The veneer of Buddhism is pretty thin here, sometimes. Thailand is the land of temples, monks, Buddhism but yes, also of what others might call Black Magic. Sympathetic Magic, to be exact. What's that? Well, it's basically the practice of magic that underpins the idea of a voodoo doll.
Sympathetic Magic: a form of magic based on the idea that someone can be magically affected by an object or action that represents or is connected with them. Source
And so it came to pass that as I was scanning the local Thai news for updates on Covid travel, tropical storm warnings and changes to the tax-payment gateway issues, that I came across this:
A temple in Suphanburi province cremated a man made of straw on Monday. The name of the deceased was Mr Covid Omicron. He was two. The cremation at Wat Phai Kaek was meant to drive away COVID-19. Source
And yes, I laughed. 🤣 Out loud. 🤣 As if this ritual demonstration would suddenly stop the endless obsession with Covid, travel restrictions and those blasted vaxx and booster arguments.
It's all a VERY long way from the Four Noble truths of Theravada Buddhism:
1 All beings experience pain and misery (dukkha) during their lifetime:
“Birth is pain, old age is pain, sickness is pain, death is pain; sorrow, grief, sorrow, grief, and anxiety is pain. Contact with the unpleasant is pain. Separating from the pleasant is pain. Not getting what one wants is pain. In short, the five assemblies of mind and matter that are subject to attachment are pain“.
2 The origin (samudaya) of pain and misery is due to a specific cause:
“It is the desire that leads to rebirth, accompanied by pleasure and passion, seeking pleasure here and there; that is, the desire for pleasures, the desire for existence, the desire for non-existence“.
3 The cessation (nirodha) of pain and misery can be achieved as follows:
“With the complete non-passion and cessation of this very desire, with its abandonment and renunciation, with its liberation and detachment from it“.
4 The method we must follow to stop pain and misery is that of the Noble Eightfold Path. Source
And nowhere in that Noble Eightfold Path do we see anything about magic rituals to offset the perceived evils of the outer world. For indeed, the teachings of Gautama Siddhartha are ALL about managing the INNER response, the INNER landscape that brings one to peace and enlightenment.
But yes, it's COMMON for Thai people to participate in mock funerals, and it's often seen particularly at the New Year (both Thai - Songkran - and Western New year), when Thai people will symbolically go through traditional funeral rites in order to "die to their old selves and their old bad luck" and arise, reborn, as new, luckier and released from their old karma. Have a look at this and be amazed:
Thailand Brings in New Year with Traditional Funeral Rituals
What I LOVE about Thailand is its ability to embrace contrasts and things that are seemingly opposed. It's not hardline, much. And one of the most commonly used sayings is "Up to you!"
And so there were no hardline responses from the Buddhist Sangha about this seeming aberration within the state religion. The officiating monk wasn't ticked off or threatened with defrocking or expulsion.
A few of us expats rolled our eyes a little 🙄😂 and I'm sure many of the Christian missionary communities here held fervent prayer meetings. But by and large, it was accepted as another step in the national recovery effort, and reported as news.
But what's truly amazing?
Exactly 3 days and 3 nights later (symbolic much?) Covid has all but disappeared from the front pages of the Thai News!! And suddenly the new "buzz" is incoming war and how it might affect a country all but on its economic knees. How easily we are distracted!
So the burning question that might well be asked is did the ritual actually work??
Pondering the incredibly diverse world I live in here, with its almost seamless integration of history, culture, religion and economics... all wonderfully blurred. Thinking about magic and how we DO affect the world around us with our thoughts, our 'vibe', our rituals and our intention, and how maybe the Buddha had it right. Only he didn't need the straw guy in a burning box to make his point.
Never a Dull Day in the Kingdom!
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