Thailand's International Meditation Centers: Tourism and the Global Commodification of Religious Practices / Edition 1

by Brooke Schedneck

Overview

This book explores contemporary practices within the new institution of international meditation centers in Thailand. It discusses the development of the lay vipassana meditation movement in Thailand and relates Thai Buddhism to contemporary processes of commodification and globalisation. Through an examination of how meditation centers are promoted internationally, the author considers how Thai Buddhism is translated for and embodied within international tourists who participate in meditation retreats in Thailand. Shedding new light on the decontextualization of religious practices, and raising new questions concerning tourism and religion, this book focuses on the nature of cultural exchange, spiritual tourism, and religious choice in modernity. With an aim of reframing questions of religious modernity, each chapter offers a new perspective on the phenomenon of spiritual seeking in Thailand. Offering an analysis of why meditation practices appeal to non-Buddhists, this book contends that religions do not travel as whole entities but instead that partial elements resonate with different cultures, and are appropriated over time.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780415819589
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	05/27/2015
Series:	Routledge Religion in Contemporary Asia Series
Pages:	210
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

About the Author

Brooke Schedneck is Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, USA.

Table of Contents

Imagining Buddhism 2. Theravāda Buddhism and the History of Modern Vipassanā 3. The Field of International Engagement with Thai Meditation Centers 4. Narratives of International Meditators’ Experiences 5. Meditation for Tourists in Thailand: Commodifying a Universal and National Symbol 6. Pedagogical Techniques for Translating Vipassanā Meditation 7. Embodying Meditation 8. The Future of Thailand’s International Meditation Centers

Editorial Reviews

"This is a valuable study for a number of reasons. For example, Chapter 2, ‘‘Theravada Buddhism and the History of Modern Vipassana,’’ is simply one of the most elucidating treatments of this subject that I know of. Other chapters offer enlightening ‘‘thick descriptions’’ of how these centers function for spreading the sasana internationally. But most specifically, this book reveals how meditation, as it spreads beyond Thailand, is transforming itself into a new global spiritual movement."

Mark MacWilliams, St. Lawrence University

From the Publisher