The Monastery Rules

Berthe Jansen

• Publisher: University of California Press
• Year: 2018
• eBook ISBN: 9780520969537
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Ancient Religion

"The Monastery Rules discusses the position of monks and monasteries in pre-1950s Tibetan Buddhist societies. Using the monastic guidelines (bca' yig) as primary sources, this book examines the impact of Buddhist monastic institutions on Tibetan societies by looking at their monastic policies that deal with organization, economy, justice, and public relations. As this type of literature has not been studied in any detail, this is also an exploration of this genre, its parallels in other Buddhist cultures, its connection to the Vinaya, and its value as socio-historical source-material. The monastic guidelines are witness to certain socio-economic changes, but also contain rules that aim to change the monastery in order to preserve it. Throughout, the textual materials are supplemented with important information gained via oral history methods. This monograph demonstrates how, and to what extent, the Tibetan monastery was guided by Buddhist monastic law, and argues that Buddhist ethics, as they are understood today, played hardly any role. Still, this study argues that the monastic institutions' influence on society was maintained not merely due to prevailing power-relations, but also because of certain deep-rooted Buddhist beliefs."

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Table of Contents
• Acknowledgments
• A Note on Transliteration
• Introduction
• Documents that Establish the Rules: The Genre of Chayik
• Historical and Doctrinal Frameworks of Monastic Organization in Tibet
• Entrance to the Monastery
• Monastic Organization
• Monastic Economy and Policy
• Relations with the Laity
• Justice and the Judicial Role of the Monastery
• Maintaining (the) Order
• Appendix
• Notes
• Sources
• Index
• Series page