The Effects of Food on Thai Cultures: Part 9
by This is the ninth and final part of a multi part article that looks in depth at the effects food has played in the cultures found in the lands currently known as Thailand. In this part Buddhism and Thai food, as well as, food and popular are discussed in regard to Thai cultures are discussed.
Buddhism and Thai food
Thailand is a devoutly Buddhist country, with around 95% of the population practicing their religion regularly. Thais eat flesh in one form or another in virtually every dish. Thailand follows the Theravada School of Buddhism whose canon is the Tipitaka in which several types of food are expressly forbidden. They include; dog, elephant, horse, snake and human. The noble eightfold path, through the auspices of Right Action and Right Livelihood forbids both the killing and the occupation of butchery to both the laity and laymen. Interestingly, monks are expressly forbidden to eat meat that has been specifically killed for them. That includes animals that have been expressly reared as food. For the laity, the occupation of butcher was proscribed by The Buddha and was traditionally performed by the poorest and or non-Buddhist Thais, Muslims mostly. It must be kept in mind that a device, such as excommunication in Roman Catholicism, does not exist in Buddhism and any misdemeanors are considered to be dealt with at a karmic level. That said, monks can be defrocked, albeit not for eating meat.
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The tenets from the eightfold path that pertain to food are, amongst others; II: Right Thought – Thought free from cruelty (avihimsa- san Rappa) IV: Right Action – Abstaining from killing (panatipala) V: Right Livelihood – butchery is a proscribed occupation.
The great strength and moral force of Buddhist philosophy lays in its accessibility to any and all. It is non dogmatic, non didactic, subtle and benign. Very few things are expressly prohibited and a lay person cannot be ‘excommunicated’. This was a deliberate act by Buddha to ensure the longevity of his movement and to allow less sophisticated belief systems to exist alongside his teachings. The aim was and is clear. To allow people to discover enlightenment for themselves by whatever vehicle they choose. That the road to enlightenment requires increasing awareness and mindfulness, infers very directly therefore that the primitive will give way to the sophisticated. In the same way that Buddhism allows the worship of idols as a transitory medium to the abnegation of idolatry, so does it clearly allow the eating of meat on the path of cruelty free, symbiotic and harmonic co-existence with all other life. Buddhism is clearly an enlightened philosophy that would allow all things to live peacefully and fruitfully if it were followed devoutly. Thailand has inherited a rich and wise religion and one can only wonder in awe at its potential for further achievement.
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