Samanera

Śrāmaṇeras in Thailand

Śrāmaṇeras from the tradition of Korean Buddhism

A sāmaṇera (Pali); Sanskrit śrāmaṇera; traditional Chinese: 沙彌; ; pinyin: shāmí; Korean: 사미. Tibetan: དགེ་ཚུལ་ getsül; Burmese: ရှင်သာမဏေ shin thamanei, Thai: สามเณร samanen, Khmer: សាមណេរ "samaner", Vietnamese: sa di, Sinhala: සාමණේර/හෙරණ) is a novice male monastic in a Buddhist context.^[1] A female novitiate is a śrāmaṇerī or śrāmaṇerikā (Pali: sāmaṇerī).

Etymology

The 'sāmaṇera' is a Pali language diminutive of the Sanskrit term śrāmaṇa ('strenuous') which indicates an ascetic practitioner. Therefore, sāmaṇera might be said to mean "small or young renunciate". In some South Asian Buddhist traditions, the term refers to someone who has taken the initial pravrajya vows but not the upasampada or full ordination. The prātimokṣa rules do not apply to them and they do not take part in the recital of the rules on uposatha days.

History

The account provided in the literature of South Asian Buddhism (and adopted by other Buddhist sects) is that when Gautama Buddha's son Rāhula was seven years old, he followed the Buddha, saying "Give me my inheritance." The Buddha called Sariputta and asked him to ordain Rāhula, who became the first sāmaṇera.

The King (Suddhodana), discovering that now his grandson and a number of young men in the royal family had requested ordination, asked the Buddha only to ordain a minor with the consent of his parents or guardian. The Buddha assented. This rule was expanded to include the spouses of those intending to join the Order of monks and nuns".^[2]

Overview

Thai novices sweeping temple grounds.

In the Vinaya (monastic regulations) used by many South Asian Buddhist sects, a man under the age of 20 cannot ordain as a bhikṣu (monk) but can ordain as a sāmaṇera. Sāmaṇeras (and sāmaṇerīs – the equivalent term for girls) keep the Ten Precepts as their code of behaviour and devote themselves to the religious life during breaks from secular schooling, or in conjunction with it if devoted to formal ordination. In other cultures and Buddhist traditions (particularly North East Asia, and those in the West that derive from these lineages), monks take different sets of vows, and follow different customary rules.

The Ten Precepts upheld by sāmaṇeras are:

1. Refrain from killing living things.
2. Refrain from stealing.
3. Refrain from unchastity (sensuality, sexuality, lust).
4. Refrain from lying.
5. Refrain from taking intoxicants.
6. Refrain from taking food at inappropriate times (after noon).
7. Refrain from singing, dancing, playing music or attending entertainment programs (performances).
8. Refrain from wearing perfume, cosmetics and garland (decorative accessories).
9. Refrain from sitting on high chairs and sleeping on luxurious, soft beds.
10. Refrain from accepting money.

Ordination differs between sāmaṇeras and srāmaṇerīs.

Transition to full ordination

After a year or at the age of 20, a sāmaṇera will be considered for the upasampada or higher ordination as a bhikṣu. Some monasteries will require people who want to ordain as a monk to be a novice for a set period of time, as a period of preparation and familiarization. Adults would normally wear the white robes of a Brahmin.

See also

• Ordination
• Ordination process (Sangha)
• Poy Sang Long
• Śrāmaṇerī
• Shinbyu
• Śikṣamāṇā
• Unsui
• Anagarika

References

1. Sumedho, Ajahn (2014). Peace is a Simple Step (PDF). Amaravati Publications. p. 36. ISBN 978-1-78432-000-3.
2. "Wall paintings ·· coming home, see section Buddha's son". buddhamind.info. Retrieved 2013-11-06.