Expression of Regret Offenses

One Hundred and Ten Expression of Regret Offenses (Payantika)


1. A bhikshu who masturbates, except in a dream,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


2. A bhikshu who makes an appointment to go

outside the monastery alone with a laywoman or a

nun, commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


3. A bhikshu who sits alone in a hidden or solitary

place with a laywoman or a nun, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


4. A bhikshu who sits alone in a car or on a boat

with a laywoman or a nun except in the case of an

emergency or with the permission of the Sangha,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


5. A bhikshu who writes a letter or gives a gift to a

laywoman or a nun in order to show his feeling of

affection for her or to win her heart, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


6. A bhikshu who is sick, and refuses to ask for

help from his fellow monks or laymen but instead

allows one or more nuns or laywomen to look after

him and bring him food, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


7. A bhikshu who makes a telephone call to

someone of the opposite sex at night, except in an

emergency when he has let his fellow practitioners

know that he is making this call, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


8. A bhikshu who after having been reminded by

four or more bhikshus that he is emotionally

attached to another person, whether female or

male, and who refuses to listen, denies it, tries to

negate what they say, or expresses anger, commits

an Expression of Regret Offense.


9. A bhikshu who intentionally watches animals

copulating, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


10. A bhikshu who tells stories about sexual

relations which he has seen on films, read in books,

or heard others tell, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


11. A bhikshu who knows that a man has an

incurable disease, is trying to avoid paying debts,

has broken a criminal law, or does not have the

agreement of his wife or children to ordain, and still

allows that person to receive the Novice Precepts,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


12. A bhikshu who knows that a novice monk is

not yet twenty years old or has not been accepted

by the Sangha as an ordinee and still allows him to

receive the Bhikshu Precepts, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


13. A bhikshu who has not changed his roommate

after eight months, except with the permission of

the Sangha, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


14. A bhikshu who hits another person in anger or

out of resentment commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


15. A bhikshu who swears himself to one of the

three unwholesome destinies during an argument,

such as by saying “If I am lying, I will go to hell,”

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


16. A bhikshu who forces someone to swear an

oath commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


17. A bhikshu who says what is not true, adds or

omits important details, speaks vulgar words to

insult others, or speaks words that cause hatred

and division, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


18. A bhikshu who argues angrily in a loud voice

and is gently encouraged by another bhikshu that

he should say no more but return to his breathing

or go outside to practice walking meditation in

order to guard his mind, and who does not listen

and continues to argue in a loud voice, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


19. A bhikshu who is offered guidance by a fellow

practitioner concerning his shortcomings in the

practice, and not only does not receive the

guidance with gratitude and respect by joining his

palms, but tries to find ways to defend himself, to

avoid the subject, or to excuse himself by bringing

up the shortcomings of others, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


20. A bhikshu who repeatedly speaks in a way

that indirectly refers to the wrongdoing done in the

past by another bhikshu, commits an Expression

of Regret Offense.


21. A bhikshu who brings up another bhikshu’s

past offense, although the bhikshu has already

been cleared of that offense with a Sanghakarman

Procedure, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


22. A bhikshu who interrogates or reprimands

other monks in the Sangha in the presence of

laypeople or during a meal, putting them in a

difficult situation, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


23. A bhikshu who threatens or frightens another

bhikshu in such a way that the other becomes

fearful and loses his motivation, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


24. A bhikshu who is requested to come and

resolve a conflict with someone and continuously

finds ways to avoid being present to make the

reconciliation, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


25. A bhikshu who refuses to accept someone

else’s apology, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


26. A bhikshu who allows his anger to continue up

to seven days and still has no intention to practice

reconciliation and Beginning Anew, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


27. A bhikshu who, out of hatred or

discrimination, repeatedly and aggressively

disputes in words or writing with other ideologies

or religious faiths instead of devoting himself to his

studies and practice, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


28. A bhikshu who, because of resentment with his

fellow practitioners, does not seek help from the

Sangha to find ways of reconciliation and instead

leaves the community to go somewhere else or

goes to stay with his family for a while and then

comes back again, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


29. A bhikshu who does not practice to restore

communication with his fellow practitioners but

only complains to laypeople about difficulties and

conflicts in the Sangha, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


30. A bhikshu who does not use loving speech and

deep listening to resolve the difficulties and

disputes that have arisen between him and another

monk, but instead only goes to complain to and

seek an ally in one person after another, commits

an Expression of Regret Offense.


31. A bhikshu who, upon hearing another monk

complain about his difficulties with a third monk,

makes no effort to bring about reconciliation

between them, and instead allies himself with the

monk who has complained to him in order to

oppose the third monk, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


32. A bhikshu who goes to another monastery and

talks about the shortcomings and weaknesses of

his former monastery in a complaining and

reproachful way, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


33. A bhikshu who claims to be up to date with

the modern way of life and looks down

disrespectfully at his teacher for being outdated

and out of touch, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


34. A bhikshu who knows that the Sangha is about

to meet to perform Sanghakarman Procedures, and

who finds ways not to be present or pretends to

be unwell and does not ask to be represented,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


35. A bhikshu who has already performed a

Sanghakarman Procedure with the Sangha but is

still annoyed and displeased about the meeting and

tells someone else that he is against the

Sanghakarman Procedure that has been realized,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


36. A bhikshu who has formally asked someone to

represent him at a Sangha meeting and afterwards,

feeling regret, looks for ways to deny the

resolution that has been realized by Sanghakarman

Procedure, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


37. A bhikshu who does not put into effect, or

encourages someone else to not put into effect a

resolution that has been taken by the Sangha under

the Sanghakarman Procedure, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


38. A bhikshu who knows that another bhikshu or

bhikshuni has committed a Degradation Offense

and, in order to bring disrepute on this person, tells

someone else about it who is not a bhikshu or

bhikshuni before the Sangha has performed the

Sanghakarman Procedure to affirm the offense,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


39. A bhikshu who talks about the faults of

another monk when that monk is not present,

except in the case of the practice of Shining Light,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


40. A bhikshu who sees that a fellow monk is sick

and does not ask about his condition and look after

him or find someone else to look after him,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


41. A bhikshu who has been assigned by the

Sangha to distribute items among Sangha members,

but out of favoritism gives more to some monks

and less to others, or refuses to give anything to a

monk with whom he does not get along well,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


42. A bhikshu who closes his eyes before suffering

within himself and in the world and only takes

comfort in laypeople’s offerings, forgetting that

the aim of the practice is to find ways to transform

suffering into peace and joy, after having been

warned by three other bhikshus without listening

deeply and changing his way, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


43. A bhikshu who sees that his fellow practitioner

is about to commit an offense and says nothing to

dissuade him against it or to let other bhikshus

know so they can dissuade him against it, commits

an Expression of Regret Offense.


44. A bhikshu who is narrow-minded, attached to

his views, and maintains that the knowledge he

presently possesses is absolute and unchanging,

refusing to be open to receive the viewpoints and

insights of others, after having been warned by

three other bhikshus and still refusing to alter his

attitude, commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


45. A bhikshu who uses authority, bribery, threat,

propaganda, or indoctrination to force others,

including children, to adopt his view, who does not

respect the right of others to be different or their

freedom to choose what to believe and how to

decide, after having been warned by three other

bhikshus and still refusing to alter his attitude,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


46. A bhikshu who has relatives who are monks or

nuns and uses his authority to protect them when

they act wrongly or seeks ways to give them

priority or privilege commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


47. A bhikshu who relies on his sphere of influence

due to the office he holds in the Sangha in order to

overpower another bhikshu who is his senior in

years of ordination commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


48. A bhikshu who uses his authority to force

another bhikshu to take his side in opposing a

proposal which is about to be realized by a

Sanghakarman Procedure commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


49. A bhikshu who is attached to his title or

position of seniority in the Sangha, and becomes

angry or annoyed when someone does not address

him according to his position or tells that person

that they should correct their way of addressing

him, commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


50. A bhikshu who only gives special treatment to

his own disciples and fails to care for other

students who come to ask him for mentorship,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


51. A bhikshu who encourages another monk to

take his side so that he can have more power to

overtake fellow practitioners, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


52. A bhikshu who encourages another monk to

leave his teacher and root temple in order to set up

his own hermitage or go to another monastery,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


53. A bhikshu who speaks in a sweet and

exaggerating way to win someone’s heart or

complains and cries to arouse others’ sympathy

for himself, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


54. A bhikshu who spreads news that he does not

know to be certain or criticizes and condemns

things of which he is not sure, in order to gain

money, material benefits, or admiration for himself,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


55. A bhikshu who, after having received donations

from a layperson, defends that layperson and

oppresses other monks or nuns, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


56. A bhikshu who accepts disciples not with the

purpose to teach and nurture them on the path of

practice but only to serve his own reputation or

his personal work, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


57. A bhikshu who forces the monks to work hard

growing crops, manufacturing things to sell, or

performing spiritual services for money in order to

increase the income of the monastery and thus

does not allow them enough time for their studies

and practice, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


58. A bhikshu who pretends that he has a serious

illness in order to be cared for by donors or to

receive donations commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


59. A bhikshu who takes advantage of charitable

organizations associated with the temple in order

to gather additional possessions for himself or his

monastery, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


60. A bhikshu who criticizes and looks down on an

offering made by a donor to the Sangha, commits

an Expression of Regret Offense.


61. A bhikshu who accepts offerings from

laypeople but does not truly practice to transform

himself and says that it is the duty of laypeople to

bring him offerings, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


62. A bhikshu who goes to a nunnery to complain

about his lack of material resources in order to

receive an offering, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


63. A bhikshu who only meets with people who

are rich or intellectual, and out of discrimination

does not show concern for those who are poor or

uneducated, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


64. A bhikshu who steals money or belongings of

another person, tells someone else to steal them, or

sees someone stealing them without finding ways

to prevent it, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


65. A bhikshu who breaks the promise he has

made to a layperson and thus makes the person

angry and critical of the monastic Sangha, commits

an Expression of Regret Offense.


66. A bhikshu who avoids heavy work and looks

for light work, except in the case of illness or if he

is weak and has poor health, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


67. A bhikshu who assesses the value of someone

by the work he does, forgetting that the quality of

a monk’s practice is more important than the

amount of work he accomplishes, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


68. A bhikshu who is not aware that the

responsibility of a monastic is to offer concrete

practices which help people transform their

suffering, but instead focuses all his energy on

charitable works, forcing the Sangha to work so

hard that they neglect their program of spiritual

studies and practice, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


69. A bhikshu who accepts hired work to earn

some money for himself, not recognizing that his

monastery already has the resources to support his

material needs and spiritual studies and practice,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


70. A bhikshu who tells people’s fortunes (by

reading palms, astrology, or other means) or burns

paper money for the deceased in order to earn

some money, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


71. A bhikshu who eats a non-vegetarian meal,

even though he excuses himself by saying that he

lacks nutrition, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


72. A bhikshu who neglects the practice activities

of the Sangha in order to produce luxurious and

fancy dishes using expensive ingredients, without

considering that so many people in the world are

suffering from hunger and forgetting that he has

committed himself to live the simple life of a

monk, commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


73. A bhikshu who eats apart from the Sangha and

eats in his room, except when he is sick or is

unable to eat with the Sangha due to Sangha

service, commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


74. A bhikshu who drinks beer, wine, or liquor of

any kind, or takes any other substance that causes

inebriation, except for medicinal use with the

permission of the Bhikshu Sangha, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


75. A bhikshu who enters a bar or a dimly lit

coffee shop to have a drink or to sit and watch

people come and go, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


76. A bhikshu who goes to a layperson’s house or

a restaurant to attend a birthday party, an

engagement reception, or a wedding reception,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


77. A bhikshu who celebrates his birthday in a

layperson’s house or a restaurant, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


78. A bhikshu who goes as a spectator to sports

games, cinema, or worldly concerts commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


79. A bhikshu who rents and watches videos, or

reads books and magazines which have a toxic

effect, watering the seeds of sexual desire, fear,

violence, sentimental weakness, and depression,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


80. A bhikshu who watches television programs

which have a toxic effect, watering the seeds of

sexual desire, fear, violence, sentimental weakness,

and depression, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


81. A bhikshu who goes on to the Internet alone

without another monk next to him as a protection

against getting lost in toxic Websites commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


82. A bhikshu who consumes images or sounds

which excite sexual desire from the Internet or the

telephone, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


83. A bhikshu who listens to or performs songs or

music that is sad, sentimental, romantic, or exciting

(such as rock music), commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


84. A bhikshu who plays electronic games,

including those on a mobile phone or a computer,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


85. A bhikshu who gambles or bets on horse races,

car races, and other sports, commits an Expression

of Regret Offense.


86. A bhikshu who drives in a careless and

dangerous manner, speeding, swerving between

cars, recklessly passing other cars, accelerating too

quickly, or racing with another car, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


87. A bhikshu who marches down the street

clapping his hands, shouting, waving a flag, or

throwing flowers to show support for a sports

team, commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


88. A bhikshu who goes to watch military drills or

preparations for battle, people fighting or arguing

with each other, a martial art performance, or a

magic show, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


89. A bhikshu who goes to watch animals fighting

or provokes animals to fight with each other,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


90. A bhikshu who abuses animals or takes their

bones, horns, or skin to create artwork or

decorations, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


91. A bhikshu who does not cultivate compassion

and learn ways to protect the lives of animals, who

kills an animal himself, gives consent for an animal

to be killed, or does not prevent someone else from

killing an animal, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


92. A bhikshu who pollutes the environment, by

burning and destroying forests or by using toxic

chemicals, for example, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


93. A bhikshu who intentionally allows his hair

and beard to grow long, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


94. A bhikshu who is not aware that the true

beauty of a monk is found in his solidity and

freedom, and instead spends too much time and

care in dressing himself in order to create an outer

show of attractiveness, commits an Expression of

Regret Offense.


95. A bhikshu who when going into a town, village,

or market wears lay clothing or a wig, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


96. A bhikshu who separates himself from the

Sangha and rents his own lodgings, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


97. A bhikshu who sleeps overnight in a

layperson’s house, even for Sangha service, and at

least one other male practitioner does not

accompany him, except in special circumstances

with the permission of the Sangha, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


98. A bhikshu who stays longer than one week in a

layperson’s house, except with the permission of

the Sangha, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


99. A bhikshu who commits himself to a special

relationship with a layperson by asking that

person to be his father, mother, brother, sister,

son, daughter, or grandchild, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


100. A bhikshu who undertakes a course of study

with the purpose of being awarded a bachelor’s

degree, master’s degree, or doctorate in engineering,

medicine, pharmacy, or other worldly subjects,

except in the case that the course is in Buddhist

studies, commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


101. A bhikshu who spends all his time studying

worldly subjects, therefore neglecting to learn

spiritual teachings and practice, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


102. A bhikshu who immerses himself in and is

carried away by his work and as a result fails to

maintain good relationships between himself and

other members of the Sangha, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


103. A bhikshu who leaves his mentor before he

has completed his fifth Rains’ Retreat, or even

after this time if his practice is still weak, commits

an Expression of Regret Offense.


104. A bhikshu who does not complete the threemonth

Rains’ Retreat once a year, commits an

Expression of Regret Offense.


105. A bhikshu who goes outside the officially

declared boundaries of the Rains’ Retreat for an

equal or greater number of days than he is within

these boundaries, even if his reason for going

outside is to teach, study, or do charitable work,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


106. A bhikshu who transmits the Bhikshu

Precepts without yet completing ten Rains’

Retreats, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


107. A bhikshu who has not mastered the Vinaya

and who performs a Sanghakarman Procedure or

makes the affirmation of an offense in a way which

is not in accordance with the Vinaya, thus causing

the Sangha to lose its peace, joy, and harmony,

commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


108. A bhikshu who complains about the precepts

and fine manners, saying that the articles presented

are bothersome, too complicated, too detailed, not

truly necessary, or that they take away one’s

freedom, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.


109. A bhikshu who does not recite the

Pratimoksha with the Sangha at least once in three

months, unless he has a long-lasting and serious

illness, commits an Expression of Regret Offense.


110. A bhikshu who has not yet begun to study

the Classical Pratimoksha in parallel with the

Revised Pratimoksha after one year of receiving the

full ordination, commits an Expression of Regret

Offense.

From Freedom Wherever We Go by Thich Nhat Hanh