When I contemplated including a page about Buddhist practice on my website, I thought - too easy!. Over the years I have had a growing interest in Buddhism especially in its practice in rural Thailand. However when I made my initial attempt to apply words to cyber paper I was totally stumped - I literally didn't know how to start or what to write about.

It eventually came to me that the problem was that I was simply thinking about the subject rather than  feeling or appreciating it. In Thailand Buddhist practice has an almost seamless nature.  Thai people engage in Buddhist practice almost as if it is an extension of their body. The presenting of alms, having a new car blessed, inviting the village Monks to their home, presenting new robes at Kathin etc is done instinctively without much pre-thought.

Of course Westerners like myself have been generally taught from birth that whilst feelings are important, the brain is definitely more powerful than the heart. In Thailand as in other Asian societies, the heart rules. An example of the difference of the head/heart ratio is the reaction of many foreigners to Thai temples. Over the years I have heard countless people say " loved everything about my trip to Thailand except the temple tours - they were boring". To a large degree, I put this down to the fact that foreigners especially Westerners tend to think about the Temples they visit rather than try to feel them.

In contrast, Thais don't bother wasting time analysing their religious and social beliefs because they are second nature. This of course is to a degree ironic because Buddhism is the great contemplative religion. In the village Buddhist  practice is the great thread that holds daily life together. From presenting alms to the Monks on the morning alms round, lighting incense and the involvement of the Monks in events such as house blessings, weddings and funerals nothing of anything important happens without some reference to Buddhism.

Of course modern times is beginning to have an effect. To use an Americanism Thailand has become a "go get em , kick ass" society where consumer individualism is subtly encouraged both by the media, the government and the times themselves.

Although the times are certainly faster and some Thais including rural Thais are to a degree  becoming a tad economical with the amount of time devoted to Buddhist practice, the mainstream of Thai society still values their social/religious traditions as much as they ever have. Again I emphasise not by day to day analysis, but simply factoring Buddhist practice into their lives.

However, I have discovered a problem. In this page I wanted to emphasise that the feel of Buddhist practice in Thailand was more important than its analysis. Everything  that I have written above analyses Buddhist practice rather than elaborating the feel factor. The only way I think (see I'm doing it again) I can describe the feel is by describing a true incident that I observed in 1995. It truly encapsulates what I feel is the essential nature of Buddhist practice in Thailand.

The story goes as follows:

"In 1995 I was present at a Buddhist ceremony held in my Father-in-laws house in the village of Ban phutsa. About 30 family and friends were in attendance at the ceremony. The purpose of the ceremony was for the younger people present in the house to ask for blessings and forgiveness from their parents and grandparents.

The ceremony was attended by the Achaan (Abott) from the neigbouring village of Ban Ta Ban together with a novice monk. After performing the blessing and delivering a sermon, the Achaan asked whether anybody had any questions. One of the people attending asked in a very innocent way whether it was possible to gamble to excess yet remain a good Buddhist. Everybody in the room burst out laughing.

The Achaan answered the question seriously but out of the corner of my eye I noticed the Novice Monk shaking uncontrollably with laughter and a huge smile breaking out across his brown face. In doing this he had certainly broken several monastic rules but it spoke volumes about an unwritten rule of Buddhist practice in Thailand.

The rule that expresses a reverence for life irrespective of what other rules are broken"

I would agree that the anecdote above is not earth shattering. However I have always found it remarkable that when you confront the great ocean of thought that is Buddhism, its incidents like the smiling Novice that tend to explain much.