Transcript Ven K Rathanasara`s SVCM1 - Lesson 9

2013 Sutta Vibhanga Course
(Discourse Analysis)
Lesson Nine
Happiness of Morality
Conducted by – Ven. K. Rathanasara
Organized by
1
Happiness Of Morality
Anavajja Sukha
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Buddha says…
“Here, householder, a noble disciple is
endowed with blameless conduct of
body, speech and mind. When he
thinks, ‘I am endowed with blameless
conduct of body, speech and mind’; he
experiences happiness and joy.”
(A.N 4:62; II 69-70)
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What is Sīla?
Kāyavācānaṃ samodānaṃ sīlaṃ
Taming one’s speech and physical actions
is known as Morality [Sīla]
(Pāli Canon)
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Buddha says…
Yo ce vassasatam jīve
Dussīlo asamāhito
Ekāham jīvitam seyyo
Sīlavantassa jhāyino
Better indeed, is a single day’s living of a
righteous and meditative person, than a life of a
hundred years lived by the unrighteous and the
unrestrained.
(Dhammapada 110)
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Buddha recommended 2 Types of Sīla
for Ordained and Lay disciples
Sāmanera
(Novice monks)
Upasampadā
(Full fledged monks)
10 Precepts with
certain disciplinary
codes for leading a
monastic life.
4 kinds of Higher Morality
which comprise:227 Precepts (for Monks)
311 Precepts (for Nuns)
apart from several other
minor ones.
Ordained disciples
1. Pātimokkha Sīla –
Fundamental moral code
(major offences related to
immoral, cruel, harmful
and selfish activities)
2. Indriyasaṃvara Sīla –
Morality
Lay pertaining
Disciples to
Sense Restraint
3. Ājīvapārisuddhi
5 Precepts Sīla –
Morality
pertaining to
8 Precepts
Purity of Livelihood
4. Paccayasannisita Sīla –
Morality pertaining to the
Use of Requisite
Lay disciples
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Five Precepts on Every Day
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 The Training Precept prohibit injuring, maiming,
and torturing .
 The ultimate responsibility for the act of killing lies
in volition. The body and speech function merely
as doors for the volition.
 A Complete Act of Killing constituting on full
violation of the precept involves 5 factors:1. A Living Being
2. Perception of Living Being as such
3. Thought of Killing
4. Appropriate Effort
5. Actual Death of the being
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 Act of Killing can originate from Greed, Hatred and Delusion.
Any of the 3 unwholesome roots, however, can serve as the
impelling cause or decisive support (upanissaya paccaya) for
the act, operating over some span of time.
1. Greed – Killing in order to gain material benefits or high
status for oneself, hunting and fishing for sport.
2. Hatred – Cases of vicious murder where the motive is
strong aversion, cruelty or jealousy.
3. Delusion – Animal sacrifices in the belief that they are
spiritually wholesome or killing followers of other
religions with the view that it is a religious duty.
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 Act of Killing is differentiated by way of their degree of
Moral Gravity.
1. Killing being with moral qualities (Human) is more
blameworthy than killing beings without moral
qualities (Animals).
2. Killing a larger animal is more blameworthy than
killing a smaller one.
Moral weight is also different whether the animal
is:» Domestic or wild
» Gentle or vicious temperament
3. To kill a person of superior spiritual stature or one’s
personal benefactors is more blameworthy than to
kill a less developed person or one unrelated to
oneself.
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4.
Moral weight is also decided based on
Motivation of Killing.
• Premeditated murder is regarded as a
graver transgression than impulsive
killing
• Motivation of Hatred is more
blameworthy than the motivation of
Greed.
• The presence of cruelty and the obtaining
of sadistic pleasure from the act further
increases its moral weight.
5. The force of the defilements accompanying
the act and the amount of effort involved in
its perpetration also determine the Moral
Gravity.
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 The volition can commit the act of theft by
originating action through body or speech.
 For a complete breach of the precept to be
committed, 5 factors must be present:1. An article belonging to another legally and
blamelessly
2. Perception of it as belonging to another
3. Thought of Stealing
4. Activity of Taking the article
5. Actual appropriation of the article
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 Taking what is NOT given can be violated in many ways:-
1. Stealing - without the knowledge of the owner –
housebreaking, midnight bank theft, pick-pocketing
2. Robbery – taking what is not given by Force, either by
snatching someone’s belongings away from him or by
compelling him to hand them over by means of threats.
3. Fraudulence – laying false claims or telling lies in order
to gain someone else’s possession.
4. Deceit – using deceptive means to deprive someone of
an article or to gain his money as when storekeepers
use false weights and measures or when people
produce counterfeit bills for use.
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 The precept is subtle and offers many
opportunities for its breach.
• Pocketing small items from working place,
using
another’s
telephone
without
permission, bringing articles into a country
without declaring them to customs, idling
away time on the job, making one’s
employees work without giving them
adequate compensation.
 Taking what is NOT given can precede either
from Greed or Hatred, both being coupled with
Delusion.
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 The degree of blame attached to stealing based on
the value of the article taken and the moral
qualities of the owner.
• Stealing a very valuable article is blameworthy
than stealing an article of little worth.
• Stealing from a person of high virtuous qualities
or a personal benefactor is a more serious
transgression than stealing from a person of
lesser qualities or from an unrelated person.
 The motivation behind the action and the force of
the defilements are also determinative of the
degree of moral gravity.
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 For men, the text lists twenty types of women
who are illicit partners which can be grouped
into these categories:1. Woman who is under the protection of
elders or other authorities charged with her
care.
2. Woman who is prohibited by convention,
that is close relatives forbidden under
family tradition, nuns and other women
vowed to observe celibacy, and those
forbidden as partners under the law of the
land.
3. Woman who is married or engaged to
another man.
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 In the case of women, for those who are
married, any man other than husband is an
illicit partner.
 For all women, a man forbidden by tradition
or under religious rules is prohibited as a
partner.
 For both men and women any violent, forced
or coercive union, whether by physical
compulsion or psychological pressure, can be
regarded as a transgression of the precept.
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 Four factors which must be present for a breach
of the precept.
1. An illicit partner
2. Thought of engaging in sexual union with
that person
3. Act of engaging in union
4. Acceptance of the union
 The degree of moral gravity involved in the
offence is determined by the force of the
defilements motivating the action and the
qualities of the person against whom the
transgression is committed.
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 The transgression must be understood as
intentional.
o The Precept is NOT violated merely by
speaking what is false; thinking it is true.
 Speaking what is false with the intention of
representing that as true; breach the precept.
 Use of speech to deceive is obvious, but the body
too; can be used as an instrument of
communication – writing, hand signals, gestures.
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 Four factors are necessary for the offence of False
Speech.
1. An Untrue state of affairs
2. Intention of deceiving another
3. Effort to express that either verbally or bodily
4. Conveying of a false impression to another
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 Motivation for False speech can be any of the
three unwholesome roots:1. Greed – Intended to increase one’s gains or
promote one’s status or that of dear to
oneself.
2. Hatred – Intended to destroy the welfare of
others or to bring them harm and suffering.
3. Delusion – For the sake of joke, exaggerating
an incident to make it interesting, speaking
flattery to gratify others.
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 The gravity of the transgression of telling lies
depends on
o the recipient of the lie and
o the motivation of the lie
 The worst cases of False speech are lying in a
way that
o defames the Buddha or an Arahant and
o making False claim to have reached a
superior spiritual attainment.
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 For the precept to be violated, Four factors are
required:1. The Intoxicant
2. Intention of taking it
3. Activity of ingesting it
4. Actual of ingestion of the intoxicant
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 Under the influence of intoxicants, a man who
might otherwise be restrained can lose self
control, become heedless and engages in killing,
stealing, adultery and lying.
 The precept prevents the misfortunes that result
from the use of intoxicants – loss of wealth,
quarrels and crimes, bodily disease, loss of
reputation, shameless conduct, negligence and
madness.
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Eight Precepts on Retreats
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Refer to Course Notes
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Refer to Course Notes
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Refer to Course Notes
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Refer to Course Notes
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Why should you observe Sīla?
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Buddha says…
“There are, O monks, eight streams of merit, streams of
the wholesome, nourishments of happiness, that are
heavenly, ripening in happiness, conducive to heaven, and
that lead to whatever is wished for, loved, and agreeable,
to one's welfare and happiness. What are the eight?”
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
a noble disciple has gone for refuge to the Buddha
a noble disciple has gone for refuge to the Dhamma
a noble disciple has gone for refuge to the Sangha
a noble disciple gives up the destruction of life and abstains from it
a noble disciple gives up the taking of what is not given and abstains
from it
6. a noble disciple gives up sexual misconduct and abstains from it
7. a noble disciple gives up false speech and abstains from it
8. a noble disciple gives up wines, liquors, and intoxicants, the basis for
negligence, and abstains from them
(A.N 8:39; IV 245-47)
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Buddha says…
It is possible, monks, that if some man or woman
here observes the uposatha complete in these
eight factors, with the breakup of the body, after
death, they will be reborn in the company of the
devas in the realm of the…
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Four Great Kings
Tavatimsa devas
Yama devas
Tusita devas
Devas who delight in creating
Devas who wield power over others' creations
(A.N 8:41; IV 248-51)
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 Sīla helps to overcome animal nature in
human mind.
• Greed, Hatred and Delusion
 Sīla is the first step in 3 fold Training Path
towards Enlightenment.
Sammā Vāca
Sammā Kammanta
Sammā Ājīva
• Sīla
Right Speech
Right Actions
Right Livelihood
• Samādhi
• Paññā
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Highlights
1. What is Sīla?
2. What are the FOUR types of Sīla full
fledged monks observed?
3. What are the FIVE factors needed to
commit Killing?
4. What are the FIVE factors needed to
commit Stealing?
5. What are the FOUR conditions needed to
commit Adultery?
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Highlights
6. What are the FOUR conditons needed to
breach the precept of lying?
7. What are the FOUR conditions needed to
breach the fifth precept?
8. What are additional precepts for Uposatha
Sīla?
9. Why you should observe Sīla?
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