The practice of Buddha Dhamma is the true thing that matters.

The practice of Buddha Dhamma is the true thing that matters. 

Recently there has been much discussion in the Thai Buddhist circles about a popular scholar monk who disrobed and signed a contract to be a product brand ambassador. This is the translation of a reflection of a Thai Buddhist who penned a piece to express his thoughts.

When I was a child, I thought that a Phra, who shaved his head and eyebrows, and put on the saffron robes, must be the best and most noble of all people. Why did I think so? 

Well, firstly, I saw that there were so many people who paid their greatest respects to the Phra. 

They would wake up early in the morning, make the effort to buy ingredients to cook for them, or for those who don’t have the time to cook, to buy food from the market stalls, awaiting the Phra who would then go on almsround after dawn. 

During the most important moments in a Thai person’s life, the Phra will always be there with us. For example, when a baby is born, the Phra would be consulted to give the newborn a good name. Or when we celebrate our birthdays, we might go to the temple to make merit or ask for a blessing. Or invite the Phra to anoint our car that we have just bought so that we will be safe on the roads. 

They are also invited to businesses and shops to ensure continued prosperity, and finally during our last part of our lives, when we are ill and sick, we turn to the Phra for advice, comfort and Dhamma, to soothe our minds as we get ready to depart. 

Finally, they are still there for us to send us off during the funeral. 

This was the “monk” as I understood him when I was a child. Of course, after I grew up to be an adult, my outlook on the matter matured as well.

Firstly, monks are often ranked according to the number of vassas (rains retreats) that they have spent in the robes. But does the number of rains really determine whether a person has actually obtained anything useful from his ordination? 

There are many Pali or Dhamma exams and different levels. But even if one is a Pali 9 scholar, or passed the highest Dhamma exam, does that mean this person truly grasps the foundation of the Dhamma?

That the practice is the true thing that matters, how one behaves, carries himself, his manner and etiquette as a monk, these are things that truly reflect a monk’s value. 

And that the Buddha Dhamma, or the teachings of the Buddha and the law of nature, has always been luminous and has never changed or wavered. 

But retrogression can occur in the hearts of the people who have gone forth for ordination...

☸ Dhammapada: 

367. He who has no attachment whatsoever for the mind and body, who does not grieve for what he has not -- he is truly called a monk.

368. The monk who abides in universal love and is deeply devoted to the Teaching of the Buddha attains the peace of Nibbana, the bliss of the cessation of all conditioned things.

375. Control of the senses, contentment, restraint according to the code of monastic discipline — these form the basis of holy life here for the wise monk.

During those moments when we feel so low, the ever luminous Buddha Dhamma is indeed the medicine, solace and inspiration 

🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻