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priscilla 1Monasteries Around The World
January 25th 2010 01:26
Monasteries may vary greatly in size. In most religions the life inside monasteries is governed by community rules that stipulates the gender of the inhabitants and requires them to remain celibate and own little or no personal property.
The life within the walls of a monastery may be supported in several ways: by manufacturing and selling goods, often agricultural products such as cheese, wine, beer, liquor, and jellies; by donations or alms; by rental or investment incomes; and by funds from other organizations within the religion which in the past has formed the traditional support of Monasteries.
Below are some famous and breathtaking monasteries. These images and information sourced from decodestuff.com. See the full list of 22 amazing monasteries here.
Yumbulagang , palace of mother and son in Tibetan dialect, is the first palace and one of the earliest buildings in Tibet and it has a history of more than 2,000 years. Destroyed during the Cultural Revolution it was rebuilt in the 1980s. The walls are painted with beautiful murals which tell the early history of Tibet.
Taktshang (Tiger’s nest monastery) is the most famous of monasteries in Bhutan. It hangs on a cliff at 3,120 metres (10,200 feet), some 700 meters (2,300 feet) above the bottom of Paro valley. Famous visitors include Ngawang Namgyal in the 17th century and Milarepa.
The name means “Tiger’s nest”. The legend was that Guru Rinpoche flew over the Himalaya from Tibet in the 7th century on the back of a tigress. He then meditated in a cave there for three months where the monastery was later built. The cave is said to be the origin of Buddhism in Bhutan.
The Monastery of Gregoriou is built on a beautiful location at the south-west side of Mount Athos and is dedicated to Saint Nicholas. The monastery was founded in the 14th century.
It occupies the seventeenth rank in the hierarchical order of the twenty Athonite monasteries. It is considered to be one of the most well-organised and strict coenobitic monasteries. It is inhabited by 70 monks (1990).
Its katholikon was built in 1768, in accordance to the Athonite plan. The church’s walls were decorated in 1779 by the holy monks Gabriel and Gregory from Kastoria.
The Khor Virap monastery is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Armenia. It is also significant as being the place of Gregory the Illuminator’s 13-year imprisonment, after which Gregory, by converting the King Trdat III to Christianity in the year 301, made Armenia the first country to adopt Christianity as its official religion.
In the mid-1960, volunteers for the Canadian Youth Mission to Armenia helped renovate/restore the cathedral.
Cappadocia is mentioned in the Biblical account given in the book of Acts 2:9, with the Cappadocians being named as one of the people groups hearing the Gospel account from Galileans in their own language on the day of Pentecost shortly after the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Acts 2:5 seems to suggest that the Cappadocians in this account were “God-fearing Jews”.
The Natural Rock Citadel of Uchisar – is the highest peak in the region. It is completely honeycombed with ancient dwellings. Many of these spaces were used as cave monasteries, though today they mostly inspire photographers and artists. Its honeycombed architecture is revealed by erosion and suggests intense fortification and infrastructure.
The life within the walls of a monastery may be supported in several ways: by manufacturing and selling goods, often agricultural products such as cheese, wine, beer, liquor, and jellies; by donations or alms; by rental or investment incomes; and by funds from other organizations within the religion which in the past has formed the traditional support of Monasteries.
Below are some famous and breathtaking monasteries. These images and information sourced from decodestuff.com. See the full list of 22 amazing monasteries here.
Yumbulagang Monastery. Perched on a small hill east of the Yarlong River in southeast Naidong county, near Lhasa, 9km south of Tsetang, Tibet.
Tigers Nest Monastery, Perched on the edge or a 3000 feet high cliff in Para valley, Bhutan.
The name means “Tiger’s nest”. The legend was that Guru Rinpoche flew over the Himalaya from Tibet in the 7th century on the back of a tigress. He then meditated in a cave there for three months where the monastery was later built. The cave is said to be the origin of Buddhism in Bhutan.
Monastery Grigoriou, Located in the monastic state of Mount Athos in Greece.
It occupies the seventeenth rank in the hierarchical order of the twenty Athonite monasteries. It is considered to be one of the most well-organised and strict coenobitic monasteries. It is inhabited by 70 monks (1990).
Its katholikon was built in 1768, in accordance to the Athonite plan. The church’s walls were decorated in 1779 by the holy monks Gabriel and Gregory from Kastoria.
Khor Virap Monastery. Located in the Ararat plain in Armenia, very close to the border with Turkey.
In the mid-1960, volunteers for the Canadian Youth Mission to Armenia helped renovate/restore the cathedral.
Cave Monasteries of Cappadocia, located in central Turkey.
The Natural Rock Citadel of Uchisar – is the highest peak in the region. It is completely honeycombed with ancient dwellings. Many of these spaces were used as cave monasteries, though today they mostly inspire photographers and artists. Its honeycombed architecture is revealed by erosion and suggests intense fortification and infrastructure.
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