Sangha Restoration Offenses
Twenty-seven Sangha Restoration Offenses (Sanghavashesha)
1. A bhikshu who, when motivated by sexual
desire, touches the body of a woman or a man,
commits a Sangha Restoration Offense.
2. A bhikshu who, when motivated by sexual
desire, uses words which have the effect of
arousing a sexual feeling in the woman or man to
whom he is talking, commits a Sangha Restoration
Offense.
3. A bhikshu who, when motivated by sexual
desire, tells a woman or a man that it would be a
good thing for her or him to have sexual relations
with him, commits a Sangha Restoration Offense.
4. A bhikshu who verbally or in writing makes a
proposal to a nun or a monk to leave the monastic
life along with him, commits a Sangha Restoration
Offense.
5. A bhikshu who acts as a matchmaker or as a gobetween,
or makes the arrangements for a wedding
between two people, commits a Sangha
Restoration Offense.
6. A bhikshu who, out of anger or jealousy, falsely
accuses another bhikshu of a Degradation Offense,
with the intention of destroying that bhikshu’s
reputation, commits a Sangha Restoration Offense.
7. A bhikshu who, out of anger or jealousy, takes a
small mistake of another bhikshu and magnifies it
so that it seems to be a Degradation Offense, with
the intention of destroying that bhikshu’s
reputation, commits a Sangha Restoration Offense.
8. A bhikshu who uses political power to oppress
or threaten other members of the monks’ Sangha,
commits a Sangha Restoration Offense.
9. A bhikshu who becomes a member of a political
party or a political organization, whether secretly
or openly, commits a Sangha Restoration Offense.
10. A bhikshu who acts as a spy, taking
information from the Sangha and giving it to a
political party or a political organization, commits
a Sangha Restoration Offense.
11. A bhikshu who receives payment from the
government, a political party, or a political
organization, commits a Sangha Restoration
Offense.
12. A bhikshu who does not teach the Dharma to
the other monks, does not allow them to visit other
places to study the sutras and to have access to
clear and effective methods of practice and, as a
result, the monks’ study and practice remains
incorrect and ineffective, commits a Sangha
Restoration Offense.
13. A bhikshu who has only briefly read or heard
about a method of practice belonging to another
school of Buddhism or another tradition and has
not had a chance to study or put this method into
practice, yet publicly speaks or writes an article
opposing it, commits a Sangha Restoration
Offense.
14. A bhikshu who says that he does not owe any
gratitude to parents, teachers, friends, or
benefactors, commits a Sangha Restoration
Offense.
15. A bhikshu who cuts himself off from the
Sangha to set up a hermitage or temple of his own,
without the permission of the Sangha, commits a
Sangha Restoration Offense.
16. A bhikshu who builds a hermitage or temple
for himself without asking the Sangha about where
or in what style he should build it, builds it larger
than is necessary, and in such a way that it causes
inconvenience to others or obstructs a road or path
that people use, commits a Sangha Restoration
Offense.
17. A bhikshu who, when building a hermitage or
temple, becomes involved in a land dispute which
leads to a lawsuit, commits a Sangha Restoration
Offense.
18. A bhikshu who turns the practice of chanting
the sutra into a way of earning money by quoting a
price which should be paid to him for performing a
ceremony or a funeral service, commits a Sangha
Restoration Offense.
19. A bhikshu who uses money reserved for the
material necessities of the Sangha for construction,
while the monks in the temple do not have enough
food, drink, or medicine, commits a Sangha
Restoration Offense.
20. A bhikshu who lives in a careless and
disorderly manner causing the laypeople’s faith in
the Three Jewels to diminish, after having been
warned three times without listening deeply and
changing his way, commits a Sangha Restoration
Offense.
21. A bhikshu who spends all his time and energy
in work, organization, and management with the
result that he forgets that the aim of a monk is to
practice to liberate himself and other beings from
suffering, after having been warned three times
without listening deeply and changing his way,
commits a Sangha Restoration Offense.
22. A bhikshu who causes disharmony within the
Sangha by his way of speaking and acting, after
having been warned three times without listening
deeply and changing his way, commits a Sangha
Restoration Offense.
23. A bhikshu who contributes to forming
conflicting groups within the Sangha, so that the
energy of the practice and harmony of the Sangha
goes down, thereby creating the danger of a split in
the Sangha, after having been warned three times
without listening deeply and changing his way,
commits a Sangha Restoration Offense.
24. A bhikshu who contributes to forming a
splinter group within the Sangha, thereby creating
the danger of a split in the Sangha, after having
been warned three times without listening deeply
and changing his way, commits a Sangha
Restoration Offense.
25. A bhikshu who, out of discontentment, using
the support and power of the government, causes
disharmony in the Sangha, and without the
permission of the Sangha, cuts himself off from the
Sangha and persuades other members of the Sangha
to follow him to set up a new community, after
having been warned three times without listening
deeply and changing his way, commits a Sangha
Restoration Offense.
26. A bhikshu who refuses to listen to the advice
and instruction of other bhikshus regarding his
understanding and practice of the Sutra, the
Vinaya, and the Shastra, saying that he does not
want to be disturbed but to be left in peace, after
having been warned three times without listening
deeply and changing his way, commits a Sangha
Restoration Offense.
27. A bhikshu who gives teachings or leads people
in practices which are not in accord with the
teachings of transformation, healing, and liberation
presented in Buddhism, after having been warned
three times without listening deeply and changing
his way, commits a Sangha Restoration Offense.
From Freedom Wherever We Go by Thich Nhat Hanh