Overview
The bi-monthly gathering of the monastics to recite the Pāṭimokkha rule code is the operational heart of the Saṅgha’s unity. The Vinaya Piṭaka outlines three distinct legal conditions under which an official Uposatha ceremony can be enacted, depending on the calendar and the harmony of the local district.
The List
- Cātuddasiko Uposatha - Fourteenth-day Uposatha: The legal ceremony held exactly on the 14th day of the lunar fortnight, occurring during short or modified lunar months.
- Paṇṇarasiko Uposatha - Fifteenth-day Uposatha: The standard legal ceremony held on the 15th day of the lunar fortnight, matching the regular full or new moon nights.
- Sāmaggi-uposatha - Harmony Uposatha: A special, mandatory legal assembly executed outside the standard calendar. It must be held immediately when a fractured, split Saṅgha has successfully resolved its legal differences and reunited, celebrating restored peace.