Monastic Life

The Monastic and the the Ascetic life
In an article on the website of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America on Monasticism the following is said:

St. Anthony
Is considered the Father of Orthodox monasticism, for his kind of monasticism, that of "living alone with God as his only companion".
His lavra was a village of anchorites who lived by themselves in their own huts and had a life in common, practiced common daily prayer evening and morning, worked in common, had common revenues and expenditures, and common meals, and wore the same identical monastic garb.

St Basil
Among the many ascetical works of St. Basil, two are the most significant in terms of regulating the life of monasticism: the "Great Rules"
(Oroi Kata Platos), and the "Brief Rules" (Oroi Kat' Epitomen).
His Rules became the Magna Carta of Monasticism, both in the East and in the West, throughout the monastic tradition.
St. Basil's monks had the mission of "social workers" and ran the institutions (Basileias) that functioned as:

Orphanages
Kitchens for the poor
Schools for the illiterate