A Survey of the Sources of Buddhist Ethics

The article begins by surveying the textual sources of Buddhist ethics in the Theravāda Vinaya, especially the Suttavibhaṅga, Mahāvagga, Cullavagga, and Parivāra-pāṭha. It then explains the structure of the pātimokkha and the way rules were proclaimed in response to specific incidents within the early saṅgha. Coghlan discusses the conditions that made rule-making necessary, noting that the early community initially functioned without a full formal code because many early disciples had attained high levels of realization. As the saṅgha expanded and became more socially complex, formal discipline became necessary to preserve both the religious life and public confidence in the monastic order. The article then examines the relative severity of vows, the social and institutional logic behind their classification, and the concrete cases that led to their proclamation. Its central analytical movement is from textual source study to ethical diagnosis: the Vinaya is read as a structured response to the ways bodily and verbal actions arise from attachment, aversion, and ignorance, with attachment identified as the dominant practical obstacle to monastic training.