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Nirvana for Sale?: Buddhism, Wealth, and the Dhammakāya Temple in Contemporary Thailand Paperback – Illustrated, September 17, 2009
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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 Dhammakāya Temple, an organization that has placed traditional Theravāda 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 reevaluations of wealth, global capitalism, and "Asian values" occupied a preeminent place in Thai public discourse.
- Print length256 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherState University of New York Press
- Publication dateSeptember 17, 2009
- Dimensions6 x 0.64 x 9 inches
- ISBN-101438427840
- ISBN-13978-1438427843
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Editorial Reviews
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"There are many laudable qualities of Scott's work this book is clear, well organized, and accessible to both students and scholars Scott has made a great contribution to the study of prosperity religions, as well as the fields of Thai studies and Buddhist studies." ― H-Net Reviews
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Product details
- Publisher : State University of New York Press; Illustrated edition (September 17, 2009)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 256 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1438427840
- ISBN-13 : 978-1438427843
- Item Weight : 12.8 ounces
- Dimensions : 6 x 0.64 x 9 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #551,858 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #144 in Theravada Buddhism (Books)
- #147 in Buddhist History (Books)
- #386 in Southeast Asia History
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About the author
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- Reviewed in the United States on February 23, 2022The author discusses the decadence and some alleged miracles of the Dhammakaya cult. She also discusses the corruption of Thai Buddhism in general and it's relationship to historic Buddhism and Thai culture. Overall it is a decent read as there are few English-language publications about these people. However, it's obvious that she is writing as an outsider scholar and not as a Dhammakaya insider.
You have to ask what is prompting followers to give so much money to this temple in comparison to others. I don't think it's just caused by the hallucinations of followers staring at the sun, stories of nuns catching bombs in midair, or any of the numerous other "miracles" documented in the founders' biographies. There's also a psychological, psychic, and spiritual component of cult membership, as documented by Rick Ross and Margaret Singer in their books.
It's no easy path for survivors of Dhammakaya-style mind control cults. We need to have more focus on what's really going on here. The only other English language information on the group is Mano Laohavanich's paper "Esoteric Teaching of Wat Phra Dhammakāya", but in general I'd recommend just staying far away from this cult if you ever encounter them as they are trying to expand outside Thailand to prey on the vulnerable in other countries too.