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Bhikkhunī Vibhaṅga: Garlic from the Field and the Golden Goose Plucked Bare
Everyday life

Bhikkhunī Vibhaṅga: Garlic from the Field and the Golden Goose Plucked Bare

Yaṃ laddhaṃ tena tuṭṭhabbaṃ

A lay follower offers garlic to the nuns, two or three bundles each, but Thullanandā has far more carried off from his field and the field-keeper complains. The Buddha tells of a golden goose plucked bare. A second rule concerns nuns who ask for raw grain at harvest time until people at the city gate demand a share.

7 points

In the Bhikkhunī Vibhaṅga, Vinaya Piṭaka volume 3, the first rule of the Garlic chapter tells how a lay follower invited the Saṅgha of nuns to take garlic, instructing his field-keeper to give each nun two or three bundles if they came. At that time there was a festival in Sāvatthī and the garlic brought to market ran out, so he told the nuns to go to the field. Thullanandā went and, not knowing moderation, had a large amount carried away. The field-keeper complained.

The Buddha told of the past: Thullanandā had been a brahmin's wife with three daughters. When the brahmin died, he was reborn as a goose with golden feathers and gave them one feather each. She seized the goose king and plucked him bare, and the feathers grew back white. He then spoke a verse: be content with what you receive, for excessive greed is bad. After that he forbade bhikkhunīs to eat garlic.

The seventh rule of the same chapter tells how, at harvest time, nuns asked for raw grain and carried it into the city. At the gate people blocked their way, joking, "Venerables, give us a share," before letting them go. He forbade asking for, roasting, pounding or cooking raw grain to eat. Both are rules for bhikkhunīs; lay people are not forbidden to eat garlic. The lesson we can use is moderation in receiving others' generosity.

  1. 1

    Generosity with a stated limit Bhikkhunīsaṅgho lasuṇena pavārito

    The lay follower invited the Saṅgha of nuns to take garlic and told his field-keeper to give two or three bundles to each nun. The giver's intention was clear from the start; both receiver and keeper knew where enough lay.

    Applying it in daily life

    When someone offers you something to take freely, ask or notice first how much they had in mind.

  2. 2

    At the source, forgetting moderation Na mattaṃ jānitvā bahuṃ lasuṇaṃ harāpesi

    When the garlic at the follower's house was gone, Thullanandā went to the field herself and, not knowing moderation, had a lot carried away. The field-keeper, who had received the instructions, was the first to complain, because he could see it exceeded what the owner had said.

    Applying it in daily life

    The closer you get to a source of free things that no one counts, the clearer your own limit must be, because no one will tell you to stop.

  3. 3

    The golden goose plucked bare Atilobhena suvaṇṇā parihīnā

    The golden goose gave his former family one feather each, but his wife thought he was giving them only one feather each, so she seized him and plucked him bare. The feathers grew back white. The Buddha said that then she lost gold through excessive greed, and now she loses garlic.

    Applying it in daily life

    Relationships where someone gives to us steadily, such as parents, regular customers or helpful friends, are kept by receiving in moderation, not by extracting as much as possible at once.

  4. 4

    Be content with what you receive Atilobho hi pāpako

    The verse says: what you receive, be content with that, for excessive greed is bad, like seizing the goose king and losing the gold. Contentment here means being satisfied with what is rightly received, not ceasing all effort.

    Applying it in daily life

    When you receive something or get an opportunity, pause to appreciate it before thinking about what you haven't yet got.

  5. 5

    A prohibition with clear details Lasuṇaṃ nāma māgadhikaṃ vuccati

    The word-analysis says the garlic meant is the kind called Magadhan garlic. The exemptions include certain named onion and garlic plants, and garlic cooked into curries or meat or fried in oil. The rule targets eating garlic as food in itself, not suspicion of everything.

    Applying it in daily life

    When setting a rule for yourself, such as cutting down on sweets, write clearly what counts and what doesn't. It lasts longer than a vague rule.

  6. 6

    Asking for raw grain at harvest Āmakadhaññaṃ viññāpetvā

    The seventh rule tells how nuns asked for raw grain at harvest time and carried it into the city. At the gate people blocked the way, joking, "Venerables, give us a share," before letting them go. He forbade asking for, roasting, pounding or cooking raw grain to eat, whether done oneself or by getting others to do it.

    Applying it in daily life

    When others are busy with their hardest work, like closing the books or bringing in the harvest, that is the time to ask the least, not to ask more because there is plenty around.

  7. 7

    Relaxed when there is real need Ābādhappaccayā

    The exemptions for the raw-grain rule say there is no offence if done because of illness, nor in asking for pulses and similar crops. The rule is not meant to make things harder than necessary.

    Applying it in daily life

    When you must rely on others' kindness because you are ill or in real need, you needn't feel guilty. What to watch for is asking out of wanting, not asking out of need.

Try it in daily life

This happened just when garlic was scarce. The generous lay follower said to go to the field, but his generosity had a limit he had already stated: two or three bundles each. Taking more troubled both the owner and his field-keeper, and left less for those who came later.

Today we meet similar situations often: free items at an event, food in the staff room, a discount a friend lets us use, or a relative saying "Take it." The question to ask is how much they meant to give, not how much we can take.

The golden goose reminds us that greed doesn't always bring more. Sometimes it costs us the whole source that used to give steadily.

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