The Encyclopedia of World Religions

298 S monks and nuns

a retired soldier named Pachomius ( c. 290–346) formed the first Christian community of monks. He also founded a community of nuns for his sister. Different rules organize monastic life in Chris tianity. Of these, the most important are the rules of Basil of Caesarea for the Orthodox churches and Benedict of Nursia for the Roman Catholic Church ( see B ENEDICTINES ). In both the Orthodox and Cath olic worlds, the monastic ideal influenced the way churches were organized. For example, all Ortho dox bishops are usually monks, and all celibate priests ordained in the Roman Catholic Church can also become bishops. Roman Catholicism also developed several different monastic “orders.” Of these, the Benedictines have historically been the most important. (Technically, D OMINICANS , Francis cans, and J ESUITS are “religious” but not monks.) Roman Catholic monks and nuns have made tre mendous contributions to European culture, espe cially during the Middle Ages. The 20th century saw important developments in the practice of monasticism. The Buddhist monas tic community in China and Tibet suffered tremen dously as a result of the communist revolution in 1949. Elsewhere in Asia, monks and nuns took part in efforts to expel former colonial rulers. Many Americans will never forget the images of Vietnam ese monks burning themselves during the Vietnam War. In postcolonial Asian countries some monks have supported violent nationalist movements, for example, Buddhist monks in the Sri Lankan civil war. Some Buddhist monks and nuns also moved to North America. By the end of the 20th century a number of North American Buddhists had taken monastic vows ( see B UDDHISM IN A MERICA ). During the 20th century Christian monks and nuns continued their traditional activities, such as teaching and social work. In North America mon asteries also began to hold retreats of limited dura tion for those who had not taken religious vows, especially college students. Some Christian monks and nuns also began conversations with those who practiced other forms of monasticism. For MONKS AND NUNS IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

MAHAVIRA followers of this tradition rejected the life of the householder and wandered the countryside begging. They also rejected the religion of house holders, that is, the SACRIFICES described in sacred texts known as the V EDA . Both the Buddha and Mahavira formed their religions around groups of monks and nuns that are sometimes called SANGHAS . In time these communities split over issues of teaching and practice. Today there are two major groups of Jain monastics: Digambara and Svetambara. The names refer to the clothing that these monastics do—or do not—wear. Digambara monks are “sky-clad”; they wear no clothes. Svetambara monks and nuns wear white clothes. In theory, all Buddhist monks and nuns observe a discipline whose Sanskrit name is pra timoksha. The pratimoksha is recorded in differ ent languages, and each version has a different number of regulations. All versions place more restrictions on nuns than on monks. A few Bud dhist schools, such as the True Pure Land school in Japan, have abandoned many of these regula tions ( see P URE L AND B UDDHISM ). For example, their priests marry and live in society. In China, how ever, Taoism created monasteries and convents in imitation of Buddhism. Hinduism also has a place for those who want to reject the ways of the world. Such people become SADHUS and SADHVIS . Ideally, a Hindu man adopts a monastic lifestyle at the end of his life. But many do not wait that long. Even more never adopt it at all. In the eighth century C . E . the great Hindu phi losopher, Sankaracarya ( see S ANKARA ), established several important monasteries. Today some sadhus and sadhvis are important leaders of conservative Hindu movements ( see FUNDAMENTALISM , H INDU ). CHRISTIAN MONKS AND NUNS Christian monasticism began in Egypt. The first Christian monks and nuns were hermits; each lived by himself or herself. They were inspired by the example of St. Anthony ( c. 251–355), who lived in the Egyptian desert for 20 years. A little later