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400
S. B. DEO
Such clothes as were strong and selected for himself by the guru were allowed to be used by him. Then the rest were distributed first to the novice, then to the ill, then to the well-read, then to one who could explain the texts very well, then to the old monks (jātisthavira), then to one who was practising a penance, then to him who did not know the language of that country, then to one who was endowed with special qualities (labdhi), then to one of the greater standing (paryāyaratnādhika) and lastly to him who was of less standing (avamarātnika).
Sometimes a different sequence was also followed in distributing clothing. According to this system, the ācārya got the clothing first, then the ill, then one who had no clothes, then the respected, then the pravartin, then the stahavira, then the ganāvacchedin, and lastly the well-read. The last four were the same in this system as in the previous one.
As is ordinarily natural to human nature, the monks seemed to quarrel between themselves for acquiring the best possible clothing for them out of the whole lot, and sometimes went to the extent of hiding the best clothes. The Byhatkalpabhāşya lays down various prāyaścittas in this case.139
Proper and Improper Clothing:
The principal rules concerning the proper and improper types of clothing for the monks remained more or less the same. But the Bhāsyäs and the Cūrnis give certain exceptions to and amplifications of these fundamental rules. 140
The normal rule was that clothing was to be used not for bodily decoration but for bodily protection. For this purpose the monks were disallowed to use complete and untorn clothes (křtsna). This 'krtsna' could be of four types:
(a) Dravyakrtsna: that which was made of valuable material,
(b) Kșetrakstsna: that which was rare in certain countries and hence valuable; for instance, the clothing from the eastern regions fetched high price in the country of Lāta,
(c) Kālakṣtsna: that which was of immense use in certain seasons,
(d) Bhāvakṣtsna: that which was valuable on account of colour and price. 141
139. Vol. IV, 4314-29. 140. See also Viñ. 13, 11-14. 141. Bịh, kalp bha. Vol. IV, 3884-86.
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