And now for Something Completely Different...

OK, so it's the day after I let my dog lick the table clean, and the swedesaw blade is still in the dishwasher. Since variety is the spice of life, I went to a Buddhist monastery outside Kamloops today.

It's 45 mins away from Kamloops, and a fascinating place. Ajahn Sona (Ajahn means teacher) greeted us, toured us through the main building, and answered plenty of questions. His history is that he has a Masters in Music from Toronto, and then "felt the calling" to become a monastic. The irony is that this is a discipline of intellectual introspection and meditation, where music and entertainment is not allowed...
The monastery is off-grid, and uses the newest green technologies. They do not even burn candles, but rather use the most efficient LED lights, powered by solar panels.

the main altar, with LED lights and Buddha from Thailand. The donor said she had it made with a big, "Western" nose so we'd feel better about our big noses!

The monastic life is pretty simple. They rise to meditate for an hour at 5:30 AM daily. Then breakfast, then free time to meditate or study or do walking meditation or think about meditation. Then it's lunch at 10:30 AM, which is the primary meal of the day. And the last meal of the day, as the monks are not allowed to eat after noon.
The afternoon is spent - you guessed it - meditating, until tea time. Everyone gathers in the meeting room, and Ajahn Sona takes questions. This was great, as of course I had MILLIONS of questions, although I tried hard to keep it down to about....10.

Ajahn Sona at tea time

After tea, there is a break of about an hour, then (ready for it??) the Evening Meditation session. We stayed for this, then drove home, exhausted. Trying to be an open vessel, letting thoughts drift past your consciousness, is really tiring.
The monks are not allowed to handle money, buy anything, make food, grow food or kill any living creature. So in other countries, monks will spend a good part of their morning receiving alms of food. Here, they rely on stewards and guests to shop, prepare meals and provide necessities. Something that surprised me is that they are not vegetarian. Since they are bound to receive food as gifts, there is no restriction that it must be vegetarian or vegan. In case you are wondering, they DO use toilet paper.

carving of a Buddha

What made Ajahn Sona most interesting to me was his background as a "Western Intellectual". He often compared Buddhist teachings to the Christian and Jewish faiths. (He said leaders of these faiths, as well as Benedictine Nuns, share discussions on many topics.) He spoke about technology and current events and seemed able to converse or expound on any topic. And his sense of humour and ease with all ages, especially kids, made it very relaxed.

Ajahn Sona at the front of the main meditation hall

Birken Forest Monastery is open to the public, and you can go to visit, or to stay, or to attend a retreat. Here's the link, in case you want to check it out.   http://birken.ca/monastics_in_dhamma_talks_info.html
There are many free resources available there, including hours and hours of dhamma talks on all sorts of topics. He said he's received comments that people may listen to them, and fall asleep. Haha, meant in the best possible way, of course!

detail of a carving in the monastery