Siladhara
When Western men first began to arrive in Thailand to train with great Thai masters of the forest tradition such as Ajahn Chah, the only form of monasticism apparently available for women there was of the white-robed 8-precept maechees, although there were very occassional reports and sightings of solitary brown-robed or even gold-robed nuns (aka female monks). When Ajahn Sumedho founded the monastic community of Amaravati in England at Ajahn Chah's direction,
the first women aspiring to monastic life were also ordained with 8-precepts, wearing white robes similar to the Thai maechees.
Finding this form of disicpline inadequate after some time, at the nuns behest, Ajahn Sumedho ordained the first four women as dark-brown-robed novices or
samaneris. In later years,
a further form and level of ordination was developed,
in consultation with the Vinaya, the novice nuns and with a Thai-trained monk teacher in the Amaravati community, Ajahn Sucitto.
While still officially novices in the eyes of the Thai Sangha heirarchy, and thus not as controversial as bhikkhuni ordination, this form of discipline included a training and discipline in more than 100 precepts, and became known as the Siladhara ordination, and the
community of nuns in England following this discipline, the Siladhara Sangha.
Сообщение от Neroli
