My experience with Buddhism in Thailand

Recently I finished a book of a famous social psychologist Erich Fromm “To have or to be?” In this book the author reflects on the differences of two mindsets: focus on materialistic possessions and focus on just «being» itself.

Of course, this dichotomy is clearly seen on the axis “West-East.” So, having these thoughts on my mind, I had an interesting conversation about the Buddhist point of view on this question with one of my Thai colleagues.

The main point of our conversation was the idea of Buddhism teaching that nothing is certain except two things: death and karma. So, everything can be gone any second: things, people, jobs, etc. Buddhism teaches always to keep it in mind: death can happen any second. You can lose everything; nothing actually belongs to you, and it’s ok to poses things but there’s no point of worrying about them.

Another thing which I found very interesting is that keeping in mind the possibility of death, it’s important always to be mindful about your thoughts. The last thought you have before your death is very powerful in terms of energy and can bring you to a certain place in your next reincarnation.

- “ What’s the key of mindfulness? ” I asked, of course.

- “ Meditation and constant checking your emotions and your thoughts.

- “ What’s the key of having good karma?”

- “There’s no way of “clearing it up.. Everything you’ve done - bad or good, always follows you through your reincarnations.”

You’ll ask me: does that mean that all Buddhists are so saint, mindful and pure in their thoughts and actions? I definitely don’t think so. Honestly speaking, I’m pretty sure I’ve met people in Thailand who had bad thoughts about me and even did some not very saint actions towards me. I also met one monk who was clearly not that peaceful and welcoming as I expect a monk to be.

I think in the West we tend to romanticize Buddhism. I’m sure many people do practice Buddhism in a very sincere way, yet same like people of other religions, some Buddhists do it without expected mindfulness and good intentions.

Yes, in compare to other religions Buddhists have caused or participated in almost no wars. However, there are also some examples in the ancient and modern history demonstrating that even the Buddhists monks can be violent sometimes. For example, the Buddhist extremist group Bodu Bala Sena in Sri Lanka and Burmese Bin Laden who organized a group in Myanmar to threaten Muslim population there. The level of domestic violence in Thailand is also too high as for a country with a peaceful philosophy: almost half of the women have been victims of it. The other thing that shocked me a little bit, is that not only the Catholics priests are fond of the young boys... My point is: in the West, we tend to forget that Buddhists are first of all humans.

However, in a daily life, of course, it’s nice to live in a Buddhist society. People here never express negative and aggressive emissions. Or better to say: they know how to hide it. In most of the cases Thais are calm, kind and courteous.

- “How do you deal with the negative emotions if it’s not allowed to express them? Do you keep everything inside? In the West, we think that it can be dangerous for your mental health…

- “We pray.”

- “Does it help?”

- “Not always.”

Many expats who live in Thailand say that the local philosophy of “living today without worrying about tomorrow” is one of the main things they like about this country. No wonder: it’s easy not to worry about the future when you lie on the pillow of the western capital. And just for the record: capital which, on a large scale, was gained in the system of the ethic of Protestantism.

It made me think: what if people who surround me now thought not only about the rice they have today but about the tomorrow one as well? What if they kept in mind the possibility of actually not dying any second? What if the ethics of Buddhism is the obstacle of the prosperous life here on Earth? What if slightly changing the angle could lead to the positive improvements of humans’ life? Changes of political systems? Governmental structures? What if it could improve the standards of life? Gave more opportunities to children to have not only rice on their tables?... Since as I’ve already mentioned in some of my articles, besides the stunningly beautiful landscapes, I see the place where I live now as a country full of social and economic problems and I wish people I live now with, had a different life in many aspects. However, it seems like I’m one of the few who think about it…

Is it the West and capitalism talking in my head? Is it me judging from the western perspective? Is it my “woe from wit” situation, and it’s me who doesn’t understand the key? Maybe. Maybe people who surround me are actually wiser, and they know something I’m not able to grasp.

I’m expressing my thoughts here to show you how the dichotomy between the West and the East works in a real daily life with my own little example. I’m trying to understand but, these are some deep settings of my cultural and historical heritage that constantly make me ask, doubt and sometimes even judge, to be in a constant search for the answers…