Ussaṅkitasutta — Phāsuvihāravagga — the eleventh chapter of the Fives
Setting
None stated; the discourse continues from AN 5.1, whose setting at Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove is understood to hold
Speakers
The Buddha alone, addressing the mendicants
Form
a single bare five-item list, with no elaboration beyond naming each circumstance
Length
under 1 minute to read
Northern parallel
not identified in this collection
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — brief, and about appearances rather than actual wrongdoing
Why this discourse
A striking framing: even a monk who is genuinely blameless can still become the object of suspicion, for five specific circumstantial reasons that concern where he resorts for alms — a discourse about reputational risk and social optics, not about the moral status of anyone he might visit.
Reading guide
A discourse about appearances, not actual misconduct
The opening framing is explicit: even a monk of ‘impeccable character’, genuinely incorruptible (akuppadhamma), can still be suspected and distrusted as a ‘bad monk’ for five reasons that this discourse never claims constitute actual wrongdoing.
The five circumstances
Resorting for alms specifically to households or persons associated with prostitutes, widows, ‘voluptuous girls’ (young unmarried women regarded, in the text's own social framing, as especially exposed), eunuchs, or nuns.
Why these five specifically
Each names a context where an unattached woman, or a person outside the ordinary protection of a standard householder family, is present without the usual social buffer — making a monk's regular, unaccompanied presence there a source of gossip regardless of his actual conduct.
Read plainly, without further moralizing
This reading guide states directly that the discourse is about social optics and reputational risk management, not about the moral status of prostitutes, widows, or nuns themselves. Its concern is that appearances alone can generate suspicion independent of guilt, and it advises caution about exactly that.
A brief, unelaborated list
Among the shortest discourses in this chapter: a single list, with no explanation of any item beyond simply naming it.
What comes next
AN 5.103 develops a much longer, extended simile — the master thief, mapped in careful detail onto a genuinely corrupt mendicant.
Key terms
ussaṅkitaparisaṅkito — “suspected and distrusted” — this discourse's central risk.
akuppadhamma — “of unshakable, incorruptible character” — the genuinely blameless monk this discourse describes.
pāpabhikkhu — “a bad monk” — the reputational label at risk here, regardless of actual conduct.
thullakumārikā — an unmarried young woman regarded, in the text's own social framing, as particularly exposed.
gocara — “resort, habitual haunt” — the shared structure of all five circumstances named.
The text
The discourse in full: five circumstances that can generate suspicion regardless of actual conduct. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
Five reasons for suspicion
§1“Mendicants, even if a monk is of impeccable character, he might be suspected and distrusted as a ‘bad monk’ for five reasons. What five? It’s when a monk resorts to prostitutes, widows, voluptuous girls, eunuchs, or nuns for alms. Even if a monk is of impeccable character, he might be suspected and distrusted as a ‘bad monk’ for these five reasons.”
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Self-check quiz
Ten questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.
Question 1 of 10
What is distinctive about the monk described at the start of this discourse?
Correct: B. Akuppadhamma — genuinely incorruptible, yet still at risk of suspicion.
Question 2 of 10
What five circumstances can still generate suspicion, regardless of actual conduct?
Correct: A. Five specific alms-resort circumstances.
Question 3 of 10
What does 'akuppadhamma' mean?
Correct: B. Genuinely blameless in fact.
Question 4 of 10
Is this discourse claiming any of the five circumstances constitutes actual misconduct?
Correct: B. Explicitly framed around a monk of impeccable character.
Question 5 of 10
What do all five named circumstances have in common, structurally?
Correct: B. A shared social pattern, not five unrelated items.
Question 6 of 10
What does 'thullakumārikā' refer to?
Correct: A. One of the five named circumstances.
Question 7 of 10
What is the discourse's central subject — actual wrongdoing, or reputational risk?
Correct: B. Appearances, independent of guilt.
Question 8 of 10
How long is this discourse, relative to others in this chapter?
Correct: B. Brief, with no explanation beyond naming each circumstance.
Question 9 of 10
What does 'pāpabhikkhu' mean?
Correct: B. The reputational label at risk in this discourse.
Question 10 of 10
What does AN 5.103 develop next, at much greater length?
Correct: B. An extended, detailed figurative discourse.
