of the desire of wealthy laypeople to donate land and
permanent structures to the san ̇gha. Although scholars
debate the origins of monasteries, they do agree that
with the advent of permanent structures, there arose a
class of monastics who remained in the monasteries per-
manently to act as caretakers and administrators.
Texts and archeological evidence reveal that shortly
after the death of the Buddha, there were eighteen large
Buddhist monasteries near the city of Rajagrha alone.
The records of Chinese Buddhist pilgrims point to the
existence, during the fifth to seventh century C.E., of
great Buddhist monasteries and monastic universities
in India that housed thousands of monastics from a
variety of Buddhist traditions. The monasteries quickly
became wealthy institutions endowed with land, build-
ings, and numerous possessions.
The Buddhist monastic order was originally made
up of ordained male and female monastics. During
the medieval period, however, the lineage of fully
ordained nuns died out in the THERAVADAorder.
Although the formal order was gone, some women
did continue to live as novices in nunneries. While
novice nuns in certain countries (such as the dasa sil
matavasin Sri Lanka) often lack the recognition and
support that is so essential to their survival, novice
nuns in other countries (such as the s ́ramanerikain
Tibet) have enjoyed a wider network of support and
a greater recognition of their status. Since the 1980s
there have been moves to reintroduce the lineage of
fully ordained nuns in certain Theravada countries
such as Sri Lanka and Thailand, though this effort has
often met fierce opposition from the male order.
By the medieval period all Buddhist monastic or-
ders had died out in India. By that time, Buddhist
monasticism had already become a pan-Asian phe-
nomenon. Within the last century Buddhist monastic
institutions have not only been reestablished in India,
but have also been founded throughout North and
South America, Africa, Europe, and Australia.
Monasticism and the san ̇ ̇gha
In Buddhism, the monastic order is referred to as the
san ̇gha, which, in its strictest sense, refers specifically
to MONKSand NUNS. The san ̇gha began when the Bud-
dha accepted his first five disciples shortly after his en-
lightenment. As the monastic order grew and the
religion spread in an ever-widening radius, numerous
disciplinary rules were put forth to govern the lives of
the monks and nuns. Even though the rules, which are
found in the VINAYAsection of the Buddhist CANON,
are very complex, the underlying intention is straight-
forward: to help guide the lives of monks and nuns on
a spiritual PATHand to create a unified group of
monastics. The Buddhist monastic order functions to
preserve and teach the Buddhist doctrine and, by dic-
tating how to live in accordance with the way taught
by S ́akyamuni Buddha, the order’s rules provide an
historical link to the past.
The Buddha originally functioned as the head of the
monastic order. At the time of his death he refused to
appoint a successor; instead, the Buddhist teachings
and disciplinary code were said to take the place of a
central authority. Lacking a leader who could main-
tain doctrinal and disciplinary congruity, the san ̇gha
split into several monastic traditions in the centuries
following the death of the Buddha. The early splits in
the san ̇gha were often based on disputes regarding dis-
cipline and led to the formation of separate vinaya
texts. Within the first millennium following the death
of the Buddha and continuing to the present, the dis-
putes often related to doctrinal and disciplinary issues,
thus resulting in the growth of Buddhist sects and
schools centered around particular doctrines, texts,
monastic leaders, and practices.
The lack of a central authority in Buddhism may be
seen as problematic and as the cause of internal dis-
putes and divisions. In a more positive light, the open-
ness to interpret Buddhist practice and doctrine has
led to a staggering range of Buddhist monastic insti-
tutions and types of monastic vocations, thus con-
tributing to the adaptation of the tradition through
time and space. As the order expanded geographically
over time, adjustments were needed to make the tra-
dition and the monastic institution acceptable to the
people living in the various countries where the reli-
gion was introduced. For example, while monks of the
Theravada order (such as those living in Sri Lanka,
Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia) are pro-
hibited from farming and must receive their food di-
rectly from the laity, the monks from the CHAN
SCHOOLof East Asia are encouraged to grow their own
food, an idea that is closely related to the Confucian
ideal of not being a parasite to society.Categories of monastics
Buddhist monasteries house many different categories
of Buddhist monastics, from postulants seeking admis-
sion into the san ̇gha to the abbot of a monastery. Prior
to becoming a monk or nun, a person seeking admis-
sion into the san ̇gha usually spends a probationary
period, ranging from several days to several years, inMONASTICISM