3.6.5

Lesson 3.6.5 Siṅgālasuttaṃ, Part One – The Buddha’s Advice to Laypeople

The Siṅgālasutta, found in the Dīghanikāyo, offers a two-part guide for laypeople: it outlines harmful activities to be avoided (vārittaṃ) and wholesome activities to be actively pursued (cārittaṃ). This sutta, often called the “Vinaya of the householder”, places special emphasis on the precept of abstaining from drugs (surāmerayamajjapamādaṭṭhānā veramaṇī). The text promotes a mindset of friendship, empathy, and kindness that would benefit any society. The enduring relevance of its teachings is highlighted by Rhys Davis's century-old observation: ‘Happy would have been the village or the clan on the banks of the Ganges, where the people were full of the kindly spirit and friendly feeling, the noble spirit of justice which breathes through these naïve and simple sayings. Not less happy would be the village, or the family on the banks of the Thames to-day, of which this could be said.’. How true are these words still for the world of today, where irreverence towards fellow beings and the environment alike is based on rude materialism, predaceousness and religious radicalism that creates a spirit of fear, anxiety and insecurity.