At present, the Great Standards would allow soap under the allowance for clay, and scented soaps or deodorants under the allowance for scented powders for a bhikkhu with a strong body odor. Otherwise, the use of scents is listed among the bad habits prohibited by Cv.
Monks at Pa-Auk prefer the red carbolic soap. Why? It has no smell, and monks are not allowed to use perfumed items themselves unless medical reasons require it. It is one of the oldest, simplest and most natural forms of soap around.
Some of the guidelines for monastics that the Khandhaka lists are: One must use a razor to remove hair. One does not cut hair with scissors (unless medically necessary) No plucking or dyeing gray hair.
Shaving the head is one of the rules the Buddha laid down for his monks and nuns. It is one of the key indicators of renunciation showing that a person has given up ordinary life and will live outside of social conventions.
Monks are forbidden to divine either good fortune or future tragedy by observing heavenly omens, thereby deceiving both the tennō and the people. They are also forbidden to possess and study military tracts; to commit murder, rape, robbery or other crimes; and to feign enlightenment.
However, the relation in aspect of cohabitation between the monk and his wife is prohibited by code of monastic discipline which does not allow the monks have any sexual intercourses with any women.
The typical day of a Buddhist monk, whether young or adult, follows a fixed schedule: wake-up call at 4:30 am (including Saturdays and Sundays); one-hour gathering in the temple to recite mantras; personal hygiene in one of the several fountains scattered around the monastery (there are no showers but they wash ...
In Buddhism, tonsure is a part of the rite of pabbajja and also a part of becoming a Bhikkhu (monk) or Bhikkhuni (nun). This involves shaving the head and face. This tonsure is renewed as often as required to keep the head cleanly shaven.
Russian artist Wassily Kandinsky described orange as “red brought nearer to humanity by yellow.” It is a sacred color in many Eastern religions. Hindu and Buddhist monks wear orange robes, and in Hinduism, orange represents fire and therefore purity; impurities are burned in fire.
The monks go on alms round in the morning and the only other activities of the day are morning chores, breakfast, and the main meal. At 7:00 pm, the community gathers for pūjā, meditation, the taking of the precepts by the laity and a Dhamma talk.
The act of creating that spot is also known as tonsure. In Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity, hair is often considered a vanity. Men entering a religious order choose a tonsure as a way of denouncing the vanity and worldly ways represented by hair.
The meaning of the jieba varies, with some definitions being refuge in the three jewels, or alternatively symbolizing the three Buddhist characteristics of discipline, concentration, and wisdom, especially when these marks are made in multiples of three.
A Buddhist text, the Vinaya Pitaka, instructs monks to defecate in the toilet not in order of seniority but in order of arrival, and to cough loudly on arrival at the latrine in case it is already occupied. No grunting allowed, either.
Bedtime – the monks went to bed at 8pm in the winter and 9pm in the summer. They had to sleep in dormitories of 10 or 20. They slept fully clothed except that they had to remove their knives in case they cut themselves when they were asleep.
Some monastic rules suggest that monks did not take regular baths. The monks of Westminster Abbey, for example, were required to have a bath four times a year: at Christmas, Easter, the end of June, and the end of September.
For Hindus and Buddhists, long hair can represent beauty and (perhaps dangerous) sexuality — and cutting or shaving it off is surrendering worldly gifts to fully concentrate on the eternal.
Monks are not supposed to take special care of hair. So they usually allow their hair to grow to become matted, or they shave it off.
NO TOUCHING
Do not touch people you meet and shaking hands is considered bad manners. Also, do not touch monks ever.
Within the earliest monastic texts such as the Vinaya ( c. 4th century BCE), male monks are explicitly forbidden from having sexual relations with any of the four genders: male, female, ubhatovyañjanaka and paṇḍaka; various meanings of these words are given below.
Monks also meditate in caves and coffins, where the absolute darkness enhances concentration. So-called forest monks who observe strict ascetic practices known as dhutanga are said to meditate while walking for weeks without ever lying down, even to sleep.
Food is prepared as a spiritual exercise with attention to balance, harmony, and delicacy. Conscious eating is followed among all Buddhists. Buddha advised monks to avoid eating 10 kinds of meat for self-respect and protection: humans, elephants, horses, dogs, snakes, lions, tigers, boars and hyenas.
Buddhism, the Thai state religion, teaches that use of intoxicants should be avoided.