Questions tagged [monasticism]
Buddhist Monasticism is one of the earliest surviving forms of organized monasticism in the history of religion. It is also one of the most fundamental institutions of Buddhism. Monks and nuns are considered to be responsible for the preservation and dissemination of the Buddha's teaching and the guidance of Buddhist lay people.
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Can one with eczema become a monk?
According to this site, one of the questions asked at ordination is "do you have eczema?" to which the reply must be "No, Venerable" in order to ordain. Is this accurate? Is it the case the one with ...
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Did the Buddha form a monastery?
According to Wikipedia's Buddhist monasticism article, the Buddha formed the first monastery. There is no source, 'though. To quote:
Buddhist Monasticism is one of the earliest surviving forms of ...
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What is the monastic policy on family visitations?
If one was to ordain, would they ever be able to see their friends and family again? If so, how often? Thank you
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Significance of Bhikkhus uncovering their right shoulder
Often in the suttas one finds Bhikkhus who approach the Buddha reverentially uncover their right shoulder as a mark of respect. What is the significance of this practice? Is it cultural or is there a ...
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Real Monk vs Fake Monk
Just as the Buddha referred to those who achieved the goal as "My Son", I am wondering if the Buddha made any similar distinctions between monks who lived by the precepts and practiced according to ...
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What if there was no one to offer food to monastics?
This is a questions that often comes up when I visit study groups, particularly when the subject of everyone practicing like a monk/nun comes up. Wouldn't monastics be allowed to farm-just enough for ...
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Role of food as an allowed monastic luxury
Whenever the Buddha and his retinue were invited to the palace of a great King or a big merchant, the suttas don't forget to mention the feast was delicious and rich.
Then King Prasenajit, for the ...
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What does a monk think on a day to day basis?
I go through my daily chores and it has become habituated to the extent that i do not need to concentrate on the action and my mind has some time to do thinking or just wander.
Now monks life is also ...
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Is the age of monastic life over? Is it societal conditioning or keeping up with the times?
I hear a lot of "spiritually awakened" people, on shows like batgap.com and on forums like dharmaoverground.org claim that the age of the monastic life is over, and in the present day one must learn ...
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Punishments for breaking vinaya rules
Are there any punishments if a monk breaks vinaya rule on purpose..? ,if there is punishment ,then who would administer that punishment..?.How does buddhism deal with vinaya rule breakers..?
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What are the benefits of solitary practice?
I have heard about buddhist monks who undertake strictly solitary practice for 6 months where they practice entirely by themselves. They have no human contact and some of the other monks will come and ...
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A question regarding the level of worldly participation for a buddhist monk
I noticed some buddhist monks spend a lot of their time teaching and giving dhamma talks, while other monks spend minimal time on these things.
I was wondering if there are any rules in the monastic ...
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Work, Love, and Buddhism in the modern setting
I am curious as to what the stance of Buddhists would be towards a couple of issues.
Would it be possible to maintain a career, one that you dedicate a lot of time towards and that you actively ...
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How do monastic rules differ in each tradition?
Theravada monks have to follow the 227 Patimokkha rules and the Vinaya Pitaka from the Pali Canon.
But how is it for monks from the other traditions like East Asian Mahayana, Zen and Vajrayana ...
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Are all non-monastic ways of life wrong livelihood?
Leading on from this answer - is it true that ultimately most or even all non-monastic lifestyles are wrong livelihood. Not being a monk I find this point of view quite challenging but just because I ...
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How did bells become a part of Buddhist ritual?
Bells seem to be pervasive throughout Buddhist ritual. I get the impression that many monasteries ring a large bell in the morning, and other monasteries still ring regular bells throughout the day to ...
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When Zen monks are completing a task, why are they doing it very quickly?
Recently, I watched a documentary about zen philosophy and what it is like to be zen monk on a daily basis and I noticed that in the documentary the zen monks always looked like they were in a hurry. ...
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If a Buddhist believes lay life is not ideal for the practice, why does he or she continue?
Usually in the evening, when I am about to retire, I commit myself to finding and entering into a residential Sangha permanently.
When morning rolls in, I fall back into my usual patterns like work, ...
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How should a monk address subjective questions?
Suppose a monk is invited to a house for food and the lay person asks how the food is? How does a monk reply to such a question. I am sure a monk in his lifetime comes across many such subjective ...
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Why do Bhikkhunis have so many extra Vinaya rules?
The Vinaya contains 227 rules for male monks and 311 rules for female monks. Is it known why so many additional rules were put in place for Bhikkhunis?
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Patimokkha Rule On Bathing
I recall having read somewhere that monks are allowed to bathe only once every 15 days. What is the actual Patimokkha rule behind this ? Also, what is the reason behind this rule and what are its ...
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What is the purpose of not eating after noon?
We all know this precept taken by the monks, but I would like to understand the reasons behind it. Currently the specialists claim that we should eat small portions every 3 hours or so, eating once a ...
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Strong desire to serve/ordain
every meditator at a point in his her life goes through a dilemma of whether to ordain or to live a lay life. Although it's a wholesome disposition, I wonder if its a lack of strength to face problems ...
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Ordination and support from parents
If one intends to ordain, say in Thailand, and one lives in India - would it be right/moral to ask support from one's parents (since one is not yet ready/able to support oneself)?
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Are there Buddhist traditions without monks?
Are there any traditions without an associated monastic community or even where the monastic element is significantly minimised. I practice with the Triratna Buddhist community and the blurring of the ...
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Is there any significance to shaving the head?
I have noticed when I look at Buddhists, or Buddhist monks, that they have shaved heads. Is there any significance to that? If so, then is it an obligation for Buddhists, or at least Buddhist monks ...
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What is the origin and purpose of the alms bowl used by monastics?
How did this practice originate and what is the meaning/purpose for it's use?
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What is the meaning behind different robe colors?
I have seen the same monk in two different color robes and am wondering why. They were dark red and of course orange. Ihave also seen brown, but that was zen, and if any other colors have relevance i ...
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How is a Theravada Buddhist monastery established?
There is no Theravada monastery in the country I live in. I just read a short brief about lay people going together and forming a forest monastery in Norway, and was wondering about how a monastery is ...
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