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Forest Recollections: Wandering Monks in Twentieth-Century Thailand
Contributor(s): Kamala, Tiyavanich (Author)
ISBN: 0824817818     ISBN-13: 9780824817817
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press
OUR PRICE:   $30.40  
Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats
Published: March 1997
Qty:
Temporarily out of stock - Will ship within 2 to 5 weeks
Annotation: During the first half of this century the forest of Thailand were home to wandering ascetic monks. They were Buddhists, but their brand of Buddhism did not copy the practices described in ancient doctrinal text. Combining interviews and biographies with an exhaustive knowledge of archival materials and a wide reading of ephemeral popular literature, kamala Tiyavanich documents the monastic lives of three generations of forest-dwelling ascetics and challenges the stereotype of state-centric Thai Buddhism.
Additional Information
BISAC Categories:
- Religion | Buddhism - General (see Also Philosophy - Buddhist)
- History | Asia - Southeast Asia
Dewey: 294.365
LCCN: 96-34016
Lexile Measure: 1260
Physical Information: 1.03" H x 6.16" W x 9.18" (1.36 lbs) 434 pages
Themes:
- Religious Orientation - Buddhist
 
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc.
Publisher Description:

I stayed in the forest] for two nights. The first night, nothing happened. The second night, at about one or two in the morning, a tiger came--which meant that I didn't get any sleep the whole night. I sat in meditation, scared stiff, while the tiger walked around and around my umbrella tent (klot). My body felt all frozen and numb. I started chanting, and the words came out like running water. All the old chants I had forgotten now came back to me, thanks both to my fear and to my ability to keep my mind under control. I sat like this from 2 until 5 a.m., when the tiger finally left. --A forest monk

During the first half of this century the forests of Thailand were home to wandering ascetic monks. They were Buddhists, but their brand of Buddhism did not copy the practices described in ancient doctrinal texts. Their Buddhism found expression in living day-to-day in the forest and in contending with the mental and physical challenges of hunger, pain, fear, and desire. Combining interviews and biographies with an exhaustive knowledge of archival materials and a wide reading of ephemeral popular literature, Kamala Tiyavanich documents the monastic lives of three generations of forest-dwelling ascetics and challenges the stereotype of state-centric Thai Buddhism.

Although the tradition of wandering forest ascetics has disappeared, a victim of Thailand's relentless modernization and rampant deforestation, the lives of the monks presented here are a testament to the rich diversity of regional Buddhist traditions. The study of these monastic lineages and practices enriches our understanding of Buddhism in Thailand and elsewhere.