Buddhist followers cling to their beliefs in wake of temple fund embezzlement
The recent arrests of five senior monks from three temples in Bangkok over alleged temple fund embezzlement has not deterred Buddhist faithful from making merit and associating with other monks, especially at Wat Sa Ket, which is one of Bangkok’s major tourist attractions.
About 200 police commandos from the Crime Suppression Division (CSD) raided Wat Sam Phraya, Wat Sa Ket and Wat Samphanthawong on May 24 over National Office of Buddhism (NOB) complaints that seven senior monks were involved in the embezzlement of funds meant for Buddist activities.
Five were arrested at the scene, one later surrendered to police while another senior monk fled to Germany.
Observers feared the scandal may have affected people’s faith in Buddhism, prompting them to stop visiting temples, giving alms for monks and talking to monks.
However, most Buddhists see things differently and still attend the three temples even though fewer visitors were seen at Wat Sam Phraya and Wat Samphanthawong when the Bangkok Post visited.
Wat Sa Ket, one of Bangkok’s major attractions, still attracts flocks of tourists mostly from Vietnam and China, who come to visit the popular “Golden Mountain” situated within the temple grounds.
The attitude of the people towards Buddhism and the temple itself seems to be unswayed by the scandals, Buddhists at Wat Sa Ket said.
Also, many visitors professed their unwavering faith in the religion.
Srirut Sriyanayong 25, a visitor to Wat Sa Ket, said the recent events had not affected her faith in Buddhism as she does not associate the wrongdoings of the monks with the temple or the religion as a whole.
“I put my faith in the religion, not the temple or any individual monk,” she said.
When asking about the monks who were arrested, she said: “Once you are in the monkhood, you should be indifferent to worldly matters”, adding the police should do more to crack down on corrupt and misbehaving monks to clear the image of Buddhism in Thailand.
From the perspective of Tinna Saorangtoy, a 36-year-old tour guide who was accompanying a group of Western visitors at Wat Sa Ket, there have been visibly fewer Thais at the temple since the scandal broke, adding that a decline in international tourists can also be observed.
“I think foreigners don’t really care about the scandals. But still, before the news broke, I usually escorted about 5-10 foreign visitors a day but now only around 1-2,’’ she said.
Ms Tinna said that before the raids Thai visitors usually flocked to the temple, but once the news broke, she saw a decline.
Her concern, however, is that the scandal will affect Buddhists who do not follow the teachings of Buddha but instead cling to their faith in the virtues of individual monks.
“Buddhists can be swayed when they lack true understanding in religious concepts. I want all Buddhists to follow the teaching of Buddha and they must put their faith neither in any individual monk nor temple,’’ she said
A 52-year-old woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, said she was keen to see the former abbot Phra Phrom Sitthi released from custody as Wat Sa Ket had been quieter than usual recently.
However, even after the scandal, she said her faith in him is unwavering, attesting adamantly: “I just cannot believe it’’.
Professing her loyalty to him, she stated that he was a good monk who had always treated all of his followers equally.
“I feel connected to him. He is very compassionate. I have faith in him,” she said.
She said she and other followers did not believe the allegations are true and were worried that the scandal had stained the image of Buddhism.
Temple staff, however, were reticent when approached for comment.
A ticket booth operator, who asked not to be named, said the number of visitors is not declining at all, and Thai visitors, as well as tourists, still flock to the temple to worship at the Golden Mountain.
He said events in the news had not affected the number of visitors in any way. However, many of the staff did not wish to be interviewed or give any comments regarding the scandal.
Frequent visitors to Wat Sam Phraya and disciples of former abbot Phra Phrom Dilok still believe in the innocence of the former abbot even though he has been charged with temple fund embezzlement. The former monk is being detained at Bangkok Remand Prison. He is among seven former senior monks implicated after an investigation into the misuse of temple funds led to raids by Crime Suppression Division (CSD) police on Wat Sam Phraya, Wat Sa Ket and Wat Samphanthawong on May 24.
Several days after the Wat Sam Phraya raid, the Bangkok Post visited and found the ambience of the temple in Phra Nakhon district was calm and serene.
Even at the construction site of one of the new buildings in the temple’s precinct, the workers seemed preternaturally relaxed as they went about their duties.
One or two monks and novice monks could also be seen idly milling around the area.
In another area of the grounds, six women and one man had gathered inside the temple’s kitchen to prepare lunch for the novices who were preparing to participate in study sessions held at the temple’s Buddhism school.
The Post talked to a group of the women, asking them whether they had heard about the alleged involvement of the former abbot in the widely-reported scandal.
They all said that they had heard the news but didn’t know the whole story as they hadn’t been following events in the media.
“I didn’t really pay attention. I come here to make merit by preparing lunch for the monks,’’ said Ms Narissara Hengcharoen, owner of a noodle restaurant in Bang Na district, who was busy preparing a meal for the teachers and students.
“I don’t even know what happened. We come here because the monks and novice monks still need to eat,” chimed in one of Ms Narissara’s friends who was also there to help in the kitchen.
Ms Narissara said that having had spent her childhood in the community next to the temple, she believes the abbot is a good person and she still loves and respects him.
Attesting to the innocence of the abbot, she said: “He probably didn’t do such thing. It’s just not possible.’’
Ms Narissara said he was a kind and compassionate person. She did, however, also say that whatever the result of the police investigation, her faith would be unaffected.
“Even if the accusation was proved to be true, we come here for the temple, not for any individual,’’ she said.
Her sister Wanwisa Hengcharoen, who still lives in a house next to the temple, said over the sound of clanking kitchenware that she too didn’t pay much attention to what happened.
Like her sister, she comes to the temple because she likes to prepare lunch for the monks as a means of merit making.
“I am not attached to any one person — I come here for the monks and novice monks who have to be taken care of,’’ she said.
The women said the scandal should not prevent people from visiting and that the temple is usually still full on merit making days.
Observing proceedings in the kitchen from a distance was 64-year-old Prasert Mhendang, the chief cook who started working there some 20 years ago.
She, along with her two daughters, works as a cook for the temple on a salary of 7,000 baht a month.
Ms Prasert recalled the time when she first visited the holy site before it was renovated and when former monk Phra Phrom Dilok was still low-ranking in the clergy.
Initially reluctant to speak up at first, she later agreed to talk because she said she wanted people to hear the other side of the story.
She said the former abbot was a good character who had never mistreated her in all the time they had known each other.
“I’ve known him for over 20 years. He is a good man,’’ she said.
Discussing the temple raid by the police on May 24, Ms Prasert said she and other devotees were upset with the rough, impolite manner of the officers when arresting Phra Phrom Dilok who, as a high-level monk, deserved to be treated with more respect. The government later weighed in to criticise police for the way they had handled some of the raids.
“They did not even attempt to invite him to visit the police station to answer questions. They just showed up and arrested him,’’ she said.
Adding her voice to the chorus of opinion within the temple that the former abbot is innocent, Ms Prasert said: “I still think that it is impossible that he would do such a thing.’’
Ms Prasert and other devotees have been to see the former abbot in prison.
However, she said his lawyer advised them not to visit again for reasons that were not made clear to her.
She said she and other followers are still waiting for the former abbot to come back to them and that they hope the police will allow him to be released on bail.
“I will wait for him to come back,’’ she said.