. She bowed, sat down to one side, and said to the Buddha,12.2“idaṁ me, bhante, navaṁ dussayugaṁ bhagavantaṁ uddissa sāmaṁ kantaṁ sāmaṁ vāyitaṁ.“Sir, I have spun and woven this new pair of garments specially for the Buddha.22.3Taṁ me, bhante, bhagavā paṭiggaṇhātu anukampaṁ upādāyā”ti.May the Buddha please accept this from me out of sympathy.”

2.4Evaṁ vutte, bhagavā mahāpajāpatiṁ gotamiṁ etadavoca:When she said this, the Buddha said to her,2.5“saṅghe, gotami, dehi.“Give it to the Saṅgha, Gotamī.2.6Saṅghe te dinne ahañceva pūjito bhavissāmi saṅgho cā”ti.When you give to the Saṅgha, both the Saṅgha and I will be honored.”3

2.7Dutiyampi kho mahāpajāpati gotamī bhagavantaṁ etadavoca:For a second time …2.8“idaṁ me, bhante, navaṁ dussayugaṁ bhagavantaṁ uddissa sāmaṁ kantaṁ sāmaṁ vāyitaṁ.2.9Taṁ me, bhante, bhagavā paṭiggaṇhātu anukampaṁ upādāyā”ti.2.10Dutiyampi kho bhagavā mahāpajāpatiṁ gotamiṁ etadavoca:2.11“saṅghe, gotami, dehi.2.12Saṅghe te dinne ahañceva pūjito bhavissāmi saṅgho cā”ti.

2.13Tatiyampi kho mahāpajāpati gotamī bhagavantaṁ etadavoca:For a third time, Mahāpajāpati Gotamī said to the Buddha,2.14“idaṁ me, bhante, navaṁ dussayugaṁ bhagavantaṁ uddissa sāmaṁ kantaṁ sāmaṁ vāyitaṁ.“Sir, I have spun and woven this new pair of garments specially for the Buddha.2.15Taṁ me, bhante, bhagavā paṭiggaṇhātu anukampaṁ upādāyā”ti.May the Buddha please accept this from me out of sympathy.”

2.16Tatiyampi kho bhagavā mahāpajāpatiṁ gotamiṁ etadavoca:And for a third time, the Buddha said to her,2.17“saṅghe, gotami, dehi.“Give it to the Saṅgha, Gotamī.2.18Saṅghe te dinne ahañceva pūjito bhavissāmi saṅgho cā”ti.When you give to the Saṅgha, both the Saṅgha and I will be honored.”

3.1PTS 3.254Evaṁ vutte, āyasmā ānando bhagavantaṁ etadavoca:When he said this, Venerable Ānanda said to the Buddha,3.2“paṭiggaṇhātu, bhante, bhagavā mahāpajāpatiyā gotamiyā navaṁ dussayugaṁ.“Sir, please accept the new pair of garments from Mahāpajāpati Gotamī.3.3Bahūpakārā, bhante, mahāpajāpati gotamī bhagavato mātucchā āpādikā posikā khīrassa dāyikā;Sir, Mahāpajāpati was very helpful to the Buddha. As his aunt, she raised him, nurtured him, and gave him her milk.3.4bhagavantaṁ janettiyā kālaṅkatāya thaññaṁ pāyesi.When the Buddha’s birth mother passed away, she nurtured him at her own breast.

3.5Bhagavāpi, bhante, bahūpakāro mahāpajāpatiyā gotamiyā.And the Buddha has been very helpful to Mahāpajāpati.3.6Bhagavantaṁ, bhante, āgamma mahāpajāpati gotamī buddhaṁ saraṇaṁ gatā, dhammaṁ saraṇaṁ gatā, saṅghaṁ saraṇaṁ gatā.It is owing to the Buddha that Mahāpajāpati has gone for refuge to the Buddha, the teaching, and the Saṅgha.3.7Bhagavantaṁ, bhante, āgamma mahāpajāpati gotamī pāṇātipātā paṭiviratā adinnādānā paṭiviratā kāmesumicchācārā paṭiviratā musāvādā paṭiviratā surāmerayamajjapamādaṭṭhānā paṭiviratā.It’s owing to the Buddha that she refrains from killing living creatures, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, and intoxicants of beer, wine, and liquor.3.8Bhagavantaṁ, bhante, āgamma mahāpajāpati gotamī buddhe aveccappasādena samannāgatā, dhamme aveccappasādena samannāgatā, saṅghe aveccappasādena samannāgatā ariyakantehi sīlehi samannāgatā.It’s owing to the Buddha that she has experiential confidence in the Buddha, the teaching, and the Saṅgha, and has the ethics loved by the noble ones.3.9Bhagavantaṁ, bhante, āgamma mahāpajāpati gotamī dukkhe nikkaṅkhā, dukkhasamudaye nikkaṅkhā, dukkhanirodhe nikkaṅkhā, dukkhanirodhagāminiyā paṭipadāya nikkaṅkhā.It’s owing to the Buddha that she is free of doubt regarding suffering, its origin, its cessation, and the practice that leads to its cessation.43.10Bhagavāpi, bhante, bahūpakāro mahāpajāpatiyā gotamiyā”ti.The Buddha has been very helpful to Mahāpajāpati.”

4.1“Evametaṁ, ānanda.“That’s so true, Ānanda.4.2Yaṁ hānanda, puggalo puggalaṁ āgamma buddhaṁ saraṇaṁ gato hoti, dhammaṁ saraṇaṁ gato hoti, saṅghaṁ saraṇaṁ gato hoti, imassānanda, puggalassa iminā puggalena na suppatikāraṁ vadāmi, yadidaṁ—When someone has enabled you to go for refuge, it’s not easy to repay them4.3abhivādanapaccuṭṭhānaañjalikammasāmīcikammacīvarapiṇḍapātasenāsanagilānappaccayabhesajjaparikkhārānuppadānena.by bowing down to them, rising up for them, greeting them with cupped palms, and observing proper etiquette for them; or by providing them with robes, almsfood, lodgings, and medicines and supplies for the sick.

4.4Yaṁ hānanda, puggalo puggalaṁ āgamma pāṇātipātā paṭivirato hoti, adinnādānā paṭivirato hoti, kāmesumicchācārā paṭivirato hoti, musāvādā paṭivirato hoti, surāmerayamajjapamādaṭṭhānā paṭivirato hoti, imassānanda, puggalassa iminā puggalena na suppatikāraṁ vadāmi, yadidaṁ—When someone has enabled you to refrain from killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, and intoxicants of beer, wine, and liquor, it’s not easy to repay them …4.5abhivādanapaccuṭṭhānaañjalikammasāmīcikammacīvarapiṇḍapātasenāsanagilānappaccayabhesajjaparikkhārānuppadānena.

4.6Yaṁ hānanda, puggalo puggalaṁ āgamma buddhe aveccappasādena samannāgato hoti, dhamme … saṅghe … ariyakantehi sīlehi samannāgato hoti, imassānanda, puggalassa iminā puggalena na suppatikāraṁ vadāmi, yadidaṁ—When someone has enabled you to have experiential confidence in the Buddha, the teaching, and the Saṅgha, and the ethics loved by the noble ones, it’s not easy to repay them …4.7abhivādanapaccuṭṭhānaañjalikammasāmīcikammacīvarapiṇḍapātasenāsanagilānappaccayabhesajjaparikkhārānuppadānena.

4.8Yaṁ hānanda, puggalo puggalaṁ āgamma dukkhe nikkaṅkho hoti, dukkhasamudaye nikkaṅkho hoti, dukkhanirodhe nikkaṅkho hoti, dukkhanirodhagāminiyā paṭipadāya nikkaṅkho hoti, imassānanda, puggalassa iminā puggalena na suppatikāraṁ vadāmi, yadidaṁ—When someone has enabled you to be free of doubt regarding suffering, its origin, its cessation, and the practice that leads to its cessation, it’s not easy to repay them4.9abhivādanapaccuṭṭhānaañjalikammasāmīcikammacīvarapiṇḍapātasenāsanagilānappaccayabhesajjaparikkhārānuppadānena.by bowing down to them, rising up for them, greeting them with cupped palms, and observing proper etiquette for them; or by providing them with robes, almsfood, lodgings, and medicines and supplies for the sick.

5.1PTS 3.255Cuddasa kho panimānanda, pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.Ānanda, there are these fourteen religious donations to individuals.55.2Katamā cuddasa?What fourteen?5.3Tathāgate arahante sammāsambuddhe dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to the Realized One, the perfected one, the fully awakened Buddha.5.4ayaṁ paṭhamā pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the first religious donation to an individual.5.5Paccekasambuddhe dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to an independent Buddha.5.6ayaṁ dutiyā pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the second religious donation to an individual.5.7Tathāgatasāvake arahante dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to a perfected one.5.8ayaṁ tatiyā pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the third religious donation to an individual.5.9Arahattaphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanne dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to someone practicing to realize the fruit of perfection.5.10ayaṁ catutthī pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the fourth religious donation to an individual.5.11Anāgāmissa dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to a non-returner.5.12ayaṁ pañcamī pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the fifth religious donation to an individual.5.13Anāgāmiphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanne dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to someone practicing to realize the fruit of non-return.5.14ayaṁ chaṭṭhī pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the sixth religious donation to an individual.5.15Sakadāgāmissa dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to a once-returner.5.16ayaṁ sattamī pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the seventh religious donation to an individual.5.17Sakadāgāmiphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanne dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to someone practicing to realize the fruit of once-return.5.18ayaṁ aṭṭhamī pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the eighth religious donation to an individual.5.19Sotāpanne dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to a stream-enterer.5.20ayaṁ navamī pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the ninth religious donation to an individual.5.21Sotāpattiphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanne dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to someone practicing to realize the fruit of stream-entry.5.22ayaṁ dasamī pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the tenth religious donation to an individual.5.23Bāhirake kāmesu vītarāge dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to an outsider who is free of desire for sensual pleasures.5.24ayaṁ ekādasamī pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the eleventh religious donation to an individual.5.25Puthujjanasīlavante dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to an ordinary person who has good ethical conduct.5.26ayaṁ dvādasamī pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the twelfth religious donation to an individual.5.27Puthujjanadussīle dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to an ordinary person who has bad ethical conduct.5.28ayaṁ terasamī pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇā.This is the thirteenth religious donation to an individual.5.29Tiracchānagate dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to an animal.5.30ayaṁ cuddasamī pāṭipuggalikā dakkhiṇāti.This is the fourteenth religious donation to an individual.6

6.1Tatrānanda, tiracchānagate dānaṁ datvā sataguṇā dakkhiṇā pāṭikaṅkhitabbā, puthujjanadussīle dānaṁ datvā sahassaguṇā dakkhiṇā pāṭikaṅkhitabbā, puthujjanasīlavante dānaṁ datvā satasahassaguṇā dakkhiṇā pāṭikaṅkhitabbā, bāhirake kāmesu vītarāge dānaṁ datvā koṭisatasahassaguṇā dakkhiṇā pāṭikaṅkhitabbā, sotāpattiphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanne dānaṁ datvā asaṅkheyyā appameyyā dakkhiṇā pāṭikaṅkhitabbā, ko pana vādo sotāpanne, ko pana vādo sakadāgāmiphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanne, ko pana vādo sakadāgāmissa, ko pana vādo anāgāmiphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanne, ko pana vādo anāgāmissa, ko pana vādo arahattaphalasacchikiriyāya paṭipanne, ko pana vādo arahante, ko pana vādo paccekasambuddhe, ko pana vādo tathāgate arahante sammāsambuddhe.Now, Ānanda, gifts to the following persons may be expected to yield the following returns. To an animal, a hundred times. To an unethical ordinary person, a thousand. To an ethical ordinary person, a hundred thousand. To an outsider free of desire for sensual pleasures, 10,000,000,000. But a gift to someone practicing to realize the fruit of stream-entry may be expected to yield incalculable, immeasurable returns. How much more so a gift to a stream-enterer, someone practicing to realize the fruit of once-return, a once-returner, someone practicing to realize the fruit of non-return, a non-returner, someone practicing to realize the fruit of perfection, a perfected one, or an independent Buddha? How much more so a Realized One, a perfected one, a fully awakened Buddha?7

7.1PTS 3.256Satta kho panimānanda, saṅghagatā dakkhiṇā.But there are, Ānanda, seven religious donations bestowed on a Saṅgha.7.2Katamā satta?What seven?7.3Buddhappamukhe ubhatosaṅghe dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to the communities of both monks and nuns headed by the Buddha.7.4ayaṁ paṭhamā saṅghagatā dakkhiṇā.This is the first religious donation bestowed on a Saṅgha.7.5Tathāgate parinibbute ubhatosaṅghe dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to the communities of both monks and nuns after the Buddha has finally become quenched.87.6ayaṁ dutiyā saṅghagatā dakkhiṇā.This is the second religious donation bestowed on a Saṅgha.7.7Bhikkhusaṅghe dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to the Saṅgha of monks.7.8ayaṁ tatiyā saṅghagatā dakkhiṇā.This is the third religious donation bestowed on a Saṅgha.7.9Bhikkhunisaṅghe dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift to the Saṅgha of nuns.97.10ayaṁ catutthī saṅghagatā dakkhiṇā.This is the fourth religious donation bestowed on a Saṅgha.7.11‘Ettakā me bhikkhū ca bhikkhuniyo ca saṅghato uddissathā’ti dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift, thinking: ‘Appoint this many monks and nuns for me from the Saṅgha.’7.12ayaṁ pañcamī saṅghagatā dakkhiṇā.This is the fifth religious donation bestowed on a Saṅgha.7.13‘Ettakā me bhikkhū saṅghato uddissathā’ti dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift, thinking: ‘Appoint this many monks for me from the Saṅgha.’7.14ayaṁ chaṭṭhī saṅghagatā dakkhiṇā.This is the sixth religious donation bestowed on a Saṅgha.7.15‘Ettakā me bhikkhuniyo saṅghato uddissathā’ti dānaṁ deti—One gives a gift, thinking: ‘Appoint this many nuns for me from the Saṅgha.’7.16ayaṁ sattamī saṅghagatā dakkhiṇā.This is the seventh religious donation bestowed on a Saṅgha.

8.1Bhavissanti kho panānanda, anāgatamaddhānaṁ gotrabhuno kāsāvakaṇṭhā dussīlā pāpadhammā.In times to come there will be lambs of the flock wearing a scrap of ocher cloth, unethical and of bad character.108.2Tesu dussīlesu saṅghaṁ uddissa dānaṁ dassanti.People will give gifts to those unethical people in the name of the Saṅgha.8.3Tadāpāhaṁ, ānanda, saṅghagataṁ dakkhiṇaṁ asaṅkheyyaṁ appameyyaṁ vadāmi.Then too, I say, a religious donation bestowed on the Saṅgha is incalculable and immeasurable.118.4Na tvevāhaṁ, ānanda, kenaci pariyāyena saṅghagatāya dakkhiṇāya pāṭipuggalikaṁ dānaṁ mahapphalataraṁ vadāmi.But in any case, there is no way a personal offering can be more fruitful than one bestowed on a Saṅgha, I say.

9.1Catasso kho imā, ānanda, dakkhiṇā visuddhiyo.Ānanda, there are these four ways of purifying a religious donation.129.2Katamā catasso?What four?9.3Atthānanda, dakkhiṇā dāyakato visujjhati no paṭiggāhakato.There’s a religious donation that’s purified by the giver, not the recipient.9.4Atthānanda, dakkhiṇā paṭiggāhakato visujjhati no dāyakato.There’s a religious donation that’s purified by the recipient, not the giver.9.5Atthānanda, dakkhiṇā neva dāyakato visujjhati no paṭiggāhakato.There’s a religious donation that’s purified by neither the giver nor the recipient.9.6Atthānanda, dakkhiṇā dāyakato ceva visujjhati paṭiggāhakato ca.There’s a religious donation that’s purified by both the giver and the recipient.

10.1Kathañcānanda, dakkhiṇā dāyakato visujjhati no paṭiggāhakato?And how is a religious donation purified by the giver, not the recipient?10.2Idhānanda, dāyako hoti sīlavā kalyāṇadhammo, paṭiggāhakā honti dussīlā pāpadhammā—It’s when the giver is ethical, of good character, but the recipient is unethical, of bad character.10.3evaṁ kho, ānanda, dakkhiṇā dāyakato visujjhati no paṭiggāhakato.

11.1Kathañcānanda, dakkhiṇā paṭiggāhakato visujjhati no dāyakato?And how is a religious donation purified by the recipient, not the giver?11.2Idhānanda, dāyako hoti dussīlo pāpadhammo, paṭiggāhakā honti sīlavanto kalyāṇadhammā—It’s when the giver is unethical, of bad character, but the recipient is ethical, of good character.11.3evaṁ kho, ānanda, dakkhiṇā paṭiggāhakato visujjhati no dāyakato.

12.1Kathañcānanda, dakkhiṇā neva dāyakato visujjhati no paṭiggāhakato?And how is a religious donation purified by neither the giver nor the recipient?12.2Idhānanda, dāyako ca hoti dussīlo pāpadhammo, paṭiggāhakā ca honti dussīlā pāpadhammā—It’s when both the giver and the recipient are unethical, of bad character.12.3evaṁ kho, ānanda, dakkhiṇā neva dāyakato visujjhati no paṭiggāhakato.

13.1PTS 3.257Kathañcānanda, dakkhiṇā dāyakato ceva visujjhati paṭiggāhakato ca?And how is a religious donation purified by both the giver and the recipient?13.2Idhānanda, dāyako ca hoti sīlavā kalyāṇadhammo, paṭiggāhakā ca honti sīlavanto kalyāṇadhammā—It’s when both the giver and the recipient are ethical, of good character.13.3evaṁ kho, ānanda, dakkhiṇā dāyakato ceva visujjhati paṭiggāhakato ca.13.4Imā kho, ānanda, catasso dakkhiṇā visuddhiyo”ti.These are the four ways of purifying a religious donation.”

14.1Idamavoca bhagavā.That is what the Buddha said.14.2Idaṁ vatvāna sugato athāparaṁ etadavoca satthā:Then the Holy One, the Teacher, went on to say:13

14.3“Yo sīlavā dussīlesu dadāti dānaṁ,“When an ethical person with trusting heart14.4Dhammena laddhaṁ supasannacitto;gives a proper gift to unethical persons,14.5Abhisaddahaṁ kammaphalaṁ uḷāraṁ,trusting in the ample fruit of deeds,14.6Sā dakkhiṇā dāyakato visujjhati.that offering is purified by the giver.

14.7Yo dussīlo sīlavantesu dadāti dānaṁ,When an unethical and untrusting person,14.8Adhammena laddhaṁ appasannacitto;gives an improper gift to ethical persons,14.9Anabhisaddahaṁ kammaphalaṁ uḷāraṁ,not trusting in the ample fruit of deeds,14.10Sā dakkhiṇā paṭiggāhakato visujjhati.that offering is purified by the receivers.

14.11Yo dussīlo dussīlesu dadāti dānaṁ,When an unethical and untrusting person,14.12Adhammena laddhaṁ appasannacitto;gives an improper gift to unethical persons,14.13Anabhisaddahaṁ kammaphalaṁ uḷāraṁ,not trusting in the ample fruit of deeds,14.14Na taṁ dānaṁ vipulapphalanti brūmi.I declare that gift is not very fruitful.

14.15Yo sīlavā sīlavantesu dadāti dānaṁ,When an ethical person with trusting heart14.16Dhammena laddhaṁ supasannacitto;gives a proper gift to ethical persons,14.17Abhisaddahaṁ kammaphalaṁ uḷāraṁ,trusting in the ample fruit of deeds,14.18Taṁ ve dānaṁ vipulapphalanti brūmi.I declare that gift is abundantly fruitful.

14.19Yo vītarāgo vītarāgesu dadāti dānaṁ,But when a passionless one gives to the passionless14.20Dhammena laddhaṁ supasannacitto;a proper gift with trusting heart,14.21Abhisaddahaṁ kammaphalaṁ uḷāraṁ,trusting in the ample fruit of deeds,14.22Taṁ ve dānaṁ āmisadānānamaggan”ti.that’s truly the best of material gifts.”

14.23Dakkhiṇāvibhaṅgasuttaṁ niṭṭhitaṁ dvādasamaṁ.

14.24Vibhaṅgavaggo niṭṭhito catuttho.

15.0Tassuddānaṁ

15.1Bhaddekānandakaccāna,15.2Lomasakaṅgiyāsubho;15.3Mahākammasaḷāyatanavibhaṅgā,15.4Uddesaaraṇā dhātu saccaṁ.15.5Dakkhiṇāvibhaṅgasuttanti.

Translator’s notes

  1. Mahāpajāpati was the Buddha’s foster-mother, sister of his birth mother Māyā. She is honored in the tradition as the first nun, the founder of the bhikkhunī order (AN 8.51:20.1). She was honored as the most senior of the nuns (AN 1.235:1.1). Though mostly remembered as the Buddha’s mother, her own verses deconstruct her motherhood, relating how she has previously been a “mother, a son, a father, a brother, and a grandmother” but now has transcended all such states (Thig 6.6:3.1).

    ↩ mn142:2.1

  2. Mahāpajāpati offers on behalf of her son alone, whereas elsewhere offerings are said to be “specially for the Buddha and the mendicant Saṅgha” AN 5.30:2.4, AN 6.42:2.4, AN 8.86:2.5.

    ↩ mn142:2.2

  3. The Buddha gently tries to deflect Mahāpajāpati’s familial attachment.

    ↩ mn142:2.6

  4. This description makes it sound like she is a virtuous laywoman who has attained stream-entry. Yet one of the parallels refers to her as a bhikkhunī (T 84 at T i 903c22). And while she was supposed to be the first bhikkhunī, the text below refers to the bhikkhunī order; see further discussion there (MN 142:7.9).

    ↩ mn142:3.9

  5. “Religious donation” (or “honorarium”, dakkhiṇā, Sanskrit dakṣiṇā) is a Vedic term for the payment owed a brahmin priest for performing ritual services. In the Rig Veda this gift was of cattle offered at the dawn service; it yields benefits as the cow yields milk, and as Dawn sheds her bounteous light. Later it was found that gold or other precious things served just as well. The dakṣiṇā was said to absolve the sacrificer from the guilt of killing (Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa 1.2.3.4). This is an overriding concern of the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa, which emphasizes how the dead of the sacrifice—a slain animal or pressed soma—is “enlivened” through the dakṣiṇā (2.2.2.2). In the Pali tradition, dakkhiṇa is etymologically linked with a gift given by the “right” or “capable” hand. In Snp 3.4, a brahmin gives the rice-cake left over from a fire oblation as a dakkhiṇā.

    ↩ mn142:5.1

  6. Jamison and Brereton translate dakṣiṇā as “priestly gift”, which is correct for the Rig Veda. But whereas the Vedic tradition means the dakkhiṇā for brahmins alone, the Buddha redefines it to include all humans, including those of bad conduct, and even animals as well. All creatures are deserving of kindness, and such kindness is always a sacred act.

    ↩ mn142:5.30

  7. The idea of such a multiplying scale is anticipated in Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 4.3.33, which speaks of the multiplying joy in human and divine realms.

    ↩ mn142:6.1

  8. Following the passing of the Buddha, a complete dispensation has both bhikkhus and bhikkhunīs.

    ↩ mn142:7.5

  9. If Mahāpajāpati was still a lay person at this point, this mention of the bhikkhunī order could be read in one of two ways. One possibility is that she was not, in fact, the first bhikkhunī, an argument that I have made previously. In brief, the passages that assert she was the first bhikkhunī, while widely shared in the tradition, are full of textual problems that indicate they were added at a somewhat late date, which I think was around the time of the Second Council (see AN 8.51). Further, the Therīgāthā is the most important early account of bhikkhunīs in their own voices, yet no nun mentions Mahāpajāpati as teacher or founder of the order, while the verses of Bhaddā Kuṇḍalakesā appear to predate the formal ordination procedure ascribed to Mahāpajāpati (Thig 5.9). On the other hand, if this argument is incorrect, it might be the case that the order of nuns is mentioned here since the Buddha knew from the start of his dispensation that he would establish it (DN 16:3.8.4). Under this reading, the Buddha is perhaps dropping a hint for Mahāpajāpati to ordain. Regardless of her ordination status at this point, the praise of the order of nuns acts as an encouragement, balancing out the mild rebuke with which the discourse started (compare the Buddha’s words to Ānanda at DN 16:5.14.2).

    ↩ mn142:7.9

  10. In early Pali, gotrabhū is always used for the very least of those who are worthy of gifts (AN 9.10:1.3, AN 10.16:1.3). It has a positive sense, this negative use being quite isolated. Later Buddhist traditions take gotrabhū as “one who is joining the clan”, the first entry on the path to awakening, but I doubt this is what it means in early texts. The Buddha recognized clan as a convention (MN 98:12.1), but it was abandoned by those gone forth (AN 8.19:14.2), and he considered questions as to his own clan inappropriate (Snp 3.4:4.3) as it has nothing to do with purification (SN 2.20:3.4). Further, “clan” is always spelled gotta in Pali. The older Vedic spelling gotra points to the Vedic meaning of gotra as “cow-pen”, a safe place to gather the herd of cattle, and by extension a name for the herd itself. And while the Saṅgha is never called a “clan” it is compared to a herd of cattle; MN 34 develops an extended simile where the different kinds of cattle in the herd are compared with different members of the Saṅgha. Now, in that discourse the last to cross over are the “followers of teachings, followers by faith”. Like a newborn calf, they can only cross the ford with the assistance of their mother (MN 34:10.1); in AN 10.16:1.3 the gotrabhū follows even them. If we are on the right track, the suffix -bhū may be derived from bhūna (Sanskrit bhrūṇa) in the sense “baby”, or perhaps “embryo” (MN 75:5.3). In English we use “flock” for a religious group under the protection of a leader, so we can render gotrabhū as “babies of the flock” or “lambs of the flock”.

    For kāsāvakaṇṭha as “scrap of ochre cloth”, see note on Iti 48:4.1.

    ↩ mn142:8.1

  11. This rests uneasily with the statement below that a donation is purified by the recipient. This statement is not found in most parallels, so it is perhaps a later addition. But as it stands one argument might be that, since these offerings are made to the community as a whole, the merit that accrues from the community is not despoiled by the fact that the specific recipients are of bad character.

    ↩ mn142:8.3

  12. This passage is at AN 4.78 and included at DN 33:1.11.185.

    ↩ mn142:9.1

  13. The discourse is wrapped up more satisfactorily in one of the parallels, as it omits these verses and instead concludes with Mahāpajāpati offering the robes to the Saṅgha (T 84 at T i 904b15).

    ↩ mn142:14.2