BUDDHIST MONASTIC CODE I

Aniyata Chapter 6When the Community meets, both the accused and the accuser must be present,and both must agree to the case's being heard by that particular group. (If theoriginal accuser is a lay person, one of the bhikkhus is to take up the charge.) Theaccused is then asked to state his version of the story and is to be dealt with inaccordance with what he admits to having done (Mv.IX.6.1-4). Cv.IV.14.29 showsthat the other bhikkhus are not to take his first statement at face value. They shouldpress and cross-examine him until they are all satisfied that he is telling the truth,and only then may they pass one of the three verdicts mentioned above.If necessary, they should be prepared to spend many hours in the meeting to arriveat a unanimous decision, for if they cannot come to a unanimous agreement, thecase has to be left as unsettled, which is a very bad question mark to leavehovering over the communal life. The Commentary to Sg 8 suggests that if one sideor the other seems unreasonably stubborn, the senior bhikkhus should lead thegroup in long periods of chanting to wear down the stubborn side.If a verdict is reached but later discovered to be wrong — the accused got awaywith a plea of innocence when actually guilty, or admitted guilt simply to end theinterrogation when actually innocent — the Community may reopen the case andreach a new verdict (Cv.IV.8). If a bhikkhu — learning that a fellow bhikkhu actuallywas guilty and yet got away with a verdict of innocence — then helps conceal thetruth, he is guilty of an offense under Pc 64.Obviously, the main thrust of these guidelines is to prevent an innocent bhikkhufrom being unfairly penalized. As for the opposite case — a guilty bhikkhu gettingaway with no penalty — we should remember that the laws of kamma guarantee thatin the long run he is not getting away with anything at all.Although these guidelines supercede both aniyata rules, the rules still serve twoimportant functions:1) They remind the bhikkhus that charges made by lay people are not to be lightlyignored, and that the Buddha at one point was willing to let the bhikkhus give moreweight to the word of a female lay follower than to that of the accused bhikkhu. Thisin itself, considering the general position of women in Indian society at the time, isremarkable.2) As we will see under Pc 44, it is possible under some circumstances —depending on the bhikkhu's state of mind — to sit alone with a woman in asecluded place without incurring a penalty. Still, a bhikkhu should not blithely takeadvantage of the exemptions under that rule, for even if his motives are pure, hisactions may not appear pure to anyone who comes along and sees him there.These rules serve to remind such a bhikkhu that he could easily be subject to acharge that would lead to a formal meeting of the Community. Even if he were to bedeclared innocent, the meeting would waste a great deal of time both for himselfand for the Community. And in some people's minds — given the Vibhaṅga'sgeneral rule that he is innocent until proven guilty — there would remain the beliefthat he was actually guilty and got off with no penalty simply from lack of hard141