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Ananurūpavihāro[The Eighteen Faults of a Monastery]
Tattha ananurūpo nāma aṭṭhārasannaṃ dosānaṃ aññatarena samannāgato.Herein, one that is unfavourable has anyone of eighteen faults.
Tatrime aṭṭhārasa dosā – mahattaṃ, navattaṃ, jiṇṇattaṃ, panthanissitattaṃ,These are: (1) largeness, (2) newness, (3) dilapidatedness, (4) a nearby road,
soṇḍī, paṇṇaṃ, pupphaṃ, phalaṃ, patthanīyatā,(5) a pond, (6) [edible] leaves, (7) flowers, (8) fruits, (9) famousness,
nagarasannissitatā, dārusannissitatā, khettasannissitatā, visabhāgānaṃ puggalānaṃ atthitā,(10) a nearby city, (11) nearby timber trees, (12) nearby arable fields, (13) presence of incompatible persons,
paṭṭanasannissitatā, paccantasannissitatā, rajjasīmasannissitatā,(14) a nearby port of entry, (15) nearness to the border countries, (16) nearness to the frontier of a kingdom,
asappāyatā, kalyāṇamittānaṃ alābhoti.(17) unsuitability, (18) lack of good friends.
imesaṃ aṭṭhārasannaṃ dosānaṃ aññatarena dosena samannāgato ananurūpo nāma.[119] One with any of these faults is not favourable.
Na tattha vihātabbaṃ.He should not live there.
Kasmā?Why?
Mahāvihāre tāva bahū nānāchandā sannipatanti,Firstly, people with varying aims collect in a large monastery.
te aññamaññaṃ paṭiviruddhatāya vattaṃ na karonti.They conflict with each other and so neglect the duties.
Bodhiyaṅgaṇādīni asammaṭṭhāneva honti. Anupaṭṭhāpitaṃ pānīyaṃ paribhojanīyaṃ.The Enlightenment-tree terrace, etc., remain unswept, the water for drinking and washing is not set out.
Tatrāyaṃ gocaragāme piṇḍāya carissāmīti pattacīvaramādāya nikkhantoSo if he thinks, “I shall go to the alms-resort village for alms” and takes his bowl and robe and sets out,
sace passati vattaṃ vā akataṃ pānīyaghaṭaṃ vā rittaṃ,perhaps he sees that the duties have not been done or that a drinking-water pot is empty,
athānena vattaṃ kātabbaṃ hoti,and so the duty has to be done by him unexpectedly.
pānīyaṃ upaṭṭhāpetabbaṃ.Drinking water must be maintained.
Akaronto vattabhede dukkaṭaṃ āpajjati.By not doing it he would commit a wrongdoing in the breach of a duty.
Karontassa kālo atikkamati,But if he does it, he loses time.
atidivā paviṭṭho niṭṭhitāya bhikkhāya kiñci na labhati.He arrives too late at the village and gets nothing because the alms giving is finished.
PaṭisallānagatopiAlso, when he goes into retreat,
sāmaṇeradaharabhikkhūnaṃ uccāsaddenahe is distracted by the loud noises of novices and young bhikkhus,
saṅghakammehi ca vikkhipati.and by acts of the Community [being carried out].
Yattha pana sabbaṃ vattaṃ katameva hoti, avasesāpi ca saṅghaṭṭanā natthi. Evarūpe mahāvihārepi vihātabbaṃ.However, he can live in a large monastery where all the duties are done and where there are none of the other disturbances.
Navavihāre bahu navakammaṃ hoti,In a new monastery there is much new building activity.
akarontaṃ ujjhāyanti.People criticize someone who takes no part in it.
Yattha pana bhikkhū evaṃ vadantiBut he can live in such a monastery where the bhikkhus say,
‘‘āyasmā yathāsukhaṃ samaṇadhammaṃ karotu,“Let the venerable one do the ascetic’s duties as much as he likes.
mayaṃ navakammaṃ karissāmā’’ti evarūpe vihātabbaṃ.We shall see to the building work.”
Jiṇṇavihāre pana bahu paṭijaggitabbaṃ hoti,In a dilapidated monastery there is much that needs repair.
antamaso attano senāsanamattampi appaṭijaggantaṃ ujjhāyanti,People criticize someone who does not see about the repairing of at least his own lodging.
paṭijaggantassa kammaṭṭhānaṃ parihāyati.When he sees to the repairs, his meditation subject suffers.
Panthanissite mahāpathavihāre rattindivaṃ āgantukā sannipatanti.In a monastery with a nearby road, by a main street, visitors keep arriving night and day.
Vikāle āgatānaṃ attano senāsanaṃ datvā rukkhamūle vā pāsāṇapiṭṭhe vā vasitabbaṃ hoti.He has to give up his own lodging to those who come late, and he has to go and live at the root of a tree or on top of a rock.
Punadivasepi evamevāti kammaṭṭhānassa okāso na hoti.And next day it is the same. So there is no opportunity [to practice] his meditation subject.
Yattha pana evarūpo āgantukasambādho na hoti, tattha vihātabbaṃ.But he can live in one where there is no such disturbance by visitors.
Soṇḍī nāma pāsāṇapokkharaṇī hoti,A pond is a rock pool.
tattha pānīyatthaṃ mahājano samosarati,Numbers of people come there for drinking water.
nagaravāsīnaṃ rājakulūpakattherānaṃ antevāsikā rajanakammatthāya āgacchanti,Pupils of city-dwelling elders supported by the royal family come to do dyeing work.
tesaṃ bhājanadārudoṇikādīni pucchantānaṃ asuke ca asuke ca ṭhāneti dassetabbāni honti,When they ask for vessels, wood, tubs, etc., [120] they must be shown where these things are.
evaṃ sabbakālampi niccabyāvaṭo hoti.So he is kept all the time on the alert.
Yattha nānāvidhaṃ sākapaṇṇaṃ hoti, tatthassa kammaṭṭhānaṃ gahetvā divāvihāraṃ nisinnassāpiIf he goes with his meditation subject to sit by day where there are many sorts of edible leaves,
santike sākahārikā gāyamānā paṇṇaṃ uccinantiyothen women vegetable-gatherers, singing as they pick leaves nearby,
visabhāgasaddasaṅghaṭṭanena kammaṭṭhānantarāyaṃ karonti.endanger his meditation subject by disturbing it with sounds of the opposite sex.
Yattha pana nānāvidhā mālāgacchā supupphitā honti, tatrāpi tādisoyeva upaddavo.And where there are many sorts of flowering shrubs in bloom there is the same danger too.
Yattha nānāvidhaṃ ambajambupanasādiphalaṃ hoti,Where there are many sorts of fruits such as mangoes, rose-apples and jak-fruits,
tattha phalatthikā āgantvā yācanti,people who want fruits come and ask for them,
adentassa kujjhanti,and they get angry if he does not give them any,
balakkārena vā gaṇhanti,or they take them by force.
sāyanhasamaye vihāramajjhe caṅkamantena te disvāWhen walking in the monastery in the evening he sees them and asks,
‘‘kiṃ upāsakā evaṃ karothā’’ti vuttā“Why do you do so, lay followers?”
yathāruci akkosanti.they abuse him as they please
Avāsāyapissa parakkamanti.and even try to evict him.
Patthanīye pana leṇasammate dakkhiṇagirihatthikucchicetiyagiricittalapabbatasadise vihāre viharantaṃWhen he lives in a monastery that is famous and renowned in the world, like Dakkhiṇagiri[^1] Hatthikucchi, Cetiyagiri or Cittalapabbata,
ayamarahāti sambhāvetvā vanditukāmā manussā samantā osaranti,there are always people coming who want to pay homage to him, supposing that he is an Arahant,
tenassa na phāsu hoti,which inconveniences him.
yassa pana taṃ sappāyaṃ hoti, tena divā aññatra gantvā rattiṃ vasitabbaṃ.But if it suits him, he can live there at night and go elsewhere by day.
Nagarasannissite visabhāgārammaṇāni āpāthamāgacchanti,In one with a nearby city objects of the opposite sex come into focus.
kumbhadāsiyopi ghaṭehi nighaṃsantiyo gacchanti, okkamitvā maggaṃ na denti,Women-pot carriers go by bumping into him with their jars and giving no room to pass.
issaramanussāpi vihāramajjhe sāṇiṃ parikkhipitvā nisīdanti.Also important people spread out carpets in the middle of the monastery and sit down.
Dārusannissaye pana yattha kaṭṭhāni ca dabbupakaraṇarukkhā ca santi,One with nearby timber trees where there are timber trees and osiers useful for making framework
tattha kaṭṭhahārikā pubbe vuttasākapupphahārikā viya aphāsuṃ karonti,is inconvenient because of the wood-gatherers there, like the gatherers of branches and fruits already mentioned.
vihāre rukkhā santi, te chinditvā gharāni karissāmāti manussā āgantvā chindanti.If there are trees in a monastery, people come and cut them down to build houses with.
Sace sāyanhasamayaṃ padhānagharā nikkhamitvāWhen he has come out of his meditation room in the evening
vihāramajjhe caṅkamanto te disvāand is walking up and down in the monastery, if he sees them
‘‘kiṃ upāsakā evaṃ karothā’’ti vadati,and asks, “Why do you do so, lay followers?”
yathāruci akkosanti,they abuse him as they please
avāsāyapissa parakkamanti.and even try to evict him.
Yo pana khettasannissito hoti samantā khettehi parivārito,People make use of one with nearby arable fields, quite surrounded by fields.
tattha manussā vihāramajjheyeva khalaṃ katvā dhaññaṃ maddanti,They make a threshing floor in the middle of the monastery itself. They thresh corn there,
pamukhesu sayanti,dry it in the forecourts,[^2]
aññampi bahuṃ aphāsuṃ karonti.and cause great inconvenience.
Yatrāpi mahāsaṅghabhogo hoti,And where there is extensive property belonging to the Community,
ārāmikā kulānaṃ gāvo rundhanti,the monastery attendants impound cattle belonging to families
udakavāraṃ paṭisedhenti,and deny the water supply [to their crops].
manussā vīhisīsaṃ gahetvā ‘‘passatha tumhākaṃ ārāmikānaṃ kamma’’nti saṅghassa dassenti.[121] Then people bring an ear of paddy and show it to the Community saying “Look at your monastery attendants’ work.”
Tena tena kāraṇena rājarājamahāmattānaṃ gharadvāraṃ gantabbaṃ hoti,For one reason or another he has to go to the portals of the king or the king’s ministers.
ayampi khettasannissiteneva saṅgahito.This [matter of property belonging to the Community] is included by [a monastery that is] near arable fields.
Visabhāgānaṃ puggalānaṃ atthitāti yattha aññamaññaṃ visabhāgaverī bhikkhū viharanti,Presence of incompatible persons: where there are bhikkhus living who are incompatible and mutually hostile,
ye kalahaṃ karontāwhen they clash and it is protested,
mā, bhante, evaṃ karothāti vāriyamānā“Venerable sirs, do not do so,”
etassa paṃsukūlikassa āgatakālato paṭṭhāya naṭṭhāmhāti vattāro bhavanti.they exclaim, “We no longer count now that this refuse-rag wearer has come.”
Yopi udakapaṭṭanaṃ vā thalapaṭṭanaṃ vā nissito hoti,One with a nearby water port of entry or land port of entry[^3]
tattha abhiṇhaṃ nāvāhi ca satthehi ca āgatamanussāis made inconvenient by people constantly arriving respectively by ship or by caravan
okāsaṃ detha, pānīyaṃ detha, loṇaṃ dethāti ghaṭṭayantā aphāsuṃ karonti.and crowding round, asking for space or for drinking water or salt.
Paccantasannissite pana manussā buddhādīsu appasannā honti.In the case of one near the border countries, people have no trust in the Buddha, etc., there.
Rajjasīmasannissite rājabhayaṃ hoti.In one near the frontier of a kingdom there is fear of kings.
Tañhi padesaṃ eko rājā na mayhaṃ vase vattatīti paharati,For perhaps one king attacks that place, thinking, “It does not submit to my rule,”
itaropi na mayhaṃ vase vattatīti.and the other does likewise, thinking, “It does not submit to my rule.”
Tatrāyaṃ bhikkhu kadāci imassa rañño vijite vicarati, kadāci etassa.A bhikkhu lives there when it is conquered by one king and when it is conquered by the other.
Atha naṃ ‘‘carapuriso aya’’nti maññamānā anayabyasanaṃ pāpenti.Then they suspect him of spying, and they bring about his undoing.
Asappāyatāti visabhāgarūpādiārammaṇasamosaraṇena vāUnsuitability is that due to the risk of encountering visible data, etc., of the opposite sex as objects
amanussapariggahitatāya vā asappāyatā.or to haunting by non-human beings.
Tatridaṃ vatthu.Here is a story.
Eko kira thero araññe vasati.An elder lived in a forest, it seems.
Athassa ekā yakkhinī paṇṇasāladvāre ṭhatvā gāyi.Then an ogress stood in the door of his leaf hut and sang.
So nikkhamitvā dvāre aṭṭhāsi,The elder came out and stood in the door.
sā gantvā caṅkamanasīse gāyi.She went to the end of the walk and sang.
Thero caṅkamanasīsaṃ agamāsi.The elder went to the end of the walk.
Sā sataporise papāte ṭhatvā gāyi.She stood in a chasm a hundred fathoms deep and sang.
Thero paṭinivatti.The elder recoiled.
Atha naṃ sā vegenāgantvā gahetvā ‘‘mayā, bhante, na eko na dve tumhādisā khāditā’’ti āha.Then she suddenly grabbed him saying, “Venerable sir, it is not just one or two of the likes of you I have eaten.”
Kalyāṇamittānaṃ alābhotiLack of good friends:
yattha na sakkā hoti ācariyaṃ vā ācariyasamaṃ vāwhere it is not possible to find a good friend as a teacher or the equivalent of a teacher
upajjhāyaṃ vā upajjhāyasamaṃ vā kalyāṇamittaṃ laddhuṃ.or a preceptor or the equivalent of a preceptor,
Tattha so kalyāṇamittānaṃ alābho mahādosoyeva,the lack of good friends there is a serious fault.
imesaṃ aṭṭhārasannaṃ dosānaṃ aññatarena samannāgato ananurūpoti veditabbo.One that has any of those eighteen faults should be understood as unfavourable.
Vuttampi cetaṃ aṭṭhakathāsu –And this is said in the commentaries:
Mahāvāsaṃ navāvāsaṃ, jarāvāsañca panthaniṃ;A large abode, a new abode, One tumbling down, one near a road,
Soṇḍiṃ paṇṇañca pupphañca, phalaṃ patthitameva ca.One with a pond, or leaves, or flowers, Or fruits, or one that people seek; [122]
Nagaraṃ dārunā khettaṃ, visabhāgena paṭṭanaṃ;In cities, among timber, fields, Where people quarrel, in a port,
Paccantasīmāsappāyaṃ, yattha mitto na labbhati.In border lands, on frontiers, Unsuitableness, and no good friend—
Aṭṭhārasetāni ṭhānāni, iti viññāya paṇḍito; Ārakā parivajjeyya, maggaṃ sappaṭibhayaṃ yathāti.These are the eighteen instances A wise man needs to recognize And give them full as wide a berth As any footpad-hunted road.