CHAPTER THREE Disrobing The first rule in the Patimokkha opens with the statement that it

   
   
   
                                           
                             CHAPTER THREE
                                           
                               Disrobing
                               ~~~~~~~~~
                                           
                                           
   The first rule in the Patimokkha opens with the statement that it -- 
   and, by extension, every other rule in the Patimokkha -- applies to 
   all bhikkhus who have not disrobed by renouncing the training and 
   returning to the lay life. Thus the Vibhanga begins its explanations 
   by discussing what does and does not count as a valid act of 
   disrobing. Because this is, in effect, the escape clause for all the 
   rules, I am discussing it first as a separate chapter, for if a 
   bhikkhu disrobes in an invalid manner, he still counts as a bhikkhu 
   and is subject to the rules whether he realizes it or not. If he 
   then were to break any of the Parajika rules, he would be 
   disqualified from ever becoming a bhikkhu again in this lifetime.
   
     To disrobe, a bhikkhu with firm intent states in the presence of a 
   witness words to the effect that he is renouncing the training. The 
   validity of the act depends on four factors:
   
       1. The bhikkhu's state of mind.
       2. His intention.
       3. His statement.
       4. The witness to his statement.
   
     State of mind. The bhikkhu must be in his right mind. Any 
   statement he makes while insane, crazed with pain, or possessed by 
   spirits does not count.
     
     Intention. He must seriously desire to leave the Community. If, 
   without actually intending to disrobe, he makes any of the 
   statements usually used for disrobing, it does not count as an act 
   of disrobing. For example, if he makes the statement in jest or is 
   telling someone else how to disrobe, the fact that he mentions the 
   words does not mean that he has disrobed. Also, if he says one thing 
   and means something else -- e.g., if he makes a slip of the tongue 
   -- that too does not count.
     
     The statement. The Vibhanga gives a wide variety of statements 
   that one may use to renounce the training. The most basic one 
   follows the form, "I renounce //x//," where //x// may be replaced 
   with the Buddha, the Dhamma, the Sangha, the training, the 
   discipline (//vinaya//), the Patimokkha, the chaste life, one's 
   preceptor, one's teacher, one's fellow bhikkhus, or any equivalent 
   terms. Other examples follow similar forms, such as, "I am tired of 
   //x//," "What is //x// to me?" "//X// means nothing to me," or "I am 
   well freed of //x//." A separate form follows the pattern, "I will 
   be //y//," where //y// may be replaced with a householder, a lay 
   follower, a novice, a member of another sect, an adherent of another 
   sect, or any other equivalent term.
   
     The Vibhanga stipulates that the statement may //not// be put in 
   the conditional tense ("Suppose I were to renounce the training"), 
   and the Commentary further stipulates that the "//x//" statements 
   must be in the //present// tense. Thus to say, "I have renounced the 
   training," or "I will renounce the training," would not be a valid 
   statement of disrobing.
     
     The witness must be a human being in his or her right mind, and 
   must understand what the bhikkhu says. This rules out the practice 
   legendary in Thailand of bhikkhus who disrobe by taking a Buddha 
   image as their witness, or who disrobe in front of a Bodhi tree on 
   the assumption that the tree deity counts.
     
     These four factors cover all that is absolutely necessary for an 
   act of disrobing to be valid. However, each of the different 
   national traditions has developed a set of formal ceremonies to 
   surround the act -- such as making a final confession of all one's 
   offenses and reciting the passage for reflection on one's past use 
   of the four requisites -- to give psychological weight to the 
   occasion and to help minimize any sense of remorse one may feel 
   afterwards.
     
     Because disrobing is a serious act with strong consequences for 
   one's mental and spiritual well being, it should be done only after 
   due consideration. Once a bhikkhu decides that he //does// want to 
   disrobe, he would be wise to follow not only the stipulations given 
   in the texts but also any additional customs dictated by the 
   traditions of his particular Community, as a sign to himself and to 
   others that he is acting seriously and with due respect both for the 
   religion and for himself.
   
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