Wat Plai Laem Buddhist Temple

Wat Plai Laem Buddhist temple was beautiful & colorful. *Read on for some history…..

Almost 95% of Thailand practices Buddhism which is estimated to have come here around 250 BC. Thai males are strongly encouraged to “follow” tradition & become a monk for a period of time. They wear orange robes & shave their heads & eyebrows. They have more than 300 precepts or rules that they must follow to gain enlightenment…they can not work…all of their possessions or food or shelter must be donated to them & they can do no harm to any living creature. They must not indulge in any luxury or excess including romance. Most monks stay in the practice about 3-6 months but some only as long as a day or two & some for life.

Thailand currently has about 300,000 monks and only 100 of them are women. Due in part to a technicality that says women can only be brought in by other women, and because centuries ago the original lineage of female monks who were ordained during Buddha’s time have died out. The women monks currently alive have come into Buddhism by forging their own way, being ordained in another country & then making their way back home to native Thailand where they face many obstacles to acceptance.