 The intention of this passage is to present a general account of what constitutes a “downfall” (Sanskrit āpatti). The term āpatti has as its primary meaning a violation or breach of some morally significant commitment that an agent has undertaken in the past. In this context, the commitment in question is the bodhisattva vow, the aspiration to attain Awakening (Sanskrit bodhi) for the benefit of all sentient beings. So Śāntideva’s goal in this passage is to give a general, action-guiding characterization of what it would mean to violate the bodhisattva vow.