Three Worlds of King Ruang,1345). Based on Buddhist
canonical texts, local legends, and dreams, this de-
tailed, full-blown COSMOLOGYserves as a road map to
various HEAVENSand HELLSand the perils of lives lived
at all levels of existence. In this work, gaps in Bud-
dhist texts are filled in with speculation about the cre-
ation of life, while the spirit of other texts provides a
springboard into rich pools of fantastic description
that include falls from grace, detailed accounts of
karmic consequences, and elaborated notions of a
wheel-turning king whose right to rule is based on his
righteousness.
One of the most enduring Thai literary works is the
Ramakian,a uniquely Thai interpretation of the In-
dian epic, the Ramayana.While some people believe
that the Thai version of the Rama legend predated the
establishment of the Kingdom of Sukhothai, the ear-
liest archeological evidence for it was found in the ru-
ins of the Kingdom of Ayudhaya, which was sacked by
the Burmese in 1767. The destruction of Ayudhaya is
considered one of the greatest losses of art and litera-
ture in Thai history. The longest version of the Ra-
makianwas written by a group of poets in 1798 and
was sponsored by the first king of the Chakri dynasty,
Rama I. Much has been written about the Indianiza-
tion or Sanskritization of Southeast Asia, and the Ra-
makian, a blend of Thai legends, state rites, and
Buddhist elements, stands as clear evidence of such in-
fluence.
The JATAKAtales, or birth stories of the Buddha,
have held a prominent place in the imagination of the
Thai people. Traditionally, the most popular tale de-
scribes the Buddha’s penultimate life before attaining
Buddhahood, that being the story of the generous
Prince Vessantara (Sanskrit, VIS ́VANTARA). This Job-
like tale focuses on the sacrifices and merit made by
Prince Vessantara. It includes demonstrations of the
prince’s nonattachment and giving—even the giving
up of family members—in the process of demonstrat-
ing his commitment to generosity. The merit-making
message of this tale is evidence of the importance of
gift giving in Thai culture. Many monks continue the
tradition of chanting, day and night, an elaborate ver-
sion of this jataka tale in an annual event called the
Thet Mahachat (Sermon of the Great Life).
A further outgrowth of gift giving takes the form of
an unusual genre of literature, the cremation volume.
Souvenirs are often presented to attendees at the close
of cremation rites. As early as the 1870s, with the ad-
vent of printing presses in Thailand, people began to
distribute books at funerals. These volumes usually in-
clude a brief biography of the deceased; in addition,
the publication of cremation volumes is a way of dis-
tributing and preserving literary, cultural, and religious
information that families find meaningful. In a status-
conscious society, these volumes also help to “place”
people in the Thai social order. A collection of crema-
tion volumes at Wat Bovoranives in Bangkok is cata-
loged according to an adaptation of the Dewey decimal
system that reflects the status, ranks, and structure of
Thai society.
Buddhist teachings and stories have been preserved
through the strength of oral traditions and attention
given to (palm leaf) manuscripts. The name of the
Buddhist canon, the Tipitaka, presumably comes from
an early filing system: putting the three parts of the
canon—rules (VINAYA), teachings (sutta), and philo-
sophical details (abhidhamma)—into separate baskets.
While ideally monks should be well versed in all three
of these dimensions, Buddhist tradition and subse-
quent curricula for monks focused on certain parts of
the canon over others, making the observer often won-
der which basket carries the most weight. For exam-
ple, the meditative interests of forest monasteries tend
to focus on texts (and biographies of local monks)
dealing with such practices, while the leaders of some
urban monasteries may favor other parts of the canon,
including a fascination with the abhidhamma. The
DHAMMAPADAhas always been a popular text, and its
inclusion in several levels of monks’ Pali exams has
helped to maintain its popularity. Thai Buddhist laity
are more likely to gain their knowledge of Buddhism
from the influence of parents and teachers, and
through listening to sermons and reading collections
of proverbs, modern commentaries, or interpretations,
rather than the canonical texts themselves.
Several modern figures have made major contribu-
tions to religious literature in Thailand. At the end of
the nineteenth century, Prince-Patriarch Wachirayan-
warorot (1860–1921, half-brother to King Chula-
longkorn, Rama V) wrote a number of concise
textbooks aimed at providing summaries of the im-
portant tenets of Buddhism. These texts were especially
useful for people who ordained temporarily during the
“rainy season retreat” (vassa) and they took an im-
portant place in the early curriculum for monks. BUD-
DHADASA Bhikkhu (1906–1993) fostered his own
brave, innovative blend of Thai colloquial terms and
interpretations of dhammato spark more interest in
Buddhist practice. His commentaries run many vol-
umes, resembling a canon itself. In 1971 PrayudhTHAI, BUDDHISTLITERATURE IN