Showing 1 - 10 of 22
Dhammakaya is only a symptom
News, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 25/02/2015
» The Supreme Sangha Council has paid a high price for protecting the controversial Dhammakaya abbot and his empire. Now the tsunami of public anger is on the archaic body with roaring calls from all around for Sangha reform. It is about time.
Buddha's path must guide reform of clergy
News, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 07/06/2018
» The recent crackdown on the Sangha Supreme Council elders is long overdue. Corrupt monks in high places have escaped the law for far too long. But abuse of power will not go away as long as the clergy remains a closed, feudal autocracy under state patronage.
Stop the racist monks before it's too late
News, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 07/09/2017
» Will the ongoing genocide of the Rohingya in Myanmar's Rakhine state stoke tensions between Buddhists and Muslims in the region? Definitely.
Making Thai Buddhism relevant again
News, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 01/03/2017
» So the Dhammakaya Temple is a cult. So its leader reportedly claims to be a doomsday saviour who takes rich donors on a tour to heaven to see the Buddha. So it teaches its followers to buy premium spaces in heaven by donating to the temple. So its doctrine on the permanence of self is against Buddhism. So what?
Sangha crisis won't end with defrockment
News, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 21/03/2017
» Is it a political exchange? Has the government agreed to abort the legislative effort to regulate monks' money and assets in exchange for the clergy's ruling to disrobe the fugitive Dhammakaya sect leader?
Sangha Council's rigid control must ease
News, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 19/01/2017
» The newly amended Sangha Act may effectively put an end to the supreme patriarch nomination row, but it cannot restore public faith in the corruption-ridden clergy. Nor can it stop the popularity of the controversial Dhammakaya temple.
Grim future for bhikkhuni under CDC draft
News, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 20/04/2016
» A case of arson at a bhikkhuni centre in Rayong is shocking. Although it is yet to be determined what caused it -- land conflicts, gender discrimination, or both -- it is clear that it is not easy being a female monk. And the next charter -- if it passes the referendum -- will not make it any easier.
Military, Sangha share many similarities
News, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 09/03/2016
» The photo of a serene-looking monk being escorted out of a news conference by a group of police officers for a brief "discussion" was on the front page of most newspapers on Tuesday. Is it an image of religious peace versus state violence? Definitely not.
Dangerous path toward religious extremism
News, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 23/03/2016
» Ma Ba Tha is known across the world as a racist Buddhist organisation. Its work fans the flames of hatred and violence against Muslims in Myanmar, particularly the Rohingya in Rakhine State. Its most prominent leader is Ashin Wirathu, dubbed the "bin Laden of Buddhism" for his violent, religious extremism.
Clergy must drop its dependence on state
News, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 24/02/2016
» The Sangha Council and its supporters should realise one thing in their campaign to pressure the government to endorse the supreme patriarch of their choice: They can't have the cake and eat it too.