Matters of faith and trust bring the city to a standstill

Whether the Buddhist pilgrims and uncooperative cab drivers are actually good or bad remains open to every individual’s judgement. Neither group’s behaviour is technically illegal, but then what is legal doesn’t necessarily mean it’s moral. 

The Dhamakaya march in Bangkok was widely assailed for further stalling the already horrendous traffic. The taxi drivers’ demand for a fare increase was condemned as profiteering. The Buddhist sect, unfazed, insisted it would continue its ceremonial procession. The cab drivers, unfazed, threatened to withhold their service if their demand was not met.

Dhamakaya’s very public reappearance on the scene opened an old wound about its perceived distortions of the Lord Buddha’s teachings. Its procession was so well organised and grand with fancy costumes and decorations that critics were quick to recall that the Buddha preached an austerely simple form of living. The temple countered that the parade’s fanfare helps promote Buddhism and illustrates the wonders of Heaven that await the faithful should they devote their days to making merit. 

So the sect’s followers were taken aback at the heavy criticism. To the accusation that causing trouble for others – by curtailing the traffic flow – is a sin, the temple claimed its opinion poll found that 99 per cent of respondents supported the march. Users of the community website Pantip.com quickly took a poll of their own and came up with the exact opposite result. To be fair, both the taxi drivers and the Dhamakaya marchers want more money to achieve a goal they see as beneficial to everyone. The cab drivers are struggling to make ends meet at home. The temple organises such activities to please its main donors, who believe that financial largesse paves a more convenient path to Heaven. 

While there was nothing illegal about the Dhamakaya procession, the authorities were urged to flex some muscle and stop it. A member of the National Reform Council asked the National Office of Buddhism to look into the pilgrimage, which he said was more about marketing than religion. 

The world’s leading religions have all slid far down the slippery slope since their founding. Immoral activities are routinely conducted in their name, from the medieval Christian crusades to the Muslim apostasy of ISIS and other jihadist militants to the racist Buddhist monks of Myanmar with their sermons of hate. It is rare to find organised religions actively encouraging what the Buddha called the middle path.

The Dhamakaya temple’s ultimate goal is global Buddhism, and to achieve that it needs massive funding. Meanwhile the Bangkok taxi drivers crying out for better pay do little or nothing to improve their service – or their reputation. Their demand for higher fare rates can only sound hollow when their atrocious behaviour at the airport and across the city is exposed. As with high-rolling bankers who earn astronomical salaries despite their gambles damaging the economy, why should poor performance from taxi drivers be rewarded? If the meter fare must be increased because of a rise in the price of NGV fuel, there is surely room to negotiate, but in the meantime improved service would certainly be an act of good faith. 

Is the same impulse at work in both these cases? Religions can be exploitative and likewise taxi drivers, both considering themselves essential services to the populace. Now then, won’t you be surprised if some profiteering taxi drivers overcharge passengers so they have enough money to make merit at the Dhamakaya temple? And, more importantly, will they get to Heaven?