Iternative visions for the future development of our society (and ultimately the world at large) cannot be a clear-cut blueprint. They resemble more a varity of seeds that mutually enhance human growth – like a mosaic is made up from a number of little stones that contribute their specific colour and light to the whole.
In the same way this issue carries a mixture of different accounts of activities, experiences and ideas for a spiritual approach towards development. In their diversity they reveal, however, certain recurrent features: its interreligious and international dimensions as well as the dicisive role of the monks, to mention only a few.
The importance of Buddhadasa Bhikkhu’s • teachings cannot be stressed enough. Chulalongkorn University held a big conference and showed an exhibition in May to commemorate the 82nd birthday of this revolutionary religious thinker. That his thinking remained not just ideas but formed the basis for renewed practice is exemplified in two of our contributions on two abbot monks. TICD has in recent months taken up the task to collect data on Bhikkhus in development work in order to enable Buddhist leaders on all levels to be more aware of social realities and the situation in other localities as well as to establish better links among those Bhikkhus.
Vol.4-No.3-September-2531-1988_compressed
