The History of Jin Nikāya in Thailand: A Preliminary Study from a Socio-political Perspective

泰國佛教「華宗」之歷史初探－從社會政治學視角

劉曜憑(Yaoping Liu)

《中華佛學學報》 33期 (2020/07) Pp. 121-170

摘要

Jin Nikāya (hereafter JN), literally ＂Chinese School,＂ refers to a Mahāyāna Buddhist school founded by a group of Chinese monks sojourning in Thailand (Siam at that time) during the 1870s. JN, as one of four Buddhist schools under the jurisdiction of the unified Thai Sangha, has been active within and beyond the Thai-Chinese community for almost one hundred and fifty years. Today this school hosts around one thousand monks and novices in its eighteen temples located in different districts of Thailand. Chinese literature exists on JN, but it is scanty and mainly consists of hagiographies of its leaders. Further, English scholarship on this school is lacking. Therefore, to rectify this dearth, besides chronicling the history of JN, this paper discusses how this school of Chinese and Mahāyāna origin survived and even became increasingly popular in Theravāda-dominated Thai society. In consideration of the important roles the internal leadership has usually played in forming and sustaining a religious institution, this paper also investigates how JN's seven generations of patriarchs, coming from various Chinese sub-ethnicities, Dharma affiliations, and political identities, coped with a dynamic sociopolitical context to secure the survival of their school in Thailand. Through studying the history of JN, this paper also attempts to situate JN in the present and speculate on its future.

關鍵字

History ； Jin Nikāya ； Thailand ； Socio-political Perspective ； Patriarchs

並列摘要

「華宗」是公元1870年間由一群來自中國的比丘在泰國（時稱暹羅）成立的大乘佛教宗派，存續於泰華社會至今已150年之久。作為泰國僧伽管轄下的四個佛教傳承之一，「華宗」目前有18家寺院分佈在泰國各地，並大約有1000位常駐比丘和沙彌。現今，有關「華宗」的華文文獻雖然存在，但僅限於該宗高僧的傳記，而對於該宗的英文學術研究也相當缺乏。因此，為了改善這種情況，本文除了記述「華宗」的歷史之外，還特別探討「華宗」作為少數外來宗派是如何在泰國這個以小乘佛教為主流的國度生存。此外，考慮到內部領導者在維持一個宗教機構上所扮演的重要角色，本文也深入探討「華宗」迄今為止的七代祖師是如何應對不同歷史時期的社會政治環境。透過研究「華宗」的歷史，本文也試圖對「華宗」的現況定位，以及預測其未來。

並列關鍵字

歷史 ； 華宗 ； 泰國 ； 社會政治學視角 ； 祖師

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