The Business of Buddhism in Thailand
(from Newzzit; the original story is here http://newzzit.com/stories/the-business-of-buddhism)
Quick Summary
With over 94% population following Theravada Buddhism, and over 250,000 orange-robed monks, Thai's Buddhist industry is worth over 50 billion baht.
With proliferation of sects such as Wat Phra Dhammakaya, Thais are asking whether modern practices has put up nirvana for sale.
Two cases.One happened in Singapore. Businessman Chua Kwee Sin sued the headmonk of the Buddhist temple at Lorong 27 Geylang, Venerable Sek MeowDi, for $1.28 million in August. Chua claimed that he gave the moneyto Ven Sek for a joint casino business, which never materialised.Another happened in Thailand where the country's national Buddhismbody warned monks for inappropriate behaviour after a video emergedshowing monks wearing stylish aviator sunglasses and travelling in aprivate jet. This has once again put the focus back on how thereligion of Buddhism has become a business in South-east Asia. Butfor the purpose of this article, we will focus on Thailand solely.The story of the business of Buddhism in Singapore will be publishedin our subsequent issues.
Withover 94% population following Theravada Buddhism, and over 250,000orange-robbed monks, Thai's Buddhist industry is worth over 50billion baht. In 2012, the country celebrated the 2,600th anniversaryof Lord Buddha' s Enlightenment. More than 600 delegates from 99countries attended a Buddhist conference organisedby the Bangkok-based World Fellowship of Buddhists (WFB). But thiswas not what attracted public attention.
What caught everyone's eye was aprocession of 1,500 Buddhist monks from down-town Bangkok to Wat PhraDhammakaya in Pathum Thani province over 40kms away on a path coveredwith rose petals by the faithful. The five-days pilgrimage was tomove a gold statue of their meditation master, the late Luang PorSod, to Wat Pak Nam.
Thiswas in sharp contrast to what actually tudong, orwalking pilgrimage, meant in Buddhism. It is a practice usually donein solitude in remote forest locations and is meant to retrace thefootsteps of Buddha, experience homelessness, and foster mindfulnessin the face of austere conditions.
Increasingly, such deviation fromBuddhist ideals is becoming commonplace in Thailand. One can watchthe renowned monk, Phra Maha Vudhichai Vajiramedhi, on TV sellingtrucks, or Phra Maha Sompong Talaputto selling DVDs of hispreaching, or even Amnart Buasiri, who is the deputy director of theOffice of National Buddhism, expressing his desire “to exportBuddhism as a commodity to westerners and boosting the country'sinternational trade”.
Buasiriannounced this at a seminar on the uproar that greeted the DhammakayaTemple's controversial pilgrimage through Bangkok saying, “Weshould think of how to export Buddhism as a product. We have about350 temples overseas. If we can make foreign businessmenappreciatedhamma practice and become Buddhists, Thailand's foreign trade willhave no problem in the future."
Wat Phra Dhammakaya is Thailand's most controversial temple facing accusations of funds mismanagement, commercial approach to nirvana, adultery and fraud. The temple can accommodate up to 300,000 worshippers and has 50 branches worldwide. It also operates the Dhammakaya Open University in California, US, giving degrees on dharma. It's massive pagoda is adorned with 10,00,000 silicon-bronze Buddha images, all paid with donations exceeding 10,000 baht each.
There are somewho strongly disagrees with Buasiri version of Buddhism.
“Overthe years Buddhism has been adapted, diluted and interwoven withlocal cultures and pre-existing beliefs, though each interpretationremains based on Lord Buddha's core teachings. Theravada, Mahayanaand Vajrayana Buddhists throughout East Asia all follow thephilosophy that to attain nirvana we must eliminate craving, andhence, suffering, from our lives. But perceptions of Thai Buddhismare often superficial and heavily romanticised. It is perplexing tosee the emergence of a new kind of Buddhism in Thailand thatemphasises wealth, extravagant offerings and praying for merit,”says Arglit Boonyal, editor of an e-publication ThaiPad.
Otherlike social activist Sulak Sivaraksa, founder of the InternationalNetwork of Engaged Buddhists,writes, “Unfortunately, it seems that many leading monks in Thaisociety have a career. They go to deliver sermons and receivefinancial contributions in return. The size of a financialcontribution also depends on the monk’s popularity andecclesiastical rank. Some also sell amulets, holy water, etc. on thesidelines to earn money. A number of them use the money obtained fora good cause like building schools and hospitals, for their ownpersonal use.”
He is supportedby Sanitsuda Ekachai, assistant editor at Bangkok Post, who in hercommentary, Thailand has betrayed Buddha ideals, summarises,“Thailand, which falsely prides itself on being a Buddhist country,is
readyto crack, broken by anger, hatred and social injustice.Wemust start questioning our materialistic aspirations and way of life,as well as the political and economic systems that presently shun theBuddhist principle of non-exploitation. We cannot hope to save ourplanet, our country, or our souls, when our real religion is nothingmore than Buddhism for show.”
Note:The inspiration for this article is a special feature in BangkokPost's e-publication ThaiPad - The Business of Buddhism – Aremodern practices putting nirvana up for sale, published last year.