I've sometimes thought that marriage isn't for everybody just as monasticism is also not for everybody. It's good to be reminded that there are alternative ways to live.
One idea is that much pressure is applied to fit people into a 1 size fits all solution for everyone which extends to pressure to marry and shaming those who are reluctant to commit to a relationship. One man's meat is another's poison. We have moved away from prescribing universal heterosexuality but we still have a missionary instinct to goad others into narrow directions.
+coweatsman ever wonder why the norm is to get married and raise children? because the ultimate goal, evolutionarily ingrained in our very being, is propagation, as is the case with every other species of plants and animals. And why do we need the concept of a marriage when sharks and leopards don't? Because our young need long years to get to the stage where they can fend for themselves. Why is it that in most countries one is recognised as a "major" only after 18 ? Because the gap between the introspective ability of a 10 year old and an 18 years is huge. If you're going to have sex and make a child, it's only fair that society forces you to stick by it. we wouldn't have come this far without marriage and familial obligations.
Udaykymset I think the concept of a formal marriage ceremony goes back to the beginnings of a written legal code. There were laws about adultery, inheritance and rape. In order that there was no confusion about who was in marriage with whom marriages were formally registered and witnessed. Bureaucratic and judicial efficiency. Much better than relying on verbal knowledge of who was whose wife. If it's written down, witnessed, sworn with "I do" and recorded there is no doubt. Preliterate societies had a lot of violence over misunderstandings of marital obligations. Scribes and judges replaced swords and knives for settling such disputes. Today marriage is on the decline and most children are born outside or in informal de facto relationships. The courts are treating such informal relationships as "marriage" with all the same obligations and entitlements but that is returning to a time when marital obligations are vague and dependant on word of mouth. One can find oneself in a relationship equal to marriage by accident. Living with someone with children for 6 months makes one the "parent" for child support purposes and subject to all divorce type split up of assets on separation.
+coweatsman I won't dispute that the judicialization of marriage is a recent development, but you couldn't possibly mean to insinuate that before the concept was formalised and bound to written laws, the family life of the common man was radically different from ours today. Men would go out to hunt and women would care for the young. And since the drive to propagate is inevitably accompanied by fear of competition, no man was inclined, nor is today, to provide for the offspring of another. Just as a lion slaughters a cub hailing from another pride, even when there is no immediate threat to his own, a man will only acquiesce to shelter and protect his own child. Moreover, would you say that before adultery was condemned by written laws, it was commonly acceptable ? And why is it that it angers one to find their partner attracted to someone else? Why is it that this possessiveness is felt by teenagers and adults alike ? Again, fear of competition. And again, we are not the only species that displays this visceral competitiveness. Though the idealised interpretation of marriage and marital responsibilities is changing, the instinctual need to live together to raise children , to provide and be be provided for, to protect and be protected, remains, and even though the division of work is no longer the same, seeing as how now women have just as much capacity to provide for and support a family.........men are as belligerently competitive and women are as choosy as they have ever been.
For a long time I had half-joked with friends, "if only there were some kind of secular monastic environment I could go live in..." Then one day I wandered into a Zen Buddhist Monastery. Three years later I came back out, having entered a boy and exited a man. I recommend it.
Brilliant! Thank you, your contribution is immeasurable to many minds and hearts, here and now. Just right and just in time. Love your unbiased and scholarly attitude about the information you present, and your wisdom is beautifully represented by your excellent delivery, both visual and oral. Brilliant, and thank you again!
This video being unbiased, sure. But many other videos are based on his beliefs and ideas of said subject, so don't come in here and say his videos are always unbiased.
+Tony Bernardi I think the best aspects of monasticism as it shows up in history could be integrated into a new monastic way of life that would be very rewarding personally to the individuals living such a life, and if such places were engineered well, rewarding to society as a whole.
+Tony Bernardi Unbiased? Didn't you notice a slight secular bias? The school of life is very biased against esoteric doctrine. Or, if they are aware of esoteric doctrine they sweep everything in a empirical, secular category. Without really justifying that reading.
I mean it's called trinity college. Pray tell, what trinity would that possibly be? Colleges we're very much organized around an explicit christian doctrine. Until well into the fifties.
I never thought that a monk would keep me sane but I find listening to the western Australian cockney East London former Cambridge Physics graduate - with an amazing sense of humor - Ajahn Brahm, an almost essential youtube experience. Great to play in the background almost every night as a I drift off to sleep. Monasticism really does have a lot to teach us ie learning to let go.
You left out, Alan, Irish Moncks. They contributed literature poetry and Christianity. They travelled the world bringing with them, beautiful colourful books, especially to the Vatican.
Communal living is wonderful. I have much experience with it. What is not covered in this lecture, though, are the common problems that pop up. Often the main problem for focused living communities, even religious ones, is that of basic selfishness amongst the community members. Someone in the community decides that they want something their way, others disagree; or the recognized community leader dies and suddenly everyone's arguing about who takes their place; or some in the community chastise others for not living up to the communal ethical ideals even though the chastisers are equally at fault; etc, etc. It all sounds very basic, but you'd be surprised at how often these silly matters end up pulling communities apart. For instance, in those hippie communes with loose sex norms, imagine if your spouse starts sleeping with everyone in the commune -- jealousy brews, arguments, fights -- people start to realize why faithfulness in marriage is practical and not just a social construct. Many effective communities structure themselves around general silence and/or filling up one's daily life with so much prayer (or chores or study) that no one has the time or reason to complain about each other. Those who stick with it long enough know that petty human squabbles are predictable and fickle. The community will last if there are recognized rules to which everyone (including leaders) are held accountable, and there is one recognized leader who is only chosen if they are found to be the best at living by the community rules and is willing to be responsible for managerial tasks. This leader has the FINAL say on community decisions -- yet will NEVER make a decision that affects the life of the community without consulting everyone in a meeting, taking the input of even the most junior members. Those who want to join the community may be permitted to join for a short time, and if they find they truly love the lifestyle and live well by the rules, then they may eventually join in the long term -- this makes it so the community will not be broken up by accepting the wrong people. Everything I'm saying here essentially comes from the Rule of St. Benedict. He knew what he was doing, especially after his first group of monastics tried to poison him because they despised his rigorous discipline, even though they were the ones who asked him to lead their community. Taking from the Rule of St. Benedict has yielded a steady success rate amongst emerging religious communities, as on the base level it does not seek to push anyone into spiritual heroism -- it just outlines how to live a life focused on God with other people, and in a way that BALANCES work, prayer, and study.
I only seem to take issue with School Of Life Video's because they never seem to have anything good to say about a traditional marriage. Sure my marriage isn't easy, but I actually became more productive and happier with my wife and children in my life, then when I didn't have them in my life. Perhaps communes are an alternative but not for everyone. For me, it's my wife and children that make me truly happy. That or I would of been a hermit.
Confucius had some interesting ideas about ceremony that goes hand-in-hand with Benedict's "The Rule", that I think is worth pointing out. He believed that ceremony and rules voluntarily submitted to takes away the pressure and stress of not knowing what to do in a situation, and gives us a sense of being a constructive part of something, even when we are simply sitting silently. I feel like there's some truth to this idea especially on the small scale of ceremonies, periods of silence, and chores that you personally see a community benefit from.
Great video. I believe communal living is why so many people enjoy University so much and it's the best time of their life, at least in your 2nd-4th years. In the first year you live in halls, which is certainly communal living, but with a group of people you don't know and didn't choose. Most students still love this experience and thrive, but quite a few like myself hated it as they felt disconnected with the people they were put with. However in the 2nd and 3rd year nearly all students live in a communal 'student house', with the friends that they made in the first year and this is where people have a great time and make friends for life. After university ends for some reason we all expect to move in with a partner, move back home, or just live alone and find a job to support us and many have a lot less enjoyable of a life. Some people continue to live with the people they lived with in at University, and continue to reap the benefits of communal living but for some reason this isn't considered the ordinary thing to do and you're expected to find a significant other and live with them and solely them. Even if you have a significant other that is by no means a bad thing, my sister for example lives with her boyfriend, another couple and someone single and are still enjoying communal living. I think one flaw of your video is to make communal living seem more removed from an ordinary modern life than it has to be, from your examples. You don't have to be a monk and you don't have to be a hippy, but you can be an ordinary person with an ordinary modern job who happens to live in a house with 5 friends.
Communal life can work out for many people who find it difficult functioning in the normal daily life society has in place for us.. but to be frank the reason why living with one person in a monogamous relationship fails isn't because of the structure of relationship itself but because of people who simply don't know what they want and take advantage of the situation of being in a relationship selfishly. Good video explaining the different options one can choose to live their life. The only let down is that it doesn't really matter what type of lifestyle you live.. when it comes to living with other people expect for toxic group think to settle in and make it counter productive for individual people who want to think outside the box of everyone else in the group for a change. Groups tend to get hostile and will banish and excommunicate a person the moment difference is introduced to the group. I wish the video added on to that.
Rebranding this way of living as 'intentional communities' seems to be reviving the project, at least here in the US. I find it very compelling actually.
Great presentation! I believe monasticism and communal living has a bright future in a whole new level, much different than the individualistic or modern small family life of our times.
I really wish there was something like this that was common. Just a place to go every once in awhile, maybe on vacation or to work on a large project for work, where it would be like a monastery. A quiet, secluded place in the middle of nature where anyone was welcome, and the day was regimented for tons of free time and restricted personal time so you could work on what you needed to without being stressed or distracted. Like, "Where's Johnny been these last few days?" "Oh, he's up at the monastery working on the plans for the new housing development over near 11th and Spring"
Rooting Christian monasticism in Epicureanism is beyond a little weird. In the Judeochristian tradition Epicureanism is a metaphor for worldliness & materialism. Actually, Christian monasticism, like most of the best bits of Christianity, are rooted in the mother religion of Judaism. It appears the ancient prophets founded communal groups, they gathered followers who preserved the teachings of the prophets. There followers being called the "sons of the prophets." In Alexandria Egypt there was a Jewish group called Theraputai who lived a kind of celibate commune. Then there were the Essenes who apparently created the Dead Sea Scrolls. From the beginning Christianity had what were called the desert fathers & mothers living as hermits.
I think the best way to use knowledge about the past is to learn from it and adapt it, not to go backwards. What I'm getting out of this video is that as with everything in life, the best approach is 'everything in moderation.' If you choose to build a family, you should remember to balance your priorities and treat yourself well by maintaining friendships, hobbies, interest groups, intellectual pursuits, involvement in community associations, etc. instead of isolating yourself with your significant other and kids and driving each other crazy. Monastic life in its own way is isolating and may lead to the same type of scenario as the suburban nuclear family unit situation.
+Johnson Taylor Who says they wouldn't do modern art aswell? Some modern artist inspire themselfs on the old masters and arent eurocentristic at all. In fact modern art is worth more than paintings from the 19th century nowadays
"Then We sent following their footsteps Our messengers and followed [them] with Jesus, the son of Mary, and gave him the Gospel. And We placed in the hearts of those who followed him compassion and mercy and monasticism, which they innovated; We did not prescribe it for them except [that they did so] seeking the approval of Allah. But they did not observe it with due observance. So We gave the ones who believed among them their reward, but many of them are defiantly disobedient."
I love school of life because as a teenager just starting to consider what I will do in my life, what is important, the meaning of existence and humans as animals, it offers so many good points. If I were ever to establish a monastic group, I would most certainly like to be part of one such as the fellows of Cambridge. The most liberating and rewarding thing to do is to discuss ideas and beliefs with someone else equally as interested in the topic as you are, and I find that extremely rare in the general population. Indeed, I attend a prestigious school, and within it I find it hard to be successful searching for individuals with a passion for music, philosophy or physics.
I can definitely see the link with the university style of living. During my first year of university I was living in a halls of residence that contained 33 people per flat (sharing a Kitchen and common room) with 4 floors that all residents could access. We had 2 meals provided per day at set times. Some people thought this arrangement was crazy and hated the idea but in retrospect that was one of the happiest years of my life and most who lived there would agree. While not everyone got along together, the shear number of people meant that there was always someone around to talk to, watch a film, or play table tennis with. I really miss those times and think that this style of living could be used more widely then just a temporary housing arrangement for students (as this video shows).
It's interesting to think of coworking spaces and technology accelerators as pseudo-communes. The members don't (usually) sleep under the same roof, but there are shared values and ambitions like entrepreneurship, design thinking and experimentation. :) Rereading consolations of philosophy today and loved imagining life in Epicurus' "Garden"
This makes me think very much of the experience of university halls. The drawback of these is that most people, even within the university educated, don't live in these for longer than the first few months of their degree. But even with this immense restriction people still very frequently look back on this time as one of the most stimulating, formative and happy of their lives. This is probably the closest thing to monastic living that large numbers of people still engage in in the west.
Growing up with my grandparents, I learned that keeping the place clean was valuable. While I'm not disagreeing, I'll say it definitely cuts in to my productivity.
+Hexspa I know right? If only we didn't have to clean up and keep tidy we would've cured cancer eons ago and would already be exploring the cosmos and had colonised many many hospitable planets in the universe. Keeping tidy and washing up are the most destructive of distractions ever imagined right?
1:35 They say that it is the world's first commune based around philosophy. You might want to change it to western world's first because there existed places like this in India and China much before that.
I am already working towards such a life. Good to see a vid that encourages me even more. Many people deride choices like this as hippy dippy. I try to keep my lip zipped when they do.
I think this video starts from the premise that finding a partner necessarily means finding someone who is not compatible with you and thus will drag your personal development. A life with a specific individual whom you feel free to exchange ideas, share values and grow with might be more interesting than with several others. This, of course, depending on each persons' dynamics.
I don't know whether the same, small movement exists in the UK, but there is a movement in the US called Intentional Communities. I sometimes fantasize about starting an intentional community (perhaps as a co-housing setup rather than a commune) of people dedicated to the study of philosophy and/or the humanities.
I do 100% agree. I visited a Krishna Ashram this summer and it was amazing how easy life there is. Although they have some Rules that are not really justified, I very much believe that living in like a Commune is a huge benefit to life. :)
Anyone else think it would be a dream come true to live in a academic monastery. Specifically I'd like to live in common contact with musicians, live with philosophers (ideally that like to admit when they are wrong because they realize that with that specific circumstance they never have to be wrong again) , and in common contact with scientists. I think if done correctly it could very well increase academic progress. Anyone wish to explore this thought further with me.
There are some mistakes: - A basic component of all monastic life is asceticism, and you haven't talked about it at all. - Epicureanism and the Hippy movement cannot be linked to monasticism because they are secular philosophies, mostly at odds with asceticism. - Not all monastic orders are centered on communal living, many are hermits who live secluded. Actually that's how it all began, with the first Egyptian monks living alone in the desert in the 3rd century AD, or the first Indian sramanas in the 5th century BC. Also, the words "monastic" or "monk" come from the Greek "mónos" which means "alone". - Medieval monks rarely worked in the fields and in other primary production jobs, they often worked as scribes to copy books and make miniatures. Anyway, their main work was to pray and say masses, that was the main purpose for which they received alms and donations.
i ask you to put subtitles. I know people who have problems to hear and they cant understand well the video just as people who are learning english and cant understand the video completely. Thanks!
Permafrost 0 There are a lot of things that need to change. The first generation of Western Buddhist teachers is mostly in their 60s and 70s now and saw technology mainly as an obstacle when they were being trained. We need more teachers who are up to date on the latest scientific research into neuroscience and who are tech literate and not afraid to engage with new and potentially radically improved methods that may bear little resemblance to meditation. If everyone who started on the path was getting enlightened in a decade or whatever, it would be no problem. But most people do not and there is a lot of bitterness and disillusionment out there. Above all, there is the reality that if Buddhism does not change, it runs the risk of being left behind by a world where everything else is changing at incredible speed.
With regards to the monastery in Bhutan, the fact that it is a very isolated community seems atypical compared to most of the Buddhist monasteries I have seen. Buddhists are expected to practice dharna, that is to provide for the monastic community in some way, so the monks do alms rounds. This is really key to monastic life and is intended to keep monastics involved in their community as spiritual guiders rather than isolating themselves. Great video though
Great video once again, School of Life! Looking through your online shop I saw your very nice "philosopher's jumper" and reading into it I found there's really a lot to be discussed regarding something as seemingly simple as clothing, a part of life that most people don't give much thought. I think a video on the clothing one wears would be really interesting.
in Israel, it's actually very common to take a year after school before the mandatory military service and live in a mehina - a commune where you learn humanistics & judaism, work out and volunteer, not unlike a sort of secular monastry.
2:50 - "Inspired by the example of Epicureus, Saint Benedict establishes his first monastery..." I beg to differ - st. Benedict was, in fact, not inspired by epicurean communes, rather he lived according to the examples of the early christians, as we know them from the Acts of the Apostles, etc. Also, there was already a known tradition of eastern, so called "Desert fathers", the lives of whom Benedict sought to emulate. Love, Simon
So how do families and couples live like in those communes? And supposedly if it is an option, how do we handle our growth if everyone starts founding a family within the commune? And how big can a commune get before it becomes unmanageable? I have so many questions yet i get no answers when i look for them. This was a thing for me weeks ago but i got frustrated on how little i could find. I couldn't even find some basic information about what makes a great, well functioning commune. Please help, Mr. Botton I'd be so infinitely grateful if you could just point me to a good source of information.
+John Smith Very good point, there really is not much about the actual practicalities of communes. My guess to your questions would be that there would not be unmanageable growth as not everyone would procreate for one (without a set family, what's the need? Contraception and just keep having sex. Everyone helps look after the group's children so all children are sorta your children.) Also, it wouldn't be a cult so the commune is open and people can move freely in and out, and I imagine most kids would move out. This all would probably keep the population size pretty steady And I doubt there would be particularly set families either. 'Free love maaaan' \/
Capt. Cutler So you basically deny that the social market economy with it's socialist characteristics works better than the purely capitalistic free market economy? Firstly, human nature is not for you to decide. You are just as ignorant about it as the rest of us. And if Communism is not natural than it is at the least brightening our horizon on what is an option and what _could_ be truly "natural". This is why I am asking. Just because an Idea sounds absurd or has never been tried before doesn't make it automatically wrong. And if something doesn't work or seems impractical it might just need a few tweaks here and there. These Ideas you discard are results of what out-of-the-box thinking essentially is. And every time someone does it we all might profit from it immensely from what we can learn from it. These ideas are in its core an attempted solution to a dilemma we have and everything done differently in those new concepts are both the identified problems we have with it in particular and it's possible solutions. And if the idea proposed doesn't work as a whole then some of the attributes it has could. I don't know, you might be right but I still wouldn't be so dismissive if I were you. But back to the idea of monasticism. Don't you think it depends on the idea behind the cult? I mean we could create a monastic system that is "pro-procreation". That's why i was asking on how it would look like if it was practical.
Capt. Cutler "Bullshit! Man, I typed a very concise response, then clicked off the screen and it vanished. Fuck that. I don't have time to rewrite it." Fuckin *hate* when that happens! Fuck you Google and your lousy ass _Text-safety_ measures! xDDDD But seriously how can you be so sure of this? And where did you learn about it? And i don't wanna be rude or anything but I'm pretty sure if you ask a hundred people on what is natural they would either give you some damn predictable mainstream-ass answers or something else that doesn't correspond with anybodies definition. That isn't to say that we can't locate _any_ of our fundamental natural attributes but we are generally bad at knowing ourselves and judging in general. Also I don't believe in the concept of good and bad much less good vs bad.
+John Smith If the community knows what it's doing then it will have small private housing for families. Some communities might have communal dorms, but in this case it would be better to have small housing units surrounding a communal area. This helps deal with the practical concerns that families have of keeping their privacy. A community can be very large so long as it is managed well. There must be a recognized leader who has the final say but also has to deal with managerial tasks and a number of prefects to help keep people on task (the number depends on how big the community is), and typically a few other people will cover necessary posts like accounting. And everyone has their own daily responsibilities to the community, be it productive work or showing up to meetings and meal times. Basically by structure it is like a republic, but in practice it is democratic because decisions that affect the community are never made without the input of everyone in the community. ----- If that principle is not followed, then I can tell you from experience the community will surely break apart in time. If it is a large and growing community of families, then basically that becomes a town, and at that point, yes it starts looking more like socialism, in a good way. If you are curious still, you should research Amish towns in America. Good example of focused, simple, principled living with a familial structure instead of a celibate structure.
The 2011 Documentary called Happy has a segment on Monastic living somewhere in north Europe, can't really recall exactly where. It's a very good documentary on the whole. If you like these sort of videos then you will probably find it quite insightful. Check it out, it's on Netflix.
the first thing I thought of during this movie was my repulsion to communal living in the form of brainwashing cults, etc....but now I'm realizing... I would very much enjoy a secular commune in the form of a college dorm setting, or shared workspace ets....There are tons of examples of shared offices now, I just want to see it be experiemented with more
This sounds like a perfect solution to one of my biggest problems, I have never felt the desire to be with someone. I have fallen in love and I do enjoy being with friends once in a while. but the biggest concern in me is not becoming the person I've dreamt of ever since I have memory, a good musician and painter.
I am doing academic work that requires my undivided attention. Living with a spouse and children is not conceivable at this stage of my life. As a result, I am left with living a solitary life at home. Or so I thought. How great would it be to reinvent monasticism in a modern setting? I am very intrigued by this idea. Thank you School of Life.
It's interesting how you jumped over any mention of monastic life in the Christian Orthodox Church even though first christian monks appeared in Egypt(eastern part of the Roman empire) after 313 AD as a consequence of Christianity becoming familiar with the masses. Rules couldn't be strict anymore as they were before so those who wanted to keep the old ways of Christianity moved to secluded places.
You should have touched on joint families! Many cultures still live with extended family and as someone who lived in a nuclear family and a joint family, the joint family setup creates a system that doesn't segregate you from society, allows you to expand your experiences, and life is never a dull moment to say the least. :P
1:28 What makes you think this was the world's first commune, 300BC? Humans have been present on Earth for millions of years and 2319 years is not so long ago, relatively speaking.
This just made me think of something: 4chan's community could be argued to be like these monastic societies (a secular society of people of similar thought, facing the same situation, just online)
This was a very interesting video, it is things ami have thought about but haven't had word to explain, I am doing the Swedish military service for the moment and I can see a lot of parallels between military life and monasticism, you should have made some connection there as well. Great video anyways :)
wonderful video. I'm some what of a hermit so it might strike some as a surprise I've considered this type of life a nice sounding one. would just have to find like minded people and do it. ahh the possibilitys.
[00:00 - 6:50 ]The problem is my monkey mind is perplexed with Irony; I distract myself from focusing on work by indulging in learning about the History of Ideas instead of focusing on what I should really be doing. So if it's procrastinating, is it productive procrastination? Is it not ironic what with living on my own and having a Buddhist Temple/BnB set up shop down the road that I feel like a lot of this video makes a lot of sense? Either way, it's definitely Irony that's really at play. What doesn't quite make sense is just exactly how and why Irony/Dark Matter makes so much sense. But that's Irony/Dark Matter for you (I could be here for a while so I'll just sto
Could you do a video about the 'Hellenism' epoch and the cultural exchange following it? Most educating youtube channel by the way! Keep up the great work!
I'm thinking of how to go about making a commune or a "monastery" for philosophy, science and technology. Do i have no choice but to stick to the rigidities of a university?
This is why I want to join the navy. To experiance thi comunal way of life, on a ship where you are always at work and you have to follow a set of rules. This video opend my mind to the filosofy behind my desire. Thanks
Its interesting to contrast monastic/communal life with marriage life. I could argue that the two are not necessarily opposed because an individual could have a married life while still engaging in a community of sorts depending on how broadly you want to define communal life. A married couple could also live in a monastic or communal group. An individual could also belong to multiple communities to best suit their interests. It would be very hard to find one ideal community that wholly reflects your identity and thats perhaps why many people live in small family settings where you could hypothetically "create" your own community. This broader definition of monastic or communal living also makes me think of is as a more modern rendition of small tribes or clans from prehistory which can be traced to humanity's earliest days of living in groups similar to many apes. Just some rambling thoughts but I think it would be good to reflect on more precisely what makes a monastic or communal life separate from other forms of communal living and how that compares to marriage/family life. Or to reflect on the various different social organizations which create different life styles. Also the marriage vs monastic dynamic does not take into account the more individualistic lifestyles (like simply living on your own) some people have nor the more public lifestyles (like living in a city or engaging in communities online which are both fairly large). But I wonder if those lifestyles can be considered relevant or not to this case. Just a bunch of ramblings because this video made me think! EDIT: I guess what's churning in my head is that if you are putting hippie communes which value free love and pleasure on the same page as buddhist monasteries which value non attachment to this world and self restraint, then it doesn't seem like the comparison is really about monastic life vs marriage life.... Maybe its more of a comparison and exploration of the many different lifestyles that are present in this world? EDIT 2: Also thank you, I may end up using these thoughts to write a paper on monastic traditions in Buddhism for my class!
I've sometimes thought that marriage isn't for everybody just as monasticism is also not for everybody. It's good to be reminded that there are alternative ways to live.
Interesting discussion opener. Please go on about the alternatives.
One idea is that much pressure is applied to fit people into a 1 size fits all solution for everyone which extends to pressure to marry and shaming those who are reluctant to commit to a relationship. One man's meat is another's poison. We have moved away from prescribing universal heterosexuality but we still have a missionary instinct to goad others into narrow directions.
+coweatsman ever wonder why the norm is to get married and raise children? because the ultimate goal, evolutionarily ingrained in our very being, is propagation, as is the case with every other species of plants and animals. And why do we need the concept of a marriage when sharks and leopards don't? Because our young need long years to get to the stage where they can fend for themselves. Why is it that in most countries one is recognised as a "major" only after 18 ? Because the gap between the introspective ability of a 10 year old and an 18 years is huge. If you're going to have sex and make a child, it's only fair that society forces you to stick by it. we wouldn't have come this far without marriage and familial obligations.
Udaykymset
I think the concept of a formal marriage ceremony goes back to the beginnings of a written legal code. There were laws about adultery, inheritance and rape. In order that there was no confusion about who was in marriage with whom marriages were formally registered and witnessed. Bureaucratic and judicial efficiency. Much better than relying on verbal knowledge of who was whose wife. If it's written down, witnessed, sworn with "I do" and recorded there is no doubt. Preliterate societies had a lot of violence over misunderstandings of marital obligations. Scribes and judges replaced swords and knives for settling such disputes.
Today marriage is on the decline and most children are born outside or in informal de facto relationships. The courts are treating such informal relationships as "marriage" with all the same obligations and entitlements but that is returning to a time when marital obligations are vague and dependant on word of mouth. One can find oneself in a relationship equal to marriage by accident. Living with someone with children for 6 months makes one the "parent" for child support purposes and subject to all divorce type split up of assets on separation.
+coweatsman I won't dispute that the judicialization of marriage is a recent development, but you couldn't possibly mean to insinuate that before the concept was formalised and bound to written laws, the family life of the common man was radically different from ours today. Men would go out to hunt and women would care for the young. And since the drive to propagate is inevitably accompanied by fear of competition, no man was inclined, nor is today, to provide for the offspring of another. Just as a lion slaughters a cub hailing from another pride, even when there is no immediate threat to his own, a man will only acquiesce to shelter and protect his own child. Moreover, would you say that before adultery was condemned by written laws, it was commonly acceptable ?
And why is it that it angers one to find their partner attracted to someone else? Why is it that this possessiveness is felt by teenagers and adults alike ? Again, fear of competition. And again, we are not the only species that displays this visceral competitiveness.
Though the idealised interpretation of marriage and marital responsibilities is changing, the instinctual need to live together to raise children , to provide and be be provided for, to protect and be protected, remains, and even though the division of work is no longer the same, seeing as how now women have just as much capacity to provide for and support a family.........men are as belligerently competitive and women are as choosy as they have ever been.
I'm using this.. as a distraction from productive work.
same here... haha...
not a huge loss if you use the ideas to go back to actual work with enhanced concentration.
Me too. Good for relaxation.
Darling , this is the work.
Wow
Same
For a long time I had half-joked with friends, "if only there were some kind of secular monastic environment I could go live in..." Then one day I wandered into a Zen Buddhist Monastery. Three years later I came back out, having entered a boy and exited a man. I recommend it.
Which one?
I would like to join a monastery, but I don't know which type I should be looking into.
But zen Buddhism is not really secular?
Brilliant! Thank you, your contribution is immeasurable to many minds and hearts, here and now. Just right and just in time. Love your unbiased and scholarly attitude about the information you present, and your wisdom is beautifully represented by your excellent delivery, both visual and oral. Brilliant, and thank you again!
This video being unbiased, sure. But many other videos are based on his beliefs and ideas of said subject, so don't come in here and say his videos are always unbiased.
+Tony Bernardi I think the best aspects of monasticism as it shows up in history could be integrated into a new monastic way of life that would be very rewarding personally to the individuals living such a life, and if such places were engineered well, rewarding to society as a whole.
+Tony Bernardi Unbiased? Didn't you notice a slight secular bias? The school of life is very biased against esoteric doctrine. Or, if they are aware of esoteric doctrine they sweep everything in a empirical, secular category. Without really justifying that reading.
I mean it's called trinity college. Pray tell, what trinity would that possibly be? Colleges we're very much organized around an explicit christian doctrine. Until well into the fifties.
+Olivier Schröder 1dwdssssew2
I never thought that a monk would keep me sane but I find listening to the western Australian cockney East London former Cambridge Physics graduate - with an amazing sense of humor - Ajahn Brahm, an almost essential youtube experience. Great to play in the background almost every night as a I drift off to sleep. Monasticism really does have a lot to teach us ie learning to let go.
LOL the Tracey Emin bed at @8:00 was an especially nice touch.
Another AMAZING video, love this channel!
Thank you,
Best regards,
TGV
You left out, Alan, Irish Moncks. They contributed literature poetry and Christianity. They travelled the world bringing with them, beautiful colourful books, especially to the Vatican.
Communal living is wonderful. I have much experience with it. What is not covered in this lecture, though, are the common problems that pop up.
Often the main problem for focused living communities, even religious ones, is that of basic selfishness amongst the community members. Someone in the community decides that they want something their way, others disagree; or the recognized community leader dies and suddenly everyone's arguing about who takes their place; or some in the community chastise others for not living up to the communal ethical ideals even though the chastisers are equally at fault; etc, etc.
It all sounds very basic, but you'd be surprised at how often these silly matters end up pulling communities apart. For instance, in those hippie communes with loose sex norms, imagine if your spouse starts sleeping with everyone in the commune -- jealousy brews, arguments, fights -- people start to realize why faithfulness in marriage is practical and not just a social construct.
Many effective communities structure themselves around general silence and/or filling up one's daily life with so much prayer (or chores or study) that no one has the time or reason to complain about each other. Those who stick with it long enough know that petty human squabbles are predictable and fickle. The community will last if there are recognized rules to which everyone (including leaders) are held accountable, and there is one recognized leader who is only chosen if they are found to be the best at living by the community rules and is willing to be responsible for managerial tasks. This leader has the FINAL say on community decisions -- yet will NEVER make a decision that affects the life of the community without consulting everyone in a meeting, taking the input of even the most junior members.
Those who want to join the community may be permitted to join for a short time, and if they find they truly love the lifestyle and live well by the rules, then they may eventually join in the long term -- this makes it so the community will not be broken up by accepting the wrong people.
Everything I'm saying here essentially comes from the Rule of St. Benedict. He knew what he was doing, especially after his first group of monastics tried to poison him because they despised his rigorous discipline, even though they were the ones who asked him to lead their community. Taking from the Rule of St. Benedict has yielded a steady success rate amongst emerging religious communities, as on the base level it does not seek to push anyone into spiritual heroism -- it just outlines how to live a life focused on God with other people, and in a way that BALANCES work, prayer, and study.
I only seem to take issue with School Of Life Video's because they never seem to have anything good to say about a traditional marriage. Sure my marriage isn't easy, but I actually became more productive and happier with my wife and children in my life, then when I didn't have them in my life.
Perhaps communes are an alternative but not for everyone. For me, it's my wife and children that make me truly happy. That or I would of been a hermit.
Luke Kahlor if marriage is good for u what’s the problem, for lots it isn’t and it’s good to have options
This is THE MOST IMPORTANT CHANNEL on TH-cam! It needs to be shared! Please, keep producing content! ❤️❤️❤️
I am honestly thinking of founding a monastery
The idea sounds good
I would join
I want to start a commune so bad
let me join in too
Sign me up chief!
Confucius had some interesting ideas about ceremony that goes hand-in-hand with Benedict's "The Rule", that I think is worth pointing out. He believed that ceremony and rules voluntarily submitted to takes away the pressure and stress of not knowing what to do in a situation, and gives us a sense of being a constructive part of something, even when we are simply sitting silently. I feel like there's some truth to this idea especially on the small scale of ceremonies, periods of silence, and chores that you personally see a community benefit from.
Great video.
I believe communal living is why so many people enjoy University so much and it's the best time of their life, at least in your 2nd-4th years. In the first year you live in halls, which is certainly communal living, but with a group of people you don't know and didn't choose. Most students still love this experience and thrive, but quite a few like myself hated it as they felt disconnected with the people they were put with. However in the 2nd and 3rd year nearly all students live in a communal 'student house', with the friends that they made in the first year and this is where people have a great time and make friends for life.
After university ends for some reason we all expect to move in with a partner, move back home, or just live alone and find a job to support us and many have a lot less enjoyable of a life. Some people continue to live with the people they lived with in at University, and continue to reap the benefits of communal living but for some reason this isn't considered the ordinary thing to do and you're expected to find a significant other and live with them and solely them. Even if you have a significant other that is by no means a bad thing, my sister for example lives with her boyfriend, another couple and someone single and are still enjoying communal living.
I think one flaw of your video is to make communal living seem more removed from an ordinary modern life than it has to be, from your examples. You don't have to be a monk and you don't have to be a hippy, but you can be an ordinary person with an ordinary modern job who happens to live in a house with 5 friends.
So when is The School of Life monastery due to open?
+The School of Life where does one sign up?
+The School of Life
Yes--where does one sign up?
Communal life can work out for many people who find it difficult functioning in the normal daily life society has in place for us.. but to be frank the reason why living with one person in a monogamous relationship fails isn't because of the structure of relationship itself but because of people who simply don't know what they want and take advantage of the situation of being in a relationship selfishly. Good video explaining the different options one can choose to live their life. The only let down is that it doesn't really matter what type of lifestyle you live.. when it comes to living with other people expect for toxic group think to settle in and make it counter productive for individual people who want to think outside the box of everyone else in the group for a change. Groups tend to get hostile and will banish and excommunicate a person the moment difference is introduced to the group. I wish the video added on to that.
You completely forget to mention the eastern Orthodox monastic communities where saint Benedict became a monk and got the Tipikon(the rule)
I have great respect for the Sister Groups here in the Philippines
Very Disciplined and Very Useful
@1:26 Voice Over Artist: Its the world's first proper commune based around philosophy in 300 BC.
Buddha in 500 BC: Hold My Beer
This is an interesting video as always. Sometimes I feel that this way of life could be the best option for me, and its history is so rich and lovely.
Rebranding this way of living as 'intentional communities' seems to be reviving the project, at least here in the US. I find it very compelling actually.
Great presentation! I believe monasticism and communal living has a bright future in a whole new level, much different than the individualistic or modern small family life of our times.
I really wish there was something like this that was common. Just a place to go every once in awhile, maybe on vacation or to work on a large project for work, where it would be like a monastery. A quiet, secluded place in the middle of nature where anyone was welcome, and the day was regimented for tons of free time and restricted personal time so you could work on what you needed to without being stressed or distracted.
Like, "Where's Johnny been these last few days?"
"Oh, he's up at the monastery working on the plans for the new housing development over near 11th and Spring"
Rooting Christian monasticism in Epicureanism is beyond a little weird. In the Judeochristian tradition Epicureanism is a metaphor for worldliness & materialism.
Actually, Christian monasticism, like most of the best bits of Christianity, are rooted in the mother religion of Judaism. It appears the ancient prophets founded communal groups, they gathered followers who preserved the teachings of the prophets. There followers being called the "sons of the prophets." In Alexandria Egypt there was a Jewish group called Theraputai who lived a kind of celibate commune. Then there were the Essenes who apparently created the Dead Sea Scrolls. From the beginning Christianity had what were called the desert fathers & mothers living as hermits.
Am surprised you didnt mention St Anthony of Egypt.
I think the best way to use knowledge about the past is to learn from it and adapt it, not to go backwards. What I'm getting out of this video is that as with everything in life, the best approach is 'everything in moderation.' If you choose to build a family, you should remember to balance your priorities and treat yourself well by maintaining friendships, hobbies, interest groups, intellectual pursuits, involvement in community associations, etc. instead of isolating yourself with your significant other and kids and driving each other crazy. Monastic life in its own way is isolating and may lead to the same type of scenario as the suburban nuclear family unit situation.
could you maybe do an art serie about famous paintings which you could analyse.
yess that'd be awesome
+Stig larsen they used to do that but the main person involved in the project is now is writing her book.
+Stig larsen I would love that :O
+Johnson Taylor Who says they wouldn't do modern art aswell? Some modern artist inspire themselfs on the old masters and arent eurocentristic at all. In fact modern art is worth more than paintings from the 19th century nowadays
Yasss
Odd that there is no mention of the early Indian Buddhist communal vihāras, which probably antedated Epicurus.
Is setting up a secular monastery, Alain's true mission?
That and growing back his hair by philosophy x)
+Smokey Le Bear That's why monks shave their heads - can't tell which one's the bald one then :P
They have a (probably massively expensive) rentable retreat for people, and colleges in various cities, so, probably
school of life is just the most fantastic channel! !! love love love it ! Thanks for the brilliant vids
This video resonated so much with all that I appreciated about living on campus during my university years
"Then We sent following their footsteps Our messengers and followed [them] with Jesus, the son of Mary, and gave him the Gospel. And We placed in the hearts of those who followed him compassion and mercy and monasticism, which they innovated; We did not prescribe it for them except [that they did so] seeking the approval of Allah. But they did not observe it with due observance. So We gave the ones who believed among them their reward, but many of them are defiantly disobedient."
I love school of life because as a teenager just starting to consider what I will do in my life, what is important, the meaning of existence and humans as animals, it offers so many good points. If I were ever to establish a monastic group, I would most certainly like to be part of one such as the fellows of Cambridge. The most liberating and rewarding thing to do is to discuss ideas and beliefs with someone else equally as interested in the topic as you are, and I find that extremely rare in the general population. Indeed, I attend a prestigious school, and within it I find it hard to be successful searching for individuals with a passion for music, philosophy or physics.
I can't help but imagine Carmen Miranda shaking her maracas at the start of your videos ;-)
Ahaha !!! I knew I wasn't the only one ! :D
:,) *sign*
Thanks for introducing her to me!
I can definitely see the link with the university style of living. During my first year of university I was living in a halls of residence that contained 33 people per flat (sharing a Kitchen and common room) with 4 floors that all residents could access. We had 2 meals provided per day at set times. Some people thought this arrangement was crazy and hated the idea but in retrospect that was one of the happiest years of my life and most who lived there would agree. While not everyone got along together, the shear number of people meant that there was always someone around to talk to, watch a film, or play table tennis with. I really miss those times and think that this style of living could be used more widely then just a temporary housing arrangement for students (as this video shows).
'damaged by allied bombing' that's a bit of an understatement, it's was all but leveled to the ground
I AM loving today. Just imagining living in such a place. Namaste
How can this channel be so good....?
It's interesting to think of coworking spaces and technology accelerators as pseudo-communes. The members don't (usually) sleep under the same roof, but there are shared values and ambitions like entrepreneurship, design thinking and experimentation. :)
Rereading consolations of philosophy today and loved imagining life in Epicurus' "Garden"
This makes me think very much of the experience of university halls.
The drawback of these is that most people, even within the university educated, don't live in these for longer than the first few months of their degree. But even with this immense restriction people still very frequently look back on this time as one of the most stimulating, formative and happy of their lives.
This is probably the closest thing to monastic living that large numbers of people still engage in in the west.
The speaker in this video reminds me so much of the guy that plays Sebastian on Shakespear & Hathaway; my favorite character on the series.
Growing up with my grandparents, I learned that keeping the place clean was valuable. While I'm not disagreeing, I'll say it definitely cuts in to my productivity.
+Hexspa I know right? If only we didn't have to clean up and keep tidy we would've cured cancer eons ago and would already be exploring the cosmos and had colonised many many hospitable planets in the universe. Keeping tidy and washing up are the most destructive of distractions ever imagined right?
Maisam Abbas No. Engaging in sarcasm over the internet is much less productive.
I plan on being a bhikkhu in the Thai forest tradition of theravada buddhism. thank you making this video.
William Gil Did you go forth?
1:35 They say that it is the world's first commune based around philosophy. You might want to change it to western world's first because there existed places like this in India and China much before that.
i think this is more relevant today, than ever before
I am already working towards such a life. Good to see a vid that encourages me even more. Many people deride choices like this as hippy dippy. I try to keep my lip zipped when they do.
the production values have shot up in this video, well done creatives, well done
I feel that associating with people of different ideas and breaking barriers by finding common ground is more effective
to what?
What is the name of the monastery behind Benedict at 3:42? It seems to be a digital "painting" made from a photograph
I've always been fascinated by epicurean communities.
I think this video starts from the premise that finding a partner necessarily means finding someone who is not compatible with you and thus will drag your personal development. A life with a specific individual whom you feel free to exchange ideas, share values and grow with might be more interesting than with several others.
This, of course, depending on each persons' dynamics.
I don't know whether the same, small movement exists in the UK, but there is a movement in the US called Intentional Communities. I sometimes fantasize about starting an intentional community (perhaps as a co-housing setup rather than a commune) of people dedicated to the study of philosophy and/or the humanities.
Should be doing work but instead watching a school of life video about how easily we can be distracted. The irony!
The real irony is that work may be a distraction for things we ought to do
Its amazing how much this channel has influenced my world view
I do 100% agree. I visited a Krishna Ashram this summer and it was amazing how easy life there is. Although they have some Rules that are not really justified, I very much believe that living in like a Commune is a huge benefit to life. :)
Very intriguing! I didn't even think about hippie communes as a type of monasticism.
Great video, School of Life.
1:13 - place is called Tatev Monastery, Armenia
An Epicurean commune sounds like paradise
Anyone else think it would be a dream come true to live in a academic monastery. Specifically I'd like to live in common contact with musicians, live with philosophers (ideally that like to admit when they are wrong because they realize that with that specific circumstance they never have to be wrong again) , and in common contact with scientists. I think if done correctly it could very well increase academic progress.
Anyone wish to explore this thought further with me.
Yes
There are some mistakes:
- A basic component of all monastic life is asceticism, and you haven't talked about it at all.
- Epicureanism and the Hippy movement cannot be linked to monasticism because they are secular philosophies, mostly at odds with asceticism.
- Not all monastic orders are centered on communal living, many are hermits who live secluded. Actually that's how it all began, with the first Egyptian monks living alone in the desert in the 3rd century AD, or the first Indian sramanas in the 5th century BC. Also, the words "monastic" or "monk" come from the Greek "mónos" which means "alone".
- Medieval monks rarely worked in the fields and in other primary production jobs, they often worked as scribes to copy books and make miniatures. Anyway, their main work was to pray and say masses, that was the main purpose for which they received alms and donations.
Fausto Levantesi i live quite near a monestary and their members till their own lands.
i ask you to put subtitles. I know people who have problems to hear and they cant understand well the video just as people who are learning english and cant understand the video completely.
Thanks!
OK, I'm giving this video a thumbs-up, despite its many inaccuracies. Please refer to my other comments.
I've dove into Buddhism the last week and this video pops up. Funny.
+Andrew Broome that's a lie
Watch dr.naik
+GladX One in desperate need of innovation in its methods, however.
Buddhism is awesome just the way it is.
Permafrost 0
There are a lot of things that need to change. The first generation of Western Buddhist teachers is mostly in their 60s and 70s now and saw technology mainly as an obstacle when they were being trained. We need more teachers who are up to date on the latest scientific research into neuroscience and who are tech literate and not afraid to engage with new and potentially radically improved methods that may bear little resemblance to meditation.
If everyone who started on the path was getting enlightened in a decade or whatever, it would be no problem. But most people do not and there is a lot of bitterness and disillusionment out there. Above all, there is the reality that if Buddhism does not change, it runs the risk of being left behind by a world where everything else is changing at incredible speed.
i have always considered being in a monastic community and i am almost certain i will do it
Indeed! The Rule of Saint Benedict of Nursia inspired the thinking that went into many of today's intentional communities and eco-villages.
With regards to the monastery in Bhutan, the fact that it is a very isolated community seems atypical compared to most of the Buddhist monasteries I have seen. Buddhists are expected to practice dharna, that is to provide for the monastic community in some way, so the monks do alms rounds. This is really key to monastic life and is intended to keep monastics involved in their community as spiritual guiders rather than isolating themselves. Great video though
An Art/Architecture on Picasso would be great. Marvellous video btw!
Great video once again, School of Life! Looking through your online shop I saw your very nice "philosopher's jumper" and reading into it I found there's really a lot to be discussed regarding something as seemingly simple as clothing, a part of life that most people don't give much thought. I think a video on the clothing one wears would be really interesting.
I've often wished I had the option of a commune. It seems even more relevant now given the scarcity of housing and the prevalence of loneliness.
you talked about Hippies, you could have also talked about Hare Krishna Movement which brought Monastic life in modern perspective
Hmm, what about Artist's Colonies?
in Israel, it's actually very common to take a year after school before the mandatory military service and live in a mehina - a commune where you learn humanistics & judaism, work out and volunteer, not unlike a sort of secular monastry.
2:50 - "Inspired by the example of Epicureus, Saint Benedict establishes his first monastery..." I beg to differ - st. Benedict was, in fact, not inspired by epicurean communes, rather he lived according to the examples of the early christians, as we know them from the Acts of the Apostles, etc. Also, there was already a known tradition of eastern, so called "Desert fathers", the lives of whom Benedict sought to emulate.
Love,
Simon
So how do families and couples live like in those communes?
And supposedly if it is an option, how do we handle our growth if everyone starts founding a family within the commune? And how big can a commune get before it becomes unmanageable? I have so many questions yet i get no answers when i look for them. This was a thing for me weeks ago but i got frustrated on how little i could find. I couldn't even find some basic information about what makes a great, well functioning commune.
Please help, Mr. Botton
I'd be so infinitely grateful if you could just point me to a good source of information.
+John Smith Very good point, there really is not much about the actual practicalities of communes. My guess to your questions would be that there would not be unmanageable growth as not everyone would procreate for one (without a set family, what's the need? Contraception and just keep having sex. Everyone helps look after the group's children so all children are sorta your children.) Also, it wouldn't be a cult so the commune is open and people can move freely in and out, and I imagine most kids would move out. This all would probably keep the population size pretty steady
And I doubt there would be particularly set families either. 'Free love maaaan' \/
Capt. Cutler
So you basically deny that the social market economy with it's socialist characteristics works better than the purely capitalistic free market economy?
Firstly, human nature is not for you to decide. You are just as ignorant about it as the rest of us.
And if Communism is not natural than it is at the least brightening our horizon on what is an option and what _could_ be truly "natural".
This is why I am asking. Just because an Idea sounds absurd or has never been tried before doesn't make it automatically wrong.
And if something doesn't work or seems impractical it might just need a few tweaks here and there.
These Ideas you discard are results of what out-of-the-box thinking essentially is.
And every time someone does it we all might profit from it immensely from what we can learn from it.
These ideas are in its core an attempted solution to a dilemma we have and everything done differently in those new concepts are both the identified problems we have with it in particular and it's possible solutions. And if the idea proposed doesn't work as a whole then some of the attributes it has could.
I don't know, you might be right but I still wouldn't be so dismissive if I were you.
But back to the idea of monasticism.
Don't you think it depends on the idea behind the cult? I mean we could create a monastic system that is "pro-procreation". That's why i was asking on how it would look like if it was practical.
westermannah
XDDD
Well it depends on how you are planning on practicing Monasticism. ;)
Capt. Cutler
"Bullshit! Man, I typed a very concise response, then clicked off the screen and it vanished. Fuck that. I don't have time to rewrite it."
Fuckin *hate* when that happens! Fuck you Google and your lousy ass _Text-safety_ measures! xDDDD
But seriously how can you be so sure of this?
And where did you learn about it?
And i don't wanna be rude or anything but I'm pretty sure if you ask a hundred people on what is natural they would either give you some damn predictable mainstream-ass answers or something else that doesn't correspond with anybodies definition. That isn't to say that we can't locate _any_ of our fundamental natural attributes but we are generally bad at knowing ourselves and judging in general. Also I don't believe in the concept of good and bad much less good vs bad.
+John Smith If the community knows what it's doing then it will have small private housing for families. Some communities might have communal dorms, but in this case it would be better to have small housing units surrounding a communal area. This helps deal with the practical concerns that families have of keeping their privacy. A community can be very large so long as it is managed well. There must be a recognized leader who has the final say but also has to deal with managerial tasks and a number of prefects to help keep people on task (the number depends on how big the community is), and typically a few other people will cover necessary posts like accounting. And everyone has their own daily responsibilities to the community, be it productive work or showing up to meetings and meal times. Basically by structure it is like a republic, but in practice it is democratic because decisions that affect the community are never made without the input of everyone in the community. ----- If that principle is not followed, then I can tell you from experience the community will surely break apart in time.
If it is a large and growing community of families, then basically that becomes a town, and at that point, yes it starts looking more like socialism, in a good way. If you are curious still, you should research Amish towns in America. Good example of focused, simple, principled living with a familial structure instead of a celibate structure.
The 2011 Documentary called Happy has a segment on Monastic living somewhere in north Europe, can't really recall exactly where. It's a very good documentary on the whole. If you like these sort of videos then you will probably find it quite insightful. Check it out, it's on Netflix.
the first thing I thought of during this movie was my repulsion to communal living in the form of brainwashing cults, etc....but now I'm realizing... I would very much enjoy a secular commune in the form of a college dorm setting, or shared workspace ets....There are tons of examples of shared offices now, I just want to see it be experiemented with more
This sounds like a perfect solution to one of my biggest problems, I have never felt the desire to be with someone. I have fallen in love and I do enjoy being with friends once in a while. but the biggest concern in me is not becoming the person I've dreamt of ever since I have memory, a good musician and painter.
This isn't necessarily about monasticism but really more about communal living. Where's the desert fathers?
I am doing academic work that requires my undivided attention. Living with a spouse and children is not conceivable at this stage of my life. As a result, I am left with living a solitary life at home. Or so I thought. How great would it be to reinvent monasticism in a modern setting? I am very intrigued by this idea. Thank you School of Life.
It's interesting how you jumped over any mention of monastic life in the Christian Orthodox Church even though first christian monks appeared in Egypt(eastern part of the Roman empire) after 313 AD as a consequence of Christianity becoming familiar with the masses. Rules couldn't be strict anymore as they were before so those who wanted to keep the old ways of Christianity moved to secluded places.
I love your stuff - if I could make a suggestion - Hyon Gak Sunim is worthy of studying - especially his videos on the diamond sutra.
learning is my therapy
I feel that you are missing out the east (indian) spirituality in every topic...
Monastries are way back from 1500bc in hindu tradition
manikanta bandham Agreed. This channel is Eurocentric.
You should have touched on joint families! Many cultures still live with extended family and as someone who lived in a nuclear family and a joint family, the joint family setup creates a system that doesn't segregate you from society, allows you to expand your experiences, and life is never a dull moment to say the least. :P
1:28 What makes you think this was the world's first commune, 300BC? Humans have been present on Earth for millions of years and 2319 years is not so long ago, relatively speaking.
you guys should have a video about the religion and cultures of national natives around the world.
Would love to see a video about Sidney Morgenbesser!
Fantastic. beautiful places too. Interesting linkages of ideas, ty
This just made me think of something: 4chan's community could be argued to be like these monastic societies (a secular society of people of similar thought, facing the same situation, just online)
How would you describe Kibutz? Where people live both communally and with family ties?
02:49 - does anyone have a reference to the fact that Benedict was inspired by Epicurus?
Who is She? The name of the female that opened a
Monastery in 657 AD?
I love this channel so much.
Can you do a video on how or what children should be taught in school?
This was a very interesting video, it is things ami have thought about but haven't had word to explain, I am doing the Swedish military service for the moment and I can see a lot of parallels between military life and monasticism, you should have made some connection there as well. Great video anyways :)
wonderful video. I'm some what of a hermit so it might strike some as a surprise I've considered this type of life a nice sounding one. would just have to find like minded people and do it. ahh the possibilitys.
[00:00 - 6:50 ]The problem is my monkey mind is perplexed with Irony; I distract myself from focusing on work by indulging in learning about the History of Ideas instead of focusing on what I should really be doing. So if it's procrastinating, is it productive procrastination? Is it not ironic what with living on my own and having a Buddhist Temple/BnB set up shop down the road that I feel like a lot of this video makes a lot of sense? Either way, it's definitely Irony that's really at play. What doesn't quite make sense is just exactly how and why Irony/Dark Matter makes so much sense. But that's Irony/Dark Matter for you (I could be here for a while so I'll just sto
Could you do a video about the 'Hellenism' epoch and the cultural exchange following it? Most educating youtube channel by the way! Keep up the great work!
I'm thinking of how to go about making a commune or a "monastery" for philosophy, science and technology. Do i have no choice but to stick to the rigidities of a university?
This is why I want to join the navy. To experiance thi comunal way of life, on a ship where you are always at work and you have to follow a set of rules. This video opend my mind to the filosofy behind my desire. Thanks
Its interesting to contrast monastic/communal life with marriage life. I could argue that the two are not necessarily opposed because an individual could have a married life while still engaging in a community of sorts depending on how broadly you want to define communal life. A married couple could also live in a monastic or communal group. An individual could also belong to multiple communities to best suit their interests. It would be very hard to find one ideal community that wholly reflects your identity and thats perhaps why many people live in small family settings where you could hypothetically "create" your own community. This broader definition of monastic or communal living also makes me think of is as a more modern rendition of small tribes or clans from prehistory which can be traced to humanity's earliest days of living in groups similar to many apes. Just some rambling thoughts but I think it would be good to reflect on more precisely what makes a monastic or communal life separate from other forms of communal living and how that compares to marriage/family life. Or to reflect on the various different social organizations which create different life styles. Also the marriage vs monastic dynamic does not take into account the more individualistic lifestyles (like simply living on your own) some people have nor the more public lifestyles (like living in a city or engaging in communities online which are both fairly large). But I wonder if those lifestyles can be considered relevant or not to this case. Just a bunch of ramblings because this video made me think!
EDIT: I guess what's churning in my head is that if you are putting hippie communes which value free love and pleasure on the same page as buddhist monasteries which value non attachment to this world and self restraint, then it doesn't seem like the comparison is really about monastic life vs marriage life.... Maybe its more of a comparison and exploration of the many different lifestyles that are present in this world?
EDIT 2: Also thank you, I may end up using these thoughts to write a paper on monastic traditions in Buddhism for my class!