Upāsaka and Upāsikā

The five vows to be held by upāsakas are referred to as the "Five Precepts" (Pāli: pañcasīla):

1. I will not take the life of a sentient being;
2. I will not take what has not been given to me;
3. I will refrain from sexual misconduct;
4. I will refrain from false speech;
5. I will refrain from becoming intoxicated.

In the Theravada tradition, on Uposatha days, devout lay practitioners may request the "Eight Precepts" from monastics (Pali: uposathaṃ samādiyati).[4] It was a widespread practice in Chinese Buddhist communities as well,[5] and is still practiced.[6]

The eight precepts is a list of precepts that are observed by lay devotees on observance days and festivals.[5] They include general precepts such as refraining from killing, but also more specific ones, such as abstaining from cosmetics.[7] These precepts were probably based on pre-Buddhist sāmaṇa practices.[8] Since the eight precepts are often upheld on the Buddhist uposatha days, they are called the uposatha vows[9] or one-day precepts in such context.[10] They are considered to support meditation practice,[11] and are often observed when staying in monasteries and temples.[12] In some periods and places, such as in 7th–10th-century China, the precepts were widely observed.[13] In modern times, there have been revival movements and important political figures that have observed them continuously.[14][15][16]

Traditionally, in India, upāsakas wore white robes, representing a level of renunciation between lay people and monastics. For this reason, some traditional texts make reference to "white-robed lay people" (avadāta-vassana).[26] This practice can still be found in contemporary Theravadin temples, especially during the occasion when a non-Buddhist converts to Buddhism or when one is observing the Eight Precepts on an uposatha day.[27]

In the Chinese tradition, both upāsakas and upāsikās are permitted to wear robes for temple ceremonies and retreats, as well as home practice. Upāsakas and upāsikās wear long sleeved black robes called haiqing (海青), symbolic of their refuge in the Triple Jewel. A brown kasaya called a manyi (缦衣) worn outside the black robes is symbolic of their upholding of the precepts. Unlike monastics, they are not permitted to regularly wear robes outside functions other than temple activities or Buddhist disciplines.

Some Japanese laity can also be seen wearing a rakusu, a short cloth worn around the neck of Zen Buddhist laity. Another form is the wagesa, a short surplice in the form of a strip of brocade fabric worn around the neck, with the temple mon emblazoned on it. It also acts as a simplified type of kasaya.

In the Early Buddhist Texts (SN 17:23), the Buddha said that a devoted lay disciple should foster the wish to become like Citta and Hatthaka, while devoted bhikkhus should aspire to equal Sāriputta and Mahāmoggallāna. They are the model standards are set for lay people and monks. Of the ten instructive discourses contained in the Citta Saṃyutta, three of the discourses deal with the questions posed by Citta to the bhikkhus, three of them are queries put to Citta by the bhikkhus, and four refer to personal events.[28]

In the Vajrayana tradition, a well known Upasaka is Upasaka Dharmatala who serves as the attendant of the 16 arhats. He is seen to be an emanation of Avalokitesvara.

In the Pali Canon's Jivaka Sutta,[29] the Buddha is asked, "Lord, to what extent is one a lay follower (upāsako)?"[30] The Buddha replies that one takes refuge in the Triple Gem.[31] Asked how one is a "virtuous lay follower" (upāsako sīlavā), the Buddha replies that one undertakes the Five Precepts. Asked how one practices being a lay follower "both for his own benefit & the benefit of others," the Buddha states that one is consummate oneself in and encourages others in the consummation of: conviction (saddhā); virtue (sīla); generosity (cāga); visiting monks; and, hearing, remembering, analyzing, understanding and practicing the Dhamma.[32]

• Three Refuges
• Five Precepts
• Eight Precepts
• Dhammika Sutta (Sn 2.14)
• Dighajanu Sutta (AN 8.54)
• Sigalovada Sutta (DN 31)
• Householder (Buddhism)
• Sravaka - Buddhist "disciple" (includes both monastic and lay followers)
• Anagarika- a title which describes a midway status between a monk and a layperson
• Ngagpa - non-monastic Tibetan Buddhism practitioners

• Bluck, Robert (2002). The Path of the Householder: Buddhist Lay Discipline in the Pali Canon, Buddhist Studies Review 19 (1), 1-18
• Buswell, Robert E. Jr.; Lopez, Donald S. Jr. (2013), Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism (PDF), Princeton University Press, ISBN 978-0-691-15786-3, archived (PDF) from the original on 12 June 2018
• Encyclopædia Britannica (2007). "Upasaka." Retrieved 2007-10-24 from "Encyclopædia Britannica Online" at https://web.archive.org/web/20060621163706/http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9074383.
• Fuengfusakul, Apinya (1 January 1993), "Empire of Crystal and Utopian Commune: Two Types of Contemporary Theravada Reform in Thailand", Sojourn, 8 (1): 153–83, doi:10.1355/SJ8-1G, JSTOR 41035731
• Harvey, Peter (1990). An introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, history and practices (1st ed.), Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-31333-3.
• Harvey, Peter (2000), An Introduction to Buddhist Ethics: Foundations, Values and Issues (PDF), Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-511-07584-1
• Harvey, Peter (2013), An introduction to Buddhism: teachings, history and practices (2nd ed.), Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-521-85942-4
• Kariyawasam, A.G.S. (1995). Buddhist Ceremonies and Rituals of Sri Lanka (The Wheel Publication No. 402/404). Kandy, Sri Lanka: Buddhist Publication Society. Retrieved 2007-10-22 from "Access to Insight" (1996 transcription) at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/kariyawasam/wheel402.html.
• Keown, Damien (2004), A Dictionary of Buddhism, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-157917-2
• Keyes, C.F. (1989), "Buddhist Politics and Their Revolutionary Origins in Thailand", International Political Science Review, 10 (2): 121–42, doi:10.1177/019251218901000203, S2CID 145572706
• Mendis, N.K.G. (2001). The Questions of King Milinda: An Abridgement of the Milindapañha. Kandy: Buddhist Publication Society. ISBN 955-24-0067-8
• Nattier, Jan (2003). A Few Good Men: The Bodhisattva Path according to The Inquiry of Ugra (Ugraparpṛcchā). Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press. ISBN 0-8248-2607-8.
• Tachibana, S. (1992), The Ethics of Buddhism, Curzon Press, ISBN 978-0-7007-0230-5
• Rhys Davids, T.W. & William Stede (eds.) (1921-5). The Pali Text Society’s Pali–English dictionary. Chipstead: Pali Text Society. A general on-line search engine for the PED is available at http://dsal.uchicago.edu/dictionaries/pali/. Retrieved on 2006-12-26.
• Watson, Burton (1988), "Buddhism in the Poetry of Po Chü-i", The Eastern Buddhist, 21 (1): 1–22, JSTOR 44361818

• Theravada resources for Upasakas
• Sri Lanka Buddha Jayanti Tipitaka Series [SLTP] (undated). Gahapativaggo [in Pali] (AN 8). Available on-line at http://metta.lk/tipitaka/2Sutta-Pitaka/4Anguttara-Nikaya/Anguttara5/8-atthakanipata/003-gahapativaggo-p.html. Retrieved on 2007-04-28.
• Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1997). Jivaka Sutta: To Jivaka (On Being a Lay Follower) (AN 8.26). Available on-line at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an08/an08.026.than.html. Retrieved on 2007-04-28.