Planning your summer vacation? Sure a trip to the lake or the mountains might be relaxing, but how about a trip to Thailand to become a resident monk? A news web site called Global Post reports on a different type of getaway where you can shed your hair, worldly desires and about $700 from your wallet to live in a temple.
Some call this a novel way to find the Middle Way, others think it is exploitative of the Buddhist belief system. Whatever you decide, it is a modest hit for this Northern Thai monastery which was hatched by an Australian and the Temple's head Abbott, Phra Aphisit Pingchaiyawat.
They have a website and are a big hit on Facebook. My opinion? Although I don't think monasteries should turn their place into a tourist trap, I think, with some restraints, it can offer a unique opportunity for the serious minded to to see what life is like while wearing crimson robes.
The downside? Trying to explain to your boss when you return to work why you have no hair or eyebrows.
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ReplyDeleteI have done it....and have posts in my blog in June of 09 detailing with photos if anyone is interested. I think it would be a waste of time if one is not on the Buddhist Path or at least strongly interested. It gave me a real look at the possibility of being a monk as good way to help others and access my own wisdom.
ReplyDeleteIt now is no longer just a concept.
Back home going to temple and trying to find a temple to do three months now. Meanwhile, now going to meditate with forest monks on Lunar observance.
Monk for a Month is simply a catchy name for a serious activity. The Blood Foundation that sponsors MFAM raises funds that support a school and medical needs for Shan State children. The MFAM program is a very real experience of temple life...it is not a tourist activity. Dhamma, chanting, 10 precepts and if approved, temporary ordination just as the Thai men do. It's serious and only for the serious.
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