Jason Knits

Kathina is an once a year occasion when people offer fabric to the community of monks. (Detailed description of Kathina at the end of post.) This year at Buddhist Temple of America (Wat Bhuridattavanaram) the ceremony is on Sunday, October 28. Like the previous years, the King of Thailand will send a representative to present his offerings.

Alms-round starts at 9:30am. People will offer food to the monks. The monks will then give blessings to the laypeople. After which the laypeople begin morning chants while the monks eat their meal. People usually start making individual offerings after the monks finish their meal. Items like medicine, soap, towels, donations, etc. But the main ceremony will start around 1pm. The King’s representative will begin by presenting the King’s offerings first.

Many people set up hot food stands on the temple ground. They prepare delicious food on the spot and share it freely with the visitors. Come join us and experience the spirit of giving. You don’t have to bring anything. There will be steamed rice prepared if you want to offer food to the monks during the alms-round at 9:30am. Come and participate in the ceremonies. Or come if you are just curious. Ask me if there’s any question.

KATHINA
(Taken from Metta Forest Monastery’s web site)

The month after the Rains-retreat is the kathina season. In the time of the Buddha, this was the month when monks would prepare their requisites for the up-coming eight-month period when they could wander and meditate freely in the wilderness. These preparations would include patching their old robes or sewing new ones if the old ones were beyond repair. Lay supporters thus took the opportunity to provide the monks with cloth at this time, and the Buddha established the custom of the kathina, in which donors would present cloth to a community of monks as a whole. The monks would then make the cloth into a robe within that day and present it to one of their members whose robes were old and worn, or who was deserving in any other way. (The name “kathina” comes from the frame over which the cloth could be stretched while it was sewn, much like the frame used in a quilting bee.)

The texts do not say why the Buddha established this custom, but a few moments’ reflection will show that it promotes the virtue of cooperation among the monks and affords the opportunity for senior monks to pass on their sewing skills to more junior monks-skills very important for anyone who has few possessions and wants to be unburdensome to others. To encourage the monks to maintain this custom, the Buddha allowed them to enjoy certain privileges-i.e., to temporarily be freed from certain minor rules-for the remaining four months.

Because the kathina ceremony may be held only during one month of the year, and only once a year in any one monastery, it is considered a very special opportunity for donors to join in and develop the virtue of generosity together.

Note: Metta Forest Monastery is located in San Diego County. It was founded by the Ven. Ajaan Suwat, who also founded Buddhist Temple of America. The current Abbot, Ven. Ajaan Geoffrey Thanissaro is well-known for his English translations of Pali and Thai Buddhist texts. This year Kathina ceremony is held on November 4th at Metta Forest Monastery.