Barefoot Health: The Healthy Lifestyle Path of Monks in Thailand

Abstract

The dimensions of cultural norms and health lifestyles reveal that individuals within each society group have distinct health lifestyles. Based on 96 Thai monks, this research aims to study the healthy lifestyle path of Buddhist monks in Thailand. This investigates the plausibility of healthy lifestyles under the control of existing cultural contexts and religious institutions. The data collected from this research, which are based on free-listing and semi-structured interviews with monks, show the complexity of the health lifestyle of Thai monks. The results reveal that Thai monks need to consider living by Buddhist doctrine and healthy behavior. Therefore, the development of monks’ health needs to be done using health knowledge, the Dhamma code of discipline, and mutual Buddhist education. Monks live under the Dhamma-Vinaya, a social structure that shapes their health behaviors. Moreover, the health of monks is different from that of other population groups due to the conditions of the Book of Discipline; health behavior cannot be considered separate from the social structure, such as the health disparities observed due to dietary practices.