Yes, you can be a monk for a short period that all depends on your willingness. Some of men who ordain to be buddhist monk may keep this conditiontion for his lifetime. But some of them can be monk just only a week.

I have done 2 10 day retreats here: suanmokkh.org/

If you enjoy the 10 days you can ask about staying longer.

I'd definitely suggest you try a 10 or 30 day retreat first - they'll teach you a lot more about actual meditation practice at a temple that has a meditation retreat center (most don't).

While it's true that most Thai men ordain at some point for a short period (a few days to a few months) they do it for ritual reasons - it's a way for them to earn blessings for their parents. So these shorter-term monks but for the most part really aren't focused on meditation - they learn a few chants, throw a big party, have a long ritual, and that's pretty much it. In fact, your average neighborhood Thai temple monk focuses more on performing rituals (weddings, funerals, house blessings, etc) and many monks don't actually meditate much if at all. And I assume that's what you want to do - learn medtation.

Suanmokkh is from all I've heard a wonderful place - the temple of one of the greatest Thai Buddhists (Buddhadhasa) and a really excellent medtation instruction (in English) peaceful and beautiful environment, etc. And if you want to ordain you can do it there. It's one of the most important temples in Thailand so if you decide you want to go to another temple from there, they will be able to give you good contacts and advice.

Also FYI if you go to meditate at a temple (as an upasika - a lay meditator), you're required to where white and obey 8 precepts (eg, no killing, no sex, no eating after noon etc. - www.accesstoinsight.org/index-...cepts), but monks are supposed to obey 247 precepts. In reality I doubt most monks even know what all the precepts are, but the point is really that it's difficult - there are restrictions on the way monks walk, sit, eat, and so on. Again, worth trying, but when you get here I would spend a few weeks at least at the temple, paying attention to how they practice there - specifically to how the monks have to act - before you decide you want to go for the whole deal. Also remember that a lot of the younger "monks" are actually lay-monks - not fully ordained, they're kids and teenagers who stay at the temple and serve the monks. You should look at the older monks (20+) for a sense of what life as a monk is like.

Ha ha woops - that's 227 precepts for monks. i'm supposed to know that.

sounds like monk tourism! Why not just do Vipassana, and believe me that will be more than enough. I know Thai husbands who fled their marital responsibly by becoming monks for a few months, and tourists who went slightly loopy. What is your true motivation? Get through a serious 10 day course ( not with the second afternoon meal for farangs!) then do the 21 day course, then possibly you will be clear enough to make this serious commitment.

Yes, you can become a novice. I did 3 weeks(too short, I would like 3 months).
A program by a NGO, www.bloodfoundation.org/
Details about my experience are posted on my blog in June.
Whereyoustop.blogspot.com

I was just talking about this discussion thread when I was in Thailand last month :)