9. The Institution of Buddhism.
The Buddha estab-
lished a religious
order which has continued to the
present day as one of the oldest and most
influential
orders of religious brethren in the oriental world. The
Buddhist order (saṅgha), and the kindred
religion called
“Jainism,” have survived longer than
any other institu-
tions. “Saṅgha,” the appellation of the
Buddhist order,
means “congregation.” In the days of
the Buddha
saṅgha in the political sense meant
“republic,” and
saṅgha in the economical sense meant
“guild.” So
various ways of managing guilds or
republics, such as
decision by voting, secret ballot, etc., were incorpo-
rated in the rules of the Buddhist
order.
It is noteworthy that the Buddha organized the order
of nuns also, in
addition to that of the monks. Conse-
quently the whole body of the Buddhist order consists
of four kinds
of followers: (1) monks (bhikkhu in Pāli,
bhikku in Sanskrit), (2) nuns (bhikkhunī in Pāli,
bhikkunī in Sanskrit), (3) laymen (upāsaka), and (4) lay
women (upāsikā). The central role of the
order has
been played by monks in South Asiatic countries and
in
China, where monks and nuns spend a celibate life
in monasteries or
nunneries.
In Tibet many monks have practiced celibacy; they
belong to the Ge-lug or
Yellow Hats sect. But others
(the Nyng-ma or Red Hats sect) live a married
life.
In Nepal and Japan some Buddhist leaders are celibate
and follow
monastic disciplines, but many are married
and live the life of a
householder. Korean priests have
observed celibacy very strictly for a long
time, but in
recent years some Korean priests have imitated the
Japanese
priests and have married. In an effort to get
rid of everything Japanese,
the Korean Government
has been expelling married priests from the temples.
Monks are known as bhikkhus in South Asiatic coun-
tries, this term meaning “one
who lives on alms.” In
Burma they are often called
“Phongys” (phon means
“great,” gyi means
“glory”). In South Asiatic countries
monks are
greatly respected and worshipped. Monks,
when saluted, do not return
salutation to laymen, even
to kings and prime ministers, according to the
tradi-
tional disciplines of their
order. They take food, after
seeking alms, which they may do only in the
morning.
In Japan, the religious leaders are called by the
Japanese equivalents of
“priests,” “monks,” or
“minis-
ters,” and
are often given the honorary title of “Rever-
end.” The English term bonze is a corruption of the
Japanese word bōzu, which means “the head of a
monastery,” and was formerly an honorary title, but
in the
1960's it came to be used in a derisive sense.
In Buddhism monks and priests are responsible for
the spiritual guidance of
laymen, and laymen are re-
sponsible for the
support of the religious orders.
In Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos, all Buddhist lay-
men are expected to spend some time in a monastery
receiving
instruction in Buddhism; it is possible to be
ordained as a monk and then
return to lay life. Some
remain as monks in monasteries for life. In Burma
it
is not uncommon for laymen to spend some time in
monasteries, but
they do not customarily receive ordi-
nation
unless they intend to remain. In all other Bud-
dhist countries, the practice of returning to lay life after
receiving ordination is not usually approved.
The ceremony of ordination according to the rules
of the Book of Discipline
(Vinaya) is followed in South
Asiatic countries.
According to the Book of Discipline,
a monk is dismissed when he commits
one of the fol-
lowing four Major Offences:
(1) sexual intercourse, (2)
taking what is not given to him, i.e., theft,
(3) claiming
in public that he has already become a Holy Man,
although
he has not yet attained that state, and (4)
killing a human being. The
rules of discipline in Con-
servative
Buddhism were for a long time the custom
in Mahāyāna
countries also. However, there was an-
other
informal self-vow ordination, practiced by some
Mahāyānists—the Bodhisattva
ordination—which be-
came
overwhelmingly prevalent in Japan. In Esoteric
Buddhism the ritual of
ordination by anointment with
water is followed.
Throughout all the Buddhist world, the Buddhist
community has never been
organized around a central
authority which could decree doctrines or
practices
which must be observed by all followers. Buddhists
have been
comparatively individualistic and unwilling
to submit to a rigid authority. Agreement as to the
doctrines
to be held and the practices to be followed
has been reached by discussion
within the community,
guided by the scriptures accepted as a basis for
their
faith. In Southern Buddhism there is great unity, with
the
different sects playing only a minor role. In Tibet,
although there are
several sects, Buddhists there are
united in most matters. In China the
sectarian differ-
ences of the past have
blended into one general form.
Some writers say that Buddhism is
practically extinct
in Communist China. Only in Japan are there marked
sectarian differences, but the authorities of the extant
sects are not
coercive. Collaboration among different
sects is well performed.
