Monastic Life
A treasury of information about the joys and challenges of life as a Buddhist monastic.
All Posts in Monastic Life
Venerable Thubten Chodron Refuge and precepts ceremony
Teachings on taking the five lay precepts with or without celibacy and the eight precepts…
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The monastic preceptor
Enter monastic life with a sincere motivation. Cultivate it again and again so it increases…
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The hindrances to ordaining
Ordination provides a direction for spiritual yearning, something very pure inside of us.
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Reasons for monastic precepts
The more we keep the precepts, the better we get along with other people, because…
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The six harmonies (continued)
Living in community with mindfulness: a long-term vision to prepare the monastery for future generations…
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The precepts in modern culture
Keeping precepts in our present-day culture and relating to others in a healthy way.
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The purpose of monastic precepts
Precepts serve to guide monastics in a positive direction, making the mind peaceful by abandoning…
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The six harmonies
The temporary goal of a monastic is to create a community that facilitates practice, so…
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The “Ratnapala Sutta”
Buddha's disciple foremost in faith who, with pure motivation, looked with wisdom at cyclic existence…
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Gradual path to enlightenment
A condensed explanation of the lamrim, the gradual path to enlightenment.
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Precepts and vows
Monastics and lay practitioners take different levels of precepts. The benefits of taking and keeping…
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