Buddhism in Thailand
Buddhism in Thailand is largely influenced by the Theravada school and makes Thailand one of the few countries where Buddhism flourishes. 94.6 percent of the Thai population are Buddhists , whereby this Buddhism has adopted elements of the folk religion such as ancestor worship and the Chinese religion of the large proportion of the population of Chinese origin. The Buddhist temples ( Wat ) of Thailand have high, sometimes golden chedis as features , the Buddhist architecture of Thailand is similar to that of other Southeast Asian countries, especially Cambodia and Laos , which share a common cultural and historical heritage with Thailand.
Traditional lines of Thai Buddhism
Three main sources have influenced the development of Buddhism in Thailand. The most important source is Theravada Buddhism, which originates from northern India (or Sri Lanka ) , with some considerable local or regional variations. Pāli is the traditional sacred language in Thailand. The holy scriptures are written in Pāli, either in the modern Thai script , the older Khom or the Tham script . Pāli is also the " liturgical language " in the ceremonies, although most Thai only understand this ancient Middle Indian language rudimentary. The Pali canon or the “Tipitaka” ( Thai : พระ ไตรปิฎก , spoken: [ pʰrá tʰrai-pì-dòk ]) is the main religious text of Thailand, but numerous summarizing text collections of regionally specific teachings in Tipitaka have also been created. The Thai interpretation of the Theravadic monk and nun rule ( Vinaya or Patimokkha , Thai: ปาติโมกข์ ) complicates the current efforts to revive the Bhikkhuni or nun tradition (Thai: ภิกษุณี ) in Thailand.
Another source of Thai Buddhism is Brahmanism , which also comes from India (or Cambodia ) and was particularly widespread during the Sukhothai era. The Vedic Brahmanism played an important role in the early Thai kingdom as well as in Cambodia, contributed in the Thai Society for the foundation of law and order and influenced the development of Buddhism in Thailand. Certain rituals performed by monks in Thailand are believed to be originally Brahmanic or derived from Brahmanic practice. Although Brahmanism largely disappeared from the Thai public during the Chakri dynasty from the 18th century, Brahmanic elements - especially in the form of Brahma shrines (e.g. Erawan shrine ) - lived on in Buddhist institutions and ceremonies.
The folk religion, which seeks to appease the wrath of numerous local phi ( Thai ผี ) spirits and gain their favor, is the third source of Thai spirituality. While western observers and urban and western educated Thais often draw a dividing line between Thai Buddhism and the practice of folk religion, such a distinction appears problematic for rural regions. The spiritual power ascribed to the observance of Buddhist precepts and rituals is used there to appease local nature spirits. Numerous restrictions to which Buddhist monks submit in the countryside do not stem from the orthodox Vinaya (that is, the rules of the order), but rather from taboos of the practiced folk magic. Astrology , numerology as well as talismans and lucky charms play an important role in customs. An example are the small ghost houses (Thai: ศาล พระภูมิ ) that are placed next to a newly constructed building and whose residents are shown respect through food sacrifices.
The formerly strong influence of Mahayana Buddhism on Buddhism in Thailand has declined sharply. Nonetheless, depictions of the Bodhisattva Lokesvara in religious art and the belief that the Thai king himself is a Bodhisattva show the continuing influence of Mahayana ideas on Thai society. The only other bodhisattva figure to whom greater importance is attached in Thailand is the "Buddha of the future" Maitreya . Occasionally the Thai pray for their rebirth during the time of Maitreya or dedicate their religious practices to this purpose. A more recent influence of Mahayana on Thai society comes from overseas Chinese immigrants. While some Chinese "converted" to Theravada Buddhism, others kept their temples in the style of East Asian Mahayana Buddhism. The growing popularity of the Bodhisattva (goddess) Kuan Yin in Thailand (a form of Avalokitesvara ) can be attributed to the influence of Chinese Mahayana followers in Thailand.
Monasticism in Thailand
As in most Theravada countries, Buddhism in Thailand mainly shows itself in the presence of Buddhist monks who take part in ceremonies and are responsible for the preservation and communication of the Buddha's teachings.
By the end of the 20th century, most Thai monks began their careers as Dek wat (Thai: เด็ก วัด , literally "temple child"). Traditionally, a Dek wat is no younger than eight and does menial housework at the temple. The main motivation for the Dek wat practice is to receive a basic education, especially in reading and writing as well as memorizing the sacred texts that are recited on ritual occasions. Before state secondary schools were established, the village temple was the training center for most of the Thai boys. The temple service as a dec wat was a prerequisite for higher education and the only educational opportunity for most Thai farmers. With the creation of a state education system in Thailand, the number of children living as Dek wat has decreased significantly. Nevertheless, numerous state schools continue their work according to the premises of the local village temple.
After (at least four years) service as Dek wat a budding monk is usually for novices ( Samanera in Pāli or NEN - เณร ordained in Thai). The novices live like the monks according to the rules that are fixed in the Patimokkha ( Buddhist rules of the order ), but are not formally obliged to obey the entire rule of the order. Another essential difference between novices and monks is that novices usually have more intensive contact with their parents than monks. The novices do not take part in the reading of the rule of the order (not even in confession), which takes place on the Uposatha days (Thai: วัน พระ ). They also do not officially participate in the monks' meals in the temple. This is practically only done by a certain distance between the seats; however, more importance is attached to the separation between monks and lay people.
The duration of a novitiate is usually one to two years. By the age of 20, novices have qualified for the major Upasampadā , which makes them a full bhikkhu . A novice is officially sponsored by his parents in his ordination, but in the country the entire village is involved by providing the robes, begging bowl and other utensils of monk life .
Temporary ordination is the rule among Thai Buddhists. Most young men are traditionally ordained for a rainy season (in Pāli Vassa , in Thai Phansa - พรรษา , see: Khao Phansa - เข้าพรรษา ). Those who remain a monk after their first vassa usually remain so for a period of one to three years. During this time the monk takes part in the religious ceremonies in the villages in the area and can acquire further reading and writing skills (possibly including Kham or Tham script , the traditional language of religious texts). After this period, most young monks return to their previous life, marry and raise a family. A time as a monk is considered a prerequisite for numerous management positions within the village hierarchy. Most of the village elders or leaders were once monks, as were most traditional healers, necromancers, astrologers and fortune tellers .
Monks who do not return to everyday life specialize in either scholarship or meditation . Those who specialize in scholarship usually attend regional training centers to study the Pāli language and scriptures and can later continue to study at the monastery colleges in Bangkok . The path of scholarship is also taken by monks who aspire to a career in the spiritual hierarchy, since promotion within the state-directed system depends on qualification in Pāli and Buddhist philosophy.
Monks who specialize in meditation seek contact with a well-known master of the meditation tradition, with whom they study for a few years. "Meditation monks" are valued in Thai society as possessing high virtues and as a source of certain supernatural powers. Ironically, monks of the forest tradition in particular often have to fight for time and retreat for their own meditation in view of the intrusiveness of enthusiastic devotees who seek blessings and attention from them.
Women in Thai Buddhism
Unlike in Myanmar and Sri Lanka , the Theravadian bhikkhuni tradition has never established itself in Thailand. As a result, the Thai reject the idea of women's orders; instead, they are expected to live and earn merit as lay disciples in the hope of reincarnation as male Buddhists in a future life. As a result, lay women limit themselves to participating in general religious life, either in religiously meritorious collective rituals or by doing temple chores. A smaller number of women decide to pursue a career as Mae Chi , non-ordained religious specialists who strictly observe the eight or ten commandments ( Sila - ศีล แปด ). Mae Chi do not generally find the same support as the ordained monks. Your position in Thai society is controversial.
Recent efforts to introduce the Sri Lankan bhikkhuni tradition more strongly into Thai Buddhism and to improve the position of women have - unlike comparable changes in the neighboring country - met with fierce opposition. Women seeking ordination were charged with attempting to improperly imitate monastic life (a crime in Thailand); their activity was condemned by numerous members of the spiritual hierarchy. The main objection to the reintroduction of a women's order is that the monastic rule requires the presence of five ordained monks and nuns for each bhikkhuni ordination. Without such a quorum, it is impossible to ordain new bhikkhuni.
A group of women around the nun Dhammananda Bhikkhuni is therefore trying to get ordination as Bhikkhuni in Sri Lanka, which could result in the necessary quorum of Thai women for ordination in Thailand in a few years. The ban on bhikkhuni ordination paradoxically extends to women who have entered the forest tradition in Western countries . The ordination of four women as bhikkhunis in autumn 2009 led to the exclusion of the monk Ajahn Brahmavamso , who came from England , from the forest tradition for himself and his Australian monastery.
Spread of Buddhism in Thailand
The history of Buddhism in present-day Thailand is, among many other sources, recorded in various chronicles, which are called Wat chronicles (Wat chronicles, also Buddha-sasana chronicles, i.e. Buddhist chronicles). The earliest date from the 15th and 16th centuries: the Mulasasana , Camadevivamsa and Jinakalamali chronicles .
Historians and archaeologists give different dates for the introduction of Buddhism in what is now Thailand. Some attribute it to the ancient Indian ruler Ashoka , who lived in the 3rd century BC and sent Buddhist missionaries. Many early images of the Buddha have been found in Kanchanaburi and Nakhon Pathom provinces .
Traders from India probably came to southern Thailand by sea and settled there or moved on to Cambodia and Annam , in what is now Vietnam . Based on archaeological finds and historical inscriptions, four stages of the introduction of Buddhism in Thailand can be identified:
- Early Theravada Buddhism ( Hinayana direction or southern Buddhism) in the 3rd century BC
- Mahayana Buddhism (northern sect) in the 7th century
- Theravada Buddhism of the Bagan Empire (also Pukam) in the 11th century
- Lanka (Lankavamsa or Lankavong), Theravada Buddhism in the 13th century
Lankavong Theravada Buddhism forms the basis for today's state religion in Thailand. The monks who belonged to the Lankavong branch initially settled mostly in forest monasteries and used the Pali as the language of religious ceremonies, which set them apart from the monks of Sukhothai who used Sanskrit . Later, under King Ramkhamhaeng (in the 13th and 14th centuries) a certain unity of the two schools was achieved and the Sangha was placed under royal protection. However, there were still two directions among the monks:
- Araññavasi, oriented towards meditation in the tradition of the forest monks
- Gamavasi who mainly lived in the settlements and studied the scriptures.
Under King Ramkhamhaeng, the function of patriarch (Sangharaja, Thai พระ สังฆราช ) was introduced, who acts as the spiritual head of the Theravada Buddhists. Ramkhamhaeng's grandson, King Li Thai , established the tradition of retiring to a Buddhist monastery for a while in the 14th century. The kings of Ayutthaya and Bangkok followed suit ; for example, King Boromatrailokanat (ruled 1448 to 1488) was ordained as a monk in the Chulamani monastery in Phitsanulok for eight months . According to Siamese chronicles, another 2,388 men were ordained at the same time.
Buddhism has retained its importance for Thai society ever since. The Ceylonese King Kirtisiri (1747 to 1781) sent a delegation to Siam to re-ordain Buddhist monks in Ceylon. King Boromakot agreed and sent a group of monks under Phra Upali Mahathera and Phra Ariyamuni Thera together with a royal envoy to Ceylon.
The kings of the Chakri dynasty also endeavored to have Theravada Buddhism as the state religion from the 18th century and promoted teaching and worship through the publication of writings and the foundation of Wats under royal patronage. King Rama IV. Mongkut (ruled 1851 to 1868) was a monk himself for 27 years before he ascended the throne of Siam. Under King Rama V. Chulalongkorn (r. 1868 to 1910) special emphasis was placed on the training of monks. During this time, the country's two Buddhist universities, Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University and Mahamakut University, were founded .
The 2016 deceased King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX., R. 1946-2016) retired in October 1956 for 15 days in Wat Bowonniwet . The reigning King Maha Vajiralongkorn (ruled since 2016) retired in 1978 like his father for 15 days as a novice at Wat Bowonniwet.
See also
literature
- Heinz Bechert : Buddhism, State and Society in the Countries of Theravada Buddhism . tape 2 : Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand . Alfred Metzner Verlag, Frankfurt am Main / Berlin 1967.
- Charuwan Chareonla: Buddhist Arts of Thailand . 1981.
- Chatsumarn Kabilsingh : Thai Women in Buddhism . Parallax Press, 1991, ISBN 0-938077-84-8 .
- Justin Thomas McDaniel: The Lovelorn Ghost and the Magical Monk. Practicing Buddhism in Modern Thailand. Columbia University Press, New York 2011, ISBN 978-0-231-15376-8 .
- Na-rangsi, Sunthorn. of the Thai Sangha. ( Memento of February 27, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF) In: The Chulalongkorn Journal of Buddhist Studies , 1 (2), 2002, pp. 59–74
- Walter Skrobanek: Buddhist politics in Thailand: with special consideration of heterodox messianism . Steiner, 1976, ISBN 3-515-02390-9 .
- Stanley Tambiah: Buddhism and the Spirit Cults in North-East Thailand . Cambridge University Press, 1970, ISBN 0-521-09958-7 .
- Barend Jan Terwiel : A Model for the Study of Thai Buddhism . In: Journal of Asian Studies . tape 35 , May 1976, p. 391-403 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Thailand. The World Factbook
- ↑ bangkokpost.com ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Jane Bunnag: "The Way of the Monks and the Way of the World": Buddhism in Thailand, Laos and Cambodia . In: Heinz Bechert , Richard Gombrich (ed.): The Buddhism. Past and present . 3. Edition. CH Beck, Munich 2008. pp. 190-214, here p. 191 f.
