Whoever, having shed all defilements, is firmly established in moral perfection, possesses self-control and truthfulness — he indeed is worthy of the yellow robe.

The yellow robe is the visible mark of the monastic. The verse separates the robe from the robe-worthiness. The Buddha is making a quiet distinction that runs through the whole text: the visible sign is not the thing. The robe does not confer the state; the state confers the right to the robe. The teaching is not anti-clerical — the robe still matters. But the verse warns against the substitution of the sign for the substance. Read in 2026, it is a teaching against the credentialing of the spiritual life.