Thank you Nina. Yes, I also think it is caravan. I am discussing this with someone who is convinced that it means knife.

--- In Pali@yahoogroups.com, Nina van Gorkom <vangorko@...> wrote:
>
> Dear Sister Dipa,
> Op 29-nov-2011, om 16:09 heeft Sister Dipa het volgende geschreven:
>
> > In I.B.Horner's Book of Discipline Vol. 3 page 317 she has
> > translated asatthikaa as weapon, with a footnote saying that
> > "translators differ as to whether this means "without a weapon" or
> > not (having joined) a caravan."
> ------
> N: sattha: weapon or sattha (sa+attha) caravan, these are different
> stems.We have to find out from the context. It seems strange that a
> nun would go on almstour with a weapon. I do not think weapons were
> ever allowed. Rather, she should not go alone, but in a caravan.
> In vol. 4, p. 201, a monk wanted to enter on the rains in a caravan
> and this was allowed.
>
> Nina.
>
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>