An Analytical Study of Northern Indigenous Sermon Entitled Malaiphodlok

Abstract

             This Research article aims to 1) study the history and significance of the northern local sermon, Malai Phot Lok, 2) study the content and structure of the northern local sermon, Malai Phot Lok, and 3) analyze the northern local sermon, Malai Phot Lok. This is a documentary research, collecting data from books, documents, scriptures, journals, and theses. The data was analyzed by descriptive method.  

The research results found that 1. The history of Phra Malai is assumed to have existed since the Sukhothai period or earlier. It tells stories about hell, heaven, people who fall into hell and people who live in heaven. People who listen to it turn to Buddhism. The literature of Phra Malai has been written in many versions, including the northern version, which is a local version, a palm leaf book, and a local language used in recording. The Lanna Dharma script was disseminated in a local language. 2. The study of the content and structure of the northern local sermon, Malai Phot Lok, reveals the teachings on this matter: not to be careless in life because the consequences of karma if one commits immoral acts according to religious principles will have bad effects on the next life. The teaching of Malai Phot Lok is therefore a teaching of ethics. 3. From the analysis of the northern native sermon, Malai Phot Lok, it was found that the author used the concept from the teachings in the Tripitaka to take the essence of the Dharma to create literature that emphasizes the results of karma by describing images that shake both positive and negative feelings, that is, the result of doing good will lead to heaven, if doing bad will lead to hell. It is a teaching literature that meets the criteria of Buddhist ethics at all 3 levels.