Dear editor,
Whilst I appreciated Thanthip Srisuwannaket's timely essay making constructive suggestions for the salvation of Thai Buddhism from itself, some deeper reforms might also be worth considering.
The clue is in Thanthip's first sentence: "As corruption soars in predominantly Buddhist Thailand, its temples are also facing a serious erosion of public faith due to rife corruption in the closed, non-transparent clergy." The fact is that popular though such might be, it is false to claim that Thailand is predominantly Buddhist. It is not. Thailand does not live according to the wise insights of the Buddha. On the contrary, it lives under the tradition bound, legalistic sway of the religion known as Thai Buddhism. This religion was made up over the centuries to serve an elite who wanted another prop for their ideology of control by legalism. Thai Buddhism thus reflects too well the status quo of many decades, if not centuries, that remains rampant.
Relevant to Thanthip's points, one example of the respect unreasonably accorded monks of the nationalistic religion known as Thai Buddhism is their treatment when found guilty of crimes, such as financial corruption to steal public money. They are disrobed. This is wrong. It is a manifestation of moral corruption, of dishonesty, that has no place in a genuine respect for the Buddha's teachings. It falsely pretends that monks cannot be criminals, that monks are somehow holier than others: a manifestly false prejudice. Going through a ceremony and putting on saffron robes does not make anyone a more moral, more decent or a more respectable person than they were the day before, or than they will be the day after the saffron ceases. To respect this truth about humans, which includes monks, criminal monks should be thrown into prison as monks, complete with their saffron robes. The Buddha teaches right understanding, not deliberate muddying of understanding to save face or protect a sacred myth.
But the real font of corruption in the religion known as Thai Buddhism, which conveniently endorses, for example, the mass daily slaughter of sentient animals for no better reason than to sate human lusts for tasty animal flesh, is in the merit making system. But this sort of thing is nothing uniquely Thai: European history offers instructive parallels. In mediaeval Christianity, a similar system had long become extremely popular. The sacred trade in indulgences bought an easing of the passage to heaven after death, either for the doer of qualifying good deeds or for others for whom the indulgence was purchased. Yes, according to cosmic law interpreted by the Christian clergy, the pouring of suitable amounts of hard currency into the church's coffers came with divine guarantees, from the popes no less, that, as Johann Tetzel, the 15th century preacher and Grand Commissioner for Indulgences is said to have so catchily put it, "As soon a coin in the bowl rings, a soul from purgatory springs." This abuse in the name of religion devoted to imposing cathedrals, gilded images and rich vestments in exchange for ordaining the divine rights of kings and nobles did eventually lead to reformation.
What, really, is merit making according to the preachings of Thai Buddhism? It is the trade in merit to get a better deal in the next life, either for the devotee who contributes to the temple or does suitable good deeds. But for the rich of Thai society, as for the rich of Mediaeval Europe, the surest path to salvation in the next world is a generous donation to a monastery, or even to revered monk himself. Indeed, in many cases, merit making at auspicious temples is expected to result in a better material deal for the generous giver of alms in this life. The proper word for this practice is bribery. It is the corruption of the karmic bureaucracy by money or other valuable consideration. Naturally, when this example is entrenched at the heart of the national religion, endorsed for centuries by those who profit from it, and a daily practice sincerely believed in, it must spread the same attitude throughout society. But as the Christian Reformation and later Enlightenment showed, and as Thanthip Srisuwannaket optimistically suggests, reform is possible.
I would suggest that a concrete step to help Thai Buddhism become more Buddhist would be to put the Buddha's brilliant Kalama Sutta in a prominent position in spreading the Buddha's true wisdom. Regular reading of and reflection on the Kalama Sutta (กาลามสูตร) could do much to counter the too pervasively unBuddhist deference to authority merely because it is authority, whether based on tradition, popular social consensus, accident of birth, official position, or whatever: none of these, as the Buddha bluntly reminds us, are inherently reliable guides to right understanding; all should be constantly subject to critical review and questioning, along with temple finances.
Seen in the right light, the erosion of public faith in Thai Buddhism due to repeated scandals is a sign of hope. It can lead to a reformation of Thai Buddhism so that Thailand might indeed one day become a predominantly Buddhist nation.
Felix Qui
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The above letter to the editor is the text as submitted by Felix Qui to the Bangkok Post.
