The Abbot's New House: Thinking about How Religion Works among Buddhists and Ethnic Minorities in Southwest China

Abstract

In November 2001, the Buddhist community of the Dai People's Autonomous Prefecture of Sipsongpanna (Xishuangbanna Daizu Zizhi Zhou) celebrated the dedication of a new building for the central temple (Ch. zongfosi; Dai. wat long) in the region. This building was to serve several different functions at the temple. First, it was to act as a conference and meeting center for the temple, Wat Pajie. Second, it was to provide guest rooms for monks who might visit the region, whether from Chinese cities, Tibetan regions, or from outside China. Third, it was to be a new house for the abbot of Wat Pajie1 with new sleeping quarters, an office, and perhaps most importantly, a large reception room. Given that the sign on the building said “Wannasiri Kuti,” the quarters of the monk Wannasiri (the ordination name of the abbot), it was perhaps this last function that was most important. The celebration (Ch. kaiguang; Dai. chalong) dedicating the Wanasiri Kuti was a three-day affair, and like most Buddhist celebrations in Sipsongpanna during the Reform Era (1979 to the present), it included a variety of elements and participants. There was a formal opening ceremony, which included speeches by the abbot of the temple and a variety of politicians. The second day included a day-long series of performances of Dai-lue song and dance, which included both traditional dances performed by local dance troupes and traditional Dai singers (cang-khap), all of which was backed up and emceed by the local Dai-lue pop band “New Star” (Dao Mai).2 The third and final day of the kaiguang included a formal merit making ceremony, as well as Dhamma talks by some of the important monks who had visited from Thailand and the Shan States. As a whole, this was a significant event in the life of the Buddhist community of Sipsongpanna, requiring months of preparations by the region's monks, the donation of significant amounts of labor and money from Dai-lue villagers, and attendance during the performances of the second day that was reported by the temple as being almost ten thousand people.