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Buddhism in a muslim state: Theravada practices and religious life in Kelantan

Although Kelantan is noted for its orthodoxy, in particular with regard to national politics and local practices of Islam, Theravada Buddhism seems to thrive very well among the local Thai ethnic group. This is testified by the fact that there are twenty temples in the state with a full-fledged Sang...

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Main Author: Mohamed Yusoff Ismail,
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Journal of Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities. Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2006
Online Access:http://journalarticle.ukm.my/901/1/buddism.pdf
http://journalarticle.ukm.my/901/
http://www.ukm.my/e-bangi
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spelling my-ukm.journal.9012016-12-14T06:28:18Z http://journalarticle.ukm.my/901/ Buddhism in a muslim state: Theravada practices and religious life in Kelantan Mohamed Yusoff Ismail, Although Kelantan is noted for its orthodoxy, in particular with regard to national politics and local practices of Islam, Theravada Buddhism seems to thrive very well among the local Thai ethnic group. This is testified by the fact that there are twenty temples in the state with a full-fledged Sangha organization, whose monks also serve in major towns outside the state. This paper describes some aspects of Theravada religious life in the Malay Muslim state of Kelantan, located south of Thai-Malaysian border in the east coast of the Malay Peninsula. The main concern of this paper is to examine how Thai Theravada Buddhism places itself in the context of a predominantly Malay society and adapts to local social and cultural conditions. The paper will give particular attention to the sociological and anthropological factors contributing to the non-antagonistic nature of relationship between Buddhism and Islam. Part of the answer can be traced to the historical origin of Buddhist temples in the area and also from the adaptive mechanism Theravada Buddhism has made in order to accommodate itself to the demand of the larger society in which the Thais are a minority group. In terms of its ecclesiastical organization, the Sangha body of Kelantan maintains a close link with the Thai clergy, the latter being the source of religious reference and validation. The proximity of Kelantan to Thailand also means that Buddhism in Kelantan operates within a larger religious and cultural network which transcends international political boundary. Journal of Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities. Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2006 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://journalarticle.ukm.my/901/1/buddism.pdf Mohamed Yusoff Ismail, (2006) Buddhism in a muslim state: Theravada practices and religious life in Kelantan. e-BANGI: Jurnal Sains Sosial dan Kemanusiaan, 1 (1). pp. 1-12. ISSN 1823-884x http://www.ukm.my/e-bangi
institution Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
building Perpustakaan Tun Sri Lanang Library
collection Institutional Repository
continent Asia
country Malaysia
content_provider Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
content_source UKM Journal Article Repository
url_provider http://journalarticle.ukm.my/
language English
description Although Kelantan is noted for its orthodoxy, in particular with regard to national politics and local practices of Islam, Theravada Buddhism seems to thrive very well among the local Thai ethnic group. This is testified by the fact that there are twenty temples in the state with a full-fledged Sangha organization, whose monks also serve in major towns outside the state. This paper describes some aspects of Theravada religious life in the Malay Muslim state of Kelantan, located south of Thai-Malaysian border in the east coast of the Malay Peninsula. The main concern of this paper is to examine how Thai Theravada Buddhism places itself in the context of a predominantly Malay society and adapts to local social and cultural conditions. The paper will give particular attention to the sociological and anthropological factors contributing to the non-antagonistic nature of relationship between Buddhism and Islam. Part of the answer can be traced to the historical origin of Buddhist temples in the area and also from the adaptive mechanism Theravada Buddhism has made in order to accommodate itself to the demand of the larger society in which the Thais are a minority group. In terms of its ecclesiastical organization, the Sangha body of Kelantan maintains a close link with the Thai clergy, the latter being the source of religious reference and validation. The proximity of Kelantan to Thailand also means that Buddhism in Kelantan operates within a larger religious and cultural network which transcends international political boundary.
format Article
author Mohamed Yusoff Ismail,
spellingShingle Mohamed Yusoff Ismail,
Buddhism in a muslim state: Theravada practices and religious life in Kelantan
author_facet Mohamed Yusoff Ismail,
author_sort Mohamed Yusoff Ismail,
title Buddhism in a muslim state: Theravada practices and religious life in Kelantan
title_short Buddhism in a muslim state: Theravada practices and religious life in Kelantan
title_full Buddhism in a muslim state: Theravada practices and religious life in Kelantan
title_fullStr Buddhism in a muslim state: Theravada practices and religious life in Kelantan
title_full_unstemmed Buddhism in a muslim state: Theravada practices and religious life in Kelantan
title_sort buddhism in a muslim state: theravada practices and religious life in kelantan
publisher Journal of Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities. Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
publishDate 2006
url http://journalarticle.ukm.my/901/1/buddism.pdf
http://journalarticle.ukm.my/901/
http://www.ukm.my/e-bangi
_version_ 1643734835807649792
score 13.211869

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