If you want to practice developing some dana parami, and it’s not easy to think up a good gift to give a monastery, consider installing (not just donating) a chinup bar at your local monastery, to help any Gudetama-like monks and nuns overcome their sloth and torpor and develop Viriya.
Anumodana to Tilak, of Ehi Passiko Buddhist community, Calgary, Canada who helped tremendously today to install a chinup bar here (it’s easily removable, BTW, so the door can be closed):
Also Anumodana to Tom Kroeker, who installed this chinup bar at Arrow River Forest Hermitage, Canada (in the workshop; the little Buddha placard at the top was my contribution):
Wouldn’t using the chin-up bar or any exercise equipment lead to attachment to the body for monks? Also does the Vinaya allow for monks to make dana suggestions/requests?
I believe it could, but necessarily would? No, I don’t think it necessarily follows. I don’t advocate pumping iron until you look like Arnold Schwarzenegger, but it is healthy for monks and nuns to somewhat restore their atrophied “chicken wing” arms to a middle-path amount of normalcy.
Kappyam vohara is allowed (“allowable speech”). Monks can make suggestions, if done tastefully. If a monk were to be too direct in asking for something - saying “buy me a chin-up bar!” - then that’s obviously too direct.
By the way, the place I’m staying does not need a chinup bar, see OP. So I’m not actually asking for one, either for myself, or the monastic residence which I’m in.
Webu Sayadaw was known for his well-defined arms and all he did was sweep every day. This leads me to wonder, would shovelling snow break vinaya? In principle it’s effectively the same as sweeping.