Two hours before the sun appears on the eastern horizon the pealing of the temple bell signals the time, 4 a.m. In the kuti the monks, having spent the night on a thin mattress u
nder a plain cotton blanket, open their eyes and rise from sleep to start the day. The Buddha said that four hours sleep should be enough for a monk, but nowadays monks generally sleep at least six hours, and when the bell wakes them, there is no hesitation about rising.
The bell also awakens the dogs and cats that have been taken to the monastery by people who no longer want or can afford to keep them as pets, and who know that the monks will feed them and take care of them. (There is hardly a monastery in Thailand that does not have its resident "temple" dogs and cats.)
The monks now perform their morning ablutions and don their outer robes. They kneel before the Buddha images in their kuti and pay homage to the Buddha. Then, after whatever housekeeping may be required in and around their lodgings, the monks do their morning meditations, some sitting in their kuti or just in front of them, in the half-lotus position, others practicing the walking forms of meditation.
When the pre-dawn darkness is dispelled by morning light, the monk leaves the monastery grounds to begin their pindapata, their food-gathering rounds. He walks silently, eyes downcast, barefoot, along the lanes and streets of the adjacent neighbourhood. He carries his alms bowl, often suspended by a sling across one shoulder. He stops only when he is respectfully and quietly addressed by a layperson waiting at the side of the road to place food offerings in his bowl.
It is an important part of Buddhist belief that one earns merit by providing food (and other necessities) to the monks. Laypersons offer the monks ready-to-eat food of the best quality, such as: fragrant rice or sticky rice, barbecued chicken, pork, fish, curries, soups, as well as cartons of milk, fruit juices, hard-boiled eggs, cakes, cookies, fruits and candies. Some layperson offer food, sometimes along with flowers, every morning. Some do so only on special occasions, such as birthdays or anniversaries of the deaths of close relatives or loved ones.
By 7.30 a.m. the monks have usually completed their rounds. They return to the monastery with (usually) full bowls. Always food is shared with the dek wat, the temple boys who live at the monastery and assist the monks in their housekeeping, in care of the grounds and in running errands. And food is shared with the temple dogs and cats, as well as with anybody else who happens to be around at meal-time.
After breakfast, the monks resume their meditations, or do their morning chanting, or, in the case of the young novice monks, attend classes in Buddhist intruction, or spend their time reading, or even taking a short nap. At approximately 11 a.m., the monks eat their second meal, finishing it, as prescribed, before noon. This will be their last meal of the day, but they are allowed to have liquid refreshments, important to their well-being in the hot climate. Some monks only take one meal a day.
In the afternoon, friends and relatives may come to visit, but they do not excessively prolong their visit lest they intrude on the monk's time of solitary meditation, or on his attendance at classes. If not attending classes, monks may read Dhamma on their own or memorise and practice the many chants which are so important to monastic life.
At 5 p.m., the temple bell peals again, this time to summon the monks to evening devotions at the vihara, after which new and younger monks often attend formal or informal instructional classes. Then all monks retire to their kuti for further meditation before going to sleep.
Some things will be different in other temples. Some abbots allow their monks to watch t.v. or listen to music on their radios and cassette players and even smoke. Others strictly forbid such activities. Some insist on regular hours of meditation. Some insist on attendance at classes and at twice-daily worship services.
Information was mainly taken from 'The Monastic Life' by Gerald Roscoe and published by Asia Books.
Glossary:
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