Who Are Contemporary Thai Buddhists

By Sulak Sivaraksa, translated by S.J.

(Click here for more information about Sulak Sivaraksa)

In the past, Buddhism was an important part of the daily life of the Thai people in general. Almost every one was a Buddhist. Via the house and the temple, Thais learned about and cultivated Buddhism. Many Buddhist activities were often held with the collective participation of, for example, family members or residents of a neighborhood or locality. The temple was an important cultural, educational, spiritual, intellectual, and medical center. As a result, the lives of the Thai people often revolved around the temple.

Growing up in this Buddhist cultural and spiritual context, the Thai youth understood the importance of providing dana; that dana is beneficial to all sides. And if the youth grew up in a family that upheld moral discipline and training, s/he would understand the virtues of the five precepts.

Some children who had Chinese fathers but Thai mothers might be influenced by Confucianism, helping them to have respect for the elders. They would learn the virtue of obedience and uphold honesty and loyalty. They might not have training in higher morality, higher mentality, and higher wisdom, but they would abstain from abusing or exploiting others. Conversely, they might passively accept the unjust social order such as the sakdina order. Their acceptance of the unjust status quo was of course within certain limits. Otherwise, the social structures could not be preserved due to challenges from below.

The more their mothers were Buddhist or Thai, the lesser these children would be Chinese. This is because Buddhism emphasizes generosity more than the accumulation of personal wealth. The early Chinese immigrants wanted wealth more than anything else; to them, generosity would begin once they were rich.

The more a family was embedded in the culture of Buddhism, the closer it would be to the temple and monks; and the more the family members would understand the value of humility, simplicity, tranquility, and mindfulness. Self-reliance would be cherished over magic, superstitions, technology, etc. Moreover, if the people go to know good and wise monks, they would be able to develop spiritually. They would cultivate moral courage and wisdom.

Mr. Puey Ungphakorn, whose father was Chinese, is a good example. As he had explicitly stated, his Thai mother and maternal grandmother made him perceive the value of Buddhism. Although he never flaunted his Buddhist-ness, he was a truly respectable Buddhist layperson-despite the fact that he rarely operated within the framework of Buddhist orthodoxy.

Many highly respected Thai Buddhist monks had personal backgrounds similar to Mr. Puey's; they had Chinese fathers and Thai mothers. A few examples will suffice: Bhikkhu Buddhadasa, Bhikkhus Padaramuni and Dhammacetiya of Wat Thong Nopakun, Bhikkhu Sasanasobhana of Wat Ratpradit, Somdech Phra Vanaratta of Wat Mahthat, and Somdech Phra Buddhacariya of Wat Pathumkongkha.

We must remember that in those days families would send their sons to be ordained as novices early on. Temples and Buddhism would lay the groundwork for elementary education of young Thai males. If they disrobed after a few years, they would pursue secondary education at home--often, vocational training in agrarian practices. The dhamma still played a role however. Fish would be caught in moderation. Animals would be hunted in moderation. Nature would be respected. Animals were exploited but always within certain acceptable limits. Those who were strongly influenced by the dhamma would avoid pursuing the wrong livelihood; they would completely abstain from butchering and selling animals, from producing and selling weapons, poisons, etc.

When the sons got older, they could be ordained as monks, which is equivalent to pursuing college education. They would stay in the Order for at least 1-4 years. They would learn to nurture tranquility, spirituality, and culture inside during this vital period. They would listen to sermons and discourse every night during the Buddhist Lent. After the Lent period, there would be many merit-making festivals, which would help engender wisdom in the participants.

In every temple, there would be monks who would guide the people down the road of moral and mental training, which would enable them to cultivate wisdom in gradual stages through study, reflection, and practice.

The people would call those who had completed this college education 'pandit.' It is equivalent to obtaining a bachelor degree. If they happened to learn the Scripture, could read the Buddha's teachings in Pali, and passed the examination of Pali studies, they would be called "maha" even after they had disrobed. This is equivalent to obtaining a master degree. If they steadfastly practiced meditation exercises and were able to teach vipassanadhura, they would be called "acharn" even after they had disrobed. This is equivalent to obtaining a doctorate degree. For those who remained monks for the rest of their lives, the people would grant them honorific titles such as "venerable teacher," "abbots," or even "somdech." Officially, they would also be granted honorific titles--e.g. as "venerable teacher" or even as the "Royal Chapter" of monks whose role is to ensure that the Monastic Order maintains the dhamma-vinaya.

In the past, young males, whether high born or low born, would be ordained in the same temple. In some cases, after they had disrobed, life-long personal bonds would be forged between the ruling elites and commoners such as the friendship between Prince Asdang and Mr. Phya Adorndhani.

The temple was the center of numerous spiritual and cultural activities throughout the year. Likewise, many major events in a person's life would revolve around Buddhism. Of course, tinges of animism and magic could be perceived. But Buddhism was always in the drivers' seat.

Although women were not given the same opportunity to be ordained, they had many avenues to study the Buddha-dhamma. Some female devotees became established spiritual and religious teachers, training many monks and novices. Upasika Nap Mahaniranon and Kor. Khaosuanluang are good examples. Unfortunately the Buddhist state had largely vanished from Thai society at both the temple and familial levels.

In the past, being Thai was synonymous with being Buddhist. The Thais had also incorporated some aspects of traditional animism and Brahmanism into their daily lives. But we did not adopt the caste system. We had faint knowledge bout the occultism of Brahmanism and about Sinology.

The weight of Buddhism depended on how well Buddhism blended with the culture of the Thai people. Thais in the central region often denigrated the Buddhist-ness of the Lao people, accusing them of being too animistic. Moreover, the Lao people seemed indifferent to the demeritorious activity of cultivating silkworms. Of course, Thais were more than glad to buy Lao silks. Both the Thai and Lao peoples however saw nothing wrong with fishing to sustain their livelihood--as long as it was not done in excess. For instance, fishing or the taking of life in general was prohibited on Shaving Day (the eve of a Buddhist Holy Day) and on Buddhist Holy Day. And, fish in a temple's pond would be spared: all lives within the temple's compound were safe. On the other hand, Sinhalese Buddhists would completely abstain from fishing, leaving the Christian and Muslim fisher-folks to do the job for them.

For Tibetans, consuming shrimps and fish is very demeritorious because a lot of them must be consumed to satisfy one's empty stomach. They (e.g. each family) saw the necessity of killing only on yak a year. Before the yak is killed, a ceremony will be held to ask for forgiveness and to enable it to be born in a better position in the next life. Dried and preserved yak's meat would then be eaten throughout the year. This is the Tibetan way of compromising the moral codes.

Every Buddhist community shared the penchant for generosity. Monks, novices, worshipers, mendicants, savage animals, spirits, etc. were supported and nurtured. As for bhavanamay (mental culture as a way of merit making), Buddhists in general have a more difficult time cultivating than through generosity and morality. Theravadin Buddhists see that bhavana is more important for monks than lay people; and monks in the forest tradition place greater emphasis on bhavana than urban monks, who are more concerned about studying the Scriptures. Also, urban monks are more concerned about chanting or other tiracchanavijja (pseudo-sciences) to serve worshippers such as producing holy water, reading fortunes, etc. In the past, some temples even provided lessons in music, poetry, painting, architecture, etc.

Ever since Siam opened its doors to Western powers, the Buddhist condition mentioned above has been gradually undermined. Our ruling elites were sent to study abroad instead of to the local temples. During the reign of King Rama V, the kingdom adopted the Western education system, building schools, universities, etc. Hospitals, theatres, libraries, museums, nursing homes, etc. were simultaneously established, overshadowing and usurping the roles of temples. The temple was once the center of these activities. Monks often incorporated the dhamma in temple activities. So this is lost.

Relegating the temple to the backseat, we heavily invested in the education of our youth in order to make them more knowledgeable about worldly affairs than the monks were. (In the past, monks were knowledgeable about both worldly and spiritual affairs.) Western values emphasize arrogance, selfish attachment, and the wrong view in various dimensions. These are all antithetical to the teachings of the Buddha. In other words, beginning with the new generation during the reign of King Rama V, the Buddhist-ness so Thais began to reduce in substance and increase in formality.

The new education system eventually spread to the major cities and towns of the kingdom. It was complemented by the expansion on the new administrative system, which was made possible by technological advancements. As a result, the central government used a new occultism based on the worship of modern technology to indoctrinate the people. The new education and administrative systems also indoctrinated the people to accept the power of the state unequivocally. Soon the people began to look down on their local customs and wisdom, and start to look up to the city folks and ruling elites, who are enamoured by Western sciences and technologies.

When Prince Vajirayan took charge of organizing the curriculum of the Sangha during the reign of King Rama V, he focused only on the study of the Scriptures. He insisted that the knowledge obtained from the practice of contemplation and meditation could not be positively evaluated Thus any ecclesiastical graduate of Pali studies only underwent examination in the farang way. As a result, the study of Buddhism only concentrated on the development of the brain and was devoid of mental training. How then cold the student attain even a modicum of wisdom? Moreover, moral training was straightjacketed by formality and orthodoxy. Other forms of moral training were merely seen as inferior denominations. As such the Dhammayutika Sect was looked upon condescendingly. The practice of insight development was seen as dulling the minds of monks, making the impervious to social issues, especially the process of modernization.

The Tripitaka contains a chapter on heavenly being. It also refers to various Buddhist planes of existence; the celestial realm, the evil realm, the human realm, the realm of demons, and so on. Unable to prove the existence of these realms empirically, contemporary Buddhists dismiss them as sheer myths. The concepts of the next life, the previous life, and reincarnation have suffered from a not dissimilar fate. This tension has been left unresolved since the times of King Rama V. Advocates of Western epistemology have tried to interrogate Buddhism trenchantly. On the other hand, those with narrow minds and vision have flaunted their superhuman power in experiencing and understanding the other worlds.

If contemporary Buddhists read the Scriptures within the framework of Western epistemology, Buddhism will only be at best an accessory, at worst an expendable thing. But if they are able to truly cultivate mental training and study and practice the Buddha's teachings they will fathom that which is the well expounded Dhamma of the Exalted One, to be seen here-now, not delayed in time, (invited one to) come-and-see, leading inward, to be seen by each wise man for himself. We must not forget that whether or not we are Buddhist depends on the extent we have studied and practiced the Buddha-dhamma. Deprived of this factor, we cannot say that we are Buddhists.

At this point, I would like to share my personal experiences. The middle class emerged in Siam during my father's generation. My father had two brothers, and they all went to Christian schools. My father's eldest brother had also been ordained and was married to a Chinese lady. It was the custom of the Thai-Chinese middle class during the time of Kings Rama V and VI to send their children to farang schools. Although my grandfather was from China, my grandmother was a Thai born in Siam As a Thai, my grandmother was also Buddhist. Her Thai-ness left some marks on her sons.

Every morning, my grandmother would provide offerings to monks. My aunts would carry on this practice until the extended family system broke down in Thonburi. After WWII, my aunts no longer visited the temple on Buddhist Holy Days. But the housekeeper continued to do so. She would return from the temple with "merits' for us. After the Buddhist Lent, we would often go to listen to sermons and engage in various merit-making activities.

By that time, none of our family members were sent to receive education from the temple. We believed that studying in farang schools is more prestigious. At that time, even though one might not complete secondary education from a farang school, one would still have a good chance to work for foreign companies. Those of us who went to temples would only to do so to have their fortunes checked. Only the housekeeper would go to the two temples near our house to listen to sermons.

Put differently, it seems that the influence of Buddhism on Thai society began to wane during the time of my father's generation. Although my father was to some extent a virtuous man-he gave particular emphasis on alms giving and generosity-he probably inherited these virtues from his partner and respected relatives, not learned about them from the temple. Likewise, Mr. Puey Ungphakorn probably learned more about the virtue of living a noble life from his family and school more than from the temple. However, he was also fond of reading books on Buddhism, and incorporated aspects of Buddhist teachings in his life. In this case, he was similar to Mr. Direck Jayanama, but different from Mr. Pridi Banaomyong. Mr. Pridi was from the rural areas where the people's way of life was more closely related to the temple than that of urban folks. Mr. Pridi was also close to many monks. Early on, he detected the brilliance of Phra maha Nguem Indapanyo,w ho was later known as Bhikkhu Buddhadasa.

The only flaw that Mr. Puey had is that he believed that superficial knowledge of Buddhism along with basic moral values obtained from the family and schools are sufficient components to make someone virtuous and willing to work for the wellbeing of the masses. Therefore, he supported his student and the younger generation to pursue higher education abroad. The problem is that these individuals were products of the decimated familial system. And most schools were not able to teach Buddhism in an interesting fashion and capture the essence of Buddhism. Worse, schools had transformed themselves into bastions of Western Values than of Buddhism. The consequences need not be elaborated. Small wonder that individuals like Luang Wichit Watthakan and M.R. Kukrit Pramoj emerged (and continue to serve) as intellectual and spiritual leaders. Graduates of Pali studies were not longer held in high esteem as in the past. Progressive monks who tried to spread Buddhism outside the temple circle were often stigmatized.

I will now talk about contemporary Thai Buddhists, classifying them into two groups: 1) those who are Buddhist out of necessity because of familial and social dictates; and 2) those who question the value of Buddhism. The latter group is prone to ask, "Why be a Buddhist when upholding certain basic moral values is sufficient?" (Or several decades ago, "Why don't we turn to Marxism?")

In this section, I will deal with the first group. These people have been exposed to the Buddha, the Doctrine, and the Order, but they have not sought refuge in them. They treat the precepts as commands and formalities. Some may provide alms on their birthday. All are likely to invite monks to chant during funerals. Buddhism is not at the fore front of their minds when considering, for example, the following:

- Should I speak the truth or a lie?
- Should I exploit or abuse members of the opposite sex?
- What kinds of job constitute the Right Livelihood?
- How shall I be ever mindful in order to overcome greed, hatred, and delusions?

Some of them may gladly choose to be ordained as novices during the summer break. The ordination of novices however has turned into an elaborate an expensive festivity, into a carnival. Some may be pressured to be ordained as monks to please their parents--or to make merit for the royal family--for 7-10 days. How much will they be able to learn within this short period of time? Worse, how many temples really strictly uphold the dhamma-vinaya. In some temples, older monks will invite new monks to have dinner on the very first night of their ordination. Asked whether or not having dinner would constitute an offence, the older monks would reply, "Not to worry, a confession on the next day will solve everything." In other words, the monks' way of life is merely a theatrical performance. This is better than it is in some temples where monks do not even care to confess of the offences they commit. Some temples do not even require performing the routine monastic duties. 'And often these duties are done perfunctorily without understanding their underlying objectives.

It is difficult to find contemporary Buddhist who believe in the law of karma, reincarnation, and the various realms of existence--not to mention heaven, hell, and nirvana.

Those who invite monks over to conduct sermons, chanting, or religious ceremonies often offer them substantial basic necessities, including money. This is akin to hiring monks. The more monks accept invitations in exchange for material benefits, the more they will lose their simplicity an humility. Of course the more monks accept invitations, the richer they become. And they will have less and less time for the poor people. The higher the ecclesiastical title a monk is granted, the more he will relate only with the rich and privileged, the more he will be deluded by power, wealth, status, etc. In reality, most monks are of humble origins.

Now, it is common for a monks' lodging to be equipped with a television set, VCR, air conditioner and other amenities, including a soft, fluffy mattress. That a monk alone in his lodging with a female is seen as nothing wrong. Fellow monks do not criticize one another's wrongdoing. Rather they coalesce to keep these offences from the limelight. As such, many can easily turn into fake and shameless monks. Elder monks holding ecclesiastical titles often compete each other to collect fancy cars and to climb to the top of the ecclesiastical ladder. The richer a temple, the more ornate its gable-finial and architecture will be. It is now difficult to find a temple that has preserved its traditional architecture that seeks to exist harmonically with nature. It is even more difficult to find a temple that is socially engaged with the surrounding communities, the marginalized the disabled, the youth, etc.

Against this backdoor, how should contemporary Buddhists react? Should they convert to other religions, which is becoming a conspicuous trend in recent years?

After October 1973, many young individuals told me that they had already given an opportunity to Buddhism for 2,500 years. Buddhism has yet to prove itself that it is capable of improving society. And for 30 years, the US was given the opportunity to lead the country towards peace and prosperity--but to no avail. It was time, they contended, to raise the flags of Marxism and Maoism to return justice to society--even through violent means.

I responded that Buddhism has a subtle and noble way of eradicating structural violence and injustices with the aid of nonviolence. I told them that the word "sangha" is akin to "commune." That Buddhism has overly compromised with magic, the sakdina system, capitalism, and consumerism is not ariya-vinaya. If they understand the Buddha dhamma they will be able to contain violence with ahimsa. They may be able to overcome the enemy inside, which is more difficult than defeating external enemies. If they are able to create inner peace, they will be less attached to the self and thus will dedicate themselves to the wellbeing of all sentient beings. They will be able to find kalyanamittata who would cooperate with them to rehumanize the people and return justice to society.

The youth generation 30-40 years ago accused me of being too idealistic and romantic. But the Buddha taught us to tread along the road normally. We may appreciate idealism, and in every step of our lives we may be mindful and happy without evading suffering. Rather we should confront and understand the causes of suffering. In so doing we will be able to overcome them according to the Noble Eight Fold Path.

I will now discuss about contemporary Buddhists in the second category. To those who are infatuated by Western values and thinkers, I shall quote the words of Allen Ginsberg.

Every American wants More. More of the world and why not, you only live once. But the mistake made in America is persons accumulate more more dead matter, machinery, possessions & rugs & fact information at the expense of what really counts as more: feeling, good feeling, sex feeling, tenderness feeling, mutual feeling. You own twice as much rug if you're twice aware of the rug. Possessing more means being aware of more: & that "awareness" is banked in areas we call feeling. Bodily feeling or sensual feeling.

…Well our business tendency has been to mechanize and literally suppress feeling. It doesn't fit the machine. People flowing in and out of buildings on time slave to the inanimate machine that houses them. The media has become cannibalistic of person. Well if you want to live in a dead universe, an impersonal universe, that's an option-which most people choose or are forced to, they think…

…But the culture-and the system, the capitalistic system itself as practiced thru competition rather than free cooperation-simply enforce impersonal reactions. So you end up with less not more. Even if you own not merely First National even if you cold own the whole planet. The kind of relationship you have. If you monopolize matter, is a dead feeling one…

…."Success" as such by US standards is just a big loss of our real existence: which is personal feeling. You get less, you don't get more. Most people seem to be hung up in this dead matter like junkies. Their habits get bigger and bigger too like junkies…

The drugs come in here, at right historic moment. LSD cuts through the whole illusion of dead matter; unconscious realization of person and feeling and sensory awareness is restored temporarily…someone stuck in a dead universe all his life suddenly wakes up and sees the whole universe alive, including himself. It could be nerve wracking if you've invested your whole life in the wrong universe which most everybody has by now.

…History's accelerating like technology's accelerated. Can't go back. We can blow the whole show up. Or we can calm fear, see the world is really changing, live a dream, and go explore and help each other through. It's all safe because as Einstein and the Buddhists secretly tipped everybody off long ago: the whole show is a harmless wave-illusion. That may be hard to take but it's better than going mad and seeing devils in every corner in typical pre-space-age Americans Style.

Ginsberg contributed this editorial to the Wall Street Jorunal in 1966. Subsequently, he met the VenerableTrungpa Rinpoche, the founder of the first Buddhist university in the US, Naropa University. Ginsberg eventually became a Buddhist and dedicated his life to Naropa University; he taught poetry there.

The words of Thanissaro Bhikkhu (born Geoffrey DeGraf), an American abbot in California trained in the Thai forest tradition, are also illuminating.

For centuries, meditation monks have been roaming the wilderness of Southeast Asia, living in symbiosis with the subsistence farmers scattered though the jungle. The monks' rules require they live entirely outside of the market economy, avoiding any activities that would separate them from a pure wilderness life; farming, herding animals, engaging in trade, or storing food. In a sense, they are hunters and gathers…(They forage daily from the generosity of the farmers. To compensate for the burden they place on their supporters, they have to make themselves worthy of that generosity by living frugally and virtuously, keeping their needs to an absolute minimum.

Both sides benefit from the relationship. The monks are free to spend their days in meditation…The lay supporters benefit from having…experienced specialists who have dedicated their whole lives to the dharma and are happy to share their wisdom and experience.

A roaming sangha of trained monastic dharma seekers would add some needed rigor and depth to our homegrown American tradition of wilderness wisdom. For all their insights, our Black Elks, Thoreaus, and Muirs offer no satisfactory analysis of aging, illness, and death, and no recommendations for how to go beyond them. Think how much richer our nation would be if our woods harbored people of recognizable spiritual attainment and genuine insight who offered definitive answers to these issues, and who were at the same time on good terms with the people in the towns. People disenchanted with the market economy would have someone to turn to…They'd have access to a dharma and discipline with proven track record over the past two and a half millennia for taking people beyond birth and death…

Those who remain in the market economy would be able to tap into whatever wisdom their dropout friends had gained from their wilderness experiences--wisdom that our current society simply throws away. If people in and out of the market economy could develop a rapport like this, our society as a whole might develop a healthier respect for the wilderness and for the need to keep it wild. As more wisdom came from the wilderness, our nation as a whole would be more civilized.

I quoted these two individuals at length in order to show that Buddhism is pertinent to anyone who is against the mainstream.

In societies that had no Buddhist roots, Buddhists realized that they first step they must take is mental development or meditation; that is training the mind to be peaceful and unshaken by mainstream values and propaganda (e.g., attachments to materials, wealth, prestige, etc.). As a result, the number of meditation centers in such society depends on the size of the Buddhist community. Good spiritual leaders or meditation teachers will pave the way for moral training, keeping one's action and speech in a normal state and refraining from abusing oneself and others. If one's mind is able to achieve mindfulness, then one will understand that morality refers to the normal state of society. In other words, one must struggle against social injustice and structural violence.

In the context mentioned in previous sections, contemporary Thais who are in search of Buddhist-ness (.e. being awakened from the domination of defilements) will be unable to find it from most monks and mainstream institutions. But if they are avid readers and are determined to find goodness, beauty, and truthfulness they may find it in the works of leading Buddhists. The works of Bhikkhu Buddhadasa come to my mind. In fact, there should be a congregation to categorize these works of Bhikkhu Buddhadasa and determine, which works laypersons should read first. The works of H.H. the Dalai Lama, Venerable P.A. Payutto, and Thich Nhat Hanh also come to my mind, especially Venerable P.A. Payutto's Buddha-dhamma. Although these works will facilitate our study and understanding of Buddhism we must not neglect the task of meditation practice because only through studying and meditation practice will we cultivate morality, mindfulness, and wisdom.

If contemporary people understand the substance of morality, mindfulness, and wisdom, they will seek refuge in the Buddha and the dhamma; they will perceive the Buddha as the well spring of wisdom and compassion. As such, they will have mindfulness, follow the Buddha's footsteps, and be awakened from greed, hatred, and delusions. They will transcend suffering and experience peace, cleanliness, and translucence, and will be able to burn the flame of love without emitting thee smoke of jealously, selfishness, and possessiveness.