Shaolin disciple as a career...

[arhat]

but...

traditionally Ch'an monks are not reclusive....

[Maestro]

nope

nope they werent, actually "reclusive" aspect of monkhood was usually traditional to taoists in china..

im sure there were others worldwide but i never consider monkhood to be "reclusive" its just that most of the time is spent in the temple for obvious reasons..

but the spirit of zen is defently to enjoy the fruits of life..

[Fa Hui]

well...

there are many ways to be a Buddhist Monk. You can hold office (in a monastery), you can be a hermit, you can be a wanderer,etc. There are different things opened to a monastic, particularly today. It also depends on how long you have been ordained and whether your Master and/or community agree to what it is. Master Xu Yun was a well-known Ch'an Master from the last century and he did many things.

There's a great book on the subject called The Practice of Chinese Buddhism: 1900-1950. It discusses a lot of this stuff.

BTW, the lines between Zen and other traditions, particularly Pure Land, are more blurred than we think they ought to be. Remember, there's Ch'an and then there's our ideas of Ch'an.

[shaolinstylee]

there's Ch'an and then there's our ideas of Ch'an.

Isn't that part of ch'an