Early Monastic Buddhism v1.c22.s7.5

v1.c22.s7.5

The *saṅgha*, therefore, became the owner of the properties given away by the devotees, but the ownership was not absolute, for it could not alienate the properties nor even divide them among the members of the order.³ This restriction was applied not only to the landed properties including the grass, shrubs, etc., but also to the articles of furniture, utensils made of earth or iron, spades and such other things of common use in an *ārāma*.⁴ To what extent individual ownership was denied, becomes apparent from the fact that on the death of a monk, his robes and other articles of use became the property of the *saṅgha*,⁵ and the *saṅgha* is advised to distribute the robes and other small articles by proper announcement in an assembly among the monks or novices who served the deceased *bhikkhu* during his illness. This power of the *saṅgha* is denied in the case of heavy articles, for they were inalienable and indivisible.⁶