Re: pa.tipatti

Dear Tadao,

Are you ever going to love this!!!  This is from Betty, just now. 
Some great things I didn't know about myself!  And to think that I am
a member of the Siam Society (though I haven't been there for a long
time), as my father had been! (he probably would have known all this!)

Thanks for the question which gave me the opportunity to learn with
you,

Amara

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Hi, Amara,
OK, here's a bit about the Mons, the progenitors of SEAsian culture,
especially Thai and Burmese.

They are a rather old people who lived in the central area between
Pegu, Burma (I refuse to call it Myanmar) and Nakorn Pathom in
Thailand. Today, most of them live in Thailand, having escaped from
the perennial persecution they have always received from Burma. Many
Mon communities can be found in Pakkret, Ratburi and Kanchanaburi,
among others. And, if one visits their excellent museum in Ratburi,
you will see lots of evidence of Mon culture and the efforts to keep
it alive. Most Mon still speak their language at home, keep their
customs and pass on the spoken and written languages to their
children, even though they are "Thai."

When we visited the village, it was situated just next to the village
with the Mon museum. Monks in the temple there chanted in Mon instead
of Pali and each house had a special shrine with flowers and baskets
placed around the most important "house pole" or piling. I was given
the honor of sleeping in the room which shared that same pole and was
thus considered the best room in the house. The food was Thai although
they also had Mon names for most of the dishes. But, other than that
they spoke the language at home, studied Mon writing, and respected
the "house pole", there were few Mon customs to distinguish them from
the Thais. Most of the children are so well assimilated that many of
their old customs are dying out, except for the efforts to keep the
spoken language alive.

It is believed that in the 6th c. AD they had a flourishing
civilization, called Dvaravati, that probably centered in Nakorn
Pathom and included most of modern day Thailand and southern Burma.
All the artifacts found from that long lost civilization point to that
conclusion. A few of their contributions:

Theirs was the first Theravada Buddhist civilization in the area.
Artifacts found include numerous "Wheels of the Law" in which the
Buddha set in motion the path of purification, the Dhamma, through
which one would gain increasing wisdom that would help dispel
defilements: lobha, dhosa and moha.  It is believed that the firm
foundation they established for Buddhism may have been a major factor
in keeping northern SEAsia Buddhist after the coming of Islam to
"island" SEAsia (Malaysia, Indonesia, etc.) Their architectural style
is evident in Burma, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia: the distinctive
tiered roofs are their gift to us. A host of words in the Thai
language are of Mon origin, e.g., kanom jeen, with jeen having first
thought to have meant Chinese, is actually from Mon (sorry, I can't
find the source and the original meaning of that word).

The Siam Society published an excellent book on them, called The Mons,
which gives their history, culture, customs, etc. Right now my copy is
packed away awaiting finishing the construction of "my room", but if
you call up the Siam Society, you can probably order a copy from them.

Hope this is at least a beginning for your friend who is interested in
this fascinating civilization and people.

With metta,
Betty



__________________________
Mom Bongkojpriya (Betty) Yugala
38 Soi 41 Phaholyothin Road
Bangkok 10900, Thailand
tel: 662-579-1050; 661-826-7160
beyugala@...