BUDDHIST MONASTIC CODE I

The Animal Chapter Chapter 8.7if there are dangers (and the bhikkhu must join the caravan for his safety).Summary: Traveling by arrangement with a group of thieves from one village toanother — knowing that they are thieves — is a pācittiya offense.67. Should any bhikkhu, by arrangement, travel together with awoman, even for the interval between one village and the next, it is tobe confessed."Now at that time a certain bhikkhu, going through the Kosalan districts on his wayto Sāvatthī, passed by the gate of a certain village. A woman, leaving the villageafter quarreling with her husband, saw the bhikkhu and said, 'Where are you going,venerable sir?'"'I'm going to Sāvatthī, sister.'"'Then I'm going with you.'"'As you wish, sister.'"Then the woman's husband, leaving the village, asked people, 'Have you seensuch-and-such a woman?'"'She's going along with a monk.'"So the man, having caught up with them, seized the bhikkhu, gave him a goodthrashing, and set him free. The bhikkhu went and sat fuming under a certain tree.The woman said to the man, 'That bhikkhu didn't abscond with me. I was the onewho went with him. He's innocent. Go and ask his forgiveness.'"So the man asked the bhikkhu for his forgiveness."Object. A female human being, experienced enough to know what is properly andimproperly said, what is lewd and not lewd, is grounds for a pācittiya here.Paṇḍakas, female yakkhas and petas, and animals in the form of a female humanbeing are all grounds for a dukkaṭa. Woman here also includes women. In otherwords, the inclusion of one or more extra women in the travel arrangement is not amitigating factor; and, in fact, there is an offense for every woman included in thetravel arrangement. The inclusion of men in the travel arrangement, however, is acontroversial issue at present, and is discussed below.Perception as to whether the person is actually a woman is not a mitigating factorhere (see Pc 4).Similarly, if one travels by arrangement with a paṇḍaka, not knowing that that's whathe is, one still incurs a dukkaṭa.383