ISSN 1076-9005
Volume 24, 2017
Guṇaprabha on Monastic
Authority and Authoritative Doctrine
Paul Nietupski
John Carroll University
This essay is
based on sūtras 70–102 in Guṇaprabha’s seventh century Vinayasūtra,
his Autocommentary,
and the associated sections in all Indian and Tibetan commentaries on
the Vinayasūtra.
In this excerpt Guṇaprabha and the commentators include remarks on
the requirements for monastic community authority and references to
relevant authoritative doctrines. The guidelines for monastic
authority include applications of procedures in medieval Indian
monastic life, including prerequisites and exceptions in the
ordination process. The references to authoritative doctrine in Guṇaprabha’s
and the commentators’ works include comments on the interface of
ethics, concentration, and wisdom, and how ethical guidelines are
based on the correct understanding of epistemological value as
presented in canonical treatises on doctrine.
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