Drop In Thai Men Entering Monkhood

[george]

BUDDHISM CRISIS

Drop in Thai men entering monkhood

School fights a drop in monks

The country's first Buddhist missionary school has taken up the task of arresting the sharp decline in men entering the monkhood.

The number of men becoming monks has plummeted from five million a few years ago to just 1.5 million, said Phra Maha Wutthichai Wachiramethee, the school's founder.

The Triam Sammanen school, under the royal patronage of HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, trains novices to become good monks, Phra Maha Wutthichai said.

"Buddhism is at a critical stage worldwide," the monk said. "In the United States a number of Buddhist temples are facing closure, while monks in Japan have to work hard to earn money to support the temples.

"For Thailand, if things remain unchanged, temples will soon become a place where people come only to perform rituals."

A belief that every Thai man should enter the monkhood as an expression of gratitude to his parents no longer holds, he said. These days, monks are generally from families who use the monkhood as an escape from economic hardship.

A shortage of clerics is not the only problem facing Buddhism. The failure of monks to spread the Buddha's teachings is also troubling, the monk quoted Princess Sirindhorn as saying.

Phra Maha Wutthichai, who has written a number of religious books under his pen name Wor Wachiramethee, said many monks today cannot read the Pali language, which is a requirement if you want to become a Buddhist preacher.

All they do is learn how to chant prayers from senior monks, which is not enough, he said. Some are even ordained to use their position to amass wealth by seeking cash donations.

These fake monks have tarnished the Sangha's image and that is one reason men are now reluctant to enter the monkhood, he said.

Phra Maha Wutthichai, abbot of Krung Tai temple in Chiang Rai's Chiang Khong district, said the preparatory school's job would be to persuade children to learn dhamma deeply, to produce more monks and to raise their knowledge base.

The school inside the Krung Tai temple compound is open to novices of all ages and nationality. It offers three levels of dhamma study.

There are also courses in the English, French, Chinese and Japanese languages for lay-people, both male and female, with the cooperation of the Chiang Rai Rajabhat University.

The school currently has 120 novices and 60 lay-people, of whom more than 90% are hilltribe people.

-- Bangkok Post 2009-01-28

[phetaroi]

BUDDHISM CRISIS

Drop in Thai men entering monkhood

School fights a drop in monks

-- Bangkok Post 2009-01-28

When I read this article in the Bangkok Post I found it most interesting.

It makes me want to ask a question that I have long wondered about. It is a question, NOT a criticism. What do monks do all day long?

I ask this question for two reasons. First, because I really wonder (yes, I know about collecting food in the early mornings and chanting several times a day), but what else do they do?

I'm sort of a temple fanatic, I guess. I love visiting temples to see the architecture, chat with people, and yes...I am Buddhist...and to also meditate/pray for at least a short time at each visit. In most temples I don't see a lot of interaction between monks and lay people, other than during special occasions. But occasionally I will come across a temple where monks are very interactive with lay people, as well as people like me whom they probably think are just tourists (I'm always carrying my camera), but may be Buddhists in disguise ;-)

Chiang Mai is a good example. There are some temples where ubosots and even wiharns are most often closed, yet I see monks "around" the temple. I wonder, why would people come to that temple on a regular basis? I understand that some temples have locked wiharns and ubosots due to theft. A monk "on duty" would pretty much solve that problem.

On the other hand, there are several temples in Chiang Mai where monks are always "on duty", ready to consult with anyone who approaches, and in some cases they even approach visitors to talk. While they don't "push" Buddhism, they are more than willing to discuss Buddhism, as well as general information about the particular temple. Those temples certainly seem to have more tourists, but I also saw more locals who were at the temple. I saw a similar situation at several temples in Burma, where the wiharns were more like community centers where the locals spent time socializing with each other and also talking with the monks.

There's another temple I have visited in Bangkok -- right now I can't remember the name or location...have to think back to where I was staying for two months that summer...where I stopped and asked how I could donate food to the monks since it was near my serviced apartment, other than standing along the street in the morning. Their policy was a little different. They suggested that for the midday meal that people bring food to individual monks and actually sit down and talk with them while the monk was eating. I did so with a Thai friend who could translate, and it was a wonderful experience. The session began with a short, formal ceremony. Then the monk accepted the meal we had brought. While he ate he asked questions about how I became interested in Buddhism, what were some experiences I had had with Buddhism both in Thailand and in the States, and were there questions I would like to ask about Buddhism. At the same time, other locals were doing the same with other monks, although I'm sure the conversations were much different.

And this brings me to a final thought...boredom. I used to be a principal of a school in the States. I found the job BORING in the summer because of a lack of interaction with clients. I think back to when I walked through a temple in Chiang Mai (it may have been Wat Pa Pao) and how bored the monks appeared to be that afternoon...clearly doing absolutely nothing. Now, there's nothing wrong with resting and relaxing. But, how boring. Could that be one reason for a decline in the numbers going into the monkhood? What are the expectations -- in terms of interacting with lay people -- for monks?

I want to express again that nothing I am saying here is a criticism...even implied. I'm trying to understand. Please do not read meanings into my observations that are not intended.

[fabianfred]

All monks have three duties.... to study the Dhamma, practise the dhamma, and teach the Dhamma....

The practise allows us to verify the truth of what we have learned and increase our wisdom. Merely teaching what you have been taught without the practise and you could be passing on false dhamma.

But really these three duties apply to all Buddhists, not just the monks.

A monk who has progressed upon the path by much practise would, I'm sure, want to pass on the good news to those suffering and still living in ignorance.

[Brucenkhamen]

There will be a great variation in what monks do each day as there is a great variation of the standard of practice and compliance with the rules of the monks discipline (Vinaya) in Thailand.

I'm not going to comment so much on what goes on in the Wats where the discipline is lax, which is probably the vast majority of the City and village Wats, I hate to imagine.

Of those that are meditation practice and/or vinaya oriented some of them are what you'd call meditation centres and there the monks practice sitting and walking meditation from dawn till dusk (this approach is much more common in Burma than in thailand).

In Thailand you have forest Wats where in addition to some formal meditation practice which can vary greatly from time to time, time can be spent in chores, ie caring for the forest and the monastery buildings, sewing robes, teaching or being taught. There is often plenty of time for social chit chat over long afternoon tea periods.

For certain times of the year forest monks go walkabout (tudong) and then their schedule is much more dictated by the journey they are taking or the environment they find themselves in out of the safety of the monastery.

[bruceboy]

But is this problem a cyclic one?

[sabaijai]

I've been scanning newspaper and magazine archives related to Thailand dating from 1946 to the present, and the reported decline has been constant since at least then. Every other year or so I come across an article about the decrease in the number of males ordaining and in the number of monks overall. Sometimes the numbers don't agree. In fact I can't remember seeing figures in the millions at all. About 10 years ago I remember a total figure of currently ordained monks estimated at 400,000.

I'm not sure if reliable statistics exist, as not all monks are registered with the Dept of Religious Affairs. That there is a decline seems obvious and it seems there is a parallel decline in organised religious practice all over the world.

[thetravellingcat]

I've been scanning newspaper and magazine archives related to Thailand dating from 1946 to the present, and the reported decline has been constant since at least then. Every other year or so I come across an article about the decrease in the number of males ordaining and in the number of monks overall. Sometimes the numbers don't agree. In fact I can't remember seeing figures in the millions at all. About 10 years ago I remember a total figure of currently ordained monks estimated at 400,000.

I'm not sure if reliable statistics exist, as not all monks are registered with the Dept of Religious Affairs. That there is a decline seems obvious and it seems there is a parallel decline in organised religious practice all over the world.

Now I haven't been reading articles since 1946 but could the decline in organised religion world wide just be a % and not the number of people practising? the number of people practising could stay roughly the same but as a percentage this would be less.

[khaowong1]

All monks have three duties.... to study the Dhamma, practise the dhamma, and teach the Dhamma....

The practise allows us to verify the truth of what we have learned and increase our wisdom. Merely teaching what you have been taught without the practise and you could be passing on false dhamma.

But really these three duties apply to all Buddhists, not just the monks.

A monk who has progressed upon the path by much practise would, I'm sure, want to pass on the good news to those suffering and still living in ignorance.

fabianfred, I really like your answer. I know some monks at different temples around Thailand, and although they may seem to be doing nothing, I know for a fact they are either studying the Dhamma or practising the Dhamma. Too be sure, there are many monks in the temples who are there because of poverty in their homes. But I am paraphrasing the Lord Buddha here, when he basically said, attend to your own business, not some one else. Look at your own faults, not others.

[sabaijai]

I've been scanning newspaper and magazine archives related to Thailand dating from 1946 to the present, and the reported decline has been constant since at least then. Every other year or so I come across an article about the decrease in the number of males ordaining and in the number of monks overall. Sometimes the numbers don't agree. In fact I can't remember seeing figures in the millions at all. About 10 years ago I remember a total figure of currently ordained monks estimated at 400,000.

I'm not sure if reliable statistics exist, as not all monks are registered with the Dept of Religious Affairs. That there is a decline seems obvious and it seems there is a parallel decline in organised religious practice all over the world.

Now I haven't been reading articles since 1946 but could the decline in organised religion world wide just be a % and not the number of people practising? the number of people practising could stay roughly the same but as a percentage this would be less.

Good point.

[Brucenkhamen]

I'd think the decline in numbers ordaining would be a good thing. Those genuinely drawn to going forth would still ordain of course but those just doing it just for cultural reasons would be the ones opting out. This is a good thing IMHO, more quality less quantity.