Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with monks

Looking for more music like British Sea Power's "Men Together Today"

Askr — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:28:04 -0800

What kind of music is British Sea Power's Men Together Today (listen, 0:40), if any particular type? I want more but can't figure out what to search for. It's not Gregorian chant. Men Together Today is a beautiful/haunting little interlude that kicks off an album of modern alternative music by British Sea Power that is not anything like it. It sounds like monks singing in a monastery. I thought it was Gregorian chant, and I've seen it described as that, but it really doesn't qualify as that given what I've read. Gregorian chant is a melody sung in unison, like this stuff. And it uses Latin words. This, on the other hand, is multi-part and uses harmonizing. And they aren't using words, just various forms of "ahhh". I love it but it's so tantalizingly short, and I haven't been able to find anything else quite like it.

The only thing I've found that's similar is a song from Iolet: Music from the World of Anathem as linked in a question here yesterday. But only track 3 - Proof Using Finite Projective Geometry. And I don't actually like that one all that much. Not nearly as rich and pleasing. But it's wordless and monk-y sounding at least.

I've seen it described as Gregorian-like, Gregorian-style men's choir, chant, operatic, men's chorus, male voice choir, a groaning choral blip, and "a lifeboat crew in full voice." The band described it as "the antidote to a football (soccer) chant." None of that is much help in searching.

Know of anything like it?

The Monks I Hate You

PHINC — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 21:24:27 -0800

Wasn't The Monks song "I Hate You" used in the soundtrack for a movie? I've been listening to it lately, done a few web searches but I'm at a loss.

Temporary asceticism

Cucurbit — Tue, 06 May 2008 20:28:31 -0800

Looking for examples of temporary asceticism. I mean "asceticism" in a loose sense -- any sort of programmatic self-denial will do. By "temporary" I mean that the ascetic regimen is entered into for a limited (though not necessarily pre-defined) time period.

Lent, Ramadan, the monastic tradition in Buddhist Southeast Asia (under which many young men become monks briefly in youth or young adulthood), and a Westerner's retreat at a monastery would all qualify. Links and/or information related to any of those are welcome, and examples need not be religious in nature: I'm interested in hearing about anything that meets my definitions of "temporary" and "asceticism."

Shaving My Head in Solidarity with the Monks in Burma

davidstandaford — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 12:56:26 -0800

I need some advice on creating a movement of people who shave their head in support of the monks of Burma. Like many people, I'm riveted by what's going on in Burma, and also feeling unsure of what I could possibly do to help. My idea was to shave my head, like the monks do, to show my support, raise awareness, and hopefully rally more people to do the same. My understanding is that they have already begun doing this in Burma.

I would then carry around quarter sheet flyers, and when people comment about my haircut (which they are likely to do because my hair is rather long at the moment), I can give them some information and talk to them about the situation. This is a similar idea to recent efforts by high school students in reaction to people under pressure (see here for info about students wearing pink to stand up against homophobic bullying and here for info about high school boys carrying around tampons in support of female students).

My questions are:
1) Is there any reason why shaving my head would be presumptuous or sacrilegious. As a rather outspoken Jew, I don't think people would ever think I'm actually Buddhist, but if during the oppression of the Soviet Jews, a bunch of people had started wearing yarmulkes/kippas, I might have thought that was kinda weird.
2) Aside from basic information on the flyers I hand out, I would like to include some sort of call to action. Any ideas about a simple, email address, website, or phone number I could direct someone to? If someone is compelled to action after talking to me, what should I tell them do to (besides shaving their head)?
3) I had planned on doing publicity among the college population for this through facebook, but if I get the impression this would be a good idea and follow through with it, any advice on doing publicity among the adult population that isn't on facebook?

Any other thoughts or advice about this would be greatly appreciated.

Monastic Destiny Scrolls

textilephile — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 12:09:22 -0800

Who are the monks with scrolls describing the destinies of everyone who visits their monastery? Several years ago (Maybe between 2000-2002?) I saw a segment, probably on The Travel Channel, about a group of Asian monks, probably Buddhist but I'm not sure. They live in a remote, hard to reach area in the mountains (Which mountains? I don't know.) They showed an enormous shelf full of scrolls written on parchment. Whenever a person visits their monastery, they give the person their scroll. There is a specific scroll for everyone who visits, with their life story written on it. The person on the show who visited was astonished at the accuracy of his scroll. Since then, I've tried to find out more about these monks, but I've been unable to find any information, probably because I have so little to work with. Has anyone else heard of them? Do you know the name of the monastery, or where it is located? Are there web sites about them, or do you know of any written material or videos about them?

Article about the origins of white space?

Powerful Religious Baby — Fri, 17 Nov 2006 20:36:06 -0800

I'm trying to find a great article I read a year or two ago about the origins of white space in written text--does this ring a bell for anyone? It was a really interesting article--well-paced, informative, and awesomely free of the incoherence that chokes the throats of many similar articles with a kind of chunky obscurantist vomit. I thought for a long time that I first saw the piece on Arts & Letters Daily, but a search reveals nothing. Does anyone know what I'm talking about? Failing that, anything you can tell me about the origins of white space would be greatly appreciated. I seem to remember that monks had a hand in it, although I could be misremembering.

What are these Norwegian monks saying?

Joleta — Thu, 05 Oct 2006 07:43:21 -0800

It's easy to figure out what's going on in this YouTube video titled "Help Desk," but I'm sure it would be even funnier if I knew what they're saying. (Monks speaking Norwegian, one trying to explain to the other how a book works.)

Buddhists and marraige

tommassit — Sun, 16 Jul 2006 12:07:06 -0800

Are Buddhist monks and nuns in the U.S. allowed to marry and have children? Or are they supposed to be celibate?