Contents Vol. 34 No. 3 September - December 2561 (2018) Publisher 3 Editorial Note INTERNATIONAL NETWORK OF ENGAGED BUDDHISTS (INEB) 4 Country Reports 5 India: A life in the service of Ambedkarism Editorial team / Mangesh Dahiwale Sulak Sivaraksa (advisor) 5 Indonesia: Buddhist Woman Imprisoned for Complaining Harsha Kumara Navaratne (advisor) Somboon Chungprampree (editor) About Mosque’s Speaker / Apriadi GunawanJakarta Theodore Mayer (assistant) 7 INEB Arjun Kumar (assistant) Female Buddhist Leadership for Social Transformation Rita Litwiller (assistant) 7 Dhanakhorn Thongdeang (assistant) 9 An International Conference on Buddhism, Suicide Prevention, and Psycho-Spiritual Counseling Cover / Jonathan S. Watts Symbol of Jee Jin Foundation 13 School For Wellbeing Lay-out 13 School For Wellbeing: South-East Asia Campus Of Surapong Petnamlai The Right Livelihood College / Hans van Willenswaard 18 ASEAN Responses to Historic and Contemporary Social Distributed by Challenges / Lahpai Seng Raw Suksit Siam 113-115 Fuangnakorn Rd., 24 SNF Bangkok 10200 24 The 50th Anniversary of the Sathirakoses-Nagapradipa Tel. (662)2259536-40 Foundation (SNF) [email protected] Sulak Sivaraksa Baht 100 per issue 25 Suggested annual subscription US $50 25 Suggestions for the Newly Appointed Sangha Supreme Council Payment info: 30 The True Human:The Path to Morality in Modern Society • A cheque payable to “INEB”. Personal cheques from the UK, US, 36 Articles and Euro are accepted. 36 Engaging with Suffering, Realizing Freedom: • Paypal, please go to the INEB website. An Interview with Ven. Pomnyun Sunim / Craig Lewis 44 Wild Boars Su Su - Do not give up - Keep fighting Seeds of Peace / Jane Rasbash 666 Charoen-Nakorn Road, Christians and Buddhists in Dialogue: An Overview of Klongsan, Bangkok 10600 Siam 47 Tel. (662)860-2194 the Past and the Present / Elizabeth J Harris Fax. (662)860-1277 Letters [email protected] 53 www.inebnetwork.org 55 Book Reviews 55 Buddhism, Monarchy and Democracy Seeds of Peace is published thrice annually in January, May and September, in order to / Jordan Baskerville promote the aims and objectives of the 57 The Birth of Insight: Meditation, Modern Buddhism, International Network of Engaged Buddhists and the Burmese Monk Ledi Sayadaw (INEB) and its members around the world, / Sulak Sivaraksa and the organizations under SNF, including the Spirit in Education Movement (SEM) 57 Hidden Away in the Folds of Time : The Unwritten and the School for Wellbeing Studies Dimension of Sulak Sivaraksa / Robert McCloy and Research. 2 Editorial Note Editorial Note Hello Friends and Readers, the skills, determination, and inner and outer discipline that Thank you for your interest in the third and final contributed to their survival. One of the boys, Chatthahan issue for 2561 (2018), which contains a constellation of Saklakul, said that, “Pi Ekk is a good coach because he articles and other writings for you. does not put pressure on us – he taught us to meditate for In Ajarn Sulak’s cover story entitled The True a few minutes to calm down and have concentration before Human: The Path to Morality in Human Society, he wrote a game.” Even after the successful rescue mission was over about how fortunate he was that his first kalyanamitta – the boys and their coach “showed humility, gratitude and a virtuous companion – which was his father. Ajarn Sulak said determination to be good citizens.” As Jane said, “there is that his father always treated him like an adult, and “laid the much to learn from the respectful and humble way the coach groundwork for the development of moral courage in me, and the young boys conducted themselves.” especially the capacity for fearless speech and empathy for The first Sombath Somphone Public Lecture was other people.” His article emphasizes that mental training delivered by our close friend Lahpai Seng Raw, founder guides moral training and contributes to the understanding of Metta Development Foundation in Myanmar. Her of the causes of suffering. Ajarn Sulak’s article is the speech presentation took place during the 7th Chula-ASEAN he gave on 23 June 2018, at the Jee Jin Foundation, Bangkok, Week and 4th Parliamentary ASEAN Community Forum commemorating their 60th anniversary. when she spoke about ASEAN responses to historic and Our friend, Craig Lewis, conducted an in-depth contemporary social challenges. She clearly stated that, “it interview with Venerable Pomnyun Sunim of South Korea, is unrealistic to expect the psychological and physical pain which is most inspiring and provides insight in to his caused by an unjust, oppressive system to heal and go away personal journey and beliefs. Through Lewis’s thoughtful on its own. The root causes for the pain need to be addressed, questions, Venerable Sunim shared how one day near the for as long as the culture of inflicting pain with impunity is end of a school year a monk challenged him by asking the allowed to exist, the pain will continue to grow, without ever provoking questions: Where did he come from?, and Where having a chance to heal.” Seng Raw concluded by saying, was he going? Then “Suddenly, the monk shouted at him “With common enterprise, the situation is not without hope, asking: ‘Well why are you so busy if you don’t even know and we must ensure that future generations are able to truly where you’re from or where you’re going?!’” These questions enjoy freedom and peace. In contrast to the failures of the reached before his birth and after his physical death and past, that should be our contemporary legacy today.” send him on the path of self-discovery and of understanding Please read the country reports, and other writing on human suffering. various topics such as the new initiative on female Buddhist When Lewis asked Venerable Sumin about his leadership for social transformation, the recent account of thoughts on the path to peace regarding in current day the School for Wellbeing, and the piece on the international relations between North and South Korea he said: “I believe conference on Buddhism, suicide prevention, and psycho- we are very close to success because we have experienced spiritual counseling. Ajarn Sulak has also give us some failure before. We failed in the past because we thought it timely and relevant suggestions for the newly appointed Thai would be easy, we applied overly simple approaches. But by Sangha Supreme Council to consider and implement. learning from our failures we can plan our approach more For those of you who are members of INEB’s Advisory carefully.” [ . ] “We could easily fall back into war and Committee and Executive Committee, our next meeting will hostilities, or we could use this opportunity to resolve age- be in Kathmandu, Nepal, for three days from November old conflicts. [ . ] If peace can be established, then security 28 – 30. During the first day 3 separate panel discussions and order can follow, not only on the Korean Peninsula, but will explore several topics specifically about Nepal to throughout East Asia.” prepare the members for the meeting. These topics include Jane Rasbash, another close friend, wrote about the a situational analysis of Nepal’s Buddhist communities and Wild Boars’ fighting spirit that kept them alive while trapped Dalit communities, as well as education for empowerment in the flooded cave in Northern Thailand. Their plight and and spirituality. Members will also visit schools in Buddhist rescue effort drew international attention with support temples and ancient cultural sites. arriving spontaneously to aid the Thai rescue team and We at Seeds of Peace send you wishes of joy, happiness families. and harmony as 2018 comes to an end and thank you for Jane shared how Coach Ekk prepared the boys with your continued support and good wishes through the year. Vol. 34 No. 3 Sep - Dec 2018 3 Country Reports India: tion (BAMCEF). He was with not only the rich well known in the Delhi technocrats from the Dalit circles as ‘BAMCEF Ambedkarite communities, Kamble’. Such was his but also mobilised the A Life in the Service devotion to the cause of labourers working there. It liberation of Dalits. Though is to his credit that several of Ambedkarism he was a top class engineer, networks of Ambedkarites he never forgot ground are thriving in all the Mangesh Dahiwale level activism. In fact, his countries of the Gulf Coop- efforts were always directed eration Council (GCC). towards uplifting the people Later, he shifted to on the ground. the US and immigrated to While in Malaysia to Canada. This was perhaps a work in the oil sector, Raju very important phase for Bhau developed contacts him to develop the networks with the Dalits in Malaysia. of Ambedkarites in North He developed close ties America. He meticulously with Tamil speaking Dalit networked with Dalits from politicians there. With the many different States in help of Malaysians and India living in North local Dalits, he was instru- America. He also brought mental in organising the First many non-Indian sympa- Raju Kamble World Conference of Dalits thisers of the Dalit move- in Malaysia. The conference ment together through Raju Kamble, an eminent ternational Mission (AIM). brought stalwarts from the the annual celebrations of Ambedkarite, breathed his His grasp of the philosophy Ambedkarite movement on Ambedkar Jayanti. last at 2.10 am on August 16, of Babasaheb Ambedkar one platform, including He arranged international 2018, in Vancouver, Canada. was firm and clear. He came Bahujan Samaj Party founder conferences and seminars He was 64. His death is a from a humble background Kanshi Ram, in 1998. He to build the voice of the great loss to the Ambedkarite to but rose to heights in continued to work to develop Ambedkarites and extend movement. When the inter- both professional and social Dalit networks in Southeast solidarity with the similarly national reach of Ambedka- fields.