受戒

受戒，佛教术语，是指信众皈依佛教并从授戒师处接受佛教戒律，并受持戒律的宗教仪式。受戒之后如果心意清晰坚定，愿意受持净戒，则谓之得有戒体。和受戒相对应的是授戒，即阿阇梨（授戒师、和尚）为受戒者教导、授予净戒的仪式行为。

分类

佛教戒律可略分为五戒、八关斋戒、十戒、沙弥戒、沙弥尼戒、式叉摩尼戒、比丘戒、比丘尼戒、优婆塞戒、优婆夷戒、菩萨戒等。

功德

受持禁戒在因地修行时有大功德，有止恶趣（趋）善、善护心念、长养慈悲心、利乐有情众生、能生惭愧心、能迅速证果等等之利益。

除性障

受戒后非大事已毕，而是严持禁戒之开始。戒、定、慧，因持戒而生定，因定而发慧。持戒能断贪、瞋、痴等烦恼，得解脱知见。菩萨在因地修行时，严持净戒，身心俱调柔软，烦恼俱断。所以菩萨能行四摄法，以布施、爱语、同事、利行，利乐有情众生，摄受佛土

The Buddhist initiation (Pali: Ārādhanā; Chinese: 受戒; pinyin: shòujiè; Japanese pronunciation: Jukai; Korean: 수계; romaja: sugye) refers to the public initiation ceremony wherein a lay follower of Buddhism takes refuge in the Triple Gem and receives certain Buddhist precepts. The particulars of the ceremony differ widely by country and by schools of Buddhism.

Theravada Buddhism

In traditional Theravada communities, a non-Buddhist becomes a Buddhist lay follower (upasaka-upasika) by reciting the ancient formulas of the Three Refuges and the Five Precepts, either in response to a monk’s formal administration, or by performing the recitation privately in front of a cetiya or an image of the Buddha. Newborns born to Buddhist parents are traditionally initiated by being taken on their first visit to a temple, typically on a full-moon or festival day, where they are presented to the Triple Gem.

Sometimes, within the monastic context, the term "initiation ceremony" may refer to the "ordination ceremony."

East Asian Buddhism

China

In China, the ritual is called shòujiè (受戒). The character 受 means "receive," while 戒 means "precepts." Taken together, the characters translate as "initiated" or "ordained."

Many people believe in Buddhism but do not go through any initiation ceremonies. Such Buddhists make up the overwhelming majority. Only a small part of Buddhists have gone through the ceremony which makes the recipient an upasaka or upasika and accepted the five commandments. They are formal Buddhists.

Lewis Hodous, in his 1920 book Buddhism and Buddhists in China remarks on the Chinese ceremony as well, after recording an initiation ceremony for both those entering monastic life and the laity: "Less private was the initiation of the lay brethren and sisters, more lightly branded on the right wrist, while all about intoned 'Na-mah Pen-shih Shih-chia-mou-ni Fo.' (Chinese: 南無本師釋迦牟尼佛; pinyin: Námó Běnshī Shìjiāmóunífó; lit. 'I put my trust in my Original Teacher', 'Säkyamuni-Buddha.'

Japan

In Japan, the ritual is called jukai.

Sōtō school

In the Sōtō school in the United States, lay initiates take refuge in the Three Jewels (or Three Refuges—Buddha, Dharma and Sangha), the Three Pure Precepts (to do no harm, to do only good, and to do good for others) and the Five Grave Precepts—Affirm life: do not kill; Be giving: do not take what is not freely given; Honor the body: do not engage in sexual misconduct; Manifest truth: do not speak falsely; and Proceed clearly: do not cloud the mind with intoxicants.

Rinzai school

In the Rinzai school students take refuge in the Three Jewels (or Three Refuges) and, similarly to the Chinese and Korean practices derived from India, they receive the five precepts for laypersons.

South Korea

In South Korea, the ritual, called sugye (수계), involves formally taking refuge in The Three Jewels of Buddhism: the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha, and accepting the five precepts. During the ritual, the initiate is touched with a burning incense stick. This is to leave a permanent mark which serves to remind the initiate of their promise to uphold the five precepts. During (or right after) the ceremony, the initiate is given a Buddhist name.

United States

In the United States, the predominant rite of receiving precepts is based on the Japanese Zen traditions. According to Seager, "jukai is a formal rite of passage that marks entrance into the Buddhist community. At that time, a student is given a Dharma name. He or she also makes a commitment to the precepts, which are interpreted a bit differently in various communities."

In the Diamond Sangha, jukai is "commonly practiced" though some members never undergo the ceremony because they are members of another religion which prohibits such initiations. Therefore, some would say, they are not Buddhist by definition.

At the Rochester Zen Center and its affiliated centers, the jukai ceremony involves taking the same precepts as in the Soto and White Plum traditions; however, from school to school or lineage to lineage, interpretation and translation of precepts can vary.