The reverence by the Tunic Buddhist monk with saffron is deeply interwoven in Thai society, but a sexual extortion scandal has made the clergy and have left the devotees by questioning their faith.
Thai police arrested this week a woman accused of bedding at least 11 monks in violation of her celibacy votes, before blackmailing them with thousands of photos in secret of their appointments.
It is said that the monks have paid almost $ 12 million, they were eliminated from their monasteries, financed by donations of lay people in the hope of increasing their merit and perspectives of reincarnation.
The scandal caused indignation about hypocrisy in the monk, cares that their status protects them from scrutiny and seeks throughout society about the role of religion.
“I’m not involved in religion as it used to be,” said Mongkol Sudathip of the 33 -year -old motorcycle. AFP. “I don’t have full respect anymore.”
King Maha Vajiralongkorn has canceled invitations to more than 80 monks that had been to attend his next 73 birthday celebrations, citing “an inappropriate behavior that caused mental anguish among the Thai people.”
Although the 11 monks have been stripped of their robes, the National Office of Buddhism of the Kingdom has promised to “restore public trust” with a broad police investigation on the dirty matter.
‘Attitude wasting’
Theravada’s Buddhism has been the spiritual spine of Thai identity for more than two millennia, and still shapes national laws that prohibit alcohol in religious parties and the protection of sacred objects.
Thai men are expected to order as monks at least once in their lives during a period that lasts a few weeks or until decades. The clergy is bound by 227 strict rules, including a prohibition of masturbation, touching women and even handling objects directly from them.
The monks traditionally survive in alms, food offers and a modest monthly stipend of $ 170, but some pocket rates for conferences, blessings and ceremonies, blurring the line between faith and fortune.
In a television interview, the woman in the heart of the scandal said she had developed a “attitude waste” while her monk lovers lavished her with shopping trips worth up to $ 90,000 per day.
Mongkol motorcycle taxi driver said that he now prefers to donate hospitals or schools for disadvantaged children. “It feels more significant than giving money to temples,” he said AFP.
This month’s scandal is not the first to rock the Monkhood.
In 2017, the Police assaulted the Wat Dhammakaya temple north of Bangkok, arresting their old abbot for the accusations of washing of $ 33 million in public donations.
This May, the police occupied another monk in the capital for accusations of embezzlement of almost $ 10 million of a temple for an online gambling network.
The scholar of Buddhism Danai preechapermprasit said that repeated scandals, especially among the upper monks, have “shaken people to the center.”
“People questions if donations are used for spiritual importance or personal desire,” he said AFP. “I think Thailand has reached a point where it is difficult for monks even walking down the street.”
A powerful legislator has promised stricter regulations within three months, including the dissemination of mandatory donations and laws that deal with monk’s misconduct as a criminal offense.
“This case does not represent Buddhism in general,” National Police Chief Kitrat Panphet said Thursday, promising a new working group to investigate moody monks. “These are some people who do wrong,” he said.
‘Never lose faith’
In the Buddhist tradition, the monks are seen as the spiritual heirs of the Buddha, confident of preserving and transmitting their teachings.
But at Wat Bowonniwet in Bangkok, one of Thailand’s most venerated temples, only 26 monks were ordered this year, a strong fall of almost 100 before the Covid-19 pandemic.
A monk there, speaking with AFP Anonymously, he blamed social changes after pandemic, which forced people to isolate themselves, saying today “people prefer to live outside the life of the temple.”
But the expert in independent Buddhism Jaturong Jongarsa said the temples are increasingly treated as “a garbage dump”, where families send drug addicts or LGBTQ young people to be “corrected.”
“The temples are no longer seen as the sacred spaces that were once,” he said AFP. “People send their problems to the temple and expect them to leave.”
Even so, not all Thai have lost faith.
Camchun Parimiphut, a 52 -year -old security guard from Maha Sarakham in the Northeast of Thailand, said: “Buddhism is about teachings, not the people who fail it.”
Due to corruption scandals, now avoids money from monks, preferring to donate only food. But his devotion remains firm.
“You can lose faith in the monks,” he said. “But never lose confidence in Buddhist teachings. They still teach us how to live a good life.”
