Monastic rules

What is the purpose of the monastic celibacy?

What is the purpose of the monastic celibacy? The sangha was established by the Buddha for those wishing to devote themselves single-mindedly to his path of awakening. The Buddha designed monastic life to be one of radical simplicity, with the minimum amount of unnecessary distraction. Romantic attachments, sexual relationships, and their usual outcome –parenting- are all incompatible with the training he devised. They would also compromise the symbiotic relationship between the mendicant order and society at large which the Buddha envisaged. The Buddha discovered that the more subtle forms of happiness and the experience of true well-being are rarely accessible, […]

What is the Vinaya?

What is the Vinaya? The Vinaya is the name given to the compendium of training rules, protocols, procedures and duties laid down by the Buddha for the monastic order. The Vinaya is intended to maintain harmony within amongst monastic communities and to create the optimum conditions for the practice of Dhamma by each individual monk. The heart of the Vinaya is the Patimokkha, the 227 rules which constitute the basic code of discipline. The Patimokkha is divided into a number of sections. The first consists of four expulsion offenses: sexual intercourse, stealing, killing a human being, making bogus claims of […]