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Sütras 16-17 ]
Path of Emancipation
113
Alms-begging as reflected in the above-mentioned rules and regulations is a very difficult and onerous task. Both the giver and the receiver should be extremely careful so that there is no infringement of the principles of alms-giving and alms-begging. The monk should see that nothing is being offerred to him under any kind of favour conferred on the alms-giver. He should also be careful in his sermons or talks not to exert any kind of influence on the giver to induce liberality in him. These are the pit-falls which a monk should always avoid in order to maintain his life in a perfectly pure manner.
The principal quality of the alms-giver and the alms-taker is clearly defined in the following dictum of Dasaveäliya :
"An unambitious giver is as rare as an unambitious receiver. Both of them
qualify themselves for higher forms of existence."1 The most fundamental blemish is ahākamma, the Skt. equivalent of which, as proposed by Leumann, is yathākāmyam, meaning "prepared for a monk as satisfying the wish of the alms-giver".
The other blemishes such as auddeśika and the like are to be considered in the light of the blemish of āhākamma. For instance, if an article of food is prepared for oneself, and then divided into portions earmarked for different classes of prospective alms-takers, there arises the likelihood of the occurrence of a blemish. The divided portions may be further embellished for a particular monk or a particular group of monks. In this case, the blemish of auddesika may arise.
The blemishes are broadly classified into (i) visuddhakoți and (ii) avisuddhakoti. The alms unpolluted by ähākamma fall under the first koți, while those that are polluted by āhākamma fall under the second. Thus scrutinized, the āhākamma is an absolutely polluted blemish, and the other five viz. auddešika, miśrajāta, badara prabhatika, püti and adhyavapūraka, are considered polluted on account of their being vitiated by the background of ahākamma. १६. उपध्यादेः सयत्नं व्यापरणं आदान-निक्षेपः। 16. upadhyādeḥ sayatnaṁ vyāparaṇam ādāna-nikṣepaḥ.
(Aph.) The “careful using and laying (of paraphernalia) consists in meticulous manipulation of paraphernalia (i.e. articles for regular and occasional use). (XVI) . १७. उच्चारादो सविधि परिष्ठापनमुत्सर्गः।
सविधीति-प्रत्युपेक्षितप्रमार्जितभूम्यादौ । परिष्ठापनम्-परित्यजनम् । 17. ucсārādeḥ savidhi parişthāpanam utsargaḥ.
savidhīti-pratyupekṣita-pramārjita-bhūmyādau. parişthāpanam
parityajanam. 1 5/1/100 : dullahão muhădăi, muhājīvi vi dullahā /
muhädaj muhajivi, do vi gacchamti soggaim II
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