Non Verbal Communication : Thai Language, Culture, Customs, And Etiquette

To me interpersonal communication describes the exchange of verbal and nonverbal messages between two different people. Joseph DeVito states that “interpersonal communication is inevitable, irreversible, and unrepeatable” due to these things effective communication is a necessary skill for us to function in our day to day lives (p. 20). Therefore, I have created a theory for interpersonal communication that goes as follows; To experience effective communication you must understand: your culture, the other person’s culture, and how to listen effectively. By knowing these three things you can consistently avoid misunderstandings and promote understanding in your interpersonal and intercultural relationships.

In this paper it will discuss the influence of the Buddha and how Buddhism came to America and the impact it had upon its arrival. How the American culture westernized Buddhism in their own way and how it looks today. It will also cover the difference of ethnic Buddhism and convert Buddhism in America. More specifically the objective of this paper is to explain descriptively and analytically and go over the historical time line of

Introduced by a mission from Korea in 552 C.E., Buddhism has long been a central theme in Japanese artwork. Since the king of Paekche, a kingdom in the South East of the Korean peninsula, first gave the Japanese emperor a bronze Buddha statue, the Buddhist art forms that were periodically introduced from China and Korea were tempered in the crucible of local custom and usage, to yield a rich tradition of religious art.

As a scholar taking the class ‘Introduction to World Religions”, I had the opportunity to take part in a culture that is not normally found in the western world. I entered the Mon Buddhist Monastery in Akron, Ohio on October 2nd, 2016 only to be amazed at their way of life. Going into the temple, I knew of the basic religious practices and traditions that the monks and Buddhists had participated in daily. When I was coming up to the monastery, it did not look like anything other than an old brick building, but once we were inside it looked like a recreational area. Somewhere where they would meditate, hold daily activities, and teach the younger Buddhist about their way of life. On the far back wall, there was a stunning shrine dedicated to the Buddha where one would pray. Many figurines were displayed as well as flowers and offerings along it.

Until about a fifty years ago, most people in the United States did not have much exposure to the Buddhist religion. Our only impression of it might have been statues of a grinning, bald Buddha with a large belly at the entrance of most Chinese restaurants. Those statues seemed a little scary and some thought they should nod or rub the belly as they passed as a gesture of good luck. The religion has come a long way in the last twenty years. Hollywood celebrities such as Richard Gere and Tiger Woods and Nobel Peace Prize winner, the Dalai Lama, may have heightened the appeal and gave some prominence of this religion to the people of the West. The Buddhist religion and its move into America is a fascinating 2000 year journey. To

Rituals have been an important aspect of Buddhism since the time of the Buddha. They made emphasis on rituals because they believed that it was an essential part in the transformation of the inner spiritual nature of man. In their point of view, a ritual can be “justified only to the extent that it contributes to a spiritual transformation” .Their rituals revolve around the Buddha and strengthening their connection to the Dharma as well as and the purpose and respect associated with it. Like the Virgin Mary in Eric Wolf’s article, “The Virgin of Guadalupe: A Mexican National Symbol”, the rituals of the Buddhist as well as the Buddhist image has provided a cultural style through which meaning and teachings can be expressed. The Guadalupe stands for “life, for hope, for health” while the Buddha symbolizes grace, balance, compassion, and wisdom. One of the rituals that Buddhist practice the most is that making offerings to their ancestors and the Triple Gem- Buddha, Dharma (Buddha’s teachings) and Dangha (the Buddhist community). The purpose of making offerings is not for approval, but to create positive energy, show gratitude, and perform the teaching of the Buddha. It is these admirable acts that reminds them not to be greedy or selfish.

While communication across cultures relies on speech to convey the messages of those living in the same society, usually the unspoken language has a larger role to play in delivering these messages. Similar to the country’s language being specific to the region it surfaces from, body language and facial expressions also have individual characteristics within a particular region. There are shared attributes of nonverbal communication across the world but these are commonly divided into high and low context cultures. This results from different cultural beliefs and attitudes within such societies and impact on the social norms of communication. In Japan, the citizens communicate with actions and gestures to a larger percent in comparison to their speech, as they are able to understand each other’s meaning without additional words. Due to it being a high context culture Japan relies heavily on its nonverbal communication for its society to function efficiently and for adequate comprehension to be achieved.

The hesitation that some Cambodian Americans face when meeting with strangers is due to the fact that the Cambodian culture is one of high power distance. Hierarchy is determined usually by age or economic status. Social hierarchy of age is evident in the greetings. Depending on who you are greeting determines the type of greeting. If one were to greet someone who is Cambodian, they should do the formal put hands together and bow. At chest level to someone who is of the same age or status, at mouth level to a superior such as a boss and at nose level to someone who is an elder, such as a grandparent. (Vorani) If greeting someone who isn’t Cambodian, we just normally do the American “hi” while waving. It just really depends. For the Cambodian culture, we have to make sure we greet using again the hands together while bowing especially to those who are older than your parents. You also have to say a formal saying in Khmer but I forgot the translation for it in one must to refer them as “ming”, “bou”, or “orm”. This is based on both age and gender. (Eam) There is a clear delineation between superiors and subordinates and between the young and the old. (Serpa)

This facilitated the increasing practice of Buddhism in Southeast Asia attributable to influences from foreign Buddhist merchants to the nations thus integrating itself into civilization and daily life (Adler and Pouwels 2008, 64).

COMMUNICATIONS: S.S. does not maintain eye-contact well and often looks away during conversation. Direct eye contact may be considered offensive or aggressive in her culture. Because I do know that this is inherently Palauan, I do not need to maintain direct and sustained eye contact while conversing with her (Purnell, 2014). I will certainly keep in mind to greet a Palauan in a clinical setting whenever possible as it is rude not to. Another consideration is the issue of timeliness. Depending on the situation, punctuality is not necessarily valued. Lateness is not considered disrespectful to Palauans as they are event-oriented people. I will have to explain the importance of timeliness if required and be flexible instead with appointment times

Next Scott examines how this embracement of a modernist prosperity-gospel model of Buddhism becomes problematized within the socio-historical context of the Asian economic crisis of the late 1990s. After this, she expands the analysis looking at “the broader field of debate over the commercialization of Buddhism” and its commodification “as a product” as well as “the effects of consumerism on contemporary Thai society” (17). This is contextualized through an overview of the discourses of various “principle voices within this discussion” (17) such as Bhikkhu Buddhadasa, “a well known promoter of dhammic socialism. These diverse voices help to contextualize and complicate the discourse surrounding both the modernist prosperity Buddhism of Dhammakaya Buddhism through a post-modern commentary. It is this post-modern commentary that is the focus of the concluding chapter, in which she frames the commentary as a “rallying cry for religious reform” (17).

Buddhism in the twenty-first century is still applicable in such a fast paced and confusing world. Despite all of our advanced science and technology, we understand even less our reason for existing and we know more than ever just how big the universe is and how uncaring. These circumstances drive people to seek out spirituality even today in order to achieve the basic comfort required for them to conduct their daily lives. The recent episodes of tremendous violence have placed an unsavory patina of stifling ignorance over the religions of Christianity and Islam as they continue to carry on like demented spinsters in the decaying finery of their former glory with no intention of acknowledging the catastrophe of their current circumstances. Buddhism, with its sterling values of moderation, peace, and detachment from the impermanent things of this world, now appears dignified and splendid as the ancient beauty of Asia to modern seekers. No longer do we seek judgment and rigid, inexplicable rules from our God, with the hellfire and damnation that once drove us onward. We crave logic and sense from our world and in those circumstances, this faith tells us that lusting after expensive cars and clothes which we do not need will make us miserable. That is easy to understand. That makes

Hindu and Buddhist cultures are both rich in religion and expressing their faith through art. The Buddhist culture was formed by Buddha who went out to discover the causes of pain and suffering. Once Buddha realized what the cause was, he provided a set of four guiding principles know as the “Four Noble Truths” that are exercised in Buddhism (Kleiner, p. 13). The Four Noble truths are “Life is suffering, the cause of suffering is desire, one can overcome and extinguish desire, the way to conquer desire and end suffering is to follow Buddha’s Eightfold Path…” (p. 13). These truths are expressed in the following of Buddhism and commonly carried out through art. Buddhism is practiced throughout Southeast Asia and southern India where

In the United States there are over four million buddhists, one thousand temples, study groups, or Buddhists associations (Monroe 108). This number has come from just one man searching to find happiness and eventually enlightenment. Buddha’s story is how buddhism became a religion all over the world. It teaches a peaceful manner, reveals the key to happiness for the mind, and eliminates the desire in life. Not just the history of buddhism is important, but how it has spread through the world and what it looks like today.

With regard to the Thai culture, it can mention that Thai culture has influenced by various religion-based practices because the 95% of the country are following the “Theravada Buddhist” religious practices. These religious values and social believes has a greater impact over the day to day activities of the Thai people. Some of the major