Monastic precepts and community life

02 Exploring Monastic Life 2021

Part of a series of teachings given during Sravasti Abbey's annual Exploring Monastic Life program in 2021.

Discussion Group Questions

  1. Think about how the social and cultural conditions your parents grew up in. What was their family situation?
  2. Think about the social and cultural conditions that you grew up in.
  3. How have these influences guided what “success” means to you?
  4. How much do you agree with and follow these ideas about “success”?
Venerable Thubten Chodron

Venerable Chodron emphasizes the practical application of Buddha’s teachings in our daily lives and is especially skilled at explaining them in ways easily understood and practiced by Westerners. She is well known for her warm, humorous, and lucid teachings. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 by Kyabje Ling Rinpoche in Dharamsala, India, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni (full) ordination in Taiwan. Read her full bio.