Autopsy Table found on Wikipedia. The table we saw did not have “containment walls” Is it true that forest monks actually attend autopsies? Yes it is actually quite common. After being a monk for perhaps more than 10 years, I remember a senior monk expressing surprise when he discovered I hadn’t seen one. He said, “You haven’t been to an autopsy yet?” “You haven’t been to an autopsy yet?” Senior Monk

Aloha! It has been a little over a month since I have been on the island of Kauai. Things have been going well although my situation is still the same. I am still in a tent at Anini, but I have a new tent in Anini with a better view of the pristine Kauai shore! Things are dryer than the record rains we had last month.. and I guess if it were wetter than before a new record would be set. I have made somewhat of a schedule and I try to update my schedule on my phone calendar which synchronizes to the webpage calendar over here (in case you are interested).

When should you give to Saṅgha? When should you give to individual monks? This is a question that is not addressed very often and it can cause lots of trouble for monks knowingly and unknowingly. Quite often, many monks blindly prompt donors to recite a line of pāḷi before they offer anything to them. “Bhikkhu Saṅghassa demi.” There are some variations, but that is the generic formula. It means, “I give to the community of monks.” This is done to give the donor more merit. He makes more merit when he gives to a community instead of one single monk. Even though the monk may prompt such a phrase to the donor, he is likely to be unaware of the procedures to properly handle a community donation.

Alms Inspiration is like a bright star that shines among the dim. In Monastic life, there are few monasteries or monks that really inspire people. Following the vinaya (or rules) inspires people. It is tried and tested. This was an old picture when I was in a vinaya monastery that follows all of the rules including the “basic ten rules” that a 7 year old beginner monk is supposed to follow. “Varanasi” is the name of the monastery which is a learning monastery that was started by an Ethnic Nepalese Myanmar community. If I do not return to Hawaii in June, I might consider going there to continue my studies after I my planned 6 to 8 week mediation retreat during April and May. The conditions of the monastery are secondary to being inspired by monks who follow the rules.

Here is a comparison of 5, 8 and 10 precepts. The Buddhist who follows five precepts is known as a regular lay Buddhist. The person who follows 8 precepts is known as a serious Buddhist yogi. The person who follows the 10 precepts is known as a novice monk. A bhikkhu follows 227 rules. It is important to know these classes to know which rules are more important to follow. It also can explain, what class of rules a monk is following. It is a unique way of looking at Monastic Morality. It is also important for lay people who take 8 precepts to really take real 8 precepts. If a lay person takes 8 precepts but knows they will not follow them, they are lying and not only breaking one of the first precepts and generating bad kamma, but they are practicing rights and rituals, something that is in the opposite direction as Enlightenment and what The Buddha preached.

What do Theravada Buddhists believe in terms of abortion? Much of what has been written are liberal beliefs and overturning what is written down in the texts. They claim “Modern Buddhism” as a section heading, but there is no such thing as “Modern Buddhism” since there is no such thing as “Modern Kamma.” The rules of kamma do not change over time, and abortion has been around since the time of the Buddha. My job is not to make decisions or advice for others, but to give a “pure” classical Buddhist explanation on abortion.

A 2 part Powerpoint presentation about what two monks did in Kauai, Hawaii during June to December 2015. The theme was propagation, but the propagation was done just from being monks who do not touch money, and collect their food the traditional Buddhist monk way. The vision, how it got started, stories and experiences were shared. About 50 people were in the audience. Running time is about 1 hour total for both. There is a comment added at the end of part two so make sure you do not quite when it seems like it is over.

 I cannot believe that I am writing an article that explains how the monks are fighting over food. It is very awkward to hear isn’t it? On the other hand human nature is human nature. We have six monks who sit at each table and sometimes there is not enough of the special items to go around. And that is when the fighting begins… But it is not what you think.