I wish to immigrate to thailand and become a monk.

[Fullstop]

It is certainly not meaningless

Well not to you at least. And millions of Thais. I understand. Rest easy with your placebos. Doesn't hurt i guess.

[beautifulthailand99]

It is certainly not meaningless

Well not to you at least. And millions of Thais. I understand. Rest easy with your placebos. Doesn't hurt i guess.

Nice one - there's always these if the going gets too tough - that said as it gets dark at 6 in Thailand there's a lot to be said up early and to bed early - and count your blessings is not some local mafia karaoke tin shack bar opened next door - then you really would have a truly righteous beef and a big problem.

[Fullstop]

You seem to miss the point that I'm not complaining. Just observing and understanding. Be happy in your rose tinted world. It's harmless!

EDIT: After all ... 65 million Thais can't be wrong. Can they?

Edited October 21, 2013 by Fullstop

[beautifulthailand99]

For the benefot of members who seem to have completely lost their critical faculties, I'll spell it out

T - R - O - L - L

That said this is the Buddhism thread so a lot of good can come from the replies , interactions and who knows to the OP whatever the basis of the their original motives. My dad (RIP) used to do phone support for the Samaritans and they were taught to keep on talking and trying to help whatever the nature of the call - even sexual fantasist talk dirty nut jobs. The reason being if you exhibit that sort of behaviour then you have a problem and maybe they could help or make a difference in some way be engaging in dialogue. (BTW not implying the OP is like that in any way !).

[rcalsop]

This is a naive fantasy.

firstly, you probably have not ever been to Thailand, otherwise you would know that Thai monks don't take vows of silence. Perhaps your knowledge of Buddhism comes from watching Hangover II?

Secondly, what would happen when you give up all your wordly possessions and then decide you don't actually like sleeping on a hard titled floor and being eaten by mosquitoes while feeling hungry and trying to ignore the massive boner under your sabong robe?

I've been a monk in Thailand and it made me see the light! I am no longer a Buddhist, but still follow the teachings of the Buddha...

Bankei

Over the years I have met several religious converts of many types in differing countries( having started their journey of discovery at home ) and the one common comment I have heard from all of the guys seeking some form of "answer "has been along the lines of.............

" thankfully I discovered Islam before I discovered the Muslim man !!!" or I may never have followed that path

The underlined words are interchangeable for any religion I have heard them for all mainstream religions over the years .... the dogma hype ,and corruption of the true spirit and meaning of most religions is the true speciality of any Human being .

[moto77]

OK, now I have never seen a vow of silence monk in Thailand.. maybe there are some, I've never seen of them or heard of them.

Haha... yeah, I suppose not.

[dighambara]

I wish to immigrate to thailand and become a monk, taking the vow of silence and leaving every thing behind and never looking back.

Can I do this?

You can definately become a monk

There visas for this.

Should try it for short period first

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Two methods: become a monk in your home country and travel here as a Monk, or apply for a visa with that stated purpose. There is also a 'Monk for a Month' Program, for foreigners, in Chiang Mai.

[jmdf103]

Why must you be a monk in Thailand in particular? Pretty affectatious. Which goes against what a monk is supposed to be like. What's wrong with being on in your own country? Not 'trendy' enough?

Dreamer.

yes there are too many monks in thailand already in my opinion, if you do decide to go please be careful in choosing which Wat. There are many Wats where the local population is already strained to upkeep the monks, so try no to add to the suffering.

The drain is twofold, not only must the monks be provided for, but also this significant percentage of the workforce who would otherwise be working is removed from the local economy.

Edited October 22, 2013 by jmdf103

[sabaijai]

I doubt you can do it.

If you read sabaijai #4 you could have your time in posting. The links clearly state this can be done.

A lot of what Sabaijai put in there is way, way, out of date. I've been a monk 6 years.. It used to be you could get a so called "monks" visa, an "R" visa.. Now they give farangs a "ED" visa.. for studying Buddhism.. My first one was only for 3 months, the next one they give me however was a year. It would appear it's pretty much up to the immigration authority you face at the time. I got my 3 month ed visa from the office in LA. My extended year ed visa was given to me by the immigration officer in my home province, Lopburi.. There is no set rule here.

OK, now I have never seen a vow of silence monk in Thailand.. maybe there are some, I've never seen of them or heard of them.

In order to become a monk, you have to have permission from the abbot of the temple your going to stay at. AND, you as a farang HAVE to have a permanent temple address. You can't just wander around like the Thai monks sometimes do. AND every 90 days you HAVE to report into the closest immigration office. HAVE to.. So, that pretty much negates the vow of silence thingy. You have a lot to learn and a long row to how buddy.. Good Luck.

What info do you believe to be specifically out of date? My contributions to both threads were minor and said nothing about an R visa.

[sabaijai]

I doubt you can do it.

If you read sabaijai #4 you could have your time in posting. The links clearly state this can be done.

A lot of what Sabaijai put in there is way, way, out of date. I've been a monk 6 years.. It used to be you could get a so called "monks" visa, an "R" visa.. Now they give farangs a "ED" visa.. for studying Buddhism.. My first one was only for 3 months, the next one they give me however was a year. It would appear it's pretty much up to the immigration authority you face at the time. I got my 3 month ed visa from the office in LA. My extended year ed visa was given to me by the immigration officer in my home province, Lopburi.. There is no set rule here.

OK, now I have never seen a vow of silence monk in Thailand.. maybe there are some, I've never seen of them or heard of them.

In order to become a monk, you have to have permission from the abbot of the temple your going to stay at. AND, you as a farang HAVE to have a permanent temple address. You can't just wander around like the Thai monks sometimes do. AND every 90 days you HAVE to report into the closest immigration office. HAVE to.. So, that pretty much negates the vow of silence thingy. You have a lot to learn and a long row to how buddy.. Good Luck.

What info do you believe to be out of date? My contributions to both threads were minor and said nothing about an R visa. The second thread is specifically about the Ed visa.

[khaowong1]

I doubt you can do it.

If you read sabaijai #4 you could have your time in posting. The links clearly state this can be done.

A lot of what Sabaijai put in there is way, way, out of date. I've been a monk 6 years.. It used to be you could get a so called "monks" visa, an "R" visa.. Now they give farangs a "ED" visa.. for studying Buddhism.. My first one was only for 3 months, the next one they give me however was a year. It would appear it's pretty much up to the immigration authority you face at the time. I got my 3 month ed visa from the office in LA. My extended year ed visa was given to me by the immigration officer in my home province, Lopburi.. There is no set rule here.

OK, now I have never seen a vow of silence monk in Thailand.. maybe there are some, I've never seen of them or heard of them.

In order to become a monk, you have to have permission from the abbot of the temple your going to stay at. AND, you as a farang HAVE to have a permanent temple address. You can't just wander around like the Thai monks sometimes do. AND every 90 days you HAVE to report into the closest immigration office. HAVE to.. So, that pretty much negates the vow of silence thingy. You have a lot to learn and a long row to how buddy.. Good Luck.

What info do you believe to be specifically out of date? My contributions to both threads were minor and said nothing about an R visa.

Soirry, didn't even read the second thread. The first thread was dated in 2006 and most of those things have been changed. The second thread is mostly correct. I've been down to Buddhamonthian 3 times.. they know me there. When you go in there for a letter to immigration, you have to have a letter from a abbot of a temple first. And I may be mistaken, but you may even have to be a monk already to get that letter from them. I've never seen anyone in their office getting a Office of National Buddhism letter who wasn't a monk. I've had 3 "R" visa's, but this last time out, they switched me over to a "ED" visa. Why, I asked and could never get a understandable answer. As you well know, Thai immigration changes it's tactics quite often. But to get back to the guy who started this post, he's not going to come into Thailand on a 30 day tourist visa, get ordained and get either a "R" visa or a "ED" visa. It ain't going to happen that way.

[ableguy]

Just a troll guys mellow out

[hookedondhamma]

Rando, if you aren't a troll and do determine to do as you have written:

1) Get in touch with a Thai temple in your area

2) Be prepared to learn as much as you can BEFORE you even think about stepping into Thailand; speak with the monks, learn from the abbot

3) Try to get as accustomed to Thai culture as you can BEFORE you even think about stepping foot into Thailand - learn to read (not necessarily comprehend) and write the language; if you can, try and get a hold on understanding it.

4) If you are fine up to this point, then ask the abbot about ordaining in your HOME country. If you get the ok, see how it is for a while.

5) If the abbot sees that you seem to be managing more than fine, he'll more than likely invite you to go over and study. From there everything for you should be taken care of.

Don't: come over here out of the blue trying to find a temple to ordain you. Big mistake. It is quite a consolation prize to have a non-thai monk at a thai temple in thailand ... and you'll see to what extent if you come here without doing your research.

You should do as much studying as you can about Buddhism on your own - the Buddhism that is displayed here in many Thai temples will more than likely make you tilt your head. If you can speak the language though and have a good understanding of Thai culture, you can find temples that are about practice.

You'll have many that are about the cash, but if you use your common sense you'll know that those are just imposters in orange, and not monks. Stay away from them, and always stay observant about your surroundings and the people in them.

[beautifulthailand99]

Rando, if you aren't a troll and do determine to do as you have written:

1) Get in touch with a Thai temple in your area

2) Be prepared to learn as much as you can BEFORE you even think about stepping into Thailand; speak with the monks, learn from the abbot

3) Try to get as accustomed to Thai culture as you can BEFORE you even think about stepping foot into Thailand - learn to read (not necessarily comprehend) and write the language; if you can, try and get a hold on understanding it.

4) If you are fine up to this point, then ask the abbot about ordaining in your HOME country. If you get the ok, see how it is for a while.

5) If the abbot sees that you seem to be managing more than fine, he'll more than likely invite you to go over and study. From there everything for you should be taken care of.

Don't: come over here out of the blue trying to find a temple to ordain you. Big mistake. It is quite a consolation prize to have a non-thai monk at a thai temple in thailand ... and you'll see to what extent if you come here without doing your research.

You should do as much studying as you can about Buddhism on your own - the Buddhism that is displayed here in many Thai temples will more than likely make you tilt your head. If you can speak the language though and have a good understanding of Thai culture, you can find temples that are about practice.

You'll have many that are about the cash, but if you use your common sense you'll know that those are just imposters in orange, and not monks. Stay away from them, and always stay observant about your surroundings and the people in them.

And even if he is a Troll you have left sage advice for others many thanks.