Early Monastic Buddhism v1.c16.1

v1.c16.1

Observance of *sīlas* or moral precepts, as has been already shown, forms the first step in the spiritual progress of a person. The *sīlas* can be generally classified under three heads, *kāyika* (physical), *vācasika* (verbal) and *mānasika* (mental). In several *suttas* of the *Suttapiṭaka*, the *sīlas* have been treated from different standpoints and hardly admit of enumeration within a small compass. By way of illustration we may refer to the very first *sutta* of the *Dīgha Nikāya* for a list of *sīlas* which are classified there under *cūla* (minor), *majjhima* (medium) and *mahā* (major). In the *Visuddhimagga* (pp. 10-16), Buddhaghosa has attempted to generalise them in the answer to the question: *katividhaṃ sīlaṃ*. For the monks and nuns is prescribed a number of moral duties, some of which are codified in the *Bhikkhu-pātimokkha* and *Bhikkhuṇī-pātimokkha*, while for the unordained novices (*sāmaṇeras*) are prescribed the well-known ten *sīlas*,¹ of which the first five only are meant for all lay-devotees (upāsakas and upāsikās), the more faithful among them, however, being permitted to observe the first eight sīlas on the uposatha days, with the option of observing all the ten sīlas. These five or eight sīlas are called by Buddhaghosa¹ gahaṭṭhasīlas (precepts meant for householders).