Pious Isolation? The Day-to-Day Life of a Thai Monk [Season 4, Episode 26]

First of all, a public service announcement: Our friend
Adam is coordinating a project to get soap, disinfectant, and
food to some of Bangkok's poorest communities. Just 300 THB
provides supplies for a family of 4. We donated 2,000THB - can
you match or or beat us? Head here for
more info.


As everyone is now dealing with isolation and minimalist
living in a way they never had to before, Greg interviews our
returning-est guest Phra Pandit on the day to day life of a monk.
From Phra Pandit's austere lodgings - a bare 3m by 4m room,
including little more than a few appliances, books, and a
sleeping mat - Phra Pandit reminisces about his early days after
ordination, when his only link to the Western world was BBC World
which he had to delicately find on a shortwave
radio. 


Eventually he found his way into a Thai university for
monks where he studied psychology (in Thai) as an undergraduate.
That followed with a long stint as a Master's student, largely to
maintain an education visa. Phra Pandit reveals that although
there's a separate process for foreign monks, they largely have
to deal with as much bureaucracy to get visas as other foreigners
do. Just because you wear the robes does not mean you get special
treatment from the government.


Greg and the Venerable Pandit also discuss a monk's social
life and even the rivalries and cliques that form in a temple,
the eventual goal of a person who joins the monkhood, the rules
(and un-rules) that monks are expected to follow - and what
happens when a monk wants out. Phra Pandit finishes with some
examples of those who left the monkhood, thinking they wanted a
'normal' life with a wife and family, only to hit 'ctrl-z' and
become a monk again!


As always, the podcast will continue to be
100% funded by listeners just like you who get
some special swag from us. And we'll keep our
Facebook, Twitter,
and LINE accounts active so you can
send us comments, questions, or whatever you want to
share.