Rocks Cry Out

Dharma is about gaining the utmost wisdom within yourself and is found at the the center of Thai Buddhism. Reaching nirvana, the extinction of individual passion and freedom from the cycle of reincarnation, is a prime goal. Along with these beliefs is the practice of animism and the idea that spirits are in everything and require worship and offerings. There are temples on every corner and nearly every home as a spirit house, which is as the name suggests, a home for spirits. These practices have consumed them. They have become ignorant, shutting their eyes and closing their hearts to the truth, just as Isaiah said,
“All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they are ignorant, to their own shame…half the wood he burns for the fire and over it he prepares his meal. From the rest he makes a god his idol, he bows down to it and worships. He prays to it and says, “save me, you are my god.” they know nothing, they understand nothing; their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see and minds closed so they cannot understand. No one stops to think, no one has the knowledge or understanding to say, “…should i bow down to a block of wood?” He feeds on ashes, a deluded heart misleads him; he cannot save himself or say, “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?” Isaiah 44:9,16-20

Monday was a day dedicated to prayer. We all piled in a truck and drove around the city, making stops at various places. We began at the bus stop, the hub of movement in and around the city. We also went to the university and a park that houses the city’s largest temple. After indulging in Thai tea, we visited the museum in the center of the university which tells of the city, its history and religion. It is full of Buddhist statues, spirit houses and those really big candles that stand nearly as tall as I do. Its history is written on the walls and hangs from the trees. By trees I mean the fake ones strategically placed to look like you’ve walked into a tranquil garden in the middle of a university building. We spent some time praying and studying. I found myself, head in my hands, on a bench under a tree, next to the fake well. The reality struck me: ” the gospel is veiled to those who are perishing.” So many of my prayers before this moment have been for the hurting and wounded to find comfort in Christ, for the girls subjected to prostitution, for the believers who are outcastes in their own communities, for those overwhelmed by their own sins, but never for the seemingly righteous. Tears begin to spill over my eyes as I realized that even people as “holy” as Buddhist monks are going to hell. They are full of knowledge and righteousness, yet are missing something big. The biggest point in life and death and everything in between: the gospel. The cross. The resurrection. Salvation. Eternal life. So it isn’t about being the wisest, or having the least desires, or living the most moral life- where is grace in that?