Dear Venerable,

I am over 50, single and thinking of giving up work, to concentrate on practising Buddhism and maybe becoming a monk. A few questions to you: Should an older person try to become a monk? And what are the pros & cons of such decision? Thank you for your guidance.

A:

Usually, once you renunciate your lay person's life and become a monk, you have much more time and psychological conditions to fully study and practice in comparison to a lay person who has many other daily distractions to deal with.

But everyone's make-up is not the same. Some people lead a rather boring, useless existence after they become monks because they did not see a realistic path when decided to enter monkhood. This is where it can get nasty: they are no longer eager to donate and serve the way they were before they became monks.

You must analyse your true situation (health, family, work, social). Because once you entered monkhood, you must let go of all those burdens.

With all that, you now can see if your age is suitable for going into a life of a monk - either to study wholeheartedly or to practice meditation - both need some level of knowledge of Buddha's texts.

If you do not analyse carefully you will create trouble and waste a lot of time of a good lay person. For many, please remember, monkhood is not for everyone. Best is to stay as a decent Buddhist lay person.