Keefe, Richard & Veronika Hyks
1996 Buddhism: Making of a Monk. World Religions Series no. 9. Princeton, NJ: Films for the Humanities and Sciences.
Notes: 1 videocassette (15 min.) :; sd., col ;; 1/2 in.Reviewed 17 Aug 2001 by:
Bradford Lee Eden <beden@ccmail.nevada.edu>
University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Nevada, USAMedium: Film/Video Subject
Keywords:Buddhism
ABSTRACT: This short video provides information on the making of a Buddhist monk in today's Thailand. Information on the religion itself, as well as an interview with a 16-year-old monk, are the main focus of the video.
This video is part of the World Religions/Worlds of Faith series by Cambridge Educational. The topic is Buddhism, and how this religion is observed in modern-day Thailand. The video interviews Thanan Polpitatchart, a 16-year-old monk in one of the many Buddhist temples in Thailand. Thanan was given to the monastery when he was 10 years old, and he plans to return to his village as a teacher once he completes his education in the monastery.Boys are often initiated as monks within Buddhism. They are given two items at that time: a saffron-colored robe and a covered brass bowl. The bowl is both symbolic and practical. Every morning, the boys make trips to neighboring villages in order to receive alms from the people, which are placed in the bowl. Thailand is 95% Buddhist, and the people strongly believe that the monks will give important blessings to them for the food that they give them. In this way, both the monks and the people benefit from the presence of the monastery. A short history of Buddhism is given, focusing on the three jewels of the religion: the Buddha (the person and his life), the Dhama (the religion's sacred writings), and the Sangha (the monks and nuns). The belief in reincarnation, the cycle of rebirth, and how the Buddhist monk tries to break this cycle of rebirth and suffering by achieving nirvana is discussed.
A typical day in the life of a Buddhist monk begins with receiving alms from the people, followed by a lunch and prayers. No solid food is allowed after midday. Free time in the afternoon usually involves meditation or trips to other nearby monasteries. In the late afternoon, the monks go to the computer room to study and receive education for when they will return to their communities and become part of the local economy and social structure. Some monks stay for life in the monastery, but the majority return to their villages.
I found this a very interesting and short look into the Buddhist religion. The scenes from Thailand show a thriving culture, which is based around the tenets of this religion. I was surprised to see the use of computers in the monasteries (a large room full of them was shown), so it is apparent that Thailand and the Buddhist religion there are extensively linked into the global network society and the Internet. Thanan's comments on his life and his future were very informative, and both theoretical and practical applications of the Buddhist religion were nicely presented in the short time period of the film.
This video would be very appropriate for classroom use. It is short, it provides a succinct introduction to Buddhist tenets, and the use of the interview technique with an actual monk provides a very human perspective to the information. I highly recommend it.
To cite this review, the American Anthropological Association recommends the following style:
Eden, Bradford Lee
2001 Review of Buddhism: Making of a Monk. Anthropology Review Database. August 17. Electronic document, http://wings.buffalo.edu/ARD/cgi/showme.cgi?keycode=1514, accessed November 22, 2009.© Anthropology Review Database
(available online: http://wings.buffalo.edu/ARD/)