It was about eighteen years ago that Supawan
Green came to my monastery with her husband. It is quite usual, in Southeast
Asian countries, that whenever people have any problems they go to see a monk
to express their feelings. She had just arrived in England, a strange land, and
it was probably because of culture shock that she wanted to speak to a monk.
Then I was the only Buddhist monk residing in this part of the country.
Unfortunately, I could not understand Thai, and she could not yet express her
feelings in English either. So we didn’t have much communication, and she left
without being able to express her thought.
A few years later, when I met her somewhere in
Birmingham, she was speaking fluent English, and seemed to have a sound command
of the language. When she came to see me last year, I was very impressed by the
improvement she had made, both in English and in her professional status. I
then learnt that she was teaching Tai chi at the University of Birmingham, and
writing books and articles in English.
When I received the manuscript for “A
Handful of Leaves” I was astonished that she had so much talent to
express her understanding of the Dhamma in writing. Many people can speak a
foreign language, and a few can give a talk in public but writing down one’s
thoughts and feelings in articulate English is difficult. In this book, Supawan
expresses her thoughts fluently on the page, which is a remarkable achievement
for a working mother from Asia.
When I started to read the manuscript, I was
surprised to learn that she studied with Ajahn Buddhadasa in Thailand. Ajahn
Buddhadasa was one of the greatest contemporary teachers in Thailand. His
teachings, ideas and views were controversial for mainstream Thai Buddhists. In
Thailand and other Theravada countries, Buddhism is well-established, and most
teachings are based on traditional interpretations of the Pali texts. If anyone
differs from this traditional interpretation, it soon becomes controversial.
Ajahn Buddhadasa was fearless and had no hesitation to publicly express his
thoughts and feelings, whether people agreed with him or not. Nevertheless, his
teachings are now widely accepted by intellectuals in Thailand, and those
outside the Theravada tradition. Personally, I appreciate his ideas because his
approach is very straightforward, logical and easy to comprehend.
In this book, Supawan explains Ajahn
Buddhadasa’s teaching in uncomplicated language that will be easy for ordinary
people to follow. Her explanations on the essence of Buddhism, the nature of
nibbana and on ultimate reality are particularly lucid. I very much appreciate
her efforts to present Ajahn Buddhadasa’s teachings in non-scholastic language.
Supawan relates how to apply the four
foundations of mindfulness to understand nibbana, and realise the truth. In
some chapters she expresses her own views about the degenerate condition of
Thai Buddhism, western culture, Christianity, etc. Though it may be challenging
for them to read, this book will help Thai people to better understand their
own culture and religion. It will also be very beneficial for others who want
to understand Buddhism from a modern Asian’s point of view.
I expect that this publication will prove very
successful, and hope that she will achieve her aim to promote the understanding
of Thai Buddhism as taught by Ajahn Buddhadasa. I hope that her book will help
to reverse the decline in Thai Buddhism and culture, above which she is so
concerned.
Ven. Dr. Rewata Dhamma (M.A., PhD.)
Spiritual Directory
Birmingham Buddhist Vihara
August 1999