- Author:
- Wright, Arnold
- Publication Info:
-
London:
Lloyd's Greater Britain Pub. Co.,
1908,
pg 210
Text on page 210
64
TWENTIETH CENTIJRV IMPRESSIONS OF SIAM 210
these labours was written on palm-leaves in Cambodian characters, and was deposited in the Mandiradharma hall, in Wat Phra Keo,
built expressly for that purpose, and there the original copy is kept at the present time, known under the name of " Thong Yai." Of the kings who followed, more special mention must be made of Phra Nang Klao, who, through the building of temples in his reign, may be said to have revived the art of sacred architecture. Of King Mongkut (1851-68) we shall have occasion to speak in connection with the development of Buddhism in modern times.
The tenth council may be said to have taken place during the present reign. The king decided to print and distribute, in commemoration of the completion of a reign of twenty-five years (1893), a full edition of the Tipitaka. Again a meeting of the archpriests was convened whose duty it was to prepare critically the text. The text was constituted after a comparison with the best MSS. available in Cambodia, Burma, and Ceylon, and also with some of the printed editions as published in Europe. Recourse in doubtful cases wras made to the commentaries and the various readings were added. The text constitutes the editio princeps of the Tipitaka. It is printed in the common Siamese characters, which lend themselves well to that purpose, as they, as is
known, also present a modification of an Indian alphabet. The edition contains the whole text of the Tipitaka with the exception
of the Jataka, the text of which has not yet been published in full. These birth stories are well known and held in high esteem in Siam, and often form the subject of sermons. They may, however, be said only to be considered sacred on account of the moral precepts they inculcate, whilst the stories are looked upon as apologues.
The religion of the Buddha is one and the same in the countries which take as a basis the Southern Canon, and that, as professed in Siam, has kept singularly free from esoteric and outside influence. There are, properly speaking, no sects. The king, as " Supporter of the Faith," stands at the head of the Church, and appointments to the hierarchical order are made by him. The titles bestowed on the ecclesiastical dignitaries designate the office which the incumbents occupy in the Church, and the names given are to a great extent those we find in the history of the Buddhist Church. Whilst the capital was in Ayuthia two congregations of priests were distinguished by nameathe Gamavasi, those living in temples, and the Arannavasi, those living in secluded places or in the forest, as was already the case in primitive Buddhism. The former were primarily engaged in the acquisition of literary
knowledge, whilst the latter tried to acquire spiritual insight, but in the doctrine they profess there is, of course, no difference. They formed together the Mahanikaya, the great Fraternity. The Gamavasi were formed into two congregations, those of the North and South, with an archpriest for each, and it may be well to explain that the expression Northern and Southern congregation is perhaps to be understood not so much in a geographical sense as showing the two original forms of Buddhism prevalent in Siam, that of the Northern and Southern schools. To the Arannavasi, who were under a separate archpriest as the middle congregation, were added the congregations of Mon and Laos. When the capital was established in Bangkok the same hierarchical order was practically followed, but in the reign of Phra Nang Klao (1824-51) a new division of priests was created by the Prince Chao Fa Mongkut (the King Phra Chom Klao), who, as is known, remained in the priesthood during the whole reign of his half-brother Phra Nang Klao, until he himself was called to the throne. He laid, whilst in the priesthood, the foundation of the Dharmayutika school. This was officially recognised when he came to the throne, and an archpriest was appointed at its head. It is only, however, in a very restricted sense that the Dharmayutika can be called a separate school. The aim of the king in founding it was to bring the practice of Buddhism back to its pristine purity, to conform to the rules laid down for the guidance of the priesthood in the Tipitaka, to free it from extraneous matter. With the doctrine itself he interfered in no way, full scope was allowed to research, and whilst in going back to the original source the school may be considered orthodox, it was, in fact, more liberal. We find thus, at the present time, the following congregations in Siam : the Northern and Southern and the Arannavasi forming the Mahanikaya, the Dharmayutika school, and further the Mon, the Annamese and Chinese congregations. The Mon congregation follows absolutely the Pali Canon, whilst the Chinese and Annamese congregation follow the Northern Canon. For the worldly affairs of the temples a layman is now appointed who has to give an account of all financial matters to the Ministry of Public Worship, on whom, also, the priests and temples are dependent for all disciplinary affairs, w7ith the exception, of course, of those affecting the doctrine.
Primitive Buddhism necessarily knew7 of no fixed residences for the priests, of no temples and places of worship. The duty of the brethren was to wander about to proclaim the doctrine to the people, and to instruct them ; they only looked for shelter against the inclemency of the weather in the rainy season, and it is thus that later on the custom was established for the priests that they must retire in the rainy season. The more Buddhism developed the more the want of buildings for shelter was felt, and in all countries where Buddhism was professed the building of temples and the casting and reproducing of images of the Buddha, and of his disciples and of episodes of the life of the founder, were considered meritorious acts. In Siam itself temples were erected by the kings to commemorate their reigns, and also by nobles and people.
The first and most sacred building in the temple grounds is the Uposatha building. In it the congregation meets, and in it all ecclesiastical votes and resolutions are taken. It is in this building that the Patimokha is rehearsed on sacred days, on the new and full moon, and where the ordination service of priests and the Kathin ceremony, the bestowal of garments on the priests, take place. The building is surrounded by semas (boundary marks), and outside these no ceremony is possible. The next building of importance, and without which no temple is complete, is
CHIEF ENTRANCE TO WAT PHRA KEO.CHIEF ENTRANCE TO WAT PHRA KEO.
