I'm 18 and feel that I'm too young to follow the monk path and work towards nirvana.
Wouldn't it be best for me to follow the materialistic path now temporarily until I reach old age before walking the nirvana path as then I'd be more mature?
Right.
First of all, many parts of this question.
First of all, there's no need to ever walk the monk path.
If you're really serious about it, then the monk path is a great one.
Second of all, there's a mis... I think there's a misleading premise here that somehow physical maturity or age somehow
implies better practice.
I think in certain aspects of the practice are benefited by physical maturity in the sense of greater experience of the world.
But a great portion or a great part of the path is actually hindered by age because especially
in someone who has spent most of their life following the materialistic path.
So, the materialistic path, if I understand it, if you're meaning it as I understand it, is a
an unwholesome one.
It's one that leads to clinging, it leads to conflict, it leads to delusion and attachment and identification, all sorts of bad stuff.
And so when that becomes your habit throughout your life,
the idea that that would somehow make you a better meditator is unreasonable, is unlikely.
Now, if you are talking about not becoming a monk,
for a long time the idea that of practicing meditation and doing good deeds now to slowly slowly cultivate enough goodness to become a monk well that's a different argument but I still don't think it holds because being a monk is even more difficult than practicing as a lay person physically and as a lifestyle a person who has lived their whole life not used to the monastic discipline
The life of being a monk will have a very difficult time in their old age practicing all of the many rules, eating only once a day and so on.
It doesn't get easier because you've waited a long time to begin it.
So even if it's about becoming a monk, absolutely, the Buddha himself recommended that it's for young people to do.
Ordaining when you're 20 is a perfect time, the best time, even if it's difficult at first for a person who's able to practice it.
it's really the best time of one's life because one's able to grow up as a monk, grow up surrounded by the Dhamma, surrounded by the Buddha's teaching.
So certainly no benefit to walking the materialistic path.
I don't think any benefit if you want to become a monk for waiting until you're very old or old at all, really.
18 while you have to be 20 to ordain.
And you might want to wait a little bit longer.
But certainly don't ever follow the materialistic path.
It's not useful for anyone in any situation.
But as for following a lay person's path, that's reasonable.
But don't think that it's going to make it easier to become a monk when you're old.
It just might make you a bad monk.
One of those monks who just sits in their room and watches television all day.