User:Trin28/sandbox

Article Evaluation-

Article Title- Thai Cuisine- Link to Article- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_cuisine

Notes on the Article:

The article does an extremely thorough job of presenting all of the angles and facets involved within Thai Cuisine. Perhaps the article stretched a little longer than I would have hoped when breaking down each of the regions within Thailand, but I understand the need for accuracy and sometimes even redundancy to avoid misinformation. The overall format of the article provided an easy and comprehensive roadmap for following the history as well as direction of Thai Cuisine. The only section within the article that caused me to pause and challenge the reading was the section speaking on Thai Street Food. Up until this section of the article, the information remained completely objective and simply provided the facts and information of certain aspects of Thai Cuisine. The difference that arose in the Thai Street Food section is that the article began to have a voice of a tourist or someone who simply views Thai food as a sort of spectacle. During this section of the article, they must improve in speaking on Thai Street Food objectively and providing the insight and feelings that Thai citizens themselves feel about it all.

Adding to an Article-

Name of Article- Thai Cuisine - Link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_cuisine

Parts added to the article:

Potential Topics-

Part 1: Choose your Topics

1: Name of Article: Thai Cuisine - Link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_cuisine - The Thai "Street Food" section needs to be further explored and talked about from less of a touristic perspective. An understanding of how those who grew and and live in Thailand view this niche section of their cuisine.

2: Name of Article: Fish Sauce - Link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fish_sauce - The information regarding Fish Sauce right now is extremely brief and short-lived. The article does speak about the process of how Fish Sauce is created, but sums of that entire section into a few sentences near the beginning of the page. I surely argue that this page can offer a lot more insight into not only the history of Fish Sauce, but why it has become such a staple for not only Thai Cuisine, but a large portion of East-Asian Cuisine.

3: Name of Article: Buddhist Cuisine - Link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_cuisine - The article itself provides a very impressive and detailed overview of Buddhist Cuisine as a whole. The area in which this article needs some work is speaking about the role food plays and the very cuisine itself that is involved in Buddhism in Thailand. Growing up in Thailand and visiting these temples regularly, it is clear to me the significance of food both as a way of life and as symbols for greater things: a piece of Buddhism that should not be left out of its story.

Part 2: The two choices that I am most interested in further exploring would either be exploring the Buddhist aspect of Thai Cuisine or explaining the many missing holes that speak on Food and its role in Buddhism. I believe that I can add valuable insight and find information and facts that can help further develop a stronger idea of what both of these concepts constitute.

Finalize Topic/Find Sources

Article Title: Buddhist Cuisine - Link -

Final Topic- Adding to “Variations by Region” in Buddhist Cuisine - Theravada​ฺBuddhism

Theravada Buddhism- Expand on the many different paths that Buddhist Cuisine has taken throughout the years, expand on the relationship that Theravada Buddhist monks have with the community around them, expand on the impact that this has had on the rest of the community, expand on modern iterations of this specific variation of Buddhist Cuisine.

I plan to find new sources of information outside of our class in order to provide more insight on the specific area of Buddhist Cuisine that is characterized as the Theravada branch of Buddhism. “It is the dominant form of religion in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, and is practiced by minority groups in India, Bangladesh, China, Nepal, Philippines and Vietnam” . This new variation on a cuisine isn’t literally a cuisine in its definition, but due to its continued growth in the Theravada practices of Buddhism has reached a point in which there no longer exists a temple cuisine. The overall cuisine thrives on the involvement of the community surrounding the temple, as members come on a daily basis with “merits” of both lunch and dinner. Merit-making is important to Buddhist practice: merit brings good and agreeable results, determines the quality of the next life and contributes to a person's growth towards enlightenment . This variation on Buddhist eating is found in Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar. Common

Final Draft of Additions/Changes

History of Theravada Buddhism-

Similar to that of all other Buddhist schools and teachings, Theravada Buddhism claims to adhere closest to the first Pali Canon doctrines and practices that were passed down by the Buddha . A direct translation of “Theravada” literally means “Teaching of the Elder”; it is the form of Buddhism that can most commonly be found in Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Dating back as far as the 3rd century BCE, Theravada Buddhism was also seen present in a more scattered presence in South India and Indonesia . As for modern times, there is a total estimated 100 million Theravada Buddhist worldwide . The ultimate goal of the practice being to liberate oneself from all forms of suffering and to live entirely free reached through living your life under the Four Noble Truths: Dukkha: or the noble truth of suffering, Samudaya: or the noble truth of the origin of suffering, Nirodha: or the noble truth of the cessation of suffering, Marga: or the noble truth of the way leading to the cessation of suffering. . Another one of the key differences that Theravada Buddhism has to the more commonly practiced forms of Buddhism (Mahayraha, Varjaissi), is that the community is also responsible to see that the monks/nuns do not suffer from the lack of the four requisites: Food, clothing, shelter and medicine. Due to the fact that monks and nuns are not permitted to having an occupation, they depend entirely of the laity for their sustenance. To show the gratitude and respect for this charity, the monks and nuns are expected to live and lead exemplary lives. . Lastly, the teaching of Theravada Buddhism break into four core pillars: The Supernatural, The Buddha, The God (Rather the lack of one), and The Path to Enlightenment . The Path of Enlightenment is reached through three main ways of life, the life of a scholar monk, meditation monks, and lay devotees. Scholar monks being those who study the literature, wisdom and teachings of Buddha, Mediation monks being those who reach for their inner piece with Buddha through mediation, and lastly lay devotees, the members of the community around who choose to follow and practice in the ways of Theravada Buddhism.. Different to that of scholar and meditation monks however, lay devotees are without a direct channel to Buddha, therefore are left with one way in which to show their devotion: Giving Merit.

Theravada Buddhism Cuisine-

As a result of this monastic focus, the role of lay devotees has traditionally been relegated to 'merit making' activities. These pursuits include offering food and other basic necessities to monks, making donations to temples and monasteries, burning incense or lighting candles before images of the Buddha, and chanting protective or merit-making verses from the Pali Canon.. Earning merit is not only an important but crucial aspect of everyday Theravada Buddhist life. Buddhists earn merit by giving money, goods, and labor to the temples, or by providing one of the two daily meals of the monks. Children often look after the fruits trees and vegetable gardens inside their local wat, or temple. . In addition to offering food and other basic necessities to monks, making donations to temples and monasteries, burning incense or lighting candles before images of the Buddha, and chanting protective or merit-making verses from the Pali Canon are all ways of showing one’s devotion. . All in all, the relationship between monks and lay devotees in Theravada Buddhism is very strong. This type of Buddhism could not, in fact, exist in its present form without this interaction. It is a way of mutual support - lay people supply food, medicine, and cloth for robes, and monks give spiritual support, blessings, and teachings. But this is not a tit for tat situation. Monks are not allowed to request anything from lay devotees; and lay devotees cannot demand anything from the monks. The spirit of it is more in the nature of open-hearted giving. . From all of this interaction, it is not exactly a “cuisine” by definition that is risen as a result: even so, different to that of the larger branches of Buddhism (Mahayana and Vajrayana) which both consist of in-temple cuisine, Theravada Buddhism cuisine is created and constructed by the community that live amongst them. In Thailand, Tak Bat is the name for giving merit, and as a result of this process, monks and nuns have developed a cuisine that included all sorts of different Thai dishes, but more uniquely, may also include dishes that are still being created and modernized today. Simply put, there would be no one way of defining what Theravada Cuisine: it is a cuisine that takes the form of the community and people who devote their lives to it .