Ajahn Chah: Detachment within activity

Ajahn Chah - Detachment Within Activity (1983dukkha)

Prince Siddhartha's wife: Yasodhara

The Buddha did not have a wife, but the person who became the Buddha (Siddhartha) did.

Princess Yasodhara (Bimba Devi, aka Rāhulamātā)

Sid and Bimba agreed leaving would be good.

Rāhulamātā is the name, generally given in the ancient texts, of "Rāhula's mother" (e.g., Vin.i.82) was Prince Siddhattha Gotama's wife.

She is also called Bhaddakaccā* and, in later texts, Yasodharā (BuA., p.245; Dvy.253), which is a descriptive title not a name. Her name was Bimbā (J.ii.392f.; DA.ii.422), and "princess" is the human meaning of devī. She was probably also called Bimbāsundarī (J.vi.478 [12]), "Beautiful Bimba."

• *For example, Bu.xxvi.15; Mhv.ii.24 calls her Bhaddakaccānā ("Lucky Kaccana"), but see Thomas, op. cit., 49; she is also called Subhaddakā, this being probably a variant of Bhaddakaccānā.
• The Untold Story of Yasodhara: Prince Siddhartha's Wife (Tricycle)
• VIDEO: What about the Buddha's WIFE?

Scythian Princess Bimba/Yasodhara

The Northern (Mahayana) texts seem to favor the name of Yasodharā, but they call her the daughter of Dandapānī. (See also Rockhill, op. cit., where various other names are given as well).

It is probable that the name of Gotama's wife was Bimbā, and that Bhaddakaccā, Subhaddakā, Yosadhāri, and other names were descriptive epithets applied to her, which later became regarded as additional names.

It is also possible that in Gotama's court there was also a Yasodharā, the daughter of Dandapānī, and that there was a later confusion of names.

The Commentarial explanation (e.g., AA.i.204), that she was called Bhaddakaccānā because her body was the color of burnished gold, is probably correct. To suggest (e.g., Thomas, op. cit., 49) that the name bears any reference to the Kaccānagotta seems to be wrong because the Kaccāna clan (gotta) was a Brahmin clan, and the Sākiyans (Scythians, Sakas) were not Brahmins but "nobles" (khattiyas, deemed "warrior caste" though they were not likely part of proto-India's caste system).

Rāhulamātā was born on the same day as the Bodhisatta (J.i.54; BuA. 106, 228). She married him (Prince Siddhattha Gotama) when they were both 16 years old. (The following account is taken chiefly from J.i.58ff). She was placed at the head of 40,000 women, given to Siddhattha by the Sākiyans after he had proved his manly prowess to their satisfaction.

Siddhartha Gotama renounced his riches and royal position and left the household life on the day of the birth of their son, Rāhula. (According to one account, referred to in the Jātaka Commentary, i.62, Rāhula was seven days old).

It is said that just before he left home, he took a last look at his wife from the door of her room, not daring to go nearer, lest he should inadvertently awake her.

When as the Buddha he returned and paid his first visit to the country/seasonal capital city of Kapilavatthu after his great enlightenment, on the second day of that visit, he walked for alms in the streets. This news of this quickly spread, and Rāhulamātā looked out of her window to see if it were true.

She saw the Buddha and was so struck by the beaming glory of his personality that she uttered eight verses in its praise.

These verses have been handed down under the name of Narasīha-gāthā; on that day, after the Buddha had finished his meal in the palace, which he took at the invitation of his father, King Suddhodana, all the ladies of the court, with the exception of Rāhulamātā, went to pay him honor.

She refused to go, saying that if she had any virtue in her the Buddha would come to her. The Buddha went to her with his two chief male disciples and gave orders that she should be allowed to greet him as she wished.

She fell at his feet, and clasping them with her hands, put her head on them. King Suddhodana related to the Buddha how, from the time he had left home, Rāhulamātā had herself abandoned all luxury and had lived in the same manner as she had heard that the Buddha lived:

• wearing saffron robes,
• eating only once a day,
• sleeping on the ground,
• and so on.

The Buddha then related the Candakinnara Jātaka, to show how, in the past, too, her loyalty had been supreme.

On the seventh day of the Buddha's visit, when he left the palace at the end of his meal, Rāhulamātā sent Rāhula to him saying: "That is your father. Go and ask him for your inheritance."

Prince Rāhula followed the Buddha and, at the Buddha's request, was ordained as a monk-in-training (samanera) by Ven. Sāriputta. The account of this event is given in Vin.i.82; this is probably the only passage in the Pitakas where Rāhulamātā, is mentioned by name.

Later, when the Buddha allowed women to join the Order, Rāhulamātā became a nun under Mahā Pajāpatī Gotamī (AA.i.198).

Buddhaghosa identifies (AA.i.204f) Rāhulamātā with Bhaddakaccānā who, in the Anguttara Nikāya (A.i.25), is mentioned as chief among nuns in the possession of supernormal powers (mahābhiññappattānam).

She was one of the four disciples of the Buddha who possessed such attainment, the others being Sāriputta, Moggallāna, and Bakkula. She had wished for this achievement ta the time of Padumuttara Buddha.

In this account Bhaddakaccānā is mentioned as the daughter of the Sākyan Suppabuddha and his wife Amitā.*

• *Cf. Mhv.ii.21f. It is said (DhA.iii.44f) that Suppabuddha did not forgive the Buddha for leaving his daughter; Devadatta was Bhaddakaccanā's brother, and it has been suggested that Devadatta's enmity against the Buddha was for reasons similar to her father's.

She joined the Order of Nuns under Pajāpatī Gotamī in the company of Janapada-kalyānī (the "Belle of the Land," the Buddha's half-sister Sundari Nandā).

In the Nuns' Order she was known as Bhaddakaccānā ("Lucky Kaccana") Therī ("senior nun"). Later, she developed insight and became an arahant (fully enlightened). She could, with one effort, recall one asankheyya (indeterminate kappa or kalpa) and 100,000 ordinary kappas (AA.i.205).

In the Therī Apadāna (Ap.ii.584ff) an account is found of a therī (senior nun), Yasodharā by name, who is evidently to be identified as Rāhulamātā because she speaks of herself (vvs. 10, 11) as the Buddha's pajāpatī before he left the household (agāra) and says that she was the chief (pāmokkhā sabbaissarā) of 90,000 women.

In the time of Dīpankara Buddha, when the Bodhisatta was born as Sumedha, she was a Brahmin maiden, Sumittā by name, and gave eight handfuls of lotuses to Sumedha, which he, in turn, offered to the Buddha. Dīpankara, in declaring that Sumedha would ultimately become the Buddha, added that Sumittā would be his companion in several lives.

The Apadāna account (vvs. 1ff) mentions how, just before her passing into final nirvana, at the age of 78, she took leave of the Buddha and performed various miracles. It also states (Ap.ii.592f) that 18,000 arahant nuns, companions of Yasodharā, also passed on the same day. More: Rāhulamātā

• Prettiest lady in the universe, the Arhat Yasodhara Maha Theri (Ven. Bimba, Bhaddhakaccana, Rahulamata)
• G.P. Malalasekera, Dictionary of Pali Proper Names, edited by Dhr. Seven (ed.), Wisdom Quarterly

Hidden Buddhist monasteries of Mongolia

The hidden monasteries of Mongolia: How Buddhism shaped Mongolia’s nomadic soul | SLICE

(SLICE) In the heart of Central Asia, Mongolia’s vast, untouched landscapes have shaped a unique form of Buddhism, where spirituality and nature exist in perfect harmony.

Introduced in the 16th century, Buddhism spread across the endless steppes, carried by merchant caravans alongside silk and spices. Monasteries rose like mirages in the wilderness, blending seamlessly with the land’s raw power.

Through centuries of resilience, Mongolian Buddhism has evolved, influenced by Tibetan traditions yet deeply rooted in nomadic life.

• Buddhism in Mongolia

From sacred rituals to the revival of monasteries after Soviet repression, this is the story of a faith (saddha) that has withstood time, exile, and change.

Documentary: Sacred Spaces – Asian temples. Humans, Nature, and Gods. Directed by: Véronique Legendre. Production: ZED, ARTE FRANCE, CuriosityStream. SLICE fully owns the rights to the use of the published content. Any illegal reproduction of this content will result in immediate legal action. SLICE wants to fill up viewers' curiosity! Accessible to anyone from anywhere at any time, this channel is a weekly dose of short docs about curious facts, discoveries, astounding info, unusual stories, weird, fun, and instructive. Be smart, have a slice! Subscribe now ► @slicedocumentary Become a fan: @slicedocumentary. Follow: 👇 In French: slicefr. Facebook: slicedocs. Instagram: slicedocs. #documentary #slice #fulldocumentary #freedocumentary #mongolia #buddha #buddhism #history #religion #sacred #temple #amazing #spirituality #spiritual #monl #prayer #pray

• SLICE, Feb. 13, 2025; CC Liu, Crystal Q., Sheldon S. (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

SUTRA: Final words of the Buddha (DN 16)

Sister Vajira and Francis Story (trans), Maha-Parinibbana Sutta: "Last Days of the Buddha" (DN 16 PTS: D ii 72), 1998; Dhr. Seven, Amber Larson (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Welfare of the Wandering Ascetic Order

6. Then, soon after Vassakara's departure, the Blessed One [the Buddha] addressed Venerable Ananda: "Go now, Ananda, and assemble in the main hall as many monastics as live around [the royal city of] Rajagaha."

"Very well, venerable sir." And Ven. Ananda did as requested and informed the Blessed One: "The monastic community is assembled, venerable sir. Let the Blessed One do as he wishes."

The Blessed One rose from his seat, went to the hall, took the seat prepared for him, and addressed those gathered:

"Seven conditions leading to welfare shall I set forth, meditators. Listen and pay heed to what I shall say."

"Indeed, venerable sir."

"The growth of the monastic community is to be expected, not its decline, meditators,

1. so long as they assemble frequently and in large numbers
2. [so long as they] meet and disperse peacefully and attend to the affairs of the Monastic Community (Sangha) in concord
3. so long as they appoint no new rules, and do not abolish the existing ones, but proceed in accordance with the Code of Training (Vinaya) laid down
4. so long as they show respect, honor, esteem, and veneration towards the elder meditators, those of long standing, long gone forth [as monastics], the fathers and leaders of the Monastic Community, and think it worthwhile to listen to them
5. so long as they do not come under the power of the craving that leads to fresh becoming [rebirth]
6. so long as they cherish the forest depths for their dwellings
7. so long as they establish themselves in mindfulness so that virtuous meditators of the Monastic Order who have not come yet might do so, and those already come might live in peace.

So long, meditators, as these seven conditions leading to welfare endure among the meditators and the meditators are known for it, their growth is to be expected, not their decline.

Siddhartha dwelled in the forest to awaken.

7. "Seven further conditions leading to welfare shall I set forth, meditators. Listen and pay heed to what I shall say."

"Indeed, venerable sir."

"The growth of the Monastic Community to be expected, not its decline, meditators,

1. so long as they do not delight in, are not pleased with, and are not fond of activities,
2. talk,
3. sleep, and
4. company [socializing]
5. so long as they do not harbor and do not come under the spell of harmful desires
6. have no bad friends, associates, or companions
7. and so long as they do not stop halfway on account of some trifling achievement,

So long, meditators, as these seven conditions leading to welfare endure among the meditators and the meditators are known for it, their growth is to be expected, not their decline.

Seven Good Qualities [6]

8. "Seven further conditions leading to welfare shall I set forth, meditators. Listen and pay heed to what I shall say."

"Indeed, venerable sir."

"The growth of the Monastic Community is to be expected, not their decline, meditators,

1. so long as they have faith [confidence, saddha]
2. so long as they have moral dread
3. and fear of misconduct,
4. are proficient in learning,
5. resolute,
6. mindful,
7. and wise.

"So long, meditators, as these seven conditions leading to welfare endure among the meditators, and the meditators are known for it, their growth is to be expected, not their decline.

Seven Factors of Enlightenment [7]

9. "Seven further conditions leading to welfare shall I set forth, medtiators. Listen and pay heed to what I shall say."

"Indeed, venerable sir."

"The growth of the Monastic Community is to be expected, not their decline, meditators, so long as they cultivate the Seven Factors of Enlightenment, that is:

1. mindfulness,
2. investigation of phenomena,
3. energy,
4. bliss,
5. tranquility,
6. concentration, and
7. equanimity.

"So long, meditators, as these seven conditions leading to welfare endure among the meditators, and the meditators are known for it, their growth is to be expected, not their decline.

Seven Perceptions

10. "Seven further conditions leading to welfare shall I set forth, meditators. Listen and pay heed to what I shall say."

"Indeed, venerable sir."

"The growth of the Monastic Community is to be expected, not their decline, meditators, so long as they cultivate the

1. perception of impermanence,
2. of egolessness [the impersonal nature of all things, particularly the Five Aggregates clung to as self],
3. of (the body's) impurity,
4. of (the body's) wretchedness,
5. of relinquishment,
6. of dispassion,
7. and of cessation.

"So long, meditators, as these seven conditions leading to welfare endure among the meditators, and the meditators are known for it, their growth is to be expected, not their decline.

Six Conditions to be Remembered [8]

11. "Six further conditions leading to welfare shall I set forth, meditators. Listen and pay heed to what I shall say."

"Indeed, venerable sir."

"The growth of the Monastic Community is to be expected, not their decline, meditators,

1. so long as they attend on each other with loving kindness in deed,
2. word,
3. and thought, both openly and in private
4. so long as in respect of what they receive as due offerings, even the contents of their alms bowls they do not make use of without sharing them with virtuous fellow members of the community
5. so long as, in company with their companions, they train themselves, openly and in private, in the rules of conduct (Patimokkha and Vinaya), which are complete and perfect, spotless and pure, liberating, praised by the wise, uninfluenced (by mundane concerns), and favorable to concentration [coherence] of mind
6. and in company with their companions, preserve, openly and in private, the insight [vipassana] that is noble and liberating, and leads one who acts upon it to the utter destruction of suffering.

"So long, meditators, as these six conditions leading to welfare endure among the meditators, and the meditators are known for it, their growth is to be expected, not their decline.

Counsel to the Wandering Ascetics

12. And the Blessed One, dwelling in Rajagaha, on the hill called Vultures' Peak, often gave counsel to the meditators:

"Such and such is virtue; such and such is concentration; and such and such is wisdom. [9]

"Great becomes the fruit, great is the gain of concentration [coherence, samadhi] when it is fully developed by virtuous conduct (sila); great becomes the fruit, great is the gain of wisdom when it is fully developed by concentration (samma-samadhi).

"Utterly freed from the taints [10] of lust, becoming, and ignorance is the mind (heart) that is fully developed in wisdom." More

The Little Hours: Sisterhood of Bad Nuns (film)

George Prentice (BoiseWeekly); The Little Hours; Seth Auberon, Crystal Q., Wisdom Quarterly

WARNING: Comedy The Little Hours RED BAND trailer with Aubrey Plaza, Dave Franco, Fred Armisen, Alison Brie, Molly Shannon, Kate Micucci, John Reilly, and Nick Offerman.

 

The opening scene of The Little Hours, which is based on Giovanni Boccaccio's 14th century novella The Decameron, the "Human Comedy," is idyllic.

Framed by wildflower-covered hills of Tuscany, Italy, a young nun slowly leads a donkey as a choir sings, presumably from a not-too-distant convent. Moments later, a young man smiles at two passing nuns.

"Good day," he says. "It's a beautiful morning, sisters." "Don't f*cking talk to us!" screams one nun, reaching for a hatchet. The other chimes in with more profanity -- the most I've ever heard spoken in 10 seconds.

The most blistering of the torch-tongued is none other than Aubrey Plaza, who rolled her eyes as "April Ludgate" for all seven seasons of NBC comedy Parks and Rec. Plaza is also a co-producer of The Little Hours, along with her boyfriend... More

What is Buddhist "LENT" in Theravada Thailand?

Karuna Kusalasaya, Buddhism in Thailand: Its Past and Present (Wheel 85, BPS.lk) via accesstoinsight.org; Amber Larson, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Wikipedia edit

Thai woman offers dana to group of temporary monks (novices) in Thailand (Bugphai).

Buddhist "Lent" is a time for intensive study or practice. A samanera (lit. "little monk") quietly reads in Burma. Novices, usually aged 7 to 20, temporarily go forth to try monastic life (Anek Suwannaphoom/flickr).

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Golden Thai Buddhas (drhill/flickr.com)

With the rapid progress of science and with the shrinking of the world, Buddhist leaders of Theravada Buddhist Thailand, monastics and laypeople, are awakening to the necessity of imparting broader education to members of the Monastic Order (Sangha) if it is to serve Buddhism as the historical Buddha intended: "for the gain of the many, for the welfare of the many."

 

As a result of the new outlook there now function in Bangkok two higher institutes of learning exclusively for monastics and temporary novices (trainees). ...Inclusion in the curriculum of some secular subjects compatible with Monastic Code of Discipline (vinaya) is among the notable features of these two institutes.

The aim is to give an all-round education to monastics in order to enable them to be of better service to the cause of Buddhism amid modern conditions.

There are monks and more and more nuns in Thailand; they practice long-term. Mostly, there are novices, who enter the Monastic Order temporarily, many for a period of three months during the Rains Retreat or Vassa, called Buddhist Lent (explained below).

Buddhist novices in Burma offer candles to seated Buddha statue (notjustnut/flickr.com).

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Their education is brief and devoted to the main tenets and features of Buddhism. Such people enter monasticism either by their own genuine intention to gain for knowledge of the Dharma, others who enter out of Thai custom, or the two reasons combined.

Monastics of this kind return to lay life again as soon as Lent is over.

This is the reason why accommodations in monasteries and nunneries (wats) are usually full during the Lenten period of the Rains Retreat.

Nowadays, owing to the pressure of modern life, the custom of temporarily entering a monastery is not so rigorously observed by people living in urban areas as by those in the countryside. The custom has its parallel in Burma, Cambodia, and Laos where Theravada Buddhism prevails.

What do they do for Buddhist "Lent"?

Dhr. Seven, Pat Macpherson (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Wikipedia edit

Theravada monk kindly taming a wild elephant (Nudiat69/pornhashtag.com/flickr.com)

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The traditional Asian rainy season known as Vassa is often glossed in English as the Rains Retreat or Buddhist Lent.

It is "Lent" by analogy to Christian Lent (which Vassa predates by many centuries).

 

For the duration of Buddhist Lent, monastics remain in one monastery or temple grounds (vihara). In some monasteries, monastics dedicate this period of three lunar months to intensive meditation.

Some Buddhist lay people choose to observe Lent by adopting more ascetic practices than usual, such as giving up meat, abstaining from alcohol, or breaking the addiction of smoking.

While Vassa is sometimes casually called "Buddhist Lent," some object to this terminology. And the Buddha's birthday -- which also falls on the day of his great enlightenment and passing into nirvana -- probably should not really be called "Buddhist Christmas," but the West needs the shorthand.

Commonly, the number of years a monastic has spent in monastic life as a fully ordained bhikkhu or bhikkhuni is expressed by counting the number of Vassas (or rains) since ordination.

 

Vietnamese Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh

Most Mahayana Buddhists do not observe Vassa, but Vietnamese Zen (Thiền) and Korean Zen (Seon) monastics observe an equivalent retreat of three months of intensive practice in one location, a practice also observed in Tibetan Buddhism.

 

Lent begins on the first day of the waning moon of the eighth lunar month, which is the day after Asalha Puja or Asalha Uposatha (the fasting or lunar observance "Dharma day"). It ends on Pavarana, when all monastics come before the community (Sangha) and atone for any offense or monastic rule infraction that might have been committed during Lent.

 

Lent is followed by Kathina, a festival in which the lay Buddhists express gratitude to monastics. Lay Buddhists bring gifts, donations, and offerings of support to temples, especially new robes for monks.

 

No rain, but we follow the same dates.

The Lent or Rains Retreat tradition predates the time of the historical Gautama Buddha. It was a long-standing custom for mendicant ascetics in and around Ancient "India" (when it was many independent kingdoms and clan territories) not to travel during the rainy season as wandering ascetics might unintentionally harm crops, insects, frogs, or even themselves during their travels.

Many Buddhist ascetics now live in regions of the world that lack an actual rainy season. Consequently, there are places where formal Lent may not be typically observed. The 2016 dates for Vassa were July 20 through October 16. More

What is a Buddhist wat?

Monastic temple complex aerial view with central reliquary, stupa/pagoda, laid out as map of the cosmos, Wat Phra That Luang, Vientiane, Laos (Sasin Tipchai/Bugphai/flickr.com).

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The central reliquary or stupa

The word wat means monastic-temple complex. It is the residence of monastics and novices. There are about 21,000 wats in Thailand. In Bangkok alone there are nearly 200. Some big wats in Bangkok have as many as 600 resident monastics and novices.

Wats are centers of Thai art and architecture. Thai culture, to a considerable extent, flows from wats. Temple lands and construction on them is donated by royals, wealthy people, and the public in general.

The wat is the most important institution in Thai rural life. The social life of the rural community revolves around the wat. Besides carrying out the obvious religious activities, a wat serves the community as a recreation center, dispensary, school, community center, home for the aged and destitute, social work and welfare agency, village clock, rest-house, news agency, and information center.

The Buddha surrounded by devas

It is headed by an "abbot" (chao avas) who is responsible for the maintenance of the wat discipline, the proper performance of religious services and rituals, and the general welfare of residents. Besides monastics and novices, there are also the "temple boys" in wats, who assist monastics and novices in various ways, such as bringing and arranging food, cleaning dormitories, washing saffron robes, and so on.

Usually these boys are related to resident monastics in one way or another, and their stay is free of charge. Most of them are students whose homes are far away and who would otherwise find it impracticable to get an education. This is especially so in Bangkok where accommodation is difficult to get and where all higher seats of learning of the country are situated. 

The census of 1954 revealed that there are as many as 119,044 temple boys in Thailand. The social institution of the wat, a gift of Buddhism, therefore contributes to the social welfare and progress of Thai Buddhists.

 

Apart from engaging themselves in sutra studies and observing the disciplinary code in general, monastics are expected to be "friends, philosophers, and guides" to people.

Teaching face to face or on the radio is one of the most common ways by which they help the promotion of moral stability. To reiterate, Buddhism emphasizes the necessity of leading a virtuous life in order to obtain happiness in this life and lives hereafter. More

Buddhist Summer School: Lesson 10 (audio)

Bhikkhu Bodhi (BM/BAUS); Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells, Amber Larson, CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly

Buddhist hall, Thrangu Monastery, Richmond, BC, Canada (nathanbauman.com)

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Wisdom Quarterly's Buddhist Summer School started Monday, June 20, 2016. It is open to all and taught by our principal teacher, American monk Bhikkhu Bodhi. Place a note in the comments section.
  

How can I learn Buddhism in one summer?

American scholar-monk Bhikkhu Bodhi is the famous translator of many Buddhist sutra collections into English.

He created a series of ten recordings on the fundamentals of what the Buddha taught. Those audio lessons are linked below.
  

The series, "The Buddha's Teaching: As It Is," can also be streamed online HERE (free).
  

TEN AUDIO LECTURES

1. The Buddha
2. The Four Noble Truths
3. The True Nature of Existence
4. Dependent Origination
5. Rebirth and Karma
6. Nirvana
7. The Noble Eightfold Path
8. Meditation
9. Social Teachings of the Buddha
10. The Sangha

Lesson 10: The Sangha [Monastic Community]

"The Buddha's Teaching As It Is" by Bhikkhu Bodhi (BodhiMonastery.org)

Why would anyone become a monastic?

Bhikkhu Bodhi (BAUS, Bodhi Monastery), Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly

Buddhist wat or temple, Benjamabopit, Bangkok, Thailand (Krunja Photography/flickr.com)

Lay vs monastic practice under the bodhi tree (Tapas Ghosh/tapasphotography/flickr.com)

Burmese "novice monk" or samanera, training for ordination at age 20 (Silvia Pasqual)

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Thai novices (Valerio Allasla)

There is a long and esteemed monastic tradition in popular, Hindu-influenced Mahayana Buddhism. But it is even stronger in the ancient Theravada tradition prevalent in Southeast Asian. The question is, Why would anyone want to become a fully ordained monk, nun, temporarily ordained novice, or anagarika (aspirant who has left home)?

The Buddha gave the best explanation in answer to just such a question. In a discourse entitled "The Fruits of Recluseship" (Samana-phala Sutra), the Enlightened One lists some of the benefits that worldly people can hardly comprehend or imagine.

An anagarika, April 2016

The American scholar-monk Bhikkhu Bodhi delivers a great expose on the Monastic Community or Sangha, one of the three precious jewels in Buddhism alongside the Buddha and the Dharma. As Wisdom Quarterly is fond of saying, these Three Jewels translate as:

1. the Teacher,
2. the Teaching, and
3. the Taught.

It might be clearer to say:

1. the Enlightened One,
2. the Path to Enlightenment, and
3. the Enlightened.

• 

  Kung fu monks, Shaolin temple, China*

  Sangha has two distinct meanings, one being the general Buddhist community, particularly the monastic community, and the more important being the Noble Community composed of laypeople and monastics who have attained at least the first stage of enlightenment. Mahayana likes to talk about the sangha as all Buddhists, whereas Theravada reserves the word for monastics, both forgetting that it is the Ariya Sangha, the "Community of Noble Ones" that is the real jewel over and above any other community.
• *PHOTO: Shaolin monastery, Hunan Province, China (Ana Paola Pineda/flickr.com).

Bhikkhu Bodhi explains The Sangha

Do I need a penis? (Buddhist Monastic Code)

Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly; Abbot Thanissaro (Metta)

Young novices in Tergar home to 150 from Tibet, Nepal, AP and UP India (Groobo/flickr)

 
Self-mutilation

Buddhist Monastic Code II

A male monastic (bhikkhu) who cuts off his own genitalia [is in violation of the Disciplinary Code and] incurs a thullaccaya ["grave offense"].

Now at that time a certain monastic, tormented by dissatisfaction, cut off his own penis. The others reported this matter to the Blessed One (who said), “When one thing should have been cut off, that foolish man cut off something else.”

The “thing that should have been cut off,” the Sub-commentary notes, was the obsession for [sensual] passion. The Commentary adds that cutting off any other part of one’s body -- such as an ear, nose, or finger -- out of spite [is also a violation and] entails a dukkata ["misconduct" or "wrongdoing").

However, one is allowed to cut or cut off any part of one’s body for a medical purpose (as in an amputation); or to let blood, for example, when bitten by a snake or an insect, or to treat a disease that calls for blood-letting (see Chapter 5; Mv.VI.14.4).

Disciplinary Code
Wisdom Quarterly (COMMENTARY)

Older translations exist (i.e., Rhys Davids)

While Wisdom Quarterly is pro-sex, we are also pro-monasticism, which entails submitting oneself temporarily to celibacy of mind and body. Why would that ever be a good idea?

One can make excellent progress on the path to enlightenment in a very short time living as the Buddha prescribed the "high life," the "holy life," the "supreme life" (brahmacharya) -- or teaching that leads to the "supreme" attainment -- IF one enters into it with the right view and motivation rather than because of delusion, guilt, debt, aversion, with an aim to win fame and gain, or to be in the constant company of men or women (if gay), and so on.

High morals and even higher ideals have a strong tendency to lead to hypocrisy. The Buddha set out a path that works and that has worked for thousands of years. One must find it, rediscover it, and practice it to get ahead. Most Vinayas are corrupted and misinterpreted in practice, but the books remain. Enter with eyes wide open.

Does one need a penis?

Bush, okay, but who really needs Dick?

That is, Does a male intending to become a Buddhist monk need a penis? Absolutely, yes. One will not be allowed in without one, which may be due to the banning of pandakas [a term we have attempted to explain in many posts], a difficult term that has long been mistranslated as "eunuch." Another explanation is that what one needs to overcome is not the physical member but the mental motivation behind it, and to do that a penis is necessary.

Monastic Life
The Buddhist monastic life, at least in the older and stricter Theravada school (and particularly the revivalist super strict Thai forest Thammayut sect Ven. Thanissaro is a part of), is circumscribed on all sides.

The Buddha laid out a Disciplinary Code (Vinaya), a Path-to-Moksha or Liberation (Patimokkha), with explanations for each rule. 

The hundreds of self-imposed guidelines for fully ordained monastics -- 227 for monks, 311 for nuns -- living supported by the generosity of donors are divided into sections based on their seriousness.

• Why "extra rules" (garu-dhammas) for nuns?

The largest body of guidelines, which are in addition to these rules, concern etiquette and make for the relative peace of communal living in a monastic setting for monks and nuns, who dwell separately.

In contrast the smallest, most serious, and most important group of rules are called defeat-offenses (parajikas). They are strict prohibitions on killing, stealing, sexual contact, and falsely claiming attainments (such as the stages of enlightenment or magical powers).

Sexual indiscretion is perhaps the most common problem faced in a celibate order of ascetics trying to live as a community in a monastery, caves, or a forest hermitage (aranya). It is easy to control if one does not come into contact with temptations, but the Buddha ensured that one would constantly be in contact with the lay community, who visit to provide food and hear the Dharma.

Why did the Buddha have to make rules?

People often lose sight of the three reasons for a formal Disciplinary Code:

1. to provide a speedy vehicle to enlightenment, a direct path, a prati-moksha (path-to-supreme-liberation),
2. to encourage new meditators and comfort those who have already attained (enlightenment stages, absorptions, etc.),
3. to preserve the Dharma as a living tradition with "saints" (arhats) for many generations.

Wouldn't it be so much better for me, as a monastic, not to tell you what to do and not do -- and, conversely, have you not tell me what to do and not to do? No, no, no. One can live on one's own with that kind of attitude. The Buddha set up a system dependent on lay people, dependent on others, dependent on the Doctrine-and-Disciples (Dhamma-Vinaya)

Being a recluse (bhikkhu/bhikkhuni) or wandering ascetic (samana) usually means mental rather than physical seclusion. There is plenty of good company in kalyana-mittas ("noble friends"), but one withdraws to contemplate and meditate successfully -- progressing through the stages of absorption and insight that make Buddhist monasticism a delight with many fruits. (See "The Fruits of Recluseship Discourse," Samanaphala Sutta where the Buddha outlines the advantages of monasticism over living an ordinary household life).

Buddhist Monastic Code I

Wisdom Quarterly is in no way fond of Ven. Thanissaro (Geoffrey DeGraff)'s eccentric and misleading translations, interpretations, grammar, style, or general deportment as a person and monk pushed out of Thailand. But he has done a great service to the English-speaking world in at least one way: He long ago translated the Vinaya (Buddhist Monastic Code I and II), which most lay Buddhists are completely unfamiliar with, and he has freely provided his strained and oddly interpreted version of the Dhamma through many translations from Thai and Pali available through accesstoinsight.org. We speak from years of knowing him personally and his few American disciples not from merely trying to read his free works.

Destructive behavior

The Vibhanga to Pr 2 states that a monastic who breaks, scatters, burns, or otherwise renders unusable the property of another person incurs a dukkata. Cv.V.32.1 adds that a monastic is not allowed to burn underbrush. However, if a brush fire is burning, a counter-fire may be lit and protection (paritta) made. This last phrase apparently means reciting a protective charm [mantra-like chanting of Buddhist sutras], such as...