Samanera

The present practice of Buddhist order there are two major stages in the life the monks. When the ordination is given for the first time that is called pabbajjA (going forth). At the age of twenty or at the will of the teacher in case of an adult the higher ordination or upasampadA is given. With he becomes a full-fledge monk. The first person to receive sAmanera ordination was prince RAhula. The Buddha asked Ven. SAriputta to grand sAmanera pabbajjA to prince RAhula with tisarNa pabbajjA. When the order was given by Ven. SAriputta questioned how to perform the ordination. Then the Buddha recommended in the above mention way. Since then this method was followed to grand pabbajjA and upsampadA until the Jatticatthakamma was introduced after that tisaraNa was used for pabbajjA and Jatti was used for upasampadA.

After the introduction of sAmanera pabbajjA a few modifications were recommended from time to as necessary arose. Once such was a law no a child should be ordained without the permission of parents or guardians.

“ña bhikkhave ananuJJAto mAtApitUhi putto pabbAjetabbo, yo pabbAjeyya Apatti dukkhatassa”

= “O monks! The child not permitted by parents should not be ordained. He who would ordain is performing a minor mistake”

With this a new development of order came giving chance to young ones to enter the order.

In the Buddhist record there is an evidence of another significant feature being added to the discipline of the ordained ones in between pabbajjA and upasampadA. Once one person from another religion (aJJatitthiyo) entered the Buddhist order and obtained pabbajjA. When his preceptor (upajjhAya) was advising him rightly according to the dhamma he argued back and having scolded the preceptor and went back to his former religion. Again later he came to the Buddhist order and requested for upasampadA. At that occasion the Buddha introduced the following promulgation.

“Yo bhikkhave aJJApi aJJAtitthiyo pubbo imasmiM dhammavinaye AkaGkhati pabbajjaM AkaGkhati upasampadaM tassa cattAro mAse parivAso dAtabb”

= “O monks! A person from another faith or one used to be so, wishes ordination or higher ordination in this doctrine and discipline. (In that case) he should be given probation of four months”

During the probation he wears yellow robe and he is shaven. He lives with taken three refuges. It is similar to SAmanera pabbajjA but not equal. In that case the new candidate should request for probation and it should be given utterance of Jaticatutthakamma (legal action of proclaiming the order for the four times).