Buddhism

====Vinaya====
{{main|Vinaya}}
[[File:Buddhist Ordination Ceremony.jpg|thumb|left|An ordination ceremony at Wat Yannawa in Bangkok. The Vinaya codes regulate the various sangha acts, including ordination.]]

Vinaya is the specific code of conduct for a ''sangha'' of monks or nuns. It includes the [[Patimokkha]], a set of 227 offences including 75 rules of decorum for monks, along with penalties for transgression, in the Theravadin tradition.{{sfnp|Gombrich|1988|p=109}} The precise content of the ''[[Vinaya Pitaka]]'' (scriptures on the Vinaya) differs in different schools and tradition, and different monasteries set their own standards on its implementation. The list of ''pattimokkha'' is recited every fortnight in a ritual gathering of all monks.{{sfnp|Gombrich|1988|p=109}} Buddhist text with vinaya rules for monasteries have been traced in all Buddhist traditions, with the oldest surviving being the ancient Chinese translations.{{sfnp|Gombrich|1988|p=93}}

Monastic communities in the Buddhist tradition cut normal social ties to family and community and live as "islands unto themselves".{{sfnp|Gombrich|1988|pp=89–92}} Within a monastic fraternity, a ''sangha'' has its own rules.{{sfnp|Gombrich|1988|pp=89–92}} A monk abides by these institutionalised rules, and living life as the vinaya prescribes it is not merely a means, but very nearly the end in itself.{{sfnp|Gombrich|1988|pp=89–92}} Transgressions by a monk on ''Sangha'' vinaya rules invites enforcement, which can include temporary or permanent expulsion.{{sfnp|Gombrich|1988|pp=101–107}}