"Born out" looks for self-purification, and "comes into the world" purifies the world.
In the past National Day, Thailand is still a tourist destination for many people. Those who have traveled to Thailand will find that apart from the novel and exotic customs, the most impressive ones are probably the temples, Buddha statues and monks that can be seen everywhere.
Thai monks are probably the most frequently seen in the news. Not long ago, the news that three monks won the championship in an e-sports competition and received awards in monk robes aroused heated discussions among netizens all over the world.
In our concept, monks should not pay attention to the secular monks, but Thai monks "enter the world" in various ways: they play e-sports, environmental protection, fitness... even temples have become Some people in drug rehabilitation centers also show off their wealth and corruption, and treat temples as a place to earn money.
They use good and bad stories to guide or alert the world.
The monk who "does not work properly" became the e-sports champion
This summer, local media reported that three young monks in Thailand won the championship in an e-sports competition, and they were wearing monks. Gown on stage to receive the award.
â–˛ The three monks who won the e-sports championship came to the stage to receive the award
According to the news, this group of monks is a special training school for children. High school student at novice's school. They study 20 hours of religious courses a week, and the rest of their time is spent on traditional courses. Those students who won the first place learned about the world of e-sports through computer classes.
It is conceivable that when a few boys in monk robes take the stage to lead the e-sports champion, the opponents and the audience will react. The news went viral on the Internet and quickly aroused heated discussions among netizens from all over the world. Some people think that there is no problem. Young monks are also human, so why can't they engage in e-sports. Some people also objected, saying that although this is neither illegal nor extreme, in any case one should not wear monk robes to compete and accept prizes on stage.
â–˛ A monk who tanned his muscles on the Internet, called on the monks to pay attention to health issues
Actually, because the monks’ costumes caused controversy in the online po photos There are more than these "e-sports little novices." Last year, a Thai netizen shared a set of photos on Facebook. The photo shows a monk who is comparable to a fitness instructor, wearing a monk robe but with strong muscles. The monk said that the reason why he shared his photos was to make people aware of the health problems of monks and urge ordinary people not to donate sweets and fatty foods.
This year, a netizen in Thailand once again appeared in a monk's robe to show off his 8-pack abs. In these fitness photos, the monk was naked to the upper body, and the picture was accompanied by a text saying, "Although fitness is not practiced by monks Scope, but also doing merit."
â–˛ The person who was surveyed wearing a monk's robe on the Internet po abdominal muscle photo
Although netizens agreed that this "fitness monk" has a similar body Perfect, but there are still people who criticize that monks should not be overly surprised, because this is not in line with the Buddhist spirit. According to local media reports, this matter has attracted the attention of the Buddhist Office, who is investigating the true identity of the person who made the photo. If he is indeed a monk, he will be punished in accordance with Buddhist precepts.
â–˛ The little Thai monk who burst into red because of his sleepiness
b248Counting b#, there is only one little monk who "does not do his work properly" without negative criticism. That is Nong korn, a young Thai monk who has turned the world through the world by dozing off. This little monk, who was only 3 years old at the time, was actually sent to the temple by his parents to study Buddhism when he was 3 months old. He and the monk in the temple got up early, practiced, meditated, and alms, but he always dozed off when he was too young. , Also because of the naive look of the Internet became popular.
Now he is still studying in the kindergarten, but he is still studying with the teacher. With more than 500,000 fans on the book, he became a veritable Internet celebrity monk.
"All the people are monks" you don't know
Speaking of monks in Thailand, their existence seems to be very different from our impression of monks.
In the Buddhist country Thailand, almost 95% of the people believe in Buddhism, and there are more than 35,000 monasteries nationwide. As a result, for most Thais, becoming a monk has long gone beyond the concept of religion, but is a part of life.
â–˛ In Thailand, there are no houses in temples, and monks accept gifts from people
Even if they are respected as kings, they must be devout Buddhists. only. Of course, monk practice is also a must.
Because there is such a saying in Thailand: a man must experience the life of a monk at least once. When many people were children, they would be sent to the monastery to be monks like the cute Nong korn before. They think that doing so will not only accumulate merits and blessings for themselves, but also the greatest retribution and filial piety to their parents.
â–˛ The family will send their boys to the temple for a long or short monk experience
There is more Practical considerations, many poor people take the ordination as a way to stand up.
According to the Buddhist precepts, a teenager under the age of 20 can become a "novice monk" after holding 10 precepts, instead of being a monk like a 20-year-old man who has to take 227 precepts to become a monk. Relatively less stringent precepts, in order for their sons to receive a good education, many poor Thai families send their children to monasteries as novice monks. The advantage of this is that they can enjoy free living and study conditions, and competitive children can even graduate from Buddhist universities and become respected monks.
â–˛ Thai public places have monks preferential treatment positions
You know, the status of monks in Thailand is very high, generally Buddhists The monk will not give salutes to the monk, even if the other party is the king. Public places like airports and Tiantie have obvious signs of giving up seats to monks.
In addition, although Thailand is a country that believes in Buddhism, it has a very tolerant attitude towards becoming a monk and returning to the secular life. After becoming a monk, he can easily return to the secular life and have a good opportunity to marry a wife and have children. Even being a monk, going back to the secular world, and then becoming a monk is recognized. Generally speaking, as long as you are not forced to return to the secular world because of a violation of the precepts, you can be a monk again.
The most "born" Thai monk
Compared with external constraints, Thai monks may put more emphasis on their internal cultivation and control. This is because Theravada Buddhism pays great attention to self-cultivation and pursues self-liberation and sublimation. Therefore, Thai monks have paid great attention to internal self-discipline and self-control from the beginning of the teaching. It is precisely because of this that the monks in Thailand are very "accessed to the world", whether they are the ordinary monks we mentioned earlier or the eminent monks.
â–˛ The monk who received alms early in the morning
For example, the youngest associate monk in Thailand, Master Zhao Kuntongchai, has extensive influence in the political, Buddhist, and cultural circles of Thailand. In addition to exemplary representatives of conduct, he used his own influence to carry out social activities, and these social activities have further deepened people's respect for eminent monks and Buddhist circles because they benefit the country and the people.
Not only is the monk more "entered into the world", even the temples are also more "accessible".
Thailand has a 60-year-old drug rehabilitation center located in the temple. Located in the central part of Thailand, Tan Krabu Temple, in response to the anti-drug call of the then Prime Minister of Thailand, began in 1959, under the leadership of the monk Luang Ra, to help people with drugs, using their own secret medicine and unique psychotherapy to help. More than 100,000 addicts from all over the world got rid of drug addiction.
â–˛ In Tankrabu Monastery, drug addicts lined up to receive drug treatment
In addition to the secret medicine juice made from 100 kinds of herbs, Everyone who comes to the temple to detoxify must perform a ceremony called "Sajja" under the leadership of the eminent monk, swear that he will not take drugs again, and fulfill the vow through his patience and endurance. Through this process, the monastery made the drug addicts realize that everything depends on themselves, and that drug rehabilitation is not for anyone else, but for themselves.
is also for the pursuit of self-liberation and sublimation. Thailand also has a temple built with wine bottles after the "drunkard" converted. This temple called "Temple of Ten Thousand Bottles" was built with 1.5 million glass wine bottles. Today, the temple has more than 20 buildings, all built with empty bottles.
â–˛ The temple is covered by glass wine bottles, and the bottle caps are also decorated on the wall
It is said that the builder of this temple In the past, he was addicted to alcohol. After he converted to Buddhism, he developed the idea of ​​building a temple with wine bottles. So he and other people collected wine bottles, and on the one hand, he advised people to drink less. On the other hand, the surrounding environment has been improved, and it is known as the most environmentally friendly temple in Thailand.
Of course, there are more than 30,000 temples in Thailand and 300,000 monks. It is impossible to be a pure land everywhere, everyone is a sage. Just like the scandal of illegal trading and abuse of tigers in Thailand’s “Tiger Temple” two years ago, the abbot of Thailand’s largest temple Dhammakaya was suspected of money laundering and embezzlement of temple funds scandals, as well as many monks’ irregularities. The behavior is the same. In today's fast-developing society, there are "temptations everywhere", and Thai monks who frequently "birth" have to face social temptations even more.
Just like what a senior monk said, Buddhism has two legs, one is "being out of the world" to seek self-purification; the other is "entering the world" to purify the world. Today's social life has long blurred the boundary between birth and accession, and it is also allowing monks to explore where they are.
World Chinese Weekly columnist: Monkey Cowboy
