Nirvana for Sale? : Buddhism, Wealth, and the Dhammakaya Temple in Contemporary Thailand

by Scott, Rachelle M.

• ISBN13: 9781438427836
• ISBN10: 1438427832
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-09-10
• Publisher: State Univ of New York Pr

Summary

What is the proper relationship between religion and prosperity? Rachelle M. Scott looks at this issue in a Thai Buddhist context, asking when the relationship between Buddhist piety and wealth is viewed in favorable terms and when it is viewed in terms of conflict and tension. Scott focuses on the Dhammakya Temple, an organization that has placed traditional Theravda practices, such as meditation and merit-making, within a modernist framework that encourages personal and social prosperity. The Temple's construction of a massive religious monument in the late 1990s embodied this message, but also sparked criticism of the Temple's wealth and fund-raising techniques and engendered debates over authentic Buddhism and religious authority. Scott situates this controversy within the context of postmodern Thailand and the Asian economic crisis when revaluations of wealth, global capitalism, and "Asian values" occupied a preeminent place in Thai public discourse.

Author Biography

Rachelle M. Scott is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Tennessee.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	p. ix
Acknowledgments	p. xi
Note on Transliteration and Terminology	p. xiii
Introduction	p. 1
Buddhism, Renunciation, and Prosperity	p. 19
Modernity, Prosperity, and the Dhammak?ya Temple	p. 47
The Mahathammakai Chedi and Postmodern Merit Making	p. 89
The Dhammak?ya Controversy: Piety, Wealth, and Authority	p. 129
Consumerism and Commercialization of Buddhism	p. 157
Conclusion	p. 181
Notes	p. 189
Bibliography	p. 223
Index	p. 239
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.