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Took Refuge and Precepts At Monastry
FairyFeller
Veteran
I was privileged to take the Refuges and Precepts yesterday at a Theravada Monastry. I have to say the whole day was pretty special from a practice point of view though. Firstly the journey down there, the enforced solitude of the two hour drive gave me chance to think and helped me clear my head before I got there.
Secondly, there was some sort of ceremony to welcome three very small children aged about 1, 2 & 4. During the normal ceremony in the temple they were running around and shouting and this was very distracting when I was trying to stay calm but I actually managed to analyse my emotions and got to know myself a little better.
Thirdly, to begin with I was too nervous to approach one of the monks but once I had it was a truly life changing move. I had thought I might be seen a being silly or something but he was very welcoming. I know it didn't have to be taken at the monastry but there are no Theravada centres any closer and I wanted a formal commitment and I do actually feel better for it, I now feel I can take them at home regularly.
It is a lovely place and I can see myself accepting the invitation to attend more often.
He suggested that I learn some Pali and take the Refuges and Precepts in it next time, I had thought about learning it so I can read the Canon.
Anyway here are my two questions. Can anybody recommend a good course? Can anybody recommend an English version of the Canon?
Secondly, there was some sort of ceremony to welcome three very small children aged about 1, 2 & 4. During the normal ceremony in the temple they were running around and shouting and this was very distracting when I was trying to stay calm but I actually managed to analyse my emotions and got to know myself a little better.
Thirdly, to begin with I was too nervous to approach one of the monks but once I had it was a truly life changing move. I had thought I might be seen a being silly or something but he was very welcoming. I know it didn't have to be taken at the monastry but there are no Theravada centres any closer and I wanted a formal commitment and I do actually feel better for it, I now feel I can take them at home regularly.
It is a lovely place and I can see myself accepting the invitation to attend more often.
He suggested that I learn some Pali and take the Refuges and Precepts in it next time, I had thought about learning it so I can read the Canon.
Anyway here are my two questions. Can anybody recommend a good course? Can anybody recommend an English version of the Canon?
6
Comments
Part one
Glad to hear it went so well for you.
Here's an online collection of English translations for the Pali Suttas:
suttacentral.net/disp_division.php?collection_id=1&collection_name=Pali
If you've got a lot of time on your hands, learning Pali could be fun and once you've mastered it to a certain degree (though that will probably take quite a lot of time and effort), it may well help you with studying the Canon. But if you are normally a busy person anyways, I think you should consider allocating more time to practicing meditation rather than learning Pali. Meditation would help you understand the essence of Buddhism more than learning Pali would, I think. So you might also want to try finding some meditation classes to attend.