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Entrance |
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Meditation on the medulla and tailbone chakra |
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Metta meditation |
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Anapanasati meditation |
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Paritta suttas |
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Art gallery for meditation |
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Dasa Parami sutta |
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Contact |
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Hans artistique... |
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Krooba Ajahn Chantaran Sri Pikul |
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Exhibition in auberge Kérizac, France |
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Wat Koo Tao Hilltribe support Wat Koo Tao supports hill tribes, the Karen, the Lisou and the Tai Yai (Shan) in Thailand. Most of these people have fled to Thailand from the genocide of the Burmese military regime. Burmese soldiers use them as slaves, force them from their land, rape and kill them. When they arrive in Thailand they are not welcomed by the Thai government either, who regards them as a bunch of useless strangers. Which is beside the truth because the hill tribe people are one of the most loyal and hard working people. |
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Because they do not get any working permit they are imprisoned in desperate poverty. In this situation many of them turn to drinking Lao Khao, a homemade alcoholic drink brew from rice. In the absence of a Thai community in those remote arias, the few Thai who live there often exploit these people by charging outrages prices for the necessary goods they sell from the city, like medicines and building materials. Wat Koo Tao helps these people by giving them the most necessary goods, like medicines, blankets, building materials and agricultural implements to enable them to become self-supporting. Usually twice a year the lord abbot Krooba Ajahn goes to the remote villages of the hill tribes with two or three truckloads of aid. They also supply school materials, clothing and toys for the children. In the most desperate cases, like a widow with children and no family, help is given to built a simple house. These cost about 150.000 Baht (about Ł 2000,-) and offer a small living, 1 bedroom and a lavatory. The photo on the left shows Peter van Loo handing over the donations from the Dutch pupils to the lord abbot at his anniversary. Peter lives already for quite some time in Thailand and has served as a monk in Wat Koo Tao. From his life experience he helps the Dutch pupils as translator and meditation teacher. Book tip: ‘The Invisible Ones’ is a novel by Karel van Loon that gives the refugees for the military regime in Burma a face. Autumn 2002, Karel van Loon and his family went for Stichting Vluchteling, Netherlands Refugee Foundation, to Mae Sot in Thailand. During his four months stay he was deeply touched by the stories of the Burmese refugees who live in the camps near this village. Their hair-raising life experiences were the foundation for his novel. Synopsis: Min Thein, a young lawyer in a provincial town, tries his best to help his clients, but in doing so he is more and more menaced by the military regime. Life is becoming dangerous for Min Thein and his family. When his wife gets pregnant he decides that his child deserves a better future. During their flight from Burma he looses everything dear to him. ‘The Invisible Ones’ is an impressive novel about love and loss in a forgotten country. The Maia Press Limited ISBN 10: 1-904559-18-2 ISBN 13: 9781904559184 |
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Text: Peter van Loo and Hans Stam Photos: Ruud van Bergen Translation and editing: Hans Stam Wat Koo Tao Sanamkeela Road A. Muang Chiang Mai 50200 Thailand |