Fasting in monastic practice can be even more strict, requiring a strict fast for the previous day as well.

A practice period (ango in Japanese) denotes a period of intensive monastic practice.

"In the context of the monastic practices of his age this would have been a natural assumption," he agreed.

The topics range from monastic practice, to the equality of women and men, to the philosophy of language, being, and time.

Maths, algebra, geometry had all been preserved in monastic practice - which is where most of the classical documentation ended up.

Cybermonk is a senior monastic available through e-mail to answer questions about Zen practice and training at the monastery.

The modern reader is likely to be particularly confused by Hilton's discussion of Meditatio, the third great monastic practice.

This secularization -if it may so be termed-of a monastic practice was to develop apace in later times.

Traditional forms still include prayers, while corporal punishments such as the wearing of a cilice and public humiliations have become rare, even in monastic practice.

Indeed, the celibacy rule was largely a disciplinary measure that spread from monastic practice and became a general requirement only in the Middle Ages.