Chapter 1: Origin and Outline of Kesa
Before any discussion of the proper kesa, I should clarify that the kesa I’m going to talk about is the robe that was handed down directly from Shakyamuni Buddha, the nyoho-e, which is made in accordance with the rules of the Vinaya.
It is regrettable that the kesa commonly used today is so different from the nyoho-e; the very concept of the kesa has changed completely.
But why? It might be in part that clothing in general changes over time, in any society. Of course, the kesa hasn’t changed as often or as much as secular clothes; still, 2500 years is a long time, and there have been changes. These changes were especially pronounced in China and Japan: whereas in India the kesa was used as practical daily clothes, in China and Japan people wore the kesa over the kimono or koromo, and thus the kesa became a mere part of a Buddhist priest’s uniform rather than practical clothing. Consequently, it is likely that the changes to the kesa over time were made with the rather arbitrary intention of making it more convenient, beautiful, or solemn. We can conclude, therefore, that the kesa changed because the idea of the kesa came to be misunderstood.
The kesa is indeed a garment, but it is a garment of the Buddha—it is “Buddha’s robe.” It should not be viewed not as mere clothing but rather as “Buddha’s body” and “Buddha’s mind.” In other words, it is buddhadharma itself. The kesa, therefore, should not be changed out of expedient reasons or secular views.
It is important to talk about the proper kesa. If we deviate from the true faith for the kesa, there will be no kesa; equally, if we deviate from the true kesa, we cannot have true faith in it.
We should consider the story of how Shakyamuni Buddha established the kesa. We can only speculate its origin, however, because there is no record of the specific dates either in the sutras or in the vinaya texts. Nor do we have any true chronological record of how the kesa was established.
Even so, it is clear that at the beginning of Buddhism, in the years following Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment, he and his disciples did not wear a kesa designated specifically for Buddhist monks.
So what kind of clothing did they wear? That is not clear—nor is it clear what non-Buddhist spiritual practitioners wore. According to the Vinaya, there were certain non-Buddhists who deliberately wore eccentric clothes such as those made of leaves, animal skin, or human hair, to accentuate their oddness. In all likelihood, there were also other kinds of non-Buddhists who dressed not as oddly, yet still a little differently from laypeople. Supposing that was the case, it is likely that Shakyamuni Buddha also wore similar kind of clothes when he first went out of his palace and entered the forest as an ascetic, when he realized enlightenment under the Bodhi tree, and when he started to teach in Deer Park. Chances are, his first disciples also wore such clothes, for as I will discuss later, non-Buddhists were often mistaken for the Buddha’s disciples. For this reason, the kesa was developed as a garment specifically for Buddhist monks.
As an aside, we can easily imagine that the basic form and the style of the garments they wore in India in those days must have been very similar to what ordinary people wear in India today—that is, the style of clothing in which you wrap your body with a big rectangular piece of fabric, exposing the right shoulder. Western-style clothing, which was developed from wearing animal skins, is made to fit to the curves of the body, as in the case of pants and jackets. Eastern clothing, however originated from wearing a solid piece of cotton fabric that adapted to one’s body.
The basic form and style of Indian clothes probably haven’t changed from olden times. So it was only natural that the kesa, as a special garment for Buddha’s disciples, is a reflection of those origins.
External Conditions
Sabbatthavada Vinaya (Ten-Reciting Vinaya) 5
King Bimbisara rode on an elephant palanquin and went out of the Rajagaha Palace in the morning. He saw a monk on the road and took off the palanquin to greet the Buddha, only to find the monk was non-Buddhist. Therefore the king implored the Buddha to create an easily identifiable robe different from those of non-Buddhists.
Mahasanghika Vinaya 6
The Buddha was staying at Rajagaha Palace, where he gave a sermon as written above. At that time all the bhikkhus (the Buddha’s disciples) were wearing uncut (one whole) woolen fabric, as were the non-Buddhists. Once, a lay Buddhist wanted to pay respect to a bhikkhu only to find out that it was actually not a bhikkhu. He felt embarrassed to learn that the monk was a non-Buddhist after finishing hearing the mantra.
These two passages from the Vinaya reveal the external circumstances behind the establishment of the kesa. That is, there was a necessity for clothing that differentiated between laypeople and ascetics. In what ways, then, was the kesa made distinct from the ordinary clothing of the time? The differences are, as stated in the above Mahasanghika Vinaya, the sewing method, called setsuru (截縷), and the color regulations, called zenshiki (染色).
Setsuru means to cut one large piece of fabric into small pieces and then sew the pieces back together. Zenshiki means to dye fabric with colors appropriate for the kesa, avoiding the colors that are used for laypeople’s clothing (that is, primary colors and white). This is fundamentally different from some ascetics’ practice of wearing peculiar clothes with the clear goal of drawing people’s attention.
The establishment of the basic regulations of Buddha’s disciples’ kesa has a very significant meaning in the history of Buddhism: it marked the birth of Buddhists’ emblem, both as a source of pride and as a practical solution.
Internal Conditions
“Internal conditions” are the attitude of a disciple of Buddha in everyday life. If Buddha’s disciples always adopt a humble attitude, then that attitude should naturally be reflected in the clothes they wear as a Buddhist monk. But we tend to be seduced by the superficial beauty of colors, materials, and shapes, and we mistakenly seek them out. In the secular world, such things are regarded as normal—people always follow the trends of fashion. Seeking something beautiful is not wrong in itself, but doing so can lead to jealousy, theft, contempt, and arrogance. Therefore, in order to prevent even smallest offense from arising, a Buddhist monk’s garment requires the most meticulous considerations.
It is likely that these two sets of circumstances—external and internal)—intertwined with each other, made it necessary for the kesa to emerge.
Form
The word setsuru means “to make a rectangular-shaped garment by sewing cut pieces together.” The origin of the setsuru-method kesa is recorded in the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya: 7
At that time, World Honored One went out of the Palace in Rajagaha and traveled in the South. He saw rice fields along the way, which looked very well organized, with footpaths neatly dividing the fields into square patches.
He asked Ananda, “Did you see the rice fields?”
Ananda answered, “Yes I did, World Honored One.”
The Buddha asked Ananda, “Can you make a robe like these rice fields for our monks?” and Ananda said he could. The Buddha then told Ananda to teach all the monks.
Ananda went back to Rajagaha and taught the monks as follows: “This is the long panel, this is the short panel, this is the yō (葉), this is the first stitch line, this is the second stitch line, and this is the middle stitch line. This jōyō (条葉)is facing both directions.”
The Buddha finished his trip to the South and went back to Rajagaha. He found that many monks had made the cut-up robes, and he told the assembly; “Ananda is the brightest, with great wisdom. I told him my idea briefly and he understood the meaning very well.”
“All the past buddhas wore the kesa and made the kesa as I do. All the future Buddhas, and the future Buddha’s disciples, will make the kesa in the same way as I do, by cutting the fabric to make the robe. [The kesa] cannot be stolen by a thief 8. From now on, all the monks are allowed to make the cut-up antarvasa robe 9, the uttarasamga robe 10 and the samghati robe.” 11
Later in history, borders (縁 en) were added on the four sides to make a frame, small square pieces of fabric (角帖 kakuchō) were attached to the four corners of the frame for durability, and tie strings (巾句紐 kōchū) were added so the kesa could be securely attached to one’s body. This is how the form of the kesa gradually developed.
People are less likely to be attracted to a piece of fabric once it is cut into small pieces. That way, it is no longer as valuable as a decorative material; you don’t have to worry about it being stolen. For that reason, the Buddha’s disciples could wear the kesa with a peaceful mind.
The kesa is venerated as the “Buddha’s robe” not simply because the fabric is cut, but also because the construction is a metaphor for cutting human mental distortions (思惑 shiwaku).
Colors
In Shakyamuni Buddha’s time, laypeople commonly wore a large piece of white fabric as clothing, so terms such as “white robe” or “white robe household” often appear in various sutras.
If the kesa serves only to distinguish Buddhist monks from laypeople, then technically, it could be any color other than white. However, one must avoid flashy colors that disturb the mind with feelings of envy and conceit. Thus, we have so-called “kesa colors.”
Size
Because the kesa is a practical garment worn daily by Buddhist monks, it must be an appropriate size.
In the Vinaya, it is written that the minimum size of the kesa is “just enough to cover the naval and both knees.” However, this minimum size was allowed only in under special circumstances. Regarding the maximum size, it is simply said that you can’t decorate yourself with a lot of fabric, as kings and aristocrats do.
In short, an appropriately sized kesa is one that fits well, is easy to wear, and practical for daily use.
Materials
We tend to be distracted by a fabric’s value, which causes us to unwittingly make judgments. However, a fabric’s “quality” is only a matter of different materials; we should not judge whether it is good or bad. We should be careful, therefore, not to disturb our mind and and to choose the fabric with a humble attitude. Many regulations in the Vinaya speak to this issue.
How to sew
The kesa has to be sewn using a backstitch (却刺縫 kyakushinui). According to the Vinaya, a non-Buddhist practitioner once embarrassed a Buddhist monk in public by unthreading his kesa, because it was sewn using only straight stitches. It is said that since then, the backstitch became the norm. The backstitch takes a long time to sew, but it makes the kesa very sturdy.
How to Assemble the Kesa
There are a number of ways to assemble the cut fabric. The basic form of the kesa is called kassetsu-e (which follows the setsuru style); variations are called chōyō-e (帖葉衣 or 揲葉衣zecchō-e) and kusshō-e (屈襵衣).
The five-panel robe, also called the antarvasa robe, is worn directly over one’s body, and therefore gets soiled and worn out easily. For this reason, one whole piece of rectangular fabric, called a man-ne, is allowed to be used underneath the antarvasa. The man-ne has a frame as well as ties, or ko-chu, the same as other robes.
There is another kesa called a kusshō-e, which is also made without cutting fabric but is folded to make pleats for the part of yō. 12 The kusshō-e is only allowed for the five-panel robe.
In the case there is not enough fabric to make kassetsu-e, there is another style, chōyō-e, which is a man-ne with cloth appliquéd over it to create vertical and horizontal yō. The chōyō-e is allowed for all three robes.
There are also multiple ways in which to sew the yō. The basic form is called kaiyō, or open-yō, in which the bottom of yō is left open, without stitches. Other varieties are the horse tooth stitch, bird foot stitch, and hen-yō-hen stitch.
These latter three styles seem to have been created to fortify the yō while keeping the open-yō structure. It appears they have been used from the time of creation of the kesa.
In contrast, shiyō, or closed-yō (in which both the upper and bottom part of the yō are stitched) came about later in history. There is no mention of shiyō in early Vinaya texts; however, people who relied on the Mulasarvastivada Vinaya 13 (new translation) 14 used shiyō exclusively.
Further, Vinaya texts do not use the terms kaiyō or shiyō. We can speculate that the two terms were created later, when the shiyō style started to be used, in order to distinguish the two different approaches.
The number of kesa to use
San-ne (of san-ne ippatsu) means “three robes.” It means that Buddha’s disciples have to carry and care for three kinds of kesa: the antarvasa (five-panel robe), the uttarasamga (seven-panel robe) and the samghati (nine-to-twenty-five-panel robe).
This number three is both the minimum and the maximum number of robes a Buddhist monk can own.
In the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya, there is the following illustration:
Once, the World Honored One was meditating outside on the ground, wearing a robe. During the middle of the night he felt cold, so he wore a second robe. Later in the night, he felt colder, so he put on the third robe. At that time the World Honored One had a thought: in the future, if good monks feel cold, they are allowed to keep three robes. But they cannot keep more than three.
According to this, you can withstand even severe cold if you have three robes. This number three was chosen as the minimum number because of the climate in India. But it is also relevant to how the robes are used.
Usage
In our daily lives, we categorize clothes according to their usage. For example, we use work clothes, everyday clothes, and clothes for special occasions.
Even for Buddha’s disciples, who lead a simple life, etiquette requires at least three robes for different occasions. We can understand the three robes as work clothes (antarvasa), everyday clothes (uttarasamga), and clothes for special occasions (samghati). These three robes are distinguished by the number of panels they contain.
Funzo-e
I have so far given the outline of the kesa, which can be summarized in three points: setsuru (sewing method), zenshiki (color regulations), and kyakushi (backstitch).
When the concept of “the clothes which will never be the cause of any mistakes” was taken to its depths, the concrete result was the funzō-e (糞掃衣). Therefore, it can be said that the funzō-e is the highest expression of the virtue of the kesa; it is unsurpassable.
In the Shobogenzo fascicle “Virtue of the Kesa” (Kesa Kudoku), Dogen Zenji wrote, “The purest material for the robe is funzō (excrement-cleaning rags).” The virtue is similarly upheld in many sutras, Vinaya texts, and commentaries of both Mahayana and foundational Buddhism.
What, then, is the funzō-e? Funzō refers to rags that have been discarded. In Vinaya texts there is a list of the “ten kinds of funzō,” including fabric chewed by mice, fabric that has been burnt, fabric soiled by the sick, and fabric used to wrap a dead body. 15 But it is not limited to just those ten kinds.
To make a funzō-e, you collect rags that are not valued by people, cut out the parts that can be used, wash them thoroughly, then sew them together to make the kesa. A kesa made with discarded, “impure” materials becomes the most valued kesa in the buddhadharma.
This must be the ultimate “becoming the fabric of Buddha,” as Sawaki Roshi described. As it is said, “Do not see it through ordinary eyes, nor think of it with human sentiments.” Wearing a kesa of such significance all the time has an immeasurable effect on the world around you. Doing so also unknowingly deepens your awareness as a Buddha’s disciple.
However, you should take care never to become attached to the idea of funzō. The slightest attachment to such an idea would defile even the unsurpassable kesa and desecrate (冒涜, bōtoku) the buddhadharma.
It is regrettable that the kesa commonly used today is so different from the nyoho-e; the very concept of the kesa has changed completely.
But why? It might be in part that clothing in general changes over time, in any society. Of course, the kesa hasn’t changed as often or as much as secular clothes; still, 2500 years is a long time, and there have been changes. These changes were especially pronounced in China and Japan: whereas in India the kesa was used as practical daily clothes, in China and Japan people wore the kesa over the kimono or koromo, and thus the kesa became a mere part of a Buddhist priest’s uniform rather than practical clothing. Consequently, it is likely that the changes to the kesa over time were made with the rather arbitrary intention of making it more convenient, beautiful, or solemn. We can conclude, therefore, that the kesa changed because the idea of the kesa came to be misunderstood.
The kesa is indeed a garment, but it is a garment of the Buddha—it is “Buddha’s robe.” It should not be viewed not as mere clothing but rather as “Buddha’s body” and “Buddha’s mind.” In other words, it is buddhadharma itself. The kesa, therefore, should not be changed out of expedient reasons or secular views.
It is important to talk about the proper kesa. If we deviate from the true faith for the kesa, there will be no kesa; equally, if we deviate from the true kesa, we cannot have true faith in it.
We should consider the story of how Shakyamuni Buddha established the kesa. We can only speculate its origin, however, because there is no record of the specific dates either in the sutras or in the vinaya texts. Nor do we have any true chronological record of how the kesa was established.
Even so, it is clear that at the beginning of Buddhism, in the years following Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment, he and his disciples did not wear a kesa designated specifically for Buddhist monks.
So what kind of clothing did they wear? That is not clear—nor is it clear what non-Buddhist spiritual practitioners wore. According to the Vinaya, there were certain non-Buddhists who deliberately wore eccentric clothes such as those made of leaves, animal skin, or human hair, to accentuate their oddness. In all likelihood, there were also other kinds of non-Buddhists who dressed not as oddly, yet still a little differently from laypeople. Supposing that was the case, it is likely that Shakyamuni Buddha also wore similar kind of clothes when he first went out of his palace and entered the forest as an ascetic, when he realized enlightenment under the Bodhi tree, and when he started to teach in Deer Park. Chances are, his first disciples also wore such clothes, for as I will discuss later, non-Buddhists were often mistaken for the Buddha’s disciples. For this reason, the kesa was developed as a garment specifically for Buddhist monks.
As an aside, we can easily imagine that the basic form and the style of the garments they wore in India in those days must have been very similar to what ordinary people wear in India today—that is, the style of clothing in which you wrap your body with a big rectangular piece of fabric, exposing the right shoulder. Western-style clothing, which was developed from wearing animal skins, is made to fit to the curves of the body, as in the case of pants and jackets. Eastern clothing, however originated from wearing a solid piece of cotton fabric that adapted to one’s body.
The basic form and style of Indian clothes probably haven’t changed from olden times. So it was only natural that the kesa, as a special garment for Buddha’s disciples, is a reflection of those origins.
External Conditions
Sabbatthavada Vinaya (Ten-Reciting Vinaya) 5
King Bimbisara rode on an elephant palanquin and went out of the Rajagaha Palace in the morning. He saw a monk on the road and took off the palanquin to greet the Buddha, only to find the monk was non-Buddhist. Therefore the king implored the Buddha to create an easily identifiable robe different from those of non-Buddhists.
Mahasanghika Vinaya 6
The Buddha was staying at Rajagaha Palace, where he gave a sermon as written above. At that time all the bhikkhus (the Buddha’s disciples) were wearing uncut (one whole) woolen fabric, as were the non-Buddhists. Once, a lay Buddhist wanted to pay respect to a bhikkhu only to find out that it was actually not a bhikkhu. He felt embarrassed to learn that the monk was a non-Buddhist after finishing hearing the mantra.
These two passages from the Vinaya reveal the external circumstances behind the establishment of the kesa. That is, there was a necessity for clothing that differentiated between laypeople and ascetics. In what ways, then, was the kesa made distinct from the ordinary clothing of the time? The differences are, as stated in the above Mahasanghika Vinaya, the sewing method, called setsuru (截縷), and the color regulations, called zenshiki (染色).
Setsuru means to cut one large piece of fabric into small pieces and then sew the pieces back together. Zenshiki means to dye fabric with colors appropriate for the kesa, avoiding the colors that are used for laypeople’s clothing (that is, primary colors and white). This is fundamentally different from some ascetics’ practice of wearing peculiar clothes with the clear goal of drawing people’s attention.
The establishment of the basic regulations of Buddha’s disciples’ kesa has a very significant meaning in the history of Buddhism: it marked the birth of Buddhists’ emblem, both as a source of pride and as a practical solution.
Internal Conditions
“Internal conditions” are the attitude of a disciple of Buddha in everyday life. If Buddha’s disciples always adopt a humble attitude, then that attitude should naturally be reflected in the clothes they wear as a Buddhist monk. But we tend to be seduced by the superficial beauty of colors, materials, and shapes, and we mistakenly seek them out. In the secular world, such things are regarded as normal—people always follow the trends of fashion. Seeking something beautiful is not wrong in itself, but doing so can lead to jealousy, theft, contempt, and arrogance. Therefore, in order to prevent even smallest offense from arising, a Buddhist monk’s garment requires the most meticulous considerations.
It is likely that these two sets of circumstances—external and internal)—intertwined with each other, made it necessary for the kesa to emerge.
Form
The word setsuru means “to make a rectangular-shaped garment by sewing cut pieces together.” The origin of the setsuru-method kesa is recorded in the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya: 7
At that time, World Honored One went out of the Palace in Rajagaha and traveled in the South. He saw rice fields along the way, which looked very well organized, with footpaths neatly dividing the fields into square patches.
He asked Ananda, “Did you see the rice fields?”
Ananda answered, “Yes I did, World Honored One.”
The Buddha asked Ananda, “Can you make a robe like these rice fields for our monks?” and Ananda said he could. The Buddha then told Ananda to teach all the monks.
Ananda went back to Rajagaha and taught the monks as follows: “This is the long panel, this is the short panel, this is the yō (葉), this is the first stitch line, this is the second stitch line, and this is the middle stitch line. This jōyō (条葉)is facing both directions.”
The Buddha finished his trip to the South and went back to Rajagaha. He found that many monks had made the cut-up robes, and he told the assembly; “Ananda is the brightest, with great wisdom. I told him my idea briefly and he understood the meaning very well.”
“All the past buddhas wore the kesa and made the kesa as I do. All the future Buddhas, and the future Buddha’s disciples, will make the kesa in the same way as I do, by cutting the fabric to make the robe. [The kesa] cannot be stolen by a thief 8. From now on, all the monks are allowed to make the cut-up antarvasa robe 9, the uttarasamga robe 10 and the samghati robe.” 11
Later in history, borders (縁 en) were added on the four sides to make a frame, small square pieces of fabric (角帖 kakuchō) were attached to the four corners of the frame for durability, and tie strings (巾句紐 kōchū) were added so the kesa could be securely attached to one’s body. This is how the form of the kesa gradually developed.
People are less likely to be attracted to a piece of fabric once it is cut into small pieces. That way, it is no longer as valuable as a decorative material; you don’t have to worry about it being stolen. For that reason, the Buddha’s disciples could wear the kesa with a peaceful mind.
The kesa is venerated as the “Buddha’s robe” not simply because the fabric is cut, but also because the construction is a metaphor for cutting human mental distortions (思惑 shiwaku).
Colors
In Shakyamuni Buddha’s time, laypeople commonly wore a large piece of white fabric as clothing, so terms such as “white robe” or “white robe household” often appear in various sutras.
If the kesa serves only to distinguish Buddhist monks from laypeople, then technically, it could be any color other than white. However, one must avoid flashy colors that disturb the mind with feelings of envy and conceit. Thus, we have so-called “kesa colors.”
Size
Because the kesa is a practical garment worn daily by Buddhist monks, it must be an appropriate size.
In the Vinaya, it is written that the minimum size of the kesa is “just enough to cover the naval and both knees.” However, this minimum size was allowed only in under special circumstances. Regarding the maximum size, it is simply said that you can’t decorate yourself with a lot of fabric, as kings and aristocrats do.
In short, an appropriately sized kesa is one that fits well, is easy to wear, and practical for daily use.
Materials
We tend to be distracted by a fabric’s value, which causes us to unwittingly make judgments. However, a fabric’s “quality” is only a matter of different materials; we should not judge whether it is good or bad. We should be careful, therefore, not to disturb our mind and and to choose the fabric with a humble attitude. Many regulations in the Vinaya speak to this issue.
How to sew
The kesa has to be sewn using a backstitch (却刺縫 kyakushinui). According to the Vinaya, a non-Buddhist practitioner once embarrassed a Buddhist monk in public by unthreading his kesa, because it was sewn using only straight stitches. It is said that since then, the backstitch became the norm. The backstitch takes a long time to sew, but it makes the kesa very sturdy.
How to Assemble the Kesa
There are a number of ways to assemble the cut fabric. The basic form of the kesa is called kassetsu-e (which follows the setsuru style); variations are called chōyō-e (帖葉衣 or 揲葉衣zecchō-e) and kusshō-e (屈襵衣).
The five-panel robe, also called the antarvasa robe, is worn directly over one’s body, and therefore gets soiled and worn out easily. For this reason, one whole piece of rectangular fabric, called a man-ne, is allowed to be used underneath the antarvasa. The man-ne has a frame as well as ties, or ko-chu, the same as other robes.
There is another kesa called a kusshō-e, which is also made without cutting fabric but is folded to make pleats for the part of yō. 12 The kusshō-e is only allowed for the five-panel robe.
In the case there is not enough fabric to make kassetsu-e, there is another style, chōyō-e, which is a man-ne with cloth appliquéd over it to create vertical and horizontal yō. The chōyō-e is allowed for all three robes.
There are also multiple ways in which to sew the yō. The basic form is called kaiyō, or open-yō, in which the bottom of yō is left open, without stitches. Other varieties are the horse tooth stitch, bird foot stitch, and hen-yō-hen stitch.
These latter three styles seem to have been created to fortify the yō while keeping the open-yō structure. It appears they have been used from the time of creation of the kesa.
In contrast, shiyō, or closed-yō (in which both the upper and bottom part of the yō are stitched) came about later in history. There is no mention of shiyō in early Vinaya texts; however, people who relied on the Mulasarvastivada Vinaya 13 (new translation) 14 used shiyō exclusively.
Further, Vinaya texts do not use the terms kaiyō or shiyō. We can speculate that the two terms were created later, when the shiyō style started to be used, in order to distinguish the two different approaches.
The number of kesa to use
San-ne (of san-ne ippatsu) means “three robes.” It means that Buddha’s disciples have to carry and care for three kinds of kesa: the antarvasa (five-panel robe), the uttarasamga (seven-panel robe) and the samghati (nine-to-twenty-five-panel robe).
This number three is both the minimum and the maximum number of robes a Buddhist monk can own.
In the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya, there is the following illustration:
Once, the World Honored One was meditating outside on the ground, wearing a robe. During the middle of the night he felt cold, so he wore a second robe. Later in the night, he felt colder, so he put on the third robe. At that time the World Honored One had a thought: in the future, if good monks feel cold, they are allowed to keep three robes. But they cannot keep more than three.
According to this, you can withstand even severe cold if you have three robes. This number three was chosen as the minimum number because of the climate in India. But it is also relevant to how the robes are used.
Usage
In our daily lives, we categorize clothes according to their usage. For example, we use work clothes, everyday clothes, and clothes for special occasions.
Even for Buddha’s disciples, who lead a simple life, etiquette requires at least three robes for different occasions. We can understand the three robes as work clothes (antarvasa), everyday clothes (uttarasamga), and clothes for special occasions (samghati). These three robes are distinguished by the number of panels they contain.
Funzo-e
I have so far given the outline of the kesa, which can be summarized in three points: setsuru (sewing method), zenshiki (color regulations), and kyakushi (backstitch).
When the concept of “the clothes which will never be the cause of any mistakes” was taken to its depths, the concrete result was the funzō-e (糞掃衣). Therefore, it can be said that the funzō-e is the highest expression of the virtue of the kesa; it is unsurpassable.
In the Shobogenzo fascicle “Virtue of the Kesa” (Kesa Kudoku), Dogen Zenji wrote, “The purest material for the robe is funzō (excrement-cleaning rags).” The virtue is similarly upheld in many sutras, Vinaya texts, and commentaries of both Mahayana and foundational Buddhism.
What, then, is the funzō-e? Funzō refers to rags that have been discarded. In Vinaya texts there is a list of the “ten kinds of funzō,” including fabric chewed by mice, fabric that has been burnt, fabric soiled by the sick, and fabric used to wrap a dead body. 15 But it is not limited to just those ten kinds.
To make a funzō-e, you collect rags that are not valued by people, cut out the parts that can be used, wash them thoroughly, then sew them together to make the kesa. A kesa made with discarded, “impure” materials becomes the most valued kesa in the buddhadharma.
This must be the ultimate “becoming the fabric of Buddha,” as Sawaki Roshi described. As it is said, “Do not see it through ordinary eyes, nor think of it with human sentiments.” Wearing a kesa of such significance all the time has an immeasurable effect on the world around you. Doing so also unknowingly deepens your awareness as a Buddha’s disciple.
However, you should take care never to become attached to the idea of funzō. The slightest attachment to such an idea would defile even the unsurpassable kesa and desecrate (冒涜, bōtoku) the buddhadharma.
Footnotes
5 (十誦律, Jujuritsu) The vinaya of the Sarvastivada School, which was established around the 3rd century BCE. It was translated from Sanskrit to Chinese by Kumarajiva between 404 and 409.
6 (摩訶僧祇律, Makasogiritsu) The vinaya of the Mahasamghika School, established around 4th century BCE. It was translated from Sanskrit to Chinese by Faxian and Buddhabhadra between 416 and 418.
7 (四分律, Shibunritsu)The vinaya of the Dharmagputaka School, established around the 1st century CE; also known as the Four-Part Vinaya. It was translated from Sanskrit to Chinese between 410 and 412 by Buddhayasa.
8 Cutting fabric into pieces makes it less valuable compared to a large, uncut piece of fabric.
9 5-panel robe
10 7-panel robe
11 9-panel (and up to 25-panel) robe
12 The part of the kesa construction where each cut piece is partially overwrapped and sewn together with the piece adjoining. It looks like the footpath of a rice field.
13 (根本説一切有部律, Setsuissaiuburitsu) The vinaya of the Mulasarvastivada School; translated from Sanskrit to Chinese by Yinjin (義浄)
14 The translation by Xuanzang (602–664) from Sanskrit to Chinese is referred as the “new translation” while the version by Kumarajiva (344–413) is called the “old translation.”
15 The ten kinds of funzō: (1) chewed by cows; (2) chewed by rodents; (3) burnt; (4) used for menstruation; (5) used in childbirth; (6) carried away from the shrine by birds, animals or the wind; (7) taken from a graveyard; (8) used for petitionary rites to the gods; (9) discarded when receiving employment from the king; and (10) used to wrap a corpse.
5 (十誦律, Jujuritsu) The vinaya of the Sarvastivada School, which was established around the 3rd century BCE. It was translated from Sanskrit to Chinese by Kumarajiva between 404 and 409.
6 (摩訶僧祇律, Makasogiritsu) The vinaya of the Mahasamghika School, established around 4th century BCE. It was translated from Sanskrit to Chinese by Faxian and Buddhabhadra between 416 and 418.
7 (四分律, Shibunritsu)The vinaya of the Dharmagputaka School, established around the 1st century CE; also known as the Four-Part Vinaya. It was translated from Sanskrit to Chinese between 410 and 412 by Buddhayasa.
8 Cutting fabric into pieces makes it less valuable compared to a large, uncut piece of fabric.
9 5-panel robe
10 7-panel robe
11 9-panel (and up to 25-panel) robe
12 The part of the kesa construction where each cut piece is partially overwrapped and sewn together with the piece adjoining. It looks like the footpath of a rice field.
13 (根本説一切有部律, Setsuissaiuburitsu) The vinaya of the Mulasarvastivada School; translated from Sanskrit to Chinese by Yinjin (義浄)
14 The translation by Xuanzang (602–664) from Sanskrit to Chinese is referred as the “new translation” while the version by Kumarajiva (344–413) is called the “old translation.”
15 The ten kinds of funzō: (1) chewed by cows; (2) chewed by rodents; (3) burnt; (4) used for menstruation; (5) used in childbirth; (6) carried away from the shrine by birds, animals or the wind; (7) taken from a graveyard; (8) used for petitionary rites to the gods; (9) discarded when receiving employment from the king; and (10) used to wrap a corpse.
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