Thầy put forth a radical idea: to root a renewed form of Buddhist monasticism in the West, with a body of precepts adapted to modern times. He anticipated it would take at least one hundred years for that root to take hold and become established. As each of us tends to our own practice, and builds the Beloved Community, we are aware that the full flowering of a monastic community in the West is yet to come.
Already a subscriber? Log in
You have read 5 articles this month.
For only $3 per month or $28 per year, you can read as much as you want!
A digital subscription includes unlimited access to current articles–and some exclusive digital content–released throughout each week, over thirty years of articles in our Dharma archive, as well as PDFs of all back issues.
Thầy put forth a radical idea: to root a renewed form of Buddhist monasticism in the West, with a body of precepts adapted to modern times. He anticipated it would take at least one hundred years for that root to take hold and become established. As each of us tends to our own practice, and builds the Beloved Community, we are aware that the full flowering of a monastic community in the West is yet to come. As good gardeners we know that the soil must be well prepared; we must take pains to nurture this small seedling of monastic culture in a careful mixture of soil enriched with compost before it can adapt to survive and thrive on depleted and water-starved terrain.
It is a great joy to contribute to this process: the Dharma is deep and lovely—in the beginning, in the middle, and in the end. On these pages please enjoy a representative sample of what is going on in the lives of our monastic community—from the most senior members to many of the young bhikṣus and bhikṣuṇīs. What are their deep aspirations? How are they practicing as a part of Thầy’s continuation body? How can we do our best to tend the garden of the monastic wing of the Beloved Community so that future generations will have a solid and reliable place to go to for refuge when the going gets rough?
Let these voices into your heart.
Brother Pháp Lưu
Advisor and Editor
