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In
a village, home is usually a simple wooden house rased on posts;
domestic animals like buffalos, pigs, and chickens are kept
below, and the family lives above, often in a single room. There
is little privacy, though this is not as highly regarded as in
Western countries, and the communal lift style instills a strong
sense, of social harmony in which tact, compromise, and
tolerance are essential. The father is regarded as the leader,
but the mother also plays a significant role, particularly in
the f amily finances.
The
coastline of the East is being developed into the so-called
Eastern Seaboard, which will be a center of industrial
development in the future.
When
small, children are treated permissively by various members of
the family, which as likely as not will include grandparents and
sometimes more distant relatives as well. Respect for elders is
taught very early, however, and by the time a child walk s he is
aware of his position in the family hierarchy, a distinction
that applies not only to the relationship between parents and
children but also to that between siblings of different ages.
This same delineation of roles also applies to the wider worl d
outside the family and will remain deeply ingrained throughout
life, thus explaining the reluctance of younger Thais to oppose
or otherwise confront a senior during their subsequent careers
in business or government.
A
sense of responsibility is also inculcated in early childhood.
Each child is assigned certain duties according to age and
ability-feeding livestock, leading the family buffalo to graze
in nearby pastures, taking care of younger brothers and sisters
w hile parents are at work in the fields. As they grow older,
responsibilities increase and they are allowed to paticipate in
family discussions, with their opinions taken into account when
important decisions are made.
One
of the prime responsibilities placed on children is that of
taking care of parents in their old age, a prominent feature of
the Thai concept of family. There is no felling of being
inconveniened by this duty of caring for aged parents; on the
contra ry, their acquired wisdom gives them an honored place in
the household, and their counsel is actively sought in teaching
their grandchildren and great-grandchildren to be responsible
adults with the same traditional values.
Village
Organization and Leadership
Beyond
the family, the next larger unit of social organization is the
village. Although there are regional variations in house styles
and crop cultivations, and the setting may vary, in essence Thai
villages are remarkably similar, revolving around well -defined
climatic, religious, and farming seasons.
The
typical village contains around 100 to 150 households, or an
average of 500 to 700 inhabitants. The houses are nearly all
simple wooden structures, elevated on stilts as protection
against flooding and unwelcome animal intruders and also to
improve air circulation. A small wooden granary, also on stilts,
is often found beside the house, together with large earthenware
jars in which rainwater is stored for drinking. Most villages
now have electricity but water for washing and cooking comes
from ca nals, rivers, or ponds, or, in the arid northeast, from
communal wells.
On
the village outskirts are the local school and the wat, or
Buddhist monastery, sometimes adjacent to one another, sometimes
at opposite ends of the village. The school is generally a
simple wooden building, perhaps a single room where several
classes are held simultaneously; an essential feature is the
flagpole upon which the Thai flag is ceremoniously raised each
school morning and lowered in the evening. The monastery,
constructed and maintained largely through local donations and
thus reflectiong the village's wealth, is often separated from
the community by an open field to give the resident monks
maximum privacy and seclusion for their relgious activities.
This grassy expanse also serves as the village common, a place
where children assemble t o play kickball and where local fetes
are held.
The
village is self-governing, led by an elected headman, or phu-yai-ban,
who until recent years was always a man; since 1983, however,
women have also been eleted to the position. A candidate is not
affiliated with any political party but must be a lit erate holder who has resided in the village at least six
months and be at last 25 years old. If he retains the villagers'esteem,
the phu-yai-ban can remain in the post until retirement at 60
through repeated reelections; by the same token, he c an be
removed if he forfeits their respect.
The
phu-yai-ban preserves the social harmony valued so highly by all
Thais by skifully settling minor disputes, talking care to
ensure that neither party feels cheated or loses face. In
addition, he keeps the village birth and death records and acts
as a spokesman for the community in negotiations with the
government bureaucracy.
Administratively,
neighboring villagers are organized into groups known as tambon
which, depending on topography and population density, consist
of two to 28 villages. The phu-yai-ban within each tambon elect
one of themselves to be kamnan, or commune h ead-person.
Thailand has nearly 5,000 tambon at present. The kamnan is
chairman of a committee which often includes a government school
headmaster, an agricultural extension worker, and sometimes a
Health Department doctor or paramedic in charge of a lo cal
clinic. It also contains at least two men selected by the nai
amphoe (or district officer, who is the kamnan's immediate
superior or appointed by the provincial governor.
This
committee is responsible for deciding which villages should have
new roads, irrigation budgets and health services, while the
kamnan's main individual responsibilities are to see that
justice prevails within the commune, to maintain records and
stat istics, to help preserve peace, to assist in collecting
taxes, and to act as the intermediary between the district
officer and all village headpersons in his tambon.
The
wat serves as a social center where villagers have both
religious and recreadtional activities.
The
wat is the focal point of the village, symbolizing the Buddhist
religion and also acting as the major unifying element,
particularly during festivals and merit-making ceremonies when
it also becomes a social center for young and old alike. Abbots
an d senior monks frequently enjoy more prestige and moral
persuasion than the village head, and in times of personal
crisis they are often the first whose advice is sought. Within
the wat the abbot has absolute administrative, clerical,
custodial, discipli nary, and spiritual responsibilities, and
they determine the monastery's relationship with the village. If
an abbot is scholarly, meditative, and retiring, the monastery
is unlikely to concern itself much with mundane village affairs.
On the other hand, if one is a dynamic personality he may make
the wat a community center with a subtle but powerful influence
on social action. Every young man in the village, before he
starts his own family, will spend a period of study and
reflection in the wat, thus i ncreasing the influence of
Buddhism. |
