The Good Life
7 December 1997 BANGKOK POST
BUSSARAWAN TEERAWICHITCHAINAN
The bursting of the bubble economy has hurt people all over Thailand. But villagers in the Sisa Asoke Buddhist Community are doing just fine. Their self-sufficiency has shielded them from the financial fallout
Five years ago Narin and Liwah Wilamart decided to discard their get-rich-quick scheme. The couple closed their profitable motorcycle shop in Ubon Ratchathani province and, together with their two teenage sons, moved to the Sisa Asoke Community in Si Sa Ket where they had to toil like peasants for no money at all.
Their relatives said they had gone crazy.....
SUCCESS STORY
Situated five kilometres from Si Sa Ket's Muang district, one of the poorest provinces in Thailand, Sisa Asoke Community is a branch of Santi Asoke, a fundamentalist Buddhist sect....
Established in 1976 as one of the seven Asoke centres nationwide, Sisa Asoke has become a showcase of how religious devotion can built a strong community.
It has recently been honoured by the Office of the National Culture Commission as one of the ten most culturally outstanding villages in the nation.
"I found it very difficult during the first few months. But after three years, I see myself developing for the better. The most important thing I have learned here is to give and help others," said Sangwan Srirom, 15, who described himself as a naughty boy while he was home in Amnat Charoen province.
ALTERNATIVE LIFESTYLE
According to the village chief, Sisa Asoke has around 50 adults while there are about 150 teenagers who joined the village for its alternative education.
"We are trying not to expand our community any more. But parents keep asking us to take care of their children. And it's our commitment to groom a new generation of young people who will not fall into mainstream consumerism," said Supaporn.
Set up in the early 1990s with approval from the Non-formal Education Department, the Samma Sikkha School at Sisa Asoke is a free-of-charge boarding school run by senior members of the community.
Students come from all parts of the country. Although coming from different backgrounds, all students must comply with the community's strict rules. This includes eating vegetarian food, walking barefoot, wearing simple outfits and adhering to the five Buddhist precepts.
There are no school buildings. Classes take place around the village - under a house's raised platform, near the mushroom farm, or right in the paddy fields....
Unlike mainstream education, the emphasis is not in memorising textbook knowledge but on teaching the young to live harmoniously with nature and to develop self-sufficiency. All students, therefore, must learn to master the skills of farming.
While many students in Bangkok are studying in air-conditioned classrooms, the students of Sisa Asoke learn to live without electricity in their "switch-off" night held every fortnight.
"Not a single light bulb can be turned on on that night. Energy will be scarce in the future and we must prepare our young for that," said Supaporn.
Many Sisa Asoke teachers agree that they feel prouder if their students know how to turn a barren plot of land into a fruitful one, rather than seeing the youngsters succeed in school but remain selfish. Suraphan Gengpansingha, 51, also sent his son to Sisa Asoke's school.
"It is more important for my son to live a peaceful life than to live miserably with material success," he said.
Now 30 students have graduated with high school certificates. Some have gone on to achieve Bachelor's degrees while others are currently pursuing them, mostly by distance education programmes. "Although we want all of them to stay here, we do give them freedom to choose whether to go back to their families or to move to other Asoke centres," Supaporn said.
"We may grow millions of trees. But it means nothing if nobody helps us water them. These children, we believe, will continue our philosophy and lifestyle, no matter where they are," she said.
At least, Supaporn can be certain that one seed is growing well. Sangwan Srirom, 15, from Amnat Charoen province, is determined never to go to work in Bangkok like his parents. Neither does he want to be one of the farmers who are bankrupted by cash crop failure and seek solace in drinking and gambling.
"I will have a farm where I plant some fruit trees here and grow rice there," he said. "I don't want to be rich if richness brings me unhappiness," he said. "Even without money, I think I can find joy in life."