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Been donating to the temples for years now, still not healthy, wealthy, lucky or wise

However, the temples are healthy, wealthy, lucky and wise... 

Definitely not wise. There are far more deserving places your money would be better placed I'm sure.

Praying to a statue of a man doesn't work. That man was the same as every other man on earth. He had some good ideas, just like millions of others. People get followed because others , for some reason or other, believe in what they say. Hitler was followed by millions of people because he had some ideas to help his people. History has shown us what he really was, along with Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot, Kim, Trump and many other narcissists that were, or are, insane. When someone has a good idea, even if he is a very disturbed person, someone will believe in what they say. That's followed by another, then another, who are like sheep and followers, until that number gets to thousands , or millions, all because that person had an idea that made sense. Doesn't matter if his agenda was genocide or mayhem. Some can say this about Jesus, and then God, but this is a very different concept, and one that others will never believe in, because there is no visible proof of a God. Jesus wanted people to love and take care of each other, with no hidden agendas. The world leaders, many if not most, are in this for the power, and that power has lead to the destruction of cities and millions of deaths. Praying for money has, and will never, work. This is a problem here, where many pray for wealth instead of working for it. A few win, by plain luck, the lottery, and some have said they chose a number because it was prayed for or came into their view somehow. Plain luck, period. Praying to a statue of this man has never helped anyone. It would be a better bet to pray to the right entity for the protection of girls, and women here, from the very disturbed men, many in charge, to stop being taken for granted, molested and sold, and for the leaders to actually do the job intended, enforcing the laws, so there wouldn't be so many dying daily on the roads here. Very simple project, actually enforcing laws already on the books, instead of looking the other way with their hands out for a bribe. This is a huge reason I will do anything I have to to get my daughter out of this place. And by the way, who are these boys you will send? Do they work for Tony Soprano?https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40031638

20 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

LOL.

 

You should have done research first then.

 

Who is going to give you luck? They don't have a God to do so, and the monks are just men.

 

They also believe in suffering, so letting you win would be against that.

 

https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/buddhism/

Buddhists do not believe in any kind of deity or god,

..........................................

Buddhism is one of the world’s largest religions and originated 2,500 years ago in India. Buddhists believe that the human life is one of suffering, and that meditation, spiritual and physical labor, and good behavior are the ways to achieve enlightenment, or nirvana.

You refer to Buddhism as a religion. It is not. It is one man's philosophy which does not involve worship. The idolatry, and praying for good fortune, practised at temples all over Thailand  has nothing to do with Buddhism. 

28 minutes ago, retarius said:

Did you get bitten by. posse of poisonous snakes? 

I assume you mean venomous. Poisonous snakes are not really a threat here. 

19 minutes ago, Thingamabob said:

You refer to Buddhism as a religion. It is not. It is one man's philosophy which does not involve worship. The idolatry, and praying for good fortune, practised at temples all over Thailand  has nothing to do with Buddhism. 

 

It's only pretend Buddhism here.

 

 

 

I don't go to temples or donate, my wife does all that, and according to her that's why I get good luck and am not dead yet, coz she does all the asking.

Buy a Lotto ticket like everyone else 

Some one will win could be you 🤑

You'd have better luck in Vegas with a handle in your hand.

Considering the Thai government provides financial support vis a vis Thai tax collection to Buddhist clergy,  temple abbots and monks, for temple construction, maintenance, renovation, funding for religious education, etc., why make any donation?

Also consider potential temple corruption:

• Thai government provides 4.67 billion baht ($137 million) in 2014 study to support Buddhist temples and monks, "Thai junta seeks to force to open their finances," June 2017, reuters.com 
• "Temple corruption erodes public faith", April 28, 2021  TSRI Insight 
• "2017-2020 Thai temple fraud investigations," Wikipedia
• "Thai Senior Monk Gets 26 years for Money Laundering," April 2019, Benard News

Sorry reserved for Thais only.

23 hours ago, Chris Daley said:

I have been pouring money into the temples for years now.  Done the ceremonies everything.  Still no good luck.  Not even small a lottery win.  Should I send the boys around to pay them a visit?  A few of those gold statues to repay the debt?

 

As far as I understand the contract is legally sound.  Meeting of the minds, I give them cash they give me luck.  My side of the contract was delivered.

 

How about you?  Do you visit the temples often?

I used to go to my church regularly and make my donations every Sunday. It is called the Shamrock Bar in Pattaya. Almost instant soothing of the mind with a convivial congregation discussing the world's problems and the ways to solve them. Sadly, age and distance have curtailed my regular attendances, but on the odd occasions I do make it I am immediately  uplifted. Not physically I might add.

You should know better Mate.All  Religions are in it for the Money and Power Religion  is just brainwashing people to do what they want to be done Like parting with your Moneyand make you believe in something that does't exist.

On 1/14/2024 at 12:37 PM, CharlieH said:

Wealth can be measured in many ways.

 

You are here, you seems to have reasonable health, you havnt been hit by a truck or succumbed to substance  etc, maybe NONE  of that would be the case if you HAD NOT contributed.

You have a roof over your head, clothes on your back and food on the table, money in your pocket.

 

Be grateful and recognise what you have that millions do not.😉

Good point, but I have never donated to a temple, and I can count on one hand the number of times I begrudgingly visited a church back home,  Yet , unbelievably I am still here and enjoy remarkably good health despite my lifestyle.   Perhaps confirming that the devil takes care of his own,  or indeed that god helps those who help themselves 

From what I have seen  many of those  attending church or temples do not do so  to invoke good luck,  rather they do so in an attempt to absolve their sins.  Not sure if that works, maybe the OP should misbehave and report back regarding the consequences . if any

just think how much lower it would have been for you if you had not been donating... j

1 minute ago, Bday Prang said:

but I have never donated to a temple,

Have you at least benefitted by the free footwear exchange programs at the entrance to the temple? 

36 minutes ago, digger70 said:

You should know better Mate.All  Religions are in it for the Money and Power Religion  is just brainwashing people to do what they want to be done Like parting with your Moneyand make you believe in something that does't exist.

And I certainly don't have any faith in the claimed powers of kiddy fiddling clerics of any religious sect 

On 1/14/2024 at 11:15 AM, Chris Daley said:

I have been pouring money into the temples for years now.  Done the ceremonies everything.  Still no good luck.  Not even small a lottery win.  Should I send the boys around to pay them a visit?  A few of those gold statues to repay the debt?

 

As far as I understand the contract is legally sound.  Meeting of the minds, I give them cash they give me luck.  My side of the contract was delivered.

 

How about you?  Do you visit the temples often?

Wrong....it has paid off.....you're still alive......without those payments you'd be dead.....see how it works?.....keep the faith....555

4 hours ago, Thingamabob said:

You refer to Buddhism as a religion. It is not. It is one man's philosophy which does not involve worship. The idolatry, and praying for good fortune, practised at temples all over Thailand  has nothing to do with Buddhism. 

Neither have their overt displays of wealth at every opportunity,  or many other aspects of their "culture"          Same with the followers and dictators of all other religions (or philosophies )

Having no desire is one of the main tenets of buddhism. Try that. 

10 minutes ago, 1FinickyOne said:

Have you at least benefitted by the free footwear exchange programs at the entrance to the temple? 

Despite being an atheist I have no intention of pushing my luck,  besides out here in the sticks the footwear is not generally to my taste. not only that but they seem to have huge feet, probably evolved to assist walking in the rice paddies

1 hour ago, daveAustin said:

Having no desire is one of the main tenets of buddhism. Try that. 

I once discussed this with my mrs , I said that I was far more materialistic than her , I actually am but  as expected she vehemently  disagreed, I said in order to prove it I would ordain as a monk.   Her horrified  response   "You can't  who would keep up the payments on the car"  

Tongue in Cheek reply - Did you get COVID - NO? enough said - YES - you are still here - enough said

Keep up the payments they need to replace all those old vehicles with EVs (how many topics can you cover in one post)!!!

23 hours ago, Negita43 said:

I agree with her - by all means believe in your chosen God but beware of the institutions man creates in his or her name.

How could our days anyone believe in any god. But we have to respect the Bible for its structuring function throughout history. There are other holy writings of value, but please don't mention the Quran... 

but... but... are you not happy complaining about how unlucky you are 

7 minutes ago, Ben Zioner said:

There are other holy writings of value, but please don't mention the Quran... 

I didn't

9 minutes ago, Ben Zioner said:

How could our days anyone believe in any god

These days too many people believe in those other Gods - Money and Power

1 hour ago, Negita43 said:

These days too many people believe in those other Gods - Money and Power

Maybe, but they can be seen,,,,,,,,,,On display every day unlike those referred to as God's

On 1/13/2024 at 10:15 PM, Chris Daley said:

I have been pouring money into the temples for years now.  Done the ceremonies everything.  Still no good luck.  Not even small a lottery win.  Should I send the boys around to pay them a visit?  A few of those gold statues to repay the debt?

 

As far as I understand the contract is legally sound.  Meeting of the minds, I give them cash they give me luck.  My side of the contract was delivered.

 

How about you?  Do you visit the temples often?

Is this your theme song then?

 

 

I don't really see much difference between Thais donating to Buddhist temples, and Catholics tithing their wages to the Church.

For organizations which profess to embrace the spiritual, they do seem to accumulate a big share of worldly assets.