BUDDHIST MONASTIC CODE I

Sekhiya Chapter 10mindfulness established." One should also remind oneself of the trouble andexpense the donors incurred in providing the food.28. I will receive almsfood with attention focused on the bowl: atraining to be observed.The purpose of this rule is to prevent one from looking at the donor's face (seeCv.VIII.5.2) or gazing aimlessly in other directions while he/she is placing food inthe bowl. However, one of the "duties to be observed on alms round," (Cv.VIII.5) isthat one should not stand too long or turn away too soon. This means that oneshould glance at what the donor has prepared to give, so that one will not standwaiting for more when the donor has finished giving, or turn away when he/she hasmore to give.29. I will receive almsfood with bean curry in proper proportion: a training to beobserved.This rule refers specifically to eating habits at the time of the Buddha. Bean currymeans dishes made with gram, pulses, vetch, etc., thick enough that they can beplaced in the bowl by the hand. In proper proportion, according to the Commentary,means no more than one-quarter of the total food. The Vinaya-mukha tries tointerpret this rule as covering curries and soups of all kinds, but the Vibhaṅga andcommentaries state unequivocally that it covers only bean curries. Other gravies,soups, stews, and sauces are exempt.This rule probably refers to situations in which bhikkhus are offered food from aserving dish from which they help themselves — as was the custom when they wereinvited to homes in the Buddha's time, and is still the custom in Sri Lanka andBurma — for the Vibhaṅga states that there is no offense in receiving more than theproper proportion if one is invited to accept more than that. There is also no offensein taking more than the proper proportion if one is ill, one is accepting it fromrelatives, one is accepting it for the sake of another, or one has obtained the foodthrough one's own resources. (This interpretation follows the Commentary. TheK/Commentary, for some reason, maintains that these latter non-offense situations— accepting from one's relatives, from people who have offered an invitation, forthe sake of another, or from food obtained through one's own resources — applyonly to dishes that are not bean curries, but this interpretation does not fit with theVibhaṅga.)30. I will receive almsfood level with the edge (of the bowl): atraining to be observed.Iron bowls in the past had a hoop approximately 1 cm. wide around the inside of themouth. According to the Commentary, edge here means the bottom edge of this443