I go to the community's first meeting of the day at five o'clock in the
morning. I usually get up between four and four-thirty. We start the meeting
by lighting candles and incense on the shrine, then bowing to the shrine three
times. We then do about thirty minutes of chanting and then sit in meditation
for about an hour. The chanting is in the Pali language which is a very
ancient tongue not used these days for anything other than the Theravada
Buddhist religion. Some of the chanting is devotional, reflecting on the
beautiful qualities of the man that was the Buddha: kindness, compassion,
wisdom, morality. Some of it is contemplative, reflecting on some of the
things that the Buddha taught. The meditation is in silence. At the end of the
meditation the senior monk rings a little bell and we bow to the shrine three
times to finish the meeting. It is now six thirty. After the meeting I do some
tidying up in the publications office where I work during the day. At seven-
fifteen I go to the main hall and have a cup of porridge and drink some tea.
Everyone is here and members of the community can make announcements about
jobs that need doing and help that is required, as well as any other community
business. Sometimes, after we have finished our drink, the Abbot gives a talk
about the Buddhist teachings.
From about eight-thirty until ten-thirty I have free. I do lots of different
things, like type this letter, or maybe do some laundry, or go for a walk, or
sit and chat with a friend or just sit. At ten thirty the main bell is rung
and we all gather for the meal. We just have one main meal and it should be
finished before mid-day. I put on my robe, take my alms bowl and go to the
hall. There are two rows of mats on the floor. I bow to the shrine and sit.
All the food is offered to the monks and I can put what I need in my bowl. We
then do some chanting which is the traditional way of saying thank you to the
people who gave us the food. I wait until the senior monks have started eating
and then I quietly eat my food. After the meal I wash my bowl and take it back
to my room. It is now about twelve o'clock. Now, I may have a rest for a
while.
At about one-thirty I usually do some publication work. Print this letter,
type out some information leaflets, scan and edit some pictures. I spend quite
a bit of time on the computer. I take a break every now and then and just go
for a bit of a walk and look at the trees and the sky and listen to the wind
and the birdsong. At five-fifteen I try and leave the work for the day and go
and have a cuppa with my fellow monastics - these are my friends. Sometimes
it's difficult to stop work. Do you get absorbed in doing things that you
enjoy? I work at what I like, so I enjoy my work, so my work is not work but
play.
At seven-fifteen the big bell is rung and I put on my robes and go to the main
hall for the last meeting of the day. We do some chanting for about half and
hour and then meditate for about an hour. Sometimes, after we have finished
this, the Abbot gives a talk about the Buddhist teachings. It is now about
nine o'clock. I go back to my room, maybe read, write a letter, sit and look
out of the window, sit and look in the window (of my mind) or just go to
sleep.
Today is the full-moon day and we begin a retreat period. I shaved my head
yesterday (I do this every two weeks) and this afternoon all the monks will
gather and there will be a recitation of our rules - all 227 of them, in Pali.
It takes about 45 minutes of fast chanting and is done from memory. It takes a
long time to learn and remember all that chanting.
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