Are bhikkhus allowed to eat food that was cooked inside the monastery nor cooked by themselves?

Q & A
#1

https://suttacentral.net/pli-tv-kd6/en/brahmali?layout=plain&reference=none&notes=asterisk&highlight=false&script=latin

“Those things I allowed you when there was a shortage of food, the crops were meager, and it was hard to get by on alms, I prohibit from today onward.

You shouldn’t eat what’s been stored indoors in a monastery, what’s been cooked indoors in a monastery, what’s been cooked by yourselves, or what’s been received after picking it up. If you do, you commit an offense of wrong conduct.

If you have finished your meal and refused an invitation to eat more, you shouldn’t eat non-leftovers that have been brought out, that have been received before the meal, or that have come from the forest or a lotus pond. If you do, you should be dealt with according to the rule.” That is, bhikkhu-pācittiya 35.

At that time people from the country loaded much salt, oil, rice, and fresh food onto carts, brought them to outside the monastery gateway, and waited for their turn to cook a meal. Just then a storm was approaching. Those people went to Venerable Ānanda and told him what was happening, adding, “What should we do now?” Ānanda told the Buddha, who said, “Well then, Ānanda, the Sangha should designate a building at the edge of the monastery as a food-storage area and then store the food there—whether a dwelling, a stilt house, or a cave. “Stilt house” combines aḍḍhayoga, pāsāda, and hammiya in one word. See comment at Kd 1:77.1.13 for an explanation.And it should be done like this. A competent and capable monk should inform the Sangha:

‘Please, Venerables, I ask the Sangha to listen. If it seems appropriate to the Sangha, the Sangha should designate such-and-such a dwelling as a food-storage area. This is the motion.

Please, Venerables, I ask the Sangha to listen. The Sangha designates such-and-such a dwelling as a food-storage area. Any monk who approves of designating such-and-such a dwelling as a food-storage area should remain silent. Any monk who doesn’t approve should speak up.

The Sangha has designated such-and-such a dwelling as a food-storage area. The Sangha approves and is therefore silent. I will remember it thus.’”

Soon afterwards people used the designated food-storage area for various purposes: to cook rice porridge and rice, to prepare curries, to chop meat, and to split firewood. Getting up early in the morning, the Buddha heard loud noises, like the cawing of crows. He asked Venerable Ānanda what was going on, and Ānanda told him. Soon afterwards the Buddha gave a teaching and addressed the monks:

“You should not use a designated food-storage area. If you do, you commit an offense of wrong conduct. I allow three places as food-storage areas: a building made according to a proclamation, a place where cows rest, and a place given for the purpose by a householder.”

Soon afterwards Venerable Yasoja was sick. People brought him tonics and the monks stored them outside. Vermin ate them and thieves stole them.

“I allow you to use a designated food-storage area. I allow four places as food-storage areas: a building made according to a proclamation, a cow stall, a building given for the purpose by a householder, and a building designated by the Sangha.”

So

the Sangha should designate a building at the edge of the monastery as a food-storage area and then store the food there—whether a dwelling, a stilt house, or a cave.

Does this mean that it is allowable to store food inside the monastery " (at the edge of the monastery)?

But still not allowable to cook said food inside the monastery nor cook food yourself?

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#2

“Food stored in a special building” is a separate allowance arising from a different occasion (other than the famine). That building has to logically be near where the monks live, but not inside their individual dwellings.

And as long as there were no more famines, monks would not be allowed to cook or do anything else that was allowed during those times.

Specifically with regards to the famine allowances, the Buddha rescinded them once the famine ended, because those rules/allowances are for times of scarcity only.

Based on the Buddha’s statement “I prohibit from today onward.”, it is possible to argue that he forbids famine allowances even if there is another famine. There is also a possibility of arguing that those allowances are only allowed during times of famine and not during times of plenty.

In my opinion, the latter is the most likely explanation. This is because it seems strange for the Buddha to suggest that monks should just starve if another famine occurs, when he previously allowed certain things for such a situation

There is no moral issue here, of course. Such allowances and non-allowances are minor rules, which were seen, by the Buddha himself, as not significant or pertaining to the core of the holy life.

#3

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#4

It is not allowed for bhikkhus to store food.
See the sannidhikara pacittiya.
https://suttacentral.net/pli-tv-bu-vb-pc38/en/brahmali?layout=plain&reference=none&notes=asterisk&highlight=false&script=latin

It is not allowed for bhikkhus to cook, it is a dukkata.

It is allowed for a place for food storage to be designated by the sangha for the convenience of the bhikkhus’ lay supporters, as per the text cited.

The food therein would be managed by a monastery lay attendant or supporter. It would still need to be cooked and offered by lay supporters. There’s nothing which says that a lay supporter can’t cook in the monastery.

If you have a look at the text cited closely, the temporary prohibition on the sangha designating a food storage area was in response to the noise caused by lay cooking etc, there was no prohibition on lay cooking itself.

The kitchen systems of large vinaya-based groups within the forest tradition will normally already be vinaya observant- if you have already visited one of such places, it might help to contextualise the text.

Hope that helps!

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#5

Thank you to FlyingSolo and Ven. Suvira for taking the time and effort to reply to my post.

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#6

It is also important to note, apart what has been said earlier by others here, that only dwellings belonging to the bhikkhu-saṅgha or individual bhikkhus would make for an offense when food is stored or cooked therein (called akappiyakuṭis) by non-ordained people to be consumed by bhikkhus. So, it may be worth checking out to whom the monastery or the individual buildings on its precinct belong.

1 Like
#7

Thank you ven. A.bhikkhu for replying to this topic of mine