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LAOTIAN HILL TRIBES A race against cultural oblivion By STEPHEN MANSFIELD, Special to The Japan Times (Stephen Mansfield is a freelance photojournalist and author based in Tokyo.) Like minority groups the world over, the hill tribes of Laos are facing unaccustomed pressures on their traditional way of life. The depletion of protective, life-giving forest and wilderness, the upward migration of more lowland Laotians, growing pressure on the hill tribes to settle closer to accessible roads and river routes, and to adapt to the habits, customs and values of the more pervasive lowland Laotian culture, are forcing change at a rate never experienced before. Facial tattooing is now virtually extinct among the Laotian hill tribes, but traces of an old tattoo can be seen on the face of this Lave elder (above). A Kaw woman wears a head-dress of dyed feathers, beads, pom-poms and old Chinese and French silver coins (below) As mountains, secluded valleys and gorges are overcome by new roads and airstrips, time and spatial perceptions are altering. Villages that once seemed a world apart now belong within the same geographic orbit. With this compression of distance and time, minorities are finding themselves impacting with an outside world that seems increasingly less alien, but no less threatening. Strikingly individual, with their own arresting styles of dress, customs, beliefs, rituals and interpretations of the animist world that surrounds them, the hill tribes of Laos, eking out a living from the mountain slopes and upland valleys that nobody else cares to inhabit, live a life apart. For this reason, the tribes, considered a law unto themselves, have always been viewed with a degree of suspicion by the authorities. Scornful of intrusive bureaucracy, difficult to tax, tame or conscript, with little conventional respect for borders, they represent, as idiosyncratic pockets of nonconformity, an ever-present challenge to state control. Because of geographic barriers, poor means of communication and a fierce opposition on the part of many hill tribes, particularly those in the north and northwest, to any form of assimilation into mainstream Laotian culture, traditional social structures and value systems have remained relatively intact in many remote areas of Laos. The Laotian government however, has declared its intention to resettle all the hill tribes onto the lowland plains within the next few years. The dismantling of the ethno-geographic divisions that have largely determined the social structure of Laos, while offering the prospect of a higher standard of living through greater participation in the economy for the impoverished minorities, is clearly a mixed blessing, as similar developments in neighboring Thailand and other parts of Asia have shown. If this goal of integration is ever achieved, the minority cultures of these virile, independent-minded groups could very well face the prospect of cultural extinction. Hill tribes make up a significant proportion of the population, though precisely how many ethnic groups actually exist in Laos remains uncertain; figures range from a government list of 68 to estimates by independent ethnographers of 120 or more. Laos' rich and complex linguistic mosaic is such that some minorities, so tiny that they occupy no more than a single valley, use a dialect dissimilar enough from their neighbors for it to be considered a distinctly separate language. Laos is a multiethnic society with an extraordinary range of cultural and social plurality within its porous borders. Its people have, for the sake of convenience and to imply a degree of largely absent national unity, been classified into four primary ethno-linguistic groups. Tai-Laotian speaking lowlanders form a majority of around 3 million people, with the Mon-Khmer, SinoTibetan and Tibeto-Burmese speaking hill tribes composing the rest. Carefully applied makeup and newly acquired costume and jewelry reveal the lack of presentational authenticity in this villager, who will perform minority dances at an upmarket hotel in the city of Luang Prabang in northern Laos. Based on these linguistic affiliations, the Laotian minorities have been neatly classified into three groups according to the altitude and elevation at which they live. This vertical stratification into tidy topographical shelves tends, however, to crumble under closer scrutiny, with countless groups resisting simple classification. How, for example, to neatly affiliate the Mabri, known in Laos as the Kha Tawng Leuang ("Slaves [or Spirits] of the Yellow Banana Leaves")? The name for this highly introspective group, believed to be on the brink of extinction, derives from their practice of abandoning their temporary shelters once the banana fronds used in their construction have turned yellow. Ethnicity in Laos is increasingly determined by self-identification rather than by inherited or applied labels. It is quite common, for example, to meet Laotian Lum lowlanders who describe themselves as coming from a Laotian Sung village, someone, in other words, who has redefined his or her group affiliation by simply changing their circumstances. One minority group encountered by a Swedish anthropologist, having lost their knowledge of a Mon-Khmer dialect generally associated with the Laotian Theung minorities, now referred to themselves as Tai Lue, a lowland Laotian Tai speaking group. In a conscious step to improve their employment and marriage prospects, certain Laotian Theung groups in the north of the country have likewise reclassified themselves as Laotian Lum. Reservations aside, the categories remain a useful general indicator of patterns of settlement. As a device used to promote a sense of unity, to suggest that all inhabitants within its borders are Laotian as opposed to disassociated minorities, the vertical system of distribution succeeds in implying a certain degree of communality, of shared cultural roots. Efforts to achieve ethnic equality through the process of assimilation into a collective Laotian identity, though imperfect, have also helped to challenge some of the racial chauvinism discernible in the attitudes of the lowland Laotian elite toward more "primitive" minority groups. The lowland Laotians have always been ambivalent in their attitude to their tribal predecessors, belittling them on the one hand for their "backwardness," and fearing them on the other for their association with the dark forces of wizardry. They also confess, at times, to admire them for their tenacity and independence. Economically and statistically, Laos is one of the poorest and most underdeveloped nations in the world. Aspects of the Laotian economy that are likely to have an impact on hill-tribe life, environment and culture are linked for the greater part to the exploitation of its natural resources and to the development of tourism. Laos' greatest economic assets are its largely untapped natural resources, principally timber and hydroelectric power. Most infrastructure and development projects, as well as technical and agricultural programs, are financed with foreign assistance. The country's mineral resources include gemstones, gold, coal, bauxite, gypsum, potash, lignite and large deposits of iron ore. A number of Western companies are now eagerly engaged in prospecting for oil and gas deposits, while others have been granted mining and exploration rights, many of them penetrating deep into the heartlands of Laotian minorities. As more hill tribes face the prospect of being displaced and forced to resettle in areas less conducive to them, the specter of cultural disintegration looms. Mountain areas are already inhabited by teams of engineers, surveyors and the crews of laborers they employ to extract the mineral wealth that is located in these remote, but no longer inaccessible parts of the country. These government-backed endeavors are achieving the same ends once sought by Christian missionaries in the area, of enfeebling and finally decimating indigenous cultures. Lowland areas on the fringes of the upland slopes from which minorities descend are increasingly turning into unofficial transit zones where communities, brought from the higher elevations, quickly lose their tangible culture as they undergo reconditioning into the mainstream culture. Though no longer tattooed for easy identification, or pressed into corvee labor, these movements of micropopulations are uncomfortably akin to the manner in which invading Siamese armies relocated Laotian settlements in the 18th and 19th centuries. Wishing to verify conditions for myself, I visited the country's remotest region, the malaria-plagued provinces of Attapeu and Sekong on the Vietnam and Cambodia borders. My arrival in the village of Pa-am may have been a good five years or more too late. Little remained of the assertive local culture I had been led to expect. On spotting a foreign visitor, still a rarity, the women in the village's single shop, a wooden shack covered with a dry pandanus leaf roof that sold warm Pepsi and squares of dried buffalo skin, reached beneath the counter and brought out a plastic sachet full of jadeite. A few locals, we were told, had been diving to the bottom of a shallow lake nearby to excavate the stone. She would be willing to sell the sachet for $800. The government, it seemed, had already signed contracts with European companies to excavate the area, which was also said to have a mountain rich in deposits of gold. Locals like this women were making sure they got their share before the area was designated off limits, the resources and wealth of the region diverted to the capital Vientiane and its foreign friends and backers. A few kilometers from the lake, I stopped off to pay my respects at the house of the headman of a local Lave village whose residents were said to be intransigent traditionalists who refused to wear Western clothes. This was not the case as the worn shorts, Chinese-made sandals and fading facial tattoos of its elders proved. I was informed that a French TV crew had passed through the village a week or two before. Because of a tight budget and schedule, they had insisted on a chicken being sacrificed, and a gong-dance performed that would normally take place on a designated day of the lunar year. According to my guide, the villagers, egged on to dress up in their tribal finery, to dispense with their "Coke is Cool," and "Gap Rap" T-shirts, to remove their Thai jeans and flip-flops for more colorful tunics and other apparel, had seemed initially ill at ease, even sheepish, but soon warmed up to the charade once the music drove away their inhibitions. It was a good performance, the team got their footage, and nobody was any the wiser. The disappearance through commercial logging of the forest as a dietary, medical and cultural resource, not to mention the protective canopy it affords to the more socially introspective hill tribes, is an issue of the utmost concern. Almost 2 million hectares of virgin forest provide hill tribes with a convenient, though annually more depleted, storehouse of hardwoods, animals, game, birds, wild fruits and vegetables, natural dyes and a whole pharmacy of plants and herbs. Tropical rain forests grow luxuriantly on the leeward side of mountain ranges where the annual rainfall is generally high. Monsoon hardwood forests thrive at higher altitudes, their sheltered slopes often covered in deciduous forests. Valuable rain-forest trees such as teak, sandalwood and rosewood are more vulnerable to commercial interests than those found in monsoon forests. Although commercial logging has not reached the insatiable levels found in neighboring Myanmar, deforestation is occurring at an alarming rate. Despite the government's plan to replace the export of raw timber with a processed wood industry that could turn Laos into a major exporter of paper and pulp, logging continues unabated. Much of this is illegal. Corruption, a lack of trained forest rangers and the country's porous borders make it relatively easy to smuggle wood out of the country. Many of the tribes that inhabit this shrinking environment have little or no contact with the world beyond the ethnic branch of their own group, village or confederation of clans. Marriage partners tend to come from within the same village, and the involvement of the entire community in its own festivals, rituals and spiritual practices reinforces the view of a strong psychological identification with a single ethnic group to the exclusion of others. Because of isolation, diversity, changing patterns of distribution and the tendency of the hill tribes, who constitute approximately 40 percent of the population of Laos, to place the interests of their own village or clan above what they perceive to be the rather abstract notion of statehood, true political and cultural unity remains an elusive, largely unrealized goal. In a sense Laos continues to remain closer to a conglomeration of tribes than to a conventional nation state composed of a unified people. The geopolitical priorities facing Laos today are almost identical to those at the time of its earliest recorded history: the quest for national and ethnic integration through the creation of a unified state, the preservation of its fragile cultures, and resistance to foreign domination. Accordingly, the Laotian government is intent on making the upland tribes aware of themselves as part of the nation, to shift their allegiance from the confines of the village to the country at large. In combating what they judge to be the detrimental aspects of change, Laotian hill tribes must struggle to find a middle ground that allows them to enjoy the economic and educational advantages that come with a closer form of citizenship, without trading in their cultural identity. Laos is less a politically unified nation than a fascinating human map, one that, for all the formidable changes of the last few decades, remains as ethnically diverse and richly fractured as ever. It is a tribute to the resilience of the hill tribes of Laos that they are still with us today, though for how much longer is a question no one is quite ready to answer. Dear Panyasinh friends, I'm encouraged to see the contributions many of our members cared to make on the subject. These are enlightening and thought provocating. What I appreciate most is the objective manner in which most of you have shared your ideas and opinions. Indeed, religion is such a complicate and sensitive issue that one can easily spend a whole life trying to dissect and comprehend. We would be just kidding ourselves to think otherwise. We would also defeat the whole purpose of the discussion in the Panyasinh forum if we were to end up having more disagreements among ourselves now than we had when we first started. Mr. Kongkeo Saycocie recently offered an interesting insight on the influence of Buddhism on the level of development (and prosperity) of a Buddhist country such as Laos. Before that, I believe Mr. Khammanh also made a short remark on the same subject. I hope our readers have had a chance to read what the late Nhouy Abhay had to say about some of the shortcomings of Lao monks and the "short cuts" some of them took in practicing Buddhism. [I personally have a lot of admiration and respect for H.E. Nhouy Abhay, Minister of National Education in several Lao cabinets between 1945 and 1960, and I have known him and his family members. Unfortunately, his writings were mostly in French and might, for that reason,not have had as wide an impact as they should among the Lao people]. I would invite you all to go back to what he said and pick up what you believe is still applicable today. Personally I feel that religion may be a factor in the development of a country, but not to the same degree as national natural resources and other regional economic opportunities. Your comments? I also would like to hear your views on how we should observe Buddhism in America. Practical and down-to-earth ideas that we could use. Dr. Bolyvong Tanovan 5/4/02 Sabaydii, Just to continue my thought on the special status of Lao Buddhism in the ancient kingdom of LanXang, here is a diagram of the relationship the kingship, the Sangha and the communities (by the way, this diagram is drawn from the book ‘Inscription in Isan in the period of Thai-Lao’ by Tawat Pounyothok): The kingship supports the Sangha while the latter gives knowledge and imparts Dhamma to the former. The kingship rules the country (communities) with Dhamma while the latter pays taxes. The Sangha teaches Dhamma to the communities while the latter serves and obeys in the hope of receiving merit communities. since there is no way to reproduce the diagram here, I would like to point out that it is like a triangle and each node serves as a two-way relationship. Now, I will address the issue of whether Buddhism impedes the progress of a nation-state or not. First, I would like to inform you that there was a debate between Buddhadhasa, a leading Buddhist monk/intellectual, and Kukrit Pramoj, a leading politician/intellectual in 1960s or, maybe, in 1970s. By the way, these two figures were from Thailand. They both commanded a large group of followers. Here is the debate in a nutshell: Kukrit, a one-time prime minister, claimed that if the government followed the Buddhist policy of non-attachment, the country would be impoverished and therefore it would never progress into the rank of the first world nations. Buddhadhasa, instead, claimed that Buddhism didn’t impede the country progress but making the progress the right one. I guess I don’t have to tell you which direction Thailand has taken since that debate or, in fact, since the modern era had dawned in. Now, if I may, I will elaborate on my own concept as to why Buddhism doesn’t impede the progress of the country. First, we need to understand what the true tenets of Buddhism are. After all, Buddhism is not for the other world, resignation or passivity. Instead, it emphasizes the middle way. Yes, it is not greed but the well-being of all. To the Buddhists, it is better to do the right thing than bettering oneself at other expenses – be it other human beings, animals or even plants. That means material wealth in itself, though no less sought for, is not an end in itself but it is only a means to assist us to reach our true potential either for ourselves or for others. In another word, Buddhists are no less assiduous in making lives better but they do it with non-attachment. They understand the way of the world and live with it but not in it as the lotus grows in the mud but rises above the mud. Now, if you ask whether the practice of Buddhism will make the country progress given the cut-throat nature of the modern world, I would say that it is by its standard. That is: if we define progress as the well-being of all, not just for a few, and not only in terms of the material things. After all, big is not necessarily good. If only the country is run with Dhamma with the well-being of people in mind, the country is already on the path of progress. That means this is the right kind of progress that Ajarn Buddhadhasa previously alluded to. Hakphaang, Kongkeo Saycocie This e-mail discussion group Thailand: Changes along Mekong River Wash Away Tradition, Jobs By Marwaan Macan-Markar/Chiang Khong, Thailand April 25, 2002 - At this time of the year, the stretch of the Mekong River that flows past this rural township in northern Thailand should be alive with fishermen preparing to net the highly-prized Mekong giant catfish. But the river is empty of such life. The rituals normally performed by the fisherman on the river's bank before noon-including prayers and chicken offerings from their boats-are nowhere in sight. This emptiness saddens Boonrien Jinaraj, because it affirms that a tradition closely associated with his riverbank community of some 4,900 people is drifting into history-and highlights the risk that fishermen may someday have to switch jobs. ''A way of life, a way of earning money by catching the giant catfish is dying,'' says 54-year-old Boonrien, whose deeply tanned and wrinkled face is evidence of hours spent under the sun in search of the world's largest scale-less freshwater fish. ''For years we depended on the river to live, but I fear we will have to look elsewhere for work,'' he adds, reflecting the views of many fishermen in this quiet community dotted with just a few wooden houses. Boonrien was attracted to this vocation as a 10-year-old, when he would accompany his grandfather to the Mekong River and watch fishermen catching the giant catfish-just one example of how fish is closely tied to food security in the region. The dependency is even greater in the Mekong River's lower basin. Its fisheries yield of 1.75 million tons represents "2% of the total world catch and 20% of all fish caught from inland waters of the world'', according to a document from the Phnom-Penh based Mekong River Commission, an inter-governmental body comprising the lower basin countries of Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia. Last year, the fishermen of Chiang Khong failed to net a single giant catfish, whose full size can measure two-to-three meters long, and weigh more than 200 kg. These giant fish are generally caught from April to May when they swim upstream to spawn. The best year to date was 1993, when the river yielded 69 giant catfish or 'plaa beuk' as they are known in Thai. During a typical season, anywhere from 20 to 40 giant catfish are caught, with each being sold in Bangkok in upwards of 85,000 baht (US$ 2,000). Community leaders here agree on where the blame lies for the changes sweeping through their lives-China's construction of the Man Wan Dam in 1995, where the 4,200 km Mekong river flows through its south-western province of Yunnan from Tibet before it goes through Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam. ''The dam has changed the natural flow of the waters and affected the river's currents,'' asserts Niwat Roykaew, 43, a part-time teacher and local activist. ''This year has been one of the worst, with water levels fluctuating rapidly during the day.'' On some days, the water level has been high in the morning, low at noon and high by evening. ''At times we have seen differences of one-meter shifts in a day,'' he says. Such fluctuations undermine the chances of netting the giant catfish, the fishermen explain, since the river's ideal depth should be between two or three meters for a successful catch, the customary depth along this part of the Mekong in April and May. The changes may also disrupt the spawning behavior of the catfish, causing worries about the river life itself, not to mention other impacts in countries further downstream from China's dams. Changing river flows are also affecting those here who thrive on the river's edible weeds for a living, earning close to 500 baht (US$ 11) a day. Dam construction by countries along the Mekong and its tributaries have been done to harness the waters of the river for hydroelectric power, notably by Thailand, Laos and China, which is trying to work out a balancing act between industrialization and reducing the use of coal-fired power. ''Those who approve such development plans or build dams under the guise of development only see the river as a resource to be exploited,'' says Chainarong Sretthachau, director of the Thai wing of the South-east Asia Rivers Network (SEARIN). ''They fail to see the people who depend on the river for a living.'' ''The dam in Yunnan and the dams in Thailand have disrupted the harmonious relationship between the people living by the Mekong and the river,'' he asserts. ''This is a typical top-down approach to development.'' He says Thailand's own Pak Mun Dam, built on the Mun River, which is a tributary of the Mekong in Ubon Ratchathani Province, shows the sometimes unplanned effects of dams. People whose livelihoods were disrupted by Pak Mun got the government to open the dam's sluice gates for a year until mid-2002, allowing river life to come back. In January 2002, fishermen caught one rare giant catfish, since they could again go upstream to spawn. But dams are just one of the changes affecting the Mekong, as economic integration and cooperation grow in the region. In June last year, China, Burma and Thailand agreed on a navigation agreement to allow greater use of the river for bigger vessels for commerce-but this also means the blasting of reefs and construction of new ports along the way. While governments look forward to more cross-border commerce, people in this northern Thai town, home to one of the 11 reefs proposed to be blasted, say the destruction of the reefs would also mean wrecking the rich river habitats that produce fish and others for their livelihoods. The dynamite blasting of river reefs would enable ships to travel smoothly over a 900-km journey from Simao, a port in Yunnan, to Luang Prabang in northern Laos. ''Development in this region is being pursued in the name of reducing poverty and not creating wealth. But this case shows otherwise,'' says Shalmali Guttal of Focus on the Global South, a Bangkok-based research body. ''It says that 'development' is designed to serve particular sets of interests. The large projects are being approved with little input from the local communities.'' Niwat, the activist, confirms this: ''The rapids are being blasted with no notice to us, nor were we asked how we feel about it. Once we lose the river reefs, fishing will become harder here." Already, some residents have been forced to look for jobs in Bangkok and smaller cities. Some young men have given up their nets and boats to work as laborers on construction sites. ''Will the river be empty next year also?'' Boonrien wonders. This article was reprinted with the permission of Inter Press Service (IPS). (Source: Irrawaddy Online.) Sabaydii, There’re lots of interesting comments being made in this forum. Since I don’t have time to tackle all, I will address a few points here: the state of Lao Buddhism and some potential solutions. 1. the state of Lao Buddhism in a nutshell, Lao Buddhism is in a state of limbo or even degeneration as I alluded in my previous paper. Devoid of a leadership role typical in the ancient LanXang (up to the reign of Chao Souriyavongsa or even at the time of the division into 3 petty kingdoms – what I mean here was in the reign of Chao Anou), the Lao Sangha ceased to exist as a potent force for spiritual guidance. In fact, it merely hands on to life as an extension to the modern state apparatus. If you ask, what is the cause? First, it was the Siamese yoke that made Quon Lao more Thai than Lao. Then, it was the French colonialism that stalled its potential. After that, it was the American consumerism that completely uprooted its daily relevance to the lives of the lay people. As for the one-party rule, it does succeed in turning the Lao Sangha into a pure cadre. Now, since the Lao Sangha is no more in the leadership role, it feeds on the blind obedience of the lay people. in another word, Lao Sangha can not help but becomes just a ritual devoid of any essence namely truth and self-deliverance. I, myself like most of us, am depressed to see the state of Lao Buddhism in both Laos and overseas. Still, I am optimistic and not resigned to this tragic turn of events. After all, my Lao blood is till boiling with pride in me. With that being said, I will address its potential solutions. 2. the potential solutions. Here, I will categorize this sections into 4 segments: a. monks b. temples c. lay people d. Buddhist teaching a. monks Upside: still professes to follow the Buddha path of simplicity, abstinence and celibacy – a good thing in itself. Just think that if we don’t have the Lao Sangha we were used, what an emotional wreck we would be – namely to old folks. They still have some knowledge of Lao culture (and of the Buddha way) – a continuity of the past that can hold our growing disillusioned Lao psyches together. Downside: Lao monks, to a greater extent, are lax in Dhamma practice. More to the point, they know less in the way of Dhamma teaching – not to mention less schooling in the way of the world. Therefore, they tend to be more immersed in the consumer society that they forget who they are and what they are supposed to act according to the Buddha path. Potential solution: monks should study and be immersed in the Buddha path. Only through this way, they will regain their spiritual leadership – a model the Lao of ancient used to have. b. temples upside: Lao temples are becoming more subsistent and grander with time. More to the point, Lao temples become a place where Quon Lao can socialize. downside: temples are no more a spiritual place. The temples, by themselves, lack the uniqueness of KhuamPenhLao. Potential solution: Money that goes into the building as an end to itself should also be used as a place for lay people to learn about Dhamma. In fact, some money should be saved for the construction of the Lao Buddhist University. Also, if we build temples, we should make them more like Wat PhaKeo in both the style and color. This way, we will differentiate ourselves from the showy color of the Thai temple. c. lay people upside: most Lao people are still pious Buddhists though they might know very little about what they practice. I think that, with proper guidance, they can make Lao Buddhism prosper and, therefore, the best of Lao culture will be left for our future generation to appreciate it. Downside: our lay people are mostly superstitious. They don’t know what Dhamma truly is. Given as it is, religion could be an opium stalling our progress in this highly rational society. Potential solution: true Dhamma should be taught to our lay people. yes, this is begging the question since our monks should be equipped with the Buddha path first before they could teach true Dhamma to the lay people. I would say that this could be done only when the Lao Sangha take the necessary steps to save Lao Buddhism, themselves and their lay people. d. Buddhist teaching Upside: as I see, there are some Lao monks who are knowledgeable about the Buddhist teaching. That means all are not lost yet. Downside: true Buddhist teachings are hard to be grasped by the lay people and even by the monks too. Given that what we practice is mostly for the material gains, it is better to recognize as it is and overhaul what is not according to the Buddha path. Potential solution: we should start by having the learned monks teach the true Buddhism. To me, there are two ways to get to the heart of the Buddhist teaching. First, it is through learning with an eye for the truth and secondly, it is through practice. After all, these two methods reinforce one another like Sinh (discipline), Samathi (meditation/concentration) and Panya (wisdom/intellect) help the practitioner see the true nature of things. Hakphaang, Kongkeo Saycocie p.s. my next exposition is going to be whether Buddhism obstructs the progress to the country and to the people who want to get ahead in life or not. Ai Kongkeo, As the states grow from the collection of city states to become a united kingdom, such a top-down structure is NECESSARY. Look at Burma, Mon and Lanka kigndom as a few good examples .... Buddhist monks of Lanka kingdom even engaged in political intrugues in the court .... For the case of Krung Sri Ayudhayad during the last year of King Narai (around 1687-88), Buddhist monks even engaged in the successful coup to get rid of King Narai of Lopburi, Okya Wichayen (Canstantine Falcon) as well as the successor appointed by King Narai -> by spreading the words from Pleng Yao Phayakorn Krung Sri Ayudhaya composed by Okluang Sorasak (later on Phrachao Suea) .... about the doomsday due to the contacts with foreigners (especially the French) -> to the commenmen and peasants to mobilize the forces to go against the French mecenary troops stationed at Fort Wichayen (Now Fort Wichaiprasit - Thonburi) and Lopburi. NEVER forget that Buddhist monks could mobilize the peasants, so the Kings and Princes who engage in court intrigues have to rely on Buddhist monks to get the manpower necessary to ascend the throne. For the case of Khmer, I thought it should already have well-organized structure. However, I would to ask you how Khmer have been converted to Buddhism (Theravada sect)? During most period of Angkor, the main religion of Khmere Kingdom was either Hindu or Mahayana Buddhism - depending on favor of the kings. If Mahayana Buddhism prospered, Visnu and Siva images (not Siva lingam of course) will be converted to Bodhisattava and Buddha images. If Hindu prospered, Bodhisattava and Buddha images will be converted to Bodhisattava and Buddha images. Many Khmer said Theravada Buddhism come from Cambodian through Siamese monks and people ... during the late period of Angkor up to the "dark age" period (about 200 year-long period from the demise of King Jaivaraman VII to the rise of Phraya Yat) Even Buddhism during the period of Lanna Kingdom was FAR from peaceful .... there were 2 rival sects -> the sect from Mataban (rooting from Mon Buddhism) and the sect from Lanka .... the sect from Lanka accused the sect from Mataban that they chant in very WRONG way (relying on Mon accent instead of Lnaka accent), owning paddy fields, handing walking canes like beggars. The sect from Lanka even accused th sect from Mataban that they are FAKE monks since the founding 5 monks are not all legitimated monk (one had died during the trip from Lanka to Mataban -> so the other 4 monks has to rely on Buddha images to get the complete 5 monks enabling them to ordain the novices and laymen into Buddhist monks). Buddhist monks from Mon traditions also accused Buddhist monk rooting from Lanka that they were goign against the traditions ... Even the monks who studied in Lanka hasn't disrobed and reordain into Lanka tradition .... Many of them lived in the sailing ships instead of Buddist temples in Lanka (a that time there was a severe drought in Lanka, so Buddhist monk studying in Lanka have to come back home earlier than expect) ... Buddhist monks from Mon traditions also accused Buddhist monk rooting from Lanka that they were illegitimate since they haven't completed 10-year period top be eligible to ordain ... The debates between 2 rival sects usually ended up with hand-to-hand combats -> with sticks and stone as weapons of choice .... Even the king of Chiangmai also engaged in this sectarian strife.... King Tilokkarat has ordered the destruction of stone inscriptions in the temples of the Sect from Mataban (Mon tradition) since he supported Buddhist monks from Lanka traditions. After that, he replaced the stone inscriptions recording the alm to Buddhist monks from Lanka traditions Now, there was only 1 stone inscriptions from BE 1913 (AD 1370) survived from the destructioin since the temple was abandoned long before the period of destruction. It took many decades before both Buddhist sects of Lanna could settle down the differences. Similar sectarian strifes have occurred from time to time in Burma during the period of Ava kingdom. Even some Burmese kings become megalomaniac causing lots of troubles with Buddhist monks ... Err, during the time of King Vajiravut, the king had to appoint Catholic officers to act as "Sankaree" (the general inspector of Buddhist monks) due to the rivalry between Mahanikaya (the traditional Buddhist sect with Chant only Pali) and Thammayut (the more-strict discipline sect founded by King Mongkut which chant in both Thai and Pali). Many Buddhist Monk HATE Sangkaree (the general inspector of Buddhist monks) since Sangkaree usually feed themselves by begging from the monks ... If Sankaree could NOT get what he wanted from Sangha, they usually "blackmail" the monks .... Therefore, the Supreme Patriarch of the day asked the king to allow Buddhist monk to rule by themselves, without the meddiling from Sangkaree .... Folk wisdom? I could give you very good examples from Krua Toh (Sodej Phra Phutthajarn Toh Phrommarangsee), a famouse monk during the period of Kign Mongkut One day, he saw novices and youing monks playing Takraw, causing lots of noise to krua Toh. Krua Toh solved the problems by saying that "Very good, young men! Play harder" .... and adviced those novices and young monks who payed Ta Kraw ... those young monks and novices said they will go to pay other places so that they won;t bother Krua Toh. Another example of Krua Toh is about finding the Center of the World ... One day, a missionary caomng to see Krua Toh and ask about the Center of the world ... and arugue abotu the world sicne the traditional Siamese people believed that the world was flat. Krua Toh said Krua Toh pointing on at the foot of the ladder and say "That's the center of the world -> You have told me that the world is round, not flat." As far as I concern, I know that monks - Siamese and Lao monk - in the past offered educations (from writing and reading to firework making, Boxing and War Strategy), medicine, and spirituality ... so such distinction Ai Kongkeo claimed is NOT not much .... even though Lao monks could both TuaTham and Khmer scripts .... Wisarut Sabaydii, 1/ Lao Buddhism up to the disintegration of LanXang Vientiane kingdom I would say, at this period, Lao Buddhism was distinctively native. Of course, at the onset, this Buddhism was of a Khmer type since the one prevalent in LanXang was officially introduced through the Khmer channel at the time of Chao FaGnum. Later, with the constant interaction with Lanna at the time of Chao Phothisarath - Chao Saysettha's father, Lao Buddhism came to be similar with Lanna type. I would contest that, up to the reign of Chao Souriyavongsa, Lao Buddhism was very different from the Thai Buddhism typified by the Adhutthaya period. If you ask: where was the difference? Here is my contention: a. Lao Buddhism was more from the ground up. That was it derived its strength from the masses. So, since the masses were generally illiterate and rooted in the soil, Lao Buddhism was a mixture of the soil worship and of blending in with nature. In contrast, Thai Buddhism was more from the top down. Its strength came from the might of the state therefore its role was categorically to serve the power-that-be. Therefore, Thai Buddhism could not be avoided to be very rigidly structured where rooms of difference couldn't be tolerated. This became obvious when the Thammayuth sect sponsored by Rama IV came to play a critical role in shaping Thai Buddhism. In another word, this new sect was like the Jesuits sect whose zeal and state sanctioned back-up have carried the time until today. b. Lao Buddhism had folk wisdom. In another word, though religion of higher state, it adopted the way of Lao people into account. As we know, Lao people are of simple type that lives, works and plays according to the way of nature. At this point, Thai people shared the same characteristics as ours to a certain extent. What differentiated Lao Buddhism and Thai Buddhism lied in the emphasis of the nature of religion. I would say that Thai Buddhism tended to more ritualized, more directed from the wisdom above (the aristocrats) and more pretentious if I may say so. On the contrary, Lao Buddhism was like a give-and-take game between the monks and the lay people. Though still ritualized, Lao Buddhism was oriented towards the well-being of the sentient being. In another word, Lao Buddhism was served as a shelter, a medicine, an education and a spirituality to Lao people. Just from this brief account, you can see that Lao Buddhism was distinctive. It carried the weight of Lao people on its back. With that being said, it was no wonder that Lao people from both banks of the Mekong River felt different from Thai people from the Menam River. In another word, Lao culture nourished the home-grown Lao Buddhism was fully at ease with itself while, at the same time, felt threatened when Thai culture supported by Thai Buddhism began to make a headway towards the Mekong basin. Yes, all was safe as long as LanXang was still united. Then, with the disintegration of LanXang after the reign of Chao Souriyavongsa, Lao Buddhism would face a serious threat from Thai Buddhism that intended to swallow Lao Buddhism the way its state was about to do with LanXang. 2/ Lao Buddhism from the end of Chao Anou's reign to the present day As some of you might know, Chao Anou tried to restore the Lao pride by overthrowing the Siamese yoke. Among other things, he held the convention of the 3rd Buddhist Sangha (council) which had only 3 times in our history. Through this act, we know that Chao Anou realized the full significance of Lao Buddhism apart from Thai Buddhism which tried to blur our sense of identity as a unique people (Lao not Thai at all). Since the Lao act of defiance was crushed, Lao Buddhism suffered the same fate as that of a country. From 1828 on, the Lao monks from both Laos and Isan had to go to study in the central Thailand namely Bangkok to learn the scripture. Before, they just went to study in Vientiane and had nothing to do with Thai Buddhism. As Vientiane, the center of Lao Buddhism, was destroyed, what Lao monks learned and practiced waas originated from Thai Buddhism. As a result, Lao Buddhism lacked its uniqueness but an extension of Thai Buddhism. After the French arrival in 1893, Lao Buddhism had some revival especially when they visibly felt the threat of Pan Thai advocated by Phibul Songkram prior to WWII. When Laos became independent in 1954, Lao Buddhism became a state religion. Yes, only if Lao Buddhism enjoyed the same status as Thai Buddhism had in Thailand, things would have been different. As you might know, Thai Buddhism became an apparatus of the state therefore it received the full support of the state power. This might be a bad thing in terms of a true religion but I won't talk about it here. Suffice it to say that Lao Buddhism just limbered on for there wasn't a substantial support from the state apparatus. The time like Chao Anou's reign was no more. Though Vientiane was somewhat revived, it was no more a center of Lao Buddhism. What a resemblance of Lao Buddhism had was purely an act of piety from the Lao people. Therefore, it came to no surprise to anyone that Lao Buddhism became more of a ritual and ceremony than the essence of Dhamma. This state of Lao Buddhism is what we presently relish both in Laos and overseas. As for its future, I will leave it to the probe of our educated Lao who, though western educated, are still able to see what Lao Buddhism means as an institution and tries to salvage the most we can before we don't even know what is truly constituting us - Quon Lao. Hakphaang, Kongkeo Saycocie Greetings Fellow Members., Our discussion on Lao Buddhism, the negative and positive affects it has on Lao people and the communities. Everyone is well aware of the corruptions taken place within the Temples by the monks and those in charge. Buddhism, like any religion in the world; it's not perfect and it is susceptible to corruptions. Even though monks follow a strict code of conducts (suppose to), they are human male. Human male have weakness; when being temped by the vices, most men will fail the test. Buddhism is not the only religion in the world that experience this type of corruptions and weakness shown by its clergy men. Christianity/Baptist were riveted with scandals in the 80's w/ the Jim Baker, Tammy Faye and Jerry Farwell sagas. The Catholic church are being view negatively by many members/followers due to the sexual abuse by the priest. The corruptions did not end with these two religion or with these individuals; it is an on going thing. Pick up any news paper across the country and you will likely see an article on some form of corruption with religions. Even though these hold themselves out to be of the highest standards and morality, non the less they are men. I hear the older generation talking about how wonderful and great Laos is, but what I am really hearing between the words and what they are really saying is how wonderful Laos was and use to be. Most are still living in the past and are doing things the old ways. And that includes worshiping without questions. If you ask most people that attend the services on a regular basis to explain the Buddhist doctrine and its basic believes and values, most will tell you that they do not know. They attend the service and do what they do simply because that's what they are use to and what was past down to them by their parents. From a perspective of someone that grew up outside of Laos, I see Laos as a dirty, poor nation struggling to survive. It's currently behind the times; the gov't are too fat and happy to institute any change/progress. The citizens of Laos are paying for the ineptness of the gov't and Laos as a country is being ravage and exploited by other nations. It is obvious that the old and current Laos is not working. Laos and Khon Lao are capable bigger and greater things if we are willing to forego the old ways and are open to changes. If we look long and hard enough, we will find and see faults with everyone and everything. Perfectionist are few and far in between. Human being have weakness and we fall prey to weakness and desires regardless of our status and position in life. The big question is how can we members of Panyasin and members of the Lao Communities at large change the course of our future and the future of Laos and its citizens? Should we only observe and wait to see what the outcome will be or should we do something to push Laos, its people, culture and religion into the right direction? I fear that if nothing is done there will not be a Laos as we know it for my kids to enjoy and cherish. Warmest Regards, Kham Dear Panyasin, Sabaidee Pi-mai! I too have been reading and listening to the positive as well as the negative viewpoints presented by members who care enough to comment and express their concerns for the fate of Buddhism and the practice of spiritual worshiping among the members of Lao community in the U.S. and other parts of the world. First I would like to acknowledge the thoughtful comments and suggestions made by Dr. Bolyvong. I agree that much needs to be done to encourage the behavior among the Buddhist priests and their devout followers as specifically spelled out in his list from #1 through #5, below. Overall, I believe that most of us hope for the better services and an ideal community organization when we all chip in towards the funding of a temple and have the priests sponsored to take charge of the service works and all the spiritual leadership functions within their sanctity of professional duty, as a SANGA. The problem of discerning faith from fellowship has been the major issue as part of this process. It has been a controversial question among the local worshipers I know. I also know that most Buddhist priests preach the dogma and live by the their rules, adhere to norm and standard practice of their governance but their social relationship to the community is undeniably vulnerable, fragile and corruptible biased. I have not seen a serious Buddhist priest and practitioner among layman who turn pedophile or narcotic dealers, insurgent revolutionarian or even Thai lottery and gambling promoter. What I have seen and read about are "men" in a saffron robe who put on the show and create a charismatic aura and mysticism about themselves for profit and power to mobilize (sometimes to split) the community. And usually there are groups of men and women among the congregation working as a profiteering for the share of money, material goods and /or political influence on the community. It is the groups and organized special interest people who hide behind the priest or collaborate with a the "men" to corrupt the power of Buddhism and the sanctity of the refuge that serve as the heart and the soul of our spiritual worshipers. And these worshipers know in their heart that things are not quite perfect and could be better but they are willing to tolerate the flaws in the support system of the organization that sustains the temple. The difficult and sensitive issue may exist within the family unit when our elderly population and our own parents who are truly seeking spiritual benefits and use the temple as a sanctuary for spiritual link with the Buddhist faith. And they couldn't care less about what the younger generations might see as an enabling factor to weaken the organization that contradict with Buddhist teaching i.e. priest's inappropriate behavior and the hoarding of money and material possession. Other members have already provided graphic accounts of these problems. To me it's just the problem among the opportunists and players who are in to control for the sake of controlling and really lacking visions and direction, not to mention skills and education in democracy and community organizing process. In light of our Lao community multiple and multi-level needs for self-fulfilment and conforming to the old and the new societies, people are settling for the better of the two evils, the chance for culture-existing and freedom to preserve whatever is left of their spiritual symbolic life of a Buddhist and the alienation and insecure life without faith shared with the traditional community. As a matter of facts, some people become disfranchised and break away to detached world of isolated spiritual worshiping, and worse yet, some others convert to another faith and grow more and more distant from the traditional Lao life style. I have asked the elders and the monks if they have thought about the next generation priest and ritual master in leading the works in the service and in the community. And I have yet to get a good answer from anybody. Despite all the pros and cons of this topic, I just like to end this with the words of caution. Please do not criticize the Buddhist religion and any part of the community effort to culture exist for its faults in human factors and nothing to do with the dogma and true spirit of faith or practice of a life style as it is in Lao approach to Buddhism, the Theravadin. This is because the very act becomes a shallow bashing of something that's larger than life and more sacred than anyone's delusional thinking of the reality perceived and the verity of spiritual life. What we can do is to be patient and tolerant of the evolutionary process. Someday, the rule of laws and social elements will dictate a better form and function of the institutional structure of the SANGA and the social face of Buddhist practice among the Lao people. Notice, I have not mentioned a thing about other Buddhist countries. Hak Phaeng, KhamOne Dr. Bolyvong, It sounds like you are saying only the Buddhist monks in America are corrupt. If you go to Laos and Thailand, you will see things are no different there. It has nothing to do with where they are but who they are. Lao monks and Lao Buddhism are perfectly complementary. Faults of the sangha are symptoms of the disease of the religion, as Thao Nhouy adequately explained. I hope everybody had a chance to read the commentary of Laos's first intellectual. You also describe the religion as a sort of narcotic, which gives people peace of mind. We certainly want people to have peace of mind, but as with all narcotics there are no shortage of side effects. As for asking for lottery numbers "in good humor," well we can just carry on all our faults as long as it is in "good humor." Unfortunately, the culture of irresponsibility and gambling only worsens. People in this group speak so highly of Lao "culture" as though it were a thing to be preserved, simply because it is a thing that exists. I see now why progress is so slow. At the same time, Lao people do not even know what Lao culture is. The more money they get from UNESCO, for example, the more debased are the Lao temples. They begin sprouting Thai ornaments and undergo entire makeovers in Thai styles. Lao Buddhas are not even cast anymore, because it seems nobody can figure out what a Lao Buddha looks like. Meanwhile everybody is harping on about how wonderful Lao culture is. And the only ones laughing are the Thai. Khammanh Dear Friends, I read with interest what our friends, Kongkeo Saycocie, Martin Rathie, Wisarut and Khammanh wrote us on the subject matter so far. Maybe others would also care to jump in and share with the rest of us their opinions and more importantly offer ideas on how we could improve things if posible? Some of the anecdotes are interesting and all too real to be ignored. Unfortunately, these are true stories, a mixture of mystique and religion. Many Lao still highly revere the Buddhist priests and practice Buddhism without second thought. We continue to do what our fathers and forefathers have taught us to do. But of course this is America, and there is a lot of adjustments to be made, for both the Buddhist priests and their followers. It is fair to say that Lao Buddhist priests faced problems from day 1 when they moved to America, where most of them had to start a new life on the list of welfare recipients. They had to get adjusted to a new society; and many of them could not quite disassociate themselves from their worldly possessions and natural human temptations. Under an entirely different environment, an identity problem soon developed. To attract worshippers, they need to be well known, and to be well known they might have to do things they would not even dream about doing before. Some Lao monks feel the need to have cars for personal convenience or other reasons, cars that they drive by themselves or have other drive for them. At the extreme, some priests may have gone as far as managing their own bank accounts. This is hard for us to accept for the same reason it will take some time for people to get accustomed to see cars parked in the Wat?s compound. Lao Buddhist priests got quickly organized by forming and joining a national Council. Rules and regulations developed and implemented by the Council probably helped to maintain some semblance of order and discipline, at least in a spiritual sense. I remember one of the Council's decisions was to have all names of Lao Buddhist temples preceded by the word Lao, e.g., Wat Lao Buddhathammaram. Overall, it?s hard to fully appreciate the role of that national council and to assess how much real power it has over its members. How tight are we practicing Buddhism? I dare say, not very tight, as most of us only see monks during weekends. We go to the temple only when we have time. Many people, especially older folks, go there for the unique purpose of consulting the priests on various subjects, and/or to worship in front of the statues of the ?Phra Chao Nhai?. They all invariably come home relaxed and content. As you know, we also invite the priests to our homes for merit making, to blessing a new house, to wash off bad dreams, etc. This is self-fulfilling to older folks, some sort of personal spiritual satisfaction money cannot buy. Buddhist priests collect money from the people but rarely use that asset to make public donations. This is a stance that sometimes confuses our Americans neighbors. Likewise, our priests rarely write, except for a few articles now and then that appear on the temple's newsletters. I know there is much to be desired, but overall I still believe Buddhist priests do have their place in the Lao communities overseas. Practicing Buddhism does allow us to form a closely knitted community, where people can meet each other once a week at least. Some of us enjoy listening to the monks?prayers. Others just like the austere atmosphere of a temple full of Buddha statues. They also see the temple as a potential retreat for them some time in the future, a chance to wear saffron robes and to dedicate a few days of their life in strict observance of Buddhist principles (for their parents? spiritual salvation and a better future in their next life). Buddhist temples also provide an occasional shelter and safe haven to many teenagers. Many people go in to ask for the Thai lottery numbers. As long as this done in good spirit and some humor, there probably is no real cause for concern. What do I wish Lao Buddhist priests would do? Be faithful to the religion, set good examples of immaterialism, preach tolerance and self-fulfillment, do not move too fast and too far from Lao traditions and Lao way of life, be generous, make more frequent donations to other nonprofit associations or outfits; help teach Lao culture and Lao alphabet, help people understand the basic teachings of Buddha, and generally be a living symbol of the Lao culture for new generations of Lao. I did my duty in becoming a monk for a week when I came home to Laos after years of schooling in Switzerland. It was a good experience for me. But that was in Laos, and that was in the early 1960's. What do you folks think we could and should do now as a society to help preserve the tenets of Buddhism in America? What is worth preserving, and what needs to be changed? Dr. Bolyvong Tanovan 4/5/02 Dear Members, It is not always the case that the monks and the lay committee of a temple are corrupt. That's something I think we need to keep in mind. The organization of the Lao temple is actually responsible for the most part, I think, for the lack of building improvements or projects or services. The reason the money disappears is usually simply that the costs of operating the temple are so high. Because of concerns about corruption, I think more and more temples are being forced to completely disclose their financial records. I've seen some of these and it was suprising to see how large their expenses are. Water utility for example runs into four or five hundred dollars per month. The reason of course is that there are so many monks. If the priority of Lao communities is to build a nice-looking temple or one that is capable of providing social services, it needs to reorganize its view of the Wat. That is, it must reconsider why so many monks are necessary. My personal view is that only one monk should be assigned to each temple. This assures that the monk is highly qualified and educated and that the resources that would have supported another half-dozen or more monks can go into more important projects. It is expensive to support a large group of people. In fact, I think that large class of welfare recipients (at times up to 20% of the Lao population) is responsible for the death of large historical monuments and buildings in Laos. They sucked up all the surplus resources of the population. Lao monks are not cheap. They live like kings. Lao monks are not even vegetarians, unlike Buddhist monks in most countries. They do a lot of traveling. Some of them have special medical needs, and so on. At worst of course, some of them are corrupt and skim the donations. By sticking with one respectable monk, many of these problems will go away and a lot more money will be available to make improvements to the temple, etc. Khammanh Dear Members, It not news to us. Everybody has always known about the poor state of Lao Buddhism. This is not a recent phenomenon. Nhouy Abhay was complaining about the monks many decades ago. There is an excellent essay of his posted on Lan-Xang.com (http://www.lan-xang.com/buddhism/laobuddhism_4.html). I would go so far as to say that the state of Lao Buddhism is no more degenerate now than it was in the 17th century. The documents of Father Leria attest to this. The hard thing is determining whether Lao culture made Lao Buddhism or vice-versa. Actually, it is more likely to be the case that each are both cause and effect, reinforcing each other in a reflexive way. That does it make it difficult to address the problems of the Lao community, which are cultural problems. If we could easily point to Lao Buddhism and say, here is the source of our problems, then we may be able to completely solve the problems. I think though that whether Lao Buddhism is the root cause or whether it is merely a manifestation, tackling the problems of Lao Buddhism can help fix Lao cultural problems by removing the reflexivity I mentioned. Then the problems will not be able to bounce off of Lao Buddhism, which supports and reinforces it. When we study Lao Buddhism we should not become romantic or delude ourselves. Lao Buddhism is not so much Buddhism as it is Animism. There is no genuine moral framework that supports Lao Buddhism. It is a relatively amoral religion and this is the reason, I think, that there are so many problems, as all of you are aware, with the Lao Sangha. As Thao Nhouy said, though, like laity, like monks. Khammanh Khun Martin, Luang Pho Khoon (AKA Phra Ratchawitthayakhom Thera or Khoon Prarisuttho) is still alive for now even though he has frail health. Wat Banrai is in Tambol Kutphiman, Dankhunthot District of Khorat (on the Highway from Chaturat District of Chaiyaphum to Lam Takhong Reservior. For the case of Halo, it's for those with very high and strong "Bun" (or "Bunyathikarn"). For the case of His Majesty, ther was a legend that His Majesty and a few Royal guards were facing CPT Liberate Soildiers when they walked in the jungle in Phu Phan outside Phuphan Ratchaniwet Royal House. The CPT Soldiers recognized the His Majesty and tried to shoot AK47 bullets to him and his guards but AK47 got stuck Even they tried to use all the AK47 they had in thair hand, but the rifles got jammed .... When the CPT aiming the AK 47 to sky instead of His Majesty, the bullets coming out of the rifles without jamming! That's really shock the CPT soldiers, so they bow to His Majesty and pledge that they won't dare to hurt him and his guards at all. I feel definitely sure disciples and caretaking laymen of Luang Pho Khoon would rush to see and pick up the crystalized ashes of Luang Pho Khoon after cremation in the same way the Northerners rushing to pick up the ashes and the earth from crematorium pyre of the late venerable Khrooba Sriwichai (1878-1938) in early 1946. King Mongkut found Thammayut around 1833 when he was Vajirayana monk by follwing the paractices from strictly-disciplined Mon (Raman) monk after he saw so many disciplinaty laxes during the reign of King Phra Nanklao (his elder half-brother) - closing to become "Mahajone Plon Phra Satsanah" (the Great Bandits Plundering Buddhism). Khaa Luang is a position of "representative to the King" .... Sabaydii, Lao Buddhism is definitively an interesting discussion topic. For my part, I will address the history of Lao Buddhism first then I will go on to tackle on any issues relevant to it later. Here are the points I will entertain you: 1/ Lao Buddhism up to the disintegration of LanXang Vientiane kingdom 2/ Lao Buddhism from the end of Chao Anou's reign to the present day Also, what I intend to do here is to lay the groundwork for our understanding of Lao Buddhism: its history, its current situation, its wisdom and its future in the face of the almighty consumer society (both in Laos and abroad). Remember that once Lao Buddhism was quite unique. That meant it was different from the ones practiced by our neighbors namely the Thai. If you ask me: what made Lao Buddhism unique? I would say that this Buddhism was mainly a product of our culture - nourished by our soil. Most importantly, this Buddhism became Lao soul. In another word, if you don't know Lao Buddhism, you don't know Quon Lao at all. Then, what had happened to this unique Lao Buddhism? I guess you will have to wait until next time. Or better yet, you should investigate it with me. For today, I would like you to read my exposition about another aspect of Lao Buddhism posted at soc.culture.laos some time ago. ***** To Be Lao is to know Buddhism Does anyone wonder why there is a big gap between the Lao leaders In the modern era and the Lao folks they are supposed to serve? As History has testified, the Lao leaders of pre 1975 were predominantly French influenced while the Lao leaders of post 1975 were, for the Most part, Marxist-Leninist influenced. These two groups barely have Something in common with the Lao folks who have been predominantly Buddhist. There is a common tendency among the ruling circles in the Widespread belief that Buddhism is a hindrance to the country's growth And that Buddhism breeds more superstition than spirituality. Little do The modern Lao leaders know that it is Buddhism which keeps the Lao From falling apart. War, raids, and subjection to other's spirit centuries after centuries were more than enough to crush any people's spirit. Luckily, the Lao still have Buddhism to hold on. No wonder the enlightened Acharn Cha from Wat NongPaPhong, Ubon province was of a Lao descendant. Western ideas either capitalism or Marxism could benefit Laos, if Rightly applied, but they are not the root of Laoness. The most they Can do is to make your head brainier but not your heart wiser. Instead, It is Buddhism, Lao Buddhism, that will make Muang Lao and Quon Lao Unique. Once uniqueness is reached, Lao will be Lao again. Remember what our saying goes: "if people won't follow the leader, there is no chance to make the country prosperous." The chance is here: be Lao and true Lao will follow you. ***** First things first, I said "to be Lao is to know Buddhism". What I mean is: since the inception of our country, LanXang, 600 years ago; Buddhism came to play a big role in our country's development. It forms the basis of our people's cultural life. In another word, who we are today is the by-product of Buddhism, Lao Buddhism. Factoring Buddhism out of the equation, you are still Lao but not Lao of our ancestors. What I mean is that the basis of your being comes from a different source which might be superior but, still, you won't get the same feeling, the same heartbeat as what you get from the same nourishment that feeds your ancestors. At times, you might even be at odds with the Lao folks (you might even call them stupid); or anything Lao (second class) around you. Let me say again, Buddhism I mention here has nothing to do with religion. In fact, Buddhism as practiced by the great bulk of Lao people has become a way of life in itself. That is why I say the Lao leaders lost touch with the people they are supposed to serve. Schooled differently is terribly hard to understand another. Anyway, if you want to see how the ancient leader was accepted by the Lao people, just look at Chao Anou and see how faithful they were to him. I will have more to say later. ***** Yes, Lao Buddhism is different from Indian Buddhism. Though the core tenets are the same, what grows out of Buddhism as practised in Laos is different from the original Buddhism. Lao Buddhism is a combination of animism, Brahmanism and, of course, Theravada Buddhism. In another word, Lao Buddhism is a mixture of the belief in "phi", in soul and in Buddha. What is fascinating about this is not a distorted form of Buddhism but an enrichment to the original Buddhism. That is why it does produce no less enlightened men and does make Lao people kind and, at the same time, grounded in pragmaticism. Getting back to my thesis, I realize that it is hard for other believers to come to terms with what to be Lao is. That is not to say that if they don't know Buddhism (please notice the word I use "know" instead of"be"), they won't be Lao. They are still Lao but not Lao of what Muang Lao and Quon Lao that we know of. It is like if you don't eat sticky rice, salivate over the spicy TumMakHoung and taste the smelly Padaek, not to mention being captivated by the sound of Khene, of Mohlum and touched by the sight of DokChampa, how could you say that you are Lao? I will have more to say later. Hakphaang, Kongkeo Saycocie Sabaidee Panyasin members, After reading the short post by our newest member I feel the urge to tell some small stories about Lao Buddhism and Buddhist monks in America. Forgive me if I may be sounding a little cynical, but I too have observed similar corruptions that's been running very rampant in the Buddhist Temples that I know of in the USA, whether they are Thai, Lao, or Cambodian base. Chasing the mighty US $$ is the name of the game and there's no stopping. How does that one song go? "WAT KRUNG NEUNG KUM MA KARN KRUNG NEUNG -- the WAT gets half and the Committee/Board members get half." So, what's left for the community? I've lived in several states in the USA. I started out living in IOWA, then Rhode Island, and now North Carolina. There are Lao Buddhist temples in the states I mentioned. Yes, some of the monks in those temples do and have done good jobs performing their ceremonial/worship functions during funerals, kao pan sa, and other Buddhist religious days, but still many get caught in the wind that blows the mighty dollars into their robes and the commitee members' pockets. The wind may not remember the name it has blown in the past, but greedy people and the opportunistic monks will surely remember its name and pray for it to blow more often. As Mr. Phanthavong have mentioned, in some areas there are several Temples within the 20 miles radius of each other. AND... they are all competing for worshipers' $$$. This translates into the DEMAND for that CHARISMATIC monk who can bring the dough in. AND... this occasionally translate into pitting the monks against one another with jealousy, which festers kniving schemes, resentments, and other dirty plays. One of the questions Martin Rathie posed was: What makes some the monks Charismatic? A quick and sure way a monk can gain great Charisma and Notariety is to get himself into a string of LUCK.. predicting Lottery numbers or betting proliferals. Let me tell the story of a monk in the Rhode Island/Massachusette area. I will not mention his name, but you might run into him if you visit one of these cities in that region of the USA: Lowell, Smith Field, Providence, and Woonsocket. When he first arrived in that area he was invited by a Laotian family who just moved into a new house. He was to give them blessings and to lead proper ceremony for bringing comfort, prosperity and prosterity to their new home. After he performed his ceremonial duties at that house, he was fed and given donations. Before he leave the house to go back to the temple, he walked into the living room. There he found several men watching an American Football game on TV. They were also filling out their bookie's tickets. So, the monk asked them what they were doing. They said that they are putting down bets. The monk asked to see the tickets and a pencil, and said, "here let me fill one out for you". The monk, who had no idea what or how the game is play and who are set to play, filled one of cards out by picking 3 teams at random. Then he left. Guess what, one of the men decided to put 500 dollars down on what the monk picked, and it HIT.. triple plays, which pays off 7.5 to 1. A few days later, many people went to the temple to visit the monk. Many people who had heard about what happened with the one man who hit it big on the football bet from the monk's assistance wanted to get the monk's blessings also. There were about 50 or so people there in the audience all wanting to have words with the monk. There were also children running around. Some of the Lao parents who had just picked up their kids from school decided to stop by the temple also. Many people tried to ask the monk to give them some hints of luck on Lottery that's gonna be drawn the next day, but the monk shrugged it off. [As we all know, the Lao/Thai communities anywhere have a habit of playing the UNDERGROND Lottery, usually the pick 3 and pick 2 games.] HEre in North Carolina, the Lao community plays the Illinois evening pick three. The drawing happens every evening at about 9:20 p.m., 7 days a week,Chicago time. The broadcast can be seen on CAble in the South East of the USA, broadcast by Chicago's channel 9 WGN tv. Back to the monk in Rhode Island, the 50 or so adults who visited the temple was hoping that the monk would tell them something about the next day lottery drawing. Back several years ago, the Laotian community up in New England still plays the THAI underground Lottery, which is drawn twice a month in Thailand, the 1 of the month and about the 15th of the month. Towards the end of the monk's audience session as people were about to leave and the fomalities were dispersed, the monk pointed to a little girl and asked.. "eee nang, man ee yang tid yoo nai tong jao"? What's that sticking on your school book bag? Stamped on that bag was a small picture, a pider like picture. The little girl just nodded side to side to signal that she had no idea. Well, it just happened that one adult, a middle age lady, in the audience took it to be very significant. Again, as some of you may know, Lao/Thai people have 2 digit numbers associated with many animals. For example, the Dog is 11, 51, 91 and in this case... the Spider.. 33 and 73. Thus, the one lady who recognized it and by some coincidence took it as significant. She went home and started to call all the bookies in town. She put down as much as the limit is allowed from every bookie on the numbers 33, and 73. Guess what? The next day darn thing HIT! 73 was the lucky number! The rest is history. The monk now have a golden road to raise as much money as he can. If you visit Des Moines, Iowa. Don't be surprised if you see a monk driving a Red Mitsubishi 2000 GT. The last time I was in that city, this monk was still residing in the Lao Temple of that city. It is located on the South East side of Des Moines. One of my "aii huk" owned an auto body shop in that city. ONe day, this monk drove that car to his shop so it can bee buffed up to look more shiney. That's how I know for sure that this monk actually drive that car. I've never talked to him at length nor attend any of the Temples functions, but the story I heard about how he came to possess the car was interesting. This monk looks to be in his late 20s at the time I saw him at the shop. In the state of Iowa, there's a lotto game called, the 100,00 dollars cash game. It can be played everyday because the drawing is done every night. You pick 5 numbers between 01 to 35, and if u get all 5 correct you win 100,000 dollars. Several years ago, this Red Mitsubishi driving monk won that game. He claimed to have seen the number from some barks on the ground. He gave the numbers to one of his lay man assistance, and that lay man went out and buy the tickets, and it HIT the jackpot! He was able to pay CASH for that Red sports car. Lao Buddhists people around there claimed that he has the power to talk to ghosts. Incidentally, the temple ground that the Lao Temple in Des Moines, Iowa is set on land which used to be an old cemetary. Go figure eh? As you can see, the Buddhists lay people themselves are also feeding this frenzy and the Monks and the Karrm Ma Karn are more than happy to oblige. All it takes is just several strings of COINCIDENTAL LUCK, and you have a STAR Monk in your temple to bring in more visitors and more donations. Wnen you visit with these STAR monks, some of them will say to you that they cannot tell you straight out what the future is or the what Lottery number that they foresee are. It is against the mandate of heaven and they cannot reveal the secrets of heaven, some would claim. Thus, they must give the hints via subtleties and riddles. Sometimes they would give different gestures that can be interpreted by different people as certain animals, and the chances are someone in the audience picked the right animal, buys the number associated with that animal and win! Then, the people who gets lucky are the one who claim to have solved the riddle, which give them more face and make them look smarter than the rest, and this leads to more noteriety to that particular monk because the person(s) who won would pick the opportunistic time to tell the monk while making donations to the temple from the winnings, and they do it in front of many others while the monk sit there with smiles and acknowledgment. It's a wonderful world after all. HakPang, Thaksin