Lao Buddhist Society of Hawaii

BACKGROUND :
Welcome to Wat Lao Sithammaram!
Wat Lao Sithammaram was built under the constitute of Lao Buddhist Society of Hawaii, Inc. which is a non-profitable, no partisan and religious organization.

Lao Buddhist society of Hawaii
Ven. Bounkong Singsouvanh
And
Zeune Baccam

The Lao Buddhist Society belongs to the Theravada School of Buddhism. It serves primarily the spiritual and social needs of the immigrant Lao Buddhist population in Hawaii. One of its main objectives is the preservation of the positive individual, community and cultural values of the Laotian people while they adapt to the cultural values offered by the United States of America. For this reason, the Society's activities are not limited exclusively to Buddhist rites and ceremonies. It has in mind, for now and the future, the building up of programs for the harmonious and peaceful integration of Laotian Buddhists into mainstream American society without the loss of their ethnic identity.

BRIEF HISTORY
The Lao Buddhist Society was founded in 1982 as a non - profit, tax-exempt, religious organization. By 1983, it has been duly registered with the concerned Federal and State authorities. When it was first established in 1982, the Society was headed as President by Mr. Bountham , a lay person, and a Laotian monk Ven. Bountham Sikhanttana served as the Society was housed in an apartment in the first instance, and then, in a rented house at the Kaimuki area (1342A 7th. Avenue). By the next year, the Society purchased its present site at 1801 Manaiki Place in the Kalihi valley of Honolulu. From 1983, even before occupying the present premises, the Society has been headed by Ven. Bounkong Singsouvanh, who is not only the abbot but concurrently the President and Chairperson of the Society and its Board of Directors.

ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT
The Society is managed by its Board of Directors consisting of 5 people.
Ven. Bounkong acts as the Chairperson while the rests of the Board are lay person. There is no female Board member at the present time, i.e. mid-1994. There are regular meetings to organize the Society's program of activities. Presently, the Society's membership is composed of Laotian Buddhists who are Theravadins and the program of activities is generally geared towards their needs.

OBJECTIVES
1. To united all the Lao and create harmonious atmosphere for all people regardless of race, sex, age, religious belief or nationality.
2. To promote and perpetuate HINAYANA (THERAVADA) Buddhism.
3. To provide spiritual comfort to the Lao as well as others.
4. To encourage all Lao for better adjustment in the new environment in the sense of more responsibility and more participation in community activities and for other to have greater understanding of Hinayana Buddhism of Laos.
5. To educate children to appreciate Lao culture, arts, and Buddhism in order to pass on to younger generations.
6. To coordinate with other organizations in order to find the way to build a Lao monastery.
7. To make the monastery the center of research institution of culture, arts and Buddhism.

REGULAR ACTIVTIES
The present headquarters of the Society in the Kalihi valley is a residential home converted to serve as a Buddhist temple. Due to space limitations many activities of the Society need to be organized outside of this building. Furthermore the temple's location in a residential area naturally restricts some of its activities in order to avoid the possibility of protests by neighbors. As is the practice in southeast Asia in general, and Laos in particular, visits by individuals and families to the temple to pay respect to and request for the blessings from the abbot is a frequent occurrence.

FOOD OFFERINGS

In addition to the abbot, another Laotian Theravadin monk resides at the temple. Their main midday meal is provided by the congregation either by bringing in the food to the temple by a designated family or by the monks being invited out to the home of the family responsible for the day's meal. In both cases, the roles, respectively, of the lay and ordained Sanghas, are replicated as practiced in Laos. The monk's role is to accept the offering (DANA) of the gift of sustenance. Thus the monks provide an opportunity to donor to accumulate positive merit by the Dana. In return, it is the duty of the Theravadin monks to give Buddhist blessings in order to ensure that the concerned act gainsmerit for the donor. This has been a mutually beneficial arrangement that has existed for 2,500 years of the religion.

VISIT TO HOMES

There are several occasions for which the abbot and/or the resident monk are invited to visit the homes of the individual members of the Society. As already mentioned the monks would be invited to partake of their main meal at the homes of the individual members. In Theravada practice, after this main meal the monks are forbidden to take any solid food until breakfast the following morning. Since this meal is offered on a rotating basis, the monks have an opportunity of meeting with the family members of the Society at regular intervals.

BLESSINGS

Another important occasion for the lay members to invite the monks, is for the purpose of blessing a new residence whether it be an apartment or house. In a recent immigrant group like the Laotians, residential changes are fairly frequent and the services of the monks are required with each new movement. Yet another occasion is when a member of the Society opens a shop or a professional business. On all these occasions, the abbot and/or the other monk will chant appropriate with sutras to bless the concerned homes or other places. The Paritta recitation with the spraying of holy water as well as the boundary markings by blessed strings or cords are usually praticed. Such forms of protection from evil and misfortune are commonly practiced in all of the Theravadin countries of Southeast Asia.

The services of the monks are also used to bless such other significant occasions as weddings, birth, and deaths. It is most important that when a death occurs, the departed one receives an appropriate Buddhist send-off. Even in a small, but growing community like the Laotians of Hawaii, such human events keep the two resident-monks, especially the abbot, fully preoccupied.

Similar to the practices of other religions the performance of rites relating to death are held without fall. In addition to individual rites and ceremonial services performed when a person dies, there is a collective institutionalized ceremony for the dead in Laotian Theravadin practice. Thus, one of the major events is the annual performance of the "dead people ceremony" - KHAO PADAPDIN in Laotian. This and other significant religious events are briefly described in the following paragraphs.

SPECIAL EVENTS

Major Events

The Society organizes nine special events annually. For the Laotian community in Hawaii, all these events are held at the Jarrette Intermediate School located on Palolo Avenue. Two of the nine events may, however, be regarded as major, since they area celebrated not only Jarrette,but also at Kunia farm, and open to general public. The first is the Lao new year festival known as SONGKRAN. This events falls in mid - April every year in the Theravadin counties of Southeast Asia according to the lunar calendar used in these nations. The program usually consist of the monks chanting to welcome in the new year, with the lay Laotians taking Sabbath or the five precepts. At the Kunia farm, the Buddhist ceremonies are usually followed by a concert on stage. Indigenous Laotian and other Southeast Asian foods are sold in stalls set up by Laotian and other cateres/restaurants of Oahu. The profit from selling food is donated to the Society's temple.

To the extent possible, traditional practices for the Songkran are being followed in Hawaii despite the differences in the conditions existing from Laos. It is the custom at the beginning of 'Songkran' to wash or bathe the Buddha images with scented water. It is also the practice for lay people to celebrate occasion by pouring water, usually scented, on each other, this action being symbolic of "washing out" the old year and welcoming in the new one with a clean body and mind. At Sand Island, the Society's members would accomplish these practices by building a triangular sand mountain Symbolizing Buddha , Dhamma, and Sangha, after which the people would throw water on each other. Other conventions include the young paying respect to parents, grandparents, and older folks; in return, the elders offer blessings as well as give presents, including money to the young.

The other major event that the Society celebrates annually also takes place at the Kunia farm in Honolulu. It occurs in November, a time of harvest and thanksgiving in Laos, after a month's respite from the end of the Buddhist Lent in October. In Vientiane, the capital of Laos, this joyous festival takes place at the holiest place in that country, the THAT LUANG PAGODA. It is the festival of lights whereby the whole of the capital city is lighted up with all kinds of colorful lights, lanterns, torches, electricity, and oil lamps. In Hawaii, the THAT LUANG festival, celebrated at Kunia farm, provides yet another occasion for the general public to participate and the Society to raise funds. This event follows the same procedures as for Songkran mentioned above, except that these is no pouring water among themselves by the people.

Other Occasions

Annually, there are six other occasions when the Society celebrates Buddhist events. These are held at Jarrette Intermediate School, located on Palolo Avenue. The importance of these affairs lies in the fact that they afford the Laotian community to meet face at regular intervals to practice together traditional religious rites as well as to have a social gathering.

No. Name of Celebration Month Occasion, Significance

Makhapuja March, 2,500 Bhikkhus met fortuitously on the full-moon day, and Sakyamuni expounded the PATIMOKHA, the rules of the order.
SONGKRAN April, Buddhist New Year based on lunar calendar, min-April
Visakha May, Sakyamuni Buddha Birthday,
Khaophansa July, Beginning of Buddhist Lent - Vassa
khaophadapdin September, Ceremony of remembering dead people.
Salaphatta/khao-Salaka September, Bhikkhus offer homage to Sakyamuni.
Ok Phan Sa October, End of Lent.
THAT LUANG Festival November, festival of the most sacred Pagoda in Laos.
New Year Blessing ceremony December, New year Blessing (Tak Bath)

The Teaching
Background and Basic Beliefs
As already mentioned, the Lao Buddhist Society of Hawaii belongs to the Theravada School of Buddhism. Theravada means the way of the Elders, the Elder in this case being the Arahants who had achieved Nirvana or enlightenment during the time of Sakyamuni. Such male elders as Mahakassappa, Sariputta, Mogallana, as well as the female Elders, such as Mahaprajapati and khema among many, are renowned in both Theravada and Mahayana Schools. Theravadins believe that Sakyamuni gotama Buddha was a human being who achieved Nirvana through his own efforts and that Buddha (there were many before him, and others will follow him, the next Samma SamBuddha-a teaching Buddha, being Maitriya) guide all human beings to attain enlightenment in this very life or in future lives. The emphasis is on individual effort for any human being to attain toNirvana.

The laymen and women are to pursue Dana (Liberality, generosity). SILA (Morality),and BHAVANA (Mental Development). The ordained monks are required to practice SILA (Morality), SAMADHI (Concentration), and PANNA (insight Wisdom). At this time the status of the Theravadin nuns is rather nebulous in Southeast Asian nations because their ordination procedures have lost their continuity.

In regular activities that the Society's monks follow, in household visits, as well as on other occasions after lay donors have provided the main meal, the monks, usually in return, give them the five precepts. Family members and friends, all gathered for the occasion, will recite as led by the monk-preceptor.

NAMO TASSA BAGHAVATO, ARAHATO, SAMMA SAMBUDDHADHASA (3 times) (prasise be to him, the Blessed One, the Worthy One, the Supremely Enlightend).
(i) BHUDDHAM SARANAM GECCHAMI : I take refuge in the Buddha;
(ii) DHAMMAN SARANAM GECCHAMI : I take refuge in the Dhamma;
(iii) SANGHAM SARANAM GECCHAMI : I take refuge in the Sangha
The Five precepts:
(i) PANNATIPATA VERAMANI SIKKHAM PADHAM SAMADIYAMI:
I vow to myself not to take the lives of other living beings;
(ii) ADAINNA DANA VERAMANI SIKKHAM PADHAM SAMADIYAMI:
I vow to myself not to steal;
(iii) KAMAYSU MESASARA VERAMANI SIKKHAM PADHAM SAMADIYAMI: I vow to myself not to have unlawful sex;
(iv) MUSAVADA VERAMANI SIKKHAM PADHAM SAMADIYAMI: I vow to myself not to tell lies;
(v) SURAMAIRAYA MEIKSAPAMA, DATTHANA, VERAMANI SIKKHA PADHAM ASMADIYAMI: I vow to myself not to indulge in harmful drugs.

Monks and Nuns
While the lay Buddhist practice the five Precepts, the monks and nuns are on ten (10) Precepts. In addition to the above 5 the rest include, inter alia, the use of cosmetics, etc. to beautify the body, the viewing for enjoyment of various from of entertainment such as dancing, and last but not least, the "touching" of money. In market economies that are currently prevalent even in the less-developed countries, the handing of money, for example, has become unavoidable for most of the monks and nuns. The nuns, although they are not fully ordained in all the Southeast Asia countries including Laos, due to the discontinuity in concerned rites and procedures, are supposed to follow the same VINAYA rules as the monks. At the Lao Buddhist Society, there are no nuns at the present time.

On of the important rites practiced in Theravadin countries is the no vitiation ceremony for all Buddhist males. Every male is expected to have had a taste of the monastic life at least once in a lifetime, especially at puberty. This is equivalent to the initiation rites practiced by some of the tribal societies whereby a young male has to prove himself reaching adulthood by killing an animal in the wilds. In Theravada Buddhism the moral, instead of the physical strength, is given greater importance. A young male must show that he is brave enough to test out his moral strength by going through the rigors of a somewhat ascetic life of a monk-novitiate or Samanera. In Theravada, there are two steps to becoming a full monk or Bhikkhu. Only after some years as a novitiate can one receive full ordination as a Bhikkhu. But an opportunity is offered to all males, regardless of race, class, or social level, etc. to make a choice either to fully commit oneself to the search for enlightenment or to return to lay life. In Laos, it is not uncommon for a novitiate to remain for one VASSA (Lent or a rainy season) before returning to lay life.

One of the limitations in Hawaii at this time is the fact that there are only 2 resident monks at the Lao temple. For the novitiation ceremony, 5 ordained BHIKHUS are required with one acting as the main preceptor. It is this preceptor's responsibility to take full change of training the novitiate after the initiation. While the abbot of the Society is able to take this role for the novitiates in Hawaii, the basic rites for entering the Order cannot be performed without the candidate's family spending additional expenses to invite 3 other Bhikkhus to meet Vinaya requirement of 5 such monks. Whenever possible, a group novitiation has been arranged so that the concerned families could share the expenses involved. Occasionally, it has been possible for someone from Hawaii to join a group novitiation on mainland. Since the preceptor for the Hawaii candidate should be from Hawaii if he returns home for completing the period of training, the abbot's presences, the smooth working of the practice in Laos has to be adapted to Hawaii's local situation. On the whole, however, both monks and lay persons have been able to accept these conditions and to improvise means to meet such challenges.

FUTURE OUTLOOK

The Venerable Bounkong Singsouvanh finds that the difficulties faced by the Lao Buddhist Society of Hawaii at this time are part and parcel of the Lao Buddha's teaching of change and flux in the flow of life. As the leader of the Laotian community, he is fully convinced that while needing to adapt to the prevailing conditions of American Society , the Laotian Buddhists need not give up the basic moral and mind development programs required by their form of Buddhism. Firstly, in these changing patterns he also foresees the need to adjust to having members of other ethnic groups participate in the activities of the Society. Although the two main events held annually at Kunia farm in April and November are open to the general public for exposure and contact with other ethnic groups, that is not enough. It is necessary to encourage greater inter-ethnic relationships when an immigrant population adjusts to an established culture. The harmonization of the best elements of the two culture, immigrant with the established, can only be achieved by organizing specific action programs.

Secondly, it is obviously necessary for the Lao Buddhist Society to relate itself to Buddhist groups belonging to other Schools,i.e. Mahayana, Vajrayana and Zen. For this purpose, it is essential for the Society to participate in programs developed by such an ecumenical Buddhist group as the Hawaii Association of International Buddhists (HAIB).

Last but not least, the Society's abbot believes that it is essential to network with other Theravadins in Hawaii. For example, since all Theravadins practice the novitiation rites for the males, it would be feasible for the existing Theravadin groups to combine their resources, on an ad hoc basis, when and as necessary, to have the five Bhikkhus necessary to perform the initiation rites, perhaps on a periodic basis. This kind of dynamism is offered by the situation in Hawaii. It is for Theravadins to take advantage of the open Society of America of which Hawaii is a part. Another example, whereby the Theravadins could combine their efforts, relate to that of VIPASSNA or insight meditation. In existing conditions, the Lao Buddhist Society and abbot are not able, at this time, to offer programs of training for meditation. While the Society provides programs for the practice of charity and morality, there is a lack of programs for mental development or BHAVANA, leaving this important part to the individual members to look out for themselves. Joint programs for the training and practice of meditation would, indeed, be feasible if combined efforts are made with other Theravadin groups. The abbot believes that the Buddhists in Hawaii should practice Unity in Diversity for all of them to advance spiritually in this highly materialistic Society.

Reference: Hawaii Association of International Buddhists (HAIB), Unity in Diversity: Hawaii's Buddhist Communities, HAIB 1997

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