Have you ever considered becoming a monk or a nun?

[Deleted member 1465]

No I've seen wedding pictures of nuns being dressed up as brides and marrying jesus I asked once about monks and was told they too are married to jesus. More applicable to Catholicism I think.

I've never encountered that, but eeeeuwwww

 

[Deleted member 94]

I've never encountered that, but eeeeuwwww

See Andy Goodwin's answer for the picture

Are nuns allowed to marry?

Answer (1 of 15): The very nature of being a nun or Sister is to take the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience - to marry goes against what being a nun is. “Allowed” is not even a valid word for a nun or Sister. If a woman wanted to marry, she would not enter the Convent or monastery- she wou...

www.quora.com

 

[Goodbye710]

I considered myself a monk for many years. I studied spiritual sayings, read many books. Lots and lots of contemplation, your mind changes. Your consciousness slowly changes. You can slowly start to understand the meaning behind the texts. Why the were said.

Shaving your head or keeping your hair very short is to help with emotions. To this day, if I have stubble on my face longer than a few days I feel more negativity in the world more.

Make sure you keep up reading everyday. If you stop for a day or two it's like you slowly will lose all our progress.

These days, I like offthelefteye on youtube. They have free pdf books. They get into the books which was written by an 18th century man who I believe is very accurate.

So again, joining a monastery may not be for you but reading and studying the information I highly recommend. Also it's recommend to follow only one person until you fully grasp everything. Only then start listening to another. Don't read from multiple authors as you may not make much orogress on the path. There have been many people who have multiple people they follow. They are literate on the subjects but their consciousness doesn't evolve with it. That's why only one person at a time is needed.

 

[usernameforhere]

I'd love to join a religious organization. I feel very drawn to this recently but am afraid it maybe too late

 

[Ghost2211]

I've entertained the thought before, but I would be just as unhappy in that life as I am in this one.

 

[noaccount]

If I was a man I might have become a monk.

But I was a woman so I had to go to war.

 

[Dr Iron Arc]

I don't think I ever would because I just don't have the self-discipline or really the motivation to care enough, unless there's a way to be a monk while watching tv all day I don't think it's right for me.

 

[Quinlor]

Yes, sometimes I dreaming on live in a Russian Orthodox or Buddhist monastery and never go back.
It's almost a suicide of modern world

 

[franklynlb]

I wanted to be a nun when i was 14, i used to be a catholic, i'm not anymore.

 

[Brick In The Wall]

I've studied Theology for most of my life and I had considered it at a few points in my life. But the requirements to become a Priest are very stringent, expensive, and time consuming. My marriage and children have also prevented me from joining the local monastery.

Now I've strayed so far from the path that I don't even consider it anymore. It just wasn't meant to be.

 

[Weary Soul]

While many find comfort in religion, it is not for me - I see it as a control-based belief system that uses fear techniques to ensure compliance. At least that was my experience of it as a young child, maybe things are different now? From early childhood, I never once believed that if there is a god he is like a father who is going to slap me across the face for not feeding the dog on time (ie, punitive for not obeying his words). If there is a god, I see such a being as pure love or energy.

Now, if there was a group that could not be corrupted by money, and was truly altruistic with intent to help others however they could - AND - accept people for who they are, then yes. However, in this world, could that really exist? I doubt it.

 

[WitheringAway]

No thank god

 

[DocNo]

somehow it reminds me of a tale.

a buddhist monk sits on the side of the street.
comes a warrior on his horse and says to the monk: "i can kill you without even blinking."
the buddhist monk replies: "and i can die without even blinking."

maybe a bit shortened but as far as i remember this was the core of the tale.

 

[aeon]

No, I could never be a Monk or part of any community, religious or not. I personally think that if you really wanna get away from all the filth and find some real and long term peace then you'll have to do it by yourself. I live a frugal life in the countryside, almost no social interaction, no useless stuff, no social media and I only turn my phone on a couple minutes a day to check if I got any messages. I haven't found peace but at least I've found silence and freedom.

somehow it reminds me of a tale.

a buddhist monk sits on the side of the street.
comes a warrior on his horse and says to the monk: "i can kill you without even blinking."
the buddhist monk replies: "and i can die without even blinking."

Buddhist Monks are badass ;)

 

[Sensei]

No, I could never be a Monk or part of any community, religious or not. I personally think that if you really wanna get away from all the filth and find some real and long term peace then you'll have to do it by yourself. I live a frugal life in the countryside, almost no social interaction, no useless stuff, no social media and I only turn my phone on a couple minutes a day to check if I got any messages. I haven't found peace but at least I've found silence and freedom.

The thought of living life like a hermit has its appeal, but that's not what I'm after. I've realized that I, for the better or the worse, am a social creature and that I prefer to live in semi-seclusion rather than full seclusion. To each their own, I guess.

 

[Antigonish]

Thought about becoming a priest. But with their history of child predation. I thought against it. Being a monk might be cool though. I wonder if I could be the first assigned at birth male nun.

 

[Makko]

I'm considering building a small temple for myself at some point in the future and becoming a nun there. I don't think this is a thing in the west though so I'll have to move back to where I came from. I posted a little bit about it in my robot thread:

https://sanctioned-suicide.net/threads/becoming-100-robot.60342/page-2#post-1121454

 

[BeansOfRequirement]

I was doing strong determination sitting but only got up to doing 1.5h. Did some of my own versions of mindfulness where I eventually was able to watch the machinations of my ego, this lead to a day or two of feeling very open and like I loved everything. Maybe a small taste of enlightenment or something. Meditation is responsible for my best experiences in life, no doubt, so it's kind of weird that I don't do it that much anymore. About the monastic life, I've chosen to try to do some good by going where I'm needed and there are well enough monks and nuns to teach the practices, I believe. Not that they are even needed since everything is recorded online, some like to bow before a master I guess?

 

[Sensei]

I was doing strong determination sitting but only got up to doing 1.5h. Did some of my own versions of mindfulness where I eventually was able to watch the machinations of my ego, this lead to a day or two of feeling very open and like I loved everything. Maybe a small taste of enlightenment or something. Meditation is responsible for my best experiences in life, no doubt, so it's kind of weird that I don't do it that much anymore.

Same here. I need to pick it up again. I don't understand what's stopping me.

About the monastic life, I've chosen to try to do some good by going where I'm needed and there are well enough monks and nuns to teach the practices, I believe. Not that they are even needed since everything is recorded online, some like to bow before a master I guess?

I think it's more about being part of a community than to bow before a master.

 

[BeansOfRequirement]

I think it's more about being part of a community than to bow before a master.

You'd be surprised

 

[Sensei]

You'd be surprised

Perhaps. What's best, though? To bow to a master and be happy, or not bow to a master and be unhappy. If it makes people happy I can't really condemn them for that.

 

[BeansOfRequirement]

Perhaps. What's best, though? To bow to a master and be happy, or not bow to a master and be unhappy. If it makes people happy I can't really condemn them for that.

Hope it didn't sound like I was condemning anyone, either.

 

[LunarPyotr]

Maybe in the second life or alternative reality once I die but right now.. nope..
This world already tainted/destroyed me too badly to just join such a pure culture.

When it comes to the whole monk/nun topic, although I wouldn't pray or really join them but I could live with them, since I don't drink alcohol and take care of their animals or repair their broken stuff.
I lived in a small village when I was a kid and I used to take care of the chickens, cows and cat's. I even had a fluffy pet chicken once which I got from some farmer who traded her for my old bicycle
And for a whole year I attended to so called "repair cafes" where I used to repair peoples stuff like TV's, Ham radios, toasters and other stuff for free and only charge them for the replacement parts.

 

[lugerepair]

Yes. I'm not religious at all, I'm an atheist, but I've considered it many times, as I just can't seem to find a place for me in this world. I'm attracted to the idea of a life of routine and simplicity. I want to get away from this shallow-as-fuck society, from capitalism, from the bullshit. But I think I actually wouldn't like it so much, for various reasons. The primary reason is that I probably wouldn't get along with the other nuns, since I am neurodivergent, and also I generally get along better with men.

 

[IWantToSleep]

I've fantasised about it as a possible way out of this life but never seriously considered it.

 

[Shadowrider]

Okay, let me confess: I used to.
I especially liked the thought that being an atheist does not prevent you from becoming a Buddhist monastic.

Later... somehow I changed my mind.
I remember reading some emotional Japanese novel many years ago. In this, the main character - a young lady - considered that she should become a nun (after some romance-related disappointment), but her nanny convinced her "one can be a nun in one's heart, without having to shave off one's hair." This very sentence made a very deep impression in me, cannot really explain why. But I understood you needn't join a monastic community if you want to meditate or want to avoid the typical loud life of a lay person :)

 

[Spiral]

There are of course many different kinds of monks and nuns, but they all seek peace one way or another: Buddhist ones through meditation, Christian ones through faith, and so on. I know that it probably never will happen, but I've given becoming a Zen Buddhist monk serious consideration. I've dreamt of getting away from all the filth: the shallowness, the vulgarity, the animality, the stupidity, the egoism, the callousness, and the brutality. I've dreamt of setting out on a quest to reach insight about myself, mankind, existence, and the universe. In short, I've dreamt of living a pure, dignified, peaceful, and insightful life. I believe that it's the ultimate path to recovery in many ways. Has anyone considered something similar?

(By the way, if your spontaneous reaction is, "Fuck no! I want my beer and chicks!", maybe you should consider posting in another thread instead.)

This is a good question :)
I sometimes think it would be nice to be a Buddhist monk but I think I can't because I'm a lady, the peaceful life and zen does appeal to me. I don't really fancy being a nun though unless it's a cool nun like whoopi Goldberg in "sister act" movie :D

 

[Makko]

This is a good question :)
I sometimes think it would be nice to be a Buddhist monk but I think I can't because I'm a lady, the peaceful life and zen does appeal to me. I don't really fancy being a nun though unless it's a cool nun like whoopi Goldberg in "sister act" movie :D

You can be a Buddhist nun though.

Okay, let me confess: I used to.
I especially liked the thought that being an atheist does not prevent you from becoming a Buddhist monastic.

Later... somehow I changed my mind.
I remember reading some emotional Japanese novel many years ago. In this, the main character - a young lady - considered that she should become a nun (after some romance-related disappointment), but her nanny convinced her "one can be a nun in one's heart, without having to shave off one's hair." This very sentence made a very deep impression in me, cannot really explain why. But I understood you needn't join a monastic community if you want to meditate or want to avoid the typical loud life of a lay person :)

You should consider the context of "after some romance-related disappointment". Many secular people entertain some romantic notion of turning to monastic life because they think it will protect them from worldly problems. It won't, and that's not what it's for. You become a monk because you are convinced that the spiritual purposes of monasticism are your first priority in life, not because you feel like you want to run away from something. If you do it for the latter reason, you resolve will break very fast.

 

[Shadowrider]

You can be a Buddhist nun though.

You should consider the context of "after some romance-related disappointment". Many secular people entertain some romantic notion of turning to monastic life because they think it will protect them from worldly problems. It won't, and that's not what it's for. You become a monk because you are convinced that the spiritual purposes of monasticism are your first priority in life, not because you feel like you want to run away from something. If you do it for the latter reason, you resolve will break very fast.

Thank you for this very sensible answer! I enjoyed it a lot. Seriously.

I simply don't want to be a monastic, anyway.

Yes I did consider it. I see there are quite a few people who do this kind of escapism thing, they see monastic life as a shelter from all the worldly problems and tragedies. The reality is something completely different as you have pointed it out.

 

[Spiral]

You can be a Buddhist nun though.

Wow you are right :D last time I checked it was only possible of men to be a monastic in most variations of Buddhism but I just googled it and it says the rules have changed. We'll that really is food for thought 0.0