Question asked by DAy
Dear pastors, some questions pop into my mind as i came across some photos of monk statues in thailand. In the 5 precepts, the last precept, one should not take intoxicant things. But i see some monks in thailand does smoke. And i thought that the monks vows should not eat meat. Again in thailand they do eat meat. Is it the theravada more open to the precepts than mahayana? What you think about they pray to Arhat Sivali as wealth deity where in buddhism, there are a lot of wealth deities (which are bodhisattvas themself)?
Dear Day,
Thank you for your question. In regards to the Five Precepts, you are correct that there is a vow against taking intoxicants. How this is interpreted and what constitutes intoxicants differs between traditions and individual practitioners. Buddhist practitioners usually follow what their teachers instruct them, as such for us in Kechara, we are encouraged not to smoke as it is an intoxicant. In regards to monks and nuns eating meat, someone who is ordained is supposed to eat whatever food is offered to them, to cut their attachment to like and dislike. Therefore, if someone offers a monk or nun meat, then they need to accept the food according to Buddhist tradition. After they have accepted the food offering, it is up to them to actually eat the meat or not. Some may eat the meat because they want to practice not being attached. In some of these cases, you will notices that these monks and nuns eat everything offered to them without either like or dislike. That being said, as Buddhists we believe in ahimsa or non-violence, and that extends to the killing of animals for food. So knowing that there is bad karma involved, it is actually on the lay people who offer the monastic community food, not to offer them meat. The precepts are the same between both Mahayana and Theravada traditions, but one must understand the intricacies of Buddhist practice before making an assumption if the practitioner is sincere.
In the case of Arhat Sivali, as far as I am aware, he was a student of Shariputra, who was one of Buddha Shakyamuni’s main disciples. After practicing the path Sivali became and Arhat and is therefore worthy of veneration as a very high level being on the way to becoming a fully enlightened being. Such beings do have the power and ability to help grant wealth in all if forms, which is more than just materials. You are right that there are many deities who are said to confer wealth upon practitioners. Some of these deities are not actually emanations of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, but beings who either naturally help people or have been oath-bound to help people. Others are fully enlightened beings such as Dzambala and Gyenze, and can help with more than wealth, such as helping us on the spiritual path towards enlightenment. I hope this helps. Thank you.