The Role of Buddhist Monks on Community Economic in Nakornratchasima Province

บทคัดย่อ

After the Lord Buddha entered Parinirvana, spreading the message of Dharma became the mission of all Buddhist monks. From the 6th century A.D. up to present, Thai people have been influencing by Buddhism. Luang Pho Chalerm, one of the Buddhist monks who is working on upgrading the standard of living of inhabitants in Nakornratchasima province. He emphasizes on at least three activities: 1) spreading the Dharma and supporting all the work concerning villagers education. He sets up the Sunday Dharma school at Wat Nonmueng for monks, novices, students and laymen. When the Sunday Dharma school cannot continue working, he sets up the first new Buddha Kaset secondary school at Nakornratchasima, admitting the students in condition of an orphan, drug addicts, dissolute or with father or mother in jail. For more than 17 years the product of both schools are qualified and acceptable in corporations and colleges. 2) working on the activities concerning the community economy such as, persuading the inhabitants to increase savings, accommodating for buying two big earthen jars and toilet bog for all deprived families. He also encourages the families working on mixed farming or present day called sufficiency economy. Support villagers to set small catle rearing without consuming these creatures, even though they departed. 3) he conserves and improves the environment, develops the district infrastructure without the budget from the central government, develops and upgrades inhabitants daily lives to abandon allurements and habit of drinking liquor.

There are not less than 1,300 persons who used to be assisted or their daily lives become better. Luang Pho works on the very limited supporting from the central government because of the distortion of monks’ authority and government’s policy. Although the outcome of his working is very little on the economic significance as the method of mainstream economy, but the human life quality is hardly transformed into the numerical value.