hookedondhamma

Calm down Steele, if you read it again (without taking a defensive position) you will see that I 1) edited my post soon after, and 2) it was not a 'dig.' Once again, to the OP, good luck though. It's only you and your wife who can get him on track, possibly not his friends as birds of a feather ...

Oops, not very clear edit. Thai Visa in place of TV from earlier.

I finally realized that Thailand is doing all it can to get that recognition of a leading country...

Really? What was it that led you that realization? Because having studied and observed the country for decades, I don't share that view though I wish I did.

I also have to question this bold assumption:

...there will be a day when he realizes he must take initiative.

We all think differently, and we all have our own perceptions of this and that. Mine comes from living with Thais 24/7, and my only interaction with those not Thai is through Thair V. The friends I have made are those who I can confide in, and vice versa.

There isn't a doubt in my mind he won't; I just hope he does before he falls too deep in the hole.

Giddyup, I see you lol

I was helping out some students a couple of years ago at a university in Loei. Though it made me want to bash my head against the wall sometimes, I finally realized that Thailand is doing all it can to get that recognition of a leading country. Once I realized that it opened my eyes and actually helped me understand many things I didn't before. Of course there are many things that, by Western standards, would be considered 'off', but I have to hand it to the Thais. They take what little they have and turn it into something useful. The education standards may not be ground-breaking right now, but I do believe that they will hold their place in the world someday - hopefully sooner than expected .

To the OP, just continue to do what you can; there will be a day when he realizes he must take initiative.

Bottom line here OP ... A Thai woman lying about meeting a man online - in this Thai - Buddhist culture is not a surprise - I would think it would be expected.

Lying has to do with ethics ... and those vary person by person, not culture, and definitely not religion.

That is far out ... And i have a guess it is going to be extremely difficult to get those books. But no problem, I can read and understand Thai. Amazing, thanks for posting that.

Please continue!!! In the meantime I will have to find some if those books you are typing about.

Yes it is Chitty! I was a non-believer until someone gave me a can, and if i ever have to return home, i will stock up quite a bit ...

Lol even though white is considered right here, i doubt many do it to look like their more socially accepted counterparts. It probably would be taken as a highly embarrassing joke if that were the real reason. After all, there are lightening creamy and makeup in abundance here. Even lux has bar soap for the financially frugal with catchy names for the lightening game. The powdering is just another aspect of their culture many don't understand, which makes it all the better to just go and ask a Thai, if one can.

^^^^prickly heat powder???

Some of these responses, lol :-). From what i've seen i agree with the oily face belief and the cooling effect. when in doubt though, just ask :-)

The temple I am at currently has 1 person that comes in to offer food from home. There are no nuns here, which is great. most of the time whenever they live with the monks they're always a few that just love to gossip too much. Couple that with the thai monks love for gossip as well - not all of them but very many, and you have a circus with Buddha statues which people live to call a temple. it does not take long to realize that 1 really has to get away from any of the everyday things that make life so convenient and go live at a temple which is very much about practice are very isolated with very very few monks, or a similar meditation retreat to get a good foundation in what can be done or what can be done to assist ones practice ... Or learn Thai to go live at 1 of the more well practiced temples.

I have met quite a few thai laypeople that have a great view and understanding of Buddhism that is radically different from many thais believe, but they are not monks unfortunately - many of them have families and some of them are also women.

Also I have never ever seen a nun act as a servant to a monk, even one with high rank, believe it or not. Even if that were so there is no doubt in my mind that that would not change, though.

Jawnie makes an excellent and very poignant statement.

I agree completely. Thai Buddhism is Thai Buddhism and Buddhism is Buddhism. but the lines have become so blurred over the years that much is now about making merit and not practicing like one should. there are a few genuine temples that do exist but they are very very few. for those foreigners who ordained for the most part they will have to put up with many many different aspects of Thai culture labeled as Buddhism. which is why it is so important to make sure that one observes correctly to find the right teacher ... Not the one who thinks that the deathless is impossible to achieve and that one should make as much merit as he can to go to heaven. find the right teacher who treats you as a human being and not as something lower than his pristine nationality. find the right teacher who can actually keep control over his mouth his body and his mind, and remember the amount of rank one has has nothing to do with it. it is their practice that matters.

It may take some time but there are perfectly good temples out there suitable for practice. sometimes they are easier to find than others because they are the temples that the monks do not want to live at because they consist of jungle, forest and their 'ghosts'. even then some monks who live there will love to socialize quite a bit - it is the norm here - and that is what makes the forest so great - those who enter it will not have many followers lol

And for the record as far as ghosts go, I believe that much of what they see are tulpas, the exception being those who can actually see other life forms. the mind is a powerful thing.

I was given a can of est today. It tastes like a diet cola without the awful aftertaste. Well done Thailand, well done.

Noddy77, if you are going to be in Thailand for a while, you might want to choose to learn Thai. You will still get headaches, but less of them. The benefits are great.

As for Thai tv, the news is ok for me at least. When I was learning how to speak and understand Thai I found the 'historical' lakorns more appealing to the ears. PBS also had (been a while since I have watched it) great documentaries, too.

OP, are you looking for an agreement rather than an answer?

I hope your eye heals quickly!! I am glad you were able to walk away without major injury.

What do you consider condescending? The OP put out a topic that has brought much criticism. Seeing that, was it worth it? No need to look too much into a post though (sorry if you found that offensive, I certainly did not mean it that way).

I post here because I can.

that is why he took the 300 baht.

Something can really be better than nothing. I do hope he is ok though, considering I wasn't there and didn't witness the extent of his injury.

It is the standard falang fare, right? "sam loi; sam loi ..."

OP, it is not worth your time to post things like this on thaivisa. You see the responses.

I more than likely would have thought the same thing, by the way. Money is THE thing here, and your not looking like a thai sets you up as a cash fountain when it comes to someone you don't know, especially in a situation like this. Good for you for calling the tourist police and not giving in to pressure. In the meantime remind your friend to look in every direction before opening a door. Just because thais do it doesn't mean you can, too.

The Thai for beginners by becker is a great start, and if followed by the higsby thai reference grammar you should be good to go.

For all reading in a similar situation (i bet there few lurkers checking this topic out), please be careful when dealing with 'illegal' substances and other plants while in this country.

OP, I am sorry about your friend and hope that things work out for the better with him. I also hope that this serves as a wake-up call for him. it is probably risky enough in his home country, less than some country in SE asia.

Lols all around, thanks for giving me a great laugh today Charlie!

Oh god politics in the Buddhist forum. This topic should take off quick.

Obama wants a cemented/calcified lesbian? Oh, no - he wants to make merit ... Goodness, the horrors that occur when people use the first results that come up in google. The easy way out??

Tell you what - Come over to Boromratchachonani Road (Pinklao-Nakhon Pathom Road) where they are repaving. There are NO lines at that road, and haven't been for a month. Then try driving on it, with those giant ass two trailer trucks barreling through. Then you will realize that they do follow the lines so some extent, even if they are mere guidelines, its better than nothing.

I was travelling through the other day. You are right.

By the way, are you a violinist? I used to be a violist, things have changed now but will probably get back into it. It would be great to get a string quartet together. the quartet of smile ... kill me please.

The aim is to read Dhamma books in Thai and maybe iisan too - especially acharn chah. I am hoping I will enjoy learning Thai this way in addition to others forms of learning. I have been told many Buddhist terms r not in current dictionaries.

Thanks for the replies so far...

Oh. For the most part tue Thai Dhamma books will use terminology, but many words one will hear from daily use if listening for.it. For your intentions the one from P.A Payutto should be sufficient. Some versions you will find will have thai beside the english as well. Have you looked into Beckers thai for beginners? that should get you off to a good start, and after the thai reference grammar. As for Isaan, I made more progress learning Lao before, though there is a book that teaches the isaan language. If you can get to Wat Asokaramnhere is a big library of Dhamma talk cds that could be a great help. Sometimes the language used in Thai Dhamma talks is very cryptic, but it is a great help to learning Thai as well. Good luck, if you need any help let me know.