“I, your father, am called Phra Ya Tak. I swear I will devote my heart and soul to liberate our beloved Kingdom. The freedom of this honorable land will be faithfully dedicated to the Lord Buddha and be a symbol of worshiping our sublime Buddhism” (authors translation).

Appearing in the Temple of Dawn, this inscription was originally announced by Phra Ya Tak or King Taksin the Great who liberated Thailand from the Burmese and combated with several enemies around the Kingdom. According to the message, the King’s expectations in every battle were not only to regain or maintain the independence of the realm, but also to glorify the exalted Buddhism. He sacrificed everything, including his life, in order to pay homage to the Lord Buddha.

In this example, the significance of royal influence (the royal institution is held in highest reverence and powerfully impacts Thai culture) on the heavily predominant Buddhist religion is demonstrated to extend back to earlier centuries. The Royal family as an institution has been a common factor within Thailand for many centuries; as has the worship of Buddha. Undoubtedly, Buddhism is profoundly ingrained in the heart of every living soul in Thailand and has powerfully influenced several prominent characteristics of Thai people.

First of all, Buddhism preaches Thais to be generous. According to Buddhist doctrine, Dana or giving is the very first and the easiest practice of making merit that the adherents should perform. In general, Buddhist Thais learn to willingly donate or offer their belongings to others. Moreover, another moral which is instilled in the mind of Buddhist Thais, and often closely related to Dana, is Metta, the desire to make others happy. Metta, according to the Lord Buddha, is the virtue which sustains the world. Unquestionably, both of these teachings contribute to charity of the whole society.

Predisposed by the religion, most Thai people are not possessive and can freely share their belongings with family, friends, and even some strangers to make them feel good.

Dana and Metta also apply to some smaller gestures in Thai Buddhists’ daily lives where Thai people often offer some assistance without any demand only to see others’ delighted expressions. This characteristic is highly admired around the world.

A government officer who participated in an international meeting gave the following comment about the foreigners’ impression of the kindness of Thais. He commented, “At the meeting, I got acquainted to an Indonesian participant so we decided to have dinner together. I reached our table first and picked two glasses of water, one for me and the other for her. As soon as she realized what I had done, she thanked me gratefully more than ten times. I was surprised to see such appreciation because this is such a normal practice for Thais.” (Translated from Orapin Khampeerpat Interview).

The wish to create joy through generosity and kindness is deeply seated in the local people’s hearts. Buddhism influences this behavior and makes Thais well-beloved for their generosity.

Karuna, the desire to liberate others from their pains, is another Buddhist doctrine which leads to a willingness to help those that are suffering. This is the reason why some sentences like “Are you OK?” or “Can I help you?” are regularly heard in this largest land of Buddhism. Unsurprisingly, many examples of the attempt to relieve troubles for many sufferers can be commonly found in Thailand.

One obvious illustration of this quality could be seen from tsunami disaster that occurred in the southern part of this country. On December 26, 2004, the severest disaster occurred in this peaceful area as a cruel tidal wave decimated towns, swallowed more than five thousand lives, including tourists and local residents, and injuring at least eight thousand more. During this tearful period a stream of help from every part of Thailand flowed to the victims. Thousands of volunteers worked day and night to help in any way possible.

These actions did more than help people recover their lives, but also healed their wounded hearts. Many victims of this catastrophe deeply appreciated the outpouring of local people’s kindness. A survivor, James Frimage, expressed his thankfulness through CNN on 30 December 2004. He mentioned that when he and his wife had lost their possessions and were separated from their children, a man had given them the best-tasting rice in the world while another group of people looked out for their children. He said, “I think it’s a testament to the Thai people, the generosity of spirit, just a magical, magical group.”

Talking about the crisis, Tony Carney, an American expatriate who has lived in Thailand for over a decade said, “There’s a concept in Thailand, in Thai culture that doesn’t even translate into the English language. The word is Nam Jai, which translated loosely is an outpouring of the heart. Thai people have a great pride in this concept.”

Although the tsunami devastated everything, it could not deprive the Thai people of Nam Jai; evidence that Karuna successfully shapes this characteristic of the society.

Another area that is strongly influenced by Buddhism is the very high regard directed to parents. According to the Buddhist dogma, two types of people cannot be found easily. The first one is parents, the only persons in the world who not only give birth to a child, but also love him or her with all of their hearts. Another kind of hard-to-find human is a grateful person.

The significance of gratitude is stressed by a proverb “Gratitude and Mindfulness of the benefit done are characteristic of the virtuous.” As parents are the ones who have done the most for their children, it is a must for the children to be grateful to these important persons. Any child whose heart is filled with gratitude, as the Lord Buddha remarked, will surely have bright future.

Some foreigners might perceive that what parents have done for children are merely their duties. Nevertheless, Thai people see the practice of parenting as a priceless act they are unable to acquire from anyone else. They have a strong determination to do everything to reciprocate for their parents’ greatest kindness. Therefore, the scenes of an adult and his or her old mother walking hand-in-hand are common in Thailand and children tend to be much closer to their parents than in most other cultures.

His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej the Great, the present King of Thailand, is a model of a grateful person. When his mother was still alive, he always had dinner with her at her palace five days a week despite his tremendous royal duties. He would bow to her feet, which is the way of Thai people in showing highest respect, even though he is the greatest lord of the entire nation. Great gratitude for parents is an important quality embedded most Thais and as influenced by Buddhist doctrine.

“In order to understand Thais, you need to understand Buddhism,” is an enduring statement. The religious beliefs of Buddhism build generosity, pity, and gratitude in the soul of Thai people. This venerable religion creates Thainess, shapes Thainess, and maintains Thainess. Someone might say that Buddhism is the most precious treasure of the land. Buddhism is in fact ingrained in the life of almost every one in this faithful country.

Written by Thamaporn Khampeerpat, this beautiful article won the first prize of 2008 Thailand Travel Online Essay Contest, which was open for Thai students specifically during November – December 2008. To view all winning entries, please see Winners of 2008 Thailand Travel Online Essay Contest.