The Hardest Vow: Becoming a Bodhisattva Without Leaving Home
This is the longest chapter in the Sutra on Upāsaka Precepts, and Grand Master Taixu calls it the pivot on which the whole text turns: the first thirteen chapters describe the person fit to receive these precepts, and every chapter after this one describes the practice built on top of them — but this chapter alone confers the precepts themselves. It walks through an entire ordination in real sequence: honoring the six people who make up a householder's world, seeking permission from family and ruler, a preceptor's searching questions, a six-month trial, the formal ceremony itself, and finally the six heavy and twenty-eight lesser precepts a lay bodhisattva actually vows to keep.
1. Milestone: Shansheng's Question
Chapter 14 opens with the question the previous thirteen chapters have all been building toward: not what a bodhisattva must become, but how, in practical terms, a layperson actually receives these vows at all.
善生言：「世尊！在家菩薩云何得受優婆塞戒？」
Shansheng said: "World-Honored One, how does a lay bodhisattva go about receiving the upāsaka precepts?"
Taixu treats the chapter title itself as the key to the sutra's whole architecture. The offering to the six directions taken up here already appeared, he notes, in the preparatory material earlier in the text, and has a parallel in the Sigālovāda-type teaching known in Chinese as the Shansheng Sutra — but the actual liturgy of ordination that follows, the six heavy precepts and twenty-eight lesser ones, belongs to this sutra alone. He states the structural point plainly: the first thirteen chapters describe the person capable of receiving the precepts; this chapter describes the precepts that are received. Everything in the fourteen chapters still to come is simply the practice built on top of what is conferred here — which is exactly why, he says, the whole scripture takes its name from this one word, "precepts."
2. Milestone: Honoring the Six Directions
Before any precept can be conferred, the Buddha insists on something more basic: a candidate must already be living well within the six relationships that make up an ordinary household life. Each direction names a real person, and in every case the obligation runs both ways.
善男子！在家菩薩若欲受持優婆塞戒，先當次第供養六方：東方、南方、西方、北方、下方、上方。言東方者，即是父母，若人有能供養父母衣服、飲食、臥具、湯藥、房舍、財寶，恭敬、禮拜、讚歎、尊重，是人則能供養東方。父母還以五事報之：一者、至心愛念，二者、終不欺誑，三者、捨財與之，四者、為娉上族，五者、教以世事。
Good son, if a lay bodhisattva wishes to receive and uphold the upāsaka precepts, he must first make offerings, in order, to the six directions: east, south, west, north, below, and above. The east is one's parents. Whoever offers his parents clothing, food and drink, bedding, medicine, and a dwelling, and reveres, bows to, praises, and honors them, has made offering to the east. Parents, in turn, repay this in five ways: first, loving and cherishing their child with a sincere heart; second, never once deceiving him; third, giving him of their wealth; fourth, arranging his marriage into a worthy family; and fifth, teaching him how the world works.
言南方者，即是師長，若有人能供養師長衣服、飲食、臥具、湯藥，尊重、讚歎、恭敬禮拜，早起晚臥，受行善教，是人則能供養南方。是師復以五事報之：一者、速教不令失時，二者、盡教不令不盡，三者、勝己不生妬嫉，四者、將付嚴師善友，五者、臨終捨財與之。
The south is one's teachers. Whoever offers his teachers clothing, food and drink, bedding, and medicine, honoring, praising, and reverently bowing to them, rising early and retiring late, and accepting and carrying out their good instruction, has made offering to the south. Teachers, in turn, repay this in five ways: first, teaching promptly, so that no season for learning is lost; second, teaching completely, holding nothing back; third, feeling no envy when the student surpasses the teacher; fourth, entrusting him to a strict teacher and good friends; and fifth, leaving him their wealth at the end of life.
言西方者，即是妻子，若有人能供給妻子衣服、飲食、臥具、湯藥、瓔珞、服飾、嚴身之具，是人則是供養西方。妻子復以十四事報之：一者、所作盡心營之，二者、常作終不懈慢，三者、所作必令終竟，四者、疾作不令失時，五者、常為瞻視賓客，六者、淨其房舍臥具，七者、愛敬，言則柔軟，八者、僮使軟言教詔，九者、善能守護財物，十者、晨起夜寐，十一者、能設淨食，十二者、能忍教誨，十三者、能覆惡事，十四者、能瞻病苦。
The west is one's wife and children. Whoever provides his wife and children with clothing, food and drink, bedding, medicine, necklaces, ornaments, and things to adorn the body, has made offering to the west. A wife, in turn, repays this in fourteen ways: first, doing whatever needs doing with a whole heart; second, always working and never growing lazy; third, seeing every task through to completion; fourth, acting quickly, so no occasion is missed; fifth, always attending to guests; sixth, keeping the rooms and bedding clean; seventh, loving and respecting him, always speaking gently; eighth, instructing the servants with gentle words; ninth, guarding the household's wealth well; tenth, rising early and retiring late; eleventh, preparing food purely; twelfth, bearing patiently whatever he teaches her; thirteenth, covering over his faults rather than exposing them; and fourteenth, tending him when he is sick or in pain.
言北方者，即善知識，若有人能供施善友，任力與之，恭敬軟言，禮拜讚歎，是人則能供養北方。是善知識復以四事而還報之：一者、教修善法，二者、令離惡法，三者、有恐怖時能為救解，四者、放逸之時能令除捨。
The north is one's good friends. Whoever makes offerings to a good friend, giving as his means allow, honoring him with gentle words, bowing to and praising him, has made offering to the north. A good friend, in turn, repays this in four ways: first, teaching him to cultivate good practices; second, leading him away from bad ones; third, rescuing and consoling him when he is afraid; and fourth, helping him set aside his own heedlessness when he grows careless.
言下方者，即是奴婢，若有人能供給奴婢衣服、飲食、病瘦醫藥，不罵不打，是人則能供給下方。奴婢復以十事報之：一者、不作罪過，二者、不待教作，三者、作必令竟，四者、疾作不令失時，五者、主雖貧窮終不捨離，六者、早起，七者、守物，八者、少恩多報，九者、至心敬念，十者、善覆惡事。
Below is one's servants. Whoever provides his servants with clothing, food and drink, and medicine when they are sick, without scolding or beating them, has made offering to what lies below. Servants, in turn, repay this in ten ways: first, not committing wrongdoing; second, not waiting to be told before doing what needs doing; third, seeing every task through to the end; fourth, acting quickly, so nothing is missed; fifth, never abandoning their master even should he become poor; sixth, rising early; seventh, watching over his property; eighth, repaying small kindness with much gratitude; ninth, serving him with a sincere and reverent heart; and tenth, covering over his faults rather than exposing them.
言上方者，即是沙門、婆羅門等，若有供養沙門、婆羅門衣服、飲食、房舍、臥具、病痛醫藥，怖時能救，饉世施食，聞惡能遮，禮拜恭敬，尊重讚歎，是人則能供養上方。是出家人以五種事報：一者、教令生信，二者、教生智慧，三者、教令行施，四者、教令持戒，五者、教令多聞。若有供養是六方者，是人則得增長財命，能得受持優婆塞戒。
Above are śramaṇas and brāhmaṇas. Whoever offers them clothing, food and drink, a dwelling, bedding, and medicine when they are ill, rescuing them in danger, giving them food in famine, warding off slander spoken against them, bowing to, honoring, and praising them, has made offering to what lies above. Renunciants, in turn, repay this in five ways: first, teaching him to give rise to faith; second, teaching him to give rise to wisdom; third, teaching him to practice giving; fourth, teaching him to uphold the precepts; and fifth, teaching him to hear much of the Dharma. Whoever makes offerings to these six directions gains an increase of both wealth and life, and becomes fit to receive and uphold the upāsaka precepts.
Taixu points out that elsewhere the "six directions" had been read allegorically, as the six pāramitās; here they are read literally, as the actual people who make up a householder's world — a scheme he finds strikingly close to the Confucian five relationships central to Chinese ethics. East, the direction of birth, naturally names the parents; south names teachers, whether of worldly learning or of the Dharma; west names wife and children; north names good friends who share one's cultivation of virtue; below names servants; and above names renunciants — śramaṇas broadly, and brāhmaṇas, who in India served much the role Confucian scholars served in China, as teachers of the wider culture.
Every relationship on the list runs in both directions — never a one-way obligation. His point in placing this passage before any precept is conferred: a person who cannot manage even these ordinary human relationships with integrity has no business asking for the bodhisattva upāsaka precepts. Cultivating oneself and ordering one's own household must come first; only then is one actually ready for the further vow.
3. Milestone: Seeking Permission — Family and Ruler
Only after the six relationships are in good order does the candidate move toward ordination itself — and even then, the sutra insists on a chain of consent before a single vow is asked.
善男子！若人欲受優婆塞戒，增長財命，先當諮啟所生父母。父母若聽，次報妻子、奴婢、僮僕；此輩若聽，次白國主。國主聽已，誰有出家發菩提心者，便往其所頭面作禮，軟言問訊，作如是言：『大德！我是丈夫，具男子身，欲受菩薩優婆塞戒，惟願大德憐愍故聽受！』
Good son, if someone wishes to receive the upāsaka precepts and thereby increase his wealth and life, he must first ask leave of the parents who bore him. If his parents grant it, he next informs his wife and children, and his servants; if they grant it, he next informs the ruler of the land. Once the ruler has granted it, he seeks out whichever renunciant there present has given rise to the mind of bodhi, goes to him, bows with his head to the ground, and asks after him with gentle words, saying: "Great Virtuous One, I am a grown man, possessed of a man's body, and I wish to receive the bodhisattva upāsaka precepts. I beg only that the Great Virtuous One, out of compassion, will grant to hear my request."
Taixu stresses that this elaborate chain of permission is not required for the ordinary five precepts. It is required here specifically because these are the bodhisattva upāsaka precepts — a vow that commits the recipient to actively teaching and gathering others into the Dharma, and so will visibly reshape his relationships with family, state, and society. Consent is sought in advance out of respect for those bonds, not as an escape from them. He also notes that "a grown man, possessed of a man's body" simply marks that the candidate has reached adulthood — a plain, practical qualification before anything else is asked of him.
4. Milestone: The Preceptor's Questions — Ruling Out Obstructions
Before any vow is offered, the officiating bhikṣu runs through a fixed set of questions designed to rule out anyone for whom ordination cannot lawfully proceed.
是時，比丘應作是言：『汝之父母、妻子、奴婢、國主聽不？』若言聽者，復應問言：『汝不曾負佛、法、僧物及他物也？』若言不負，復應問言：『汝今身中將無內外身心病也？』若言無者，復應問言：『汝不於比丘、比丘尼所作非法耶？』若言不作，復應問言：『汝將不作五逆罪耶？』若言不作，復應問言：『汝將不作盜法人不？』若言不作，復應問言：『汝非二根、無根人，壞八戒齋，父母、師病不棄去耶？將不殺發菩提心人，盜現前僧物，兩舌、惡口，於母、姊妹作非法耶？不於大眾作妄語乎？』
At that time, the bhikṣu should say: "Have your parents, your wife and children, your servants, and the ruler of the land granted their leave?" If he says they have, the bhikṣu should further ask: "Do you owe any debt to the Buddha, the Dharma, or the Sangha, or to any other person?" If he says he owes none, the bhikṣu should further ask: "Is your body now free of any illness, within or without, of body or of mind?" If he says he is free of illness, the bhikṣu should further ask: "Have you done anything unlawful with a bhikṣu or a bhikṣuṇī?" If he says he has not, the bhikṣu should further ask: "Have you committed any of the five heinous crimes?" If he says he has not, the bhikṣu should further ask: "Have you stolen the Dharma?" If he says he has not, the bhikṣu should further ask: "Are you neither a person of two organs nor one of none; have you broken the eight precepts of the fasting day; have you abandoned your parents or your teacher while ill; have you killed someone who had given rise to the mind of bodhi; have you stolen property belonging to the present Sangha; have you spoken with a forked tongue or with harsh words; have you done anything unlawful with your own mother or sister; or have you spoken falsely before a great assembly?"
These are the classical "obstructing conditions": if a candidate has done any of these things, ordination cannot proceed. Taixu notes that this scrutiny is unique to the bodhisattva upāsaka precepts — the ordinary three refuges or five precepts are given without this interrogation, but because this vow makes one a lay bodhisattva in the fullest sense, the standard is raised to match. He glosses a few terms a modern reader might otherwise puzzle over: "unlawful conduct" with a bhikṣu or bhikṣuṇī means sexual misconduct; "stealing the Dharma" means secretly listening to or reading the monastic precepts, or slipping into an ordination assembly to overhear its proceedings without authorization; and "two organs" or "no organ" refers to persons of indeterminate or absent sexual characteristics, who under the Vinaya's traditional categories are not eligible for full ordination.
5. Milestone: Testing Sincerity — the Weight of This Vow
Having passed the obstruction questions, the candidate faces a different kind of test: not "are you eligible," but "do you actually understand what you are asking for."
若言無者，復應語言：『善男子！優婆塞戒極為甚難！何以故？是戒能為沙彌十戒、大比丘戒及菩薩戒，乃至阿耨多羅三藐三菩提而作根本；至心受持優婆塞戒，則能獲得如是等戒無量利益。若有毀破如是戒者，則於無量無邊世中處三惡道，受大苦惱。汝今欲得無量利益，能至心受不？』
If he says he has done none of these, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, the upāsaka precepts are extremely difficult to keep. Why is this? Because this precept forms the very root of the ten precepts of a novice, of the full precepts of a great bhikṣu, of the bodhisattva precepts, and even of unsurpassed, complete awakening itself. Receiving and upholding the upāsaka precepts with a sincere heart, one obtains the immeasurable benefits of all these precepts as well. But if one breaks a precept once taken, one will dwell in the three evil destinies for countless ages without number, suffering great torment. Do you now wish to obtain these immeasurable benefits, and can you receive this precept with a sincere heart?"
Taixu draws out the plain moral logic here: whether a single human lifetime tips toward immeasurable benefit or immeasurable suffering rests entirely on whether the precepts, once accepted, are actually kept — nothing is decided from outside. He also glosses the precept-levels named in this passage: the novice's ten precepts, the roughly two hundred fifty rules of a fully ordained monk, and the bodhisattva precepts themselves — whether the ten major and forty-eight minor precepts of the Brahma Net Sutra, or the four major and forty-three minor precepts of the Yogācārabhūmi tradition — all of which, he notes, are said here to be rooted in this one lay precept.
6. Milestone: Refuge in the Three Jewels, and the Gift of Fearlessness
Two further questions establish what refuge actually costs, and what it actually gives — an exclusive commitment on one side, a gift to every other being on the other.
若言能者，復應語言：『優婆塞戒極為甚難！若歸佛已，寧捨身命終不依於自在天等；若歸法已，寧捨身命終不依於外道典籍；若歸僧已，寧捨身命終不依於外道邪眾。汝能如是至心歸依於三寶不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "The upāsaka precepts are extremely difficult to keep. Once you have taken refuge in the Buddha, though it should cost you your very life, you must never rely upon Maheśvara or any other god; once you have taken refuge in the Dharma, though it should cost you your very life, you must never rely upon the scriptures of any outside path; once you have taken refuge in the Sangha, though it should cost you your very life, you must never rely upon any heterodox assembly. Can you take refuge in the Three Jewels with such a sincere heart?"
若言能者，復應語言：『善男子！優婆塞戒極為甚難！若人歸依於三寶者，是人則為施諸眾生無怖畏已；若人能施無怖畏者，是人則得優婆塞戒乃至阿耨多羅三藐三菩提。汝能如是施諸眾生無怖畏不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, the upāsaka precepts are extremely difficult to keep. Whoever takes refuge in the Three Jewels has thereby already given every being freedom from fear; and whoever can give beings freedom from fear obtains thereby the upāsaka precepts, and in time, unsurpassed, complete awakening itself. Can you, in this way, give all beings freedom from fear?"
Taixu notes that taking refuge is not a one-time formality but a standing exclusivity: it is broken the moment one afterward turns to rely on gods, spirits, or outside teachings for refuge — the very substance of the three refuges is lost, not merely diminished. He connects "giving fearlessness" directly to non-harming: to genuinely take refuge in the Three Jewels, whose defining quality is great compassion, is necessarily to give up harming other beings, and it is this very renunciation that grants them freedom from fear in one's presence — the same quality by which Avalokiteśvara is traditionally titled "the Bestower of Fearlessness." An ordinary upāsaka's refuge, sincerely taken, already begins to share in the same virtue.
7. Milestone: The Five Evils and Their Fruits
The preceptor now spells out, in real detail, what killing, stealing, lying, drinking, and sexual misconduct actually cost a person — in this life, in lives to come, and, strikingly, in the wider world around them.
若言能者，復應語言：『人有五事現在不能增長財命。何等為五？一者、樂殺，二者、樂盜，三者、邪婬，四者、妄語，五者、飲酒。一切眾生因殺生故，現在獲得惡色、惡力、惡名、短命、財物秏減，眷屬分離，賢聖呵責，人不信用，他人作罪橫羅其殃：是名現在惡業之果。捨此身已，當墮地獄，多受苦惱、飢渴、長命、惡色、惡力、惡名等事：是名後世惡業之果。若得人身，復受惡色、短命、貧窮。是一惡人因緣力故，令外一切五穀果蓏悉皆減少，是人殃流及一天下。』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "There are five things that, in this very life, prevent the growth of one's wealth and life. What are the five? First, delight in killing; second, delight in stealing; third, sexual misconduct; fourth, false speech; and fifth, drinking wine. Because of killing, all beings obtain, in this present life, an unpleasant appearance, weakness, an evil reputation, a shortened life, the dwindling of their wealth, separation from their families, the reproach of the wise and the noble, and the distrust of others — and when another commits a crime, its calamity falls unexpectedly upon them as well. These are the fruits of evil karma in this present life. Having cast off this body, they fall into the hells, undergoing great suffering, hunger and thirst, a long span of misery, an unpleasant appearance, weakness, and an evil reputation. These are the fruits of evil karma in lives to come. Should they obtain a human body again, they will still receive an unpleasant appearance, a short life, and poverty. Through the force of just one such evil person's karma, all the grain and fruit of the outer world diminishes, and the calamity of this one person spreads to affect an entire world."
若人樂偷，是人亦得惡色、惡力、惡名、短命、財物秏減，眷屬分離，他人失物於己生疑，雖親附人人不見信，常為賢聖之所呵責：是名現在惡業之果。捨此身已，墮於地獄，受得惡色、惡力、惡名、飢渴、苦惱、壽命長遠：是名後世惡業之果。若得人身，貧於財物，雖得隨失，不為父母、兄弟、妻子之所愛念，身常受苦，心懷愁惱。是一惡人因緣力故，一切人民凡所食噉不得色力，是人惡果殃流萬姓。
If a person delights in stealing, he too obtains an unpleasant appearance, weakness, an evil reputation, a shortened life, the dwindling of his wealth, and separation from his family; when another loses something, suspicion falls on him; even when he draws close to others, no one trusts him, and he is constantly reproached by the wise and the noble. These are the fruits of evil karma in this present life. Having cast off this body, he falls into the hells, where he receives an unpleasant appearance, weakness, an evil reputation, hunger, thirst, suffering, and a long span of misery. These are the fruits of evil karma in lives to come. Should he obtain a human body again, he will be poor in wealth, and whatever he gains he will at once lose again; he will not be cherished by his parents, brothers, or wife and children, his body will constantly suffer, and his heart will be laden with grief. Through the force of just one such evil person's karma, all people find that whatever they eat and drink fails to nourish them with color or strength — the evil fruit of this one person's deeds spreads to affect the myriad people.
善男子！若復有人樂於妄語，是人現得惡口、惡色，所言雖實，人不信受，眾皆憎惡，不喜見之：是名現世惡業之報。捨此身已，入於地獄，受大苦楚，飢渴熱惱：是名後世惡業之報。若得人身，口不具足，所說雖實，人不信受，見者不樂，雖說正法，人不樂聞。是一惡人因緣力故，外物一切資產減少。
Good son, if a person delights in false speech, he obtains in this present life a foul mouth and an unpleasant appearance; even when what he says is true, no one believes him, and all despise him and take no pleasure in seeing him. This is the retribution of evil karma in this present life. Having cast off this body, he enters the hells, undergoing great torment, hunger, thirst, and burning distress. This is the retribution of evil karma in lives to come. Should he obtain a human body again, his mouth will be defective; even what he says truthfully will not be believed, those who see him will take no joy in it, and even when he speaks the true Dharma, no one will care to listen. Through the force of just one such evil person's karma, all manner of outer wealth and resources diminish.
善男子！若復有人樂飲酒者，是人現世喜失財物，身心多病，常樂鬪諍，惡名遠聞，喪失智慧，心無慚愧，得惡色力，常為一切之所呵責，人不樂見，不能修善：是名飲酒現在惡報。捨此身已，處在地獄，受飢渴等無量苦惱：是名後世惡業之果。若得人身，心常狂亂，不能繫念思惟善法。是一惡人因緣力故，一切外物資產臭爛。
Good son, if a person delights in drinking wine, he finds in this present life that he readily loses his wealth, that his body and mind fall prey to many illnesses, that he constantly delights in quarrels and disputes, that an evil reputation spreads far and wide, that he loses his wisdom, that his heart holds no shame, that he obtains an unpleasant appearance and weakness, that he is constantly reproached by everyone, that no one cares to see him, and that he is unable to cultivate good. This is the present evil retribution of drinking. Having cast off this body, he dwells in the hells, undergoing hunger, thirst, and immeasurable suffering. This is the fruit of evil karma in lives to come. Should he obtain a human body again, his mind will be constantly deranged, unable to hold any good thought in mind or reflect upon it. Through the force of just one such evil person's karma, all manner of outer wealth and resources rot and spoil.
善男子！若復有人，樂為邪婬，是人不能護自他身，一切眾生見皆生疑，所作之事，妄語在先，於一切時常受苦惱，心常散亂，不能修善，喜失財物，所有妻子心不戀慕，壽命短促：是名邪婬現在惡果。捨此身已，處在地獄，受惡色力，飢渴長命，無量苦惱：是名後世惡業果報。若得人身，惡色、惡口，人不喜見，不能守護妻妾男女。是一惡人因緣力故，一切外物不得自在。善男子！是五惡法，汝今真實能遠離不？
Good son, if a person delights in sexual misconduct, he is unable to protect his own body or the bodies of others; all beings who see him grow suspicious of him; whatever he does, falsehood comes first; at all times he suffers distress, his mind constantly scattered, unable to cultivate good; he readily loses his wealth, and even his own wife and children feel no affection for him; and his life is cut short. This is the present evil fruit of sexual misconduct. Having cast off this body, he dwells in the hells, receiving an unpleasant appearance and weakness, hunger, thirst, a long span of misery, and immeasurable suffering. This is the fruit and retribution of evil karma in lives to come. Should he obtain a human body again, he will have an unpleasant appearance and a foul mouth, no one will care to see him, and he will be unable to protect his own wife, concubines, sons, or daughters. Through the force of just one such evil person's karma, all manner of outer things fall out of anyone's control. Good son, can you now, in all sincerity, keep far away from these five evil things?
Taixu draws a technical distinction here that matters for how these five are understood: killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, and lying are what the tradition calls "precepts of essential nature" — wrong in themselves, prior to any rule declaring them so — while abstaining from wine is a "precept of expedient restriction": drinking is not inherently evil the way killing is, but is prohibited because it reliably opens the door to the other four. He walks through why each, left unchecked, unravels a society at exactly the scale the sutra claims: unchecked killing ends in mutual slaughter without limit; unchecked stealing ends in a world where no one can produce or keep anything; sexual misconduct outside the bounds recognized by law and custom breeds social chaos and, over generations, weakens a people; and false speech may be the most corrosive of all, since a society that cannot trust what its members say to one another simply comes apart.
He reads the sutra's striking claim that one person's evil karma spreads to "an entire world" not as poetic exaggeration but as an observation about shared karma, pointing to famine, disaster, and the general intensification of suffering in his own era as visible evidence of exactly this shared weight. He closes by urging the reader to feel real dismay on reading this passage, and to resolve, from that dismay, to actually practice these precepts — turning suffering into ease being, after all, the entire point of undertaking them.
8. Milestone: Guarding Livelihood — Places, Wares, and Trades to Avoid
The questioning now turns from the five root evils to an extended set of practical restrictions on where a lay bodhisattva goes, what he sells, and what trade he takes up — Taixu calls this whole run the "extended instruction," nine categories of restriction in all.
若言能者，復應語言：『善男子！受優婆塞戒，有四事法所不應作。何等為四？為貪因緣不應虛妄，為瞋恚、癡、恐怖因緣，不應虛妄；是四惡法汝能離不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, in receiving the upāsaka precepts, there are four things you must not do. What are the four? You must not speak falsely for the sake of greed; you must not speak falsely for the sake of anger, of delusion, or of fear. Can you keep far away from these four evil things?"
若言能者，復應語言：『善男子！受優婆塞戒，有五處所所不應遊：屠兒、婬女、酒肆、國王、旃陀羅舍。如是五處，汝能離不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, in receiving the upāsaka precepts, there are five places you must not frequent: the house of a butcher, the house of a prostitute, a wine shop, the halls of kings, and the dwelling of an outcaste. Can you keep away from these five places?"
若言能者，復應語言：『善男子！受優婆塞戒，復有五事所不應作：一者、不賣生命，二者、不賣刀劍，三者、不賣毒藥，四者、不得沽酒，五者、不得壓油。如是五事，汝能離不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, in receiving the upāsaka precepts, there are five further things you must not do: first, you must not sell living beings; second, you must not sell knives or swords; third, you must not sell poison; fourth, you must not sell wine; and fifth, you must not press oil. Can you keep away from these five things?"
若言能者，復應語言：『善男子！受優婆塞戒，復有三事所不應為：一者、不作羅網，二者、不作藍染，三者、不作釀皮。如是三事，汝能離不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, in receiving the upāsaka precepts, there are three trades you must not take up: first, making nets and snares; second, dyeing with indigo; and third, tanning hides. Can you keep away from these three?"
若言能者，復應語言：『善男子！受優婆塞戒，復有二事所不應為：一者、摴蒱、圍碁、六博，二者、種種歌舞伎樂。如是二事，汝能離不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, in receiving the upāsaka precepts, there are two further things you must not do: first, gambling, playing chess, or games of chance; and second, indulging in every kind of song, dance, and music. Can you keep away from these two?"
Taixu is careful to note that some of these prohibitions are conditional rather than absolute. Avoiding "the halls of kings," for instance, means not idling about the royal court out of curiosity — an official attending to legitimate public duty is plainly not in violation. Similarly, pressing oil and indigo-dyeing are singled out because, in ancient India, both trades commonly used materials that harbored living insects, so that the trade itself entailed killing; someone able to carry out the same trade without harming any living thing falls outside the prohibition. The underlying principle throughout, he implies, is harm avoided, not the letter of the occupation.
9. Milestone: Guarding Company and Time — Companions, Idle Hours, and the Right Use of Wealth
The extended instruction continues with the company a lay bodhisattva should keep, the hours in which laxity most easily creeps in, and — remarkably concretely — how he should actually manage his household finances.
若言能者，復應語言：『善男子！受優婆塞戒，有四種人不應親近：一者、碁博，二者、飲酒，三者、欺誑，四者、喜酤酒。如是四人，汝能離不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, in receiving the upāsaka precepts, there are four kinds of people you must not associate with: first, those given to gambling and chess; second, those given to drinking; third, those given to deceit; and fourth, those given to selling wine. Can you keep away from these four kinds of people?"
若言能者，復應語言：『善男子！受優婆塞戒，有法放逸所不應作。何等放逸？寒時、熱時、飢時、渴時、多食飽時；清旦、暮時、懅時；作時，初欲作時，失時、得時，怖時、喜時；賊難、穀貴、病苦；壯少、年衰老時；富時、貧時、為命求財時。如是時中不修善法，汝能離不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, in receiving the upāsaka precepts, there is a heedlessness you must not fall into. What is this heedlessness? Neglecting good practice when it is cold, when it is hot, when hungry, when thirsty, or when full to overeating; at dawn, at dusk, or when pressed for time; while at work, or just about to begin work; in times of loss and in times of gain; in times of fear and in times of joy; in times of banditry, of famine prices, or of sickness; in youth and vigor, and in the decline of old age; in wealth and in poverty; and while pursuing a livelihood to sustain one's life. Can you keep from neglecting good practice in all such times?"
若言能者，復應語言：『善男子！受優婆塞戒，先學世事，既學通達，如法求財，若得財物，應作四分：一分應供養父母、己身、妻子、眷屬，二分應作如法販博，留餘一分藏積擬用。如是四事，汝能作不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, in receiving the upāsaka precepts, you must first learn the ways of the world, and once you have mastered them, seek wealth by lawful means. Once wealth is obtained, it should be divided into four parts: one part to support your parents, yourself, your wife and children, and your dependents; two parts to be invested in lawful trade; and the remaining one part to be set aside and saved for future need. Can you do these four things?"
若言能者，復應語言：『善男子！財物不應寄付四處：一者、老人，二者、遠處，三者、惡人，四者、大力。如是四處不應寄付，汝能離不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, wealth should not be entrusted to four kinds of keeping: first, to an old person; second, to a distant place; third, to an evil person; and fourth, to someone of overwhelming power. Can you keep away from entrusting your wealth to these four?"
若言能者，復應語言：『善男子！受優婆塞戒，有四惡人常應離之：一者、樂說他過，二者、樂說邪見，三者、口軟心惡，四者、少作多說。是四惡人汝能離不？』
If he says he can, the bhikṣu should further say: "Good son, in receiving the upāsaka precepts, there are four kinds of evil people you should always keep away from: first, those who delight in speaking of others' faults; second, those who delight in speaking wrong views; third, those whose mouths are soft while their hearts are cruel; and fourth, those who do little but talk a great deal. Can you keep away from these four evil people?"
Taixu treats this whole run, from the five evils through this final list of evil people, as one continuous "extended instruction," covering nine categories of restriction in total. Within it, the rule on dividing one's wealth — one part for the household, two parts reinvested in lawful trade, one part saved — became, in later Chinese Buddhist writing on lay economic life, one of the most frequently cited lines in the whole sutra, precisely because it treats prudent, diversified household finance as itself an expression of the precept, rather than a worldly concession grudgingly permitted alongside it.
10. Milestone: The Six-Month Trial and Formal Ordination
Words alone are not enough. Before the vow is actually conferred, the candidate's conduct must be observed over time — and only then does the Sangha itself formally act.
若言能者，應令是人滿六月日，親近承事出家智者，智者復應至心觀其身四威儀。若知是人能如教作，過六月已，和合眾僧滿二十人，作白羯磨：『大德僧！聽是：某甲今於僧中乞受優婆塞戒，已滿六月，中淨四威儀，至心受持淨莊嚴地，是人丈夫具男子身，若僧聽者，僧皆默然，不聽者，說。』僧若聽者，智者復應作如是言：『善男子！諦聽，諦聽！僧已和合聽汝受持優婆塞戒。是戒即是一切善法之根本也！若有成就如是戒者，當得須陀洹果乃至阿那含果，若破是戒，命終當墮三惡道中。善男子！優婆塞戒不可思議。何以故？受是戒已，雖受五欲而不能障須陀洹果至阿那含果，是故名為不可思議。汝能憐愍諸眾生故，受是戒不？』若言能受，爾時智者次應為說三歸依法，第二、第三亦如是說。受三歸已，名優婆塞。
If he says he can do all these things, he should be made to spend a full six months drawing near to and attending upon a wise renunciant, and that wise one should, with a sincere heart, closely observe his conduct in the four bearings — walking, standing, sitting, and lying down. If it is found that he has been able to act as instructed, then, once the six months have passed, an assembly of the Sangha, no fewer than twenty in number, should be gathered, and a formal proclamation made: "Great Virtuous Sangha, hear this: so-and-so now petitions the Sangha to receive the upāsaka precepts. He has completed six full months, purifying his conduct in the four bearings, and sincerely upholds this pure and adorned ground; he is a grown man, possessed of a man's body. If the Sangha grants this, let all remain silent; if any do not grant it, let them speak." If the Sangha grants it, the wise one should then say: "Good son, listen well, listen well! The Sangha has, with one accord, granted that you receive and uphold the upāsaka precepts. This precept is the very root of all good things. Whoever accomplishes this precept will attain the fruit of stream-entry, or even the fruit of non-returning; whoever breaks this precept will, at the end of life, fall into the three evil destinies. Good son, the upāsaka precepts are inconceivable. Why is this? Because, having received this precept, though one still partakes of the five desires, this will not obstruct one from attaining the fruit of stream-entry, or even the fruit of non-returning — this is why it is called inconceivable. Out of compassion for all beings, can you receive this precept?" If he says he can receive it, the wise one should then explain to him the rite of the three refuges, and have him repeat it a second and a third time in the same way. Once the three refuges have been received, he is called an upāsaka.
Taixu draws a striking comparison: the Sangha's formal proceeding here — a minimum quorum, a motion put forward, silence read as consent, any objection voiced aloud — is functionally identical to modern parliamentary procedure, of the kind Sun Yat-sen later codified in his own manual on meeting rules. This quorum-based, consent-based decision-making, he points out, was already standard practice in the Indian Sangha more than two thousand years earlier, and he wonders openly why Chinese Buddhism seems to have lost some of that same collective spirit along the way.
He also explains why the trial period exists at all: a candidate may sincerely answer "I can" to every question asked of him, but whether he can actually live it out is a separate matter — which is exactly why six months of observed conduct comes before formal admission, a level of caution that exceeds even what is asked before full monastic ordination. Becoming a lay bodhisattva, he says, is like "a blue lotus blooming in fire" — rare and difficult enough to earn exactly this much scrutiny. He notes, too, that the fruit attainable through lay precepts caps at non-returning rather than full arhatship, since the marks of full monastic ordination are not yet present in a layperson; full arhatship, should it ever be reached, would itself transform the person into a renunciant in substance.
11. Milestone: The Five Grades of Upāsaka
Having become an upāsaka through the three refuges, the candidate is then offered a further, striking choice: how many of the five precepts he will actually take on.
爾時，智者復應語言：『善男子！諦聽，諦聽！如來正覺說優婆塞戒，或有一分，或有半分，或有無分，或有多分，或有滿分。若優婆塞受三歸已，不受五戒，名優婆塞。若受三歸，受持一戒，是名一分；受三歸已，受持二戒，是名少分；若受三歸，持二戒已，若破一戒，是名無分；若受三歸，受持三、四戒，是名多分；若受三歸，受持五戒，是名滿分。汝今欲作一分優婆塞，作滿分耶？』若隨意說，爾時智者當隨意授。
The wise one should then say: "Good son, listen well, listen well! The Tathāgata, the Truly and Fully Awakened One, speaks of upāsakas as having one part, or a half part, or no part, or many parts, or the full part of the precepts. If, having received the three refuges, an upāsaka does not receive any of the five precepts, he is simply called an upāsaka. If, having received the three refuges, he receives and upholds one precept, this is called one part. If, having received the three refuges, he receives and upholds two precepts, this is called a small part. If, having received the three refuges and upheld two precepts, he then breaks one of them, this is called no part. If, having received the three refuges, he receives and upholds three or four precepts, this is called many parts. If, having received the three refuges, he receives and upholds all five precepts, this is called the full part. Do you now wish to become a one-part upāsaka, or a full-part one?" Whatever he answers, the wise one should then confer the precepts accordingly.
This graduated scale is one of the most distinctive features of the whole sutra, and it fits the broader emphasis Taixu draws out across this chapter: unlike an all-or-nothing precept scheme, this system is built to meet a layperson exactly where his present capacity actually stands, rather than demanding everything at once. Taking on fewer precepts than the full five is not treated as a lesser accomplishment to be embarrassed by, but as a real and legitimate rung on the same ladder — the same practical realism that shapes the six-month trial period just before it, and the frank admission, at the chapter's close, that lay life is bound about by conditions a renunciant simply does not face.
12. Milestone: The Six Heavy Precepts
Ordination complete, the wise preceptor sets out the six root precepts an upāsaka must never break — each one so serious that breaking it does not merely stain the precepts, but destroys them outright.
既授戒已，復作是言：『優婆塞者有六重法。善男子！優婆塞受持戒已，雖為天女乃至蟻子悉不應殺。若受戒已，若口教殺、若身自殺，是人即失優婆塞戒，是人尚不能得煖法，況須陀洹至阿那含？是名破戒優婆塞、臭優婆塞、旃陀羅優婆塞、垢優婆塞、結優婆塞。是名初重。』
Having conferred the precepts, the wise one should further say: "An upāsaka has six heavy precepts. Good son, once an upāsaka has received and upheld these precepts, he must not kill, not even a heavenly maiden, still less an ant. If, having received the precepts, he either orders another to kill or kills with his own hand, he immediately loses the upāsaka precepts; such a person cannot attain even the stage of warmth, let alone the fruit of stream-entry or non-returning. He is called a precept-breaking upāsaka, a foul upāsaka, an outcaste upāsaka, a defiled upāsaka, a fettered upāsaka. This is the first heavy precept."
優婆塞戒，雖為身命，不得偷盜乃至一錢。若破是戒，是人即失優婆塞戒，是人尚不能得煖法，況須陀洹至阿那含？是名破戒優婆塞，臭、旃陀羅、垢、結優婆塞。是名二重。
"In the upāsaka precepts, though it should cost him his very life, he must not steal, not even a single coin. If he breaks this precept, he immediately loses the upāsaka precepts; such a person cannot attain even the stage of warmth, let alone the fruit of stream-entry or non-returning. He is called a precept-breaking upāsaka — a foul, outcaste, defiled, fettered upāsaka. This is the second heavy precept."
優婆塞戒，雖為身命，不得虛說我得不淨觀至阿那含。若破是戒，是人即失優婆塞戒，是人尚不能得煖法，況須陀洹至阿那含？是名破戒優婆塞，臭、旃陀羅、垢、結優婆塞。是名三重。
"In the upāsaka precepts, though it should cost him his very life, he must not falsely claim to have attained the contemplation of impurity, or any fruit up to non-returning. If he breaks this precept, he immediately loses the upāsaka precepts; such a person cannot attain even the stage of warmth, let alone the fruit of stream-entry or non-returning. He is called a precept-breaking upāsaka — a foul, outcaste, defiled, fettered upāsaka. This is the third heavy precept."
優婆塞戒，雖為身命，不得邪婬。若破是戒，是人即失優婆塞戒，是人尚不能得煖法，況須陀洹至阿那含？是名破戒優婆塞，臭、旃陀羅、垢、結優婆塞。是名四重。
"In the upāsaka precepts, though it should cost him his very life, he must not engage in sexual misconduct. If he breaks this precept, he immediately loses the upāsaka precepts; such a person cannot attain even the stage of warmth, let alone the fruit of stream-entry or non-returning. He is called a precept-breaking upāsaka — a foul, outcaste, defiled, fettered upāsaka. This is the fourth heavy precept."
優婆塞戒，雖為身命，不得宣說比丘、比丘尼、優婆塞、優婆夷所有過罪。若破是戒，是人即失優婆塞戒，是人尚不能得煖法，況須陀洹至阿那含？是名破戒優婆塞，臭、旃陀羅、垢、結優婆塞。是名五重。
"In the upāsaka precepts, though it should cost him his very life, he must not proclaim the faults and offenses of any bhikṣu, bhikṣuṇī, upāsaka, or upāsikā. If he breaks this precept, he immediately loses the upāsaka precepts; such a person cannot attain even the stage of warmth, let alone the fruit of stream-entry or non-returning. He is called a precept-breaking upāsaka — a foul, outcaste, defiled, fettered upāsaka. This is the fifth heavy precept."
優婆塞戒，雖為身命，不得酤酒。若破是戒，是人即失優婆塞戒，是人尚不能得煖法，況須陀洹至阿那含？是名破戒優婆塞，臭、旃陀羅、垢、結優婆塞。是名六重。
"In the upāsaka precepts, though it should cost him his very life, he must not sell wine. If he breaks this precept, he immediately loses the upāsaka precepts; such a person cannot attain even the stage of warmth, let alone the fruit of stream-entry or non-returning. He is called a precept-breaking upāsaka — a foul, outcaste, defiled, fettered upāsaka. This is the sixth heavy precept."
Taixu flags several technical points here. First, the standard five lay precepts are replaced by six heavy precepts plus twenty-eight lesser ones — a distinctly bodhisattva-level structure, heavier than the ordinary five. Second, he clarifies the fifth precept, against speaking of the fourfold assembly's faults: this is not an absolute gag order — a senior monk correcting a junior monk's fault within the proper monastic forum, so that it can be confessed and corrected, is not a violation; what is forbidden is exposing others' faults outside their proper, corrective context.
He also glosses several terms: these six are called "heavy" using the Sanskrit term for pārājika, "the state of having been defeated by another" — breaking any one of them severs the precept-substance itself beyond the reach of ordinary confession and repair. "The stage of warmth" refers to the first of the four approaches to insight in classical Abhidharma training, likened to the first heat given off before a fire is actually kindled by friction. And the four epithets for a precept-breaker — foul, outcaste, defiled, fettered — are simply escalating terms of contempt within the tradition's own vocabulary, not separate categories. He notes, interestingly, that only selling wine — not merely drinking it — rises to the level of a heavy precept here, exactly as in the Brahma Net Sutra, because selling wine causes intoxication in many people at once, not only oneself. He also flags a textual variant worth knowing: some editions read "though it should cost him his body and life" in place of "not even a heavenly maiden" in the first precept, which he judges the more original reading, with "heavenly maiden" likely a copyist's error.
13. Milestone: The Praise of the Precept-Keeper
Before turning to the lesser precepts, the sutra pauses to praise, in concrete and sensory imagery, what these six heavy precepts actually are once kept.
『善男子！若受如是優婆塞戒，能至心持不令毀犯，則能獲得如是戒果。善男子！優婆塞戒名為瓔珞，名為莊嚴，其香微妙，熏無邊界，遮不善法，為善法律；即是無上妙寶之藏，上族種姓，大寂靜處，是甘露味，生善法地。直發是心尚得如是無量利益，況復一心受持不毀？』
"Good son, if one who has received precepts such as these is able to uphold them with a sincere heart, without ever violating them, he will obtain the fruits of these precepts. Good son, the upāsaka precepts are called an ornament, called an adornment; their fragrance, subtle and fine, perfumes realms without limit; they ward off unwholesome things, and form the very law of wholesome things. They are a treasury of unsurpassed, wondrous jewels; a lineage of the highest family; a place of great stillness; a taste of ambrosia; a ground from which good things are born. Simply to give rise to this resolve already brings immeasurable benefit of this kind — how much more so for one who upholds it single-mindedly, without ever violating it!"
Taixu identifies this passage simply as praise for one who genuinely keeps the six heavy precepts, and glosses "ornament" as a concrete image rather than a vague metaphor: a Sanskrit loanword naming an actual piece of jewelry, a string of jewels worn draped about the body. The image asks the reader to picture something real — the precepts worn the way a person of rank might wear jewels, visible and dignifying rather than abstract.
14. Milestone: The Twenty-Eight Lesser Transgressions
Beyond the six heavy precepts, twenty-eight lesser offenses cover the whole texture of daily lay life. Each is introduced by the same formula — "if, having received and upheld these precepts, an upāsaka..." — and each closes with the same verdict: he incurs an offense of remorse, one that, left unconfessed, leads to downfall; a defiled deed, though not one that destroys the precept itself, as the six heavy precepts do. That shared opening and closing are given once here, with the individual transgression alone listed for each of the twenty-eight.
- 不能供養父母、師長
- 耽樂飲酒
- 汙惡不能瞻視病苦
- 見有乞者，不能多少隨宜分與，空遣還者
- 見比丘、比丘尼、長老，先宿諸優婆塞、優婆夷等，不起承迎、禮拜、問訊
- 見比丘、比丘尼、優婆塞、優婆夷毀所受戒，心生憍慢，言我勝彼，彼不如我
- 月月之中，不能六日受持八戒，供養三寶
- 四十里中有講法處，不能往聽
- 受招提僧臥具床座
- 疑水有虫，故便飲之
- 嶮難之處無伴獨行
- 獨宿尼寺
- 為於財命打罵奴婢、僮僕、外人
- 若以殘食施於比丘、比丘尼、優婆塞、優婆夷
- 若畜猫狸
- 畜養象、馬、牛、羊、駝、驢一切畜獸，不作淨，施未受戒者
- 若不儲畜僧伽梨衣、鉢盂、錫杖
- 若為身命須田作者，不求淨水及陸稼處
- 為於身命，若作市易斗秤賣物，一說價已，不得前却捨賤趣貴；斗秤量物任前平用，如其不平，應語令平
- 若於非處、非時行欲
- 商估販賣不輸官稅，盜棄去者
- 若犯國制
- 若得新穀、果苽、菜茹，不先奉獻供養三寶，先自受者
- 僧若不聽說法、讚歎，輒自作者
- 道路若在諸比丘前、沙彌前行
- 僧中賦食，若偏為師選擇美好，過分與之
- 若養蠶者
- 行路之時遇見病者，不住瞻視，為作方便，付囑所在而捨去者
- Is unable to support his parents and teachers — he incurs an offense of remorse: unconfessed, it leads to downfall; a defiled deed, yet not one that destroys the precept.
- Indulges in the pleasure of drinking wine — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Out of aversion to filth, fails to tend to the sick and suffering — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Seeing a beggar, fails to share with him according to what is fitting, however little, and sends him away empty-handed — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Seeing a bhikṣu, bhikṣuṇī, elder, or a senior upāsaka or upāsikā, fails to rise, greet, bow to, or ask after them — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Seeing a bhikṣu, bhikṣuṇī, upāsaka, or upāsikā who has broken their precepts, gives rise to arrogance, saying, "I am better than they; they are not my equal" — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Is unable, six days in every month, to receive and uphold the eight precepts and make offerings to the Three Jewels — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- When the Dharma is being expounded within forty li, fails to go and listen — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Makes use of bedding or a seat belonging to the sangha of the ten directions — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Suspecting that water contains living creatures, drinks it anyway — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Travels alone, without a companion, through dangerous and difficult places — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Lodges alone overnight at a convent of bhikṣuṇīs — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- For the sake of wealth or livelihood, strikes or scolds his servants, attendants, or other people — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Gives leftover food to a bhikṣu, bhikṣuṇī, upāsaka, or upāsikā — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Keeps a cat — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Keeps elephants, horses, cattle, sheep, camels, donkeys, or any other animal, without formally consigning ownership of them to one who has not received the precepts — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Fails to keep in readiness a great robe, a begging bowl, and a monk's staff, to offer a renunciant in need — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- When farming is necessary for his livelihood, fails to seek out clean water and dry, arable land — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- When trading in the marketplace for his livelihood, having once stated a price, changes it, abandoning the lower price for a higher one; or, in measuring goods by scale or bushel, fails to use it fairly when it is unfair, and does not correct it when told — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Engages in sexual relations at an improper place or an improper time, even with his own spouse — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Trades as a merchant without paying the government's due tax, and slips away to evade it — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Violates the laws of the land — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- On obtaining a new harvest of grain, fruit, melons, or vegetables, eats of it himself before first offering it to the Three Jewels — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Expounds the Dharma or offers praise without the Sangha's leave to do so — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Walks ahead of bhikṣus or novices on the road — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- When food is distributed within the Sangha, favors his own teacher by picking out the finest portions and giving him more than his share — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Raises silkworms — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
- Meeting a sick person along the road, fails to stop and attend to him, arrange some remedy, and see him entrusted to someone's care, before going on his way — likewise an offense of remorse, unconfessed leading to downfall; defiled, yet not destructive of the precept.
Taixu explains that these twenty-eight are genuinely lesser offenses — lapses of inattention rather than deliberate violation. Unlike the six heavy precepts, breaking one does not destroy the underlying precept-substance; it can be confessed and repaired, though left unconfessed it will still draw one toward an unhappy rebirth. He organizes the list around three underlying motives: repaying kindness, honoring virtue, and relieving suffering — noting that the very first item, supporting one's parents and teachers, exemplifies repaying kindness, while the very last, stopping to help a stranger found sick on the road, exemplifies relieving suffering, so the list is bookended by two of its own three organizing values.
He remarks that this chapter circulated separately as a standalone text in China, and that the great Ming-dynasty master Ouyi wrote his own commentary on it specifically — evidence, he suggests, that in practice most Chinese Buddhists historically received only the ordinary five precepts and never formally undertook this fuller lay-bodhisattva rule, even though its instructions cover the whole texture of daily life so concretely that anyone actually living by them would find real peace of mind in the doing. He also glosses a few details: monastery bedding belongs to "the permanent assembly of the ten directions" and is not meant for a layperson's private use; the great robe, bowl, and staff are a fully ordained monk's ceremonial equipment, kept in reserve at home so a wandering renunciant can always be properly provided for; and the rule against "improper time or place" is addressed to relations within marriage itself, not to outside affairs already covered under sexual misconduct proper.
15. Milestone: Closing — Why the Lay Bodhisattva's Path Is the Harder One
The chapter closes where it began: not with a warning, but with real praise for anyone who actually manages to keep this vow — and a plain admission of exactly how difficult that keeping is.
善男子！若優婆塞至心能受持如是戒，是人名為優婆塞中分陀利花，優婆塞中微妙上香，優婆塞中清淨蓮花，優婆塞中真實珍寶，優婆塞中丈夫之人！
"Good son, if an upāsaka is able to receive and uphold these precepts with a sincere heart, such a person is called, among upāsakas, a white lotus; among upāsakas, a subtle and supreme fragrance; among upāsakas, a pure lotus flower; among upāsakas, a true and genuine jewel; among upāsakas, a true man!"
善男子！如佛所說菩薩二種：一者、在家，二者、出家。出家菩薩名為比丘，在家菩薩名優婆塞。出家菩薩持出家戒，是不為難；在家菩薩持在家戒，是乃為難。何以故？在家之人多惡因緣所纏繞故。
"Good son, as the Buddha has taught, there are two kinds of bodhisattva: the lay bodhisattva and the renunciant bodhisattva. A renunciant bodhisattva is called a bhikṣu; a lay bodhisattva is called an upāsaka. For a renunciant bodhisattva to keep the renunciant's precepts is not difficult; for a lay bodhisattva to keep the lay precepts — this is truly difficult. Why is this? Because a person living at home is bound about by so many evil conditions."
Taixu glosses the flower imagery precisely: "puṇḍarīka," rendered here as the white lotus, denotes specifically the white variety, prized in Indian imagery as the rarest and most excellent lotus, while "pure lotus" in the following line is meant more generally, covering lotuses of every color. He then turns the chapter's final line into something closer to social observation than doctrine: in his own time, he notes, Chinese monastics often lived in circumstances not so different from laypeople — monasteries held property, managed finances, and even found themselves in litigation, much as a household does — with only the entanglements of a spouse and children genuinely absent. He contrasts this with renunciants in Siam and Burma, who in his day still lived by alms-begging in the older manner, closer to the simplicity the sutra seems to have in mind when it calls the renunciant's precepts "not difficult."
His implicit point, closing out the chapter: the sutra's final compliment to the lay bodhisattva is not mere consolation for those who cannot ordain — it is a genuine acknowledgment that remaining fully entangled in family, wealth, and worldly obligation while still keeping this precept is, if anything, the harder accomplishment.