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Buddhist monks,
Buddhist monk, Buddhist
monk fire, Buddhist monk
how, Buddhist monk in,
Buddhist monk, a
Buddhist monk, Buddhist
monk picture, Buddhist
monk photo, Buddhist
monk life.
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-A Buddhist Monk have several in common
with a layperson, one of this is
the attainment of Nirvana.
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Nirvana is coming
when all
desire and suffering have been eliminated and
the cycle of rebirths or Samsara ceases.
The
Buddha preached
Four Noble Truths: life is suffering,
suffering is initiated by desire and suffering ends when
desire is eliminated. Following the
Noble Eight-Fold Path is the way to achieve this.
The first step for a Buddhist Monk is Sila or morality which
means speak in the right way, right conduct and the
correct way
of life. A Buddhist Monk and other Buddhists too gains Sila on observance of the
Five Precepts, no killing, no lying, no stealing,
no sexual misconduct and no drugs, this includes
alcohol.
The
second stage is Samadhi or mental discipline,
which means the right
endeavor, right mindfulness and correct meditation.
The third stage is Panna or wisdom and insight, made
up of the right views and the correct intent.
The Buddha started the Order of the Sangha or (monks) and the Order of Bilkkuni (nuns) for men and women
wishing live a life of purity, austerity and self-discipline. To achieve one’s goal although the spiritual
progress is expedited by this process. A layperson can also become an Arahat (Saint) and proceed to his or her final destination.
-A Buddhist Monks
journey to
enlightenment.
Around 630 A.D.
Hsuan Tsang, a
highly respected
26-year-old Buddhist monk from China
started his quest to
India and Nepal in
search of Buddhist
scriptures and
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teachers. Since all
Tripitaka
translations
available at that
time didn't look
very genuine he
tried to find the
real one and sought
instruction in the
true teachings of
the Buddha.
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The journey was a
difficult one,
crossing deserts and
the Himalaya
mountains which
divided China from
India.
Another China
home made problem
was that the Chinese
emperor of that time
had forbidden travel
to the West. This
young Buddhist monk
had to hide his
identity until
passing the border.
The monks quest
lasted 17 years,
traveling through
much of Central Asia
and India. He
studied at the most
famous Buddhist
monastery of the
time and gained high
respect in an 18-day
debate attended by
thousands of monks.
The Buddhist monk
returned to China,
where he received a
positive welcome
from the emperor and
spent his later
years translating
Buddhist texts into
Chinese. He become
one of the most
famous travelers in
the history of China
and had a major
influence on later
Chinese Buddhism.
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Buddhist
Monks in
Monastery |
Buddhist
Monks in
Myanmar or
Burma |
Buddhist
Monk in
Thailand |
Buddhist
Monks in
Thailand |
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The Chinese folk
story, a Journey to
the West, is
based on his trip.
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A typical
Buddhist
monk’s
day begins
with
prayers,
meditation
and a walk
around with
alms bowl to
collect some
food. This
is usually
followed by
lessons and
interpretations
of Buddhist
scriptures
and the
usual daily
activities
such as
cooking,
eating,
cleaning
etc.
In a
monastery
there are
novices,
usually kids
and monks over
about 20
years, over
this age
Monks are ordinated,
below they
are novices.
The
smaller boys
around
in the
typical
saffron or
red robes
are either
attending
the
monastery
school or
are living
in the
monastery
either
because they
are orphans
and have no
other place
to go or
they are
sent from
their
families to
stay in the
monastery
for a while.
The
photos of
the Buddhist
monks
show part of
their lives
and the area
around them.
Their work
has a
visible
dedication
to bring a
better live
to the
community
and improve
the
monastery
they live
in.
Buddhist
Monks
teaching the
novices
and preserve
the culture. |
Buddhist
monk
meditation |
Buddhist
monks
of
the
monastery |
Monks
and
Novices
in a
Bagan
Monastery |
Buddhist
Monks
on
food
request |
Buddhist
Monks
teaching |
Buddhist
Novices |
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-Sometimes Buddhist Monks
live in danger, we have seen
this on TV during the last
uprising in Myanmar and here
is a example from
neighboring Thailand.
The
Buddhist conservationist
monk Phra Supoj was
stabbed to death at the
dhamma sanctuary on June 17,
2005. The killing took place
at the Mettadhamma Forest
Sanctuary Centre in Fang
district of Chiang Mai. A
team of the Department of
Special Investigation took
over the case.
The
investigating team was
changed in 2007 when
former judge Sunai
Monamai-Udom was in charge
of the DSI. Mr Sunai
believed the first team had
overlooked important points
and over-emphasized the
monk's alleged sexual
misconduct, since the first
group of investigators said
they found plenty of
pornographic photo files on
a hard disk seized from his
computer notebook and
concluded the death of the
monk was related to a love
affair.
The new
team of investigators to
find out the real background
of the Buddhist Monks death,
sent the hard disk to the
Information and
Communication Technology
Ministry for inspection and
they found a number of files
were added after his death.
The Buddhist monk Phra Supoj
was stabbed to death on June
17, 2005. "But between
October 2005 and January
2006, his hard disk had
4,000 new files added. Among
them are 1,120 photo files,"
a police source said.
Investigators have narrowed
the murder down to two
possibilities. One of the
motives could be related to
the monk's articles the
Thaksin Shinawatra
government's violent dealing
with the southern
insurgency. Another theory
involves Phra Supoj having
conflicts with forest
encroachers, he made
complaints to Fang district
police about them and two
days before the murder, Phra
Supoj was threatened,
because of that. Already in
2002 monks at the center
were threatened by so called
"influential people" about
this land conflict.
The police
believes three people might
be involved in the murder of
the highly respected
Buddhist conservationist
monk Phra Supoj. But
they have all died in
separate incidents, possibly
resulting from attempts to
silence them. Two have been
cremated, but the body of
the third person has been
exhumed for checks. From
Bangkok Post
5.10.09
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