Leaving home: Different doors to renunciation
Venerable Thubten Chodron 
Monastic Life 
May 19, 2026 An online talk exploring renunciation as exemplified in the Angulimala Sutta and the Ratthapala Sutta for the Majjhima Nikaya Book Club, an international, bilingual online community dedicated to studying the Pali canon
- What was the moment that made it clear you should ordain?
- The turning point for both Ratthapala and Angulimala was hearing the Buddha’s teachings
- Overcoming obstacles to becoming a Buddhist nun
- Leaving a marriage
- Overcoming parental objections
- Taking full ordination in the Chinese tradition
- How Angulimala’s past reputation affected his monastic life
- Applying the Dharma to overcoming suffering
- Questions and answers
- If Angulimala were alive today, would the justice system allow for such radical change?
- What does renunciation mean for lay practitioners?
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.
