Korea Journal of Buddhist Studies ISSN:1598-0642(Print) 불교학연구

This paper throws new light on the fifth precept (of prohibition of alcohol) and considers its application in modern life. To do so, the paper analyzes the fifth precept in Pāli etymologically and examines its two aspects: namely, avoidance (vāritta) and performance (cāritta). Although it is one the five precepts that lay practitioners as well as monastics must keep, its importance has been overlooked among Buddhists. The fifth precept in Chinese is “bù yǐn jiǔ jiè 不飲酒戒” which is usually worded negatively and prohibits only alcohol and liquor. On the contrary, the fifth precept in pāli is “Surāmerayamajja-pamādaṭṭhānā-veramaṇī-sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi,” which means “I undertake the precept to refrain from fermented and distilled spirits and mind-altering intoxicants which lead to heedlessness.” In this way the actual pāli recitation mentions three kinds of intoxicants: sura (distilled liquors), meraya (fermented liquors), and majja (intoxicants). The word majja, meaning a mind-altering intoxicant, indicates not only is alcohol and liquor prohibited, but also intoxicating drugs used non-medicinally, such as opiates, opium, marijuana, and psychedelics, which cause heedlessness (pamāda). Like other precepts, the precept actually has two aspects, avoidance and performance. From this point of view, the original spirit of the precept is to prevent heedlessness caused by ingestingof intoxicating substances and to cultivate diligence (appamāda) which is emphasized in Theravāda Buddhist soteriology. The precept is central to the Buddhist practice (bhāvanā), as it sets the stage for a practitioner to live a considerate and mindful existence, one that is conducive to development of morality (sīla), concentration (samādhi), wisdom (paññā), and ultimately, nibbāna.