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Copyright © 1994 Thanissaro Bhikkhu
For free distribution only, as a gift of Dhamma
Readers may also wish to refer to the complete list of Patimokkha rules.
The answer to this question lies in the fact that the monks form a Community, reliant on the support of lay Buddhists, and anyone who has lived for any time in a communal situation knows that communities need rules in order to function peacefully. The Buddha, in laying down each rule, gave ten reasons for doing so: for the excellence of the Community, the peace of the Community, the curbing of the shameless, the comfort of well-behaved bhikkhus, the restraint of pollutants related to the present life, the prevention of pollutants related to the next life, the arousing of faith in the faithless, the increase of the faithful, the establishment of the true Dhamma and the fostering of discipline.
These reasons fall into three main types. The first two are external: to ensure peace and well-being within the Community itself, and to foster and protect faith among the laity, on whom the monks depend for their support. The third type of reason is internal: to help restrain and prevent mental pollutants within the individual monks. This last point quickly becomes apparent to anyone who seriously tries to keep to the rules, for they encourage mindfulness and circumspection in one's actions, qualities that carry over into the training of the mind.
Rules, however, are not the only way to express ethical norms, and the Buddha also made use of principles and models in teaching the virtues he wanted his following to develop. The rules thus function in a wider context than simple legality, and work together with the principles and models formulated by the Buddha to provide a complete training in behavior, with each side making up for the weaknesses of the other.
Principles and models serve as personal, subjective standards, and tend to be loosely defined. Their interpretation and application are left to the judgment of the individual. Thus they are difficult to enforce when an individual has blatantly overstepped the bounds of proper behavior.
Rules serve as more objective standards, and thus are more enforceable. To work, they must be precisely defined in a way acceptable to the Community at large. This precision, though, accounts for their weakness in general as universal guides to behavior. To begin with, a clear, practical line must be drawn between black and white, i.e., between what is and is not an infraction of the rule. In some cases, it is difficult to find a practical break off point that corresponds exactly to one's intuitive sense of what is right and wrong, so it is sometimes necessary to include the areas of gray either with the black or the white.
Secondly, the more precisely a rule is defined to suit a particular time and place, the less well it may fit other times and places. This is where principles and models come in: They indicate the spirit of the rules and aid in applying them to differing contexts.
Thus as you look at the rules and contemplate them, you should keep in mind that they function in a larger context: the teachings and practice of the Dhamma as a whole. The Buddha's own name for the religion he founded was Dhamma-Vinaya, so remember that neither half was meant to function without the other.
Some of the stories are classics of Buddhist literature, and show a dry, understated sense of humor together with a perceptive insight into human foibles. The element of humor here is very important, for without it there can be no intelligent set of rules to govern human behavior.
As time passed, and the number of rules grew, some of the Buddha's followers, headed by Ven. Upali, gathered the major rules into a set code -- the Patimokkha -- that eventually contained 227 rules. The minor rules, which came to number several hundred, they gathered into chapters loosely organized according to topic, called Khandhakas.
The Patimokkha as we now have it is embedded in a text called the Sutta Vibhanga. This presents each rule, preceded by its origin story, and followed by what permutations, if any, it went through before reaching its final form. The rule is then analyzed into its component elements, to show how the factors of effort, object, perception, intention and result do or do not mitigate the penalty assigned by the rule. The discussion then concludes with a list of extenuating circumstances for which there is no offense in breaking the rule.
There are a few rules where the factors of intention and perception make no difference at all -- such as in the rule forbidding a monk to drink alcohol -- but they almost always deal with situations where one would be expected to be mindful and perceptive enough to know what's going on, and so these rules too help in the training of the mind.
In any event, the system of analyzing each offense into the factors of effort, object, perception, intention and result shows how adherence to the rules leads directly to the development of concentration and discernment. If a monk is careful to view his actions in terms of these factors, he is developing mindfulness, an analytical approach to events in the present, and persistence. These are the first three factors of Awakening, and form the basis for the remaining four: rapture, serenity, concentration and equanimity.
The second principle used in determining penalties is based on the Buddha's observation to Ananda, one of his chief disciples, that friendship and companionship with the good is the whole of the religious life. Anyone who approaches the Dhamma seriously should be wise enough to realize that without the opportunity of associating and learning from people who are experienced on the path, it is well nigh impossible to make any progress on one's own. The monks are thus expected to value their good standing vis a vis the well-behaved members of their group, and so the system of punishments worked out by the Buddha revolves entirely around affecting the offender's status within the Community.
The Patimokkha classifies its rules into seven levels:
The next three levels of rules -- nissaggiya pacittiya (NP), pacittiya (Pc), and patidesaniya (Pd) -- entail simple confession to a fellow monk, although the NP rules involved an article that has to be forfeited -- in most cases temporarily, although in a few cases the object has to be forfeited for good, in which case the offender has to confess his offense to the entire Community.
If a monk commits an offense and refuses to undergo the penalty, the Community may decide how seriously they take the matter. Since there is no monks' police beyond the individual's conscience, it may often happen that no one else knows of the offense to begin with, and nothing is done. If however it becomes common knowledge, and the Community regards it as a serious matter, they should talk privately with the monk to help him see the error of his ways. If he is recalcitrant, they may strip him temporarily of his status, either by censuring him, stripping him of his seniority, driving him from the Community, or suspending him from the Order of monks as a whole. If the offender sees the error of his ways and reforms his behavior accordingly, the Community may return him to his former status.
Now of course there may be some hardened souls among the monks who are unfazed by punishments of this sort, but we should note that the Buddha saw no use for physical coercion in enforcing his rules. If a monk had to be physically forced into abiding by the training, his heart wouldn't be in it, and there is no way that he could benefit from it. Such monks the Buddha considered beyond the pale, although he allowed them to stay on in the Community in hopes that eventually their conscience would get the better of them. In the meantime, the law of karma would guarantee that in the long run, they would not be getting away with anything at all.
The final two levels of rules in the Patimokkha do not give a particular penalty. The sekhiya (Sk) rules -- dealing primarily with etiquette -- simply state that one should work at following them. The Sutta Vibhanga explains that if one oversteps them out of disrespect, one should confess the fact. The adhikarana samatha (As) rules are not so much rules as they are principles to follow in dealing with issues that arise in the Community. If monks try to settle an issue without following these principles, their decision is invalid, and they must confess their wrongdoing to other monks who took no part in the decision.
These five categories are not sharply distinct types. Instead, they are more like the colors in the band of light thrown off by a prism -- discernably different, but shading into one another with no sharp dividing lines. Right Speech, for instance, often shades into Communal harmony, just as Right Livelihood shades into personal etiquette. Thus the placement of a particular rule in one category rather than another has been a somewhat arbitrary process. There are a few cases -- such as Pacittiyas 46 & 84 -- where the reason for placing the rule in a particular category will become clear only after reading the detailed discussions in BMC.
Each rule is followed by a code giving the rule's number in its section of the Patimokkha.
If you count the number of rules in the list, you will see that they do not quite equal 227. This is because there are a couple of cases where I have condensed two or three Sekhiya rules into one summary.
Distorting the evidence while accusing a bhikkhu of having committed a parajika offense, in hopes of having him disrobed, is a sanghadisesa offense. (Sg 9)
The intentional effort to misrepresent the truth to another individual is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 1)
Making an unfounded charge to a bhikkhu -- or getting someone else to make the charge to him -- that he is guilty of a sanghadisesa offense is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 76)
Entering a village, town or city during the period after noon until the following dawn, without having taken leave of an available bhikkhu -- unless there is an emergency -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 85)
Pouring water that one knows to contain living beings -- or having it poured -- on grass or clay is a pacittiya offense. Pouring anything that would kill the beings into such water -- or having it poured -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 20)
Deliberately killing an animal -- or having it killed -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 61)
Using water, knowing that it contains living beings that will die from one's using it, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 62)
Having given another bhikkhu a robe on a condition and then -- angry and displeased -- snatching it back or having it snatched back is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 25)
Making use of cloth or a bowl stored under shared ownership -- unless the shared ownership has been rescinded or one is taking the item on trust -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 59)
Intentionally causing oneself to emit semen, or getting someone else to cause one to emit semen -- except during a dream -- is a sanghadisesa offense. (Sg 1)
Lustful bodily contact with a woman whom one perceives to be a woman is a sanghadisesa offense. (Sg 2)
Making a lustful remark to a woman about her genitals, her anus or about her performing sexual intercourse is a sanghadisesa offense. (Sg 3)
Telling a woman that she would benefit from having sexual intercourse with oneself is a sanghadisesa offense. (Sg 4)
Getting an unrelated bhikkhuni to wash, dye or beat a robe that one has worn at least once is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 4)
Getting an unrelated bhikkhuni to wash, dye or card wool that has not been made into cloth or yarn is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 17)
Lying down at the same time in the same lodging with a woman is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 6)
Teaching more than six sentences of Dhamma to a woman except in response to a question, is a pacittiya offense unless a knowledgeable man is present. (Pc 7)
Exhorting a bhikkhuni about the eight vows of respect -- except when one has been authorized to do so by the Community -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 21)
Exhorting a bhikkhuni on any topic at all after sunset -- except when they request it -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 22)
Going to the bhikkhunis' quarters and exhorting a bhikkhuni about the eight vows of respect -- except when she is ill or has requested the instruction -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 23)
Giving robe cloth to an unrelated bhikkhuni without receiving anything in exchange is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 25)
Sewing a robe -- or having one sewn -- for an unrelated bhikkhuni is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 26)
Traveling by arrangement with a bhikkhuni from one village to another -- except when the road is risky or there are other dangers -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 27)
Traveling by arrangement with a bhikkhuni upriver or downriver in the same boat -- except when crossing a river -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 28)
Sitting or lying down alone with a bhikkhuni in a place out of sight and out of hearing is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 30)
Sitting or lying down with a woman or women in a private, secluded place with no other man present is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 44)
Sitting or lying down alone with a woman in an unsecluded but private place is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 45)
Traveling by arrangement with a woman from one village to another is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 67)
Deliberately lying to another person that one has attained a superior human state is a parajika offense. (Pr 4)
Acting as a go-between to arrange a marriage, an affair or a date between a man and a woman not married to each other is a sanghadisesa offense. (Sg 5)
Engaging in trade with anyone except one's co-religionists is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 20)
Persuading a donor to give to oneself a gift that he or she had planned to give to the Community -- when one knows that it was intended for the Community -- is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 30)
Telling an unordained person of one's actual superior human attainments is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 8)
Persuading a donor to give to another individual a gift that he or she had planned to give to a Community -- when one knows that it was intended for the Community -- is a pacittiya offense (Pc 82)
Being in a separate zone from any of one's three robes at dawn -- except when the end-of-vassa or kathina privileges are in effect, or one has received formal authorization from the Community -- is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 2)
Keeping out-of-season cloth for more than 30 days when it is not enough to make a requisite and one has expectation for more -- except when the end-of-vassa and kathina privileges are in effect -- is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 3)
Accepting robe cloth from an unrelated bhikkhuni without giving her anything in exchange is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 5)
Asking for and receiving robe cloth from an unrelated lay person, except when one's robes have been stolen or destroyed, is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 6)
Asking for and receiving excess cloth from unrelated lay people when one's robes have been stolen or destroyed is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 7)
When a lay person who is not a relative is planning to get a robe for one, but has yet to ask one what kind of robe one wants: Receiving the robe after making a request that would raise its cost is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 8)
When two or more lay people who are not one's relatives are planning to get separate robes for one, but have yet to ask one what kind of robe one wants: Receiving a robe from them after asking them to pool their funds to get one robe -- out of a desire for something fine -- is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 9)
Making a felt blanket/rug with silk mixed in it for one's own use -- or having it made -- is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 11)
Making a felt blanket/rug entirely of black wool for one's own use -- or having it made -- is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 12)
Making a felt blanket/rug that is more than one-half black wool for one's own use -- or having it made -- is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 13)
Unless one has received authorization to do so from the Community, making a felt blanket/rug for one's own use -- or having it made -- less than six years after one's last one was made is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 14)
Making a felt sitting rug for one's own use -- or having it made -- without incorporating a one-span piece of old felt is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 15)
Seeking and receiving a rains-bathing cloth before the fourth month of the hot season is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. Using a rains-bathing cloth before the last two weeks of the fourth month of the hot season is also a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 24)
Taking thread that one has asked for improperly, and getting weavers to weave cloth from it -- when they are unrelated and have not made a previous offer to weave -- is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 26)
When donors who are not relatives -- and have not invited one to ask -- have arranged for weavers to weave robe cloth intended for one: Receiving the cloth after getting the weavers to increase the amount of thread used in it is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 27)
Keeping robe cloth offered in urgency past the end of the robe season after having accepted it during the last eleven days of the Rains Retreat is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 28)
When one is living in a dangerous wilderness abode during the first month of the cold season, and has left one of one's robes in the village where one normally goes for alms: Being away from the abode and the village for more than six nights at a stretch -- except when authorized by the Community -- is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 29)
Making use of an unmarked robe is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 58)
Acquiring an overly large sitting cloth after making it -- or having it made -- for one's own use is a pacittiya offense requiring that one cut the cloth down to size before confessing the offense. (Pc 89)
Acquiring an overly large skin-eruption covering cloth after making it -- or having it made -- for one's own use is a pacittiya offense requiring that one cut the cloth down to size before confessing the offense. (Pc 90)
Acquiring an overly large rains-bathing cloth after making it -- or having it made -- for one's own use is a pacittiya offense requiring that one cut the cloth down to size before confessing the offense. (Pc 91)
Acquiring an overly large robe after making it -- or having it made -- for one's own use is a pacittiya offense requiring that one cut the robe down to size before confessing the offense. (Pc 92)
Eating food obtained from the same public alms center two days running, unless one is too ill to leave the center, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 31)
Eating a meal to which four or more individual bhikkhus have been specifically invited -- except on special occasions -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 32)
Eating a meal before going to another meal to which one was invited, or accepting an invitation to one meal and eating elsewhere instead, is a pacittiya offense except when one is ill or at the time of giving cloth or making robes. (Pc 33)
Accepting more than three bowlfuls of food that the donors prepared for their own use as presents or for provisions for a journey is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 34)
Eating staple or non-staple food that is not left-over, after having earlier in the day finished a meal during which one turned down an offer to eat further staple food, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 35)
Eating staple or non-staple food in the period after noon until the next dawn is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 37)
Eating food that a bhikkhu -- oneself or another -- formally received on a previous day is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 38)
Eating finer foods, after having asked for them for one's own sake -- except when ill -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 39)
Eating food that has not been formally given is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 40)
Eating staple or non-staple food, after having accepted it from the hand of an unrelated bhikkhuni in a village area, is a patidesaniya offense. (Pd 1)
Eating staple food accepted at a meal to which one has been invited and where a bhikkhuni has given directions, based on favoritism, as to which bhikkhu should get which food and none of the bhikkhus have dismissed her, is a patidesaniya offense. (Pd 2)
Eating staple or non-staple food, after accepting it -- when one is neither ill nor invited -- at the home of a family formally designated as "in training," is a patidesaniya offense. (Pd 3)
Eating an unannounced gift of staple or non-staple food after accepting it in a dangerous wilderness abode when one is not ill is a patidesaniya offense. (Pd 4)
A bhikkhu who is not ill should not ask for rice, bean curry or any other food not covered by Pacittiya 39. (Sk 37)
Building a hut with a sponsor -- or having it built -- destined for one's own use, without having obtained the Community's approval, is a sanghadisesa offense. (Sg 7)
When a bhikkhu is building or repairing a large dwelling for his own use, using resources donated by another, he may not reinforce the window or door frames with more than three layers of roofing material or plaster. To exceed this is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 19)
Acquiring a bed or bench with legs longer than eight Sugata fingerbreadths after making it -- or having it made -- for one's own use is a pacittiya offense requiring that one cut the legs down before confessing the offense. (Pc 87)
Acquiring a bed or bench stuffed with cotton down after making it -- or having it made -- for one's own use is a pacittiya offense requiring that one remove the stuffing before confessing the offense. (Pc 88)
When a supporter has made an offer to supply medicines to the Community: Asking the donor for medicine outside the terms of the offer when one is not ill, or asking him/her for medicine to use for a non-medicinal purpose, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 47)
Taking gold or money, having someone else take it, or consenting to its being placed down as a gift for oneself, is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 18)
Obtaining gold or money through trade is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 19)
Keeping an alms bowl for more than ten days without determining it for use or placing it under dual ownership is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 21)
Asking for a new alms bowl when one's current bowl is not beyond repair is a nissaggiya pacittiya offense. (NP 22)
Acquiring a needle box made of ivory, bone or horn after making it -- or having it made -- for one's own use is a pacittiya offense requiring that one break the box before confessing the offense. (Pc 86)
To persist in supporting a potential schismatic, after the third announcement of a formal rebuke in a meeting of the Community, is a sanghadisesa offense. (Sg 11)
To persist in being difficult to admonish, after the third announcement of a formal rebuke in the Community, is a sanghadisesa offense. (Sg 12)
To persist -- after the third announcement of a formal rebuke in the Community -- in criticizing an act of banishment performed against oneself is a sanghadisesa offense. (Sg 13)
When a trustworthy female lay follower accuses a bhikkhu of having committed a parajika, sanghadisesa or pacittiya offense while sitting alone with a woman in a private, secluded place, the Community should investigate the charge and deal with the bhikkhu in accordance with whatever he admits having done. (Ay 1)
When a trustworthy female lay follower accuses a bhikkhu of having committed a sanghadisesa or pacittiya offense while sitting alone with a woman in a private place, the Community should investigate the charge and deal with the bhikkhu in accordance with whatever he admits having done. (Ay 2)
Telling an unordained person of another bhikkhu's serious offense -- unless one is authorized by the Community to do so -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 9)
Persistently replying evasively or keeping silent when being questioned in a meeting of the Community in order to conceal one's own offenses -- after a formal charge of evasiveness or uncooperativeness has been brought against one -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 12)
If a Community official is innocent of prejudice, criticizing him within earshot of another bhikkhu is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 13)
When one has set a bed, bench, mattress or stool belonging to the Community out in the open: Leaving its immediate vicinity without putting it away or arranging to have it put away is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 14)
When one has spread bedding out in a dwelling belonging to the Community: Departing from the monastery without putting it away or arranging to have it put away is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 15)
Encroaching on another bhikkhu's sleeping or sitting place in a dwelling belonging to the Community, with the sole purpose of making him uncomfortable and forcing him to leave, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 16)
Causing a bhikkhu to be evicted from a dwelling belonging to the Community -- when one's primary motive is anger -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 17)
Sitting or lying down on a bed or bench with detachable legs on an unplanked loft in a dwelling belonging to the Community, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 18)
Saying that a properly authorized bhikkhu exhorts the bhikkhunis for the sake of personal gain -- when in fact that is not the case -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 24)
Deliberately tricking another bhikkhu into breaking Pacittiya 35, in hopes of finding fault with him, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 36)
Speaking or acting disrespectfully when being admonished by another bhikkhu for a breach of the training rules is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 54)
Agitating to re-open an issue, knowing that it was properly dealt with, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 63)
Not informing other bhikkhus of a serious offense that one knows another bhikkhu has committed -- either out of a desire to protect him from having to undergo the penalty, or to protect him from the jeering remarks of other bhikkhus -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 64)
Acting as the preceptor in the ordination of a person one knows to be less than 20 years old is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 65)
Refusing to give up the wrong view that there is nothing wrong in intentionally transgressing the Buddha's ordinances -- after the third announcement of a formal rebuke in a meeting of the Community -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 68)
Consorting, joining in communion or lying down under the same roof with a bhikkhu who has been suspended and not been restored -- knowing that such is the case -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 69)
Supporting, receiving services from, consorting or lying down under the same roof with an expelled novice -- knowing that he has been expelled -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 70)
Saying something as a ploy to excuse oneself from training under a training rule when being admonished by another bhikkhu for a breach of the rule is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 71)
Criticizing the discipline in the presence of another bhikkhu, in hopes of preventing its study, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 72)
Using half-truths to deceive others into believing that one is ignorant of the rules in the Patimokkha, after one has already heard the Patimokkha in full three times, and a formal act exposing one's deceit has been brought against one, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 73)
Giving a blow to another bhikkhu, when motivated by anger, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 74)
Making a threatening gesture against another bhikkhu when motivated by anger is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 75)
Saying to another bhikkhu that he may have broken a rule unknowingly, simply for the purpose of causing him anxiety, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 77)
Eavesdropping on bhikkhus involved in an argument over an issue -- with the intention of using what they say against them -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 78)
Complaining about a formal act of the Community to which one gave one's consent -- if one knows that the act was carried out in accordance with the rule -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 79)
Getting up and leaving a meeting of the Community in the midst of a valid formal act -- without having first given one's consent to the act, and with the intention of invalidating it -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 80)
After participating in a formal act of the Community giving robe-cloth to a Community official: Complaining that the Community acted out of favoritism is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 81)
When the Community is dealing formally with an issue, the full Community must be present, as must all the individuals involved in the issue; the proceedings must follow the patterns set out in the Dhamma and Vinaya. (As 1)
If the Community unanimously believes that a bhikkhu is innocent of a charge made against him, they may declare him innocent on the basis of his memory of the events. (As 2)
If the Community unanimously believes that a bhikkhu was insane while committing offenses against the rules, they may absolve him of any responsibility for the offenses. (As 3)
If a bhikkhu commits an offense, he should willingly undergo the appropriate penalty in line with what he actually did and the actual seriousness of the offense. (As 4)
If an important dispute cannot be settled by a unanimous decision, it should be submitted to a vote. The opinion of the majority, if in accordance with the Dhamma and Vinaya, is then considered decisive. (As 5)
If a bhikkhu admits to an offense only after being interrogated in a formal meeting, the Community should carry out an act of censure against him, rescinding it only when he has mended his ways. (As 6)
If, in the course of a dispute, both sides act in ways unworthy of contemplatives, and the sorting out of the penalties would only prolong the dispute, the Community as a whole may make a blanket confession of its light offenses. (As 7)
Lying down at the same time, in the same lodging, with a novice or layman for more than three nights running is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 5)
Digging soil or commanding that it be dug is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 10)
Intentionally cutting, burning or killing a living plant is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 11)
Handing food or medicine to a mendicant ordained outside of Buddhism is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 41)
When on almsround with another bhikkhu: Sending him back so that he won't witness any misconduct one is planning to indulge in is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 42)
To sit down intruding on a man and a woman in their private quarters -- when one or both are sexually aroused, and when another bhikkhu is not present -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 43)
Watching a field army -- or similar large military force -- on active duty, unless there is a suitable reason, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 48)
Staying more than three consecutive nights with an army on active duty -- even when one has a suitable reason to be there -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 49)
Going to a battlefield, a roll call, an array of the troops in battle formation or to see a review of the battle units while one is staying with an army is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 50)
Taking an intoxicant is a pacittiya offense regardless of whether one is aware or not that it is an intoxicant. (Pc 51)
Tickling another bhikkhu is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 52)
Jumping and swimming in the water for fun is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 53)
Attempting to frighten another bhikkhu is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 55)
Lighting a fire to warm oneself -- or having it lit -- when one does not need the warmth for one's health is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 56)
Bathing more frequently than once a fortnight when residing in the middle Ganges Valley, except on certain occasions, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 57)
Hiding another bhikkhu's bowl, robe, sitting cloth, needle case or belt -- or having it hid -- either as a joke or with the purpose of annoying him, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 60)
Traveling by arrangement with a group of thieves from one village to another -- knowing that they are thieves -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 66)
Entering a king's sleeping chamber, unannounced, when both the king and queen are in the chamber, is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 83)
Picking up a valuable, or having it picked up, with the intent of putting it in safe keeping for the owner -- except when one finds it in a monastery or in a dwelling one is visiting -- is a pacittiya offense. (Pc 84)
A bhikkhu should wear his upper and lower robes even all around. (Sk 1 & 2)
Unless he is ill, a bhikkhu should not urinate, defecate or spit on living crops or in water that is fit for bathing or drinking. (Sk 74-75)