In my latest Buddhism in a Nutshell reel and this companion article, the question is what makes someone a monastic and how to distinguish them from a layperson householder (not from a ngagpa tantric practitioner, which is another type of non-monastic practitioner).  In sum, there are three main features of a monastic that distinguishes them… Continue reading What defines a monastic? Vows, dress and conduct and advice and personal experience of the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa