The compound term Tib. gnas mal; Skt. śayanāsana comprises the words “dwelling” or “bed” (see Tib. gnas and mal cha; Skt. śayana) and “seating” (Tib. stan; Skt. āsana). In Vinaya usage, it refers to a monastic residence and its furnishings. The “residence caretaker” (Tib. gnas mal bstabs pa also gnas mal stobs pa; Skt. śayanāsanaparihāra and śayanāsanagrāhaka) is in charge of distributing keys for the individual “dwellings” (Tib. gnas khang; Skt. layana) on site. He must also ensure that no furnishings or bedding (Skt. śayanāsana) are lost. Kalyāṇāmitra (F.316.a): gnas mal bstabs pa zhes bya ba ni mal cha dang stan la sogs pa las mi dbral ba’o. The “residence caretaker” is one of five kinds of “caretaker” (Tib. bstabs pa; Skt. parihāra) introduced in The Chapter on the Restoration Rite (Toh 1, ch. 2), 3.3: (1) “site caretaker” (Tib. gnas bstabs pa; Skt. vastuparihāra), (2) “residence caretaker” (Tib. gnas mal bstabs pa; Skt. śayanāsanaparihāra), (3) “work caretaker” (Tib. las bstabs pa; Skt. karmaparihāra), (4) “supplies caretaker” (Tib. rnyed pa bstabs pa; Skt. lābhaparihāra), and (5) “attendant caretaker” (Tib. bsnyen bkur ba bstabs pa; Skt. upasthāyakaparihāra). See also n.8.

Introduction

The Translation