Decked with Compassion and Wisdom (Interview with Thai Monk Thanoun)

During summer holiday, some of the monks in Hoang Phap monastery, who are studying at Mahachulalonkon University, invite four monks from Thailand and Myanma to visit the monastery. We have an occasion to conduct an interview with Venerable Thanoun about his study as well as way of practice.

1. How do you introduce briefly\r\nabout yourself?

My Dharma name is Thanoun\r\nKomarachunna, I am a Thai monk born in province Prachinburi- Thailand, my\r\nmother’s homeland. Since a child, I have got education in capital Bangkok.\r\nThen, I passed the exams and was admitted to Royal Thai Navy College. My job was\r\nsending permissions to the approaching foreign warships. That job has lasted\r\nfor 5 years before my ordainment.

2. Could you please tell us about\r\nthe Thai Buddhist tradition?

In Thailand, there are many\r\nBuddhist followers. We practice the Buddha’s teachings to become true Buddhists.\r\nAccording to Thai Buddhist tradition, we always follow Buddha's teachings to\r\nhelp people obtain peace and happiness. All I am doing are for the sake of\r\ncompassion and deliverance.

Every morning, I go for alms.\r\nGenerally, on Buddhist holidays, Buddhists go to pagodas listening to dharma\r\ntalks. Laypeople always take the five precepts as the base for their practice. Thailand\r\nhas been considered as a peaceful and friendly land. Why? Because we have got a\r\nvery great king. Everyone, including me, a monk, always pay respect, gratitude\r\nto him. He has tried his best for the country’s prosperity and development.

3. Why did you decide to be a\r\nmonk in very first place?

I have experienced and seen lots\r\nof sufferings in my life as well as others’; I’d love reading books that relate\r\nto Buddhist teaching. One day, I happened to read a vegan book, which states: “For\r\nthe food that human has heartlessly killed other animals in painful ways”. I\r\nmyself was one of a case. I have made lots of slaughtering karma. Repenting of\r\nsuch sinful actions, I became a vegan since then.

Also in that year, there were\r\nbloody fights between students and the government which led to lots of massacred\r\nstudents. I suffered great misery then. Deep in my mind, I always desire peace\r\nfor everyone. Soon after that, I decided to devote my life as a monk. As I\r\nremembered, it was 45 years ago. I am 67 years old now.

4. You are studying master\r\nprogram of Buddhist studies at the Mahachulalonkon University at the age of 67.\r\nWhat are the motivation and will that make you do this?

I’d like the saying: “You are\r\nnot too old to learn”. It’s this sentence that has motivated me with my studying.\r\nBesides, my success is based on my family’s effective supports in terms of material\r\nand mentality. Not just at this level, I will keep on with PhD degree if I'm\r\nhealthy enough then.

In Thailand, most of monks,\r\nafter ordainment, themselves have to prepare their own budgets for education,\r\npracticing, living expenses and so on. It’s quite different from Vietnam where\r\nmonk’s master is the one in charge.

5. According to the Theravada\r\ntradition in Thailand, the monks go for alms daily and consume whatever kinds\r\nof offered food, mostly non-vegetarian food. In the mean time, you are a vegan.\r\nWhy?

I’d love Buddha’s teaching of\r\nnon-killing. I never think of using other’s life to feed myself. It’s heartless and contrary to Buddha's\r\nteachings. Besides, doctors say “vegan is good for health”. With such perception, I feel relieved in my\r\nheart during meditation because animal is for friend, neither for food nor for\r\nenemy. It means to say, no more animal is buried in my stomach.

Currently I encountered a\r\nmajor obstacle dealing with the mass, my vegan. As you already know, according\r\nto Thai Buddhist tradition, it is not a must for monk to be vegan. But with\r\ncompassion, I cannot eat meat, although I was allowed to do so as long as it is\r\n“non- seen, non-doubt, non-acknowledged” about that food.

Nevertheless, I do not\r\nrequire vegan food from Buddhists. Instead, I do the alms as normal and then\r\nshare the non-vegan ones to other monks.

I always hear unfriendly\r\nwords at school as: “that one is both old and vegan” which are difficult for Thai\r\nmonks to do.

Finally I would like to\r\nappreciate the merit of Hoang Phap’s Abbot who has facilitated and helped me\r\nwith all his heart during my stay here, as well as my tour in Vietnam. I do not\r\nknow what else to say but sending my profound gratitude to the monks who have supported\r\nand accompanied me in this meaningful trip.

Followings are some photographs: