The Journal of the Siam Society Vol. LXIV, Part 1-2, 1976 - Khamkoo

MERIT~SEEKING IN PUBLIC: BUDDHIST
PILGRIMAGE IN NORTHEASTERN THAILAND 1
by
James B. Pruess*
A pilgrimage is a journey which is undertaken for the ostensible
purpose of seeking a direct experience of ultunate reality at a sacred
place. Tbis experience and its associated ritual are understood by the
participant to result in specific or generalised benefits. Pilgrimage,
as a socio-cultural phenomenon found in many cultural traditions through
the centuries, has recently received attention by anthropologists and
other scholars. 2 This article will focus upon pilgrimage to a particular
sacred place in contemporary Theravada Buddhist Thailand. During
the description of the sacred place and the groups who administer, support,
and use it as a center for their devotions, attention will necessarily
be directed to the origins of Theravada Buddhist pilgrimage, its nature
as a form of religious action in the Thai Buddhist tradition, the
rituals performed by and benefits for pilgrims as they make contact
with the sacred, and the character of pilgrimage as a patterned movement
of devotees from home to sacred place. In addition, it will be
argued that pilgrimage in Theravada Buddhist Thailand, while centered
upon an individual experience of the sacred, reinforces meaningful religious
concepts and social norms that are shared by the community of
believers.
* B.A. University of Iowa; M.A., Ph.D. University of Washington. Field research
in Thailand (!971-1972) concerned with Buddhist pilgrimage centers. Presently
lecturer in the Department of Anthropology, University of Washington,
Seattle.
1) This article is one product of field research in Thailand which was undertaken
from September 1971 to August 1972. I wish to acknowledge my indebtedness
to the Division of Foreign Studies, Office of Education, Department of Health,
Education, and Welfare, for providing financial support for the research. In
addition, I would like to thank Dr. Charles F. Keyes for comments on the first
draft of this article.
2) Bharati (1963, 1970), Bhardwaj (1973), Gombrich (1971: 108-112), Gross
(1971), Karve (1962), Obeyesekere (1966), Turner (1973), Vidyarthi (196!),
Vredenbregt (1962).