Editing Monastery (section)

==Buddhism==
[[File:Taktsang Palphug Monastery aka Paro Taktsang aka Tiger's Nest, July 2016 13.jpg|thumb|left|Taktsang Palphug Monastery also known as [[Paro Taktsang]] or "Tiger's Nest", July 2016 13]]
[[File:Mendicant Monk Sitting on Xindong Street, Taipei 20140103.jpg|thumb|left|Mendicant Monk Sitting on Xindong Street, Taipei 20140103]]

Buddhist monasteries, known as '''[[vihara|vihāra]]''' in [[Pali]] and in [[Sanskrit]], emerged sometime around the fourth century BCE from the practice of [[vassa]], a retreat undertaken by Buddhist monastics during the South Asian [[wet season]]. To prevent wandering [[bhikkhu|monks]] and [[bhikkhuni|nuns]] from disturbing new plant-growth or becoming stranded in inclement weather, they were instructed to remain in a fixed location for the roughly three-month period typically beginning in mid-July.

These early fixed ''vassa'' retreats took place in pavilions and parks that wealthy supporters had donated to the [[sangha]]. Over the years, the custom of staying on property held in common by the ''sangha'' as a whole during the ''vassa'' retreat evolved into [[cenobitic monasticism]], in which monks and nuns resided year-round in monasteries.

In [[Buddhism in India|India]], Buddhist monasteries gradually developed into centres of learning where philosophical principles were developed and debated; this tradition continues in the monastic universities of [[Vajrayana| Vajrayana Buddhists]], as well as in religious schools and universities founded by religious orders across the Buddhist world. In modern times, living a settled life in a monastery setting has become{{when|date=September 2020}} the most common lifestyle for Buddhist monks and nuns across the globe.

Whereas early monasteries are considered{{by whom|date=September 2020}} to have been held in common by the entire sangha, in later years this tradition diverged in a number of countries. Despite ''[[vinaya]]'' prohibitions on possessing wealth, many monasteries became large landowners, much like monasteries in medieval Christian Europe. In [[Chinese Buddhism]], peasant families worked monastic-owned land in exchange for paying a portion of their yearly crop to the resident monks in the monastery, just as they would to a [[feudal]] landlord. In [[Buddhism in Sri Lanka|Sri&nbsp;Lanka]] and in [[Tibetan Buddhism]], the ownership of a monastery often became vested in a single monk, who would often keep the property within the family by passing it on to a nephew ordained as a monk. In [[Buddhism in Japan|Japan]], where civil authorities permitted Buddhist monks to marry, the position of head of a temple or monastery sometimes became hereditary, passed from father to son over many generations.

Forest monasteries – most commonly found in the [[Theravada]] traditions of Southeast Asia and Sri&nbsp;Lanka – are monasteries dedicated primarily to the study and cultivation of [[Buddhist meditation]], rather than to scholarship or ceremonial duties. Forest monasteries often function like early Christian monasteries, with small groups of monks living an essentially hermit-like life gathered loosely around a respected elder teacher. While the [[Dhutanga|wandering lifestyle]] practised by [[Gautama Buddha|the Buddha]] and by his disciples continues to be the ideal model for forest-tradition monks in [[Thai Forest Tradition|Thailand]], [[Myanmar]], [[Sri Lanka]] and elsewhere, practical concerns - including shrinking wilderness areas, lack of access to lay supporters, dangerous wildlife, and dangerous border conflicts - dictate that increasing numbers of "meditation" monks live in monasteries, rather than wandering.

Tibetan Buddhist monasteries or [[gompa]]s are sometimes known as '''lamaseries''', with their monks sometimes (mistakenly) known as [[lama]]s. [[Helena Blavatsky]]'s [[Theosophical Society]] named its initial New York City meeting-place "the Lamasery".<ref>{{cite magazine|author= Crowley, John|title= Madame and the Masters: Blavatsky's cosmic soap opera |magazine= Harper's |date= February 2013 |page= 84}}</ref>

Famous Buddhist monasteries include:
* [[Donglin Temple (Jiangxi)|Donglin Temple]], [[Jiangxi]], China
* [[Jetavana]], [[Shravasti]] (India)
* [[Nalanda]], [[India]]
* [[Shaolin Monastery]], [[China]]
* [[Tengboche Monastery]], [[Nepal]]
For a further list of Buddhist monasteries see [[list of Buddhist temples]].

===Trends===
Buddhist monasteries include some of the largest in the world. [[Drepung Monastery]] in Tibet housed around 10,000 monks prior to the [[Annexation of Tibet by the People's Republic of China|Chinese invasion]]<ref>{{cite web|title= Tibet in Louisville|url= http://www.spiritualtravels.info/blog/page/10/|website= Spiritual Travels|publisher= Lori |access-date= 2013-02-11|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171107020734/http://www.spiritualtravels.info/blog/page/10/|archive-date=2017-11-07|url-status= dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title= Monks under siege in monasteries as protest ends in a hail of gunfire |author= Macartney, Jne |date= March 12, 2008 |work= The Sunday Times|url= http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article3528078.ece|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080511205447/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article3528078.ece|url-status= dead|archive-date= May 11, 2008}}</ref>
in 1950–1951. {{As of | 2020}} the relocated monastery in India houses around 8,000.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}