Foundations of Religion - Major World Religions Initiation – A Buddhist Explains
Pravrajya is held just before the start of the rainy season. This is a time when monks and nuns tend not to travel far from their monasteries due to the bad weather.
This ritual is held when a young person reaches the age of eight. It marks their decision to enter a vihara to become a monk or a nun. Usually, this applies to more boys than girls.
To fully follow the Eightfold Path to perfection means renouncing (i.e. giving up) family and ordinary life. This is possible only for a few. This is why Buddhism adopted the idea of monasteries.
REMEMBER! The pravrajya is the Buddhist ritual of initiation.
REMEMBER! A vihara is the name given to a Buddhist temple and its monastery compound.
SECTION C
Buddhist monasteries offer you a place where you can live in utmost simplicity, devoting all your time to meditation and studying sacred texts in your pursuit of enlightenment. The duty of monks and nuns is to master the ideas of the Buddha and pass them on to others through teaching and by the example of their lives.
Before entering the monastery, boys and girls have their heads shaved. This is done to remind them that monks and nuns must be humble and place no value on either appearances or possessions.
During this ritual, boys and girls wear specially coloured robes:
ò In Sri Lanka and Thailand these robes are saffron-coloured.
ò In Tibet they are maroon. ò In Japan they are black.
A new student is only allowed to keep what are called ‘the eight requisites’: ò A robe. ò A belt. ò A razor. ò A needle and thread. ò An alms’ bowl. ò A walking stick. ò A water strainer. ò A toothpick.
