Santi Asoke’s non-toxic crop cultivation as a practice to purify mental defilements: A study of Buddhastan Ratchathani Asoke, Thailand

Santi Asoke is one of the largest new Buddhist movements in Thailand. A pioneer to promote the consumption of organic food and vegetarianism in the country, Santi Asoke is also known for its successful organic farming. This study aimed to consider how Santi Asoke translated Buddhist doctrines into the practice of non-toxic crop cultivation. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with informants selected using purposive and snowball sampling methods. Key persons such as Samana Bodhirak, the founder and leader of Santi Asoke, were purposively selected while other snowball-samples were Santi Asoke members in the Buddhastan Ratchathani Asoke Pyramidal Web, Ubon Ratchathani province. Community immersion was also conducted. The findings showed that Santi Asoke’s unique style of organic and non-toxic crop cultivation was designed based on Buddhist teachings, especially those related to purification of mental defilements. An important contribution of this study is a deeper understanding that Santi Asoke did not focus only on moral restraint as generally reflected in previous scholarship but also pursued Buddhist spiritual practice through the Noble Threefold Training. The practices to cultivate morality, mental discipline, and wisdom were integrated into the development and practices of organic, non-toxic crop cultivation. In short, Santi Asoke’s organic farming is an embodiment of the Noble Threefold training. Hence, its moral and spiritual practices for purification of defilements were not only extended inwardly in the form of bodily detoxification, but also outwardly in the form of organic farming.