Becoming Monks

Chapter 5 chronicles the lives of monks and their movement to distant monasteries. It explores the economic and social connections between monks and their natal households to highlight the role monasticism plays in parents’ strategies to manage family size and composition. The chapter begins with a discussion of tensions inherent in Buddhism between religious aspirations and family obligations, then uses case studies to highlight how domestic entanglements can be both an impediment to and incentive for pursing a life devoted to spiritual advancement. The case studies set the stage for analyzing parents’ motives and means for sending a son to a monastery and the role that social networks play in moving sons out of the village and into urban institutions.