Monastic tradition with strong community aspects

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Simon T, modified 9 Years ago at 5/13/14 6:14 AM
Created 9 Years ago at 5/13/14 6:00 AM

Monastic tradition with strong community aspects

Posts: 383 Join Date: 9/13/11 Recent Posts
I'm getting curious into monastic communities that balance individual practices with strong community activities. Activities that goes behond rituals and actually serve a purpose (spiritual or material). Ex:

-Drawing sand mandala while chanting as a group (that's seems a amazing practice to both calm the mind and increase concentration)
-Chanting
-Group meditation
-Taking care of the affairs of the temple, peeling potatoes, chopping wood, caring water, growing vegetables
-Studying, sharing findings. (with interaction encouraged for those purposes)
-More openness to share experiences en difficulties. Accessible teachers (so in my dreams monastery, there is Arahants everywhere with an open-door policy)
-Participating at the construction or maintenance of the facilities
-A minimum of harship 

Ajahn Chah was known to incite his students to participate in tedious activities like building a road but in general, it's appears that the Therevadin aren't too much incline in doing things as a group beyond rituals, dharma talks and chanting.

I have feeling that the Tibetan might be more into this kind of stuff but it might vary from one temple to another. 

The Christian Contemplative surely have a strong sense of community, chanting together, working together (making beer, cheese) but as it seems they tend to be too authoritarian, I believe. 

I heard that the monks in China had to develop more skills and a stronger sense of community to survive, since they couldn't survive on alms giving only. They even trained in fighting. According to Stephen Bachelor (for what it's worth) very few monks then achieved Enlightenment as they were too busy. So a balance is needed.
Max L, modified 9 Years ago at 5/13/14 3:45 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 5/13/14 3:44 PM

RE: Monastic tradition with strong community aspects

Posts: 19 Join Date: 5/4/14 Recent Posts
Simon,

I can share my observations from having stayed a couple of times at Wat Metta in Southern California (Thanissaro Bhikkhu, abbot). From what I can tell, they check most of the boxes on your list. Monks are not involved in the preparation of the meal, which is left to the lay residents and guests. There's definitely some communal study/scholarship happening -- some of the monks are often in the computer room doing some kind of writing, translation or transcription. Most, if not all of the monks also participate in the afternoon work periods, which is generally some kind of upkeep/maintenance (the monastery is located within a working avocado and citrus orchard). It's hard to be certain what exactly the monks are up to the rest of the time, as there is a designated cloister area where they spend most of the day, and lay people are asked to stay away. In any case, I get the impression that it's a tightly knit community, not at all individualistic. 
Calvin, modified 9 Years ago at 10/2/14 3:52 AM
Created 9 Years ago at 10/2/14 3:30 AM

RE: Monastic tradition with strong community aspects

Posts: 2 Join Date: 10/2/14 Recent Posts
The activity and projects of Thabarwa Sayadaw U Ottamasara might be of interest to you,  even though his place cannot be considered a monastery because of to much involvement with lay people. 

He set up a meditation center which ended up functioning as a refugee camp at the same time,  taking care of poor,  homeless,  sick and who ever needs care.  

His aim was and is to teach meditation to everybody regardless of their circumstances ,  thats why he does not emphasize rules but to do good deeds at his center. 
If there are less rules,  there will be more chance for people to get involved in meditation. 
Self responsibility is the key,  it is totally different than the normal quiet meditation center,  which most people imagine when they think of meditation. 

This thabarwa (burmese: natural) center are actually branches set up and rapidly expanding throughout myanmar,  this year the first center opened up in malaysia.

The Main purpose is meditation but there are also unlimited possibilities for meditators and lay people to do meditation in action to contribute to the well being of others. 

This kind of activity from a monk is extremely rare in myanmar,  it gets a lot of support from monks who come regularly to visit and teach. almost daily different monks from many kinds of tradition come to teach at Thabarwa Center. 
There is also a lot of criticism for lack of Vinaya 
But the good deeds are more important and also the center is rapidly changing and improving with time.

It is a very new center only 8 years old, but it is a huge village with 3000 people and a lot of room for improvement. 

There is a meditation schedule for yogis who strictly want to meditate. 

The monks (about 200) in the center collecting a lot of food daily to support the elderly and sick living in the center is actually the only activity they collectively do but now they also set up a school for young nuns and one for novices to study the dhamma. 
Nuns and monks do alot of the administration,  planning and organizing of thabarw projects like dhamma hospitals,  schools,  dhamma halls,  building pagodas and new wellfare villages etc. 

Thabarwameditationcenter.wordpress.com 

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