Introduction on Buddhist monasteries
The word sangha is used in the Teravada tradition to
indicate the monastic community, while in Mahayana it also includes the lay
community (Samuel 1998
8). So the sangha in the Tibetan definition exists of monks, nuns,
lay man en lay woman and everything in between (like novices). In Mongolia
lama used to be the term for a fully ordinated monk (Miller 1959: 11), but
nowadays there doesn't seem to be any ordination and a lot of lama's live
independently.
In Tibetan is referred to what I will call monastery as
gompa[1].
According to Samuel:
“…anything from a small village temple where local
lay practioners do occasional rituals to a sizeable monastic town containing
temples, colleges, and residential halls for monks.” (Samuel 1993: 32).
In Mongolian there are three terms: süme, küriye
and keid (khiid[2])
(Miller 1959: 12). Although the (English) words monastery and temple derive
from a Christian tradition, they are in that way generally applied on the
Buddhist tradition.
[3]. Temple than refers
to “one building used for specific religious services or housing one or
more images” and a monastery to “a number of buildings, together with
their lama inhabitants”(Miller 1959: 11)
In the monastery there are different functions. The Abbot,
the chanting-master, the disciplinarian, the caretaker for the shrine-room,
his assistant and the kitchen duty[4].
(Havnevik 1989: 47). Some of these functions shift every year
Monks are not supposed to have any material belongings except
for the few attributes described by the Buddha. In contrast with the Theravadin
tradition, and the time of the historical Buddha, monks of the Mahayana traditions
don’t go around collecting alms. So they don’t gather their money actively
Although in The hidden tradition a photo is shown of monks begging
for alms by chanting scriptures at the roadside (Zi & Pen 1993: 114-5 ).
In The Cult of Tārā Beyer describes a day in the
life of monastery for the monk Bongpa trüku. In the morning he performs his
individual contemplation and prostration[5]
for one and a half hour. After breakfast there is a collective morning gathering*
for the evocation of the most important gods of his sect and monastery. Here
also is time for special “serious wishes” or “verses of good fortune” which
are requested by other monks or lay people. This ritual takes about two hours.
After this time has come for the individual task for the monastics. In Bongpa
trüku´s case this is the librarian. His spare time is mostly dedicated to
reading or copying texts. His lunch is being served by an older monk – at
a meal there should always be waited for a high incarnation. After this meal
Bongpa goes to monastic the workshop where he works as a supervisor and performing
artist
PLACE
There is a great variety in the number and sort of buildings
at a monastery. The number and size of the buildings of course depends on
the present or historical size of the monastery expressed in the number of
monks. The sort of the buildings also depends on the type of monastery and
it´s function. A monastery orientated on education may be supplied with classrooms,
while a monastery focused on medical consult is likely to have some sort of
waiting room or surgery. The monastery described by Stephan Beyer (1973) has
to main temples or assembly halls, workrooms, and the monks´ quarters which
all are surrounded by a wall. In front of the main temple there is a big open
space for the performance of ritual dances. The monastic college is situated
outside of the wall (Beyer 1973: 17).
The key building of every monastery is the (main) temple.
Here the most important collective rituals take place. Furthermore there will
be a residence for the monks. This might be in the form of one single building
with separate rooms or small houses for each individual monk, like in the
monastery of Beyers study and Baldan Baraivan. Other important constructions
on the monastic compound are those for worship. These contain stupa´s, prayer
wheels and sculptures.
Bibliography
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