HOUSEHOLDER (BUDDHISM)

In English translations of Buddhist literature, 'householder' denotes a spectrum of terms which refer, most broadly, to any layperson to, most narrowly, a wealthy and prestigious familial patriarch.^[1] In contemporary Buddhist communities, householder is often used synonymously with ''laity''.
The Buddhist notion of householder is often contrasted with that of wandering ascetics (Pāḷi: ''; Sanskrit: '') and monastics (''bhikkhu'' and ''bhikkhuni''), who would not live (for extended periods) in a normal house and who would pursue freedom from attachments to houses and families.
Lay disciples (''upasaka'' and ''upasika'') are householders and other laypersons who take refuge in the Triple Gem (the Buddha, his teaching and his community) and practice the Five Precepts. In southeast Asian communities, lay disciples also give alms to monks on their daily rounds and observe weekly uposatha days.
In some traditional Buddhist societies, such as in Thailand, people transition between householder and monk and back to householder with regularity and celebration. One of the evolving features of Buddhism in the West is the increasing dissolution of the traditional distinction between monastics and laity.^[2]

Contents

Theravada perspectives

What is a householder?

Householder ethics

Lay-monastic reciprocity

Householders & future lives

Householders & Nibbana

Prominent householders in the Pali canon

Mahayana perspectives

Vajrayana perspectives

Contemporary Buddhist householder practices

Theravada practices

Mahayana practices

Vajrayana practices

See also

Notes

References

External links

Theravada perspectives

In the Pali canon, householders received diverse advice from the Buddha and his disciples. Some householders (who were also lay disciples) were even identified as having achieved nibbana.

Core householder practices include undertaking the Five Precepts and taking refuge in the Triple Gem. In addition, the canon nurtures the essential bond between householders and monastics still apparent today in southeast Asian communities.

What is a householder?

In traditional Indian society, a householder (Sanskrit, ''grihastha'') is typically a settled adult male with a family.

In the Buddhist Pali canon, various Pali words have been translated into the English word "householder" including 'agārika', 'gahapati', 'gahattha' and 'gihin'.^[3]
Vocations most often associated with householders in the Pali canon are those of guild foreman, banker and merchant (Pali, '') but other vocations are mentioned such as farmer and carpenter.^[4] Other people in the canon who are sometimes identified as "householders" in contemporary translations are simply those individuals who dwelt in a home or who had not renounced "home life" (Pali, ''agārasmā'') for "homelessness" (Pali, ''anagāriya'').

Householder ethics

While there is no formal "householder discipline" or "code of ethics" in the ancient Buddhist Code of Ethics (Pali, ''Vinaya''), the "Sigalovada Sutta" (DN 31)^[5] has been referred to as "the Vinaya of the householder."^[6] This sutta includes:

★ an enumeration of the Five Precepts

★ an analysis of good-hearted (Pali: ''su-hada'') friends

★ a description of respectful actions for one's parents, teachers, spouse, friends, workers and religious guides.
Similarly, in the "Dhammika Sutta" (Sn 2.14),^[7] the Buddha articulates the "layman's rule of conduct" (Pali, ''gahatthavatta''),^[8] as follows:

★ the Five Precepts

★ the Eight Precepts for Uposatha days

★ support of one's parents

★ engaging in fair business.
Other suttas in the canon likewise underline keeping the precepts, maintaining virtuous friends, homage to one's benefactors and earning one's wealth honestly.^[9]
Elsewhere in the Sutta Pitaka the Buddha provides moral instruction to householders and their family members^[10] on how to be good parents, spouses and children.^[11]

Lay-monastic reciprocity

Some suttas suggest that Buddhist renunciates are best going it alone.^[12] Many others celebrate and provide instruction for a vital reciprocity between householders and monastics. For instance, in the Khuddaka Nikaya,^[13] the Buddha articulates that "brahmins and householders" (Pali, ''brāhmanagahapatikā'') support monks by providing monks with robes, alms food, lodgings and medicine while monks teach brahmins and householders the Dhamma. In this sutta, the Buddha declares:
:Householders & the homeless [monastics]
:in mutual dependence
:both reach the true Dhamma:
:the unsurpassed safety from bondage.^[14]

Householders & future lives

In the Pali canon, the pursuit of Nibbana (Skt: ''Nirvana'') within this lifetime usually starts with giving up the householder life. This is due to the householder life's intrinsic attachments to a home, a spouse, children and the associated wealth necessary for maintaining the household. Thus, instead of advising householders to relinquish these and all attachments as a prerequisite for the complete liberation from samsara in this lifetime, the Buddha instructed householders on how to achieve happiness in this and future lives in a spiritually meaningful way.
In Buddhism, a householder's spiritual path is often conceived of in terms of making merit (Pali: ''puñña''). The primary bases for meritorious action in Buddhism are generosity (''dāna''), ethical conduct (''sīla'') and mental development (''bhāvanā''). Traditional Buddhist practices associated with such behaviors are summarized in the table below.

Householders & Nibbana

The Anguttara Nikaya (AN 6.119 and AN 6.120^[15]) identifies 19 householders (''gahapati'')^[16] who have "seen deathlessness" (Pali, ''amata'') and "realized the highest" (Pali, ''niṭṭhamgata'') through their "unwavering faith" (Pali, ''aveccappasādena'') in six things:

★ The Buddha

★ the Teaching (Pali, ''Dhamma'')

★ the Community of bhikkhus (Pali, ''Sangha'')^[17]

★ noble moral discipline (Pali, ''ariyena sīlena'')

★ noble knowledge (Pali, ''ariyena ñānena'')

★ noble release (Pali, ''ariyāya vimuttiyā'')

Prominent householders in the Pali canon

The following are examples of individuals who are explicitly identified as a "householder" (Pali, ''gahapati'') in multiple suttas:

★ 'Anathapindika', is referenced for instance in AN 1.14.249 as "the householder Sudatta, the foremost lay devotee."^[18]

★ 'Citta', referenced for instance in AN 1.14.250 as "the [foremost] householder for explaining the Teaching."^[19] In SN 17.23, Citta is one of two male lay disciples identified for emulation by the Buddha.^[20]

★ 'Nakulapita' and 'Nakulamata', referenced for instance in AN 1.14.257 and AN 1.14.266, respectively, as "the best confident" and the foremost "for undivided pleasantness."^[21]
Other individuals who are not explicitly identified in the suttas as "householder" but who, by the aforementioned broader critera, might be considered a householder include:

★ 'Ghatikara' was a potter in the time of Buddha Kassapa. He was an Anagami and the chief supporter of Buddha Kassapa (MN 81).

Mahayana perspectives

In the Zen tradition, Vimalakīrti and Páng Yùn were prominent householders/laypersons who achieved enlightenment.

Dogen recommended that householders meditate five minutes each day.

Vajrayana perspectives

The Vajrayana tradition has produced many prominent householders, from Marpa to Dromton Gyalwa Jungne, the heart son of Atisha; Padmasambhava to mention a few. The 'ngakpa' is an ordained Tantrica, sometimes a householder with certain vows (dependent upon Lama and Lineage) that make them the householder equivalent of an ordained bikshu. The path of a Tantrica or Ngakpa (mas.) or Ngakma (fem.) is a rigorous discipline whereby one "enjoys the sensefields' as a part of one's practice. A practioner utilizes the whole of the phenomenal world as one's path. Marrying, raising children, working jobs, leisure, art, play etc. are all means to realize the enlightened state or Rigpa, non-dual awareness. A Ngakpa or Ngakma does not need to be a householder particularly, but is still encouraged to 'immerse oneself' in the world at large. The Ngakpa tradition is unfortunately not widely known due to the prominence of monastic Buddhism (especially in Tibetan Buddhism). At times the Ngakpa/ma path is even disparged by those who misunderstand the symbolism and structure of the path.
As such, we can see the prominence of householders in the Vajrayana tradition. One can, however, be a householder without taking the vows of a Ngakpa. Simply holding the five precepts, bodhisattva vows and the tantric vows while practising diligently can result in enlightenment.

Contemporary Buddhist householder practices

Below common contemporary lay Buddhist practices are summarized. Some of these practices — such as taking Refuge and meditating — are common to all major schools. Other practices — such as taking the Eight Precepts or the Bodhisattva Vows — are not pan-Buddhist.

Theravada practices

For Theravada Buddhists, the following are practiced on a daily and weekly basis:
Daily practice: prostrations to the Triple Gem, taking refuge in the Triple Gem, taking the Five Precepts, chanting other verses, meditating, giving and sharing (Pali: ''dana'').
Uposatha (sabbath) practices: practicing the Eight Precepts, studying Buddhist scriptures,
visiting and supporting Buddhist monks, visiting and supporting Buddhist monasteries.
Other practices: undertaking a pilgrimage.

Mahayana practices

Daily practices: Chanting sutra, Buddha's name, meditating, prostrations, cultivating compassion and bodhichitta.
Special day practices: 8 precepts, listening to teachings, supporting Sangha, performing offering ceremonies.
Other practices: Bodhisattva vows.

Vajrayana practices

Daily practices: Tantric sadhanas, prostrations, refuge, cultivating compassion and bodhichitta.
Special day practices: 8 precepts, listening to teachings, offering ceremonies.
Other practices: Studying texts, receiving initiations.

		'Lay Buddhist practices by school'
		'Theravada'	'Mahayana'	'Vajrayana'
D E V O T I O N A L	'Prostrations'	daily	dokusan[22]	daily
	'Chanting'	daily	regularly[23]	mantra
	'Take Refuge'	daily	daily	daily
P R E C E P T S	'Five Precepts'	daily[24]	daily	daily
	'Eight Precepts'	Uposatha	—	—
	'Bodhisattva Vows'	—	daily	daily
'Meditation'		vipassana, samatha, metta	zazen, shikantaza, koan	samatha and vipassana, tonglen, compassion, tantric visualisations
'Study scriptures'		Uposatha	—	regularly
'Support monastics'		Uposatha	regularly	regularly
'Pilgrimage'		several sites[25]

See also

★ Practices:
:
★ Alms (Buddhism), Dana (Buddhism)
:
★ Householder vows
:
★ Uposatha

★ Buddhist disciples:
:
★ Bhikkhu, Bhikkhuni (Buddhist monastic disciples)
:
★ Upasaka, Upasika (Buddhist lay disciples)

★ Suttas:
:
★ Dhammika Sutta (Sn 2.14)
:
★ Dighajanu Sutta (AN 8.54)
:
★ Sigalovada Sutta (DN 31)

Notes

1. In regards to the narrower definition of what today is often translated from the Pali Canon as "householder," see, for instance, the description of '' in Nattier (2003), pp. 22-25. For more information, see Note 3 below.
2. See, for instance, Wallace (2002), p. 35, who writes:

"For all the diversity of Buddhist practices in the West, general trends in the recent transformations of Buddhist practice ... can be identified. These include an erosion of the distinction between professional and lay Buddhists; a decentralization of doctrinal authority; a diminished role for Buddhist monastics; an increasing
spirit of egalitarianism; greater leadership roles for women; greater social activism; and, in many cases, an increasing emphasis on the psychological, as opposed to the purely religious, nature of practice."

3. The Pali Text Society's (PTS) "Pali-English Dictionary" provides the following definitions for these various householder-related Pali words (listed alphabetically below):

★ agārika - "having a house..., householder, layman," juxtaposed with ''anagārika''. Similarly, ''agārikā'' is translated as "housewife." (PTS, 1921-25, p. 3, entry for ''agārika''.)

★ gahapati - "the possessor of a house, the head of the household, ''pater familias''," often with a social status similar to high-ranking personages (Pali, ''khattiyā'') and brahmins, suggesting comfort and wealth; may be used as a form of address comparable to "Sir." (PTS, 1921-25, p. 248, entry for ''gahapati''.) See also Buddhadatta, 2002, p. 96, where "gaha-ttha" is defined as "a layman; householder" and "gaha-pati" is defined as "master of a house"; and, Nattier (2003), pp. 22-25, which provides contextual information to support its conclusion: "The word '' [Sanskrit for the Pali ''gahapati''] is thus not an indicator of simple householder status but rather of significant social and financial standing, and it would have been applied only to a relatively limited segment of the lay Buddhist population."

★ gahattha - "a householder, one who leads the life of a layman." (PTS, 1921-25, p. 247, entry for ''gaha'' with mention of use with the suffix ''-ttha.'')

★ gihin - "a householder, one who leads a domestic life, a layman." (PTS, 1921-25, p. 251, entry for ''gihin''.)

In the Pali canon, these terms for "householder" can be combined with some other appellations. For instance, in the Sāleyyaka Sutta (MN 41), the Buddha is addressed by ''sāleyyakā brāhmana-gahapatikā'' which, for instance, is translated by Bhikkhu Bodhi (2005, p. 156) as "brahmin householders of Sālā."

Within the Pali canon, there is a "Householder section" (''Gahapativagga'') in the following nikayas:

★ the Majjhima Nikaya (MN 51 to MN 60) (see Nanamoli & Bodhi, 2001, pp. 441-519).

★ the Samyutta Nikaya (SN 12.41 to SN 12.50) (see Bodhi, 2000, pp. 578-86, and, in the Sinhalese Tipitaka, http://www.metta.lk/tipitaka/2Sutta-Pitaka/3Samyutta-Nikaya/Samyutta2/12-Abhisamaya-Samyutta/05-Gahapativaggo-e.html).

★ the Anguttara Nikaya (AN 8.3) (see, in the Sinhalese Tipitaka, http://www.metta.lk/tipitaka/2Sutta-Pitaka/4Anguttara-Nikaya/Anguttara5/8-atthakanipata/003-gahapativaggo-e.html).
4. See PTS (1921-25) entries for ''gahapati''[1] and ''satthi''.[2]
5. DN 31 is translated in Narada (1996).
6. This epithet is attributed to Buddhaghosa in Narada (1995) and is referenced in Law (1932-33), p. 85, ''n''. 1, and Bodhi (2005), p. 109.
7. Ireland (1983).
8. PTS, p. 247, under the entry for "gaha (1)"
9. See, for instance, the Dighajanu Sutta.
10. For example, in DN 31, the Buddha addresses "Sigalaka the householder's son" (Bodhi, 2005, pp. 116-8).
11. See, for instance, additional examples in Narada (1995) and in Bodhi (2005)'s chapter, "The Happiness Visible in this Present Life," pp. 107-142.
12. For instance, the Rhinoceros Sutta (Snp 1.3) (Thanissaro, 1997) has the frequent cautionary refrain: "wander alone like a rhinoceros."
13. Itivuttaka 4.8 (Thanissaro, 2001).
14. Thanissaro (2001).
15. In an on-line English-language Sinhalese Tipitaka, these suttas are identified as AN 6.12.3 and 6.12.4 respectively, and are available at http://www.metta.lk/tipitaka/2Sutta-Pitaka/4Anguttara-Nikaya/Anguttara4/6-chakkanipata/012-samannavaggo-e.html. An on-line Pali-language version of these Sinhalese suttas, identified as AN 6.2.17 through 6.2.34 (with a separate verse for each ''gahapati''), are available at http://www.metta.lk/tipitaka/2Sutta-Pitaka/4Anguttara-Nikaya/Anguttara4/6-chakkanipata/012-samannavaggo-p.html.
16. Nyanaponika & Hecker (2003), p. 365, state that AN 6.120 refers to 21 "eminent lay disciples." The actual Pali text itself explicitly identifies 18 householders (''gahapati'') and three lay disciples (''upasaka''; see also, ''savaka''); nonetheless, many of these identified householders are also identified as "foremost" (''agga'') lay disciples in AN 1.14.[3] Tangentially, Bodhi (2005), p. 226, notes that a lay disciple is able to achieve the state of nonreturner but is not able to achieve arahantship unless upon death or, after realizing such, they immediately become monastics.
17. These first three objects of faith -- the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha -- are known in Buddhism as the Triple Gem.
18. In an on-line English-language Sinhalese Tipitaka, see http://www.metta.lk/tipitaka/2Sutta-Pitaka/4Anguttara-Nikaya/Anguttara1/1-ekanipata/014-Etadaggapali-e.html. Also see, Nyanaponika & Hecker (2003), pp. 337-62.
19. In an on-line English-language Sinhalese Tipitaka, see http://www.metta.lk/tipitaka/2Sutta-Pitaka/4Anguttara-Nikaya/Anguttara1/1-ekanipata/014-Etadaggapali-e.html. Also see, Nyanaponika & Hecker (2003), pp. 365-72.
20. Bodhi (2000), p. 688. This sutta is entitled, "Only Son," and in it the Buddha states:
:"A faithful female lay follower, rightly imploring her only son, dear and beloved, might implore him thus: 'Dear, you should become like Citta the householder and Hatthaka of Alavaka — for this is the standard and criterion for my male disciples who are lay followers...."
21. Also see AN 4.55 in Bodhi (2005), pp. 121-2, 433 ''n''. 3. Note that, technically, Nakulapita is identified as the "householder" and, his spouse, Nakulamata as the "householder's wife."
22. Kapleau (1989), p. 191.
23. Daily chanting among Mahayana Buddhists can be found, for instance, among Nichiren and Pure Land practitioners.
24. Examples in the Pali canon where the Buddha extols the practice of the Five Precepts includes in the Dhammika Sutta and in the Sigalovada Sutta.
25. In the Mahaparinibbana Sutta, the Buddha states that devotees can do pilgrimages to his birthplace, the place of his Awakening, the place of his first teaching and the place of his death. Other sites have also been traditionally recognized by Theravada practitioners. For more information, see Pilgrimage (Buddhism).

References

★ Bodhi, Bhikkhu (trans.) (2000). ''The Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Samyutta Nikaya''. Boston: Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0-86171-331-1.

★ Bodhi, Bhikkhu (ed.) (2005), ''In the Buddha's Words: An Anthology of Discourses from the Pali Canon''. Somerville, MA: Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0-86171-491-1.

★ Buddhadatta Mahathera, A.P. (2002). ''Concise Pali-English Dictionary''. Delhi:Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN 81-208-0605-0.

★ Ireland, John D. (trans.) (1983). ''Sn 2.14, Dhammika Sutta: Dhammika (excerpt)''. Available on-line at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/snp/snp.2.14.irel.html.

★ Kapleau, Philip (1989). ''Zen: Merging of East and West''. NY:Anchor Book. ISBN 0-385-26104-7.

★ Law, Bimala Churn (1932-33), "Nirvana and Buddhist Laymen" in the ''Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute'', Vol. 14, 1932-1933, pp. 80-86. Available on-line at: http://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-ENG/lawn.htm.

★ , Bhikkhu (trans.) & Bhikkhu Bodhi (ed.) (2001). ''The Middle-Length Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Majjhima Nikāya''. Boston: Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0-86171-072-X.

★ Narada Thera (1995). ''Everyman's Ethics: Four Discourses of the Buddha''. Available on-line at: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/narada/wheel014.html.

★ Narada Thera (trans.) (1996). ''DN 31, Sigalovada Sutta: The Discourse to Sigala, The Layperson's Code of Discipline''. Available on-line at: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.31.0.nara.html.

★ Nattier, Jan (2003). ''A Few Good Men: The Bodhisattva Path according to The Inquiry of Ugra ()''. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press. ISBN 0-8248-2607-8.

★ Nyanaponika Thera & Hellmuth Hecker, Bhikkhu Bodhi (ed.) (2003). ''Great Disciples of the Buddha: Their Lives, their Works, their Legacy''. Somerville, MA:Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0-86171-381-8.

★ Pali Text Society (PTS) (1921-1925). ''The Pali Text Society's Pali-English dictionary''. London: Chipstead. Available on-line at: http://dsal.uchicago.edu/dictionaries/pali/.

★ Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1997). ''Khaggavisana Sutta: A Rhinoceros Horn'' (Snp 1.3). Available on-line at: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/canon/sutta/khuddaka/suttanipata/snp1-03.html.

★ Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (2001). ''The Group of Fours.'' (Iti. 100-112). Available on-line at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/iti/iti.4.100-112.than.html. Itivuttaka 4.8 is available at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/iti/iti.4.100-112.than.html#iti-107.

★ Wallace, Alan (2002). "The Spectrum of Buddhist Practice in the West" ''in'' Charles Prebish & Martin Baumann (eds.), ''Westward Dharma: Buddhism Beyond Asia''. Berkeley:University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-22625-9. Also available on-line at: http://www.alanwallace.org/The%20Spectrum%20of%20Buddhist%20Practice.pdf.

External links

★ "Gahapati" and "Gaha-ttha" - two PTS Pali-English Dictionary (PED) entries related to "householder."

★ "Lay Buddhist Practice: The Shrine Room, Uposatha Day, Rains Residence", by Bhikkhu Khantipalo (Wheel No. 206/207, 1982)

★ "The Eightfold Path for the Householder", by Jack Kornfield

★ "How would Buddha handle your kids?", by John Bullitt (The Buddhist Channel, April 14, 2005)

★ "A Seamless Process: Practice On and Off the Cushion", an IMS interview with Kamala Masters & Steve Armstrong.

★ According to Buddha

★ Chanting service of Theravada texts