Short answers, pulled from the story.
Gautama Buddha founded the sangha in the fifth century BCE when he accepted a group of wandering ascetics as his first followers. This event marked the beginning of the Buddhist monastic community and shifted practitioners from itinerant life to structured communal living.
Theravada male monks follow approximately 258 rules while East Asian women under the Dharmaguptaka code observe 348 regulations. These distinct disciplinary codes reflect centuries of adaptation to local climates and cultural expectations across Asia today.
Male novices may begin their path at age eight in Theravada countries though traditional guidelines suggest they must be old enough to scare away crows. East Asian traditions require candidates to reach nineteen years before formal novice ordination occurs.
Female bhikkhuni lineages disappeared between the eleventh and fourteenth centuries due to later developments restricting female participation after Gautama Buddha initially accepted his stepmother Mahaprajapati as an ordained practitioner. Modern efforts attempt reviving these lineages despite official resistance from both institutional and popular sectors.
Imperial authorities enacted the Nikujiku Saitai Law during the Meiji Restoration allowing all Buddhist sects to marry freely. This policy aimed to secularize religious institutions while promoting State Shinto as the national faith and created a distinct class called sōryo separate from traditional bhikkhu titles.