Editing Monastery (section)

== Etymology ==
[[File:St gall plan.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Plan of Saint Gall]], the [[ground plan]] of an unbuilt abbey, providing for all of the needs of the monks within the confines of the monastery walls]]

The word ''monastery'' comes from the [[Greek language|Greek]] word ''μοναστήριον'', neut. of ''μοναστήριος'' – ''monasterios'' from ''μονάζειν'' – ''monazein'' "to live alone"<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=monastery&searchmode=none| title = Online Etymology Dictionary}}</ref> from the root ''μόνος'' – ''monos'' "alone" (originally all Christian monks were hermits); the suffix "-terion" denotes a "place for doing something". The earliest extant use of the term ''monastērion'' is by the 1st century AD [[Jew]]ish philosopher [[Philo]] in ''On The Contemplative Life,'' ch. III.

In England, the word ''monastery'' was also applied to the habitation of a [[bishop]] and the [[cathedral]] [[clergy]] who lived apart from the lay community. Most cathedrals were not monasteries, and were served by [[Canon (priest)|canons secular]], which were communal but not monastic. However, some were run by monasteries orders, such as [[Durham Cathedral]]. [[Westminster Abbey]] was for a short time a cathedral, and was a [[Benedictine]] monastery until the [[English Reformation|Reformation]], and its [[Chapter (religion)|Chapter]] preserves elements of the Benedictine tradition. See the entry [[cathedral]]. They are also to be distinguished from collegiate churches, such as [[St George's Chapel, Windsor]].

===Terms===
The term ''monastery'' is used generically to refer to any of a number of types of religious community. In the [[Roman Catholic]] religion and to some extent in certain branches of [[Buddhism]], there is a somewhat more specific definition of the term and many related terms.

[[Buddhist]] monasteries are generally called '''[[vihara]]''' ([[Pali]] language el). Viharas may be occupied by men or women, and in keeping with common English usage, a vihara populated by females may often be called a nunnery or a convent. However, vihara can also refer to a [[temple]]. In Tibetan Buddhism, monasteries are often called '''[[gompa]]'''. In [[Cambodia]], [[Laos]] and [[Thailand]], a monastery is called a ''[[wat]]''. In [[Burma]], a monastery is called a ''[[kyaung]]''.

A Christian monastery may be an '''[[abbey]]''' (i.e., under the rule of an [[abbot]]), or a '''[[priory]]''' (under the rule of a [[Prior (ecclesiastical)|prior]]), or conceivably a '''[[Hermitage (religious retreat)|hermitage]]''' (the dwelling of a [[hermit]]). It may be a community of men ([[monk]]s) or of women ([[nun]]s). A [[Charterhouse (monastery)|charterhouse]] is any monastery belonging to the [[Carthusian]] order. In [[Eastern Christianity]], a very small monastic community can be called a '''[[skete]]''', and a very large or important monastery can be given the dignity of a '''[[lavra]]'''.

The great communal life of a Christian monastery is called [[cenobitic]], as opposed to the [[anchorite|anchoretic]] (or anchoritic) life of an [[anchorite]] and the [[eremitical|eremitic]] life of a [[hermit]]. There has also been, mostly under the [[Osmanli]] occupation of Greece and Cyprus, an "idiorrhythmic" lifestyle where monks come together but being able to own things individually and not being obliged to work for the common good.

In [[Hinduism]] monasteries are called [[matha]], [[mandir]], [[koil]], or most commonly an [[ashram]].

[[Jainism|Jains]] use the Buddhist term [[vihara]].