Exploring the traditions of Christian, Hindu, Buddhist, and Islamic monastic architecture from its early beginnings to the present, this book contains nearly 300 color photographs of monasteries and their artifacts. Among the featured structures here are St. Catherine's Monastery on Mt. Sinai, Uspensky Cathedral in Kiev, St. Anthony's Monastery in the Egyptian desert, and Angkor Wat in Cambodia. Markus Hattstein relates the histories of these astonishing structures and what considerations inspired them, as well as revealing the rules that govern those who live in them. The book also includes a glossary and some monastery ground plans.