Bhikkhu
Buddhist monks in Thailand
Chinese name
Chinese	比丘
Transcriptions Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin bǐqiū - Wade–Giles Pi3-ch'iu1
Native Chinese name
Chinese	和尚
Transcriptions Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin héshàng - Wade–Giles he2-shang4
Burmese name
Burmese	ဘိက္ခု
Tibetan name
Tibetan	དགེ་སློང་
Transcriptions - Wylie dge slong - THDL gelong
Thai name
Thai	ภิกษุ
RTGS	phiksu
Japanese name
Kanji	和尚
Transcriptions - Romanization Oshō
Tamil name
Tamil	துறவி turawi
Sanskrit name
Sanskrit	Bhikṣu
Pali name
Pali	Bhikkhu
Nepali name
Nepali	भिक्षु

A Bhikkhu (Pāli) or Vhikṣu (Sanskrit) is an ordained male Buddhist monastic.^[1] A female monastic is called a Bhikkhuni (Skt: Bhikṣuṇī) Nepali: भिक्षुणी). The life of Bhikkhus and Bhikkhunis is governed by a set of rules called the patimokkha within the vinaya's framework of monastic discipline.^[1] Their lifestyle is shaped to support their spiritual practice, to live a simple and meditative life, and attain Nirvana.^[2] In the Vinaya monastic discipline, a man under the age of 20 cannot ordain as a bhikkhu but can ordain as a samanera (เณร); the female counterpart is samaneri.

Introduction[link]

Tibetan monks engaging in a traditional monastic debate.

Bhikkhu may be literally translated as "beggar" or more broadly as "one who lives by alms". It is philologically analysed in the Pāli commentary of Buddhaghosa as "the person who sees danger (in samsara or cycle of rebirth)" (Pāli: Bhayaṃ ikkhatīti: bhikkhu). He therefore seeks ordination to release from it.^[3] The Dhammapada states:

He is not thereby a Bhikkhu
merely because he seeks alms from others;
by following the whole code (of morality)
one certainly becomes a Bhikkhu and not (merely) by seeking alms. Herein he who has transcended both good and evil,
whose conduct is sublime,
who lives with understanding in this world,
he, indeed, is called a Bhikkhu.^[4]

A bhikkhu has taken a vow to enter the Sangha (Buddhist monastic community)^[5] and is expected to obey the Patimokkha, rules of monastic conduct (typically around 227 for a male and 311 for a female) as set out in the Vinaya, although there are considerable local variations in the interpretations of these rules. A novice monk or nun in the Tibetan tradition takes 36 vows of conduct. The minimum age to take bhikkhu vows according to ruling is 20 years counted from the conception (i.e., approximately 19 years and 3 months from birth).

In English literature before the mid-20th century, Buddhist monks were often referred to by the term bonze, particularly when describing monks from East Asia and French Indochina. This term is derived via Portuguese and French from the Japanese word bonsō for a priest or monk and has become less common in modern literature.^[6]

Becoming a Bhikkhu/Bhikkhuni[link]

In India, monasticism is part of the system of "vows of individual liberation".^[3] These vows are taken by monks and nuns from the ordinary sangha, in order to develop personal ethical discipline.^[3] In Mahayana Buddhism, the term "sangha" is, in principle, often understood to refer particularly to the Arya Sangha (Tib. mchog kyi tshogs, pronounced chokyi tsok)) the "community of the noble ones who have reached the first bhumi". These, however, need not be monks and nuns.

The vows of individual liberation are taken in four steps. A lay person may take the five upāsaka (Pali and Sanskrit; feminine: upāsikā; Tibetan dge snyan/dge snyan ma, pronounced genyen/genyenma, "approaching virtue") vows. The next step is to enter the pabbajja (Srt: pravrajya, Tib. rab byung pronounced rabjung), or monastic way of life, which includes wearing monk's or nun's robes. After that, one can become a samanera (Pali; feminine: samaneri; Skt. śrāmaṇera/śrāmaṇeri, Tib. dge tshul/dge tshul ma, pronounced getshül/getshülma), or novice monk/nun. The last and final step is to take all the vows of a bhikkhu/bhukkhuni (Pali, Sanskrit: Bhikṣu/Bhikṣuṇīs, Tib. dge long/dge long ma>, pronounced gelong/gelongma) a "fully ordained monk/nun."

Monks and nuns take their vows for a lifetime. A monk can give bhikkhu vows back and return to home living,^[5] and take the vows again later.^[5] He can take them up to three times or seven times in one life; after that the sangha should not accept him.^[7] In this way, Buddhism keeps the vows "clean". It is possible to keep them or to leave this lifestyle, but it is considered extremely negative to break these vows.

In Tibet, rabjung, getshül, gelong ordinations are usually taken at ages six, fourteen and twenty-one or older, respectively.

Robes[link]

Monk at Great Wild Goose Pagoda, Xi'an, China

The special dress of ordained people, the robes, comes from the idea of wearing cheap clothes just to protect the body from weather and climate. Monks often make their own robes from cloth that is donated to them.^[1] They shall not be made from one piece of cloth, but mended together from several pieces. Since dark red was the cheapest colour in Kashmir, the Tibetan tradition has red robes. In the south, yellow played the same role, though the color of saffron also had cultural associations in India; in East Asia, robe color varies from yellow to brown (Thailand, Theravada), red to purple (Burma, Theravada) and grey or black (e.g., Vietnam, Vajrayana (Zen)).

The robes of getshül novices and gelong monks differ in various aspects, especially in the application of "holes" in the gelong dress. Some monks tear their robes into pieces and then mend these pieces together again. The rabjung novices shall not wear the "chö-göö", the yellow tissue worn during Buddhist teachings by both getshüls and gelongs.

In observance of the Kathina Puja, a special Kathina robe is made in 24 hours from donations by lay supporters of a temple. The robe is donated to the temple or monastery, and the resident monks then select from their own number a single monk to receive this special robe.^[8]

Additional vows in the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions[link]

Portrait of a Buddhist Monk

In Mahayana traditions, a Bhikṣu may take additional vows not related to ordination, including the Bodhisattva vows, samaya vows, and others, which are also open to laypersons in most instances.

In addition, in some traditions there are forms of non-vinaya ordinations, the holders of which are not considered Bhikṣus. These included ordination into the "White Sangha" lineage of Tibetan yogis (Tib. naljorpa/naljorma, <rnal hbyor pa/ma>), and all of the ordination lineages of the various Japanese traditions.

Conclusion[link]

"Ordination" in Buddhism is a cluster of methods of self-discipline according to the needs, possibilities and capabilities of individuals. According to the spiritual development of his followers, the Buddha gave different levels of vows. The most advanced method is the state of a bikshu(ni), a fully ordained follower of the Buddha's teachings. The goal of the bhikku(ni) in all traditions is to achieve liberation from suffering.

Monks in Japan[link]

Saicho (AKA Dengyo) petitioned for a Mahayana Ordination Platform to be built in Japan. Permission was granted seven days after Dengyo died.^[9] The platform was completed in 827 CE by Dengyo's disciple, Gishin.^[9] Dengyo believed the 250 precepts were Hinayana, and that people should be ordained with the Mahayana Precepts of the Brahma Net Sutra.^[9]

During the Meiji Restoration, monastics in Japan were permitted to marry and eat meat to secularise them and promote the new imperial Shinto as a state religion, Buddhism having been the administrative assistant of choice of the previous regime.^[10][11]

See also[link]

• Anagarika
• Unsui
• Master Cheng

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Inwood, Kristiaan. Bhikkhu, Disciple of the Buddha. Bangkok, Thailand: Thai Watana Panich, 1981. (No ISBN listed in the Library of Congress catalog.)
• Inwood, Kristiaan. Bhikkhu, Disciple of the Buddha, revised edition. Bangkok, Thailand: Orchid Press, 2005. ISBN 978-974-524-059-9.

External links[link]

• The Buddhist Monk's Discipline Some Points Explained for Laypeople
• Thirty Years as a Western Buddhist Monk

Bhikkhu Bodhi
School	Theravada
Personal
Nationality	American
Born	(1944-12-10) December 10, 1944 (age 67) Brooklyn, New York, United States
Senior posting
Based in	Buddhist Publication Society Sangha Council of Bodhi Monastery Yin Shun Foundation
Predecessor	Ven. Nyanaponika Thera (BPS editor and president)
Successor	Mr. Kariyavasam (BPS editor)[1]
Religious career
Teacher	Ven. Ananda Maitreya

Bhikkhu Bodhi (b. December 10, 1944, NYC), born Jeffrey Block, is an American Theravada Buddhist monk, ordained in Sri Lanka and currently teaching in the New York/New Jersey area. He was appointed the second president of the Buddhist Publication Society and has edited and authored several publications grounded in the Theravada Buddhist tradition.

Life[link]

In 1944, Block was born in Brooklyn, NY. In 1966, he obtained a B.A. in philosophy from Brooklyn College. In 1972, he obtained a PhD in philosophy from Claremont Graduate School.^[2][3]

In 1967, while still a graduate student, Bodhi was ordained as a novice monk in the Vietnamese Mahayana order.^[3] In 1972, after graduation, Bodhi traveled to Sri Lanka where, under Ven. Ananda Maitreya,^[4] he received novice ordination and, in 1973, he received full ordination in a Theravada order.^[2]

In 1984, succeeding co-founder Ven. Nyanaponika Thera,^[4] Bodhi was appointed English-language editor of the Buddhist Publication Society (BPS, Sri Lanka) and, in 1988, became its president.^[1][2][5] In 2002, he retired from the society's editorship while still remaining its president.^[1][3][5]

In 2000, at the United Nations' first official Vesak celebration, Bodhi gave the keynote address.^[6]

In 2002, after retiring as editor of BPS,^[3] Bodhi returned to the United States. He currently teaches at Bodhi Monastery (Lafayette, New Jersey) and Chuang Yen Monastery (Carmel, New York) and is the chairman of the Yin Shun Foundation.^[2][7]

Bhikkhu Bodhi is founder of the organisation "Buddhist Global Relief", which is fighting hunger across the world.^[8]

Publications and teachings[link]

Bodhi's publications include:

• The Noble Eightfold Path: Way to the End of Suffering (1984, BPS; 2000, Pariyatti)^[9]
• The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Majjhima Nikaya (with Bhikkhu Nanamoli, 1995, Wisdom Publications)
• Numerical Discourses of the Buddha: An Anthology of Suttas from the Anguttara Nikaya (with Nyanaponika Thera, 2000, Altamira Press)
• The Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A New Translation of the Samyutta Nikaya (2000, Wisdom Publications)
• A Comprehensive Manual of Abhidhamma: The Abhidhammattha Sangaha of Ācariya Anuruddha (2000, BPS Pariyatti)
• In the Buddha's Words: An Anthology of Discourses from the Pali Canon (2005, Wisdom Publications)

Bodhi's on-line courses include:

• "The Buddha's Teaching As It Is" (1981)^[10]
• "A course in Pali Language" (2003)^[11]
• Majjhima Nikaya lectures (2003–2008)^[12]

Notes[link]

External links[link]

This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links, and converting useful links where appropriate into footnote references. (December 2011)

• www.dharma.org – An interview with Bhikkhu Bodhi
• Bodhi Monastery
• Online Books and Articles at "Access to Insight"
• Suttas read aloud
• Dhamma Talks
• Videos of Bhikkhu Bodhi at "Google Video"
• Insight Meditation Center talks