Monks and nuns in Buddhism

A bhikkhu is a fully ordained Buddhist monk, and a bhikkhunī is a fully ordained nun. The words are Pali; in Sanskrit they are bhikṣu and bhikṣuṇī. They literally mean "one who lives on alms". Together, monks and nuns form the monastic Sangha.

Why people ordain

The Buddha himself left home to seek the end of suffering, and he invited others to do the same. Monastic life is meant to remove distractions so that a person can give their whole life to ethics, meditation and wisdom. Ordination is voluntary. In many traditions a person can leave the robes again if they choose, and in some countries young men ordain for a short time as a rite of passage.

The monastic rules

Monastics follow the Vinaya, the code of discipline laid down by the Buddha as situations arose. In the Theravada version, monks keep about 227 main rules and nuns about 311. Other surviving versions, used in East Asia and Tibet, have similar numbers. The rules cover celibacy, honesty, not harming living beings, food, robes, possessions and how the community makes decisions.

Before full ordination, a person usually becomes a novice, called a sāmaṇera or sāmaṇerī, and keeps ten precepts.

The order of nuns

According to the texts, the order of nuns began when Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī, the Buddha's foster mother, asked to ordain, and the Buddha agreed. The nuns' order flourished in India and was taken to Sri Lanka and China. Full ordination for nuns has continued without a break in East Asian traditions. In Theravada and Tibetan traditions it died out long ago, and its revival in recent decades is welcomed by some and questioned by others. Many women in those traditions live as renunciants keeping eight or ten precepts.

Monks, nuns and lay people

Monastics depend on lay people for food, robes, shelter and medicine. In return, they offer teaching and an example of a simple life given to practice. The Buddha described this exchange as mutual support, with each side helping the other along the path. In Theravada countries, the morning alms round and the Kathina festival, when cloth for robes is offered, are visible signs of this relationship.

Addressing a monk or nun

Customs differ between traditions. Titles such as Venerable, Bhante, Ajahn, Ayya or Sister are common. Many people bow on meeting a monastic, and in Theravada settings it is polite for men and women not to touch monastics of the opposite sex. If unsure, it is fine to ask.