American Buddhist Monk: Thanks and Giving

Ven. Subhuti, American Buddhist Monk; Dhr. Seven, Pat Macpherson (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

This past November 24th I helped donate and prepare breakfast and lunch for Pa-Auk Forest Monastery at Pyin Oo Lwin. I organized 28 Theravada Buddhist monks (including me) to donate a whole day's meals and fresh-squeezed apple juice. The cost came to 1,250,000 Burmese kyat (pronounced "chat"). Our donation fed approximately 530 yogis across four sections in Pa-Auk Forest Monastery. Monks don't touch money, so how is it possible for monks to donate? Let me explain.

At the end of the Rainy Season (Vassa) and on the full moon day of February, it's sort of like Buddhist-Xmas, and we get lots of gifts. Besides robes I received (three cotton and one synthetic), we got gifts like razors, blades, brooms, dustbins, and a little high-powered flashlight along with some other things. That was nice. A few days later there came two requisite slip papers worth 45,000 kyat. Below are those items.

Monks who strictly adhere to the Monastic Disciplinary Code (Vinaya) are not allowed to touch money. We can only ask for things from people who invite us to ask. There are several ways a monk can be invited. Most of my donors have given me full invitations that do not expire and are only limited to their ability and confidence (faith), which I’m supposed to gauge. These slips are of a different class of donation. It allows the recipient monk to ask for anything he needs up to the value up to 45,000 kyat from the monastery steward.

This method is very popular in Thailand and has recently crept into Pa-Auk monasteries by osmosis. It is very convenient but can also make the mind wander thinking of things one might need. Some strict monks who do not use this method call these “money vouchers.” But they are what they are, invitations for items a monk needs up to a certain value.

We can use these donation slips to request phone cards, replace broken items, or for medical expenses not covered in the “Pa-Auk HMO,” like blood tests or external doctor visits although they are usually free because doctors donate their services. So I’m looking at the slip thinking how valuable it is and what I could ask for. As a monk these are stupid thoughts, so I decided to round up 27 other monks to use our slips to make a dana meal donation for the day. Not everyone is in a position to be able to give away such slips, but I’m well supported and don’t need to worry about telephone cards or HMO deficiencies. There are roughly 170 monks at the monastery, so I figured it might be possible to get 20% without a sweat.

I drew up a sheet that looked like the picture below and placed it next to the leftover food table. It's not official, so I could not ask to put it up on the notice board. Within two days the list was filled up, and we made the donation. There were also roughly 10 others who came late but could not be included on the list. There are four languages because of the countries of those who donated.

A week or two later, I give back the slips and we personally hand them to the woman in charge of the office. It was quite an event. Although meal donations by locals are down because nobody is allowed inside to witness their donations or help serve, there is still a long waiting list to donate daily meals. I tried to donate the Thanksgiving Day meal, but the best I could do was snag a cancellation on November 24th. Otherwise, I might have needed to wait until January or February 2021.

That is how 28 monks made a donation for the rest of sangha (spiritual community).

My bowl filled with lunch. More

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