Studies in Buddhist and Jaina Monachism

Author(s): Nand Kishor Prasad
Publisher: Research Institute of Prakrit Jainology & Ahimsa Mujjaffarpur

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PABBAJJA AND UPASAMPADA
to be received into the Order by the same formula were Yasa and his fifty-four other friends who attained Arhatahood no sooner than they were admonished by the Teacher.
As
Besides the Buddha himself, now there were sixty Arhantas in all in the world who were despatched by the Teacher to different corners of the country with a view to propagate the Dhamma to the general mass. Very soon they brought a large number of candidates who were ready to take upon themselves the monastic career. such it became impractical for the Teacher alone to receive all such candidates into the Order. Naturally, monks were permitted to confer initiation and ordination upon such candidates and a process of admission known as tisaranagamana formula was laid down so that the monks might not be inconvenienced in any way The same may be summed up as below:
"One, who is to be received into the Sangha, should get his hair and beard saved, put on saffron-robes, adjust his upper robe so as to cover one shoulder, salute the feet of the monks and sit down squatting. Then with folded hands he should utter thrice :
"I take the Buddha as my refuge,
I take the Dhamma as my refuge, I take the Sangha as my refuge'."
This procedure regarding initiation and ordination, as a rule, was to be followed by everyone when converting a candidate. But the Buddha himself is recorded as an exception to it, for he converted the Bhaddavaggiyas, the Jațilas, Sariputta, Moggallana and several others as full-fledged members of the Sangha by the old formula'ehi bhikkhu'-even though the new procedure had already been set forth by him.
In due course, the preceding procedure too was replaced by a new one known as ñatticatutthakammaupasampada.2 According to the new rule, an announcement, that such and such a person wishes to receive upasampada with Venerable such and such as his upajjhaya (preceptor), was to be made before a seated assembly of monks. The
1. MV, 1. 11. 34, pp. 23-24.
2. This question or motion is put once or three times, in the first case, we have a nattidutiyakamma (as in the case of fixation of boundary of an āvāsa (at MV, 2. 4. 7-9, p. 109); in the second case, a ñatticatutthakamma (as in this case).--Vide Satapatha Brahmana (SBE. Vol. XII), p. 170, fn 2.